Tokyo: A court in Japan on Tuesday accepted an appeal by an electricity company to reactivate a nuclear reactor whose suspension it had ordered on safety grounds in December.
The High Court of Hiroshima overturned its decision when it ordered the suspension of reactor 3 of the Ikata plant, belonging to Shikoku Electric, reports Efe news.
The decision, the first such ruling at this level after the Fukushima disaster in 2011, raised questions about the operator’s risk assessment concerning the danger to the plant from earthquakes and nearby volcanic activity.
The decision was considered a victory for the anti-nuclear movement in Japan and dealt a blow to the central government’s plan to restart nuclear reactors after their shutdown following the Fukushima disaster.
In the appeal, Shikoku Electric argued that there was low possibility of a large-scale volcanic eruption from Mount Aso, situated 130 km from the plant.
[source_without_link]IANS[/source_without_link]