City in Ibaraki accepts first stage survey for nuclear waste site

Hitachiomiya, Ibaraki Pref. – The mayor of Hitachiomiya in Ibaraki Prefecture said Wednesday that the city would accept a literature survey for choosing a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste from nuclear power plants in the country.

“After repeated careful consideration, I’ve decided to accept” the survey, Sadayuki Suzuki told a press conference held at the city government office.

The final disposal of nuclear waste is “a pressing task for the country,” Suzuki said. “Contributing to the national policy as a municipality will be extremely meaningful.”

Hitachiomiya is the fifth site in the country to accept a literature survey, after the town of Suttsu and the village of Kamoenai, both in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, the town of Genkai in the southwestern prefecture of Saga and Minamitorishima, a remote Tokyo island. The Ibaraki city is the first in the country’s Honshu main island to agree to the survey.

Up to ¥2 billion ($12.6 million) in state subsidies will be provided to each municipality that accepts a literature survey, the first stage of the three-tier process to choose a final disposal site.

For Hitachiomiya, whose population is decreasing, “the major national project may become a solid foundation for the city’s existence,” Suzuki said.

“The survey may be something that would bring misfortune for opposing residents but would be an opportunity for those in favor,” the mayor said. “We have no right to deprive future generations of choices,” he added.

While the city has not held any briefing sessions for its residents, Suzuki vowed to provide in-depth explanations during the two-year period for the literature survey.

He indicated that the city should adopt some kind of process, such as a local referendum, if it hopes to move to the second-stage preliminary investigation after the literature survey.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, industry minister Ryosei Akazawa expressed his gratitude for Hitachiomiya’s decision. “We hope to continue working on increasing areas accepting the literature survey,” he said.

Ibaraki Gov. Kazuhiko Oigawa said in a statement released on the day that the prefectural government has “nothing in particular to say” about Hitachiomiya’s decision.

At the end of August, the industry ministry requested Hitachiomiya to accept the survey.

On Tuesday, Suzuki held talks with Akazawa. After receiving an explanation about information sharing to prevent reputational damage, Suzuki said that concerns that he previously had were “almost resolved.”

The literature survey involves analyses of volcanos and active faults based on geological maps and other materials. Drilling work is conducted in the second-stage preliminary investigation, and an underground facility is constructed in the final-stage detailed investigation.