On August 31st, Japan Power Development Corporation (J-POWER) submitted the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) scoping document for the GENESIS Matsushima project, a plan to “upcycle” the old Matsushima Power Station in Saikai City, Nagasaki Prefecture. J-POWER invites public opinions for this project from August 31st to October 17th.

The GENESIS Matsushima Project is a plan by J-POWER to add a coal gasification facility to Unit 2 of the Matsushima Power Station, an outdated coal-fired power plant that has been in operation for more than 40 years*, to continue operating it with slightly improved efficiency. This unit is using supercritical (SC) technology, an inefficient power generation technology, and is an aging thermal power plant that should be decommissioned immediately. If the GENESIS Matsushima project passes the EIA process and is realized, the aging coal-fired power plant will continue to emit a significant amount of CO2 in the future.

* Unit 1 (500MW) began operation in January 1981, Unit 2 (500MW) began operation in June 1981.

There was a longer than expected interval after the release of the first EIA document, the Document on Primary Environmental Impact Consideration last fall. Citizens concerned about climate change had hoped that J-POWER would cancel the plan, but in the end, the second EIA document, the Scoping Document, was released.

At COP26 last year, the world – Japan included – agreed to a “phase down” of coal-fired power. In addition, the G7 Summit agreement this year also included the acceleration of the phase-out of coal-fired power generation, which Japan committed to. Proceeding with the GENESIS Matsushima project is a move counter to those agreements. Furthermore, if plans like the GENESIS Matsushima project are pursued to extend the life of coal-fired power plants, the same approach could be applied in the future to other coal power plants. This will significantly hinder Japan’s transition away from coal, and therefore any plans to extend the life of coal-fired power plants must be stopped.

Last fall, nearly 800 people submitted comments for the first EIA document of this project (Document on Primary Environmental Impact Consideration). It is crucial that even more people submit comments on the second document. Since submission of opinions is only accepted via post mail (not via online or email), and written in Japanese, the citizens’ network “ACT Matsushima” has started a procedure to gather people’s opinions online and mail them to J-POWER.

With ACT Matsushima’s support, we urge everyone to submit a comment and raise your voices against the GENESIS Matsushima project (English is acceptable).

J-POWER Press Release (in Japanese):
EIA Document for GENESIS Matsushima (in Japanese):

LINK TO: Call for Public Comment Form (GENESIS Matsushima Plan)