Three years ago, on 11 March 2011, Japan witnessed the worst earthquake and tsunami in its history, a dreadful natural disaster which left thousands of people dead or injured. The tsunami caused a meltdown in the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant, releasing large amounts of radioactivity with devastating consequences for humans and nature. Japan will be dealing with the consequences of this catastrophe for decades to come.
Today we commemorate the many victims of the disaster and the subsequent events in Japan three years ago. Natural disasters cannot be prevented. Bust we must do everything in our power to minimise the impacts of such events. This means in particular that we must ensure the safety of nuclear power plants as long as these still have a licence to operate based on current legislation This is a top priority for me. 25 years after the nuclear accident in Chernobyl the events in Fukushima once again reminded us of the risks associated with the use of nuclear energy, and that the so-called residual risk is real and not just a theoretical risk. The sad and terrifying events in Fukushima have made it clear that the quickest possible phase-out of nuclear energy and consistent advancement of our energy system transformation are the way forward.
In Fukushima, problems such as leaking radioactive water, possible contamination of the ocean and leaks in the containment vessel which separates the radioactive core from the environment pose tremendous challenges for the operator and the Japanese regulatory authorities. The Japanese government turned to the international community and international organisations last year to canvass support for the development of technological solutions to these problems. The Federal Environment Ministry responded by organising a workshop at the end of last year to facilitate an initial exchange between Japanese and German experts, in particular on the issue of how to recover damaged fuel elements from the Fukushima reactors. Besides strengthening this expert exchange, Germany and Japan want to intensify their bilateral cooperation in the area of nuclear safety and radiation protection, including a more comprehensive exchange of information.
The Fukushima disaster has also had far-reaching impacts on nuclear energy policy in Germany. The decision to phase out nuclear energy was taken based on a broad consensus, and today only nine out of 17 German nuclear power plants are still licensed to operate. The remaining power plants will also gradually be switched off by 2022. Immediately after the events in Fukushima, all German nuclear power plants had to undergo comprehensive safety reviews. Stress tests were carried out at European level to assess whether facilities were robust enough to withstand external events such as earthquakes or flooding. National action plans were adopted to implement the results of the European stress tests. Germany's action plan is currently being implemented by the federal and Länder supervisory authorities and operators, and is updated and published annually.
Following its analysis of the events in Fukushima the Commission on Radiological Protection, an independent advisory body to the Federal Environment Ministry, recently recommended that the federal and Länder authorities responsible for emergency response define new, extended planning areas for key emergency measures such as evacuation, sheltering and thyroid blocking. These recommendations take into account extremely unlikely severe accidents in nuclear power plants, for example releases of considerable amounts of radioactivity following containment failure.
Ensuring the safety of nuclear power plants is a very challenging task. This is why the safety features of the plants must continue to be updated during the remainder of their operating periods. Another lesson learned from Fukushima is that emergency planning must not be based on the probability of nuclear incidents occurring. The Commission on Radiological Protection's current recommendations can therefore be considered as an appropriate approach to emergency planning for accidents in nuclear power plants.
Emergency response is the responsibility of the Länder. This is why the Federal Environment Ministry will pass on the latest recommendations of the Commission on Radiological Protection to the Standing Conference of the Interior Ministers of the Länder and also advocate the harmonisation of emergency response measures and recommendations at European level.