- Now that Japan’s proposed nuclear safety rules are public, opposition voices are being heard. Nuclear Regulatory Authority expert panel member, Nagoya University professor Akio Yamamoto, said he questions some of the mandates because, “The requirements are too high.” One industry official added that the costs could be more than $100 million per plant. Since most nuclear stations in Japan have several units, the price of making all the changes could be many hundreds of millions per station. Some utilities would be hard-pressed to justify that much of a financial outlay. One of the toughest requirement concerns the installation of filtered depressurization exhausts on existing units. These will be a “must” for all 28 boiling water reactor units, but only two are currently being built at Tepco’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa station in Niigata Prefecture. It seems all other plant owners are waiting to see what the final law will say in July. While the “vents” are not immediately mandated for pressurized water reactors, the creation of external critical-response facilities is being delayed at most of the eight PWR stations. Only the Ikata (Ehime Prefecture) and the Tsuruga (Fukui Prefecture) complexes have the critical-response facilities under construction. Many officials believe the Ikata station’s PWRs will be the first to restart after the new rules become law in July. (Yomiuri Shimbun)
- The NRA has fired one of their senior officials for leaking information about seismic seam findings to one nuclear company before it was released. On Jan. 22, Tetsuo Nayukigave Japan Atomic Power Co. a draft assessment concerning the geology under the Tsuruga nuclear station, a week before its official release. NRA Chairman Shunichi Tanaka said, “It is extremely regrettable that a senior official did such a thing. It was a thoughtless act, because we should be especially careful when having contact with parties subject to regulations and should be transparent in the exchanges.” The disclosed information was not proprietary, but the action violates the NRA’s protocols for communicating regulated companies. As it turns out, Nayuki reported the incident himself on January 23. A Japco official admitted they must take part of the blame, “We told (Nayuki) on Dec. 21 that if we are given a chance to express our opinions about the draft report during the panel meeting, we want to learn the content in advance so we can instantly make an accurate counterargument.” The NRA’s investigation found no evidence of Japco providing any financial reward or gift for Nayuki’s indiscretion. Nayuki has been returned to his former position with the Industry Ministry. (Kyodo News Service)
- Prosecutors have questioned the head of the now-defunct Nuclear Safety Commission concerning possible criminal negligence after 3/11/11. Haruki Madarame appeared voluntarily before a team of lawyers trying to decide whether or not a criminal complaint filed by ~50 Fukushima residents can be tried in a court of law. The lawsuit alleges Madarame’s negligence resulted in deaths and injuries due to a two week delay in announcement of radiological release predictions following 3/11/11. Madarame responded that the use of SPEEDI contamination projections were not possible because the radiological release data from F. Daiichi was not immediately available. Madarame told NHK TV, “It’s incorrect to say that if the estimates had been released earlier, many people could have been evacuated safely.” The suit also faults him for failing to take necessary anti-tsunami measures at F. Daiichi. At the Diet’s Fukushima investigation last year, Madarame testified,”It was an apparent mistake as the safety review guidelines for nuclear power plants did not fully cover the impact of a tsunami.” The suit says deaths and injuries resulted due to radiation exposure because of Madarme’s two areas of negligence. Madarame was responsible for providing Naoto Kan’s staff with technical advice on the situation at F. Daiichi. Tokyo Electric Power Company’s former chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata has previously been questioned. Prosecutors continue to emphasize that it will be difficult to bring actual charges against any of the alleged perpetrators. They add that questioning all 40 individuals named in the complaint will take a lot of time. One of the alleged perpetrators is former PM Naoto Kan, and it is unknown if or when he might be available for questioning. The lawyers do not expect to make a final decision on possible criminal charges before March. (Japan Today; Kyodo News Service; Japan Times; Yomiuri Shimbun; NHK World)
- A new poll by the Mainichi Shimbun reveals that 56% of the respondents favor Prime Minister Abe’s reconsideration of the prior regime’s no-nukes-by-2040 policy. 37% said they did not support Abe’s position. In addition, 73% of Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party and 67% of the PM’s Cabinet staff also support the reexamination.
- Popular Lake Inawashiro, Fukushima Prefecture, will have its bottom surveyed for Cesium contamination. The three municipalities on the lake say they have experienced a 40% decrease in tourism since 3/11/11. The drop in visitors is attributed to fears that the lake might contain radiation from the nuclear accident. The lake, north of Fukushima City, had its waters tested in June and September of 2012, and no Cesium radioactivity was detected. However, the rumors persist because of fear that F. Daiichi radiation has been absorbed into the lake’s bottom mud. A robot developed by Fukushima University will take the bottom samples and check radiation levels at the bottom’s surface. Researcher Takoya Omuro said, “The worst situation is not knowing the truth. If we know the level of contamination, we can respond to that.” Lake Inawashiro is popular with tourists in the summer, but last year the number of visitors stood at 60 percent of pre-accident levels. (Mainichi Shimbun)
- Two American decontamination experts will advise the clean-up efforts in the evacuated zones around F. Daiichi. Robert Sindelar has experience in waste processing and Mark Triplett has worked with decontaminating US nuclear weapon’s production sites. They will stay in Japan until the end of March. Their expenses will be covered by the United States government. They will visit F. Daiichi, the surrounding evacuation zones, and involved research institutes to see what they might add to the on-going efforts. (Kyodo News Service)
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