Up to now, the Hokkaido government has held discussions with various economic and civic groups, and conducted public briefings for residents in the four neighboring municipalities, the Shiribeshi region, and six areas across the prefecture. While some residents have voiced concerns and apprehensions about the restart, the councils of the four host municipalities\u2014Tomari Village, Kamoenai Village, Kyowa Town, and Iwanai Town\u2014have adopted resolutions calling for an early restart, and their mayors have expressed support. Governor Suzuki said he takes these local decisions seriously and demonstrated a willingness to move forward with the restart of Unit 3.<\/p>\n
The governor also noted that \u201celectricity prices in Hokkaido are among the highest in Japan, placing a significant burden on residents\u2019 daily lives and the local economy.\u201d He added that he received a direct explanation from Hokkaido Electric Power President SAITO Susumu\u00a0regarding the company\u2019s outlook for electricity rate reductions following the restart of Unit 3 (as previously reported<\/a>).<\/p>\n Governor Suzuki cited the following points as the basis for his judgment that the restart is a \u201crealistic option\u201d:<\/p>\n Tomari-3 has been certified as compliant with the new regulatory requirements.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n The national government has integrated the emergency response, disaster-prevention, and evacuation plans for Hokkaido and 13 municipalities within the UPZ[1]<\/sup><\/a>Urgent Protective Action Planning Zone, generally covering the 5\u201330 km radius around a nuclear plant<\/span><\/span>\n