Enriched Uranium Missing From Japan Plant NATALIE OBIKO PEARSON Associated Press Writer TOKYO A small amount of enriched uranium _ not enough to make a bomb _ has gone missing from a nuclear power plant in central Japan, the Science Ministry said Friday. Officials have been unable to locate a neutron-detecting device containing 1.7 milligrams of enriched uranium at the No. 3 reactor at Takahama nuclear power plant in Fukui state about 200 miles west of Tokyo, the ministry said in a statement. The amount missing is too small to make a bomb and not radioactive enough to pose a threat to humans, a ministry official said on condition of anonymity. The device, used to measure the level of neutrons in the reactor, was reported missing Friday afternoon during an inspection of the nuclear fuel inventory at the plant, which is operated by Kansai Electric Power Co. Officials have ordered Kansai Electric to conduct a thorough investigation and were set to send ministry inspectors to the plant on Saturday, the ministry said. Another plant run by Kansai Electric, also in Fukui, was the scene of Japan's deadliest-ever nuclear-plant accident last August. In that incident, a corroded cooling pipe carrying boiling water and superheated steam burst at a plant in nearby Mihama, killing five workers. No radiation was released in that accident. Kansai Electric later admitted that the pipe had not been inspected since 1996. It is being investigated on suspicion of negligence leading to death. The government has been eager to push nuclear power to meet the energy needs of resource-poor Japan, but public trust has been deeply shaken by a series of safety violations, reactor malfunctions and accidents in the nuclear energy industry. Japan's 52 nuclear reactors supply 35 percent of the country's electricity. The government wants to build 11 new plants and raised electricity output to nearly 40 percent of the national supply by 2010. Fukui lies about 202 miles west of Tokyo. 050625 022157 Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. FAIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with "Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The Copyright Act of 1976. 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