Ogasawara Chief to Clarify Stance on N-Waste Site Survey

Tokyo, April 1 (Jiji Press)–The Ogasawara village office said Wednesday that Mayor Masaaki Shibuya will later this month make locals know how he will respond to a government request for the village to allow a literature survey to examine the feasibility of constructing a final disposal facility for highly radioactive nuclear waste on Minamitorishima, a remote islet of the Ogasawara Islands. Shibuya will meet with residents on the afternoon of April 13, once each on Chichijima and Hahajima, the two inhabited islands of the Ogasawara group in the Pacific, which belongs to Tokyo. Minamitorishima is Japan’s easternmost island about 1,950 kilometers southeast of central Tokyo. The village chief will try to “directly get his idea across while keeping in mind opinions from inside and outside the village” at the briefing sessions, the office said on its website. Shibuya will specifically explain how to proceed with discussions before making a decision on whether to accept the initial round of the three-stage survey to select a final disposal site, people familiar with the matter said. In March, the industry ministry asked the village to give the nod to the literature survey of Minamitorishima and held community meetings jointly with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization of Japan, or NUMO, on Chichijima and Hahajima to outline the way the research will be conducted. According to NUMO, some participating residents in the meetings expressed concerns about the possibility of the proposed facility damaging surrounding environment and causing rumors harmful to the entire Ogasawara Islands, a World Heritage site whose unique eco systems are attracting many tourists. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]