September 15, 2014

Sep 15, 2014 | Fukushima Accident Updates

  • Tokyo will relax evacuation for a Kawauchi Village district on October 1. Much of the village’s eastern area will be open to unrestricted repopulation. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, “The lifting is not a goal but a start toward revival. We will provide even more powerful support after the lifting.” The district is currently under a living restriction where residents can have short-term stays, if they wish. This will be the second reopening of a location inside the 20 kilometer “no-go” zone caused by the 2011 evacuation mandate.  http://jen.jiji.com/jc/eng?g=eco&k=2014091200424
  • Groundwater from F. Daiichi sub-drains is safe for unrestricted discharge. The Industry Ministry’s Agency for Natural Resources & Energy (ANRE) says that water from the sub-drain pits surrounding the four damaged units has below-detectible radiation levels for Cesium and Beta-emitting isotopes. The water will be run through a purification system and stored in above-ground tanks. Eventually, the water will be released to the sea, with the understanding of relevant local groups. http://www.jaif.or.jp/english/news_images/pdf/ENGNEWS01_1410162475P.pdf
  • The seawater surrounding F. Daiichi has radiation levels well-below regulatory limits. The data comes from Tepco, the Nuclear Regulation Authority, and Fukushima Prefecture. Pacific Ocean samples taken outside the F. Daiichi port are not only below seawater standards, but also less than international limits for drinking water; e.g. less than 10 Bq/liter each for Cesium-134, Cs-137 and Strontium-90. Levels inside the outer port break-wall are below NRA limits at all sampling points. The radioactive concentrations inside the inner, barricaded quay continue to decrease with only Sr-90 above limits for seawater. Unfortunately, Tepco continues to speculate that their efforts have merely reduced out-flows of contamination to the sea, despite the fact that the data shows there is nothing being released. http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/2014/1241751_5892.html
  • On Friday, the Asahi Shimbun ran a front-page apology for its incorrect report on the Masao Yoshida testimony. The paper retracted its May 20 assertion that F. Daiichi staff fled the accident site, disobeying Yoshida’s order to stay. Actually, Yoshida told unnecessary personnel to move to a low-radiation-level area and await further instructions. This was misconstrued to mean they should go to the Fukushima Daini nuke station, 10 kilometers to the south. The paper said it failed to verify facts and partially omitted testimony.  The front-page apology is rare for the Asahi. http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20140912p2a00m0na006000c.html
  • Masao Yoshida blasted both Tepco/Tokyo and the government in his testimony. On Sept.11, we reported Yoshida was shocked that the nuke accident was getting more-intense government and Press attention instead of the horrors of the deadly Tsunami. Today, we find that he was upset with what was going on in Tokyo when stories of site abandonment emerged. Tokyo believed the site was being abandoned, but Yoshida had only told non-essential personnel to leave in order to avoid unnecessary radiation exposure and there was no consideration given to full abandonment. He testified, “I said to some of the people from the businesses cooperating with us, the people in the hallways—‘If you don’t have any work to do, just evacuate for now’—and many of them left.” Yoshida followed this with words of anger towards Tepco/Tokyo and the government, “The head branch of the company and the government maybe were making idiotic arguments about us fleeing, but at the scene itself did we flee?  No we did not.  I want to make that clear…We never said everyone should retreat.” He became so frustrated that “I want to just completely turn my back on this idiotic country and its idiotic politicians.” When asked about then-PM Naoto Kan’s visit to F. Daiichi on the morning of March 12, 2011, Yoshida pulled no punches, “He [Kan] asked me about the situation in an extremely stern tone…I’d call him an idiot.” In addition, when the issue about the critical delays with venting unit #1 was broached, Yoshida took umbrage at the notion that it was the fault of the F. Daiichi staff, “I’d like to beat up anyone who says we hesitated.” http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2014/09/11/fukushima-daiichi-manager-blasted-idiotic-politicians/ — http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0001563575 — http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0001563482
  • The accident’s seawater injection debate resurfaces with the Yoshida testimony release. Some news reports said the nuke plant staff injected seawater to cool unit #1, despite orders from Tokyo to await the Prime Minister’s approval. After the unit #1 hydrogen explosion on March 12th, the plant was depressurized and fresh water was injected into the system using low pressure pumps. But, the amount of available fresh water ran out in a hurry. Thus, the decision was made by Plant Manager Yoshida to use seawater as an alternative from a “pit” near unit #1. Yoshida dutifully informed Tepco’s home office in Tokyo of his decision. It was 7:04pm when the seawater injection began. At 7:20pm, Tepco-Tokyo official Ichiro Takekuro, liaison between Tepco and the Prime Minister’s office, ordered the Yoshida to “Stop it immediately”. Yoshida asked why they should stop the necessary flow of cooling water. Takekuro responded, “Shut up! The prime minister’s office keeps on pestering me.” PM Naoto Kan had told Takekuro that he feared the seawater would trigger a recriticality because it contained trace levels of natural uranium. Kan later denied culpability, saying, “I wanted him [Yoshida] to consider the possibility because I was told that there was time before the seawater injection.” At this point, Yoshida told the plant staff he would tell Takekuro they would stop, but operators were to ignore the order. Yoshida testified, “I felt that, in the end, it had to be my decision. There was just no time for debate.” http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/09/14/national/yoshidas-call-seawater-kept-reactor-cool-tokyo-dithered/#.VBWU66N0wdU
  • Yoshida recollected terror with the status of unit #2 on March 14, 2011. The unit had yet to be depressurized and the situation was degrading. Yoshida is quoted as saying, “If we continue to be unable to get water in, all of the nuclear fuel will melt and escape from the containment vessel, and radioactive substances from the fuel will spread to the outside. What we envisioned was that the entire eastern part of Japan would be annihilated.” The Yoshida citation was used to create the scary headline “Yoshida feared nuclear ‘annihilation’ of eastern Japan, testimony shows”. http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201409120034