Managing future disasters: Japan’s energy security and nanotechnology regulation

The disasters in Fukushima following 11 March 2011 have reminded us of the fragility of technological safety measures and the danger of lax implementation of safety regulations. The loss of confidence in the reliability of nuclear energy has quickly spread around the world, raising concerns about energy security. The rapid development of nanotechnology and its applications in a wide range of products such as solar cells, are expected to help alleviate these global energy security concerns. However, inadequate regulation of the application of this new technology to industries, businesses and households may pose equally significant security threats to human health, the environment and natural resources. This chapter addresses challenges to the regulation of nanotechnology, drawing on the experience and impacts of the failure of nuclear safety regulation in Japan to prevent the Fukushima nuclear disaster. It will be argued that Japan should be more pre-emptive in revisiting the regulatory framework for accident management from a security perspective, while at the same time facilitating scientists’ free experimentation using engineered nanomaterials as catalysts for scientific breakthroughs in alternative energy sources.