The construction of 2 nuclear reactors in Japan has been postponed due to local resistance from the fishing community of Iwaishima Island.

The construction of two nuclear reactors in the Japanese town of Kaminoseki has been delayed by at least two years as a result of strong resistance from the locals.

The Chugoku Electric Power Co. is expected to delay the start of work to build one of two 1,373-megawatt reactors at its planned nuclear power plant in Yamaguchi Prefecture for at least two years amid strong opposition from residents around the site, pushing back the start of commercial operations to March 2018.

The plans for the nuclear power plant were first proposed in 1982, on the Seto Inland Sea coast in Kaminoseki Town. The town comprises a peninsula and several islands, with a population of 3,600 people. The proposed construction site is on Nagashima Island – which is connected by a bridge to the mainland. Iwaishima Island, which has a population of 500 people who are almost all opposed to the nuclear power plant, is just 3.5 km across the sea from the construction site.

The surface area of the proposed site is about 330,000 m2, about 40% (140,000 m2) of which will be reclaimed from the sea. The first plant was scheduled to commence operation in 2015, while the second plant was scheduled to commence operation in 2020 – but after this, the eighth time that work has been postponed, who knows when, or even if, it will ever be completed.

The islanders’ livelihoods are based on fishing and small-scale farming, and for 27 years now, residents have held a demonstration every Monday under the slogan: “We will not sell the sea for a nuclear power plant.” The demonstration has now been held over 1050 times and has become part of the local culture.

The company attempted to begin preparatory work in October this year, but faced 30 Iwaishima fishing boats tied together with mooring ropes blocking the work. Progress was prevented for four weeks, until Chugoku Electric managed to drop two marker buoys in the sea, claiming the commencement of the reclamation work.

What makes the proposed construction even more tragic is the rare biological nature of the area – the isolated and under-populated region around Nagashima and Iwaishima coupled with the preserved Seto Inland Sea is known as “Japan’s Galapagos” – and is home to many protected and endangered species.

And while the Japanese government originally accepted the utility company’s environmental assessment of the area, the Ecological Society of Japan, the Ornithological Society of Japan and the Japanese Association of Benthology have all called for the cancellation of the nuclear power plant project based on their assessments.

The Hiroshima-based power utility is now understood to be filing an application with the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, an affiliate of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, to seek official endorsement on the delay of construction work and commercial operation of the reactor.