City near Tokyo OKs survey for possible selection as nuclear waste site

MITO, Japan - The mayor of a city in Ibaraki Prefecture, near Tokyo, said Wednesday it will accept a preliminary survey that the industry ministry wants to conduct on its suitability as a potential disposal site for highly radioactive waste.

Hitachiomiya will become the fifth location in the country to conduct such a preliminary survey. The inland city in northern Ibaraki Prefecture, bordering Tochigi Prefecture to the west, has a population of approximately 35,000.