Japan court paves way for more nuke restarts

A Japanese court on Thursday lifted an injunction blocking two regional nuclear reactors from restarting, effectively paving the way for them to come back online.

The central government and powerful utility companies have been pushing to get reactors across the country back in operation, nearly five years after a huge earthquake and tsunami caused disastrous meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The accident forced all of Japan’s reactors offline for about two years amid deepening public suspicion over the technology and fears of radiation exposure, though a handful have since started operating.

The Fukui district court in western Japan ruled Thursday in favour of Kan-sai Electric Power, which was fighting the court’s earlier injunction that said the safety of its reactors had not been proven, despite a green light from the national Nuclear Regulation Authority.

However, the latest decision by Fukui judge Jun Hayashi — not the same judge who issued the injunction — said the authority’s standards are valid and logical and gave the go-ahead for the reactors to restart.