Japanese Earthquake, Tsunami, and Nuclear Reactors

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The IAEA's status is up.

IAEA Briefing on Fukushima Nuclear Accident (19 April 2011, 18.00 UTC)
1. Current Situation

Overall, the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant remains very serious but there are early signs of recovery in some functions, such as electrical power and instrumentation.

On 17th April, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced that TEPCO had issued a "Roadmap towards Restoration from the Accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station". The roadmap outlines 63 measures to be taken in two steps over a period of six to nine months.

Changes to Fukushima Daiichi Plant Status

The IAEA receives information from a variety of official Japanese sources through the nation's national competent authority, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency. Additional detail is provided in the IEC status summary with information received by 07:00 UTC on 19th April 2011.

TEPCO has provided a plan to NISA for the transfer of highly contaminated water from the basement floor of the turbine building of Unit 2 to the Main Building of the Radioactive Waste Treatment Facilities in order to reduce the risk of this stagnant waste water being discharged to the environment.

On 17th and 18th April, an unmanned robot was used to conduct inspections of the Reactor Buildings in Units 1, 2 and 3.

As of 18th April, white smoke was still observed coming from Units 2, 3 and 4.

In Unit 1 , fresh water is being continuously injected into the RPV through the feed-water line at an indicated flow rate of 6 m3/h using a temporary electric pump with off-site power. In Units 2 and 3, fresh water is being continuously injected through the fire extinguisher lines at an indicated rate of 7 m3/h using temporary electric pumps with off-site power.

RPV temperatures remain above cold shutdown conditions in all Units. In Unit 1 the temperature at the feed water nozzle of the RPV is 170°C and at the bottom of the RPV is 115°C. In Unit 2, the temperature at the feed water nozzle of the RPV is 142°C. In Unit 3 the temperature at the feed water nozzle of the RPV is 100°C and at the bottom of the RPV is 114°C.

In Unit 1 Nitrogen gas is being injected into the containment vessel to reduce the possibility of hydrogen combustion within the containment vessel. The pressure in this containment vessel has stabilised. The pressure in the RPV is increasing. In Units 2 and 3 Reactor Pressure Vessel and Drywell pressures remain at atmospheric pressure.

On 18th April the concrete pump truck sprayed water into the Unit 3 spent fuel pool. On 17th April, approximately 140 tonnes of fresh water was pumped into the Unit 4 spent fuel pool.

There has been no change in the status in Units 5 and 6 or in Common Spent Fuel Storage Facility. On 17th and 18th April, anti-scattering agent was sprayed over an additional 3100 m2 area near the Centralized Waste Treatment Facility.

2. Radiation monitoring

On 18th April, deposition of I-131 was detected in 6 prefectures ranging from 2.3 to 65 Bq/m2. Deposition of Cs-137 was detected in 2 prefectures; the values reported were 4.7 and 14.8 Bq/m2.

Gamma dose rates are measured daily in all 47 prefectures. The values tend to decrease over time. For Fukushima, on 18th April a dose rate of 1.9 µSv/h was reported. In the Ibaraki prefecture, a gamma dose rate of 0.13 µSv/h was reported; in all other prefectures, reported gamma dose rates were below 0.1 µSv/h.

Dose rates are also reported specifically for the Eastern part of the Fukushima prefecture, for distances beyond 30 km from Fukushima-Daiichi. On 17th April, the values in this area ranged from 0.1 to 23 µSv/h.

MEXT has set up an additional monitoring programme in cooperation with local universities. For 18th April, measurements of the gamma dose rates were reported for 53 cities in 40 prefectures. In Fukushima City, a value of 0.38 µSv/h was observed; in 9 cities, gamma dose rates ranged from 0.13 to 0.17 µSv/h. For the other cities, gamma dose rates of less than 0.1 µSv/h were reported.

In drinking water, I-131 or Cs-137 is detectable at very low levels only in a few prefectures. As of 17th April, one restriction for infants related to I-131 (100 Bq/l) is in place in a small scale water supply in a village of the Fukushima prefecture.

On 18th April, the IAEA Team made measurements at 12 different locations in the Fukushima area at distances ranging from 13 to 43 km, South and Southwest from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. At these locations, the dose rates ranged from 0.25 to 6.8 µSv/h. At the same locations, results of beta-gamma contamination measurements ranged from 0.01 to 0.15 Megabecquerel/m2.

Analytical results related to food contamination were reported by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on 18th April, and covered a total of 23 samples taken on the 8th, 15th, 17th and 18th April. Analytical results for all of the samples of various vegetables, shiitake mushrooms, leafy vegetables, fruit (strawberry), fish and unprocessed raw milk in eight prefectures (Chiba, Fukushima, Gunma, Hokkaido, Ibaraki, Niigata, Saitama and Yamagata) indicated that I-131, Cs-134 and/or Cs-137 were either not detected or were below the regulation values set by the Japanese authorities.
3. Marine Monitoring

TEPCO Monitoring Programme

TEPCO is conducting a programme for seawater (surface sampling) at a number of near-shore and off-shore monitoring locations following a directive from NISA, on 16th April TEPCO announced they will increase the number of sea sampling points from 10 to 16. A further four points will be added at 3 km from the coast and two points will be added at 8 km from the coast. The new sampling sites are indicated on the map below. (see Map1: TEPCO Seawater Sampling Locations, new points indicated with the green bullets).

On some days, two samples were collected at the same sampling point, a few hours apart and analysed separately.

Until 3rd April a general decreasing trend in radioactivity was observed at the sampling points TEPCO1 to TEPCO4. After the discharge of contaminated water on 4th April, a temporary increase in radioactivity has been reported. Again since 5th April, general decreasing trend has been observed in the concentration of radionuclides in sea water for all TEPCO sampling points.

On the 18th April new data for TEPCO sampling points have been reported (sampling date 15th April). Since 9th April the levels of I-131 and Cs-137 at the sampling points TEPCO number 5-10 are lower than those at the near-shore stations (below 0.5 kBq/l) and the levels of I-131 and Cs-137 at the sampling points TEPCO No 1 - 4 are below 20 kBq/l. At all TEPCO sampling points since 9th April a decreasing trend has been observed.

MEXT Off-shore Monitoring Programme

Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) initiated the off-shore monitoring program on 23rd March and subsequently 4 points were added to the off-shore sampling scheme. On 4th April, MEXT added two sampling points to the north and west of sampling point 1. These are referred to as points A and B (see Map2: MEXT Seawater sampling Locations).

The results reported on 18th April (sampling date 15th April) showed that Cs-137 and I-131 were detected at MEXT 4, 6 and 8. The highest concentrations were recorded at MEXT4 (below 200Bq/l for Cs-137 and about 160 Bq/l for I-131). At MEXT 6 and 8 sampling locations both Cs-137 and I-131 were reported at levels below about 40 Bq/l.

The results reported on 19th April (sampling date 17th April) showed that at the stations MEXT5, 7 and 9, Cs-137 and I-131 are below 90 Bq/l.

Neither Cs-137 nor I-131 have been detected at MEXT A and B (see map 2 from MEXT).

Map 1: TEPCO Seawater Sampling Locations


Map 2: MEXT Seawater Sampling Locations



4. IAEA Activities

The mission of BWR expert to Japan provided the IAEA with a unique opportunity to communicate directly with the various stakeholders working to address challenges at both the Daiichi and Daini reactor sites. All organizations fully cooperated with the IAEA team and provided the team with a better understanding of event sequences, current challenges and future plans and priorities.

The IAEA team of BWR experts toured the Fukushima Daiichi site and the Emergency center. The team was also able to tour the Fukushima Daini site. At all facilities, the IAEA team noted a strong, positive attitude broadly displayed by the management, support and task implementation teams, even though the situation is not yet stabilized. Activities appeared to be well organized, efforts were thoroughly planned, and responsibilities well communicated.

 

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mot, thank you for the story about the soy sauce company. How horrible that he needs a new business model because of all the customers who have died, as well as needing a new place of busines.


More articles from NHK

●TEPCO to check if plutonium leaked to seabed

The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says it will examine the seabed off the facility to ensure that no plutonium has leaked into the ocean. Tokyo Electric Power Company said on Monday it will conduct the inspection as plutonium is heavier than other radioactive materials and could have accumulated on the floor. Plutonium is a radioactive substance that could cause lung cancer if inhaled. TEPCO detected earlier small quantities of plutonium in the soil around the plant. But it said the amount is too small to harm human health. So far, no plutonium has been found in the air and sea water samples from around the plant. TEPCO senior official Junichi Matsumoto said there is little doubt that plutonium has leaked from the plant during the accident. The soil samples have been found to be contaminated with a small amount of the material. He said the company will continue with the examination so that residents can feel safe. Tuesday, April 19, 2011 05:43 +0900 (JST)

●Japan checking exports to ease radiation fears

Japan's federation of steel makers will ask its members to check their products for radiation to combat rumors overseas that they are contaminated with radioactive materials. The Japan Iron and Steel Federation decided to urge companies to measure radiation levels of their products during manufacturing to guarantee that they are free from radioactive contamination. The federation opted to take the measure despite the fact that very little radiation can be detected in industrial goods and therefore no limits exist for such products.

The decision came after steel products from Japan were rejected by some importers and ships carrying the products were not allowed to dock at foreign ports following the Fukushima nuclear accident. The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association is addressing a similar problem by starting to check the radiation of exported cars. Tuesday, April 19, 2011 10:10 +0900 (JST)

This is good!

●Russia lifts advisory against travel to Japan

Russia has lifted its advisory against travel to Japan. Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Monday the advisory has been lifted as studies conducted by Russian experts show no abnormal radiation levels in Tokyo. It also cited the announced schedule by Tokyo Electric Power Company for bringing the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant under control. But the ministry is still advising Russian nationals to stay out of the zone around the Fukushima facilities and to refrain from visiting disaster-stricken areas. Tuesday, April 19, 2011 10:54 +0900 (JST)

And this is annoying. This is the China that shipped the US lead-painted children's toys, poison in toothpaste, and sheetrock that ruins the whole house.

●

Japan's foodmakers criticize China import rules

A Japanese business representative in China has called for a measured approach to Japanese food imports amid fears of contamination from the problems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Chairperson of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China Chihiro Shikama spoke to reporters in Beijing on Monday. Shikama said Japan's strict standards for food safety will not permit companies to export their products if any dangerous substance has been detected. He called on the Chinese government to apply import restrictions based on international standards. But he also said the Japanese side needs to be more transparent to ease Chinese consumers' concerns.

Shikama's comment came after Japanese firms complained that the Chinese government has been practically suspending food imports from Japan since April 8th. The companies complained of unreasonable hurdles at customs, including demands for additional documents for quarantine inspections. The firms said China is refusing permits to import food products, even if they have been produced before the March 11th earthquake. Tuesday, April 19, 2011 05:43 +0900 (JST)

This is too sad. I know we all worried about this happening back in the beginning of this disaster.

●Gemba: Fukushima residents feeling discrimination

National Policy Minister Koichiro Gemba says people from Fukushima Prefecture are being discriminated against because of the radiation escaping from the damaged nuclear power plant. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Gemba said that people from Fukushima were refused reservations at hotels in other prefectures and children have been bullied by other kids who say they have been irradiated.

He said the people of Fukushima are leading orderly and calm lives even though they are very worried. He said that while many people support the disaster victims, it's very disappointing that there has been thoughtless behavior on the part of some others. Gemba said he has requested cabinet ministers to instruct relevant institutions to ensure that such actions do not take place. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said it is an objective fact that radiation is not infectious. He said some people are overreacting. He noted they should properly understand the situation using science, and thus accept produce of Fukushima that has been confirmed safe. Tuesday, April 19, 2011 14:44 +0900 (JST)

●Fukui gov. asks gov't for nuclear safety measures

The governor of Fukui Prefecture has urged the central government to ensure that safety measures are in place at all nuclear power plants in Japan. Fukui Prefecture hosts 14 nuclear reactors, the most in the country. Governor Issei Nishikawa met with industry minister Banri Kaieda on Tuesday about the problems plaguing the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant following the earthquake and tsunami of March 11th. Nishikawa said the central government should conduct emergency inspections on machinery such as cooling systems, which are crucial for safety. He said the government should set specific safety standards for emergency power sources. Industry minister Kaieda is said to have replied that the government is doing its best to bring the situation at Fukushima under control, and that it plans to create exact safety standards. After the meeting, Nishikawa told reporters that concern is being voiced all over the country. He said he hopes that the government will work with a strong sense of purpose to take all possible measures so that similar accidents do not take place. Tuesday, April 19, 2011 12:39 +0900 (JST)

 

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TEPCO 9 am Status and 3:00 PM Radiation Data

Wind is in the northwest
Daini Six Peripheral Measurement Points 3:00 PM JST April 20th ( 2.5, 1.9, 2.6, 2.2, 2.2, 2.1 ) microSieverts per hour
Daini Measurement point 7, 9 AM JST April 20th (taken manually) 1.5 microSieverts per hour
Daiichi 3:00 PM JST April 20th Measurement point by mobile cart near West Gate 27.9 microSieverts per hour
Daiichi 3:00 PM JST April 20th Eight Peripheral Measurement Points ( 9, 32, 27, 25, 41, 73, 175, 161 ) microSeiverts per hour
Temporary Measurement Points
Main Building 3:00 PM JST April 20th 480 microSieverts per hour
Main Gate 3:00 PM JST April 20th 60 microSieverts per hour
West Gate 3:00 PM JST April 20th 24 microSieverts per hour

From 4:08 pm to 5:28 pm on April 19th, injections of water were conducted with a temporary motor driven pump into the spent fuel pool of Unit 2.

*On April 16th, in order to check the condition of the water in the spent fuel pool in Unit 2 for the purpose of designing temporary cooling equipment that we are planning to install in the pool of Unit 2, we collected and conducted a nuclide analysis of approximately 400 ml of water that flowed out of the pool into the skimmer surge tanks **.The results revealed the presence of iodine-131, cesium-134, and cesium-137. We are going to evaluate these results in further detail.

** skimmer surge tanks: 2 tanks installed between the spent fuel pool and the nuclear reactor well to store the water that overflows from the pool and the well.

JAIF's reactor status sheet shows Unit 1 is cooling down (164.1 C at the reactor pressure vessel water nozzle, and so is Unit 2.

JAIF has their seawater report up. Data points are from the 15 and 17th for MEXT data. At 6 points of the 12, nothing was detected at all. At the other six points, radioactive materials were detected only in water taken from the surface. The largest amount was found in the sample taken directly off Daiichi (161 becquerels per liter, which is 0.161 becquerels per cubic centimeter)

The Tepco samples were from the 18th. No radioactive materials were found at two points, T11 and T12 the furthest north from Daiichi. The two largest amounts were 0.24 becquerels per cubic centimeter at Daiichi itself on shore and 0.23 becquerels per cubic centimeter at Daini..
Sand lances most recently caught were under the regulatory limit this time.

 

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NHK's report of TEPCO's status

Highly contaminated water level falls slightly

Tokyo Electric Power Company says the amount of highly radioactive water at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is slightly lower now. TEPCO began moving the water to an on-site waste processing facility one day ago.

The utility company says the level of contaminated water in a tunnel linked to the No.2 reactor is one centimeter lower than the previous day as of 7 AM on Wednesday.

That amounts to a reduction of 210 tons of the water in the tunnel, pumped out at a rate of 10 tons per hour.

TEPCO is aiming to remove a total of 25,000 tons of the contaminated water out of the No. 2 turbine building basement and connecting tunnel to the nearby processing facility.

The utility says it will monitor the current pumping rate for 10 days or more and then add more pumps, to move 10,000 tons of the radiated water by mid-May.

TEPCO says contaminated water levels are also rising in the basements of reactors No.5 and 6, and in tunnels connected to reactors No.3 and 4.

It says it will transfer about 100 tons of contaminated water from the No.5 and No.6 reactors to condensers, to assess how much water is accumulating. It says groundwater may have been seeping into the reactors' turbine buildings.

TEPCO estimates a total of 67,500 tons of radioactive water has accumulated at the nuclear plant, which is hampering efforts to restore cooling systems.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011 12:55 +0900 (JST)

And somebody in Fukushima (not Ibaraki) caught sand lances, apparently. Probably TEPCO, since NISA directed them to go catch fish.

Govt suspends shipment of Fukushima sand lances

The government has instructed Fukushima Prefecture to suspend shipments of a small fish caught off its coasts found to have radioactive contamination, and to warn people not to eat them.

The restrictions announced on Wednesday are being applied to marine products for the first time, amid ongoing troubles at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

The instruction follows a health ministry report that the fish called sand lance caught on Monday near Iwaki city, south of the plant, was found to contain 14,400 becquerels per kilogram of radioactive cesium. That's 29 times the safe limit.

Ministry testing also found 3,900 becquerels, or twice the limit, of radioactive iodine in the fish.
Excessive amounts of radioactive cesium were detected in sand lances caught in the same area on April the 7th and 13th.

The government says the fish are not on the market, as fishery cooperatives in Fukushima are not operating.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 14:18 +0900 (JST)

 

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IAEA 4:00 PM UTC April 20th

IAEA Briefing on Fukushima Nuclear Accident (20 April 2011, 16:00 UTC)
Presentation:
→ Summary of Reactor Status

On Wednesday, 20 April 2011, the IAEA provided the following information on the current status of nuclear safety in Japan:

1. Current Situation

Overall, the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant remains very serious, but there are early signs of recovery in some functions, such as electrical power and instrumentation.

Changes to Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Status

The IAEA receives information from a variety of official Japanese sources through the Japanese national competent authority, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA). Additional detail is provided in the IEC status summary with information received by 07:00 UTC on 20 April 2011.

Management of On-Site Contaminated Water

TEPCO has provided a plan to NISA for the transfer of highly contaminated water from the basement of the turbine building of Unit 2 to the main building of the radioactive waste treatment facilities, to reduce the risk of this stagnant waste water being discharged to the environment. Measures to ensure that the radioactive waste treatment facility is watertight were completed on 18 April and the transfer of water from Unit 2 was commenced on 19 April.

Plant Status

Work to strengthen the electrical power system between Units 1 - 2 and Units 3 - 4 was completed on 19 April. White "smoke" continues to be emitted from Units 2, 3 and 4.

In Unit 1 fresh water is being continuously injected into the reactor pressure vessel through the feedwater line at an indicated flow rate of 6 m3/h using a temporary electric pump with off-site power. In Units 2 and 3 fresh water is being continuously injected into the reactor pressure vessel through the fire extinguisher line at an indicated rate of 7 m3/h using a temporary electric pump with off-site power. In Unit 4 fresh water continues to be sprayed onto the spent fuel pool using a concrete pump truck.

Nitrogen gas is being injected into the containment vessel in Unit 1 to reduce the possibility of hydrogen combustion within the containment vessel. The pressure in the containment vessel has stabilized. The pressure in the reactor pressure vessel is increasing.

The reactor pressure vessel temperatures in Unit 1 remain above cold shutdown conditions. The indicated temperature at the feedwater nozzle of the reactor pressure vessel is 164 °C and that at the bottom of reactor pressure vessel is 114 °C.

The reactor pressure vessel temperatures in Unit 2 remain above cold shutdown conditions. The indicated temperature at the feed water nozzle of the reactor pressure vessel is 133 °C. The reactor pressure vessel and the dry well remain at atmospheric pressure.

The temperature at the bottom of the reactor pressure vessel in Unit 3 remains above cold shutdown conditions. The indicated temperature at the feed water nozzle of the reactor pressure vessel is 99 °C and that at the bottom of reactor pressure vessel is 110 °C. The reactor pressure vessel and the dry well remain at atmospheric pressure.

There has been no change in the status in Units 5 and 6 or in the common spent fuel storage facility.

2. Radiation Monitoring

On 19 April, deposition of I-131 was detected in 13 prefectures, ranging from 1.8 to 368 Bq/m2. Deposition of Cs-137 was detected in seven prefectures, the values reported ranging from 2.4 to 160 Bq/m2.

Gamma dose rates are measured daily in all 47 prefectures. For Fukushima on 20 April a gamma dose rate of 1.9 µSv/h was reported, and for Ibaraki prefecture a gamma dose rate of 0.13 µSv/h was reported. In all other prefectures, reported gamma dose rates were below 0.1 µSv/h.

In cooperation with local universities, the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) has set up an additional monitoring programme. For 19 April, measurements of the gamma dose rates were reported for 53 cities in 40 prefectures. In Fukushima City a value of 0.42 µSv/h was reported. For all other cities reported gamma dose rates were below 0.13 µSv/h.

In drinking water, I-131 or Cs-137 is detectable, but at levels below 1 Bq/L and in only a few prefectures. As of 17 April, one restriction on drinking water for infants relating to I-131 (100 Bq/L) is in place in a small scale water supply in a village of the Fukushima prefecture.

Food monitoring data reported by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on 19 April covered a total of 36 samples. These were taken on 4, 18 and 19 April from eight prefectures (Chiba, Fukushima, Gunma, Ibaraki, Kanagawa, Nagano, Niigata and Saitama). Analytical results for 35 of the samples of various vegetables, shiitake mushrooms, fruit (strawberries), edible shoots (Japanese Angelica tree), seafood, yoghurt and unprocessed raw milk indicated that I-131, Cs-134 and Cs-137 were either not detected or were below the regulation values set by the Japanese authorities. One sample of seafood (sand lance) taken on 18 April from the coastal region of Fukushima had levels above the regulation values set by the Japanese authorities for I-131 and also for radioactive caesium.

3. Marine Monitoring

TEPCO Monitoring Programme

TEPCO is conducting a programme for seawater monitoring (by surface sampling) at a number of near-shore and off-shore monitoring locations. Following a directive from NISA, on 16 April TEPCO announced that it will increase the number of sea sampling points from ten to 16. A further four points are to be added at 3 km from the coast and two points are to be added at 8 km from the coast. The new sampling sites are indicated on Map 1: TEPCO Seawater Sampling Locations, on which new points are indicated with green bullets.

On some days, two samples were collected at the same sampling point, a few hours apart, and analysed separately.

Until 3 April a generally decreasing trend in radioactivity was observed at the sampling points TEPCO 1 to TEPCO 4. After the discharge of contaminated water from the plant on 4 April, a temporary increase in radioactivity in seawater was reported. Since 5 April a general downward trend in the concentration of radionuclides in seawater for all TEPCO sampling points has been observed.

On 20 April no new data for TEPCO 1 - 4 sampling points were reported. For TEPCO 5 - 10, data for TEPCO 8 only were reported on 20 April (for sampling on 17 April). Both I-131 and Cs-137 were below 0.1 kBq/L.

Map 1: TEPCO Seawater Sampling Locations:


MEXT Off-shore Monitoring Programme

On 20 April no new data were reported for the MEXT off-shore sampling locations shown on Map 2: MEXT Seawater sampling Locations.

Map 2: MEXT Seawater Sampling Locations:


4. IAEA Activities

Sri Lanka has also provided monitoring data, in addition to the countries that have been mentioned in previous briefs.

On 18 April the IAEA monitoring team finished its radiological monitoring campaign and the team is to return to Vienna on 20 April.

 

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More NHK news

Just a hint: moves like this are not the way to reassure people. Why now? Why not 3 weeks ago?

●Govt to bar entry to nuclear evacuation zone

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano says the government is preparing to forbid entry into the 20-kilometer evacuation zone around the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Edano on Wednesday told reporters the stiffer measure is aimed at securing the safety and health of local residents, as the situation at the nuclear plant remains unstable. He said the government is in final talks with local municipalities to enforce the measure.

At present, citizens are merely advised to stay outside the 20-kilometer zone, and most residents have followed the instruction and left. Edano said the government is considering allowing evacuees to return home briefly to gather their belongings, just before the zone becomes off-limits.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 13:46 +0900 (JST)

●IAEA to send fact-finding team to Japan

The UN nuclear watchdog says it will send a team of experts to Japan to investigate the cause of the nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant. The Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Denis Flory, held a news conference at the organization's headquarters in Vienna on Tuesday. He said a team of experts will investigate the cause of the accident and the safety measures that were taken after the March 11th earthquake and tsunami that crippled the plant.

The IAEA will consult with the Japanese government to decide when to conduct the investigation. It hopes to release the results at a ministerial-level meeting in June. Flory expressed the IAEA's hope that the fact-finding team will make proposals to improve the situation so that people evacuating from the exclusion zone can return home as soon as possible.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 07:56 +0900 (JST)

This is funny. It is NISA, an arm of the Japanese government, that decided to give Fukushima the same ranking as Chernobyl. However, every time a Japanese official is interviewed, they want to make the point that Fukushima is not as bad as Chernobyl. (and in my opinion, no it is not Chernobyl) The way to make this point is to give Fukushima a rank of 6, not to give it a rank of 7 and say it isn't a real 7.


●FM official: Fukushima less serious than Chernobyl

A senior official of Japan's Foreign Ministry says that although the nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant is ranked at the highest level of severity, it is less serious than the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Chiaki Takahashi made the remark at an international conference on nuclear safety that opened on Tuesday in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. The meeting is being held to mark the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident on April 26th.

The Japanese government recently raised the severity level of the Fukushima accident to the maximum of 7 on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale. This is the same ranking as the Chernobyl disaster.

Takahashi denied that the government's move signifies a deterioration of the situation at the Fukushima plant. He said the government raised the severity level after it had gathered enough data to estimate the entire amount of radioactive emissions from the plant. He said nuclear reactors have not exploded and no one has died of radiation exposure.

Takahashi said he hopes other nations will have confidence in the information and respond calmly based on the facts. He said the Japanese government will swiftly provide the correct information to the international community with the maximum transparency.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011 07:46 +0900 (JST)

 

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And this is why Japan, even though it is in an earthquake zone, and is at risk for huge tsunamis was so committed to nuclear power:

http://blogs.forbes.com/energysource/2011/04/19/the-carbon-costs-of-replacing-japans-nuclear-power/

"The Carbon Costs of Replacing Japan's Nuclear Power"
This article by Sarah Mansur makes it completely clear:

Phasing out Japan’s nuclear fleet would increase carbon emissions by at least 414 million tons, a 10% increase over current carbon emissions, as the country shifts electricity generation to more carbon-intensive LNG and coal-fired power plants. Replacing projected nuclear power generation in 2030 with power from coal or LNG would add at least 25% and as much as 37% of current emissions to the country’s future carbon output.

Even today, Japan is the world's biggest importer of liquefied natural gas and coal.

The additional imports required under Scenario 1, which assumes the replacement of nuclear generation entirely through LNG-fueled natural gas plants, would cost the country an additional $17.5 billion dollars, decreasing Japan’s trade surplus by 37.6 percent. Scenario 2, which considers the replacement of nuclear with coal-fired generation, would cost Japan $11.2 billion dollars in imports, cutting the country’s current trade surplus by 24 percent.

Plus Japan actually signed the treaty to limit carbon emissions. It would fail to meet its promises by a huge amount.

But as Billy Mays used to say, "That's not all."

How about if Japan tried to replace its nuclear fleet with solar power:

Furthermore, the 203 gigawatts (GW) of installed solar capacity required to replace Japan’s current nuclear fleet would cover roughly 1.3 million acres, according to a land area calculator created by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the United States. That’s the equivalent of roughly 52% of Japan’s total land area.

Using an estimate of $5 per watt of installed solar PV capacity, installing this 203 GW of solar capacity would cost the country at least $1.01 trillion

If Japan chose to replace its nuclear fleet with wind generators:

This would require 152 GW of installed wind capacity, at a total installation cost of $375 billion (using an estimate of $2,466/KWe). According to NREL’s wind farm area calculator, the installation of these wind turbines would require 38,000 acres taken out of production on a wind farm, and a total of 1.3 billion acres for the entire wind farm. This represents over 50 percent of Japan’s total land area.

Cheaper than solar, but still far too much land area involved.

So you can see why Japan choose to go with nuclear reactors, despite have more risk due to earthquake and tsunami than almost any other country on earth.

It's also why France is nuclear. When you have no coal, gas or oil resources, and you don't have unlimited vacant land, the choices become differently limited.

 

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I suppose it's a good day to reflect on energy disasters, since its not apparently a newsy day in Japan.

I suppose I could talk about three or four things I really want to know:

1. Why didn't Jimmy Carter get pancreatic cancer. I just read a Greenpeace rundown of every minor and major nuclear incident that ever occurred. One of them is:

1952 (Dec 12) Explosion and meltdown at NRX reactor Chalk River, Ontario, Canada. Future U.S. president Jimmy Carter, thru his involvement in the US Nuclear Submarine program, is one of the volunteer workers who participates in the cleanup, going in until he receives his Maximum Permissible Dose.

And that the limit for radiation workers at that time was:

1949 NCRP lowers basic "Maximum Permissible Dose" for radiation workers to 0.3 rem/week; risk-benefit philosophy introduced; limits for the general public set at 10% of the occupational limit.

That would be 300 mrem per week for quite a large number of weeks. The allowable dose per year in Japan for radiation emergency workers is 250 mrem per year.

The same set of articles wants to assert that radiation causes pancreatic cancer. So given that huge dose, why didn't Jimmy, all of whose parents and siblings died of pancreatic cancer, not get it? Are we seeing an example of radiation curing a genetic predisposition? (silly, I know, but the whole thing boggles my mind).

The second question I want the answer to is why do sand lances seem so susceptible to accumulating radioactive materials? I understand why shiitake mushrooms do, but what is it about sand lances? They have a high surface area to volume ratio, they live primarily on the bottom of the ocean, and eat copepods. Apparently, copepods feed on the surface and then sink back into the depths (very little radioactive material has been found in the depths at this point) so maybe I can see how this gets to the sand lances. Or maybe there is a lot more stuff on the bottom than I think, and the sand lances are burrowing in it. Anyway, if there any biologically adept people reading, I hope they will tell me about sand lances.

The third thing I want to know is why the Unit 4 spent fuel pool blew up and destroyed the building, if it wasn't because it went dry (and apparently it didn't, given the minimal fuel damage TEPCO found a couple days ago in the Unit 4 pool). There is a fellow at Physic Forum who has an ingenious theory that a pocket of superheated steam (formed because of collapsed racks or the crane limiting water flow in the pool) caused a geyser in it, but that sounds way too cute. But it is maybe possible.

The fourth thing is a niggling little worry. The French method of removing cesium from water involves potassium ferrocyanate (or ferri- I forget). This is fine and safe. The Violia method of desalination involves exchange resins and making the water somewhat acidic. Fine and safe. Unfortunately aqueous potassium ferro or ferri cyanate and acids forms hydrogen cyanide gas (very not good). I hope someone besides me has considered this.

They probably have, but it makes me uneasy.

 

[dorispulaski]

And the evening status:

Wind is west northwest

9:00 PM JST April 20th

Daini Six Peripheral Measurement Points (2.5, 1.9, 2.6, 2.1, 2.1, 2.1 ) microSieverts per hour

Daiichi Monitoring cart near West Gate 27.5 microSieverts per hour

Daiichi Eight Peripheral Measurement Points ( 8, 31, 27, 25, 41, 72, 175, 160 ) microSieverts per hour
Daiichi Temporary Points
Main Office Building 490 microSieverts per hour
Main Gate 60 microSieverts per hour
West Gate 24 microSieverts per hour


April 19th Seawater data
Graph
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110420e4.pdf
Raw Data
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110420e3.pdf

Even water in the inner harbor looking better
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110420e10.pdf

There seems to be loose dust around-it comes it goes.

Daiichi Air Analysis (through April 19th)
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110420e7.pdf
Daini Air Analysis
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110420e8.pdf

5:30 PM April 20th Daiichi Status

-From 5:08 pm on April 20th, we started spraying water to Unit 4 by the concrete pumping vehicle.

*From 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm on April 20th, we sprayed dust inhibitor into an area of 1,900m2 around the Centralized Radiation Waste Treatment Facility in order to prevent diffusion of radioactive materials on a trial basis

And from NHK, this article causes me to believe that Japan was not nearly as serious about Station Blackout Drills as the US is. Obviously this plant (not belonging to TEPCO) was charting new territory for itself.

Power loss drill at nuclear plant in Aomori Pref.

Tohoku Electric Power Company has conducted a drill at one of its nuclear plants in northeastern Japan to prepare for a potential total loss of external power to one of its reactors in an emergency.

The company's Higashidori nuclear power station in Aomori Prefecture lost all its external power supply in an aftershock on April 7th. An emergency diesel backup generator began cooling the reactor, but the generator failed shortly after external power was restored.

Wednesday's drill was held based on the scenario that both the external power and the backup generator had been lost.

Workers confirmed the procedures for starting up an emergency power truck, which was deployed late last month, and connecting its cables to the plant's facilities.

Tohoku Electric Power Company says the power truck works for only 2-and-a-half hours before it needs to be refueled with light oil. The plant has some fuel in stock, but the company says it needs to reinforce the fuel stock.

Plant chief Shun Tsubata pledged to address these issues and improve the plant's safety.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 18:34 +0900 (JST)

 

[mot]

Doris, I am more than saddened to hear about the discrimination against the people of Fukushima is surfacing. I am so disappointed. I am not sure whether I should be angry with their cruelty or with their ignorance - perhaps I should be with both.

As for the alternative energy source, I believe geothermal option must be most suited in Japan, although the cost of building geothermal power station is at the moment almost prohibitively high, I understand. It is an irony that Japan's geographical characteristics which would make geothermal option a real possibility is also what makes nuclear option terribly dangerous.

Sand lance, simmered with soy sauce, sweet sake (mirin), suger and ginger, is a delicacy in Kobe and surrounding areas. They use only baby sand lance, so it is a delicacy only available in s very short period in the spring. I am not sure whether sand lance eaten in Kobe is from as far as Fukushima and Ibaraki, but somehow in my mind connection among sand lance - Kobe (city once destroyed by the earthquake) - Fukushima / Ibaraki feels significant in a metaphorical way...

 

[dorispulaski]

mot, I agree about the discrimination. NHK has delivered more balanced coverage than US media outlets, but I am sorry to say some things are not right, when the media should be putting this straight.

The SDF sergeant should have been better educated than to become so frightened he fled, particularly now that the situation is much more stable in Fukushima Daiichi. The students should know radioactivity is not 'catching' (but more important, they should know bullying is wrong), the brave crane operator going to Daiichi to help should not have felt he was going to die imminently. These kind of opinions can only be cured by education.

A study in Oregon was just done in the US, investigating teen suicide. It seems that school districts that are more accepting of differences and that have anti-bullying and tolerance programs have less suicides, even among students who are not depressed, not gay, and not bullied. Apparently, teaching tolerance is very, very important, and all schools should be doing more of it.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/04/teen-suicide-rates-drop-in-in-blue-counties.html

Now in this article, the percentage of Democrats vs. Republicans is referred to, but I saw the author of the study interviewed this morning, and he said it really was the presence of tolerance and anti-bullying programs at the schools, and that all students benefitted.

In a newly released study primarily focused on gay-teen suicide rates in Oregon, some interesting details were discovered. The numbers of suicide attempts by gay teens went down by 20% in counties whose schools had anti-bullying, anti-discrimination policies and/or a Gay-Straight Alliance. The suicide rate was also lower when the proportion of Democrats was higher in the county.

A community that was supportive of gay teens not only curbed suicide among gays, the study found, but also lowered the rate of suicide attempts by heterosexual students by 9%.

Geothermal has some excellent points, but it requires major fresh water sources. This has been the problem with geothermal in California-the Geysers plant has been less and less productive because there is not enough water.

http://www.nrel.gov/learning/re_geo_elec_production.html

Does Japan have a lot of excess fresh water capacity?

There is another energy item that I am a big fan of, but whether it would be good or bad for Japan depends on what they do for electricity, and what they do now for heating.

In the US, the primary home heating is natural gas, except in the northeast, where oil is used, and Florida and Texas, where electricity is used.

If the electricity at a particular location is mostly nuclear or hydroelectric, or biofuel (or solar or wind, but in the US, they are insignificant) then using electricity to heat, coupled with a geothermal heat pump (which is just a normal heat pump where pipes into the ground are the reservoir save electricity and also carbon dioxide emission. Sometimes this is called "geothermal" in the US, although that is not really what it is; it is a 'ground source heat pump'.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geothermal_heat_pump

By the way, if anyone cares, TEPCO finally has all their data for the stranger isotopes they saw finally fixed to NISA's satisfaction. If you are interested, there are links to all their old (and now revised) data:
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/11042008-e.html

Mostly it's the same, but the super short lived stuff like Tellurium that isn't metastable, some weird isotopes of silver and astatine and radioactive chlorine have disappeared as data misreads.

 

[mot]

Does Japan have a lot of excess fresh water capacity?

I am not sure what kind of fresh water supply is required to make geothermal work, but Japan is largely rainy in the summer and have large snowfall in the Sea of Japan side of the country in winter. We have enough water to make hydroelectric dams as one of the main energy source before we shifted more towards nuclear.

I am actually involved in one building project (new-built secondary school) right now that uses ground source heat pump to reduce energy used for heating. It's becoming popular here in the UK, where hot water radiators and underfloor heating is a main means used for heating. Introduction of GSHP may not be as popular in Japan though, as the peak use of electricity over there is during the summer for cooling. Having said that, my sister in Japan is now considering introduction of CHP gas boiler (combined heat and power - using the heat created by the boiler for domestic hot water supply to generate electricity); she reckons combination of CHP and some solar panels on the roof should allow her household to come off the national grid. We should be looking into introduction of CHP more seriously - I bet indoor swimming pools can generate enough electricity for quite a few houses in the surrounding areas!

 

[dorispulaski]

I was curious, as Japan seems like a good match for geothermal. Here's what I found:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/en...-volcanoes-with-geothermal-energy-plants.html

In 2009, there was interest in the first new geothermal power stations being built in 20 years.

Today, there are currently 18 geothermal power stations in operation in Japan, although their combined output accounts for no more than 0.20 per cent of electricity generated domestically.

Slate Magazine has an article on geothermal power, including pros and cons:

http://www.slate.com/id/2271717/

Last year, the United States' 77 geothermal power plants produced 15.2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, or about 0.4 percent of the U.S. total—more than any other nation in the world. (Wind machines generated 70.8 billion kWh of electricity, and solar 0.8 billion kWh.)

But as with any big industrial project, geothermal energy production also carries some environmental risks. The biggest issues revolve around water. Brackish waters drawn from deep underground are sometimes laced with toxic substances like mercury, so power producers have to be very careful with how they store and dispose it. [ETA Water in volcanic areas is often heavily salt and alkali and mercury laced and doesn't work all that well as it craps up the pumps, which is why fresh water gets used, often. AFAIR, this was the problem at Geysers Power Plant]

To cool their working fluid, some geothermal power plants withdraw large amounts of surface water. In areas where fresh water is scarce, these plants may compete with farms and homes that need water for irrigation, bathing, and the like—but that's a problem for other kinds of power plants, as well.

The potential for geothermal projects to cause earthquakes has received a lot of attention in recent years. Most of the concern has been focused on projects known as enhanced geothermal systems, or EGS. There are plenty of underground zones that get scorching hot but remain dry, because the rock there is so dense. Without water to carry that thermal energy to the Earth's surface, you can't generate electricity. (Not yet, at least.) In EGS applications, high-pressure water is injected into those impermeable, rocky areas to create a network of small fractures. Pumping surface water into the now-porous rock creates a brand-new hydrothermal reservoir. That fracturing process produces microearthquakes—small tremors that can be detected with a seismometer but generally aren't felt at the Earth's surface. To avoid creating more damaging earthquakes, EGS projects must steer clear of active fault lines and monitor seismic activity very closely. In the United States, EGS projects are still in the research and development phase, with none yet online.

Conventional geothermal plants have also been associated with earthquakes, in part because they tend to be located near active tectonic regions, where hydrothermal reservoirs are usually found. Additional tremors may arise, however, when extracting or injecting steam and water creates pressure or temperature changes underground. (Geothermal energy isn't the only industrial culprit when it comes to earthquakes: Reservoirs and injection wells have caused tremors, as well.)

It's entirely possible that a propensity for causing earthquakes might be a reason to be careful about using geothermal in Japan.

BTW, an electric heat pump works great for air conditoning in a moderate climate. You don't need to use ground source for it-this is the form of electric heating and air conditioning most commonly used in Florida.

In Connecticut, we only wish we needed air conditioning. Usually what we need is heat, and it is too cold in winter for a conventional heat pump (swamp cooler) to work.

I am no fan of photovoltaic solar power however-in all its incarnations, it is overhyped, expensive, and a huge e-waste disposal problem, not to mention all the cancer causing and toxic chemicals used in its manufacture, which is why most solar these days is being manufactured in China-other countries won't tolerate the chemicals. And if you don't use the old style solvent chemistries & lead/tin solders, it just skyrockets the cost on a technology that is too costly to begin with.

If she really wants to be off the grid, has she considered a wind mill? Also, if she is near a brook, micro-hydro works really, really well.

http://www.littlegreenhydro.com/

A friend of mine has an off the grid house in Vermont with micro-hydro, and it works very well. It's great in country locations where you have the space for it.

 

[Olympia]

Doris, I am more than saddened to hear about the discrimination against the people of Fukushima is surfacing. I am so disappointed. I am not sure whether I should be angry with their cruelty or with their ignorance - perhaps I should be with both.

As for the alternative energy source, I believe geothermal option must be most suited in Japan, although the cost of building geothermal power station is at the moment almost prohibitively high, I understand. It is an irony that Japan's geographical characteristics which would make geothermal option a real possibility is also what makes nuclear option terribly dangerous.

Prohibitively expensive? I guess that term will have a different meaning now, after the "cheap" solution of having a nuclear plant disintegrate and having to work on it for weeks and weeks and weeks, not to mention evacuating people and relocating them....

I'm sorry to hear about the prejudice against area residents. Many people are not good about being taken out of their comfortable daily assumptions. When they're frightened, they tend to close up, not open out. Overcoming that instinct will take active efforts--it can't be allowed to just sit there and fester. Thank goodness there are so many other people moving in the opposite direction and rising to the occasion in such an astonishing way--like the skaters, for example.

Doris, about your speculation on Carter. It's funny, I thought about that myself. Did the exposure act as chemotherapy or give him a genetic alteration? I dismissed it as an extravagant thought, but stranger things have happened in nature. There's so much about our bodies that we don't know.

 

[dorispulaski]

Nei has their 11 AM EDT April 21st update

UPDATE AS OF 11 A.M. EDT, THURSDAY, APRIL 21:
As workers continue to pump cooling water into the reactors and used fuel pools at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, they also continue to deal with contaminated water at the site.

A particular problem has been the leakage of highly radioactive water on the turbine building side of reactor 2. Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) workers this week completed injecting liquid glass and cement-based grout to seal a concrete enclosure outside the building. They also installed iron plates at the screen room of reactor 2 and silt fences in front of the screen rooms of reactors 1-4. TEPCO is placing sandbags in strategic locations around the site.

Workers also continued to pump water out of the reactor 2 turbine building into a tank at the on-site waste processing facility. This is a slow-moving process estimated to take 26 days. In all, TEPCO estimates that 67,500 tons of radioactive water has accumulated at the plant.

Robots detected high levels of radiation hazardous to humans over even a short amount of time in buildings for reactors 1 and 2. Reactor 3 also was surveyed, but radiation levels weren’t available. Cameras on the robots showed debris on the floors of the buildings that could hamper work after the radiation is controlled.

New Video Posted
NEI has uploaded a new video to its YouTube channel. The video, "INL Director Discusses the Future for Nuclear Energy in the United States," features the Idaho National Laboratory's Director John Grossenbacher, who explains that the United States should develop its energy policies based on an assessment of the current events at Japan's Fukushima nuclear reactors and the costs and benefits of providing electricity through various energy sources.

mot, Another use for liquid glass!

 

[dorispulaski]

TEPCO.

I like these seawater graphs. They are all going down very nicely on shore!

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110421e10.pdf

n addition, we did not conduct any sampling surveys at the twelve points
yesterday on April 20th due to bad weather.

Dust and particles
Daini bouncing around with the wind
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110421e14.pdf
More or less downward at Daiichi
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110421e13.pdf
Silt fence is working-only inside it is level staying high
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110421e18.pdf

Subdrains of the different units.
Unit 5 and Unit 6 subdrains are only mildly radioactive.
No radioactive material found at all in the deep well today.
Unit 2 is the worst, as you might suspect (100, 1000, 10, 10, less than 1, less than 1) becquerels per cc.
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110421e16.pdf

*We had used grout to stop the outflow, and finished the work on April 21st. We are also planning to conduct countermeasures to prevent the outflow of accumulated water from the pit.

*The amount of high density contaminated water spilled from the screen at the side of turbine building, Unit 2 is estimated to be approximately 520 m3 with 4.7*1015 becquerel, provided that the water flowed continuously at the same rate from April 1st to April 6th. In order to prevent water containing radioactive materials from spilling from a plant's port to the sea, we installed iron plates in front of the screen of Unit 2, and also installed silt fences in front of the screens of Unit 1 to 4. Moreover, we installed a total of 62 large sandbags on the south side of the ocean and threw in ten sandbags including zeolite in front of the screen rooms of Units 1 to 4.

In addition, carrying out measures such as steel sheet pile and radioactive material absorber at around south breakwater are under consideration.

*From 0:00am on April 21st, we sprayed dust inhibitor at the mountainside area of the common spent fuel pool/ approx. 1,300 m2 , and at the mountainside area of the medium voltage switchgear/ approx. 5,100 m2 in order to prevent diffusion of radioactive materials. The work finished at 3:00 pm on April 21st.

*From 11:43am to 0:50pm on April 21st, an unmanned helicopter flew over Units 1 to 4 to confirm the conditions around the building of those
Units.

Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station:
Units 1 to 4: shutdown due to the earthquake

Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Station:
Units 1, 5, 6, 7: normal operation
(Units 2 to 4: outage due to regular inspection)

[Thermal Power Station]
-Hirono Thermal Power Station Units 2 and 4: Shutdown due to the earthquake
-Hitachinaka Thermal Power Station Unit 1: Shutdown due to the earthquake
-Kashima Thermal Power Station Unit 6: resumed generating electricity at 4:10 am on April 20th

[Hydro Power Station]
-Power supply has returned to normal and facilities damaged by the
earthquake are now being handled in a timely manner.

[Impacts on Transmission Facilities]
-Power supply has returned to normal and facilities damaged by the earthquake are now being handled in a timely manner.

[Avoidance of further Implementation on Planned Rolling Blackouts and Request for Conserving Electricity Consumption]Currently, we are working to restore electricity supply after our nuclearand thermal power facilities were severely damaged by Tohoku-Chihou-Taiheiyou-Oki Earthquake. The widespread understanding and cooperation of our customers to conserve electricity have contributed to the improvement of this tight power supply-demand balance situation.Amidst this backdrop, since the electricity supply will be able to balance with the demand for the time being, we have decided not to
implement further rolling blackouts in principle.However, we must sincerely ask for your continued cooperation in reducingelectricity consumption due to the possible increase in demand caused by
warmer weather or unexpected trouble at power stations that are currently being restored to service. In case the electricity supply-demand balance becomes tighter than expected, we may regrettably need to restart the implementation of rolling blackouts, with prior notice. We kindly ask for your cooperation. We will do our best to maintain this policy of avoiding further implementation of rolling blackouts during the summer.


Appendix: Past Progress (PDF 100KB)

 

[dorispulaski]

IAEA afternoon update

IAEA Briefing on Fukushima Nuclear Accident (21 April 2011, 16:25 UTC)
Presentation:
→ Summary of Reactor Status


(Note: Unless there are significant developments, no further written brief will be issued until Tuesday 26 April.)

On Thursday, 21 April 2011, the IAEA provided the following information on the current status of nuclear safety in Japan:

1. Current Situation

Overall, the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant remains very serious, but there are signs of recovery in some functions, such as electrical power and instrumentation.

At a press conference held at 11:00 (Japan local time) on 21 April, the chief cabinet secretary, Mr. Edano, announced the establishment of a no entry zone around Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, as well as basic policies concerning temporary re-entry. As of midnight (Japan local time) on 22 April 2011, the area within 20 km of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is announced as a no entry zone.

Chief cabinet secretary, Mr. Edano, also announced a re-designation of the evacuation zone around Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant. He announced that "the size of the evacuation zone around the station would be reduced from 10 km to 8 km," and that "the order to evacuate based on the incident at Fukushima Daini nuclear power station would be lifted from areas farther than 8 km around the station."

Changes to Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Status

The IAEA receives information from a variety of official Japanese sources through the Japanese national competent authority, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency. Additional detail is provided in the IAEA Incident and Emergency Centre (IEC) status summary with information received by 07:00 UTC on 21 April 2011.

Management of On-site Contaminated Water

Injection of approximately 17 000 L of coagulant (liquid glass) to the power cable trench of Unit 2 was carried out on 18 April and injection of approximately 7 000 L of liquid glass on 19 April. The transfer of stagnant water from the Unit 2 turbine building to radioactive waste treatment facilities commenced on 19 April.

The stagnant water (around 100 m3) in the basement of the turbine building of Unit 6 was transferred to the condenser on 19 April.

Plant status

Work to strengthen the electrical power system between Units 1 - 2 and Units 3 - 4 by establishing multiple power lines was completed on 19 April.

White "smoke" continues to be emitted from Units 2, 3 and 4..

In Unit 1 fresh water is being continuously injected into the reactor pressure vessel through the feedwater line at an indicated flow rate of 6 m3/h using a temporary electric pump with off-site power.

In Unit 2 and Unit 3 fresh water is being continuously injected into the reactor pressure vessel through the fire extinguisher line at an indicated rate of 7 m3/h using temporary electric pumps with off-site power.

In Unit 4 40 tonnes of fresh water was sprayed over the spent fuel pool on 19 April using a concrete pump truck.

Nitrogen gas is being injected into the containment vessel in Unit 1 to reduce the possibility of hydrogen combustion in the containment vessel. The pressure in the containment vessel has stabilized. The pressure in the reactor pressure vessel is increasing.

The reactor pressure vessel temperatures in Unit 1 remain above cold shutdown conditions. The indicated temperature at the feedwater nozzle of the reactor pressure vessel is 154 °C and at the bottom of reactor pressure vessel is 113 °C.

The reactor pressure vessel temperatures in Unit 2 remain above cold shutdown conditions. The indicated temperature at the feed water nozzle of the reactor pressure vessel is 135 °C. The reactor pressure vessel and the dry well remain at atmospheric pressure. Fresh water injection (approximately 47 tonnes) to the spent fuel pool via the spent fuel pool cooling line was carried out on 19 April.

The temperature at the bottom of the reactor pressure vessel in Unit 3 remains above cold shutdown conditions. The indicated temperature at the feed water nozzle of the reactor pressure vessel is 100 °C and at the bottom of the reactor pressure vessel is 108 °C. The reactor pressure vessel and the dry well remain at atmospheric pressure.

There has been no change in the status in Unit 6 or in the common spent fuel storage facility.

2. Radiation Monitoring

On 20 April, deposition of I-131 was detected in 8 prefectures, ranging from 2.4 to 80 Bq/m2. Deposition of Cs-137 was detected in seven prefectures, the values reported ranging from 2.6 to 87 Bq/m2.

Gamma dose rates are measured daily in all 47 prefectures. For Fukushima on 20 April a gamma dose rate of 1.9 µSv/h was reported, and for Ibaraki prefecture a gamma dose rate of 0.12 µSv/h was reported. In all other prefectures, reported gamma dose rates were below 0.1 µSv/h.

Dose rates are also reported specifically for the eastern part of Fukushima prefecture, for distances beyond 30 km from Fukushima Daiichi. On 19 April the values in this area ranged from 0.1 to 22 µSv/h.

In cooperation with local universities, the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) has set up an additional monitoring programme. For 20 April, measurements of gamma dose rates were reported for 54 cities in 40 prefectures. In Fukushima City a value of 0.42 µSv/h was reported. For nine cities, gamma dose rates between 0.13 and 0.17 µSv/h were reported. For all other cities reported gamma dose rates were below 0.1 µSv/h.

I-131 or Cs-137 is detectable in drinking water, but at levels below 1 Bq/L and in only a few prefectures. As of 20 April, one restriction on drinking water for infants relating to I-131 (100 Bq/L) remains in place for a small scale water supply in a village of the Fukushima prefecture.

Food monitoring data reported by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on 20 April covered a total of 103 samples. These samples were taken on 3, 14, 15, 18, 19 and 20 April from nine prefectures (Chiba, Fukushima, Gunma, Ibaraki, Kanagawa, Niigata, Tochigi, Tokyo and Yamagata).

Analytical results for 99 samples of various vegetables, shiitake mushrooms, fruit (strawberries), fish, seafood and unprocessed raw milk indicated that I-131, Cs-134 and Cs-137 were either not detected or had levels below the regulation values set by the Japanese authorities. Four samples of leafy vegetables (Japanese parsley, komatsuna, shinobuhuyuna and spinach) taken on 18 April from Fukushima prefecture had levels above the regulation values set by the Japanese authorities for radioactive caesium.

On 20 April, restrictions were placed on the distribution and consumption of the young of a specific sea fish (sand lance) from the coastal region of Fukushima prefecture. As has been reported previously, sand lance is the only seafood that has been found with I-131, Cs-134 or Cs-137 levels above the regulation values set by the Japanese authorities.

3. Marine Monitoring

TEPCO Seawater Monitoring Programme

TEPCO is conducting a programme for seawater monitoring (by surface sampling) at a number of near-shore and off-shore monitoring locations. Following a directive from NISA, on 16 April TEPCO announced that it will increase the number of sea sampling points from ten to 16. A further four points are to be added at 3 km from the coast and two points are to be added at 8 km from the coast. The new sampling sites are indicated on Map 1: TEPCO Seawater Sampling Locations, on which new points are indicated with green bullets.

On some days, two samples were collected at the same sampling point, a few hours apart, and analysed separately.

Until 3 April a generally decreasing trend in radioactivity was observed at the sampling points TEPCO 1 to TEPCO 4. After the discharge of contaminated water from the plant on 4 April, a temporary increase in radioactivity in sea water was reported. Since 5 April a general downward trend in the concentration of radionuclides in sea water for all TEPCO sampling points has been observed.

On 21 April new data for TEPCO sampling points were reported. For TEPCO 1 - 4 (sampling date 19 April) the values for both I-131 and Cs-137 were below 0.5 kBq/L. For TEPCO 5 - 10 (sampling date 18 April) the values for both I-131 and Cs-137 were below 0.3 kBq/L.

For the six new stations at 3 km off-shore and 8 km off-shore (green bullets in Map 1; sampling date 18 April), I-131 and Cs-137 were not detectable at the two stations 3 km off-shore; for all the other stations the level of I-131 was below 0.3 kBq/L and that of Cs-137 was below 0.4 kBq/L.

Map 1: TEPCO Seawater Sampling Locations:


MEXT Off-shore Seawater Monitoring Programme

On 21 April new data were reported (sampling date 19 April)for the MEXT 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and B off-shore seawater sampling locations shown in Map 2: MEXT Seawater Sampling Locations. I-131 was detected only at the location MEXT 6 and the level was below 20Bq/L. Cs-137 was detected at locations MEXT 6 and 8 at a level of below 30 Bq/L.

Map 2: MEXT Seawater Sampling Locations:


4. IAEA Activities

Georgia and Iceland have also provided monitoring data, in addition to the States that have been mentioned in previous briefs.

On 18 April the IAEA monitoring team finished its radiological monitoring campaign and the team returned to Vienna on 20 April

 

[dorispulaski]

NHK Evening News

Yes, many people who were alive in 1945 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki are still alive

Hibakusha call for health management
Survivors of the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki say the government and the Tokyo Electric Power Company should take care of the people affected by radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi power plant.

In a letter of request to the government and the utility firm, the Japan Confederation of Atomic and Hydrogen Bomb Sufferers Organizations says all people affected by the Fukushima nuclear disaster should undergo health checkups every year. It asks the government and TEPCO to address the health management of affected people in the long-term and in a responsible manner.

The organization, known as Nihon Hidankyo, also says the government should also take the responsibility for compensating people exposed to radiation. It says certificates should be issued in a unified way, rather than at random by local governments, in order to quickly help those affected.

The letter of request also refers to reports of undue discrimination against evacuees from Fukushima Prefecture since the outbreak of the nuclear disaster. It says people should be informed of accurate information about radiation in order to avoid discrimination.

Hidankyo Secretary General Terumi Tanaka says the government and TEPCO should address the overall health situation as many people are worried about radiation exposure via the air.

Friday, April 22, 2011 02:09 +0900 (JST)

And I'm glad to see this:

Evacuees visit their home

Evacuees from near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant drove to their homes on Thursday before a no-entry zone covering their areas goes into operation at midnight on Thursday.

Police checked the driving licenses of car drivers at a checkpoint about 20 kilometers from the power plant and asked where they are going.

A 61-year old company worker said he wants to pick up his health insurance and pension document from his home in Naraha Town, which will be within the 20-kilometer no-entry zone.

He said he had thought such a restriction would be imposed from the weekend. He said he took a day off work to make the visit.

In the afternoon, people carrying clothes, appliances and other goods from their homes were seen driving through the checkpoint on their way back to evacuation centers.

Thursday, April 21, 2011 18:35 +0900 (JST

And this was nice

Flower message to cheer up quake survivors

The husband-and-wife owners of a cafe in Takamatsu City, western Japan, have created flower messages to encourage the country's recovery from the March 11th disaster.

A garden attached to the cafe, owned by Masayuki Inokuma and his wife Emiko, is carpeted with pink moss flowers. About 250,000 plants are currently in full bloom.

The pair created a 5x35-meter flower arrangement forming the phrase "Gambaro Nippon" or "Let's hang in there Japan".

The couple began planting the flower arrangement a week after the disaster to cheer up the survivors of the quake and tsunami in northern Japan.

In another arrangement, moss pinks are planted in the image of a bluebird, a symbol of hope and happiness to the devastated areas.

Admission fees of about 2 dollars per person will be donated to support the victims of the disaster.

Thursday, April 21, 2011 22:05 +0900 (JST)

 

[dorispulaski]

And TEPCO has responded to NISA about another plant that went off line due to the more recent aftershock on April 7th, owned by Tohoku.

In connection with the loss of offsite power source at Higashi-dori Nuclear Power Station of Tohoku Electric Power Company, which was caused by Earthquake Off the Coast of Miyagi Prefecture on April 7th, 2011, we received an order*1 from Nuclear and Industrial Agency to apply for approval of modification on Safety Regulations on Nuclear Reactor Facilities*2. Today, we applied to Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry for approval of modification on Safety Regulations on Nuclear Reactor Facilities of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station.

In accordance with the amendment of the interpretation of ministry ordinance about restrictions on plant operation, being"there must be two operable emergency generators during cold shutdown and fuel replacement," as to the restrictions on plant operation in the safety regulations which are associated with unoperated diesel generators for emergency we modify the description as attached.

Attachment: Comparison chart for amendment of safety regulations on nuclear
reactor facilities for Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station
(PDF 37.2KB)

*1 The order issued on April 9th, 2011, is as below.
"Regarding interpretation of safety regulations on emergency generating facilities: an order"(April 9, 2011)

The Earthquake Off the Coast of Miyagi Prefecture occurred on April 7, 2011 and Higashi-dori Nuclear Power Station of Tohoku Electric Power Company lost the offsite power and emergency generating facilities started up to maintain the power source. Although the offsite power has been restored, emergency generating facilities shut down due to some troubles. Thus, it was reported as a failure to secure the restriction of operation regulated in the safety regulations.

Amongst the matters on operation of nuclear reactors facilities in the safety regulations stipulated in such as Article 16.7 of the current "Rules on the Installation and Operation of Commercial Power Reactors" (No. 77 of Ordinance of Ministry of International Trade and Industry, of Showa 53 (of 1978)), the interpretation on restriction of operation requires one emergency generating facility operable for each nuclear reactor in the condition of cold shutdown such as during regular inspections and fuel replacement (which includes the cases of storing spent fuels in spent fuel pools). However, in consideration of the accident of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station caused by Tsunami induced by Tohoku-Chihou-Taiheiyo-oki Earthquake, 2011, it is extremely important to secure power source.

Therefore, the interpretation was amended to require two emergency generating facilities operable which connect to necessary emergency alternate-current high-voltage bus line for each nuclear reactor (when power stations have more than one nuclear reactor, they can count the number of emergency generating facilities of other units which are connected to the necessary emergency alternate-current high-voltage bus line.)

As a result, it is required to immediately take actions for emergency safety measures, ordered on March 30, including securing power supply cars, fire fighting engines, fire fighting hose and others and also is required to immediately implement amendment of safety regulations of "Rules on the Installation and Operation of Commercial Power Reactors", which fulfils the above interpretation and also is one of the safety measures for emergency, by April 28 of this year.

*2 Safety Regulations on Nuclear Reactor Facilities

In accordance with Act on the Regulation of Nuclear Source Material, Nuclear Fuel Material and Reactors, Paragraph 1, Article 37, the business operator shall draw it up and apply for government's approval. It provides overall operation on overall security activities in regard to operation of power plant, fuel management and radiation dose management.

They will be supplying nearby emergency portable generators or lines from other units' generators prior to the event, among other things.

They received a similar order re Daini.

 

[dorispulaski]

With the Easter holidy, I will not be posting as frequent status reports, but I'll try to be back on line Monday.

Today from TEPCO

From 5:14pm to 9:20pm, April 21st, water was sprayed to the spent fuel
pool of Unit 4 by the concrete pumping vehicle.

* From April 22nd, we will install the thermocouple-type thermometer and
the radiation dose meter to the concrete pumping vehicle at the spent
fuel pool of Unit 4 and we will investigate the water level of pool,
water temperature, radiation dose, water analysis etc.

This is a good move. Thermograph readings on Unit 4's pool have not been that accurate in the past.

And JAIF's seawater map is finally getting interesting.

They have a map of where fish were caught and their radioactivity or not
http://www.jaif.or.jp/english/news_images/pdf/ENGNEWS01_1303449037P.pdf

as well as the usual measurement bar chart and raw values.

Only 4 of the 12 MEXT sampling sites were showing any radiation.

The TEPCO sites I reported on yesterday; they are decreasing except for behind the silt fence.