July 26, 2013

Jul 26, 2013 | Fukushima Accident Updates

  • The groundwater contamination issue makes daily headlines. Tepco is being castigated for delaying announcement of leakage into the site’s small seaport for more than a week. The company says they had no confirmable indication until they were told water level inside the near-shore sampling wells were fluctuating with the tides. This suggests the contaminated waters are mixing with the seawater through the groundwater system. Tepco reported the discovery to the Nuclear Regulatory Authority on July 18, but did not tell the Press until July 22. Tepco’s Fukushima Revitalization Headquarters knew of the water level fluctuations for months, but inter-departmental communications broke down. One FRH official said, “Our civil engineering department had confirmed water level variations in monitoring wells as early as in January, but that information was not shared by (sic) our department responsible for monitoring radioactive levels.” Local fishermen are upset over the revelation. Fishery officials were considering limited operations off the Fukushima shores beginning in September, but it now seems unlikely. Masakazu Yabuki, head of the Iwaki fisheries cooperative, said, “This will pose a significant hurdle to the trial operation. Even if we can catch fish, will we be able to tell consumers with confidence that they can eat them?” Tetsu Nozaki of the Fukushima fisheries co-op said, “Never have I felt so shocked since we first learned during the early phases of the nuclear disaster that radioactive water was leaking into the ocean. It has become emotionally difficult to accept (Tepco’s groundwater release plan) due to the leakage of contaminated water (into the sea).” Meanwhile, the NRA suspects that there is another possible leak, this time through the same underground tunnel/trench that produced a leak in April, 2011. The watchdog believes contaminated waters are entering the tunnel from one of the turbine building basements and seeping into groundwater through the gravel that lines the bottom of the trench. NRA Chair Shunichi Tanaka says the contamination must be prevented from reaching the open sea, and the agency will form an expert panel to discuss possible solutions. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/07/24/national/tepco-held-back-groundwater-news/#.Ue_RK-vD8dU — http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201307230066 — http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130724_24.html
  • On Thursday, a national fisheries federation filed a protest against Tepco. Federation chief Hiroshi Kishi handed a letter of protest to TEPCO president Naomi Hirose. Kishi said Tepco had betrayed their trust when the company said contamination was leaking into the F. Daiichi seaport’s quay. He also demanded that Tepco devise plans to contain the radioactive water accumulating at the nuke station. Another fishery official said the new leaks are Tepco’s worst mistake since the nuclear accident happened. Tepco’s Hirose said the company is doing their best to keep contaminated water out of the Pacific Ocean. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130725_22.html
  • This morning, Tepco says three top executives, including their president, have had their pay cut. President Naomi Hirose and Vice President Zengo Aizawa will take a 10 percent pay cut for one month, while the deputy director of the social communications office, Shinichiro Kengaku, will have a 5 percent cut for one month. Hirose said the penalties were because they took too long to report the groundwater problem at F. Daiichi.  He explained the delay was because the company worried about making an announcement based on conjecture and they needed data confirmation. He promised that “even if the evaluations do not show enough evidence, we will swiftly and honestly mention risks and worst-case scenarios without fearing the impact.” American Dale Klein, one of Tepco’s expert foreign advisors, was not happy because the incident indicates “a lack of ability of keeping the people of Japan informed, and it brings into a question whether Tepco has a plan and it’s doing all they can to protect the environment and the people.” http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/07/26/national/tepco-chief-admits-pr-fiasco-over-water-info/#.UfJlpuvD8dU
  • F. Daiichi’s new waste water treatment system test has been halted due to a corrosion problem. One of the tanks used to store pre-treated water has developed leaks due to a combination of seawater and pre-treatment chemicals eating through tank welds. All three treatment streams being tested have been stopped and will not be restarted until all system tanks are lined with a rubber coating. The system is designed to remove residual radioactive isotopes that remain after the water is stripped of Cesium. Tepco says to coat the tanks will keep the system test shut down until sometime next month. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130726_02.html
  • A reactor cooling system for F. Daiichi unit #6 was inadvertently shut off for two hours. Tepco says the shutdown happened during a test on one of the emergency diesel generators. During the stoppage, water temperature in the reactor vessel increased by 0.5oC. The temperature increase posed no threat to the fuel bundles in the reactor core. Tepco says the incident was caused by human error. Although unit #6 was undamaged by the 3/11/11 tsunami and was already shut down at the time of the accident, some Japanese Press charge that this is another example of the “precarious” nature of F. Daiichi. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130725_30.html
  • The decontamination of Fukushima communities could cost as much as $50 billion. The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology announced their conclusion on Wednesday. This is more than 4 times greater than previous estimates. One team member said the government should compare the cost-effectiveness of full decontamination versus the cost of helping displaced residents rebuild their lives elsewhere. The Institute says full decontamination of the exclusion zone could cost $20 billion and the surrounding areas $30 billion. So far, Tokyo has allocated $11 billion for the project. http://japandailypress.com/fukushima-decontamination-and-cleanup-estimated-at-50-billion-five-times-govt-budget-2432822/
  • Rezoning of Fukushima exclusion zone communities will be finished in August. The town assembly of Kawamata approved the rezoning after long, tedious negotiations with residents. It is the last town to agree to re-zone out of the 11 municipalities where evacuations were mandated. Kawamata is located about 50 kilometers northwest of F. Daiichi and was the town at the farthest point of the evacuation. 90% of the town will be prepared for repopulation and 10% will remain off-limits for the time being. Mayor Michio Furukawa said his town is the last to reorganize, but it gave them time to fully negotiate decontamination with Tokyo. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/japan.html
  • Fukushima prefecture has expanded their child thyroid testing program. Until now, only one hospital has been doing follow-up examinations. Now, two more have been added to the effort. The tests are for the children who have tested positive for thyroid anomalies. The Prefecture is examining 360,000 individuals under the age of 18 to see the radioactive Iodine released from the Fukushima accident may have increased their risk of cancer. So far, about 1,100 have been found to have thyroid lumps of 5.1 millimeters or larger, but only a third of them have received follow-up work. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130724_28.html
  • The walls and roof of the enclosure around F. Daiichi unit #4 was finished on July 20. The enclosure will allow the removal of all fuel bundles from the Spent Fuel Pool. The Tepco Press handout has excellent photos and can be accessed at http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/handouts/2013/images/handouts_130722_05-e.pdf