February 16, 2015

Feb 16, 2015 | Fukushima Accident Updates

  • The restart approval of Takahama units 3&4 has other prefectures concerned. At issue is emergency planning within the 30 kilometer radius. Takahama is located in Fukui Prefecture, but the 30km radius touches into Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures. Prior policy with restarts has been to gain consent from host municipalities and the respective prefectural governing body. This policy excludes both Shiga and Kyoto from the consent process, and they don’t like it. Kyoto governor Keiji Yamada wants station owner Kansai Electric. Co. to provide a “thorough explanation” about the reactors, as per a prior agreement concerning restarts. However, the previous accord was specific to restarts for new projects in the region and during nuclear accidents elsewhere in Japan. However, the pact has no “right to consent” stipulations. Kyoto maintains that part of Maizuru City is but 5 kilometers from Takahama, and this should give the municipality the same consent rights as the host community. Meanwhile, Takahama town mayor Yutaka Nose said, “I take very seriously the fact that the safety (of the reactors) has been confirmed.” Fukui Gov. Issei Nishikawa has added that “the responsibility for providing explanations to residents lies with the national government and the power company.” Maizuru City official Yoshio Tani says, “I want the utility to restart the reactors after technology to eliminate radiation is developed.” http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150213p2a00m0na011000c.html — http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150213p2a00m0na006000c.html
  • Fukushima exclusion zone rice passes radiation tests. It is a “test crop” from a district in Namie. The entire municipality lies within the government-mandated exclusion zone. Under the national Food Sanitation Law, no rice with 100 Bq/kg, or more, can be marketed. The entire test crop was found to have 5 Bq/kg or less. Instead of being distributed via traditional sales channels, the rice cultivated on 1.2 hectares of farmland in Sakata District was distributed to events promoting the safety of Fukushima rice. http://www.fukushimaminponews.com/
  • The bus line through the exclusion area (no-go zone) is popular. The East Japan Railway Company route runs between Minamisoma and Nahara as an alternative to the railway line destroyed by the 2011 quake/tsunami. The service began January 31 with about 30 people initially taking advantage of it. Tomoko Takahashi, an office worker from Minamisoma, rode the bus that day to meet her three children, who were evacuated to the prefecture’s western city of Minamiaizu. She said, “I am happy I have more than one option.” 84 year-old Rei Nakagawa took the bus to greatly shorten his trip to Soma, where he teaches Koto (Japanese Zither). He says, “The new service helps me for sure, but I think it will also help the recovery of the region significantly.” There are about 700 residents of Minamisoma who evacuated to Iwake City, which is south of the exclusion zone. Minamisoma Mayor Katsunobu Sakurai says this provides the evacuees with a convenient way to make visits to their homes. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/02/15/national/new-fukushima-bus-service-broadens-options-for-residents-near-no-go-zones/#.VOCePaMcQdU
  • Japan has a new technology for environmental radiation monitoring. The National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO) has co-developed a device to detect Gamma activity that is more sensitive than those now in use, produces results in a relatively short time, and can be mounted on a variety of remote-controlled vehicles including ground robots, balloons, and unmanned drone helicopters. The system is intended to allow detailed exposure maps of areas deemed too radioactive for people to enter, thus facilitating decontamination planning. Devices now in use must remain essentially stationary for a minute or more at each location before readings are fully processed. The new technology reduces the time it must remain stationary in a location before moving on to the next. This allows speedier pre-decontamination monitoring. The system will be marketed by co-developer Clear-Pulse Inc. http://www.jaif.or.jp/english/news_images/pdf/ENGNEWS01_1424051551P.pdfn