TOKYO, June 19 (UPI) -- Japan's industry minister has called for a reopening of 35 atomic reactors shut down after the March 11 nuclear disaster at Fukushima.
At a Tokyo news conference, Banri Kaieda said electricity demand increases during the summer and power shortages could hobble industry, the Kyodo news agency reported.
After the major earthquake and tsunami caused meltdowns at the Fukushima plant in northeastern Japan, 35 of the country's 54 reactors were shut down for safety evaluations.
However, many local governments where the idle plants are located are leery of restarting the facilities, despite assurances from the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, the report said.
Adding to the uncertainty are remarks by Haruki Madarame, the chairman of the Nuclear Safety Commission.
In an interview with Kyodo, Madarame said he regretted previous inadequate efforts to enhance the safety of nuclear power generation.
He said even before the disaster, the International Atomic Energy Agency had reported some potential problems in the country's regulation policies, but Japan "had not finished addressing" them when the earthquake and tsunami hit.
