Statement Calling for the Ceasing of Operations of the Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plants
May 20, 2002
Atsushi Shimokoube (Former Vice Minister of the National Land Agency)
Yukika Souma ( Vice Chairperson of Yukio Ozaki Memorial Foundation)
Toshiro Nishigori (Former Vice Chairman of the Japan Association of
Solar Thermal Utilization) Seiichi Mizuno (Former Member of the House
of Councilors)
Akira Hasegawa(Maxwell Award Winner and Former Division
Chairman,DPP,APS) Mitsuhei Murata (Former Japanese Ambassador to
Switzerland)
This statement signed by the above members calls upon the leaders and
people of Japan to initiate immediate action to prevent a catastrophic
accident at the Hamaoka nuclear plants run by Chubu Electric Company,
and located at the center of a source region where a M8 earthquake is
predicted.
Last November, Hamaoka Unit 1 had a pipe rupture accident in its
Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS). Two days later, a radioactive
water leak was found from the reactor vessel of the same unit. The
exact causes of the pipe rupture are yet to be clarified. These serious
accidents substantially undermine, once again, the credibility of the
nuclear power industry.
Dr. Kiyoo Mogi, an honorary professor emeritus of Tokyo University, and
former chairman of the Coordination Committee for Earthquake Prediction
and also former chairman of the Earthquake Assessment Committee for
Tokai Earthquake gave warnings about the Hamaoka nuclear plants in
relation to the predicted Tokai Earthquake. He wrote four articles in
the editorials of Shizuoka newspaper dated November 13 and December 9,
2001, and March 5 and June 5, 2002. The following are the main points
from Dr. Mogi's articles.
1. Compared to the very stable ground of western nations where most
nuclear plants are located, the ground in Japan is quite unstable and
big earthquakes frequently occur.
2. As we have seen from the experience of 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji
Earthquake Disaster, the so-called the "Safety myth" about
earthquake-resistant structure is not dependable. Each time a big
earthquake occurs, revisions are repeatedly made on
earthquake-resistance standards. It is a fact that we can never avoid
uncertainty regarding the earthquake resistance issue.
3. The Coordination Committee for Earthquake Prediction has been
pointing out the possibility of a M8 class earthquake in the Tokai
region since 1969. Consequently, the entire nation has been making
efforts to predict the Tokai Earthquake and mitigate its foreseen
disasters. In the meantime, four nuclear plants have been constructed
one after another at the center of the predicted source region. This is
simply an abnormal situation and can never be accepted.
It is extremely regrettable that these persuasive warnings have never
been taken seriously by the parties concerned. Regarding the
possibility of a nuclear disaster caused by an earthquake, it was first
announced by a professor of seismology, Katsuhiko Ishibashi of Kobe
University in the October 1997 edition of "The Science" published by
Iwanami Shoten.
Japan was the first victim of the military use of nuclear energy.
However, our country is still promoting civil use of nuclear energy,
without taking any lessons from frequent serious accidents including
the criticality accident in Tokaimura in 1999. It is as if we are now
treading the path towards becoming a victim country because of the
civil use of nuclear energy. The reason why we have decided to issue
our statement is to prevent such a situation by any means possible.
Even if we are able to stop operation of a nuclear reactor immediately,
it will take approximately three months to let the decay heat to settle
down under the safety level. In other words, if the cooling mechanism
does not function properly during that period, there is a high
possibility that a core meltdown will take place.
Imagine a situation in which a Chernobyl-class accident occurs in
Japan. Unlike the former Soviet Union, we do not have any system that
enables the mobilization of nearly 900,000 people to overcome the
accident. There would be immeasurable consequences, not only on the
current generation, but also on generations to come. In addition, we
cannot expect any rescue teams from overseas at the accident site,
where controlling the situation would most likely be impossible. There
would be a huge scale of radiation damage not only on citizens, but
also on related industries, local municipalities, fire and police
department personnel and the Self Defense Forces.
When it comes to a nuclear disaster caused by an earthquake, it will be
impossible to overcome the aftermath of the accident, which could lead
to a situation in which Japan destroys the world. It is self-evident
that Hamaoka nuclear power plant should be made to cease operations at
the earliest opportunity, whatever the costs.
After September 11, 2001, it has become commonly recognized that more
than 430 nuclear plants and nuclear facilities such as reprocessing
plants could become weapons of mass destruction once they become the
targets of terrorism. It is manifested by the unanimous agreement
reached by the New York City Council on March 19 to study the
possibility of closing the Indian Point nuclear plants. Before reaching
this agreement, 30 municipalities and two counties came up with their
own resolutions and some environmental groups gathered 7000 petition
signatures from local citizens. In western nations, we can see that
civil society has played a key role in making nuclear phase-out a main
current.
Japan is now facing a numerous of problems- a stagnating economy, the
deepening unemployment issue, widespread social destruction and so
forth. But the nuclear disaster caused by an earthquake is a problem
incomparable with these. It could cause catastrophic consequences to
the people of Japan. This notwithstanding, the sense of crisis is
totally lacking among the people. This current situation needs to be
corrected immediately.
Even if we close all the nuclear plants in Hamaoka, we can cover the
electricity demand sufficiently. If private companies suffer from a
large amount of losses due to the ceasing of operations of the nuclear
plants, the government and local municipalities should provide them
with compensation from the standpoint of disaster prevention and crisis
management, as is the case in western nations. Needless to say, it
should be the top priority for those who are engaged in politics, to
protect the lives and properties of the people.
In order to solve this problem in such a direction, each one of us
should recognize our responsibility and engage in action. What is now
needed is the initiation of a process in which citizens create a public
opinion, calling for the ceasing of operations of the Hamaoka nuclear
plants and, local municipalities, against this background, acting in
consequence. This will eventually move the central government. We
sincerely hope leaders and every citizen in Japan will stand up and
initiate action to achieve this goal.
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