A government panel considering guidelines for compensation payments for those affected by the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant agreed that expanding these payments to those who voluntarily evacuated would be discussed in the future.
A government panel considering guidelines for compensation payments for those affected by the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant agreed that expanding these payments to those who voluntarily evacuated would be discussed in the future.
The panel compiled interim guidelines on Aug. 5 that will be used by Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the Fukushima plant, in deciding on compensation amounts.
Since the panel was established in April, it has considered various areas for which compensation is to be paid out, including evacuation expenses of residents, damage and negative publicity surrounding agricultural products on which shipment restrictions were placed, as well as the mental distress of evacuees.
The interim guidelines for compensation also included negative publicity to products other than farm produce as well as the indirect damage experienced by those companies that had business transactions with the companies, farmers and fishers directly affected by the Fukushima nuclear accident.
Regarding negative publicity toward ranchers, the panel approved compensation payments for ranchers in 17 prefectures, including Chiba Prefecture, where straw sold to ranchers was found to be below government standards for radiation contamination.
Because the damage arose from the selling of feed, the panel separated cattle from other livestock and allowed compensation for negative publicity to ranchers from a wider area than would be ordinarily permitted.
Compensation for negative publicity was also extended to companies in the manufacturing and services sectors. One obvious object would be industrial products made in Fukushima Prefecture that were avoided by consumers.
Compensation to those in the tourism industry would be extended beyond Fukushima to also include the prefectures of Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma.
While the interim guidelines do not include any compensation for residents who evacuated voluntarily due to concerns about exposure to radiation, members attending the Aug. 5 panel meeting agreed that such evacuees could be subject to compensation, leaving open the possibility of their inclusion depending on future discussions.
The panel also decided to establish a center to serve as a mediator in the event disputes arise over compensation amounts.
TEPCO officials will use the interim guidelines to prepare for full-fledged compensation payments. Requests for compensation will likely be accepted from September, with payments beginning from October.
Specific compensation measures will be announced later this month.