The March 11, 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant
disaster has precipitated a world of change in Japan's nuclear
power industry. Within hours of the 9.0 earthquake and tsunami,
most of Japan's 54 nuclear power plants (which had supplied 27
per cent of Japan's electricity) were shut down on orders from
then Prime Minister Naoto Kan. Japan is now burning fossil-fuels
to replace the missing electrical generation capacity and has
recently signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia to purchase three
times their total 2010 oil imports. In the interests of public
safety and for the peace of mind of residents who live near the
numerous and widely-scattered nuclear plants in Japan, the
government has ordered "stress test" inspections of all nuclear
plants in the country. Even so, due to rising political pressure
from ordinary citizens and the growing anti-nuclear power
protest movement there, not every plant which has been "stress-
test approved" may restart. With those daily Japanese newspaper
headlines in mind, the