Japan Ministry Asks to Conduct Nuclear Waste Disposal-related Survey on Tokyo’s Minami-Torishima Island

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:41 JST, March 4, 2026

The Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry on Tuesday asked Ogasawara Village, which is under the jurisdiction of Tokyo, for permission to conduct a literature survey on Minami-Torishima Island — the first phase of selecting a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste.

If conducted, it would be the fourth such survey nationwide, following ones in Suttsu and Kamoenai, both in Hokkaido, and Genkai, Saga Prefecture. According to sources, the municipality of Ogasawara, which administers islands including Minami-Torishima, Chichijima and Hahajima, has expressed a positive stance toward the survey.

A senior ministry official visited Ogasawara and made the request to Mayor Masaaki Shibuya in person. The ministry intends to hold meetings to explain the matter to residents of Chichijima Island on March 14 and Hahajima Island the following day to seek understanding of the survey.

This is the first case in which the ministry has sought this type of survey without a petition from the local government or a vote from the local assembly. At a press conference after a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa said that the Ogasawara mayor had requested explanatory meetings be held for villagers.

Selecting a final disposal site for nuclear waste consists of three stages: a literature survey, a preliminary investigation and a detailed investigation. It is said this process will take more than 20 years.

Minami-Torishima is located about 1,950 kilometers southeast of central Tokyo. It has a total land area of 1.5 square kilometers and is completely state-owned. About 30 government personnel, including those from the Maritime Self-Defense Force and the Japan Meteorological Agency, are stationed there. There is no regular access to the island for the general public.

The ministry has classified the island as a suitable final disposal site in its own assessment.