Rokkasho, Aomori

Rokkasho 六ヶ所村
Village
Rokkasho Nuclear Reprocessing Plant
Flag Seal
Location of Rokkasho in Aomori Prefecture
Rokkasho
Coordinates:
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Aomori Prefecture
District	Kamikita
Area
• Total	253.68 km2 (97.95 sq mi)
Population (September 1 2015)
• Total	10,726
• Density	42.4/km2 (110/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
- Tree	Japanese black pine
- Flower	Daylily
- Bird	White-tailed eagle
Phone number	0175-72-2111
Address	475 Noduki Obuchi,Rokkasho-mura, Kamikita-gun, Aomori 039-3212
Website	Official website

Rokkasho village hall

Rokkasho (六ヶ所村, Rokkasho-mura) is a village in Kamikita District of northeastern Aomori Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. As of September 2015, the village had an estimated population of 10,726 and a population density of 42.4 persons per km². Its total area was 252.68 square kilometres (97.56 sq mi).

Geography

Rokkasho occupies the eastern coastline of the base of Shimokita Peninsula, facing the Pacific Ocean. The village has a cold maritime climate characterized by cool short summers and long cold winters with heavy snowfall. The village forms the northern shoreline of Lake Ogawara.

Neighbouring municipalities

• Aomori Prefecture
  • Misawa
  • Shimokita District
    • Higashidōri
  • Kamikita District
    • Yokohama
    • Noheji
    • Tohoku

History

The area around Rokkasho was known for its horses during the Kamakura period. During the Edo period, it was controlled by the Nambu clan of Morioka Domain. With the establishment of the municipalities system after the start of the Meiji period, on April 1, 1889, Rokkasho Village was proclaimed from the merger of six small hamlets.

Economy

The economy of Rokkasho has traditionally been dependent on agriculture and commercial fishing. From the 1980s onwards, the village has become a center for various energy developments, which now dominate the local economy.

Nuclear industry

Nuclear fuel cycle related facilities:

• Japan Nuclear Fuel Limited headquarters
• The Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant (currently under test operation)
• A uranium enrichment plant and plutonium reprocessing plant.
• A MOX fuel fabrication facility with an 800-ton per year capacity when completed
• A low level nuclear waste storage facility
• A high level nuclear waste temporary storage and monitoring facility

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency also has multiple facilities at the site.

Since the 1970s local opposition to plans to operate Japan's first large commercial plutonium plant at Rokkasho have focused on the threat of a large-scale release of radioactivity. During the 1990s anti-nuclear groups in Japan released studies showing the risks of routine operation of the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant. The facility in full operation is designed to separate as much as 8 tons of plutonium each year from spent reactor fuel from Japan's domestic nuclear reactors. As of 2006 Japan owned approximately 45 tons of separated plutonium.

In May, 2006 an international awareness campaign about the dangers of the Rokkasho reprocessing plant, Stop Rokkasho, was launched by musician Ryuichi Sakamoto. Greenpeace has opposed operation of the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant under a campaign called "Wings of Peace: No more Hiroshima, Nagasaki. Stop Rokkasho", since 2002 and has launched a cyberaction to stop the project.

Rokkasho was a candidate to host the plasma fusion reactor ITER, but lost out to Cadarache, France. Rokkasho has been hosting high-performance supercomputer centre capable of performing complex plasma physics calculations for fusion research, since January 2012.

Gas and wind power

• An oil stockpile facility
  • Completed: September 1985
  • Max capacity: around 5,700 megaliters
  • Current usage: 4,920 megaliters at end of March 2003
  • Managing company：むつ小川原石油備蓄株式会社
• Wind farm
  • Begin of operations: January 2003
  • Power: 33,000 kW (1,500 kW × 22 units)
  • Managing company: Eco Power
• Battery energy storage facility
  • 34 MW (204 MWh) grid energy storage facility using sodium–sulfur batteries, manufactured by NGK, installed since 2008

Agriculture

Stock raising is prevalent.

Fishing

Three small fishing ports.

Education

Rokkasho has four elementary schools, four middle schools and one high school.

Transportation

Railway

• Rokkasho is not served by any passenger train service.

Highway

• Japan National Route 338
• Japan National Route 394

Documentary

A documentary, Rokkasho Rhapsody, came out in 2006, which portrays the Rokkasho community's views on the nuclear reprocessing plant.

Sister cities

• Waren, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany (since 1994)

External links

• Official website (Japanese)