The total cost to deal with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant disaster has been estimated at 70 trillion yen ($626…
TOKYO —
The total cost to deal with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant disaster has been estimated at 70 trillion yen ($626 billion), over three times more than the government calculation, a study by a private think tank showed Saturday.
The Japan Center for Economic Research said total costs at the Fukushima nuclear complex operated by Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc could rise to between 50 trillion and 70 trillion yen. It compares with the roughly 22 trillion yen a government panel estimated in December.
“If costs rise, the public burden could greatly increase. The country’s nuclear policy needs to be reviewed,” the JCER said.
Initially in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, the government expected the costs to total 11 trillion.
But a study by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed the figure could be double the sum estimated in 2013.
Following that, the government decided to raise electricity rates to secure the money necessary to cover compensation payments, increasing the national burden.
Among the costs, the bill for compensation has been estimated at 8 trillion yen by the ministry. The JCER also adopted the figure.
The JCER, however, estimated costs for decontamination work at 30 trillion yen, compared with the government’s figure of 6 trillion yen, after the think tank made a calculation under a presumption that radioactive substances are disposed of at a facility in Rokkasho village in Aomori Prefecture.
The government is seeking a way to treat waste in Fukushima Prefecture, including radioactive soil, of which the amount could add up to roughly 22 million cubic meters, but where and how it will be disposed of has yet to be decided. Costs related to the procedure are not included in the government’s calculation.
Costs for decommissioning crippled reactors, which is expected to take 30 to 40 years, were estimated by the center at 11 trillion yen, compared with the government’s 8 trillion yen.
Expenses to treat contaminated water that remains in tanks at the plant were estimated by the center at 20 trillion yen unless the toxic water is released in the ocean after being diluted as nuclear regulation authorities recommend.
© KYODO

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People protesting the central government’s plan to transfer a U. S. military base within Okinawa marked the 1,000th day of a…
NAHA —
People protesting the central government’s plan to transfer a U. S. military base within Okinawa marked the 1,000th day of a sit-in near the relocation site Saturday, reiterating calls for a reduction in the island prefecture’s base-hosting burden.
Opponents of the base transfer continued their sit-in protest in front of the gate of Camp Schwab in the coastal district of Henoko in Nago, northern Okinawa, where the government is moving the U. S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma which is located in a densely populated area.
“Let us renew our resolve to stop the construction of a military base,” said Suzuyo Takazato, head of a local organization formed by members of civic groups and political parties against the base transfer plan.
Also on Saturday, Okinawa government officials patrolled Henoko’s coast in a boat after a permit expired Friday to allow undersea work as part of land reclamation for the base relocation.
The local government said it would consider a lawsuit against the central government if any undersea work is conducted there after the permit’s expiration.
The central government holds the position that such a permit is no longer necessary to conduct undersea work after a local fishery cooperative gave up its right to fish in the area in November.
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Japan’s first outdoor Legoland park fully opened in Nagoya on Saturday as a major attraction aimed at bringing more foreign…
NAGOYA —
Japan’s first outdoor Legoland park fully opened in Nagoya on Saturday as a major attraction aimed at bringing more foreign tourists and an economic boon to the country’s third largest business area.
With children’s ticket priced higher than Tokyo Disneyland’s, Legoland Japan offers various rides inspired by the Danish toy and serves meals including whimsical block-shaped fried potatoes in the seaside premises.
Visitors can stroll down a miniature town, called Miniland, which has models of landmark buildings in Japan, such as Tokyo Station, Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto and a 2-meter-high Nagoya Castle.
Some 10 million pieces of Lego were used to complete the miniature town, according to the park’s operator.
Children can drive go-karts, ride a roller coaster and take a “submarine” tour through a real fish tank in the 9.3-hectare park in the Kinjo Wharf area.
Torben Jensen, president of Legoland Japan Ltd., told reporters recently that the park’s operator plans to expand the size of the premises, open a Legoland hotel and build new attractions to increase the number of repeat guests.
Legoland Japan will also enhance cooperation with foreign travel agencies considering selling package tours whose prices include ticket fees, Jensen said.
A local think tank expects the new theme park could give an economic boost worth 96.8 billion yen to Aichi Prefecture, whose capital is Nagoya, and other areas in fiscal 2017 starting Saturday.
Ryoichi Namba, economist at the Chubu Region Institute for Social and Economic Research, said that the park, which is only 17 minutes by train from the Nagoya shinkansen bullet train station, will attract a lot of foreign tourists as the only Legoland in Asia, aside from one in Malaysia.
The institute urged the park’s operator to make efforts to encourage guests to come back after their first visits by rolling out new projects and increasing investment to keep their business on track in fiscal 2018 or later.
Namba said “it is premature” to forecast how successful the new Legoland business will be in the long run, but there is a concern that the 5,300-yen ticket price for visitors aged between 3 and 12 could discourage repeat guests. Visitors aged 13 or older pay 6,900 yen.
Tokyo Disneyland, meanwhile, charges 4,800 yen for visitors aged between 4 and 11. Universal Studios Japan, a major amusement park in the country’s second largest business area including Osaka, charges 4,723 yen for the same ages.
Japan already has Legolands in Tokyo and Osaka, but these are indoor theme parks located inside shopping malls. The Nagoya park, the first full-scale outdoor theme park of its kind in Japan, follows in the footsteps of seven similar parks abroad.
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