Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, is cherished worldwide for its countless World Heritage sites and cultural treasures. Kyoto also shares a northern border with Fukui prefecture, the location of the highest concentration of nuclear power plants in the world. This is particularly alarming since the Japanese archipelago is riddled with earthquake faults and volcanoes.

Citizens from nations around the world can support Kyoto's Governor and Mayor's efforts to protect Kyoto. Let us stand with them to prevent another Fukushima disaster!

(Above: Kinkakuji temple, Kyoto. Based on a photo by flickr member syvwlch.)

We are deeply concerned that the Japanese national government wants everything "back to normal" by the 2020 Olympics: Fukushima accident evacuees back to the Fukushima region, nuclear power plants restarted--everything back to pre-Fukushima days.

After the Fukushima accident, the world saw unprecedented citizen protest against the restart of nuclear power in Japan. Particularly prominent was the protest against the Ohi nuclear power plant in Fukui. The Ohi plant is less than 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the city center of Kyoto. It is deeply concerning that the plant is slated to restart in March 2018. An Ohi restart will threaten millions of Kyoto residents and Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan from which 14 million people receive their drinking water. A serious accident could have devastating effects on Kyoto's world-famous cultural treasures and World Heritage sites.

The Governor and Mayor of Kyoto have petitioned the national government for the right to say yes/no to restart, to have control over Kyoto's fate. Their plea has been answered with silence. The Japanese government must respond promptly and positively to assure Kyoto has the right to protect itself. This petition will enable the governor and mayor to show they have worldwide support.

Help Kyoto fight Ohi restart!
Please see English language video:
https://youtu.be/di1BqYaOl8I

73% of Japanese citizens want to end nuclear power (Asahi newspaper opinion poll, October 15~16, 2016). 49% want immediate, complete shutdown (Kyodo opinion poll, January 13~14, 2018). It is clear from this that Kyoto's governor and mayor have the support of citizens throughout Japan. And the millions of people around the world who love Kyoto could support them too.

RIDDLED WITH EARTHQUAKE FAULTS
Japan, situated in one of the most seismically active zones in the world, has been given a severe warning that restarting nuclear power could lead to further unprecedented disaster.

Ohi is one of 15 nuclear power units that could suffer a serious accident in Fukui along Wakasa Bay, part of the coastline of the sea that separates Japan from South Korea and Russia. The entire area is riddled with earthquake faults. The Ohi plant is nestled on this coastline, squeezed in by steep cliffs on three sides. The Ohi site itself is on many earthquake faults, and a long active fault goes right past the plant. Nearby is the Takahama plant. Reactors unit 3 and 4 at Takahama were shut down after a court injunction deemed them too dangerous to operate. Now they are operating again after an upper court overturned the injunction.

Kunihiko Shimazaki, former acting chairman of Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) insists Ohi should not be allowed to operate, stating in court testimony that the "current assessment underestimates the magnitude of an earthquake" and "the necessary assessment has not yet been undertaken." (April 24, 2017 testimony, civil lawsuit to stop Ohi nuclear power plant. Nagoya High Court, Kanazawa Branch.)

A BETTER WAY URGENTLY NEEDED
On January 10th, former Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi, Morihiro Hosokawa and colleagues presented their bill to immediately halt all nuclear power plants in Japan and require electricity needs to be met with renewable energy sources by 2050.
Kansai Electric is the utility with the most nuclear power plants in Japan. Stopping restart of Kansai Electric plants like Ohi will help end nuclear power in Japan and save Kyoto from a potentially disastrous nuclear accident. A Japan with an ambitious conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy program means reduction in the concentration of nuclear materials in East Asia---resulting in a more secure Asia and world.

SUPPORT KYOTO'S GOVERNOR AND MAYOR IN THEIR EFFORTS TO SAVE KYOTO!
Kyoto is world famous for the Kyoto Protocol, the 1997 measure to curb the devastating effects of climate change and now, ironically, Kyoto is threatened by nuclear disaster. Protect Kyoto!

URGE THE KYOTO GOVERNOR AND MAYOR TO PROTECT KYOTO CITIZENS, ITS CULTURAL TREASURES, AND THE TOURISTS WHO COME FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. TELL THEM TO TAKE EVERY ACTION TO STOP OHI RESTART.