Disaster Debris INSIDE NO ENTRY ZONE IN FUKUSHMA May Spread Far and Wide

because the Ministry of the Environment cares about free competition.

The Ministry of the Environment put out a notice asking for public comments, for 6 days instead of the normal 30 days, on the proposed revisions of the Special Law to deal with the contamination from radioactive materials.

What are the revisions proposed? The Ministry wants to allow waste disposal companies to dispose debris that is inside the 20-kilometer radius no-entry zone and planned evacuation zone (in Namie-machi, Iitate-mura for example) around Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, instead of the national government doing it.

Their reasoning? Reading the Ministry's press release (translated below), they must be thinking like this:

1. 20-kilometer radius no-entry zone and planned evacuation zone around Fukushima I Nuke Plant are being reorganized.

2. In many areas inside these zones, the government is about to allow people and/or businesses back in. The huge debris cleanup operations need to be done.

3. However, if the government does all these cleanup operations, it's just not fair to the private businesses outside the areas who would otherwise get the business of cleanup.

4. Since the Ministry cares deeply about free competition, it will allow the private waste disposal companies to clean up the debris inside the no-entry zone and the planned evacuation zone.

What's the problem here, you ask?

• Industrial waste disposal companies have been regularly sending industrial wastes all over Japan for disposal for years.
  

• Moving the non-industrial waste outside the area where the waste is generated needs a consent from a municipality on the receiving end, but with the Miyagi/Iwate disaster debris wide-area disposal scheme - the disaster debris is treated as "non-industrial waste" - now there are ways for the non-industrial debris inside the zones in Fukushima to reach the municipalities who have agreed to receiving the Miyagi/Iwate debris.
  

From the Ministry of the Environment press release on April 3, 2012 (h/t @tsunamiwaste for finding it):

環境省では、放射性物質汚染対処特措法施行規則改正案について、平成24年４月３日（火）～４月９日(月)までの間、広く国民の皆様の御意見をお聴きするパブリックコメントを実施します。 本件は、行政手続法に基づく手続です。

The Ministry of the Environment is soliciting comments from the Japanese citizens on the revisions of the special law to deal with the contamination from radioactive materials, between Tuesday April 3 to Monday April 9, 2012. This is a procedure based on the Administrative Procedure Act.

１．放射性物質汚染対処特措法施行規則改正案について

1. About the revision of the speical law to deal with the contamination from radioactive materials

　今般、平成23年12月26日の原子力災害対策本部決定に基づき、警戒区域・計画的避難区域（以下「警戒区域等」という。）の避難指示が見直されることから、警戒区域等内の空間線量の低い地域では、警戒区域等の解除前でも事業活動が再開され、相当量の廃棄物が生ずることが想定されます。

Based on the decision by the Nuclear Disaster Response Headquarters on December 26, 2011, the no-entry zone and the planned evacuation zone (hereafter called "no-entry zone etc.") will be re-classified. Business activities are expected to commence in the areas with low air radiation levels inside the no-entry zone etc. even before the lifting of the designations of the no-entry zone etc., and a significant amount of waste may be generated.

　再開された事業活動に伴い生ずる廃棄物を対策地域内廃棄物として国が処理を行った場合、汚染廃棄物対策地域外の事業者との競争上の不公平が生ずることが考えられます。このため、このような不公平が生ずることのないよう対応が必要となっています。

If the national government disposes the waste resulting from the business activities, it may result in competitive disadvantage for the waste disposal businesses outside the area where the government is responsible for disposal of contaminated waste. Therefore, a measure is necessary to avoid such disadvantage.

　具体的な改正内容は、以下のとおりです。

Specific revisions are as follows:

・事業活動に伴い生じた廃棄物については、対策地域内廃棄物から除外し、当該廃棄物を排出した事業者が、事業系一般廃棄物又は産業廃棄物として、自ら処理を行うこととする。

The waste generated by business activities will be excluded from the waste that the government is responsible for disposing; instead, the businesses that generate such waste will dispose as regular [non-industrial] waste or industrial waste.

・ただし、国又は地方公共団体が施行する災害復旧事業（道路復旧事業等）については、特に迅速に進める必要があることから、当該災害復旧事業に伴い生じた廃棄物は、国が対策地域内廃棄物として処理を行う。

However, the disaster recovery projects (such as road repairs) by the national or local governments need to be carried out as quickly as possible. Therefore the waste generated by such disaster recovery projects will be disposed by the national government.

If you have something to say to Hosono and his gang, and if you write Japanese (it has to be in Japanese), here's the email address: houshasen-tokusohou2@env.go.jp

In your email, you need to include the following information:

• Subject: 放射性物質汚染対処特措法施行規則改正案に対する意見

• Your name, address, telephone or email address

• Your opinion, and the basis for your opinion (cite the sources as necessary)

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