Japan has moved closer to selecting a final storage site for high-level nuclear waste after the mayor of Ogasawara (a remote island village administered by Tokyo, roughly 1,000 km south of the Japanese capital) formally deferred to the national government on whether to proceed with a preliminary geological survey on Minamitorishima island. The mayor stated that the decision on conducting the so-called "literature survey" — the first step in identifying a permanent repository — should rest with the central government, a stance authorities are treating as effective approval. Japan has long struggled to find a community willing to host a permanent disposal site for radioactive waste from its nuclear power plants.