Japan Press Weekly

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2010 February 10 - 16 [ENVIRONMENT]

Government OKs ‘Monju’ resumption of operations

The nuclear reactor which uses plutonium as its reactor fuel has been shut down for 14 years after a fire incident that occurred in 1995.

The resumption of the “Monju” operation had been postponed four times due to repeated problems associated with safety.

Launching the development of fast-breeder reactors earlier than Japan, the U.S., the U.K, France, and Germany have all abandoned their projects because of technical difficulties and the enormous costs associated with them.

The Japanese government has already spent 900 billion yen for the construction and operation of “Monju.” Resuming operations will necessitate a further vast use of taxpayers’ money.

It has been established that a 15-meter active fault that can cause a 6.8-magnitude earthquake runs very close to “Monju”. An earthquake of that magnitude could lead to accidents much worse than the one occurred 14 years ago due to a fire.
- Akahata, February 11, 2010