Future shaky for nuke plants

TOKYO - Japan needs to overhaul its nuclear policies and may never be safe for atomic power because it is too prone to earthquakes, a leading seismologist and former nuclear safety adviser to the Japanese government said on Thursday.

Katsuhiko Ishibashi, a professor emeritus at Kobe University, said virtually all facilities around the country are in danger of the same kind of crisis faced by the Fukushima Daiichi plant after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

"It is very difficult to find a safe plant in Japan," said Ishibashi, who is also a former member of the government's nuclear safety committee.