Aomori Prefecture, Rokkasho Village and Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. have signed a 'Safety Agreement' for uranium trials at the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant1. Entitled 'Agreement to Ensure Safety of the Surrounding Area and Protection of the Environment', it is in fact an agreement to endanger the safety of the surrounding area and the environment by commencing uranium trials. It is an agreement to contaminate all the facilities at the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant along with the surrounding environment with a radioactive substance, namely depleted uranium. As such, we protest against this 'agreement'.
Many commentators, from a wide range of positions have pointed out that, even if, against all odds, the plant ever commences operations, it will be unable to continue to operate, either because of the unreliability of the technology and the inadequacy of the quality assurance system, or because of international concern about the extraction of plutonium for which there is no foreseeable end use. If, regardless of these problems, it is once contaminated with radioactivity, the subsequent clean-up will become much more difficult. It is all too easy for the citizens of Aomori Prefecture and Rokkasho Village to become dependent on the taxes that will flow from the reprocessing plant, but inevitably the burden of its financial collapse and the danger of the radiation it entails will weigh heavily upon them. How, one wonders, do the Governor of Aomori and the Mayor of Rokkasho propose to take responsibility for this state of affairs?
A committee of the Atomic Energy Commission is currently developing a new Long-Term Nuclear Program2. A majority of the members of this committee agreed to an intermediate report which supported a nuclear fuel cycle policy based on the reprocessing of spent fuel. However, from the outset this majority was selected so that it would make precisely this decision. Nevertheless, the committee's chairperson, Shunsuke Kondo pointed out that the committee's role "only relates to basic policy" and that it is not empowered to approve the construction and operation of the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant. None of the basic conditions for operating the plant, including the allocation of responsibility in the case of an accident, have been met.
It is still not too late. We appeal in the strongest possible terms to the Governor, the Mayor and to the citizens, in order to truly ensure safety and security, to stop these uranium tests. We also appeal to JNFL to cancel plans for the construction3 and operation of the reprocessing plant.
Notes:
1. In fact, agreements still have to be signed with six other local councils before the tests can begin. This may take some time.
2. Click here for more information on the deliberations for the new Long-Term Nuclear Program.
3. Construction of the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant is essentially complete, but it is officially said to be 95% complete until these tests are over.
