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Yamaguchi Gov. Sekinari Nii (Mainichi)

YAMAGUCHI -- The governor of Yamaguchi Prefecture is considering reversing his policy and barring the Chugoku Electric Power Co. (CEPCO) from building a nuclear power plant on reclaimed land in the picturesque Seto Inland Sea in western Japan.

Gov. Sekinari Nii is considering rejecting the extension of a license for the utility to reclaim land from public waters in Kaminoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, because the safety of nuclear reactors has been called into question and the central government's policy on the construction of additional nuclear plants has become unclear in the wake of the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant.

The license is due to expire in October 2012, but Nii plans to make a final decision after the central government maps out new guidelines on nuclear safety. Therefore, CEPCO could be forced to drastically review its plan to build two nuclear reactors there.

If Nii does not give the green-light, the utility will not be able to construct the reactors there. That's a policy reversal on the part of the governor, who had previously been cooperative on nuclear power generation. The governor is likely to announce his final decision at a prefectural assembly meeting in June, and his assessment is likely to affect other nuclear power plants whose operations are suspended as well as other plans to secure land for additional nuclear plants.

CEPCO plans to build two reactors on about 33 hectares of land including 14 hectares of reclaimed land. The Yamaguchi Prefectural Government issued the license for the utility to reclaim land from public waters in October 2008. CEPCO then started work on the project but little progress has been made due to protests by anti-nuclear activists.

The license expires three years from the start of work, and therefore unless the work is completed by October 2012 it will expire. CEPCO temporarily halted the work to reclaim land at the request of the Yamaguchi Prefectural Government in the wake of the crisis at the Fukushima nuclear plant, and therefore it would probably need to have the license extended in order to complete the work to fully reclaim land. CEPCO was expected to apply for an extension of the license as early as autumn.

According to the Yamaguchi Prefectural Government, CEPCO filed an application in December 2009 with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry for permission to build nuclear reactors in Kaminoseki. But it has become increasingly difficult to proceed with plans to build additional nuclear reactors, as the administration of Prime Minister Naoto Kan vowed to review the nation's nuclear energy policy following the outbreak of the nuclear crisis in Fukushima.

The Yamaguchi Prefectural Government had thought of nullifying the license for CEPCO to reclaim land, but it is now considering rejecting the extension of the license because it cannot legally nullify the license unless the utility violates the law.

"The situation has changed since the license was issued. If an accident occurs, it will be a problem not just for Kaminoseki," said a senior official of the Yamaguchi Prefectural Government.