The ongoing crisis, the world‘s worst atomic accident since Chernobyl, has ignited debate in Japan about the safety of nuclear power, which before the disaster accounted for a third of its electricity needs.
The centre-left government ordered a round of initial tests on other atomic power plants after the disaster, and said the new stress tests aimed to reassure the public that the facilities are safe.
“The safety of nuclear power plants has been secured, but this is to gain a further sense of security among the people,” said Trade, Economy and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda, according to the Jiji Press news agency.
In the wake of the Fukushima crisis, the European Union ordered stress tests for its 143 nuclear plants, saying it would look at how they could withstand extreme and multiple disasters previously considered unthinkable.
The European Union in May announced stress tests starting June 1, saying in a press statement that Japan’s cascading series of disasters had shown that “the unthinkable can happen”.
European officials also said nuclear facilities would be tested for their resilience to quakes, floods, extreme cold, extreme heat, snow, ice, storms, tornadoes, heavy rain and other extreme natural conditions. The tests would also cover synthetic events such as aircraft crashes, explosions and fires, whether they are accidents or terrorist strikes.
Only 19 of Japan‘s 54 reactors are now operating, with more due to shut down for regular checks soon, forcing companies and households to save power in the sweltering summer months.
(아주경제 앤드류 이 기자)
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com