Reporting from Tokyo—
A Japanese utility agreed Monday to take its reactors offline at a seaside
nuclear power plant, just days after Prime Minister Naoto Kan called for the
shutdown over concerns that a strong earthquake and tsunami could provoke
another nuclear crisis.
Board members of the Chubu Electric Power Co., Japan'sthird-largest electric
supplier, had met behind closed doors over the weekend before announcing
late Monday that the utility would temporarily shut down the three reactors
at its Hamaoka facility in Nagoya.
Kan's extraordinary request last week signaled that Japan's central
government would at least for now seek to rein in an industry that in recent
years has wielded increasing influence in the ongoing national debate over
Japan's energy policies.
After a 9.0-magnitude quake March 11 triggered a tsunami that damaged the
coastal Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, spewing radioactivity into the
nearby atmosphere, government officials evaluated the nation's 54 reactors
for vulnerability in case of a similar disaster — prompting Kan's call for a
shutdown.
Chubu President Akihisa Mizuno said the crisis at theFukushima plant had
triggered widespread concerns about nuclear energy.
"We decided to stand by a policy of putting safety first in our nuclear
power business," Mizuno said in a nationally televised news conference.
He said the reactors would stay offline until the company had built a taller
tsunami wall and put in place other safety measures, which could take as
long as two years to complete.
Without the three reactors, the company is expected to have just enough
electricity to get through the summer, when energy use peaks. But analysts
said factories and major companies with operations near Nagoya could face an
energy shortfall if temperatures soar above average.
The decision came after the company's chairman, Toshio Mita, returned
earlier in the day from the Middle East on a mission to purchase liquefied
natural gas to use in lieu of the plant's nuclear-generated power.
Kan called the company's decision "extremely good."
"The government has to make sure that the electricity supply is sufficient,"
he told reporters.
The government had raised concerns about the Hamaoka plant because the
complex is in an area that experts believe is at risk of a major quake. The
Headquarters for Earthquake Promotion Research has predicted an 87% chance
for an 8.0-magnitude quake near the plant sometime in the next 30 years.
The Hamaoka plant is built to withstand an 8.5-magnitude quake and a 26-foot
tsunami.
"The Hamaoka nuclear plant sits directly on top of this fault," said Toru
Ishii, an official in the Education and Science Ministry's earthquake
disaster prevention research division.
In another move many view as a get-tough policy on Japan's nuclear industry,
Kan over the weekend increased the scope of the compensation that Tokyo
Electric Power Co., which operates the Fukushima plant, should pay. Kan said
the payments should cover all damage, including that caused by unfounded
fears of radiation.
The agricultural, livestock and fishing industries in the Fukushima
prefecture near the stricken plant have all taken a severe hit from fears
that their products are contaminated. The government said it would add
losses suffered by those industries to its payment guidelines.
But the central government has stopped short of declaring all-out war
against the nuclear industry. This weekend, a high-ranking official insisted
that nuclear power would remain a large part of Japan's energy policy
despite the ongoing crisis.
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said there was "no need to
worry" about any reactors other than the ones at the Hamaoka plant.
Japan derives more than one-third of its electrical power from nuclear
energy, and industry proponents had argued that shutting down the three
reactors would worsen power shortages anticipated for this summer, despite
public efforts to scale back on neon lighting, air-conditioning and
escalators around Tokyo.
Located 125 miles west of the capital city, the Hamaoka plant provides
service to 16 million people in central Japan, making it one of the region's
major power suppliers, with customers including Toyota and other heavy
industries.
Environmentalists have applauded Kan's plans. In a recent statement
Greenpeace called Hamaoka "one of the most dangerous nuclear reactors in
Japan."
Some experts raised questions about the government's move.
"I am all for the government's shutting down all nuclear reactors in Japan,
but in this case there was no legal basis for its action," said Hiroaki
Koide, a nuclear expert and professor at Kyoto University.
Critics said the government had failed to explain why it reached its
decision.
"The government's decision-making process is a black box," said Hiromasa
Yonekura, chairman of the influential business lobby Nippon Keidanren. "All
we get to hear is the result."
