January 2023 4th issue: What are the necessary conditions for the safe use of nuclear power?

For the safe use of nuclear power generation, it is necessary to secure a budget for nuclear research with a sense of purpose. If the budget is cut and research stops, there will be limits to the pursuit of safety. In order for nuclear power to be used more safely, it is necessary to secure a budget that will allow us to carry out the necessary research without fail.
For the safe use of nuclear power generation, it is necessary to ensure the quality of researchers above a certain level. If the quality of the researcher is poor and the reliability of the research content is low, the reliability of the power plant built based on it will also be low. In order to use nuclear power more safely, it is necessary to gather the best researchers and ensure the reliability of the research itself.
The research facility must be equipped with advanced equipment that incorporates the latest technology, and must be able to conduct a wide variety of research in order to respond to the various situations assumed in nuclear power generation. In addition, depending on the content of the technology, confidentiality at the national highest level or higher must be achieved to prevent the latest technological information related to nuclear energy from being leaked easily.
When conducting research at universities, research institutes, etc., it is necessary to take measures to prevent the researchers there from easily leaking confidential information. If necessary, it will be necessary to control the ideological beliefs and friendships of the researchers involved, and to establish a system that excludes dangerous thinkers and prevents researchers who are prone to information leaks from entering and exiting.
It is also necessary to clarify safety-prioritized construction and maintenance, reliability evaluation, and seismic standards. Of course, nuclear power plants already have multiple safety designs based on thorough research data. However, in order to increase the trust of the Japanese public, it is also important to show what improvements have been made since the Fukushima nuclear accident, and how much the safety of nuclear power generation differs from before 2011 and now.
It is also necessary to thoroughly implement countermeasures and preventive measures on the premise that an accident will occur. Spreading the so-called "safety myth" so much that people in the surrounding area never assume that an accident will occur may actually increase the risk. Budgets should be allocated to steadily implementing safety measures and measures, rather than blindly spreading safety myths.
Securing facilities and land for radioactive waste disposal is also an important issue. In particular, unless a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste is secured, nuclear power generation will come to a standstill in the future. There seems to be an idea to get foreign countries to accept radioactive waste, but if those countries stop accepting it, there is a risk that our country's nuclear power generation will not be able to continue.
If Japan intends to expand the use of nuclear power generation in the future, it will be necessary to clear the conditions one by one based on the above points. Many of them have already been tackled, but some problems seem to be slow to progress. It's important to keep working hard and not give up.

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