Japanese PM Urges Japan Wide Nuclear Debris Contamination To Show Solidarity

Shortly after the nation’s remembrance of the first anniversary of the disaster, Yoshihiko Noda, the prime minister, urged local government authorities across Japan to accept and help safely dispose of the accumulated 22.5 million tons of debris.

The issue is causing growing concern in Japan, with dozens of regions refusing to accept any of the tsunami-generated rubbish due to stiff opposition from residents concerned about radiation contamination.

In the meantime, mountains of cleared-up debris – including broken houses, smashed cars, splintered trees – are accumulating across the worst-hit prefectures Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima, despite government reassurances that it poses no radiation threat to human health.

Speaking in a press conference, Mr Noda said: “The world lavished praise on the spirit of the Japanese for helping one another in the aftermath of the disaster.

“That Japanese psyche is being tested again. The processing of debris is a symbol of that.”

He added: “I urge the public to recognise that we are all directly involved in reconstruction.”

The prime minister’s plea was made shortly after the first anniversary of last year’s March 11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster, which claimed the lives of more than 19,000 people.

It coincided with reports that a growing number of residents evacuated from Fukushima prefecture, home to the damaged nuclear power plant, have given up hope of returning to their hometowns.

Only 57 per cent of evacuees from Fukushima recently said that they wished to return home – compared to 87 per cent one month after the disaster, according to a survey by the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun.

Tens of thousands of residents were evacuated from the Fukushima region after last year’s tsunami cut power in the plant, knocking out critical cooling functions and resulting in a series of explosions and meltdowns.

Local authorities are slowly starting to move back into the areas fringing the evacuation zone around the plant, in order to begin the painstaking task of decontamination and rebuilding the trust of communities concerned about future health risks.

One year after the disaster, nuclear safety remains a key issue of concern in Japan, with anti-nuclear public sentiment continuing to grow among many residents across the country.

The public are unlikely to feel reassured by reports that only two of the nation’s nuclear plants have built up their sea walls following last year’s disaster – one of which is Fukushima Daiichi, the damaged plant at the heart of the crisis, according to a survey by AP.