Japan to scrap nuclear power in favour of renewables

The prime minister says Japan must 'start from scratch' and abandon its plan to obtain half its energy from atomic power
Associated Press guardian.co.uk 10 May 11;

Japan will scrap a plan to obtain half of its electricity from nuclear power and will instead promote renewable energy as a result of its nuclear crisis, the prime minister said Tuesday.

Naoto Kan said Japan needs to "start from scratch" on its long-term energy policy after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was heavily damaged by a 11 March earthquake and tsunami and began leaking radiation.

Japan's nuclear plants supplied about 30% of the country's electricity, and the government had planned to raise that to 50%.

Kan told a news conference that nuclear and fossil fuel used to be the pillars of Japanese energy policy but now it will add two more – renewable energy such as solar, wind and biomass, and an increased focus on conservation.

"We will thoroughly ensure safety for nuclear power generation and make efforts to further promote renewable energy," an area where Japan has lagged behind Europe and the US, he said.

On Monday a landmark report by the UN's climate science body, the IPCC, said that renewable energy could account for 80% of the world's energy supply by 2050 – but only if governments pursue the right policies.

Kan also said he would take a pay cut beginning in June until the Fukushima nuclear crisis is resolved to take responsibility as part of the government that has promoted nuclear energy. He didn't specify how much of a pay cut he would take.

The operator of the stricken power plant, Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), has been struggling for nearly two months to restore critical cooling systems that were knocked out by the disaster. Some 80,000 people living within a 12-mile radius of the plant were evacuated from their homes on 12 March, with many living in gymnasiums.

On Tuesday, about 100 evacuees were allowed into that exclusion zone briefly to gather belongings from their homes.

The excursion marked the first time the government has felt confident enough in the safety of the area to allow even short trips there. Residents have been pushing hard for weeks for permission to check up on their homes.

The evacuees boarded chartered government buses for the two-hour visit.

They were provided with protective suits, goggles and face masks to wear while in the zone, and were issued plastic bags to put their belongings in. They were also given dosimeters to monitor radiation levels and walkie-talkies.

All were to be screened for radiation contamination after leaving the zone.

More visits are planned, but residents fear they may never be able to return for good.

Many had been secretly sneaking back into the zone during the day, but the government – concerned over safety and the possibility of theft – began enforcing stricter roadblocks and imposing fines on 22 April.

The official visits were seen as a compromise that took both safety and the wishes of the residents into consideration.

The government and Tepco in April projected that bringing the plant to a cold shutdown could take six to nine months and residents might be able to return to resume their lives. But they admit that timing is a best-case scenario.

On Monday, another utility, Chubu Electric Power Co, agreed to shutter three reactors at a coastal power plant while it builds a seawall and improves other tsunami defenses there.

Kan requested the temporary shutdown at the Hamaoka plant amid predictions an earthquake of magnitude 8.0 or higher could strike the central Japanese region within 30 years. The government's decision came after evaluating Japan's 54 reactors for quake and tsunami vulnerability after the 11 March disasters. The Hamaoka facility sits above a major fault line and has long been considered Japan's riskiest nuclear power plant.

Kan said Japan will have to compile Japan's new energy policy in a report for submission to the International Atomic Energy Agency in June. He didn't give any numerical estimates for each source of energy in the new policy.

Japan 'to review energy policy' over nuclear crisis
BBC News 10 May 11;

Japan is to reconsider plans to increase its reliance on nuclear power in the wake of the crisis at the Fukushima plant.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Japan had to start from scratch with its energy plans following the disaster.

The plant has been leaking radiation since the 11 March earthquake and subsequent tsunami damaged cooling systems to the reactors.

Operator Tepco has asked for government help to compensate those affected.

More than 80,000 local residents living within a 20km (12 mile) radius of the plant have been evacuated from their homes.

Agriculture and businesses have been hit and there is no timescale yet for allowing residents to return, although a small group were allowed inside the no-go zone briefly on Tuesday to gather belongings.

Total compensation claims are not yet known, but analysts say they may be more than $100bn (£61bn).
'Big incident'

Nuclear plants currently supply about 30% of Japan's electricity.

Addressing a news conference, Mr Kan described nuclear power as a "major pillar" of Japanese society, along with fossil fuels.

But he said other forms of energy would also be key in the future.

"The current basic energy policy envisages that over 50% of total electricity supply will come from nuclear power while more than 20% will come from renewable power in 2030," he said.

"But that basic plan needs to be reviewed now from scratch after this big incident."

"Better safety must be ensured in nuclear power while renewables need to be promoted."

He said greater focus would also be placed on ways of conserving energy, turning Japan into an "energy-saving society".

Mr Kan also said he would not take his prime minister's salary until the plant was under control and would be paid only as a member of parliament.

Tepco (Tokyo Electric Power Company) has said that it may take up to nine months to achieve a cold shut-down at the nuclear plant, which workers are struggling to stabilise.

Cooling systems were knocked out, causing fuel rods to overheat. There were subsequently explosions at four reactors operating at the time of the earthquake.

Engineers are pumping water into the reactors to cool them as they work to restore the damaged cooling systems.

Mr Kan's comments came hours after Tepco said it had presented a formal written request for assistance to Economy Minister Banri Kaieda.

In a statement, the company said it faced "an extremely severe situation" in terms of raising funds and that it needed state help so that "fair and prompt" compensation could be paid to local residents.

It has promised to restructure and executive salaries have already been reduced.

Japan's biggest power utility also faces billions of dollars in extra fuel costs to make up for reactor closures at Fukushima.

Shares in Tepco - which serves an area that accounts for 33% of Japan's economy - have plunged since the earthquake and subsequent tsunami.

On Tuesday, Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda hinted that the government would give Tepco some form of support.

"They can't be allowed to face bankruptcy," said Penn Bowers, an analyst at CLSA in Tokyo. "I think everyone understands they can't be allowed to fail."