Statement re the Nuclear and Earthquake Disaster Unfolding in Japan
The Citizens' Nuclear Information Center (CNIC) is deeply concerned for
the health and safety of the people affected by the earthquakes and
tsunamis that have struck Japan over the last two days. We are
particularly concerned for the people in the vicinity of nuclear power
plants, including workers who are trying to minimize the scope of the
disaster.
Unit 1 of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is in a state of
meltdown. A nuclear disaster which the promoters of nuclear power in
Japan said wouldn't happen is in progress. It is occurring as a result
of an earthquake that they said would not happen.
This could and should have been predicted. It was predicted by
scientists and NGOs such as CNIC. We warned that Japan's nuclear power
plants could be subjected to much stronger earthquakes and much bigger
tsunamis than they were designed to withstand.
Besides the question about how this accident will unfold, the big
question now is, will the government and the nuclear industry
acknowledge its mistakes and change track?
Last December the Japanese government began a review of its nuclear
energy policy. The review was commenced in the spirit of essentially
confirming the existing policy. That approach is no longer viable. The
direction of the policy review must be completely reversed. It must be
redirected towards developing a policy of phasing out nuclear energy as
smoothly and swiftly as possible.
Philip White
International Liaison Officer
Citizens' Nuclear Information Center
Phone: 81-3-3357-3800 (office)
Phone: 81-3-3708-2898 (home)
Web (will be updated on Monday):
http://cnic.jp/english/
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