Abstract
The Japanese government formulated the Nuclear Emergency Response Guidelines in response to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident (FDNPP accident) caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011. Under these guidelines, Japan has established its current nuclear disaster response system. This manuscript outlines the transition of Japan's nuclear disaster response system before and after the FDNPP accident and also shows the results of a questionnaire survey on the level of preparation the prefecture currently has for the evacuation of residents at the time of a nuclear disaster. About 70% of the prefectures where nuclear facilities are located or adjacent have completed or are in the process of completing evacuation plans, and all except one indicated they have the equipment needed to perform radiation contamination inspections of residents. These results suggest that activities are taking place throughout Japan to build a new disaster response system. It will be important to verify whether the evacuation manuals prepared by prefectural governments are effective through large-scale training and to develop human resources for performing radiation contamination inspections of evacuating residents.
Highlights
In March 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake caused a Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident [1,2,3]
Due to ethical issues related to the questionnaire survey, it is not possible to reveal the specific name of the relevant local governments, but most local governments have GM survey meters used for contamination inspection and NaI(Tl) scintillation survey meters for measuring air dose rates
Nine years have passed since the complex FDNPP accident, and it is important to know the extent to which the Japanese central and prefectural governments have strengthened their nuclear disaster prevention systems
Summary
In March 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake caused a Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident [1,2,3]. There were no acute radiation syndrome (ARS) victims of the FDNPP accident, but it was classified as an International Nuclear Event Scale (INES) level 7, which mandated a large-scale residential evacuation because of the radioactive materials released into the atmosphere. The Japanese governmental report indicated that about 170,000 residents were evacuated as of May 2011, which had various adverse effects on people, on elders and hospitalized patients [1, 4]. About 2,000 people were identified as victims of disaster-related deaths caused by the evacuation’s influences that worsened their underlying illnesses [1]. Some residents who were afraid of radiation risks left their families and communities, resulting in lifestyle and mental health changes [1, 5,6,7].
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