Future Of Nuclear Power Looms Over Japan’s LDP Leadership Race – EQ Mag Pro
TOKYO : As the field for the race to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Japan takes shape, energy and environmental policies will play a bigger role than usual.
Former LDP political leader Fumio Kishida, former Interior Minister Sanae Takaichi, who have both announced they are running, and Regulatory Reform Minister Taro Kono, who is expected to announce on Friday, have set out different visions of the role of nuclear and renewable energy. to achieve Japan’s climate goals. The government of outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga pledged to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and to cut emissions by 46% by 2030 compared to the 2013 budget.
There is particular interest in Kono’s earlier anti-nuclear stance, rare in a party that traditionally advocates nuclear power.
“Why did we call it ‘clean energy’ when it produces radioactive waste?” Kono said at a meeting of an LDP’s energy policy committee in July 2011, months after the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown. The following year he co-founded a bipartisan alliance against nuclear power.
Former anti-nuclear fighter Taro Kono has signaled a more open stance in recent days with the goal of zero emissions by 2050. (Photo: Yumi Kotani)
Kono adopted a slightly different tone on Wednesday when speaking to reporters, insisting that the widespread adoption of renewable energy was “a top priority”.
“Nuclear power is likely to go away at some point, but I have no plans to say ‘stop’ tomorrow or next year,” he said.
Kono acknowledged that the restart of nuclear power plants that have been confirmed to be safe “will be necessary to some extent if we are to be carbon neutral”. But when asked if his thinking had changed on the subject, he claimed that “it has not”.
These remarks could serve to push the nuclear debate out of the limelight of the leadership race.
In his new book, Move Japan Forward, Kono writes that “Things you, as the ruling party lawmaker, cannot do, you can do when you have the power of a cabinet minister. To have power is when you have the, if you.” want to do something, you can do it. “
Looking at the rest of the field, Kishida’s economic policy plans announced on Wednesday include introducing renewable energies “as much as possible” and investing in areas such as storage batteries and modern compact nuclear reactors.
On the subject of nuclear power, he told reporters that “it is important to get our existing nuclear power plants back on line before we build or expand capacity.”
“When we set decarbonization targets, we need to pay more attention to Japanese industry and think about it responsibly,” he said in an interview with Nikkei last week.
A draft of the government’s latest energy plan released in July calls for Japan to generate 36 to 38% of its energy from renewable sources in fiscal year 2030.
Takaichi called for the creation of an agency to single-handedly oversee environmental and energy policies during a press conference on Wednesday. She named fossil fuels as a backup source of energy to complement solar energy, which is vulnerable to weather conditions. She promised to continue promoting renewable energy sources and the civil use of nuclear energy.
In Takaichi’s new book on plans to stimulate the Japanese economy, she points out “how solar panels on slopes wash out the ground when it rains” and calls for preventive action.
The main point of contention in the debate is the share of each energy source in the country’s energy needs. Questions need to be asked to determine whether the proportions of nuclear and renewable energies and fossil fuels are compatible and attainable with Japan’s carbon neutral target. If renewable energy sources are sensitive to the weather, there is a need to discuss how they can be supplemented and how much such measures would cost.
People have seen the horror of global warming manifest in the form of extreme weather conditions, including deadly heat waves, forest fires, typhoons, and torrential rain. The extent of the extreme weather conditions caused by the destruction of the planet’s ecosystem is beyond imagination.
As global warming threatens people’s lives and wealth, a nation’s leadership must make this issue a top priority. Global cooperation is also essential.
The LDP presidential election offers candidates a place to commit to the fight against global warming. At the same time, it can be an opportunity for the public to see whether their plans are backed up by accurate estimates and are feasible.
Source: managementtrainingnews
