No.142 Resumption of Out-of-Town Business Trips After COVID

This year marks the fourth year of the COVID-19 pandemic, but since the classification under the Infectious Diseases Control Law has been downgraded to Category 5, social life and economic activities have gradually returned to normal.

In the second half of this year, Bon Odori, local festivals, shrine grand festivals, sports days, and other events were held without restrictions in each region for the first time in four years, and all were a great success. At the I Inagi Citizen Festival, approximately 70,000 people attended over the two days of October 21 and 22, setting a new record for attendance.

With the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, not only are events resuming, but also the business trips of the mayor, council members, and public officials outside the city are being resumed, and restrictions are being lifted. I also had a concentration of business trips in October for the first time in a while. I would like to share a part of that.

From October 2nd to 5th, I visited Taiwan. This was the first official visit by a group of mayors participating in the "Japan-Taiwan Cooperative Mayors' Alliance". Since Japan does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, this initiative aims to deepen exchanges at the municipal level, working to strengthen connections beyond the traditional economic and cultural domains.

This time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Taiwanese government actively welcomed us, and we were able to meet with government officials such as President Tsai Ing-wen and Vice President Lai Ching-te at the Presidential Office, which is under strict security by the Taiwanese military, to exchange opinions.

From October 11 to 13, I attended the Urban Issues Conference organized by the National Mayors' Association held in Hachinohe City, Aomori Prefecture. I stayed overnight on the 11th, and on the first day, the 12th, keynote speeches, main reports, and general reports were presented in line with the theme. The theme this time was "The Charm and Development of Cities Created by Culture, Arts, and Sports," and we received a keynote speech from Katsuhiko Hibino, the President of Tokyo University of the Arts and an artist, titled "What is the Role of Art?" The main report was given by Mayor Kumagai of Hachinohe City on "Community Development through Culture and Sports in Hachinohe City."

All of these aim to promote Community Development from the perspective of regional revitalization that includes not only simple tourism but also culture and sports, and we will use this as a reference for our city in the future.

On the second day, the schedule for the morning symposium and the afternoon administrative inspection on the 13th has been changed, and we will be visiting the Rokkasho Village Nuclear Fuel Cycle Facility. We received an invitation from Mayor Yanagida of Saku City, Nagano Prefecture, with whom we have a close relationship, and participated.

First, we received an overview of the entire facility at the Japan Nuclear Fuel Limited PR Center, and then we took a bus to tour each facility on the premises.

Photography is prohibited outside the PR center, and electronic devices with camera functions are not allowed. Due to very high-level safety and anti-terrorism measures, many areas were undergoing renovation. It was reported that an average of 7,000 workers are active on-site each day, creating a lively atmosphere.

The main businesses of the nuclear fuel cycle facility are: (1) uranium enrichment plant, (2) low-level radioactive waste disposal center, (3) high-level radioactive waste storage management center, (4) reprocessing plant, (5) MOX fuel plant.

Of these, (1) started operations in March 1992, (2) started operations in December 1992, (3) began operations in April 1995, (4) started construction in April 1993, and (5) started construction in October 2010, with each scheduled for completion in the first half of fiscal year 2024.

At the reprocessing plant, construction work is underway to meet the compliance review requirements for the new regulatory standards, and it is expected that domestic processing will be possible after completion. The series of construction measures primarily involved reinforcements capable of withstanding natural disasters such as tornadoes, which exceeded initial expectations.

On a regular basis, there are few opportunities to access accurate information regarding the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant, and it gives the impression that the entire project is delayed and there is no prospect of full-scale operation. However, after conducting an on-site inspection, it became clear that the entire planned project is expected to be operational in the near future.

In this way, business trips and study visits outside the city are important for understanding the initiatives of other municipalities and obtaining accurate information, and they are also useful for deepening our knowledge. We will continue to work to ensure that the knowledge gained can be returned to the Community Development of Inagi.