Groups that oppose plan to construct nuclear plant will not field candidate in mayoral election
Sep. 4, 2015
The Chugoku Electric Power Company has long planned to construct a nuclear power plant in the town of Kaminoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture. The three groups organized by local residents who have led the campaign against this plan announced on August 4 that they had decided not to enter a candidate in the next Kaminoseki mayoral election. (The election will be announced on September 1, with the casting and counting of votes to take place on September 6.) Since the plan to build the nuclear plant was revealed in 1982, the opposition groups have fielded candidates for all mayoral elections, asking local residents to take a stand on this issue. The groups said, “We have decided to put priority on creating a town which doesn’t rely on a revenue stream from the nuclear power plant because this plan has not moved forward.”
Kaminoseki Mayor Shigemi Kashiwabara, who has been elected three times on a platform of promoting the nuclear plant, has already declared his intention to run for a fourth term. Since the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi (No. 1) nuclear power plant in 2011, preparations for the Kaminoseki facility have ground to a halt, and Mr. Kashiwabara is supported by six groups, including business circles and manufacturing and construction industries, which hope to resume this work. This means that the opposition groups will permit Mr. Kashiwabara to be reelected for another term.
The Japanese government has not indicated its policy concerning the construction of new or additional nuclear power plants, and the future prospects for such plans have been uncertain for some time. Because the preparations for the Kaminoseki nuclear plant have been stalled for over four years, the city is making efforts to secure other revenue sources through tourism by improving roadside rest areas and pursuing a wind-power project to generate earnings from the sale of electricity. When Mr. Kashiwabara announced his reelection bid for mayor, he said, “The use of nuclear power plants is this nation’s policy and I will monitor the developments.” He has also formulated guidelines to sustain the town on the assumption that it will not receive the subsidy from the government for hosting the nuclear facility.
Having decided not to field a candidate, Toshiyasu Shimizu, the leader of the association comprised of Iwaishima islanders who are determined to stop the nuclear power station in Kaminoseki from being built, said, “The plan to construct a nuclear power plant will probably be stalled for the next four years. We give Mr. Kashiwabara a certain amount of credit for his work as mayor and we would like to work with him to strengthen our city, no matter our position on the nuclear plant. We will make efforts apart from our opposition to this plan.” But the decision not to look to the opinion of voters will create a stir in and around the town.
Candidates who support the construction of the nuclear power plant have beaten the opposition candidates in all nine mayoral elections since 1983. This is the first time in 36 years that a mayor will be elected without a vote being cast for the opposition. A meeting for those who intend to run for mayor will take place on August 5.
by Ryutaro Inoue, Staff Writer
The groups that have opposed the plan to construct a nuclear power plant in Kaminoseki have decided not to field a candidate for the town’s mayoral election. They want the municipal government to pursue a policy in which the town will not look toward the subsidy from the nuclear power plant because the plan has been stalled for some time. Kaminoseki has grown weary of being at the mercy of the central government’s uncertain policy regarding the construction of new or additional nuclear power stations. This seems to have led to frayed relations between the groups which oppose the plan, while the issue of the nuclear plant is fading as a major concern.
The initial budget for Kaminoseki for fiscal 2015 was 3.259 billion yen, a 25.7 percent drop from the initial budget for fiscal 2014. The shortage of funds amounts to 330 million yen. While the town is unable to count on compensation that would have been forthcoming as future revenue after the start of construction, the rate of its aging population has now exceeded 50 percent. The town is also under pressure to cut public services for its residents, such as covering only a portion of vaccination costs, though all costs for this were covered in the past.
Mayor Shigemi Kashiwabara, who has been a supporter of the plan, is considering a wind-power project to generate earnings from the sale of electricity. His perspectives on natural energy and policies to promote tourism have brought him a degree of respect from the opposition groups. In the wake of the accident at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture, the groups on opposite sides of the plan to build the power station have begun to share a sense of crisis about the status quo, regardless of their position.
Nevertheless, the fact that a candidate representing the opposition groups will not enter the election this time reflects the groups’ internal conditions. In the last mayoral election, which took place six months after the nuclear accident in Fukushima, their candidate drew the lowest percentage of the vote among their candidates to date, just 32.6 percent. Fishermen on Iwaishima Island had declined to accept compensation from the government as a symbolic act of the opposition movement, but reversed course in 2013 and decided to accept these funds. This indicates that the united front of the fishermen could not hold firm.
(Originally published on August 5, 2015)
Kaminoseki Mayor Shigemi Kashiwabara, who has been elected three times on a platform of promoting the nuclear plant, has already declared his intention to run for a fourth term. Since the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi (No. 1) nuclear power plant in 2011, preparations for the Kaminoseki facility have ground to a halt, and Mr. Kashiwabara is supported by six groups, including business circles and manufacturing and construction industries, which hope to resume this work. This means that the opposition groups will permit Mr. Kashiwabara to be reelected for another term.
The Japanese government has not indicated its policy concerning the construction of new or additional nuclear power plants, and the future prospects for such plans have been uncertain for some time. Because the preparations for the Kaminoseki nuclear plant have been stalled for over four years, the city is making efforts to secure other revenue sources through tourism by improving roadside rest areas and pursuing a wind-power project to generate earnings from the sale of electricity. When Mr. Kashiwabara announced his reelection bid for mayor, he said, “The use of nuclear power plants is this nation’s policy and I will monitor the developments.” He has also formulated guidelines to sustain the town on the assumption that it will not receive the subsidy from the government for hosting the nuclear facility.
Having decided not to field a candidate, Toshiyasu Shimizu, the leader of the association comprised of Iwaishima islanders who are determined to stop the nuclear power station in Kaminoseki from being built, said, “The plan to construct a nuclear power plant will probably be stalled for the next four years. We give Mr. Kashiwabara a certain amount of credit for his work as mayor and we would like to work with him to strengthen our city, no matter our position on the nuclear plant. We will make efforts apart from our opposition to this plan.” But the decision not to look to the opinion of voters will create a stir in and around the town.
Candidates who support the construction of the nuclear power plant have beaten the opposition candidates in all nine mayoral elections since 1983. This is the first time in 36 years that a mayor will be elected without a vote being cast for the opposition. A meeting for those who intend to run for mayor will take place on August 5.
Commentary: Opposition frays as town seeks alternative income streams
by Ryutaro Inoue, Staff Writer
The groups that have opposed the plan to construct a nuclear power plant in Kaminoseki have decided not to field a candidate for the town’s mayoral election. They want the municipal government to pursue a policy in which the town will not look toward the subsidy from the nuclear power plant because the plan has been stalled for some time. Kaminoseki has grown weary of being at the mercy of the central government’s uncertain policy regarding the construction of new or additional nuclear power stations. This seems to have led to frayed relations between the groups which oppose the plan, while the issue of the nuclear plant is fading as a major concern.
The initial budget for Kaminoseki for fiscal 2015 was 3.259 billion yen, a 25.7 percent drop from the initial budget for fiscal 2014. The shortage of funds amounts to 330 million yen. While the town is unable to count on compensation that would have been forthcoming as future revenue after the start of construction, the rate of its aging population has now exceeded 50 percent. The town is also under pressure to cut public services for its residents, such as covering only a portion of vaccination costs, though all costs for this were covered in the past.
Mayor Shigemi Kashiwabara, who has been a supporter of the plan, is considering a wind-power project to generate earnings from the sale of electricity. His perspectives on natural energy and policies to promote tourism have brought him a degree of respect from the opposition groups. In the wake of the accident at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture, the groups on opposite sides of the plan to build the power station have begun to share a sense of crisis about the status quo, regardless of their position.
Nevertheless, the fact that a candidate representing the opposition groups will not enter the election this time reflects the groups’ internal conditions. In the last mayoral election, which took place six months after the nuclear accident in Fukushima, their candidate drew the lowest percentage of the vote among their candidates to date, just 32.6 percent. Fishermen on Iwaishima Island had declined to accept compensation from the government as a symbolic act of the opposition movement, but reversed course in 2013 and decided to accept these funds. This indicates that the united front of the fishermen could not hold firm.
(Originally published on August 5, 2015)
