Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

Q&As

• The final disposal of the designate waste produced by the nuclear accident

REPORTER: Yesterday, with regard to the final disposal of the designated waste which was produced due to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident, the Ministry of the Environment announced that it will not change its existing policy of disposing of the waste at the location where the waste was generated. However, the municipalities accepting the waste are protesting, making the final decision of candidate areas difficult. How will the Government be obtaining the understanding of these areas going forward?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY SUGA: With regard to the processing of designated waste, it is the basic position of the Government that it is suitable to dispose of the waste on a prefectural basis, with each region dealing with this issue. Not only in Fukushima Prefecture, but also in the other prefectures, especially the five prefectures of Miyagi, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, and Chiba, swift disposal is imperative. In the five prefectures, municipality councils which were established have been holding discussions. I am aware that in the context of these discussions, opinions were expressed that the waste should be aggregated and disposed of in Fukushima Prefecture. Meanwhile, Fukushima Prefecture responded that the Government should dispose of the waste in the respective prefectures pursuant to the Act on Special Measures concerning the Handling of Environment Pollution by Radioactive Materials and Basic Principles. In light of this, yesterday, Senior Vice Minister of Environment Inoue made such an announcement. The Government expects that in-depth discussions will continue to be held in the five relevant prefectures.

(Abridged)