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Japan to get back on nuclear grid

September 10, 2014

Two reactors have cleared the first safety hurdle to resume operations since all of Japan's nuclear plants were shut down. Activists and locals doubt that the power station can handle all possible disasters.

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Sendai Nuclear Power Station
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo

The Sendai Nuclear Power Station in southern Japan gained preliminary approval to restart its two reactors on Wednesday, the first plant to do so since the 2011 Fukushima crisis prompted a nationwide blackout on nuclear energy.

Commissioners of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority unanimously approved the 400-page safety report completed in July, following a month-long review. The plant has been idling for three years while it underwent upgrades in design and safety.

But while the reactors meet the organization's stringent new safety standards, both government and local community approval are necessary to put the plant back online. Residents of Satsumasendai, where the plan is located, expressed concerns over evacuation plans and the risk presented by the nearby Sakurajima volcano.

An earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 triggered meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has promised to get Japan's nuclear power stations back to work after the last were shut down a year ago, trying to sway a wary public of the need to return to an energy source that once supplied 30 percent of the nation's power.

Currently, dependence on expensive imported fuel is hurting the bottom line of the world's third largest economy.

Preventing the green revolution

Not everyone is convinced that nuclear energy is necessary, however. Kazue Suzuki of Greenpeace Japan accused the government of "attempting to prevent the green revolution" in their rush to return to atomic power.

A protester holds an anti-nuclear sign
Protestors during Shinzo Abe's visit to BerlinImage: Reuters

"The government should be focusing its efforts on managing the ongoing nuclear disaster at Fukushima," continued Suzuki. The organization added that politicians were glossing over the fact that the country had managed one full year without nuclear energy.

Japan currently has 48 silent nuclear reactors, some of which are more than 40 years old.

es/se (AP, AFP, Reuters)