Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER 9
Wind Power in Japan
If we are going to reform the electricity market, then we should turn this extraordinarily ter-
rible crisis into an opportunity. . . We will make our nuclear power generation increasingly
safe while continuing to contribute to the nonproliferation regime. Japan has been at the
forefront in both of these areas, and withdrawing from them is simply not an option for us.
—Shinzo Abe, June 2013
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9.1 INTRODUCTION
he story of wind power development in Japan is, at its essence, a subplot to
a story of path dependency and the clout of a well-entrenched nuclear power
regime. Path dependency refers to the tendency of an entrenched technology
to evolve incrementally, primarily due to the existence of entrenched special
interests that are committed inancially and ideologically to a given technol-
ogy. hese special-interests spawn a regime that inances incremental tech-
nological evolution in order to keep pace with consumer demand and that
is capable of mounting strong market defense of incumbent technology.
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By achieving a high level of market penetration, an incumbent technology
amasses both the market share necessary to undercut competitive oferings
and the political support needed to create market entry barriers for compet-
ing technologies. In Japan, nuclear power has been such a technology. Prior
to March 11, 2011, Japan laid claim to possessing the third-largest nuclear
power program in the world. he nation's 54 nuclear power reactors were
capable of providing almost 30% of the nation's electricity needs,
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and the
government was committed to a nuclear power expansion policy that would
result in nuclear power capacity providing 40% of the nation's electricity
supply by 2030.
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