- The Prime Minister’s Fukushima investigative panel has finished questioning five foreign experts. Their chief recommendation is for Japan to develop a “safety culture” for nuclear energy. “The most fundamental obligation perhaps is to establish an appropriate safety culture among all those involved in nuclear enterprise,” said Richard Meserve, former chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, “Safety culture should reflect a commitment that safety is the highest priority (and) that it should come ahead of cost, production and schedules.” Andre-Claude Lacoste, chairman of France’s nuclear safety body said, “What is improbable is possible. We must be aware of the fact that an accident is always possible. We must be prepared to deal with it.” Lars-Erik Holm, head of Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare, said he expects the panel to include a chapter on safety culture in its final report to demonstrate what “the problem was and what needs to be fixed in Japan.” (Japan Times)
- Japan’s opposition parties have criticized Disaster Minister Goshi Hosono for trying to corrupt the political neutrality of the Diet’s committee investigating Fukushima. Hosono met Kiyoshi Kurokawa, chairman of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission, to explain a bill to set up a new nuclear regulatory agency. “Hosono is exerting political pressure to threaten the investigation commission’s neutrality,” a member of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party said. It seems the Diet doesn’t trust the Prime Minister’s cabinet. (Yomiuri Shimbun)
- The Minister of Economy says the people and businesses of Japan can expect considerable increases in the cost of electricity. He said the extent and duration of the increases could not be estimated. He added that restarting nukes is inevitable. But, he cautioned that restarts will happen only after residents are convinced the plants are safe. (JAIF)
- One spot in Futaba town, which borders Fukushima Daiichi, has a radiation level of 470 millisieverts per year. However, this single reading is not what was found over the rest of the community. In fact, some Futaba locations have radiation exposures that are nearly 100 times lower. In other words, the contamination levels are not uniform inside the no-go zone and it might be possible for some people to go home without much decontamination work, even in one of the two towns adjacent to the power plant (with Okuma). The Tokyo government released this information on Saturday, based on ground-level surveys taken inside the 20km no-go zone. The surveys are being run to identify which portions of the zone might be repopulated quickly, and which ones will need extensive decontamination before people can return home. All previous reports have been based on airborne monitoring, which is necessarily inexact. (Japan Times)
- The government plans to issue a new evacuation zone contamination report by the end of March. The report will use ground-based readings taken inside the 20km and northwest corridor no-go zones and designate locations by actual readings rather than the previous airborne estimates. The report will precisely identify where the above-50-millisievert “uninhabitable” spots are located, as well as 20-50 millisievert “restricted” areas, and less-then-20-millisievert locations where residents should be able to return home in the near future. In parallel with this announcement, the government has reduced the “no-fly” zone above the region to a 3 kilometer radius around Fukushima Daiichi because airborne radiation levels have dropped since the completion of the unit #1 enclosure. The previous “no-fly” zone was set at a 20 kilometer radius. (Mainichi Shimbun)
- Many schools in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, are now open. Minamisoma is centered roughly 25 kilometers north of Fukushima Daiichi, with its southern portion inside the 20km no-go zone. All schools outside the zone have started classes since decontamination work has been completed. However, only less than half of the district’s enrollment is presently attending classes. Low enrollment is due to many parents who moved during the March-April evacuations have not returned, and no-one has returned to the part of the district inside the no-go zone. Those students asked how they felt about returning to their old schools responded positively. (JAIF)
- The temperature of the unit #2 RPV has raised slightly since the water injection flow was reduced earlier this week. Temperatures have stabilized, however, and are at about the same level as before the faulty thermometer incident a few weeks ago. One monitor reads 41oC and the other is at 44oC. (TEPCO)
- A human chain of 700 protesters surrounded the Tokai No. 2 nuclear power station. Stretching nearly 1 kilometer long, participants protested against the reactivation of the Tokai No. 2 nuclear plant and called for its decommissioning. Many of the protesters came from communities outside of Tokai, while others came from neighboring prefectures. A few Fukushima evacuees also participated. A woman who evacuated from Tomioka said, “I hadn’t realized the danger of nuclear power plants until I was evacuated (from the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant). The blunder must not be repeated.” (Mainichi Shimbun)
- A NY Times article from Feb. 26 is literally a “must read” for those concerned about risk aversion. The parallel with the current radiophobic situation in Japan is obvious. Here’s the link… http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/the-wages-of-eco-angst/?src=tp
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