Official Japanese reports into the causes of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident identified significant weaknesses in the country’s structures and systems for governing nuclear safety. As a result, the government undertook a number of legal and structural reforms. One of the most important was to establish a Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) in 2012 and grant it a high degree of independence and authority. Despite scepticism at the time over the likely effectiveness of this new agency, the NRA has taken a robust approach to permitting restarts after all nuclear reactors were shut down following the accident. This style of safety regulation owes much to the personality of the NRA Chairman and has been criticised as being unpredictable and overly strict. In late 2019, only 8 GWe of capacity was operating out of a pre-accident total of 48 GWe. As a result, the current government’s preference that nuclear power provide a significant, though gradually declining share of the energy mix is under threat. In institutional terminology, Japan’s nuclear power industry is at a juncture that could become critical, but the outcome is unpredictable at present. The rapid demise of the nuclear industry is quite possible, but a range of political and economic interests may prevent this. Much will depend on the actions of the next government.

中文翻译：

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福岛核事故后日本的核安全治理：增量还是根本性变化？

日本对2011年福岛核事故起因的官方报告指出，该国用于管理核安全的结构和系统存在重大缺陷。结果，政府进行了许多法律和结构改革。最重要的措施之一是在2012年建立了核监管局（NRA），并赋予其高度的独立性和权威性。尽管当时对该新机构的有效性表示怀疑，但NRA采取了强有力的方法，允许在事故发生后关闭所有核反应堆后重新启动。这种安全监管风格很大程度上归功于NRA主席的个性，并被批评为不可预测且过于严格。在2019年底，事故发生前的总量48 GWe中，只有8 GWe的容量正在运行。结果，本届政府希望核能提供重要的能源，尽管这种能源在能源结构中所占的份额逐渐下降，但是这种威胁受到了威胁。用机构术语来说，日本的核电行业正处于关键时刻，但目前的结果尚无法预测。核工业的迅速消亡是有可能的，但是一系列的政治和经济利益可能会阻止这种情况。在很大程度上将取决于下一届政府的行动。但是一系列政治和经济利益可能会阻止这种情况。在很大程度上将取决于下一届政府的行动。但是一系列政治和经济利益可能会阻止这种情况。在很大程度上将取决于下一届政府的行动。