A proposal to hold a plebiscite on building an airport in Shizuoka Prefecture was rejected Wednesday by the prefectural assembly, and construction, which had been suspended, will probably now be resumed.
Residents opposed to the project petitioned the assembly in June for a plebiscite by submitting 270,000 signatures. They say the airport won't have sufficient demand to keep it economically viable.
But members of the Liberal Democratic Party and other forces turned down the proposal during a special assembly session. The move followed a committee vote Aug. 31 that also turned down the proposal.
Shizuoka Gov. Yoshinobu Ishikawa has pushed for construction of the airport but has also indicated support for a plebiscite to determine public views on the project.