The local meeting in the southwestern Japanese city of Genkai approved a petition calling for an initial investigation to determine whether a site for the final disposal of high-level radioactive waste from nuclear plants can be built in the city.
The petition was approved on Friday. The city of Genkai is located in Saga Prefecture and is home to a nuclear power plant operated through Kyushu Electric Power Company.
Of all the local legislatures in Japanese cities that are home to nuclear power plants, Genkai’s meeting was the first to approve a petition for an initial investigation of the landfills.
During the first phase of the research, reference documents and other knowledge will be reviewed. Reviewers need to know if it would be conceivable for the city to host a final disposal site.
The mayor has the final say on whether or not to allow the investigation to continue.
Genkai Mayor Wakiyama Shintario has hinted that he will express his position at the beginning of the month, after the National Day period.