Japanese court allows restart of 2 nuclear reactors

ANKARA

A Japanese court on Monday turned down a request that called for revoking previous approval to restart reactors considering the risk near power plant, local media reported.

According to Kyodo news agency, the court found no illegality in safety clearance granted for two units of Sendai nuclear power plant in Kagoshima Prefecture that restarted after the 2011 Fukushima crisis.

The plaintiffs, including local residents, in their complaints had argued that regulators gave the green light without sufficiently assessing the potential risk of eruptions at nearby Mt. Aso -- one of the largest active volcanoes in the world.

The court’s decision was the first verdict on the legitimacy of the approval given by Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority to reactivate nuclear reactors based on stricter safety standards, which were put in place in the country in 2013.

On March 11, 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami damaged four reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, out of which three were melted.