September 24, 2015

Sep 24, 2015 | Fukushima Accident Updates

  • Dr. Mohan Doss of Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia pulls no punches when the New York Times asked him about the 1,600 Fukushima accident “related” deaths. He says Tokyo over-reacted to hypothetical radiation risks and should not have called for immediate evacuations, “The government basically panicked. When you evacuate a hospital intensive care unit, you cannot take patients to a high school and expect them to survive…It was fear of radiation that ended up killing people.” The Times reporter concludes that humans are bad at balancing risks so we are always faced with uncertainty, thus “Trying to avoid the horrors we imagine, we risk creating ones that are real.” http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/22/science/when-radiation-isnt-the-real-risk.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=2
  • There’s very litle Fukushima Cesium in North Pacific whales and dolphins. Fukushima InFORM of Canada reports that whale and Dolphin sampling in Northern Japan soon after the nuke accident showed elevated Cesium concentrations. Within a year the levels were detectible, but 10 times lower than naturally-occurring isotopes found in the animals. InFORM concludes, “…it is quite unlikely that radioisotopes from Fukushima will reach levels in our cetaceans here off North America that would cause toxicity or measurable detrimental impacts to their health.”  http://fukushimainform.ca/2015/09/23/fukushima-derived-contamination-of-whales-and-dolphins-in-northern-japan/#more-1318
  • A joint presentation by Pacific Ocean experts was given in Vancouver, B.C. Ken Buesseler of Woods Hole Oceanographic explained the migration of detectible Fukushima isotopes across the Pacific. Jay Cullen of Canada’s Fukushima InFORM project spoke about radioactive Cesium in two key fish species. Buesseler showed that the concentrations approaching the North American coast are detectible, but not dangerous. He stressed that research detection equipment is extremely sensitive and can find isotopic concentrations hundreds of times below levels that are of use to “health groups”. Cullen said the detectible levels of radioactive Cesium found in ocean salmon and steelhead trout comes from nuclear weapon’s testing many decades ago, but none from Fukushima.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaXKLz3X9aU
  • Tepco signs a decommissioning pact with a French group. The Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), which is funded by the French government, has experience in dismantling nuclear reactor facilities. CEA will help to develop remote-controlled robots that can withstand high radiation levels, and assist in training Tepco staff. The information flow will be reciprocal so that the Fukushima experiences of Tepco will be of benefit to CEA. Tepco’s Chief Decommissioning Officer Naohiro Masuda said: “I believe that the conclusion of the information exchange agreement with the CEA is significant for TEPCO to proceed with Fukushima Daiichi decommissioning safely and steadily. Knowledge and experiences of the CEA in the areas of R & D and decommissioning would help TEPCO incorporate international expertise.” http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html — http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/2015/1260677_6844.html — http://photo.tepco.co.jp/en/date/2015/201509-e/150923-01e.html
  • NHK World says 20% of reactor operators are inexperienced. The news outlet asked 10 utilities about the impact of the post-Fukushima nuclear moratorium. They all had to expand staff to meet the new regulations. Without operating nukes the new people cannot get actual hands-on experience. However, they can get some training on existing control room simulators. Under the new rules, there are 10 operators for each shift, and on the average two of them are inexperienced. NHK says the newly reactivated Sendai station has the highest inexperienced rate at 40%, followed by Shimane (37%), Ikata (33%) and Genkai (30%). http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html  (Comment – NHK fails to report several important facts. First, these inexperienced operators are trainees and would not be actually running the reactors. Second, not all of the control room staff actually operates the unit’s reactor. Many are performing equipment start-up and control for the steam, condensate, and feed-water systems. Next, having a trainee or two on the control room staff at a nuke is not uncommon. The new regulations have unquestionably increased the percentage, but NHK doesn’t say by how much. Finally, the nuclear moratorium includes university and research reactors, so it is not possible to get collegiate training for their students and operators, either.)
  • A large demonstration in Tokyo protests PM Abe’s policies. An estimated 25,000 rallied to protest Japan’s new national security legislation and the recent restart of Sendai unit #1. Though organized by the local antinuclear group, the majority of those attending were there to oppose the new laws that allow Japan’s Self Defense Force to participate in overseas action. The common belief is that the security legislation is unconstitutional and violates Japan’s policy of pacifism since WWII. Journalist Satoshi Kamata said, “We will clarify that the security legislation is unconstitutional in cooperation with attorneys.” The gathering also protested the American military base relocation in Okinawa. But, some protestors did decry the Sendai restart, with one saying, “A government that continues to use nuclear power while the disaster at the Fukushima plant has not been cleared is not paying any respect to its people.” http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150924p2a00m0na007000c.html  (Comment – Antinuclear protests in Tokyo have become less and less popular over the passage of time. Two weeks ago, the Sendai commercial operation protest only attracted a few dozen die-hards. However, the passage of the security legislation has spawned massive protest gatherings in Tokyo, one of which was estimated to have had more than 100,000 people attend. The combining with more popular issues seems to be a desperate attempt by Japan’s antinuclear forces to make it seem their cause remains popular.)