Japan’s nuclear disaster was ‘man-made’

The nuclear crisis which gripped Japan after last year’s tsunami was a “profoundly man-made disaster” that could — and should — have been prevented, investigators said.

In a damning report, a parliamentary panel blamed the catastrophe at Fukushima’s Daiichi nuclear plant on regulators, the former prime minister, the government and even the public’s reluctance to question authority.

The plant was seriously damaged on March 11 after an earthquake and the tsunami knocked out cooling systems to reactors, leading to meltdowns and the release of radioactivity. A 20 kilometre exclusion zone was put in place and tens of thousands of residents evacuated as workers fought to bring the reactors under control.

The Fukushima nuclear accident independent investigation commission, which spent six months carrying out 900 hours of hearings and interviewing more than 1,000 people, said a multitude of errors and wilful negligence had left the plant unprepared for the earthquake and tsunami.

“Although triggered by these cataclysmic events, the subsequent accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant cannot be regarded as a natural disaster. It was a profoundly man-made disaster — that could and should have been foreseen and prevented.”

The panel concluded that the government had “effectively betrayed the nation’s right to be safe from nuclear accidents. Therefore, we conclude that the accident was clearly ‘man-made’.

“We believe that the root causes were the organisational and regulatory systems that supported faulty rationales for decisions and actions, rather than issues relating to the competency of any specific individual.”

It said the situation was made worse because government agencies “did not function correctly”, with several key roles left ambiguous. It also blamed the then Prime Minister Naoto Kan for diverting attention by going to visit the disaster zone.

The report continued: “Japan’s regulators need to shed the insular attitude of ignoring international safety standards and transform themselves into a globally trusted entity,” it said.

All Japan’s nuclear plants were shut down after the disaster, with the first reactor restarting only last Sunday to protests in Tokyo. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said a return to nuclear power was essential for the economy.