Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

JAPANESE

Q&As

REPORTER: Do you think that you will be able to announce the removal of the halt put on beef shipments from Fukushima, Iwate, and Tochigi Prefectures today?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: We are currently carrying out earnest considerations concerning this matter. Final coordinations must be made with each of the prefectures, and we intend to make a decision and announce it as quickly as possible once these coordinations are in place.

REPORTER: Are you making coordinations with the aim of announcing your decision this afternoon?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: We are still making coordinations and consulting with the prefectural governments, so I cannot say anything conclusive until those have finished. We intend to make an announcement as quickly as possible once coordinations have been made.

(Abridged)

REPORTER: Some news outlets have reported that the Government has compiled a preliminary calculation of the total amount of cesium-137 that has been released from Units 1 and 3 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station of Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). The reports indicate that compiled data suggests that the amounts are equal to how many of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima. Are you aware of this?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: If necessary I would like you to forward your question to Minister Hosono or the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA). The Government has carried out rather thorough monitoring of radioactive material levels in each location in order to ensure that citizens are not actually affected in various ways. It is my understanding that we have released this data every time measurements are made clear, and we intend to continue to respond to the situation based on radiation levels actually measured at each location so that this does not affect citizens in the future.

REPORTER: Yesterday, it was revealed that TEPCO knew about the possibility of a tsunami of over 10 meters reaching its Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, and as of March 7 TEPCO had reported this information to NISA. However, TEPCO and NISA have been referring to the tsunami as "unexpected." Furthermore, nobody, including NISA, has ever announced that the tsunami was in fact not "unexpected." My first question is whether the Government knew about this fact; that is, the possibility of a tsunami over 10 meters in height, before March 11. My second question is, what are your thoughts about TEPCO and NISA not announcing these facts until now?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have received a report that it became clear during the survey process of the Investigation and Verification Committee on the Accidents at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station of Tokyo Electric Power Company that, as you say, TEPCO and NISA were aware of such facts. I hear that TEPCO, in particular, became aware of the possibility of a large-scale tsunami in 2008 - I believe it was. If that is the case, then TECPO had a sufficient amount of time to respond before this disaster. In that regard, it is tremendously regrettable that TECPO did not respond to the situation even though they were aware of it. Furthermore, the fact that this was discovered during the survey process of the Investigation and Verification Committee indicates that, on the one side, the Committee did a good job in carrying out their responsibility. On the other side, however, it is a true shame that these facts - that NISA in fact had direct information about such a prediction - would not have been revealed without the Committee's survey. The truth is that I have said that such as large-scale tsunami should have naturally been predicted beforehand based on the past Diet deliberations and other matters. I hope that the Investigation Committee will continue to investigate as widely and thoroughly as possible concerning facts that have remained unknown until now.

REPORTER: What do you think about NISA's past practice of receiving such reports but not announcing them?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: As I just said, I think that it is a true shame. Essentially, I intend to have the Investigation and Verification Committee survey and investigate the facts, including where and during what process the flow of such information stopped. But internally as well, the Cabinet will carry out a thorough investigation of this matter.