- More information on unit #4s spent fuel pool auxiliary cooling interruption… Investigation into the overheating condition on the primary pump’s melted electrical housing revealed an “improper terminal connection” as the cause. The backup pump was shut down to find if it had the same improper connection, as well. It did. After shutting off the backup pump, the connection was fixed. The backup pump was restarted and has operated without further incident. (TEPCO Press Releases)
- Tepco’s president during the Fukushima accident has denied ever considering abandonment of the F. Daiichi power complex. In testimony before the Diet’s Fukushima investigative panel, Masataka Shimizu said he told cabinet minister Kaieda they were considering evacuations from the plant site on March 15, 2011, but, “I was not saying that we would withdraw everyone. The basic premise was that we would leave a number of people.” He admitted he never told Kaieda they were planning on leaving a staff of essential operating personnel, but he had no idea that his words would be severely misunderstood. (Japan Today)
- The three major parties of the Japanese Diet have agreed on a compromise with the creation of a new nuclear regulatory system. The bill will be voted on by the Diet before its scheduled June 21st adjournment. The new system will be as independent of the government as the law allows (National Government Organization Law), with a two-layered system. A commission will be made up of experts and scholars who will make safety decisions for the nuclear industry. They will have a support Agency below them to insure the new safety standards are complied with. There were 17 specific points of debate, some of which have yet to be worked out. In a move that stuns this writer, the bill will give the prime minister the right to order “key instructions” to the affected power plant staff, like injecting water into the reactor pressure vessel. The majority Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) believes the allowance of political intervention in on-site management of a nuclear crisis will expedite handling of the situation. The minority parties wanted no such power given to the prime minister, but they eventually agreed in a compromise move. It is unclear whether or not the PM will have the right to control venting (depressurization) of the containment. (comment – This is a terrible decision. Naoto Kan’s naïve and rumor-based interference with Fukushima staff only made the situation worse. His meddling did nothing positive. Unless the PM has sufficient experience with nuclear plant emergency operations, he /she should never be given this level of legal authority. To date, no PM would so-qualify. – end comment) When the final bill is passed, it will lay the basis for nuke plant restarts since most local opposition is predicated on the new regulatory system not yet existing. (Yomiuri Shimbun) One thing is for sure – a “no return” rule will be included in the bill. This means that if a bureaucrat becomes part of the commission, he/she cannot return to their prior job after their term has ended. This will effectively cease the past practice of bureaucrats from the Industry Ministry being cycled through NISA (Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency) – a practice said to be one of the reasons behind Japan’s inadequate tsunami protection, which made the Fukushima accident possible. (Kyodo News)
- Prime Minister Noda has gone public with his explanation of the need to restart two Oi nuclear plants, and stressed their improved level of safety since the Fukushima accident. “If nuclear power generation, which used to supply about 30 percent of (the nation’s) electricity, remains halted, Japanese society will face a deadlock. My judgment is that the Nos. 3 and 4 reactors at the Oi nuclear power plant should be restarted to benefit people’s lives,” Noda said during a televised press conference. His statements came one day after Fukui governor Issei Nishikawa said Noda should take his appeal for the restarts directly to the people. Nishikawa made this one of his pre-requisites for a decision on the Oi restart issue. There is no legal requirement for local approval for restarting nukes, but Tokyo has said they will not allow operations to resume without local consent. After Noda’s press conference, Oi Mayor Shinobu Tokioka said he was satisfied with Noda’s explanation. (Mainichi Shimbun)
- The decision by the Fukui Prefecture’s panel of experts is expected to be given on Sunday. It is expected that partisan groups in the Fukui Assembly will concurrently submit their opinions on the matter with the expert panel’s report. Oi mayor Tokioka and Fukui governor Nishikawa say this is the final level of input they need in order to decide whether or not to approve the Oi restarts. Nishikawa says this will make it possible for him to make up his mind as early as next week. While local input is politically sought by the prime minister, the ultimate decision on the restarts resides with him. If resumptions are approved by Noda, it will take 4-6 weeks to bring both units up to full power output. (NHK World)
- Is Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto really anti-nuclear or is he merely a political opportunist using the Oi restart issue to boost his popularity? It seems he may not be anti-nuclear after all. Hashimoto recently backed off his opposition to the Oi restarts citing pressure from the local business community as his reason. The Osaka news media speculates that his Oi opposition threatened losing financial support from businesses in the city, which he desperately needs for his national political campaign. However, freelance journalist Yuji Yoshitomi, author of books on Hashimoto and Osaka, says the real reasons for his reversal were fear of being blamed for blackouts and that he is not really an opponent of nuclear power. He has conveniently used the issue for political gain. “I wasn’t surprised when he agreed to the restart, as I never thought he was really antinuclear. And he is unlikely to suffer much mid- or long-term political damage as people turn on their air-conditioners and forget about what happened,” Yoshitomi said. (Japan Times) On a related note, the governors of Shiga and Kyoto Prefectures remain opposed to restarting the Oi reactors on a permanent basis. They are both in favor of Hashimoto’s prior suggestion that the two units only be run during peak demand periods, then shut them down. This has caused a rift between the governors and Hashimoto, and the outcome could be very interesting. In addition, Hashimoto’s Osaka expert panel on nuclear safety has asked that the new nuclear regulatory commission should have half of their members be experts from outside Japan to insure as much independence as possible. (Asahi Shimbun)
- Tepco has reported that staff walk-down inspections of the pressure suppression pool (torus) rooms of F. Daiichi units 2&3 have found high water levels in both. It is estimated that each room has a water depth of ~5.5 meters. The water level was about half-way up the sides of the donut-shaped torus. The workers were trying to find source(s) of leaks from the rooms and into the adjoining turbine building basements, but they were unsuccessful. The staff also took pictures of what they saw, and it seems there is no visible damage or deformity to either torus. In fact, all equipment in the rooms seemed to be in remarkably good condition. (NHK World)
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