Nagoya –

Two terms that frequently pop up in the news in Japan are 原子力 (genshiryoku, nuclear energy) and 原子力発電所 (genshiryoku hatsuden-sho, nuclear power plants). That’s mostly because of the long-lasting effects of the 東日本大震災 (Higashi Nihon Daishinsai, Great East Japan Earthquake), which officially claimed nearly 20,000 lives and resulted in the 福島第一原発事故 (Fukushima Dai-ichi genpatsu jiko, Fukushima No. 1 nuclear accident) of 2011.

Thus, the topic of 原発 (genpatsu, nuclear power plants) is always going to find its way back to the national stage. Recently, it has returned as part of the discussion of the soaring rise of 光熱費 (kōnetsu-hi, electricity and heating costs) in homes across the country. In fact, a recent TBS news item declared, 6月電気代「5年間で最も高い」 (Roku-gatsu denki-dai “go-nenkan de mottomo takai,” June’s electricity bills are “the highest in five years”), and this has fueled a renewed appetite for 原子力.

We’ve also seen nuclear terms in the news in reporting on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, first as Russian forces marched past チョルノービリ (Chorunōbiri, Chernobyl) and then last week when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov mentioned the risk of 核戦争 (kakusensō, nuclear war) amid the conflict.

Therefore, it’s important to get familiar with nuclear-related terminology if you’re going to get into a conversation about current events. 日本語で原子力について話しましょう (Nihongo de genshiryoku ni tsuite hanashimashō, Let’s talk about nuclear energy in Japanese).

First, let’s get some basic terms out of the way. In addition to 原発 and 原子力, useful vocabulary to have includes: 汚染 (osen, pollution) and 汚染水 (osensui, polluted water), 処理水 (shorisui, treated wastewater), 放射能 (hōshanō, radiation/radioactivity) and 放射性物質 (hōshasei busshitsu, radioactive material). Words specific to power plants include: 発電 (hatsuden, power generation), 運転 (unten, operation), 停止 (teishi, stoppage) and 再稼働 (saikadō, resumption of operations).

日本で初めての原子力発電の幕が開いた (Nihon de hajimete no genshiryoku hatsuden no maku ga aita, the curtain was first raised on nuclear-power generation in Japan) in 1966. This took place at the 東海原子力発電所 (Tōkai genshi-ryoku hatsuden-sho, Tokai Nuclear Power Plant), which started operating with British assistance.

Japan’s electric companies then began introducing nuclear reactors from the United States, starting with the 関西電力美浜発電所1号 (Kansai Denryoku Mihama hatsuden-sho ichi-gō, Kansai Electric Mihama No. 1 nuclear plant) in Fukui Prefecture in 1970. そして日本各地で原子力発電所が建設された (Soshite Nihon kakuchi de genshiryoku hatsuden-sho ga kensetsu sareta, Nuclear power plants were then built in areas across Japan).

Following the life of the Mihama plant can give you a sense of the contested history of nuclear power in Japan. Things started out well but the plant experienced an accident in 2004 that killed five people. 福島第一原発事故の前に、日本で一番最悪の原発事故として知られた (Fukushima Dai-ichi genpatsu jiko no mae ni Nihon de ichiban saiaku no genpatsu jiko toshite shirareta, it was known as the worst nuclear accident in Japan prior to the Fukushima No 1. nuclear disaster). しかし、当時、放射に環境が汚染されなかった (Shikashi, tōji, hōsha ni kankyō ga osen sarenakatta, However, at that time, the nuclear radiation did not pollute the environment).

Mihama and the rest of Japan’s nuclear plants were shut down in the wake of the nuclear crisis of 2011, with lawsuits that year preventing the plant from 再稼働. After a brief restart in 2020, 2021年に運転が停止された (nisennijūichi-nen ni unten ga teishi sareta, operation was stopped in 2021) after the Mihama plant failed to meet the deadline for new counter-terrorism standards. Additional lawsuits seek to prevent it from restarting even after it meets such standards.

As of 2022, 日本には33基の商業用原子力発電所があり、10基が運転中だ (Nihon niwa sanjūsan-ki no shōgyōyō genshiryoku hatsuden-sho ga ari, jukki ga untenchū da, there are 33 operable commercial nuclear power plants in Japan, 10 of which are in operation).

That’s only a third of the nation’s plants in action. Nuclear energy used to be a huge part of Japan’s energy strategy until the Fukushima disaster. その後に日本の全ての原発の運転が停止された (Sono ato ni Nihon no subete no genpatsu no unten ga teishi sareta, Afterward, all of Japan’s nuclear reactor operations were shut down). This abrupt change in Japan’s energy sources made it necessary for coal and natural gas to fill the gaps. So the current debate around Japan’s energy policy largely revolves around the potential role of 原子力 to help with Japan’s エネルギー安全保障 (enerugī anzen hoshō, energy security) weighed against the risks of future accidents.

News outlets frequently release 世論調査 (yoron chōsa, public opinion polls) that detail the public stance on nuclear energy. A March poll from Nikkei showed that approval for restarting some reactors is potentially warming: 「再稼働を進めるべきだ」が53%で「進めるべきでない」は38%だった (“Saikadō o susumeru beki da” ga gojūsan pāsento de “susumeru beki de nai” wa sanjūhachi pāsento datta, “Should proceed with restarting” was 53%, and “should not proceed with restarting” was 38%). In comparison, those numbers stood at 44% to 46% last September.

You’ll see べき (beki) pop up in many 世論調査 as it means “should” or “must,” a frequent option for a poll. The word has a more formal and assertive meaning than the した方がいい (shita hō ga ii) construction that also suggests a person “should” do something. The latter acts like more of a recommendation, whereas べき sounds like more of a command.

The readers of the Asahi Shimbun were noticeably less enthusiastic on the topic of nuclear power in a survey taken a month prior to Nikkei’s. 今停止している原発の運転再開に「賛成」は38%、「反対」は47%だった (Ima teishi shite-iru genpatsu no unten saikai ni “sansei” wa sanjūhachi pāsento, “hantai” wa yonjūnana pāsento datta, 38% “agreed” and 47% “disagreed” with restarting currently paused nuclear plants).

The terms 賛成 (sansei, agree) and 反対 (hantai, disagree) have slightly weaker nuances than the べき and べきでない structures used in the Nikkei survey, and this difference could have been an influencing factor in the different results. However, percentages from an Asahi poll in 2021 stood at 32% (賛成) and 53% (反対), so both surveys are showing that the public is slowly coming around to the idea that nuclear power plants should come back online. Could this be due to recent rising energy costs and 停電 (teiden, blackouts)?

The other big news item in Japan around 原発 lately has been the release of 汚染水 from the Fukushima plant. Recently, 福島第一原子力発電所にたまり続ける放射性物質を含む処理水を海に流す計画について、原子力規制委員会は了承した (Fukushima Dai-ichi genshiryoku hatsuden-sho ni tamaritsudzukeru hōsha seibutsushitsu o fukumu shorisui o umi ni nagasu keikaku ni tsuite, genshiryoku kiseiīnkai wa ryōshō shita, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved the plan to flush treated water containing radioactive substances into the sea). It’s a controversial plan, especially for the local fishing industry.

With the debate over whether or not to restart Japan’s nuclear power plants likely to continue throughout the summer, it’s talk of 核戦争 in Europe that is of clear concern to us all — even if they are empty threats. You only need to visit 原爆ドーム (genbaku dōmu, the Atomic Bomb Dome) in Hiroshima to be reminded of that.