Protesters block Japan nuclear restart
Protesters take part in an anti-nuclear demonstration demanding a stop to the resumption of nuclear power operations.
Image by: Toru Hanai / REUTERS
Image by: Toru Hanai / REUTERS
Hundreds of protesters blocked a road outside the front gate of a nuclear power plant in western Japan ahead of the planned reactivation of one of its idled reactors Sunday.
The protesters prevented plant workers from entering the complex as Kansai Electric Power Co was to restart the unit 3 of Oi power plant on the Sea of Japan coast.
The operator said the protest would not affect the reactivation process, Kyodo News agency reported.
Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda approved the reactivation of reactors 3 and 4, the first restart since last year's nuclear disaster at Fukushima.
Japan's 50 nuclear reactors have been shut down for maintenance and the operators have been unable to restart them amid mounting anti-nuclear sentiment since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami caused the Fukushima plant to go into meltdown.
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