June 24, 2013

Jun 24, 2013 | Fukushima Accident Updates

  • Stress among Fukushima mothers and children have eased since last year. Fukushima University’s Faculty of Symbiotic Systems Science surveyed mothers of nearly 1,700 Fukushima City elementary school children in January. The detailed survey addressed mother’s worries about radiation exposure, their mental stress and the stress exhibited by their children. The results were compared to similar surveys run in January of 2012 and June-July of 2011. One of the most interesting changes is that 72% of the mothers now allow outdoor play, compared to just 33% in 2011. The survey was also run in neighboring prefectures and the results show that Fukushima mothers remain the most-stressed statistical cohort. http://www.fukushimaminponews.com/news.html?id=203
  • The Nuclear Regulation Authority says it will prioritize nuke restart applications. The first ones to be screened will be those without earthquake concerns and have one or more units of the same design at the station. Units 1&2 at Sendai, owned by Kyushu Electric Co., will probably be moved to the head of the list. Both units are 890 MWe Pressurized Water Reactor systems commissioned 7/84 and 11/85, respectively. There are no known faults in the underlying bedrock for the Sendai station. The next in line will probably be Ikata unit #3, owned by Shikoku Electric Co., which has no underlying geologic anomalies and was commissioned in 1994. The governors of both Kagoshima and Ehike Prefectures, homes to each nuke station, have said they will concede responsibility for the restart decisions to the Tokyo government if the local public can be adequately informed of safety. Shunichi Tanaka, chairman of the NRA, said, “The new standards are appropriate, even in view of international standards. Whether we can give life to them depends on how the examination on the basis of new standards goes.”  http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0000324178
  • Some of the Fukushima towns want a second round of decontamination. Most of the government’s de-con work has been finished, but some say it isn’t enough. They want all of their communities to have radiation levels below the 1 millisievert national standard before they will consider the work complete. For example, in Kawauchi Town nearly half of the decontaminated housed still show radiation levels above the 1 mSv level. http://jen.jiji.com/jc/eng?g=eco&k=2013062400516
  • Another new leak has been reported at F. Daiichi. This time it comes from the desalination system on the back-end of the Cesium removal system. Reports vary as to the amount that leaked from the system, from a low of 250 liters (NHK World) to a high of 360 liters (Mainichi Shimbun, Asahi Shimbun, and a host of others). While on routine system inspection, one of the plant staff noticed the leak flowing into the containment barrier around the desalination unit. He shut off flow through the reverse-osmosis technology and the leak stopped. None of the fluid has entered the environment. Several news outlets say Tepco has not disclosed the radiation level within the leaked water, but a quick look at the Tepco Press site shows Tepco has in-fact made the information available… http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/2013/1228420_5130.html  The following URLs are representative of the myriad of articles found in the Japanese Press… http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130621_15.html — http://japandailypress.com/tepco-reports-of-new-leak-at-fukushima-daiichi-plant-2131011 — http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/06/21/national/360-liters-of-radioactive-water-leaks-from-fukushima-no-1/#.UcRCeevD8dU
  • The Environment Ministry says all radioactive waste must be disposed-of in the prefectures of origin. On Thursday, Fukushima Prefecture refused to accept the wastes generated in other Prefectures. It is no mere coincidence that the Ministry made their ruling the next day, apparently supporting the Fukushima government’s decision. The Ministry plans to select disposal sites after receiving local approval, but some prefectures, like Tochigi, have refused the idea of burying their own contaminated waste. Minister Shinji Inoue said, “Even if the discussion (on the pros and cons of disposing the contaminated waste within the prefecture) continues, there won’t be any progress. Temporary storage continues, and residents are feeling uneasy. I trust the city, town and village heads will make a sensible decision on this issue.” http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130621p2a00m0na008000c.html
  • Tepco is accused of covering-up groundwater contamination. Tepco says they first noticed the elevated level of Tritium in one sampling well about three weeks before they released the information to the Press. The company says they wanted to make sure of their discovery, so they sent out samples to other laboratories for corroboration. They did the same thing with their detection of Strontium-90 from the sampling well. Numerous Press outlets in Japan say the delay in the announcement further deteriorates trust the Press has with Tepco. Kazunori Endo, of the Soma-Futaba fisheries cooperative, said he was exasperated with Tepco, “The problem is that (scandals) crop up one after another.” http://japandailypress.com/tepco-withheld-fukushima-groundwater-contamination-data-for-weeks-2131013
  • Tepco seeks dismissal of a lawsuit filed in the United States. The formal submittal for the dismissal was filed on June 21. The suit was filed last year by some 50 plaintiffs, most of which were American sailors taking part in the post-3/11/11 relief effort known as Operation Tomodachi. The suit demands unspecified compensation for damages and a $1 billion fund for medical checks and treatment because the plaintiffs allegedly face cancer risks due to Fukushima radiation exposure. Tepco’s filing in San Diego charges that the plaintiff’s claims have no specificity and they should have filed their legal action in Japan.  By both American and International standards, none of the plaintiff’s exposures are considered health-threatening. http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2013/06/231860.html
  • Tokyo is asking that unused, inappropriately-designated funds for Tohoku reconstruction be returned. The amount being sought is about $1 billion. It is rare for such a request to be made in Japan once the funds have been allocated. Last year, it was uncovered that $10 billion had been diverted to projects irrelevant to disaster recovery. Most of the money has already been spent or is otherwise tied up in binding contracts and cannot be returned to the government, by national law. In addition to the #1billion Tokyo wants returned, another $400 million is ordered to be re-designated by local Tohoku entities so that it will be properly spent on recovery. Tokyo’s request is not legally binding, but it is nonetheless expected to find compliance. http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130622p2a00m0na011000c.html