Given the known hazards of nuclear energy in seismically active Japan after the Fukushima meltdowns as well as the presence of viable conservation and renewable energy options, the question of Japan’s stalled energy transition warrants critical interrogation. To better understand why, after Fukushima, Japan’s energy policy trajectory maintained the nuclear status quo and an increased reliance on fossil fuels, this article employs network and historical analyses to examine the confluence of post-Fukushima political forces connected to Japan’s nuclear energy sector. Our novel network dataset combines with historical analysis to identify a dense network of overlapping executives and officials in Japan that forge long-term ties between the nuclear energy industry, the state, and the leading business federation in Japan. Following the 3.11 disaster and the meltdowns at the Fukushima-Daiichi facility, a long-standing nuclear safety myth and a tightly networked nuclear energy industrial complex provided an ideological and structural context to re-legitimize nuclear energy in spite of widespread public concern. Instead of a bold, ecologically rational policy to quickly phase out nuclear power and phase in renewable energy, well-worn class and state networks aligned to recommit Japan to a nuclear-reliant energy path. These findings support a theoretical synthesis around our concept of an energy industrial complex with applications in environmental and political sociology.

鉴于福岛核事故后地震活跃的日本核能的已知危害以及可行的保护和可再生能源选择的存在，日本停滞不前的能源转型问题值得认真审视。为了更好地理解为何在福岛事故之后，日本的能源政策轨迹保持了核能现状并增加了对化石燃料的依赖，本文采用网络和历史分析来检验与日本核能部门相关的福岛事故后政治力量的汇合。我们新颖的网络数据集与历史分析相结合，确定了日本重叠的高管和官员的密集网络，这些网络在核能行业、国家和日本领先的商业联合会之间建立了长期联系。继 3。11 号灾难和福岛第一核电站的熔毁、长期存在的核安全神话和紧密网络化的核能工业园区为重新使核能合法化提供了意识形态和结构背景，尽管公众普遍关注。陈旧的阶级和国家网络没有采取大胆的、生态合理的政策来迅速淘汰核电并逐步采用可再生能源，而是重新致力于让日本走上依赖核能的能源道路。这些发现支持围绕我们在环境和政治社会学中应用的能源工业综合体概念的理论综合。尽管公众普遍关注，但长期存在的核安全神话和紧密联网的核能工业综合体为重新使核能合法化提供了意识形态和结构背景。陈旧的阶级和国家网络没有采取大胆的、生态合理的政策来迅速淘汰核电并逐步采用可再生能源，而是重新致力于让日本走上依赖核能的能源道路。这些发现支持围绕我们在环境和政治社会学中应用的能源工业综合体概念的理论综合。尽管公众普遍关注，但长期存在的核安全神话和紧密联网的核能工业综合体为重新使核能合法化提供了意识形态和结构背景。陈旧的阶级和国家网络没有采取大胆的、生态合理的政策来迅速淘汰核电并逐步采用可再生能源，而是重新致力于让日本走上依赖核能的能源道路。这些发现支持围绕我们在环境和政治社会学中应用的能源工业综合体概念的理论综合。