Japan: NRA ignored local requests on “complex disasters” in evacuation plans

Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Agency (NRA) did not include “complex disasters”, a situation when nuclear accidents happen simultaneously with natural disasters, in its draft evacuation plans despite repeated requests from local governments. According to the Mainichi Shimbun, the issue came to the front during a review of the “sheltering indoors” strategy for residents within 5 to 30 Km of a nuclear power plant. Six local governments, including Ishikawa Prefecture, which was affected by the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake, urged the NRA to review its indoor sheltering plans because of potential complex disasters. During the Noto Peninsula earthquake, buildings collapsed, and roads were severely damaged around Hokuriku Electric Power Co.’s Shika Nuclear Power Station in Ishikawa Prefecture, making difficult the adoption of a normal indoors sheltering strategy. Although no accident happened at the plant, the situation stressed the need to be prepared for complex disasters. However, the NRA did not include new measures for complex disasters in its draft review report, maintaining conventional views about its indoor sheltering plans.
In an interview with the Mainichi Shimbun, NRA officials said that opinions in favour of considering complex disasters for evacuation plans were not properly evaluated because there was no time to discuss them. These opinions were presented in late 2024 by the Ishikawa Prefecture Government and the government of Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture, which is located near the controversial Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station. The Nagaoka government argued that evacuation plans would not be feasible without considering complex disasters. In response to these interventions, increased references to complex disasters have been made in the draft review report but without including specific measures or changing the traditional scheme of indoor sheltering.
Though the NRA plans to finalize the report by the end of March, the Ishikawa Prefectural Government said they are not “on the same page” with the agency, hinting at possible criticism of the report.