High Court Rejects Petition to Halt Reactors in Southwestern Japan

Fukuoka, Jan. 20 (Jiji Press)–A high court dismissed Tuesday a petition seeking to halt the operations of the No. 3 and No. 4 reactors at Kyushu Electric Power Co.’s Genkai nuclear power station in southwestern Japan. Fukuoka High Court turned down the request filed by about 300 residents near the plant in the town of Genkai in Saga Prefecture, upholding a ruling handed down by Saga District Court in 2021. In the lawsuit filed against the Japanese government and Kyushu Electric, the plaintiffs argued that the size of a potential earthquake has been underestimated in the calculation of seismic ground motion used for the earthquake-resistant design of the reactors. They demanded that a different calculation formula be used to appropriately evaluate the earthquake size. The government and Kyushu Electric argued that seismic ground motion was calculated after the earthquake size was evaluated for better safety based on the latest scientific and technological knowledge. Presiding Judge Gunichi Kurushima pointed out that changing the calculation method “could amount to altering the standard methodology.” The judge said that Kyushu Electric’s method to calculate seismic ground motion “cannot be described as unreasonable” and that the benchmark ground motion had not been underestimated. It cannot be said there were errors or deficiencies that cannot be condoned in the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s review of the benchmark ground motion calculated by Kyushu Electric and in the authority’s conclusion over the matter, the judge added. Katsuhiko Kabuki, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, expressed anger over the ruling at a press conference, saying, “None of the arguments we presented at the appellate stage were taken into consideration.” The NRA said that it will ensure appropriate regulations by continuing to strictly examine whether nuclear facilities meet new safety standards. Kyushu Electric said it thinks that its arguments were upheld by the high court. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]