“What a wonderful place it would be without nuclear power plants, or even with them.” Ms. Oga studied agriculture and had an architect friend to build her dream house, made of wood from the nearby Abukuma Mountains, Fukushima. The accident happened just before being able to move into the house. After evacuating to Niigata Prefecture, Ms. Oga said, “I was so happy that first spring, I felt everything was OK.” That’s how difficult life was after the nuclear accident, even though the evacuation order for parts of Okuma Town was lifted in March 2020.
Eleven years have passed since the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Many people are still suffering.
What did we learn from that disaster?
As we approach the 11th anniversary of the disaster, we need to look back at what happened, ask what is happening now, and think about energy and the future.
Friends of the Earth Japan
Containers filled with contaminated soil from Iitate Village (Fukushima, 2017)
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Nuclear accident
Ten years after March 11, 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident continue to affect many people.
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Lifting of evacuation orders and return home
Most evacuation orders have been lifted. But the return rate is low.
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Current status of contaminated water
Years after the nuclear accident, a huge amount of contaminated water is still being generated. Even after bing processed, it still contains a large amount of radioactive materials. The question is what to do with it.
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Mountains of contaminated soil.
The ground surface contaminated by radioactive materials from the nuclear accident is being scraped away. But where will it go?
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What is the cost of the nuclear accident?
The national costs of compensation, decontamination and decommissioning of the nuclear accident amount to are at least 22 trillion yen. Who will pay?
Renewable energy supplied 17% of Japan's electricity in 2017. CO2 emissions are dropping due to energy conservation and renewable energy.
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Your choices can change society!
You can support renewable energy by switching your electricity provider.
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The world is rejecting nuclear power
Renewable energy is growing rapidly and costs are falling quickly. Many countries are now rejecting nuclear power due to the risk of accidents and problems of nuclear waste.
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Nuclear power and climate change
In Japan, nuclear power has been promoted as a measure against climate change. But is nuclear power really a solution to climate change?
Friends of the Earth Japan has collected photos and messages about the memories around the nuclear accident. We have received 74 photos. Thank you for all of the memorable pictures and the messages. See photos>
Minna no Data Site launched the "East Japan Soil Bequeral Measurement Project" to collect soil samples from citizens throughout eastern Japan, measure radioactive materials contained in the soil, and integrate and visualize the data. Find out more>
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Cian CiaranMusician living in Wales -
Ms. Aileen Mioko SmithEnvironmental activist -
Ruiko MutōMiharu-machi, Fukushima Prefecture. -
Norma FieldProfessor emeritus of East Asian Studies at the University of Chicago -
Sato TaijiTheatre Brook
Organizer of Nakatsugawa Solar Budokan -
ChihiroArtist
Lives in Chigasaki, Kanagawa, Born in Kunimi, Fukushima -
Yoshinobu IshidaCEO, LOND Corporation
I thought Fukushima would have been the time for the global community to wake up rather than sleepwalk into a future filled with our mistakes for our kids to fix. Perhaps the covid 19 pandemic will present a similar opportunity for a new beginning and a change we so desperately need. “Normal was rubbish anyway and we can build a better normal can’t we?” said a 12 yr old girl, it's time to implement policy based on social and environmental justice not the widening and deepening of inequality that only entrenches the sense of hopelessness in our communities, stop this madness, end it now, lets get to work.
I support "Mieruka"! If we can see more, we can support more, and we can participate more. I believe it is very important to make things visible. This is because the less you see, the less you understand, and the more complex things become, the more difficult it is to grasp the situation and offer support. The hardest is when we cannot see, things are concealed, we become isolated, and we become divided. Let' work together around the country with the Mieruka Project to make things more visible for everyone.
FoE Japan's "Fukushima Mieruka Project" enables us to see the reality of the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident over the period of 10 years from various angles, with numbers, testimonies, and photos. I think this is a very valuable website that could not have been created without FoE Japan, which has been continuing to visit and be involved with Fukushima ever since the nuclear accident. It will be a great help for us who live in Fukushima to recognize this accident again. Thank you very much for everything.
I was surprised when I saw this new website. Just like being in a bookstore, it grabs one's attention, you reach out and the topics listed makes you want to click to see what's inside. Once it is open, the contents are also very clear. Why does it make that impression? There seems to be something behind it that is hard to put into words. Something that emanates from an attitude of respect and consideration for those who have to live with the harsh reality, for those of us who have to accept that reality, for everyone involved in this project. I think it comes from sincerity. I look forward to see the future of this website that has been created by a sincere campaign to pursue the painful truth.
Organizer of Nakatsugawa Solar Budokan
This site is amazing! I'm sure it will reach people all over the world.
With pandemics, climate change, the gap between rich and poor, BLM, and the challenges facing humanity, the nuclear power issue is a theme that the Japanese should take the lead in tackling. It is a theme we must not forget. Think about how the children of the future will feel. Children need love. Are we sending the children of the future our love? Are we being careful not to leave them with debt and environmental pollution?
We have responsibilities to the children of the future.
The Fukushima Mieruka Project is fulfilling those responsibilities.
Lives in Chigasaki, Kanagawa, Born in Kunimi, Fukushima
I was a senior in high school at the time of the accident. Since the accident there had been many times when I couldn't have the courage to face the problem.
However as time goes by, I feel like I’m getting ready to get in touch with the feelings and facts that I couldn't face before.
I feel that the existence of this "Fukushima Mieruka PROJECT" is a bridge that can connect not only people in Fukushima Prefecture but also people all over the world, across generations and occupations, and can think and act together!
I went to Namie town in Fukushima Prefecture at the beginning of 2020 for work, and soon after that, the Joban Line between Tomioka and Namie was reopened for the first time in 9 years. I traveled from Tomioka to Namie by bus, and the sight at that time was beyond any words even after 9 years. People tend to forget things if it isn’t about you, but as citizens living in Japan we shouldn’t forget what happened. There must be many things we can learn from the nuclear accident. I think this website is useful for people to see it again and rethink about it after 10 years since the earthquake.
Fukushima Poka Poka Project: Children gathering chestnuts