A welter of conflicting legal decisions has left Japan’s nuclear reactors in a state of limbo. The reactors are being turned on and off like light switches as activists file lawsuits. The industry received a small boost on Wednesday when a court refused to shut down the only operating reactor at Sendai. But another court shut down the only other operating reactor at Takahama last month.
FT 6th April 2016 read more »
Radioactive wild boars which are ‘breeding like rabbits’ are overwhelming the Fukushima Nuclear disaster zone. The boar population, which has increased by 330 per cent in the four years since the disaster, has been devastating the crops of farms in the area. Around 13,000 of the boars are in the exclusion zone, which stretches in a 12-mile radius from the plant.
Mirror 7th April 2016 read more »
Daily Star 7th April 2016 read more »
A Japanese high court today rejected an appeal by local residents seeking a temporary injunction against the operation of units 1 and 2 of Kyushu Electric Power Company’s Sendai nuclear power plant in Kagoshima prefecture. The units are the only reactors currently in operation in Japan.
World Nuclear News 6th April 2016 read more »
The head of the nuclear regulatory body Wednesday urged Kansai Electric Power Co. to understand the seriousness of a recent incident at one of its reactors, as the case had “a large impact on society” and diminished public trust in the safety of nuclear power operations. The Nuclear Regulation Authority approved Kansai Electric’s report on the cause of the incident and preventive steps to be taken during a regular meeting, but Shunichi Tanaka, chairman of the body, said the utility should reflect on the incident seriously. The No. 4 unit at the company’s Takahama nuclear plant, on the Sea of Japan coast about 380 kilometers west of Tokyo, has been kept offline since it shut down automatically Feb. 29 after problems with a generator and a transformer triggered alarms. The emergency shutdown occurred just three days after the reactor’s restart following the NRA’s approval of resumption of operations. The regulator gave the go-ahead for restart last year based on tougher safety regulations adopted after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
Japan Times 6th April 2016 read more »