06 April 2016•Update: 11 April 2016
TOKYO
A Japanese high court rejected Wednesday an appeal by local residents seeking to halt operations at two nuclear reactors that were restarted upon clearing safety standards introduced after the Fukushima disaster.
The No. 1 unit at the Sendai power plant in southwestern Kagoshima Prefecture became operational last August, becoming the first reactor to restart after authorities took all units offline and imposed stricter regulations on nuclear energy after the 2011 meltdown.
The No. 2 unit at the plant owned by Kyushu Electric Power Co. went online in October.
The appeal rejected Wednesday was filed in May by residents concerned over possible negative impacts from earthquakes and volcanic eruptions on operational reactors, and evacuation plans they considered insufficient.
It was filed after a lower court refused in April to issue an injunction to stop the restart.
The Kagoshima District Court instead ruled that the reactors were fit to go online as they had passed the standards imposed by the Nuclear Regulation Authority -- established after the Fukushima disaster.
The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said it is aiming to have 20-22 percent of Japan's total electricity supply generated from nuclear power in 2030 as part of efforts to lower electricity prices and shore up the economy.
Before the Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami of March 2011 triggered the Fukushima crisis, nuclear power contributed 30 percent.
Last month, another district court had ordered two restarted reactors at the Takahama plant in western Fukui Prefecture not to operate.
The order followed an injunction filed by residents living near the plant, who cited insufficient safety measures and concerns that many of them could still be exposed to radiation if such a severe accident occurs.
