TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s nuclear watchdog announced Wednesday that the nation’s trouble-plagued next-generation test reactor will not be allowed to restart due to safety violations, dealing a setback to the country’s pronuclear government.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority’s decision is the latest blow to the Monju fastbreeder reactor and Japan’s nuclear fuel cycle program. The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is hoping that Monju will be a key part of Japan’s plans for disposing of atomic waste and reducing the nation’s plutonium stockpile.
Also today, a panel of geologists concluded that a seismic fault running underneath a separate, commercial reactor near Monju is active, a ruling that could force the scrapping of that reactor.
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