The election of an anti-nuclear governor in a region north of Tokyo further challenges Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's energy policy and could mean Japan continues to rely on coal-fired electricity, rejecting renewed investment in nuclear power since the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Ryuichi Yoneyama, a political outsider, became governor of Niigata prefecture on Sunday on the basis of his vow to keep a nuclear power plant located there shut. This latest setback for nuclear power leaves Abe's energy policy to boost nuclear usage while also raising the amount of renewable energy to meet emissions targets nearly in tatters. "The sad fact is that without some nuclear restarts Japan is going to burn more coal and that's not sustainable. Public scepticism toward nuclear energy since Fukushima means that approval cannot be taken for granted.

Source: Egypt Independent October 17, 2016 08:48 UTC