- The Tokyo Electric Co. has posted a detailed handout on the new “soundness” inspection of unit #4. This is the sixth integrity study since the building’s ability to withstand another massive earthquake came into question. The most recent work was performed by Tepco consultants and two “outside” experts on building integrity – Katsumi Takiguchi of the Tokyo Institute of Technology and Kazuo Tamura of Chiba Institute of Technology. As with all previous studies, the inner Primary Containment which holds the now-infamous fifth-floor Spent Fuel Pool is clearly not tilting in any direction. The handout can be viewed here… http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/handouts/2013/images/handouts_130828_09-e.pdf
- The Tokyo government moves closer to a take-over of Fukushima Daiichi. PM Shinzo Abe and Industry Minister Motegi approved a plan to combine the efforts of the government and Tepco to mitigate the contaminated water issue at the nuke station. They agreed the water contamination problems are too great for Tepco to tackle on their own. The decision was made at a joint meeting of the government’s Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters and Nuclear Emergency Preparedness Council. $470 million will be appropriated for the project. $210 million will be financed with reserve funds out of the 2013 budget. $320 million will be used to design and install a frozen soil barrier around the four damaged unit’s buildings. Installation is scheduled to begin in 2014. $150 million will be used to upgrade on-site equipment to remove radioactive material from the wastewater. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga will head the panel to implement the plans. PM Abe said “The government will work on the front line to cope with the contaminated water problem, not relying solely on Tokyo Electric Power Co. We have compiled a set of basic policies to fundamentally solve the problem, not ad hoc measures.” The panel also pointed out that Press reports of the Pacific being contaminated are incorrect. Industry Minister Tatsuya Shinkawa said most of the contamination is contained inside the station’s inner break-wall (quay). The radioactivity outside the harbor is no different than levels occurring before the 2011 accident. “We are deeply sorry for causing an international stir over this contaminated water problem,” Shinkawa said. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130903_25.html — http://jen.jiji.com/jc/eng?g=eco&k=2013090300417 — http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/09/03/national/japan-to-spend-47-billion-to-deal-with-water-crisis-at-fukushima-no-1/#.UiXSR-vD8dU
- The Nuclear Regulatory Authority says the news media is giving the world a “misleading impression” about the situation at F. Daiichi. Chair Shunichi Tanaka scolded the Press, saying, “You should avoid the situation that Japan gets criticism from abroad because of misleading information.” He added that some of Tepco’s reports are not “scientifically acceptable” and contributes to the issue. He said the company’s announcing high exposures for radioactive hotspots should be reported in levels of activity. Instead of using millisievert units, Tepco should be using Becquerels because, “It’s like describing how much something weighs by using centimeters.” Further, Tepco is reporting the levels of activity as if it is Gamma radiation, when it is actually Beta. Unlike Gamma, Beta radiation decreases rapidly with increasing distance from the source. The recent 2,200 mSv/hour reading reported by Tepco is measured at a point of near-contact with the source, but move out to 50 centimeters and the level drops to 40 mSv. Also unlike Gamma, Beta cannot penetrate clothing. In order to receive the exposures reported by Tepco, a person would have to be immersed naked into the contaminated water. Tanaka’s call for a distinction between Gamma and Beta radiation has been confirmed by independent international experts. http://japandailypress.com/nra-chief-says-situation-at-fukushima-exaggerated-0535399/
- Japan is being questioned about Fukushima in its bid for the 2020 Olympics. At the opening Press conference in Buenos Aires for the International Olympic Committee vote on Saturday, questions abounded about Fukushima and how it might affect the games, 250 kilometers away. Four of the six questions posed concerned Fukushima. Japan’s bid president Tsunekazu Takeda told everyone there is nothing to worry about, but doubts remained common among the Press. Takeda said, “The radiation level is absolutely safe. The 35 million people living in Tokyo are living in normal conditions. There is no problem.” He became increasingly exasperated as question after question focused on Fukushima. Taketa stressed, “There is no issue here. Not one person in Tokyo has been affected by this issue. Tokyo and Fukushima are almost 250 kilometers apart. We are quite remote from Fukushima. The water is safe and the level of radioactivity is absolutely safe. Our Prime Minister (Shinzo) Abe has officially announced that the government will be responsible for the project (clearing up Fukushima). I am not worried about the Tokyo 2020 bid.” British and American journalists charged Taketa with avoiding the issue by focusing on conditions in Tokyo. Meanwhile, an Argentine TV station said the questions were sufficiently answered. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130905_09.html — http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/09/05/national/leader-of-tokyo-bid-for-olympics-dodges-reporters-radiation-questions/#.UihpAOvD8dU
- Tepco’s continual posting of new wastewater tank radiation levels at F. Daiichi makes daily headlines. The newest tank reading is the highest yet at 2,200 millisieverts per hour of Beta activity. The NRA says there is no evidence of leakage from this tank. However, this does not stop some people from speculating. Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University said, “There’s a strong possibility these tanks also leaked, or had leaked previously. We have to worry about the impact on nearby groundwater…These tanks are not sturdy and have been a problem since they were constructed two years ago. The government has finally said they will be involved in this problem but they are still not going to be fully involved in the decommission (sic). It is too little, too late.” http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/record-radiation-readings-seen-near-fukushima-water-tanks
- Tepco has found water flowing into the unit #1 turbine building via an underground cabling tunnel. The company drilled a hole in a floor of the turbine building and lowered a video camera into the basement. The camera revealed a groundwater influx at a junction of the basement wall and piping. Tepco will continue the video investigation. They are concerned that there are more leaks yet to be found among the turbine basements of the four damaged units. Tepco does not want to raise the internal water levels above the outside groundwater to be sure that no contaminated liquid will flow out of the buildings. http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201309050051
- The Industry Ministry will begin testing their frozen artificial wall project at F. Daiichi in mid-October. They plan to drive steel pipes 30 meters into the earth to the mountain side of unit #4, in a 10-by-10 meter array. Liquid calcium chloride will be pumped into the pipes and, theoretically, freeze the soil solid. The test will see if the wall stops groundwater flow. The ministry hopes to finish the test by next March and, if successful, complete the 1.4 kilometer-long wall by March, 2015. The test is expected to cost the government $13 million. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20130905_04.html
- The Nuclear Regulatory Authority says mildly-radioactive wastewater will eventually have to be released to the sea. NRA Chair Shunichi Tanaka said the storage of contaminated water at F. Daiichi cannot continue indefinitely. He stated, “I’m afraid that it is unavoidable to dump or release the water into the sea” after it is purified to levels recognized as safe under international standards. Tanaka added that the situation at the nuke station changes daily, posing various levels of risk in the process. Tanaka also said, “The accident has yet to be settled down.” http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/nra-says-tainted-water-may-have-to-be-released-into-ocean
- World Nuclear News has posted an article; “Fear and Fukushima”. It is a summation of messages from international radiation experts sent to the Japanese people explaining the health impacts of the Fukushima accident. Unfortunately, it seems none of Japan’s Press outlets have seen fit to report on it. Regardless, perhaps the most significant message comes from Imperial College’s Gerry Thomas, “Worrying about what might happen can have a very bad effect on quality of life, and can lead to stress-related illnesses. All scientific evidence suggests that no-one is likely to suffer damage from the radiation from Fukushima itself, but concern over what it might do could cause significant psychological problems. It is therefore important to understand that the risk to health from radiation from Fukushima is negligible, and that undue concern over any possible health effects could be much worse than the radiation itself.” Russian Chernobyl expert Mikhail Balonov adds that through “Only an open information policy on the level of the effects, the media and the science community will create the trust needed to heal… and prevent negative socio-economic effects from unwarranted anxiety and fear.” http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS_Fear_and_Fukushima_0309131.html
- A citizen’s group from Fukushima Prefecture has filed a criminal complaint over the contaminated wastewater at F. Daiichi. Fukushima’s public prosecutors and say they will consider it. 32 Tepco executives are named as accomplices to the contaminated water leaks that have recently come to light. The group charges that Tepco failed to follow a government request to install water shields, and neglected to monitor the condition of radioactive water storage tanks. Group leader Ruiko Muto said, “We want TEPCO to recognize its criminality.” Three group leaders filed the complaint on behalf of their 14,000 person membership. The group already has a complaint on file over the nuclear accident in March, 2011, which charges the utility, its executives and the government as criminally responsible for causing the crisis. http://jen.jiji.com/jc/eng?g=eco&k=2013090300467 — http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20130903p2g00m0dm054000c.html
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