Stations Near Fukushima N-Plant to Be Out of Evacuation Zone

Fukushima, Dec. 20 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government plans to lift evacuation orders for areas surrounding train stations close to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.'s <9501> crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, it was learned Friday. The government and the town of Tomioka, Fukushima Prefecture, in northeastern Japan, agreed to lift an evacuation order around the town's Yonomori Station on East Japan Railway Co.'s <9020> Joban Line on March 10 next year. It will be the first instance of an evacuation order being lifted for an area designated as a "difficult-to-return zone" after the March 2011 nuclear disaster. The decision is expected to be made official by the government's Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters. The government is also in talks with municipalities over removing evacuation orders for districts surrounding two other Joban Line stations, ahead of the train line's planned full reopening by the end of March next year. The government is holding discussions with the prefectural government and the town governments of Futaba and Okuma, which both host the nuclear plant, on the dates for lifting the orders for areas around Futaba and Ono stations, located in Futaba and Okuma, respectively. According to sources, the negotiators are expected to settle on March 4 as the date for the Futaba station area and March 5 for the Ono station area. In the agreement for Yonomori Station, the central and municipal governments agreed to remove the evacuation order for the station and some 1.1 kilometers of a road connecting the station to an area not under such order. The Environment Ministry conducted decontamination work in the area, and the radiation level at the station plaza stood at an average of 0.63 microsievert per hour as of Oct. 17. "We hope that more people start to visit the region, including the town of Tomioka," Tomioka Mayor Koichi Miyamoto said at a press conference at the town office Friday. "We hope to step up preparations to welcome such people." END