Hi austephenYou posted: "Anti-nuclear sentiment is wide spread,...

Hi austephen

You posted: "Anti-nuclear sentiment is wide spread, including all levels of governments and NRA."

You also posted: "You can see delay in nuclear start happens at all levels, even within the governing parties. NRA, local governments..... This is passive resistance."

On the contrary to what you claimed, the prime minister, business groups and many local governments support the reactor restart.

Today's court ruling may delay the reactor restart a little bit but don't forget there are 48 functional reactors in Japan. I don't know how many have applied to restart, today is only 2 rejected and that is not the final outcome yet. The company has already said they will appeal. Also, Japan is not the only country using nuclear power. China is still building nuclear plants on top of the many they have already had.

Let's wait and see.

Cheers.

Pikapika

Please read exert from http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/fa45a170-d1dd-11e3-8ff4-00144feabdc0.html#axzz32LrkoM2s

"...But Shinzo Abe, the prime minister, supports the restart effort as do business groups and many local governments in areas that host – and are economically dependent on – the plants.

Without nuclear power, which supplied nearly 30 per cent of Japan’s electricity before Fukushima, utilities have been forced to import trillions of yen of additional oil and gas. That has led to higher electricity prices and unprecedented trade deficits for a country accustomed to being an exporting power.

Several utilities, including Kyushu Electric, have turned to government-owned banks for bailouts to cover losses, which have persisted in spite of price increases.

Although the restart issue is controversial, Mr Nishikawa said technical complexities were more to blame for the delays than political ones.

The NRA was created after Fukushima, to replace two regulatory bodies that were deemed to be too close to power companies, and its leaders are debating the necessary scope and stringency of some safety standards, including in key areas such as earthquake resistance...."