Japan Times: Time to give nuke watchdog teeth [View All]

[kristopher]

Time to give nuke watchdog teeth
Regulator lacks meaning under wing of industry advocate METI

By KAZUAKI NAGATA
Staff writer

A government report about the Fukushima No. 1 power plant crisis released June 7 mentions the need to review the way the nuclear power industry is regulated.

One of the main points of the report focuses on the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, a regulatory body that answers to the very same entity tasked with promoting nuclear power — the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

The ruling Democratic Party of Japan is calling for separating NISA from METI to ensure it can actually wield watchdog authority without the constraints of vested interests.

Established a decade ago to strengthen the regulatory system, NISA is now at a crossroads as Japan struggles to deal with the Fukushima nuclear crisis.

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