Japan Press Weekly

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2017 June 14 - 20 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Court dismisses residents’ injunction request against restart of two reactors at Genkai NPP

The Saga District Court on June 13 rejected a request from a group of Saga and Fukuoka residents for an injunction against the reactivation of Nos 3 and 4 reactors at the Genkai nuclear power plant in Saga Prefecture.

The court in the ruling deemed the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s new safety standards to be reasonable and said that the NRA properly approved the Kyushu Electric Power Company’s application for the restart of the two reactors.

The plaintiffs in their court battle cited the fact that pipes at the Genkai NPP were found to be damaged and voiced their concern over the safety of Nos 3 and 4 units. The court, however, showed its reluctance to respond to the plaintiff’s concern, saying that necessary safety measures were implemented.

After the ruling, the plaintiffs’ group held a press conference. The group’s leader Ishimaru Hatsumi criticized the court ruling for blindly supporting the utility’s claim and said, “The judiciary abandoned its role.” She expressed her determination to continue to fight, saying, “The issue of nuclear power generation is a matter of protecting people’s life. I’ll never give up.”

Past related article:
> Genkai NPP meets safety standards according to regulation authority [November 10, 2016]