2014 Volume 14 Pages 78-85
This paper aims to discuss the nuclear regulation in Japan focusing on the governmental framework for that purpose. It has changed dramatically since the nuclear power disaster Fukushima nuclear power plant caused by the gigantic earth Quake, which hit the premise on 11th March 2011. The change can be epitomized as from “advice committee” type to “executive committee” type (ministers strongly supported by bureaucrats), which requires the final decision to be made by the experienced members. The discussion in this paper deals with those changes from three legal points of view below.
First: brief review of the history of former nuclear regulatory organization. Japanese nuclear safety regulation was based on “double check system,” run by two actors, namely the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (now Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) on the one hand AND the former Nuclear Safety Committee on the other.
Second: to see the way of keeping neutrality of newly founded regulatory organization. Main topic is to see how Nuclear Regulatory Agency and its secretariat work.
Third: to see the issues revealed after the newly found regulatory organization has started and to review how many-sided standpoints needed in the safety regulation are responded.
