- TEPCO workers have entered the unit #2 pressure suppression chamber for the first time. This is where it has been rumored a hydrogen explosion took place on March 15. The quick inspection revealed no evidence of an explosion. Pictures taken by the workers allowed TEPCO to report, “Apparently, there were no cracks in the suppression chamber and there were no changes in the shape.” Workers entered the basement mezzanine on March 14 and found the doors to the “torus” could be opened. The maximum level of radiation inside the “torus” was 160 millisieverts per hour. Contaminated water was about two feet below the grating where the workers walked. The highest worker exposure was measured at 2.9 millisieverts, which is well below their anticipated 10 millisievert dose. (Mainichi Shimbun)
- An attempt to inspect unit #3’s “torus” failed. The doorway to the “torus” room was severely deformed and could not be opened, indicating there was either a severe over-pressurization or an internal hydrogen explosion on March 14 when the upper refueling deck detonated. The radiation level outside the warped door was at ~75 mSv/ – a level similar to what was found inside the unit #2 suppression pool room after its door was opened. (JAIF)
- Naoto Kan may have been a megalomaniacal meddler during the first weeks of the Fukushima crisis. The February 28 Investigative Report on Fukushima released by a Prime Minister-appointed panel criticized Kan’s short-tempered micromanagement during the early days of the crisis. The question was also raised as to whether or not Kan was a hero and saved Tokyo by demanding TEPCO not abandon the power complex. TEPCO has maintained for a year that they never contemplated such a thing. Whether the hot-tempered leader’s intrusion actually saved eastern Japan remains an open question. The issue of Kan trying to control emergency actions at the stricken power plants was also raised. Was he doing the right thing, or meddling into an area outside his area of understanding? Kan and his staff maintain they tried to take control because no-one in Tokyo was doing it – specifically TEPCO and NISA. He argued that a lack of preparedness on the part of these two organizations demanded that he take charge. However, many of his actions displayed naivety and ill-logic. In addition, Kan is given particular criticism for incessantly losing his temper during the crisis. The Feb. 28 report concluded that intervention by the prime minister’s office provided little help to mitigate the three meltdowns that occurred, and may have made matters worse. (Japan Times)
- In addition, the separate Diet-appointed investigative panel has unearthed additional evidence that Kan believed many anti-nuclear theories of nuclear apocalypse and was driven by these visions of doom. Kan has admitted he said, “Japan could go to ruin if the situation stays as it is. If Tepco abandons the Fukushima plant, reactors and spent nuclear fuels could collapse and radioactive substances could be released. It will be twice or three times worse than (the amount of radioactive fallout from) Chernobyl and you know what that means.” Perhaps the most bizarre of these recent disclosures is Kan arbitrarily minimizing the number of members in his emergency task force during the crisis, when one would think he would have wanted all the informed support he could get his hands on. Kan told those in attendance, “Why are so many people in here? The important decisions should be made by five or six people. Don’t be silly!” The Diet’s panel is supposed to issue a report in June. It is independent of the Prime Minister-appointed group. (Japan Times)
- To date, 19 of Japan’s 54 nuclear plants have submitted their stress test results to NISA for evaluation. Two (Oi units 3 & 4) have been reviewed by NISA and found acceptable, but are awaiting further review by the Nuclear Safety Commission. Some local officials are eagerly awaiting the test results so the plants can resume operation. “My true feeling is that I want their safety to be confirmed and for them to get restarted,” said a member of the Oi town assembly in Fukui Prefecture. However, other local officials are concerned they will be criticized for placing economic benefits over safety concerns if they become the first to call for the plant’s reopening. In July, then-Prime Minister Naoto Kan overruled Hideo Kishimoto, the town head of Genkai, Saga Prefecture, who had approved the resumption of operations of Kyushu Electric Power Co.’s Genkai nuclear power plant. Because of this, Oi Mayor Shinobu Tokioka has waited for the central government to clarify the state’s responsibility. If Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and three ministers concerned decide that nuclear power is necessary, Tokioka wants them to explain the need of nuclear power to his local government and residents before he decides. Local officials across Japan are eagerly awaiting the resolution of the Oi nuclear plant restart issue, which they will probably use as the model for their decisions. (Yomiuri Shimbun)
- Twenty-three local authorities visited Miyagi Prefecture to witness the tsunami debris situation themselves. Their visit was the result of Prime Minister Noda’s recent plea for rubble disposal assistance. They inspected ~450,000 tons of debris piled up in Onagawa Town and observed the process of sorting, crushing, and loading of the material before shipping. Radiation monitoring occurred every step of the way showing virtually no cesium isotopic contamination. Since Monday’s plea by Noda, 13 more prefectures and 51 municipalities have said they will consider a similar move. (NHK World)
- The municipal assembly of Nahara, Fukushima Prefecture, is unanimously opposed to a temporary waste storage facility. They believe that such a facility would concentrate the contamination in their town to such a point that elevated radiation levels would endanger the town’s existence. Mayor Takashi Kusano expressed personal remorse with the decision, “Currently we are at the stage of waiting for an explanation from the national government, so it is unfortunate that the motion was passed.” (Mainichi Shimbun)
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