The Hottest Import To Hit Japan

PLUTONIUM IS SCARY STUFF: INHALING A SPECK OF it too small to see would mean certain death. So the 58-day voyage of the Akatsuki Maru, which exposed a 1.7- ton cargo of plutonium oxide to treacherous seas and possibly even to pirates lusting for nuclear booty, made plenty of people nervous. When the hot shipment finally completed its journey from Cherbourg, France, to Tokai, Japan, 140 km (90 miles) northeast of Tokyo, it was greeted by 1,000 protesters, some of whom had painted the universal radiation warning symbol on their faces. The crowd eventually dispersed and the cargo was nestled safely in an ultrasecure storage facility, but the controversy is not likely to die down. Still on the minds of environmentalists the world over: What role will the deadly material play in Japan's future?

An essential ingredient in many atomic weapons, plutonium can also be used in specially designed nuclear plants, called breeder reactors, to reduce the amount of uranium needed to sustain fission. Back in the 1950s, the U.S., Japan and several European countries argued that breeder reactors should be the keystone of their nuclear-energy strategy because fissionable uranium was scarce and expensive. Since then the amount of conventional nuclear fuel has increased and the economic incentive for developing breeders has disappeared. Japan has kept its program going, however, despite the dangers of accidents or plutonium theft by terrorists.

Under pressure at home and abroad, Japanese officials show no signs of scuttling the plutonium program, but they may slow it down. Even as the Akatsuki Maru dropped anchor, they were thinking about delaying further scheduled shipments from France and postponing construction of Japan's plutonium production facility, which is supposed to start operation in August 1999.