Two residents of Suttsu-cho, Hokkaido, who are investigating the selection of a final disposal site for so-called "nuclear waste," complained that it was unreasonable that the minutes of the town council's all-members council were not disclosed. In the same trial, the Hakodate District Court handed down a ruling to revoke the non-disclosure decision, saying that it does not correspond to information that cannot be disclosed.
In Suttsu-cho, where a literature search is being conducted over the selection of a final disposal site for so-called "nuclear waste," two members of a resident group who oppose it have been quietly held by the town council's all-members council. We requested disclosure of the minutes, but the town council decided not to disclose it.
In response, the two have filed a lawsuit to revoke the town council's decision and disclose its content.
In a ruling on the 29th, Judge Soichiro Shindo of the Hakodate District Court pointed out that "it is clear that the minutes and other information do not correspond to the information that cannot be disclosed as stipulated by the ordinance."
He then revoked the non-disclosure decision, saying that "the council did not agree to keep the minutes non-disclosure, and the town council's decision is illegal, contrary to the ordinance."
Regarding the judgment, Attorney Tanijiro, the plaintiff's agent, said, "I request the tomorrow's town council to disclose the minutes. I would like you to disclose it promptly based on the purpose of the judgment."
Suttsu-cho commented, "We will carefully check the sentence and decide what to do in the future."
What is the "minutes" requested to be disclosed?
This trial requires two townspeople to disclose the minutes of the all-members council held privately by the town council of Suttsu Town, where a literature search has begun over the selection of a final disposal site for so-called "nuclear waste." It is a thing.
The minutes were obtained by NHK in September and reported in detail.
In the minutes, Mayor Haruo Kataoka of Suttsu Town said that he would like to hold a study session on the investigation of the final disposal site with the person in charge of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry at the all-members meeting in February. I think that making good use of it will lead to the happiness of Suttsu, "he said, saying that he should apply for a literature search and get a grant.
In addition, at the all-members council in August, the policy is to decide to apply for the survey, saying, "I want to plan as soon as possible after the Bon Festival." After showing, he said, "If you ask the townspeople and hold a study session, it will be a troublesome story."
After this report, the two townspeople requested the town council to disclose the minutes, etc. Made a decision to do.
In response, the two have filed a lawsuit requesting the town to disclose it, saying it violates the town's information disclosure regulations.
Selection process of final disposal site for "nuclear waste"
The process of selecting a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste, so-called "nuclear waste," from spent nuclear fuel in nuclear power plants is divided into three stages.
Suttsu-cho applied for the first stage, "Literature Review," in October, and the survey began in November of the following month.
The "Literature Survey" is based in Tokyo and takes about two years to research research papers and geological data. During this period, local governments will be paid up to 2 billion yen in grants.
If you want to proceed to the next stage of the literature search, the "Summary Survey", you need to hear the opinions of the governor and the mayor of the municipality, but the "Literature Search" can be started at the discretion of the local government.