WIT Life #206: Japan’s Energy Policy
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
As we begin experiencing the dog days of summer, 
Japan has decided that it will restart one of its nuclear power plants to meet the energy needs of this hot period. Reactor No. 3 at the Oi Power Plant in Fukui Prefecture is due to be reactivated tomorrow, and the nearby No. 4 reactor has also been scheduled for restart at a later date. There was a huge protest at the plant last Friday night in response to this announcement, with the crowd chanting ｢再稼動反対！」 (saikado hantai) or “No to nuclear restarts.”
In terms of electricity conservation efforts, Japan’s power companies have agreed to reductions in supply ranging from 5-15%, and they will implement rolling blackouts when necessary. The Japanese government has set up three options for future energy policy, looking at the year 2030 as a yardstick. The first is 脱原発 (datsugenpatsu) or denuclearization, meaning 0% reliance on nuclear power by that time. The second option is 15% reliance on nuclear power, which will be achieved by decommissioning nuclear reactors that have been in service for 40 years. The final option is 20-25% reliance on nuclear power, which would require the building of new facilities.
The timeline going forward will be to listen to citizen’s opinions through the end of this month, hold hearings as well as carry out surveys through the beginning of next month, and make a final decision on future energy policy by the end of August. They are also in the process of trying to establish a new Nuclear Regulatory Committee which will provide oversight of the industry. Needless to say, this is a very crucial period for Japanese energy policy so stay tuned!
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