nuclear-news

Nuclear waste near ‘Mount Fuji of Hokkaido?’ Ski towns fear chill, Nikkei Asia, 4 Dec 20Local businesses in Niseko worry over loss of revenue and investors.  SAPPORO, Japan — Niseko, an area renowned for its ski resorts on the northern island of Hokkaido that draws foreign skiers from around the world, has been shaken up by nearby towns’ far-off plans to accept nuclear waste in exchange for generous government subsidies.

The towns of Suttsu and Kamoenai have both applied for preliminary feasibility surveys to be considered for a site that will store waste from the nation’s nuclear power plants. The cash-starved towns struggling with declining populations are poised to each pocket 2 billion yen ($19 million) promised by the government for taking part in the studies alone.

Although whole selection process takes 20 years, the applications have touched off an outpouring of opposition from locals as well as from across the country, including from Hokkaido Gov. Naomichi Suzuki, who assailed the central government for “slapping the face with money.”

The concern is especially palpable in the resort towns of Niseko and Kutchan, which are part of the Niseko resort area.

“To outsiders, it might as well be Niseko that is undergoing a survey,” said Shinichi Maeda, an owner of a restaurant in Kutchan. “It’s possible that foreign investors who had previously valued Niseko will pull out one by one.”

Suttsu is located about 40 km west of the town of Niseko, which will see no economic benefit from the study but will surely be hit by the anxiety the plan will generate…………

the possibility of hosting a nuclear waste site, however remote, is enough to rail up opposition.

The owner of a tourism business in Kutchan believes in local production and consumption, and uses seafood from Shiribeshi. But that may have to change.

“Foreign customers are sensitive,” said the owner. “If the nuclear waste issue gains prominence, it’ll become hard to use” locally made seafood.

In Japan, there is still no final repository for nuclear waste — it is stored in interim locations. After the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster raised public awareness, countries across the globe have struggled to find permanent places to store the waste.

When Kamoenai announced it would apply for an initial survey in October, The Associated Press reported the story with the headline “2 remote Japan towns seek to host nuclear waste storage site.” The article was carried by news outlets all over the world.

Last month, five citizens groups presented the Hokkaido governor with a petition signed by 450,000 people opposing the feasibility survey for the two towns. The signatures were collected nationwide. The preliminary studies underway in the two towns are becoming an issue that could undermine tourism throughout Hokkaido………..

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Travel-Leisure/Nuclear-waste-near-Mount-Fuji-of-Hokkaido-Ski-towns-fear-chill