As the year rolls to an end, lingering questions remain as to whether
Japan will restart any of its idled nuclear reactors. Recent
proclamations suggest that it won’t do so, given that the nation has
reversed itself and says that it won’t cut its carbon emissions by 25
percent by 2020.
While Japan will try to increase its consumption of green energy,
the most likely scenario is that it will continue to boost its use of
fossil fuels, notably by importing vast amounts of liquefied natural
gas. Now, the Asian nation says that its carbon reduction targets are
closer to 4 percent, all from 2005 levels. Political and environmental
tensions are mounting, with some Japanese natives fearful of restarting
the nuclear plants and certain nations uneasy that it won’t do so.
“Given that Japan is the world’s fifth largest emitter, (we are)
extremely concerned that the announcement represents a huge step
backwards in the global effort to hold warming below the essential 1.5-2
degree Celsius threshold, and puts our populations at great risk.
Developed countries have committed to taking the lead and must do so
as we work to peak global emissions this decade and ink a new global
agreement in 2015,” says the Alliance of Small Island States, which is comprised of 44 low-lying island and coastal nations.
The organization is joined by the United Nations, both of which are
expressing sympathy for Japan and the nuclear disaster that it suffered
in March 2011. Western Europe, though, is considered the global leader when it comes to pushing for greenhouse gas reductions. And Great Britain’s leaders say that they will meet with counterparts in Japan and try to get them to reconsider their revised targets.
In May 2012, Japan turned off the last of its 54 nuclear reactors.
Since then, it has re-started two units. But it has had to rely on
imported natural gas to meet much of its electricity needs. While it has
been able to cut consumption and improve efficiencies, it’s energy
costs have escalated, with consumers paying an estimate 12 percent more
in electric bills.
Proponents of restarting some of the nuclear facilities are
emphasizing that the country cannot replace 30 percent of its electric
power generation overnight. They add that all of the Japan’s nuclear
reactors are going through rigorous new stress tests to try and ensure
that they could survive massive natural events. Ironically, Japan’s
recently-elected Liberal Democratic Party has pledged to get most of the
nation’s nuclear units up-and-running again.
What is Japan up against when it comes to reconsidering nuclear
power? Some political heavy-lifting is required during a time when the
country is understandably rattled. Beyond trying to regroup,
decommissioning the disabled Fukushima nuclear reactors will take 40
years. But the process is now underway, at least at four of the six
units present on the site.
Toyko Electric Power Co. is working with the Japanese government to
determine the fate of the two remaining reactors, although it would
appear unlikely that they would ever get turned back on. Meantime, the
utility is removing thousands fuel rods from a containment structure
while also trying to ensure that radioactive water does not leak from
the site.
“Full-scale removal (from the accident-stricken unit) is a very
important process in moving ahead with the plant’s decommissioning,”
TEPCO spokesman Masayuki Ono told a press conference, as quoted in Fukushimaupdate.com. The utility is starting with just one of the reactors before it moves on to the others.
All this is running head first into the global effort to reduce
carbon dioxide emissions. As Japan regains its footing, it must decide
just how it will power its country and whether it will turn back to
nuclear energy or change course, relying increasingly on imported
natural gas.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kensilverstein/2013/12/24/japanese-angst-over-nuclear-energy-weighs-heavily-on-neighbors-concerned-about-carbon-emissions/?ss=business%3Aenergy
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