December 5, 2014
Govt. to invite bids for Fukushima waste storage
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html
Dec. 5, 2014 - Updated 11:54 UTC+1
Japan's Environment Ministry will open bidding for the construction of storage facilities in Fukushima Prefecture for waste produced from decontamination work. However, land for the project has not yet been secured.
The ministry plans to construct intermediate storage facilities in Futaba and Okuma Towns. The damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant operated by TEPCO is located nearby.
The ministry hopes to start transporting contaminated soil and other waste in January of next year. But negotiations with landowners over acquiring their property have made little progress.
Ministry officials say they will select companies to build temporary storage sites, where workers can place waste before moving it to intermediate facilities for up to 30 years.
The exact location and start date of construction has not been finalized.
Officials will continue negotiating with landowners in the hope that construction can begin soon.
The government will also draw up a transportation plan for decontamination waste by year-end.
However, it remains unclear whether the waste can begin moving to new storage sites next month as planned.
