Japanese Earthquake, Tsunami, and Nuclear Reactors

[dorispulaski]

NEI has posted an update and recap of the last couple days. And there are stories that NHK has missed:
The total of contaminated water has actually dropped! This is huge.
And the steel plate floors dropped the radiation in Unit 3 by half.
Also I had not heard about the extra steel plates at the intake at all.

Contaminated Water Levels Beginning to Drop at Fukushima Daiichi
July 8, 2011

Plant Status

• Tokyo Electric Power Co. is continuing preparations to stabilize Fukushima Daiichi’s reactor 3 primary containment vessel. The company is using a robot-mounted camera to check whether a penetration joint is suitable for nitrogen injection that will help stabilize conditions inside the reactor vessel. TEPCO is also checking radiation levels, which have decreased by up to half after installing steel plates on the floor of the working area inside the reactor building. However, radiation levels in the building are still high—up to 5 rem per hour.

• TEPCO is making headway in reducing the volume of contaminated water on site. In the last week, the new water filtration system has treated more than 13,000 tons of water. Recycling the treated water into the plant cooling systems also began last week, and the rate of water accumulation is now being reversed. The company says water levels in the basements of the reactor buildings could drop by more than three feet by next month. About 120,000 tons of water have accumulated in basements at the facility and in storage facilities. Also, the company has installed steel plates at the seawater intake structures for Fukushima reactors 1 through 4, closing off a path for leakage of contaminated water from the reactors to the ocean.

• TEPCO will add 12 more on-site monitoring locations at Fukushima Daiichi to sample for airborne radiation around the reactor buildings. Plant officials believe that dust and contaminated steam leaking from the reactors continue to contribute to contamination off site. A lightweight cover for reactor 1 is being built and should be in place by September. Similar covers will be installed on reactors 2-4.


Industry/Regulatory/Political Issues

• The mayor and town assembly of Genkai have retracted their approval for the restart of Genkai nuclear reactor after the central government announced that European Union-style “stress tests” should be conducted to assess the safety response of all Japanese nuclear plants to severe accidents. Mayor Hideo Kishimoto criticized the government for imposing the tests as a condition for restarting plants after he was assured that Genkai was safe to restart.

• Radioactive cesium levels in processed tea made in Tochigi City, about 100 miles from Fukushima Daiichi, are three times higher than the provisional government limit. Tochigi prefecture officials asked that farmers temporarily stop shipments of the tea.

• The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has found that some electrical equipment at the Tokai Daini nuclear plant in Ibaraki prefecture does not meet industry seismic standards. The plant operator will strengthen the seismic resistance of the equipment during the NISA inspection period.

New Products

• NEI’s new website provides information about nuclear safety, security and measures to protect public health.

Upcoming Events

• The Senate Appropriations Energy and Water Development Subcommittee will hear Fukushima-related testimony at a July 14 hearing on small reactor designs. Marvin Fertel, NEI’s president and chief executive officer, will testify at the hearing.

• The NRC task force reviewing agency processes and regulations in light of the accident at Fukushima will brief the commissioners on the report at a public meeting July 19. NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko will speak at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on July 18.

And from the Atomic Power Review blog,

-TEPCO has repaired and tested the spent fuel pool cooling and filtering system setup at No. 4 plant and found it to be sound.

-TEPCO has sent personnel into No. 3 reactor building, instead of a robot, to prepare a connection to inject nitrogen to No. 3 plant's dry well. The photos appear to show a large snap-type Hansen (or Swagelok, etc) coupling.

 

[dorispulaski]

Meanwhile from NHK


This is good news!

TEPCO to inject nitrogen into No. 3 reactor

The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is preparing to connect pipes to the plant's No. 3 reactor to inject nitrogen to prevent a hydrogen explosion.

Tokyo Electric Power Company workers spent 10 minutes in the reactor building on Friday to determine whether pipes can be connected to the reactor's containment vessel.

The utility says the workers confirmed that the reactor's connections are intact, and that work to lay the pipes can start on Saturday.

The firm had sent a robot equipped with a camera into the building to check the situation, but the device was blocked and could not finish the work.

Stably cooling the plant's reactors and preventing hydrogen explosions are the pillars of the utility's plan to bring the facility under control.

Nuclear crisis minister Goshi Hosono says that around July 17th, he hopes to begin studying whether to lift advisory designating areas where residents are required to be prepared to evacuate in case of emergency.

But the work to lay the pipes has already been delayed, and the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency must confirm safety for several days before beginning the nitrogen injection.

It remains uncertain whether the injection can be carried out by July 17th as scheduled.

Friday, July 08, 2011 19:48 +0900 (JST)

and

Govt., TEPCO draw roadmap to reactor decommission

A roadmap toward decommissioning of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant indicates that the removal of melted nuclear fuel rods at the plant may begin in 10 years.

NHK has obtained the mid- and long-term roadmap which was presented when officials from the operator of the Fukushima plant, government officials in charge of nuclear safety, and manufacturers of nuclear reactors met last week.

The draft roadmap drawn up by the government's Nuclear Safety Commission and Tokyo Electric Power Company says they tentatively set a target date to begin removing fuel rods that melted and fell to the bottom of the reactor.

The work is considered to be the most important phase in the decommissioning process. The roadmap indicates that removal will start in 2021 if technology essential for the work has been developed before that.

The timeline is believed to have been set based on measures taken following the 1979 Three Mile Island accident in the United States.

But unlike the US case, as reactor containment vessels were damaged at the Fukushima complex, they need to be fixed and filled with water.

The roadmap shows that reactor buildings could be finally demolished and cleared away after the removal of melted fuel rods is completed, and that it will possibly take dozens of years.

Saturday, July 09, 2011 13:49 +0900 (JST)

and they're holding another public meeting in Genkai to explain the previous public meetings.

vt. explains Genkai nuke plant safety measures

The Japanese government held a meeting in Saga Prefecture, western Japan, on Friday to tell local residents about safety measures being taken to enable nuclear reactors in the area to be restarted.

The meeting concerned 2 reactors at the Genkai nuclear plant. It was the second of its kind since the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant began in March. About 370 local residents attended.

An official from the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency apologized for causing confusion among local residents by abruptly deciding to perform extra safety tests on all nuclear reactors in Japan. He said the Genkai plant is already safe because of emergency measures taken by his agency after the earthquake and tsunami in March.

One local resident said the government should have performed the extra safety tests before declaring the Genkai plant safe. Another questioned whether it is appropriate to restart the Genkai plant's reactors before the Fukushima Daiichi plant is brought under control.

Genkai Town Mayor Hideo Kishimoto reacted to the government's decision to perform extra safety tests by retracting his approval for restarting the reactors at the Genkai plant.

Saga Governor Yasushi Furukawa said he will postpone a decision on whether to allow the reactors to be restarted.

Saturday, July 09, 2011 06:17 +0900 (JST)

Survey: very small amount of radioactive materials found in planktonA scientific survey has found radioactive substances in plankton collected from the seafloor off Fukushima Prefecture.

A group of researchers from the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology ended its 8-day survey on Friday. The goal was to study the spread of radioactive materials into the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The group collected samples from the seabed along a 120-kilometer stretch off the coast of Fukushima.

Radioactive cesium was found in animal plankton collected 35 kilometers off Iwaki City. The level was measured at 6 becquerels per kilogram.

The researchers say this level does not exceed the national safety standard. They added that the level would still be under the limit even if the cesium were to enter the bodies of larger fish that eat the contaminated plankton.

Professor Takashi Ishimaru, a member of the research group, says he and his colleagues will continue the survey to check the effects of radioactivity on the local ecosystem.

Saturday, July 09, 2011 06:14 +0900 (JST)

and the verbal content of TEPCO's tsunami report from yesterday

TEPCO: 13.1 meter tsunami hit Fukushima plant

The operator of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant estimates that the facility was hit by a tsunami as high as 13 meters on March 11th.

Tokyo Electric Power Company released a computer simulation based on data recorded during the disaster and other information.

TEPCO estimates that a 13.1-meter-tall tsunami passed a tidal observatory near the plant 51 minutes after the earthquake struck. That figure is far higher that the company's originally estimate of 5.7 meters.

Ten kilometers away at the Fukushima Daini nuclear plant, a tsunami up to 9.1 meters high was recorded 48 minutes after the quake.

TEPCO says the differences in height of the 2 waves may have been caused by topographic features of the seafloor.

It says tsunamis were generated at 6 locations on seabed faults, resulting in the Daiichi plant being hit with a higher wave.

TEPCO also says the ground beneath the 2 plants fell by 50 to 65 centimeters after the disaster.

Saturday, July 09, 2011 09:05 +0900 (JST)

and

Four cities request bigger nuclear safety zone so they can have formal evac plans

Four municipalities around a nuclear power plant in Shizuoka Prefecture have asked the central government to expand the plant's official emergency zone, so their communities can be included in the event of a nuclear accident.

Mayors and representatives from the cities of Fujieda, Yaizu, Fukuroi and Iwata handed a petition requesting the change to nuclear crisis minister Goshi Hosono on Friday.

The mayors asked that the emergency planning zone around the Hamaoka nuclear power station be expanded from the current 10-kilometer radius to 30 kilometers.

The municipalities are all located 10 to 30 kilometers from the Hamaoka plant.

The petition notes that in the Fukushima accident, evacuation areas have now expanded beyond the zone initially mandated by the government.

The mayors said the municipalities are unable to draw up evacuation plans unless their locations are recognized within the emergency zone. They said the matter is raising concern among residents.

Hosono agreed the Fukushima accident revealed the inadequacy of a 10-kilometer radius, and said the government must promptly review the matter.

Friday, July 08, 2011 20:59 +0900 (JST)

 

[Medusa]

This just might be the most detailed collection of info on Fukushima I have found in the last weeks. Thanks for collecting and posting it.

 

[dorispulaski]

You're welcome. I try to update with everything I can find at least once a day.

The remediation work at Fukushima and in Japan in general is one of the most interesting engineering stories of my lifetime, IMO, and as a retired engineer, I can't resist keeping up to date with it.

TEPCO Status for 9 pm JST July 9th

-At 10:00 am on July 9, regarding the low level radioactive accumulated water that we once transferred from T/B, Unit 6 to temporary tanks, we resumed the transfer from the tanks to Mega Float.

-At 10:30 am on July 9, as for the low level radioactive accumulated water at the basement of T/B, Unit 6, we resumed the transfer to the temporary tanks.

-At 8:56 am on June 30, we began with transfer of the accumulated water from the basement of T/B, Unit 3 to Centralized Radiation Waste Treatment Facility (Process Building). At 2:49 pm on July 9, we suspended the transfer in order to do a plumbing so that we will utilize the water accumulated at Surge Tank Building for Common Suppression Pool to substitute with flushing water for the transfer line.

- At 4:44 am on July 8, we stopped operation of pumps in the desalination facility as the water level of the storage tank at the upstream of the desalination facility reached the lower limit. However, at 1:51 pm on the same day, we resumed the operation since we were able to confirm an increase in water level. At 7:35 on July 9, we stopped the operation as the water level reached the lower limit again.

Here's some of the press handouts that didn't make it to NHK:


http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110709_02-e.pdf
It appears they are ready to go with cooling the Unit 4 spent fuel pool with the heat exchanger. They apparently found workable piping.

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110709_01-e.pdf
Their report, with pictures, of how they are going to do the nitrogen injection on Unit 3.

and a ton of press photos, and the link to the press photo archive can be found here:
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/news/110311/index-e.html

and some nice stories:

Apparently cesium in the water hasn't stopped the saury catch from being great this year!

Seasonal favorite fish landed in Kushiro


Shoppers descended on a fish market in the northern Japanese port of Kushiro on Saturday to buy the first sanma, or Pacific saury, of the season.

A fleet of small fishing boats, including some from the area hit by the March 11th disaster, returned to port in the morning after the first night of fishing.

A fisherman from disaster-hit Kesennuma City, Miyagi Prefecture, said he was glad to able to go fishing for the first time in 4 months.

About 27 tons of saury was landed in the port. The amount is 10 times more than last summer when the catch was extremely poor.In the auction, the saury sold for 300 yen a fish, half the price of last year. But fishermen are expecting a bumper catch this year.

From next month, medium-to-large ships will be allowed to fish for saury with many from the Tohoku region participating.
Sunday, July 10, 2011 02:12 +0900 (JST)

A picture of a Pacific saury.

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/mrp/salmon/fishid/images/Cololabis_saira.jpg

And it is eaten salt-grilled, with a squeeze of Japanese citrus fruit, and grated daikon radish
http://kyotofoodie.com/home-cooking-sanma-no-shioyaki-salt-grilled-pacific-saury/

Thus does Greenpeace typically deal with Japanese whaling. And thus does Japan attempt not to kill these nuts. There will be no help.

Japan to seek help with whaling protesters

Japan will seek international cooperation in containing protests against the country's research whaling program.

Japan plans to make the appeal at an annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission, or IWC, which will open on the British island of Jersey on Monday.

Japan suspended last winter's whaling operations in the Antarctic Ocean in February due to the Sea Shepherd protest group's activities.

Fisheries minister Michihiko Kano told reporters on Friday that Japan will urge member nations to take effective measures to prevent the group obstructing its whaling program.

But observers say it is uncertain how much Japan's appeal will be supported, as many countries are opposed to whaling.

In last year's meeting in Morocco, the IWC failed to reach an agreement to resolve the stand-off from a confrontation between pro- and anti-whaling members.

The commission plans to discuss ways to solve the confrontation at the upcoming meeting, but preparatory negotiations have made little progress.
Sunday, July 10, 2011 02:12 +0900 (JST)

More natural gas used, more CO [SUB]2[/SUB]. Just how it is.

Kaieda outlines Japan recovery to ASEAN ministers
Japan's economy minister Banri Kaieda has described the country's recovery from the March 11th disaster in his speech to his ASEAN counterparts.

Kaieda attended a meeting of Japanese business groups and the economy ministers of South East Asian nations in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

Kaieda said that more than 60 percent of production bases in the disaster areas had recovered as of April, and the rest is expected to be restored by the end of July.

He said that the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is gradually being stabilized, although it's not yet fully under control.

In talks later, ASEAN ministers said they hope to invite more investment from Japan to help narrow development gaps within the region.

They also called for more cooperation in energy trading. The ASEAN area is a major natural gas exporter to Japan.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Kaieda said that he understood how much South East Asia expects of Japan. He also asked the ASEAN ministers to consider scientific evidence when discussing rumors of nuclear contamination of Japanese products.
Sunday, July 10, 2011 02:12 +0900 (JST)

 

[Olympia]

Rats! There's been another large aftershock: 7.0, I read. They said that there was no tsunami this time, but walls already weakened are more likely to collapse in follow-up quakes. I believe they evacuated the workers from the plants. I don't know whether they're back in.

 

[dorispulaski]

The tsunami alert was cancelled at 11:48 JST on 7/10

TEPCO reports:

TEPCO: Quake caused no problems at nuclear plants

Tokyo Electric Power Company says it has found no problems with its Fukushima Daiichi and Daini nuclear power plants as a result of Sunday's quake.

TEPCO says it ordered Daiichi plant workers to move away from coastal areas to higher ground after tsunami advisories were issued for the Fukushima coast. It also stopped moving low-level contaminated water from the plant to a giant steel storage barge.

The company confirms the safety of all the workers.

TEPCO says the work to inject cooling water into the reactors is proceeding as usual. It adds that no problem was found with external power supply.

As for radiation readings, the company says no changes were detected at monitoring posts around the 2 plants.

Tohoku Electric Power Company says it has found no problems with its Onagawa nuclear plant in Miyagi Prefecture and Higashidori plant in Aomori Prefecture. It says their reactors were not in operation at the time of the quake.

Sunday, July 10, 2011 12:51 +0900 (JST)

So at this point, they are back at work.

In Japan, 7.3 earthquakes are Business As Usual, it appears.

2:00 PM JST, July 10th
Seven peripheral points at Daini (1.6, 1.3, 1.7, 1.5, 1.5, 1.4, 1.2) microSieverts per hour
Eight peripheral points at Daiichi (5, 24, 15, 14, 17, 38, 115, 95 ) microSieverts per hour
Main Office Building 331 microSieverts per hour
West Gate 13 microSieverts per hour
Main Gate 35 microSieverts per hour
TEPCO status reports

- From 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on July 9, we transferred low radioactive accumulated water from the outdoor temporary tank to Mega Float.
- From 10:30 am to 4:30 pm on July 9, we transferred the accumulated water from the turbine building of Unit 6 to temporary tank.
- At 4:53 am on July 10, since chemical liquid was leaked from the chemical injection line of the coagulation settling equipment of the water treatment facility, we stopped the operation of the facility. Water injection into the reactor is continued. We will repair the leakage hereafter.

Photo of the leakage site
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110710_02-e.pdf
Drawing of where in the system the leakage is (making it clear that it is chemicals leaking, not radioactive water)
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110710_01-e.pdf

NHK

TEPCO suspends decontamination system
The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has suspended part of the activity of the radioactive water decontamination system as a liquid substance was found leaking from the device.

Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, said that it stopped the system on Sunday morning. The liquid was found leaking from the hose for injecting chemicals to break down radioactive materials in the French-made device.

About 50 liters of liquid is believed to have leaked.

TEPCO said it is examining whether the liquid was the chemicals or radioactive water, as well as the cause of the leak. The company added that it is doing its best to resume the operation as soon as possible.

The system to recycle decontaminated water is the key to cooling reactors.

But TEPCO has to shut down the system frequently as it has been having continued problems since the start of its use on June 27th.

The utility has only one week left until July 17th, when it is scheduled to complete the first stage of the plan to bring the facility under control.

But the operating rate of the system during the week through last Tuesday was below the target, showing the difficulty the firm is facing.
Sunday, July 10, 2011 16:46 +0900 (JST)

It's easy to forget that these workers, who have done an amazing job here at Daiichi, and are very close to actually meeting their targets for the first 3 month milestone of their plan to control the plant, are people who have lost homes and perhaps lost family in the quake and tsunami, and who are as subject to fear as anyone else. I'm glad they are getting some counselling. And I hope their country will treat them as heroes, because they are.

Nuclear workers to take counseling
Workers at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant will begin receiving psychological care on Sunday.

The workers have been asking for counseling to address their worries about radiation exposure. Many of them also lost their houses in the March 11th disaster.

The taskforce of the government and the Tokyo Electric Power Company decided to send psychiatrists or other experts to Fukushima once a month.

The experts will stay at the Fukushima Daiini plant for 2 to 4 days to examine workers' conditions. They will give counseling and refer workers to psychological clinics if necessary.

For physical health care, the utility set up an emergency care room on the site of the Fukushima Daiichi plant on July 1st. Radiation and emergency specialists are stationed there around the clock.
Sunday, July 10, 2011 02:12 +0900 (JST)

Cattle farm inspected for radiation-tainted beef
Fukushima prefectural officials have started an inspection of a cattle farm in Minami-Souma city. Radioactive cesium surpassing the government's safe limits was detected in cattle shipped from the farm.

1,530 to 3,200 becquerels of radioactive cesium per 1 kilogram was detected in 11 head of cattle carried to a meat processing firm in Tokyo.

Fukushima prefectural authorities asked the municipality to refrain from shipping beef cattle.

The officials visited the farm on Sunday morning to make inquiries about feed and water given to the cattle.

The inspection has found that the 11 cattle were kept inside a barn, and since last fall, they had been fed with straw that was stored indoors and mixed with feed from outside the prefecture. They were given water drawn from a well.

No radioactive substances were detected on the skin of the cattle in pre-shipment screening.

The prefecture will also analyze water and feed samples at a laboratory to determine the source of the contamination.
Sunday, July 10, 2011 13:11 +0900 (JST)

This is an odd story, because these cattle are much more contaminated than the actual workers at Daiichi.
It makes you wonder if someone is not telling the truth about where their feed came from-possibly whomever sold the feed to the farmer.

The deep well at Daiichi has no cesium, as do 3 of the subdrains.

 

[Olympia]

The tsunami alert was cancelled at 11:48 JST on 7/10


It's easy to forget that these workers, who have done an amazing job here at Daiichi, and are very close to actually meeting their targets for the first 3 month milestone of their plan to control the plant, are people who have lost homes and perhaps lost family in the quake and tsunami, and who are as subject to fear as anyone else. I'm glad they are getting some counselling. And I hope their country will treat them as heroes, because they are.

If there's anything I've learned as I get older, it's that we so often owe our lives to a bunch of people that we used to call the average working stiff, grinding away day by day. The glamorous stuff is wonderful, of course, but it's the routine, meticulously done, that often saves the day. Those of us who believe in prayer should give thanks for them every day. I do hope they are honored in Japan.

 

[dorispulaski]

Tepco 10 am JST July 11 Status reports

The water decontamination system is working again.

-At 4:53 am on July 10, since chemical liquid was leaked from the chemical injection line of the coagulation settling equipment of the water treatment facility, we stopped the operation of the facility. Afterwards, we repaired the leakage point and at 5:06 pm, we restarted the facility. At 5:40 pm, water treatment was restarted. Water injection into the reactor was continued during the repair work.

-At 3:15 pm on July 10, we started transferring the accumulated water from the turbine building of Unit 3 to Centralized Radiation Waste Treatment Facility Process Main Building.

-At 10:00 am on July 11, we started transferring low radioactive accumulated water from the outdoor temporary tank to Mega Float.
- At 3:03 am on July 11, with the restoration work for 2 lines of Yonomori line for the purpose of reliability improvement of site power, we started operations for emergency diesel generator (A) and (B) of Unit 5 and emergency diesel generator (A) and (B) of Unit 6 (offsite power source for Unit 5 and 6 was stopped).

5.1 becquerels of Cesium 137 per liter on the Iwasawa shore is the only radioactive material detected outside of the inner harbor today.

NHK
This is also a problem with the water decontamination system-some of the piping and connections need to be sturdier.

Makeshift equipment at Fukushima hit by problems
The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has been struggling for months to bring the plant's troubled reactors under control using makeshift equipment.

Since the March 11th disaster, Tokyo Electric Power Company has installed a number of improvised devices and systems to cool down the reactors and decontaminate radioactive water building up at the plant.

But these makeshift facilities have been plagued by glitches.

Earlier this month, the No. 5 reactor's cooling system was temporarily shut down after sea water leaked from a crack in the system's makeshift hose.

TEPCO says the hose was installed in a wrong way. It is reinstalling it on Monday.

The company says it is necessary to make the plant's makeshift equipment more durable, as it is expected to take some time to bring the reactors under control.

It says the makeshift hosing, in particular, requires more elaborate measures, as it carries highly contaminated water.
Monday, July 11, 2011 13:13 +0900 (JST)

A little more info on the stress tests the government is going to use.

Government compiles unified plan on stress tests
The Japanese government plans to introduce a 2-stage stress test to determine the safety of the country's nuclear power plants.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano outlined the plan at a news conference on Monday.

He said decisions on whether to restart currently idled plants will be based on primary assessments, and that all nuclear reactors will then undergo a second stage safety review to decide if they should be kept in operation.

The second step will be more comprehensive than the first. It will take into account the progress of the stress tests modeled after a system in the European Union, and the results of investigations into the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant accident.
The assessments will be conducted by the electric power companies, confirmed by the government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, and approved by the Nuclear Safety Commission, an independent nuclear watchdog.

Edano says the stress tests aim to improve the safety of Japan's nuclear power plants and reassure the public. He says they will be conducted according to new procedures and rules.

The government had been under pressure to compile a unified policy on the stress tests after Prime Minister Naoto Kan abruptly announced the tests last week.

Kan's announcement caused confusion and rifts in the government because it appeared to contradict an earlier request by Industry Minister Banri Kaieda to restart reactors in southwestern Japan, on the grounds that they are safe.

Detailed procedures for the stress tests are yet to be finalized. Government sources close to the issue say the tests means that stopped plants will effectively be difficult to restart soon.

Japan is facing a possible power shortage this summer, if nuclear power stations currently under regular inspections are not to resume their operations.
Monday, July 11, 2011 13:57 +0900 (JST)

I think it is always well to know where you're at.

Minami-soma starts internal radiation checks
Minami-soma City in Fukushima Prefecture has begun checking the internal radiation levels of its residents.

Two locations in the city have measured radiation of 20 millisieverts or higher per year, a level that prompts the authorities to recommend the evacuation of nearby residents.

State and prefectural authorities are continuing their monitoring with the aim of designating the areas as radioactive hotspots, despite being outside the government-designated evacuation zone around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

The residents who were examined at the city-run general hospital on Monday are living near these 2 areas.

After completing a questionnaire, the residents were checked for radiation with a whole body counter.

A 20-year-old man says he's very concerned about the outcome of the tests.

Minami-soma City says it will give priority to checking the radiation levels of residents and children, and 7,000 residents will undergo the checks by the end of next March.
Monday, July 11, 2011 15:10 +0900 (JST)

Cesium found in hay fed to cattle
Radioactive cesium far exceeding the legal limit has been detected in hay that was fed to cattle at a farm in Fukushima Prefecture. The prefecture has been investigating why the cattle were contaminated with the radioactive substance.

On Sunday, officials took samples of feed and well water at the farm located in Minamisoma City within the planned evacuation zone.

They say 75,000 becquerels per kilogram of cesium has been detected in the feed. This far exceeds the government's safety limit of 300 becquerels per kilogram.

The farmer says the cattle had been kept inside but were fed with hay left outdoors after the March nuclear accident.

Eleven cattle from the farm were sent to Tokyo to be slaughtered. The beef from the animals contained levels of cesium that were more than triple the legal limit. The prefecture has asked farmers in the city to suspend beef cattle shipments.

Fukushima Prefecture will continue to investigate the feed and water and check if there were any problems with the way the cattle were raised.
Monday, July 11, 2011 12:50 +0900 (JST)

Ultraman visits evacuation center
A popular TV character visited an evacuation center in the disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture to cheer up families and children on Sunday.

The late Eiji Tsuburaya, who invented Ultraman, was from Sukagawa City in the prefecture. Staff from his Tokyo-based production firm visited the facility in Koriyama City 45 years after the character made his TV debut.

A boy who evacuated from Tomioka Town says it was fun to meet Ultraman, and he likes the way he attacks his enemies.

The boy's 36-year-old mother says she is happy, as the evacuation center does not have a place where children can play.
Monday, July 11, 2011 01:01 +0900 (JST)

This is not a surprise, especially given reports of norovirus epidemic in the centers.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110702002582.htm

Fleeing crisis takes deadly toll on elderly / 77 Fukushima evacuees died within 3 months
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Nearly 80 elderly people who were evacuated from nursing homes near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant died within three months of the accidents at the plant that forced them to move, according to a Yomiuri Shimbun survey.
The 77 deaths are more than triple the 25 recorded at the nursing homes during the corresponding period last year.
Officials at the homes believe many of this year’s deaths resulted from a decline in physical strength caused by moving far from the nursing homes and living in an unfamiliar environment.
...
According to the survey, 826 elderly people were evacuated from 12 nursing homes near the nuclear plant in Fukushima Prefecture.

Australia to tax greenhouse gas emissions
The Australian government has unveiled a plan to introduce a carbon tax to counter global warming.

Australia has rich coal reserves and generates most of its electricity from fossil fuels. It is one of the world's leading emitters of greenhouse gases.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard told reporters on Sunday that, under the proposal, businesses will have to pay a carbon tax based on the amount of their emissions from July 2012.

About 500 top polluters, including steel makers, will pay 23 Australian dollars, or about 25 US dollars, for every ton of greenhouse gas they produce in the first year.

The rate will be raised by 2.5% each year, until it is replaced by an emissions trading system in the 4th year.

The government plans to cut personal taxes to offset the expected increases in electricity charges.

It says the new tax will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5 percent from the 2000 level by 2020.

Parliamentary deliberations are expected to face difficulty, as Gillard is being criticized for breaking a promise made during last year's general election campaign that she would not introduce a carbon tax.
Monday, July 11, 2011 01:01 +0900 (JST)

Needless to say, if Australia is using natural gas, coal or oil to make electricity, I would think there would be an associated tax.

And I haven't done an energy news roundup for a while, so here's some articles I found interesting.


Andy Cook, vice president of Areva (French nuclear company), spoke in Vermont (VY=Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, owned by Entergy, not Areva)
about a year ago. Dr.Cook's talk deals with the risks of different types of energy production and the consequences of closing a nuclear plant with some amazing photos and slides. The talk was given last summer, so Fukushima Daiichi is not discussed. Nonetheless, no one has yet died there either from the nuclear plants. The discussion of natural gas ships and depots and pipelines is particularly sobering. It is in part 2. Part 1 starts a bit slow. The rest is enlightening, if rather hair raising

Vermont's governor Shumlin is trying to close VT's only nuclear reactor.

Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0OkIUadpZ4
Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOVZ3iwAxWo
Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksMBRA_PTJk

Dr. Cook missed my favorite natural gas drilling disaster, the East Java, Lusi Indonesian mud volcano. This was reported on in a documentary I watched yesterday on the National Geographic channel.

Photo of the Lusi Mud volcano
http://sciencenotes.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/mud-flow-from-volcano-near-porongeastjava.jpg

Video News Report
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6ypm24quhA

Regular news report from earlier this year
http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/02/indonesias-infamous-mud-volcano-.html
excerpt:

Since it roared to life in May 2006, a mud volcano near Indonesia's coastal city of Sidoarjo has swallowed homes, rice paddies, factories, and roads, killing 15 people, displacing 40,000, and harming the livelihoods of many more. As the ongoing eruption nears its 5th anniversary, observers wonder whether it will ever stop. The answer: Not anytime soon. A new study predicts the volcano will continue spewing significant amounts of mud for another 2 decades. A second study forecasts that it could grind on as long as 87 years.

The mud volcano has inflicted a punishing blow to the region of Java island 700 kilometers east of the capital, Jakarta. Nicknamed Lusi, a contraction of lumpur (Indonesian for mud) and Sidoarjo, the volcano has so far disgorged 144 million cubic meters of mud, some of which now covers an area roughly twice the size of New York City's Central Park. Much of the mud has been diverted to a nearby river, where it has formed a new 83 hectare island and extended a natural delta. Compensation and mitigation have cost at least $767 million, according to Humanitus, a nongovernmental organization in Melbourne, Australia, that is studying the disaster's social impact

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/01/070125-mud-volcano.html

excerpt

"Mud Volcano" in Indonesia Caused by [Natural] Gas Exploration, Study Says
by Richard A. Lovett
for National Geographic News
January 25, 2007

Gas drilling on the Indonesian island of Java has triggered a "mud volcano" that has killed 13 people and may render four square miles (ten square kilometers) of countryside uninhabitable for years.

In a report released on January 23, a team of British researchers says the deadly upwelling began when an exploratory gas well punched through a layer of rock 9,300 feet (2,800 meters) below the surface, allowing hot, high-pressure water to escape.


The water carried mud to the surface, where it has spread across a region 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) in diameter in the eight months since the eruption began.
The mud volcano is similar to a gusher or blowout, which occur in oil drilling when oil or gas squirt to the surface, the team says. This upwelling, however, spews out a volume of mud equivalent to a dozen Olympic swimming pools each day.

Although the eruption isn't as violent as a conventional volcano, more than a dozen people died when a natural gas pipeline ruptured.

The research team, who published their findings in the February issue of GSA Today, also estimate that the volcano, called Lusi, will leave more than 11,000 people permanently displaced.

Human Causes
..
But even though an earthquake had occurred in the Java region only two days prior to the eruption, the delayed mud release almost certainly confirms a human cause, the new research points out.

If an earthquake was the cause, the eruption should have begun immediately, the scientists say.

National Geographic has a related story:

Coal Mining Causing Earthquakes, Study Says (January 3, 2007)

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/01/070103-mine-quake.html


Since Fukushima Daiichi, there is more interest in small, modular nuclear reactors.

Small Modular Reactors
http://www.coolhandnuke.com/Cool-Ha...e-Good-News-About-Small-Modular-Reactors.aspx

SMRs of all types may get new attention as a result of the Fukushima nuclear crisis. John Kelly, an official at the Department of Energy, told a Senate hearing in early June that SMRs may have a safety edge over their bigger cousins. According to Kelly, who testified at a hearing of the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee, SMRs have a lower power level and require less cooling after shutdown. Kelly also noted that several SMR developers proposed to build their reactors in underground bunkers to improve safety and security.

Several pieces of legislation are pending in the Senate. Joe Colvin, then President of the American Nuclear Society (ANS), also testified at the hearing and talked about all three proposals.

(full text of Colvin testimony)
http://theenergycollective.com/ansorg/58930/ans-president-joe-colvin-testifies-about-smr-legislation

S.512 – the Nuclear Power 2021 act
S.937 – the American Alternative Fuels act
S.1067 – amendment to the Energy policy act of 2005
The first SMRs in the U.S. were used successfully in U.S. Navy submarines. The Nautilus, which went under the sea ice of the North Pole, was powered by a 10 MW unit.

Colvin started by describing work at ANS by its Special Committee on SMR Generic Licensing Issues. The committee, composed of industry experts participating as individuals, and not on behalf of their employers, addressed topics like staffing requirements, emergency response, and manufacturing concerns.

(Full text of committee report).
http://www.ans.org/pi/smr/ans-smr-report.pdf

In summary Colvin said three things about SMRs.
This class of reactor, by size, has great potential to contribute to the U.S. economy and our national security.
Of the three pieces of proposed legislation, S.512 is an important step toward near term deployment of SMR technology.
Not all the challenges facing SMRs are in licensing. Some are in technology or operations.

 

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TEPCO Status reports, July 12th, 10 AM

- At 8:51 am on July 12th, we found some leakage around the connection part at the liquid chemical injection line of coagulation setting devices in accumulated water treatment facilities and therefore stopped the operation of the facilities. However, we have been injecting water into the reactors. From now on we will implement investigation of the causes.
- At 10:00 am on July 11, we restarted transferring low radioactive accumulated water, which was transferred from turbine building of Unit 6 to temporary tank, from temporary tank to Mega Float. The transfer was completed at 5:00 pm on the same day.
- At 10:30 am on July 11, we restarted transferring accumulated water at the underground of turbine building of Unit 6 to temporary tank.The transfer was completed at 4:30 pm on the same day.

TEPCO is reporting again on efforts to keep radioactive material from getting into the ocean.

Based on two water outflow accidents, i.e. high level radioactive water (hereinafter referred as "contaminated water") to the sea around Unit 2 water intake on April 2, 2011 and contaminated water outflow from the pit (the vertical shaft made of concrete) near the water intake of Unit 3 to the sea on May 11, 2011, TEPCO reported on countermeasures against contaminated water outflow and diffusion to Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on May 20 and June 1, 2011 and implemented the countermeasures in turn. part of the countermeasures, from July 12, we will conduct block up work by using steal sheet piles as planned at the southern part of Unit 1 to 4 open water channel* where damaged by tsunami. During the work, it will be inevitable to temporary open and close the silt fence at the northern part of Unit 1 to 4 intake channel in order that the work ships can get in and out. We will make best effort not to influence to surrounding environment and enhance the monitoring by increasing sampling frequency in the vicinity.

And NISA is requesting another report:

Yesterday, we received an instruction document, from Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA), entitled "Instruction to submit reports related to installation of alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 1 and Unit 4 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station".* Pursuant to the instruction, we will compile the report related to installation of alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 1 and Unit 4 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, regarding the effect of the system on stable cooling of spent fuel in the spent fuel pool and assessment of safety and promptly report to NISA.

Eventually, they will get all this sorted out, but it has to be very trying.

NHK

Contamination system develops another leak
Workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant are still struggling to stably cool its reactors. Operator Tokyo Electric Power Company says a key system to decontaminate highly radioactive water has been halted yet again.

TEPCO says workers spotted a leak near a feeding pipe for a French-made device on Tuesday morning. TEPCO is trying to find out the cause and conduct repairs.

Water leaked from the same device on Sunday, forcing operations to halt.

The decontamination facilities are a key part of a system to treat and recycle radioactive water as coolant inside the disabled reactors. But the system has suffered one problem after another since going into operation at the end of June.
This could undermine TEPCO's target of stably cooling the reactors by July 17th as the first step in its schedule to bring the plant under control.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 12:34 +0900 (JST)

Checking internal radiation of Fukushima residents begins
An atomic energy research facility in Ibaraki Prefecture has begun screening residents from neighboring Fukushima in northeast Japan for internal radiation.

Fukushima Prefecture plans to check its entire population of about 2 million to assess the effect of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

It is now checking internal radiation levels for residents in the evacuation zone and areas near the nuclear plant as well.

Similar checks have also begun at the government-affiliated Japan Atomic Energy Agency in Tokai Village, Ibaraki where a total 28 pregnant women, parents and their small children from Namie Town arrived on Tuesday.

A piece of equipment called a Whole Body Counter will be used to determine if they have absorbed radioactive materials through food and drinks.

The facility will examine about 2,800 people from Fukushima through next month.

Takumaro Momose at the facility says he knows that people in Fukushima are fretting about internal radiation and that he explains to each person the details of their test results to help ease their anxiety.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 14:41 +0900 (JST)

On-site inspection of cattle farmers begins
Officials in Fukushima Prefecture have launched on-site inspections of all cattle farms in the evacuation zone around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The move comes after radioactivity exceeding the government standard was detected from beef from the prefecture.

The inspections of feed and other items cover 260 farms in areas subject to evacuation.

Last week, radioactive cesium exceeding the government standard was detected in 11 cattle shipped from a farm in Minamisoma city. Another 17 were found to have been fed with hay left outdoors after the March nuclear accident.

On Tuesday, 2 prefectural officials inspected a farm in Kawauchi Village.
The officials interviewed the farmer about how the feed has been kept, and measured the radiation levels of grass used for covering the floors of his cattle barn.

The farmer told NHK that he was shocked by the detection of cesium, and that he welcomes the inspection because it will help ease consumer concerns about beef.

The prefecture plans to expand the on-site checking to all cattle farms in the prefecture after completing the current round of inspections by this weekend.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 14:33 +0900 (JST)

TEPCO prepares for nitrogen injection to Unit 3

The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant will begin fixing pipelines at the No. 3 reactor on Tuesday afternoon in preparation for injecting nitrogen into its container.

Tokyo Electric Power Company says workers confirmed last Friday that pipes could be connected to the container.

TEPCO plans to inject nitrogen into the container in an effort to avoid a hydrogen explosion. The utility has set a target of July 17th to complete the operation. Nitrogen was injected into the No. 1 reactor in April and No. 2 reactor in June.

The utility on Monday reported its plan to the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency and described safety measures to limit workers' radiation exposure.

TEPCO also told the agency how the injection will impact the container.

The company says it wants to begin the injection as soon as it obtains approval from the safety agency.

TEPCO also said that 6 workers have been exposed to a level of radiation higher than the 250-millisieverts emergency limit since the accident. It said the levels ranged from 308 to 678 millisieverts.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 03:29 +0900 (JST)

Apparently the number of people in the above 250 milliSievert range has been revised downward, after further study.

And we knew this already:

High level contamination in reactor buildings

The operator of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says it has detected airborne radioactive materials up to 65 times above the government's standard inside the No. 2 reactor building.

Tokyo Electric Power Company has been conducting an investigation inside the 3 reactor buildings and in areas surrounding the buildings since early this month.

On Monday, the plant operator said robots have detected airborne cesium-134 inside the No.2 reactor building ranging from 40 to 65 times above the government's standard.

The buildup of the radioactive air inside reactor buildings is believed to have originated from explosions and steam leaking from the damaged reactors.

TEPCO says that it's necessary to confirm the origin and amount of radioactive materials and to reduce the density of the contamination so that work can begin to bring the reactors under control.
Monday, July 11, 2011 21:52 +0900 (JST)

Fukui still opposed to restarting reactors

An official from the prefecture with the most reactors in Japan says he cannot yet comment on the central government's disclosure on Monday.

The head of Fukui prefecture's environmental safety division, Hakuei Ishizuka, told reporters the central government will release details of the stress tests and their schedule on a later date.

He said the government has still not responded to the prefecture's demand for information about the extent of damage at the disabled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. He said another question not answered is whether the age of the crippled reactors was a factor in the crisis.

Ishizuka said unless the government gives Fukui a reply, the prefecture will not reactivate its reactors.

Ishizuka said the prefecture will keep a close watch on developments and will see whether the planned stress tests provide answers to its questions.
Monday, July 11, 2011 19:35 +0900 (JST)

Saga governor welcomes govt stress test plan

The governor of Saga Prefecture has welcomed the government's announcement, although he has yet to give approval for restarting two reactors at the Genkai nuclear power plant in southwestern Japan.

In his statement released on Monday, Saga governor Yasushi Furukawa wrote that the central government appears to have unified its stance on restarting the reactors after some confusion.

He also indicated that the government should clearly explain to communities hosting nuclear power stations the precise contents of the stress tests and specific procedures.

The statement also called on the central government to fully disclose the test findings, adding that this will help people feel more secure about nuclear power plants.

Later in the day, Furukawa told NHK in Akita City, northern Japan, that he will wait to see the government's detailed procedures for the tests. He added the government should have announced the plan much earlier, although he agrees with the importance of the safety tests.

Furukawa was in Akita to attend a meeting of prefectural governors.

In late June, the mayor of Genkai Town, where the plant is located, had to retract his approval to restart the two reactors after the Prime Minister announced plans to carry out stress tests. The government had previously determined that the plant was safe.
Monday, July 11, 2011 17:31 +0900 (JST)

There should be more news releases of this sort.

Expert: contaminated beef poses no problem

An expert on nuclear medicine says eating meat contaminated with the radioactive substance cesium on a few occasions will not cause health problems.

Keigo Endo is the president of Kyoto College of Medical Science.

He says Japan's safety limit for cesium is stricter than in the United States or Europe where a large amount of meat is consumed.

Endo says eating 500 grams of meat containing the safety limit of cesium for at least 200 days would add up to 1 millisievert of radiation.

However, he says the government should work out measures immediately to prevent beef containing cesium above the safety limit from reaching the market including stepping up checks.
Monday, July 11, 2011 21:31 +0900 (JST)

Only 23% of donations reach quake victims

Less than one-quarter of some 3.7 billion dollars in donations collected in Japan after the March 11th quake and tsunami has reached the hands of survivors, 4 months after the disaster.

The welfare ministry says that as of last Friday, disaster relief funds sent to the Japan Red Cross Society and the Central Community Chest of Japan from across the country totaled nearly 3.7 billion dollars.

But only about 836 million, or 23 percent, of the total has been distributed.

In the first round of payments, survivors are entitled to receive around 4,400 dollars per family member that died or is missing in the disaster. Nearly 68 percent of more than 1.1 billion dollars disbursed to 15 prefectures has reached its intended recipients.
An additional 1.8 billion dollars have been sent to quake-hit regions for the second round of payments, in which individual municipalities determine their own distribution criteria. But only 3.6 percent of that money has reached survivors' pockets.

The ministry says many affected municipalities are short of manpower and couldn't come up with distribution plans until late June, and that this has caused the slow disbursement.

Citing a lack of staff in the coastal regions affected by the disaster, the ministry is calling on municipalities across Japan to dispatch officials to these areas.
Monday, July 11, 2011 18:56 +0900 (JST)

It was nice of Japan to do this

Japan's thank you video shown in New York City

Japan has begun airing a video message in major cities around the world to express gratitude for the support extended to the country following the March 11th disaster and to encourage tourists to visit Japan.

The video, produced by Japan's Foreign Ministry and the Tourism Agency, was released exactly 4 months after the disaster.

It is being shown on a giant screen at Times Square in New York City.

The video features members of a Japanese pop group, Arashi, visiting Hokkaido, Aomori, Tokyo and Okinawa. The group has been named by the Tourism Agency as "tourism navigators".

The English subtitles say that Japan thanks people for their support and tourists are welcome to visit.

The video message is being shown twice an hour for 24 hours.

A person who saw the video said the scene of children playing on a beach shows that Japan is safe now. Another said the video will be the first step in reviving tourism.
Monday, July 11, 2011 13:57 +0900 (JST)

I love signs of things getting back to normal

Fish market reopens in northeastern Japan
A fish market has reopened in a huge tent at one of Japan's busiest fishing ports, 4 months after the March 11th earthquake and tsunami struck the northeast.

Ishinomaki, which had the nation's 3rd largest haul of fish in the last fiscal year, is in Miyagi Prefecture. Almost all its facilities including quays and processing plants were devastated by the tsunami. Electricity and running water have been partially restored at the port.

On Tuesday, squid, flatfish and other fish were unloaded. Celebrating the reopening, the president of the fish market, Kunio Suno, called it a symbol of restoration. He told a crowd that he doesn't know how long it will take but he hopes the market will flourish again. The auction started after immediately after his speech.

One seller said the squid was twice its usual price because it was the first auction since the disaster.

A buyer said since it was a special day, he bid regardless of the price. The buyer said he wants to quickly deliver the fish to his retail customers.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 15:56 +0900 (JST)

 

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I don't know whether any of you have ever worked on the alpha or beta release of a machine. I have. It's always like this. It's unfortunate for TEPCO that they have to deal with the normal headaches involved in startup and early adjustment in the light and pressure of full global media, especially since said media hasn't a clue.

So the system is repaired, and the nitrogen injection is awaiting government approval to start. Basically, it's been a pretty good day.

TEPCO restarts decontamination system


The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has restarted a system to decontaminate highly radioactive water after an 8-hour halt to replace a faulty part.

Tokyo Electric Power Company had stopped running the system on Tuesday morning after workers spotted a leak from a joint that connects a pipe. The pipe feeds chemicals to a French-made device designed to break down radioactive materials.

TEPCO says the original metal joint was corroded by the chemicals and that it has now replaced it with a stainless-steel part.

The original joint had been replaced with a polyvinyl joint only 2 days ago due to another leak.

The decontamination facilities are a key part of TEPCO's plan for treating and recycling radioactive water as coolant inside the disabled reactors.

But the system has suffered one problem after another, raising question about TEPCO's announced target of stably cooling the reactors by July 17th, the first step in its plan to bring the plant under control.

Also on Tuesday, TEPCO completed work to connect pipes for the injection of nitrogen into the containment vessel of the No. 3 reactor to prevent a hydrogen explosion.

The utility plans to start nitrogen injections in a few days after receiving approval from the government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 19:35 +0900 (JST)

The frightened, led by the ignorant, are ready to do something with nothing, if we only knew what we should do. This sort of stuff is just sad. What are they going to do? The country has very tight and contradictory radiation standards.

An example is tea and beef. The Japanese standard for both is 500 becquerels per kilogram for radioactive cesium.

The beef eater is modelled, according to the expert's article issue earlier today, as eating one half kilogram of beef, or at most 250 becquerels of cesium per day. If he does that, in 200 days, he will have consumed 1 millisievert of cesium.

Now let's look at tea.

According to my Red Rose tea box, it contains 100 tea bags, weighing 227 grams total.

I measured the capacity of my favorite tea mug. It can hold 0.275 liters of tea, and requires one teabag to make.

So, 1 kilogram of tea can make 440 mugs of tea, for a total of 121 liters of tea per kilogram. Even if all the cesium in tea ends up in the liquid rather than partially remaining on the leaves (which some probably does), if there are 500 bequerels of radioactive cesium in the kilogram of tea, there will be at most 4.13 becquerels of cesium per liter.

Now drinking water is allowed to have 100 becquerels of radioactive material per liter for infants and 300 becquerels per liter for adults. Obviously, the standard for tea is inconsistent with even drinking water.

Now compared to beef, let's say our dedicated tea tippler drinks 10 mugs per day. He will have consumed only 11.3 becquerels of cesium per day. Meanwhile the beef eater, who is said to be at no particular risk, is consuming 250.0 becquerels per day, and is supposed to be OK if he does that for 200 days.

You see how none of this makes sense, and that the standards are inconsistent.

The fact that this mother's group even exists is due to a lost opportunity by NISA to educate the public on what's dangerous, what's not, and how to tell the difference.

Moms set up network to protect kids from radiation

Japanese mothers have set up a nationwide network to protect their children from food contaminated with radioactive substances.

About 450 mothers and others from across the country gathered to kick off the organization in Tokyo, on Tuesday.

A mother from Fukushima said that the national and local governments simply repeat that food on the market is safe, but she cannot trust their words. She said the group should urge prefectural governments to take sufficient measures to ensure children can eat safe food.

Participants were then divided into groups based on the areas they are from, and discussed their worries.

A mother who lives near Tokyo said she hopes members will share information to protect their children from radiation exposure.

Another mother said she now knows that many parents share their worries. She said that she hopes their efforts will gain momentum and bring about change.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 20:37 +0900 (JST)

Meanwhile NEI has a recap of the last 2 days:

No Problems at Fukushima From Weekend Quake

July 12, 2011

Plant Status

• An earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck northeast Japan Sunday morning, prompting tsunami warnings for the coast, including Fukushima prefecture. Tokyo Electric Power Co. ordered workers at the Fukushima Daiichi plant to move to higher ground and suspended the transfer of low-level contaminated water from the plant to a large steel storage barge. However, no problems at the plant were reported after only a small tsunami wave reached the coast. Cooling water injections into reactors 1, 2 and 3 and nitrogen injections into reactors 1 and 2 continued as normal.

• TEPCO suspended operation of its water decontamination system for 12 hours Sunday to repair a leak in the system. The continued operation of the system is crucial to establish a circulatory cooling system for the reactors and to decontaminate and reduce the water accumulating in the reactor building basements. TEPCO has set a July 17 deadline to establish stable cooling for the reactors. As of July 10, the system has treated more than 18,000 metric tons of contaminated water.

• TEPCO has confirmed that an entry point is available to allow nitrogen injection into reactor 3’s pressure containment vessel. The injection of the inert gas will help prevent the potential for a hydrogen explosion. TEPCO reported to the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency July 11 on its preparations for the injection, which is to be started “as early as possible.”

• TEPCO is preparing to restart the fuel pool circulating system for reactor 4, after checking that a kink in the reactor heat removal system piping will not block the flow of water. The system is expected to be in service by the end of July. The company sampled the water in reactor 3’s fuel pool and concluded that boric acid injections have helped to prevent corrosion of the aluminum fuel racks. The issue became a concern when concrete debris in the pool caused the water to become more alkaline.

Industry/Regulatory/Political Issues

• A long-term roadmap drafted by Japan’s Nuclear Safety Commission and TEPCO calls for the removal of melted fuel from the reactors to begin in 2021, provided the technology required for the task has been developed. Damage to the reactor containment vessels will have to be repaired before the fuel can be removed. Dismantling the reactor buildings after the fuel has been removed will likely take several decades.

• TEPCO officials released the results of a detailed simulation of the tsunami that struck the Fukushima Daiichi and Daini plants on March 11. The analysis showed that the wave reached a height of 13 meters (42.7 feet) at the Daiichi plant and 9 meters (29.5 feet) at the Daini plant.

• At a press conference Monday clarifying the government’s position on restarting Japanese nuclear reactors, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano stressed that nuclear safety should be given priority over the issue of whether there will be enough electricity to meet demand. Last week Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Minister for Nuclear Crisis Management Goshi Hosono agreed said that “stress tests” assessing the plants’ safety response to severe accidents should be one of the requirements for restarting the reactors, along with routine safety checks. Edano said a first stage would check plants awaiting restart after scheduled maintenance, and the second phase would be for all plants, including those currently operating.

• The Japanese government is requesting parliamentary approval of a second supplementary budget of two trillion yen ($24.5 billion) for nuclear damage compensation, health checks and radiation monitoring. A previous supplementary budget was used for accident recovery and debris removal work.

• Fukushima prefecture officials are inspecting a cattle farm in Minami-Souma city after elevated levels of radioactive cesium were found in 11 cows shipped from the farm to a Tokyo meat processing firm.

Media Highlights

• A Reuters article reported Saturday that Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said it will take decades to clean up and decommission the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.

• CNN World reported on the Sunday earthquake that prompted tsunami advisories and evacuations of workers at Fukushima Daiichi that were later canceled.

Upcoming Events

• The NRC task force reviewing agency processes and regulations in light of the accident at Fukushima will brief the commissioners on its report at a public meeting July 19. The report is to be released to Senate and House committees July 12. NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko will speak at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on July 18.

 

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Fukushima Daiichi 2:00 PM JST July 13th
Eight peripheral measuring points (5, 24, 15, 14, 17, 38, 115, 95) microSieverts per hour
Main Office Building 330 microSieverts per hour
West Gate 13 microSieverts per hour
Main Gate 34 microSieverts per hour

Fukushima Daini 2:00 PM JST July 13th
Seven peripheral measuring points (1.6, 1.3, 1.8, 1.5, 1.5, 1.4, 1.2 ) microSieverts per hour


TEPCO Status report July 13th, 3:00 PM JST

- At 8:51 am on July 12, we found some leakage around the connection part at the liquid chemical injection line of coagulation setting devices in accumulated water treatment facilities and therefore stopped the operation of the facilities. Afterward, we repaired the leakage part at 4:19 pm, started operation of the accumulated water treatment facilities at 4:28 pm and resumed the accumulated water treatment at 4:58 pm. Also water injection to the reactor has been carried on during this time.

Photo of repaired part
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110712_02-e.pdf

- From 11:00 am to 4:00 pm on July 12, we transferred low radioactive accumulate water in the outside temporary tanks to the Mega Float.

- At 11:22 on July 12, in order to reduce radiation level on the 5th floor of the reactor building of Unit 4, we started fresh water injection to the reactor well and the pool to put equipment temporarily. However we found water leakage from injection water line and stopped the injection on 12:03 on the same day. As a result of survey, we found water leakage from a connection part with water hose. Today we will restart the water injection after changing the hose.

- From 1:30 pm to 1:45 pm on July 12th, we did connecting work concerning nitrogen injection piping of Unit 3.

- As a countermeasure against seawater leakage from the piping of the outside temporary residual heat removal seawater system of the residual heat removal system of the Unit 5 occurred on July 3, we bound the piping tightly. However we found the similar part after reconfirmation of the site, in terms of preventive maintenance, we stopped the residual heat removal system at 6:30 am on July 13, stopped outside temporary seawater cooling pump at 6:44 am, and then started the piping replacement.

- At 10:00 am on July 13, we started transferring low radioactive accumulate water in the outside temporary tanks to the Mega Float.

Two additional seawater sampling points were added to the inner harbor-one at the exit to the harbor, and another along the shallow quay.
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110713e9.pdf



http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/11071214-e.html

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/11071212-e.html

It's amazing there are not more of these minor incidents at Fukushima Daiichi. All nuclear incidents, however, small, must have a formal report filed with NISA in the above format, including an action plan for preventing further incidents.

NHK 9:00 PM news July 13th

New cooling devices set for Fukushima fuel pools
The operator of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is to set up two more cooling systems for reactors' spent fuel storage pools.

The planned devices are to start operating in late July at the No. 4 reactor pool and in early August at the No. 1 pool.

Spent fuel rods are currently kept in the storage pools of each of the 4 reactor buildings. The No. 2 and No. 3 reactor buildings already have cooling systems and water temperatures in these pools is at the normal level of below 40 degrees Celsius.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has instructed Tokyo Electric Power Company to report details of the installation plan by Wednesday.

TEPCO also needs to report the earthquake-resistance of the new systems and measures to prevent water leakage.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 10:25 +0900 (JST)

TEPCO halts reactor cooling to replace hose
Tokyo Electric Power Company says it has resumed cooling of the No. 5 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant after a brief stop to replace a hose.

TEPCO said it had stopped cooling at 6:30 AM on Wednesday to replace a vinyl hose feeding seawater into the cooling system. It says the hose was touching the edge of a concrete structure and could have ruptured.

The utility says cooling resumed shortly before 11 AM.
It says the reactor's temperature rose more than 6 degrees during the repair, to 49.3 degrees Celsius, but the cooling process remained stable.

The utility has been checking all the hoses at the No. 5 reactor since a leak earlier this month forced it to halt cooling for more than 3 hours.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 13:02 +0900 (JST)

Operators of 2 reactors to apply for final tests
Two Japanese power companies are expected to apply to the country's nuclear regulator for final tests of their reactors. This follows criticism that they have been running the reactors on a trial basis for too long.

The trial runs usually last for about a month in the final phase of regular checkups by the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency before commercial operations are resumed with the consent of local communities.

However, the 2 reactors have been undergoing trial runs for 4 months since regular checkups effectively ended after the March 11th disaster in eastern Japan. One is the Number 3 reactor at the nuclear plant in Tomari Village in Hokkaido, operated by Hokkaido Electric Power Company. The other is the Number 1 reactor at the plant in Oi Town in Fukui Prefecture, run by Kansai Electric Power Company. The chairman of the Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan, Haruki Madarame, said on Monday that this is clearly not a good thing. He urged the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency to do something about it.

A spokesman for the agency, Yoshinori Moriyama, said if such a trial operation is prolonged without just reason, it may infringe on a law. He said the agency will conduct final tests for the reactors immediately after receiving applications from their operators.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 06:02 +0900 (JST)

Cattle farmers told not to give feed left outside
Officials in Fukushima Prefecture have urged cattle farmers not to give their animals feed left outside since the March nuclear accident.

A farmer in Minamisoma City whose cattle were found to be contaminated with radioactive materials had been feeding his animals straw kept outside after trouble began at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant due to the March 11th disaster.

On Wednesday, prefectural officials handed out leaflets warning about such feed to about 250 farmers taking part in a cattle auction. The farmers were also asked to pay attention to the results of screening by the prefecture of corn and rice plants to be harvested in the near future to be used as feed.

More than 270 calves were sold at the auction, at an average price of about 4,200 dollars, down about 12 percent from last month.

A cattle farmer in his 40s from Iwaki city in Fukushima Prefecture expressed concern that the nuclear crisis and damage caused by rumors could put many cattle farmers out of business, many of whom are elderly.

He said the central and prefectural governments should have given instructions on cattle raising to the farmers sooner and in more detail.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 17:52 +0900 (JST)

And of course, quite a while back, I reported what Dominion/Millstone/State of CT tells me what I should be doing as a farmer in a nuclear crisis in their farmer's pamphlet. The prefecture/TEPCO could well have put out a pamphlet ahead of time that would have saved some of this problem.

NRC issues disaster preparation recommendations to US nuclear plants
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission will recommend enhancing disaster preparedness at the country's nuclear power plants in a report on Wednesday.

The interim report, obtained by NHK, is the commission's response to the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan.

It urges a review every 10 years of disaster preparedness at US nuclear power plants nationwide.

It proposes that backup power be secured at every plant to ensure at least 8 hours of power supply in case of blackouts.

The report says operators of the same type of reactor as those at the Fukushima Daiichi plant should confirm the reactors' venting valves are in proper working order. Venting is aimed at reducing pressure inside the reactor containment vessel.

The report also notes that safety measures at US nuclear power plants have been voluntary. It recommends more systematic safety standards to prepare for the unexpected.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 15:45 +0900 (JST)

And another report illustrating the problem of being supplied natural gas by a pipeline from another country.

Another attack on Egyptian gas pipeline
A group of gunmen blew up a terminal of the Egyptian pipeline supplying natural gas to Israel on Tuesday. Four gunmen carried out the attack on the terminal outside El-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula. No injuries have been reported. Flames from the explosion reached a height of 20 meters.

Natural gas supplies to Israel have been suspended as a result of the blast. This is the 4th attack on the pipeline since President Hosni Mubarak was ousted in a popular uprising in February. Egyptian security authorities are investigating the cases as acts of terrorism by people who are hostile to Israel. Since Mubarak's ouster, anti-Israel protests have been held in Egypt, and Mubarak has been indicted for causing damage to the state by allowing sales of natural gas to Israel at unduly cheap prices.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 02:19 +0900 (JST)

 

[dorispulaski]

It's report day at TEPCO, so they get a 'reply' of their own today:

July 14th 3:00 PM TEPCO Status

Unit 1

-At 5:30 am on July 14, we confirmed that the amount of water injected into the reactor decreased, we adjusted the water injection at 3.5 m3/h through reactor feed water system piping arrangement. Water is currently injected at approx. 3.5m3/h through reactor feed water system piping arrangement.

Unit 3 - Nitrogen injection has started

Since NISA has evaluated the injection way we reported as being valid and the preparation for the injection has been completed, we will conduct the injection of nitrogen to the reactor containment vessel of Unit 3 from around 8 pm today.

Other issues:

-From 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on July 13, we transferred low radioactive accumulate water in the outside temporary tanks to the Mega Float. At 10:00 am on July 14, we started transferring low radioactive accumulate water in the outside temporary tanks to Mega Float.

-At 10:09 am on July 13, we started transferring accumulated water from the turbine building of Unit 2 to Centralized Radiation Waste Treatment Facility Process Main Building.
- At 10:00 am on July 13, we resumed transferring low radioactive accumulate water, which had been transferred from Unit 6 turbine building to temporary tanks, from temporary tanks to Mega Float. Transfer finished at 5:00 pm.

-At 11:00 am on July 13, we stopped cesium adsorption instruments of the accumulated water treatment facility for replacement of cesium adsorption tower. And then we started system flushing, but at 1:34 pm on July 13, we stopped flushing because we found leakage near connection part of the chemical injection line of coagulation settling device of the facility. After this, we will repair the leaked part. Meanwhile, we have continued water injection to the reactor.


-At approximately 1 pm on July 13, we found that the portable monitoring post measuring dose rate at the main gate indicates zero. We checked the equipment at the site and found no malfunction. Then we restarted the equipment at the main anti-earthquake building and it indicates normal value at approximately 2:55 pm. However, at around 10:00 pm on July 13, we found that the portable monitoring post measuring dose rate indicates zero, again. Then, the equipment did not work although we restarted the equipment again. Therefore, we will repair or replace the instrument.

- At 11:22 on July 12, in order to reduce radiation level on the 5th floor of the reactor building of Unit 4, we started fresh water injection to the reactor well and the pool to put equipment temporarily. However we found water leakage from injection water line and stopped the injection on 12:03 on the same day. As a result of survey, we found water leakage from a connection part with water hose. July 13, after changing the hose, we started water injection at 11:50 am, but we found water leakage from injection water line and stopped water injection at 12:45 am.

Today TEPCO is responding to a number of NISA's seemingly endless requests for detailed reports.

NISA requested a report on the structural ability of the remaining buildings to resist earthquakes. TEPCO has produced a Finite Element Model (FEM) of the structures and concludes they're OK. This is not surprising, since the plants have gone relatively undamaged through a number of after shocks over 7 on the Richter scale.
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110713e11.pdf

TEPCO has filed the report with NISA on Unit 1 and Unit 4 spent fuel pool cooling. It contains:

Attachment (to be posted on our web page)
-Report on installation of alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 1 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (Outline)
-Simplified view on alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 1
-Layout planning view on alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 1
-Report on installation of alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 4 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (Outline)
-Simplified view on alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 4
-Layout planning view on alternative cooling and filtering system of spent fuel pool of Unit 4

It has not yet been posted on the website in English.

TEPCO has posted an updated version of the results of whole body scans of employees, including those hired in April and May, as requested by NISA.
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110713e19.pdf

No worker has received an external dose of over 200 milliSieverts.
28 TEPCO workers and 11 partner company workers have an external dose of between 100 and 200 milliSieverts.

6 TEPCO workers have received an internal dose between 100 and 200 milliSieverts.
2 TEPCO workerw received an internal dose over 150 and less than 250 milliSieverts
6 TEPCO workers received an internal dose between 100 and 150 milliSieverts.

Combining external and internal doses,
7 TEPCO employers and 2 partner company employees have received a total dose over 200 milliSieverts. Six TEPCO employees received about the emergency limit of 250 milliSieverts. All were employed in March. Of the 9 over 200 mSv, two will be the partner company men who waded in the highly radioactive water, and three will be the TEPCO employees who were in the control rooms without masks during the first explosion.

No employee employed in April or May has exceeded a total dose of 100 milliSieverts.

The average total dose for March TEPCO employees is 31.7 milliSieverts, and for partner companies, 15.7 milliSieverts. So much for predictions that March employees would all die this year.

Another report on radioactive materials in the soil, from samples dated June 27th, has been issued.
The plutonium found is at the level residual from the atomic tests of the 1950's and 1960's, but the isotope mix indicates some of the material is due to the incident here. The uranium found is in the same amount and nearly the same isotope abundance ratio found generally in nature.

All the radioactive iodine has decayed below the undetectable level.

All of the short-lived isotopes that can be found by gamma radiation detection are gone, leaving large amounts of cesium 134 and cesium 137 in three locations, and tellurium 129 metastable (half life 34 days) in one location. The amount of tellurium will be very small by year end, even at the one site where it is still detectable. Strontium analysis, which is difficult, and takes about a month from date of sample, was not reported on in this release.

Americium and curium isotopes also take longer to measure. Samples from two sites from May 30th were measured. A trace amount ( 0.035 becquerels per kg) of americium was found at one of the two sites sampled. 2.7 to 0.69 becquerels per kg of curium 242 and 0.11 and 0.032 becquerels per kg of curium 243/244 were found, which would not be above regulatory limits.

Consequently, the cleanup at Fukushima Daiichi will be all about cesium, and probably to a lesser extent, strontium, which is what we all predicted. The half lives of both cesium and strontium are 29 to 30 years, so even if no cleanup is done, the land will recover and be usable again eventually.
And, finally, TEPCO has also produced an updated report on radioactive water storage.

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110713e10.pdf

Current data and predictions for future storage show the amounts of highly radioactive water in buildings and trenches decreasing, due to the water decontamination being done. Capacity for low radioactive water (as stored in the temporary tanks and Megafloat are shown increasing throughout the period. Maintainance will be done on the water treatment facility in September, during which time, some amount of water rise will be seen.

And no cesium or iodine was detected at the newly added seawater measuring point at the Daiichi port entrance.

 

[dorispulaski]

And from NHK

NHK

Nitrogen injection to begin at No.3 reactor
The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is set to begin injecting nitrogen into the No.3 reactor containment vessel to prevent a hydrogen explosion.

Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency gave the go-ahead to Tokyo Electric Power Company on Thursday, after confirming the appropriateness and safety of the injection plan. The utility plans to begin the procedure later in the day.

Tokyo Electric has already begun injecting nitrogen into the No.1 and No.2 reactors, but work at the No.3 reactor was delayed due to high radiation levels.

It had aimed to begin the injection at the damaged No.3 reactor by Sunday.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 12:31 +0900 (JST)

Halting reactors would increase CO2 emissions
The Japanese government says annual carbon dioxide emissions would increase by 210 million tons if the country were to shift from nuclear power to fossil fuels.

The Environment Ministry estimates that if Japan halted all 54 domestic nuclear reactors in favor of thermal power generation using coal and natural gas, carbon dioxide emissions would increase by up to 16 percent compared to 1990 levels.

Under the Kyoto Protocol on global warming, Japan is obliged to cut average emissions by 6 percent from its 1990 output over a 5-year period through 2012.

Operating more thermal power plants might make it necessary to boost purchases of emission rights from overseas to offset the increase in CO2 output.

Japan could also have trouble achieving the government-set target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020.

The ministry plans to promote use of renewable energy, as it remains unclear when nuclear plants across Japan will be restarted.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 09:57 +0900 (JST)

One reason it's unclear is that the government has not gotten its act together about what constitutes an appropriate startup test. Worse, they can't give a date for a date. If TEPCO refused to come up with a plan or a report on time, fur would fly, but not so for the government. I suspect that their plan will be to demand TEPCO produce a plan, and then they get to critique it. That would be typical.

Agency yet to finalize stress test plan
Japan's nuclear safety agency has yet to finalize plans for new safety checks on the nation's nuclear power plants, despite being asked to do so in a week.

The government announced on Wednesday last week that it would conduct so-called stress tests on all nuclear plants. It later said the tests would be carried out in 2 stages.

The Nuclear Safety Commission had asked the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency to finalize in about a week the methods and a timetable for the tests.

On Wednesday, a week after the safety commission's request, the agency's official in charge of nuclear disasters, Yoshinori Moriyama, said they are unable to say at present when they would be able to report on their plan.

Stress tests involve checking whether a plant's equipment and facilities could withstand computer-simulated earthquakes and tsunami.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan's abrupt instructions for the tests have created confusion among government officials and drawn skeptical views and criticism from local governments that have nuclear plants.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 09:57 +0900 (JST)

Another reactor is ready to test, and since there is no test, there can be no restart

Kyushu Electric delays restart of Sendai reactor
Kyushu Electric Power Company on Thursday announced the postponement of the restart of operations of the Number One nuclear reactor at its Sendai plant in the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima, citing local opposition.

The reactor was initially scheduled to resume operations in late July.

A regular checkup on the reactor began in May and has been completed.

The utility cited as another reason a lack of a timetable for the central government's plan to carry out additional safety assessments called "stress tests" on nuclear plants.

The mayor of Satsumasendai City, where the plant is located, says one condition for the restart would be the restart of operations at the Genkai nuclear power plant in Saga Prefecture.

Kagoshima Governor Yuichiro Ito has demanded the central government hold a briefing on the issue for local residents.

The Number 2 reactor at the Sendai plant is also scheduled to stop operations for regular checks in September.

Analysts say electric power supplies for the Kyushu region in the southwestern part of Japan could be affected when consumption peaks in the summer.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 16:59 +0900 (JST)

and as reactors have their schedule maintenance and fuel reloading outages, they too will be unable to restart until the government defines and administers tests.

Kansai Power to halt two reactors
Kansai Electric Power Company says it will temporarily shut down 2 nuclear power reactors in Fukui Prefecture next week for regular inspections.

The decision will leave the operation of a total of 6, or over half the utility's 11 nuclear plants, suspended.

The company announced on Thursday that the No.4 reactor of its plant in Takahama Town will be brought to a halt for regular inspections on July 21st, and the No.4 reactor of the plant in Oh Town, on July 22nd.

Regular inspections are nearly complete at 2 other reactors. But the government's plan to introduce safety stress tests for the nation's nuclear plants leaves it unclear when they can be brought back on line.
To avoid power shortages in high summer, the utility will continue to call on households and companies to cut power use by around 15 percent, as well as stepping up efforts to boost supply.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 18:24 +0900 (JST)

It is routinely the case that the electrical turbines for producing electrical power are not under as stringent control as reactors. However, it appears there was some damage to the reactor as well from the level 9 earthquake, although the reactor shut off properly and went into cold shutdown properly, despite being disconnected from the electrical grid.

Quake damage to turbine blades found at Tokai
Damage to turbine blades, apparently caused by the March 11th earthquake, has been found at a nuclear power plant in Ibaraki Prefecture, eastern Japan.

The Tokai Daini plant, about 100 kilometers north of Tokyo, automatically shut down in the quake. The operator of the plant, Japan Atomic Power Company, has been checking the plant closely since May in a regular checkup scheduled to last 6 months.

It says it discovered friction marks on the blades and other parts of the reactor's turbines.

The company believes the damage was caused by the March 11 quake as similar marring had been reported in another plant in Niigata Prefecture in the wake of an earthquake in 2007.

The utility says some parts were also found missing from a device that injects coolant into the reactor. It also discovered cracks in equipment attached to the upper parts of the reactor.

It says it is investigating whether those defects were also caused by the March quake.

In the giant quake, the Tokai Daini plant lost its outside power sources, and had to rely on emergency generators until regular power returned.

Earlier this month the government nuclear safety body found the level of quake-resistance of the electrical equipment at the plant was below the standard set by power companies.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 22:26 +0900 (JST)

If you look at the previous post, workers hired in April and May have had very small exposure at Fukushima Daiichi. However, when you produce a report, you can expect a response. I presume the 1,500 who have not had medical checks are those hired in June and July, since all workers hired in March and April, and I think May as well, have been reported on.

TEPCO urged to tighten workers' radiation control
Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has urged the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to tighten controls on workers' radiation exposure.

About 3,000 workers are struggling daily at the plant to contain the nuclear crisis.

The safety agency has been inspecting Tokyo Electric Power Company's measures to protect them from exposure to radiation.

The agency says it has found 8 areas of concern and ordered TEPCO on Wednesday to take appropriate measures.

The agency said that TEPCO lacks information about subcontracting employees and ordered the company to boost the number of safety managers for such workers.

It also urged the utility to provide more full-face protective masks and make sure that plant workers wear them properly.

Since the nuclear crisis began in March, 6 workers have been exposed to radiation doses above the allowable emergency limit of 250 millisieverts. About 1,500 have still to receive medical checks for exposure to radiation.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 07:51 +0900 (JST)

And while Japan is debating its energy policy, China is again shutting down rare earth export.

http://en.smm.cn/information/newsdetail.aspx?newsid=3018182
http://www.metal-pages.com/news/sto...rts-up-6241-in-the-first-four-months-of-2011/

China is a major exporter of the rare earths cadmium and gallium, which are required to produce two different sorts of photovoltaic solar panels. Cadmium is also used in rechargeable batteries. Needless to say, in no way can products that use cadmium or gallium be truly considered either renewable or sustainable. And if China and other countries were to have a stranglehold on their production, they don't give you energy independence either.

China hints at further curbs on rare earth exports
China says domestic demand has surged for rare earth metals, which are indispensable to large-scale development projects including the construction of high-speed railways.

China's government has curbed rare earth exports, and is now preparing to set up an industry group of domestic miners and processors.

A senior member of the preparatory committee suggested at a forum in Qingdao, Shandong Province, on Thursday that stricter control of the minerals is needed to prioritize domestic supplies.

The official said the country's rare-earth industry has an edge, and is expected to be at the world's frontline from production to usage over the next several decades.

The official's remarks are believed to show China's intention to influence rare earth prices, which have soared recently.

China is expected to release its plan shortly for rare earth exports for the second half of this year.

Japan, the United States and European countries, which depend on rare earth metals from China, are nervous over to what extent exports will be curbed.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 16:10 +0900 (JST)

and while Japanese are questioning their own nuclear technology, Lithuania is a believer

Lithuania studying Japanese bids for nuclear plant
Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius has expressed willingness to use Japanese technology in a new nuclear power plant proposed for the Baltic country.

In an interview with NHK on Wednesday, Kubilius said he welcomes Japanese makers' involvement despite the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

He said Lithuania faces no danger of a major earthquake or tsunami and is a suitable place for nuclear plants.

Lithuania plans to spend around 5 billion dollars to build a new nuclear plant in about 11 years' time. Japan's Hitachi and Toshiba, each teaming up with US reactor makers, are bidding for the contract.

The Prime Minister said competition between the Japan-US consortiums would improve the safety of the plant and allow Lithuania to choose the most favorable plan.

In late 2009, Lithuania shut down a nuclear facility that had a similar design to the Chernobyl reactor at the request of the European Union.

Lithuania currently depends on neighbor Russia for 80 percent of its energy and says it needs a new plant for national security reasons.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 15:05 +0900 (JST)

However, some great news:

Japan advances to its first-ever women's soccer World Cup final
Japan has advanced to its first-ever final in FIFA Women's World Cup in Germany, after a 3-1 win over Sweden on Wednesday. The United States won the other semifinal against France 3-1.

Japan's Nahomi Kawasumi scored in the first half of the semifinal 9 minutes after her team allowed Sweden a goal.

15 minutes into the 2nd half, Japan's captain Homare Sawa netted a goal, putting the team in the lead.

Kawasumi clinched the win by scoring again 4 minutes later.

That put the national team into the final, securing a first medal for the country.
Japan will have to beat the United States on Sunday to win its first-ever World Cup victory. The United States is gunning for its 3rd title.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 07:51 +0900 (JST)

 

[let`s talk]

A useful blog with sources in Japanese and the English translations. Mainly consumers stuff on food, water, schools, pools, etc.
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/

 

[dorispulaski]

It's an interesting example of an alarmist blog. Its post about the water system's latest troubles was completely off base. The connection is already repaired, although at the last status update, the system was not yet restarted. The post implied somehow it was impossible to repair the connection. He also seemed to imply that it was a radioactive water connection, when in fact, it was a chemical injection point, as clearly showed in the press handout drawing. Press handouts are always to be found here:

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/handouts/index-e.html

At 11:00 am on July 13th, water treatment facility was stopped for system flushing. At 1:07 pm, we confirmed the leakage at the chemical injection line of the coagulation settling equipment of the water treatment facility and flashing was paused. At 12:07 pm on July 14, repairing of the leakage point was completed. We are planning to resume operation of the water treatment facility. Water injection into the reactor is being continued.

The point that there are all too many pipe failures is accurate, but one should remember that this is not an off-the-shelf system; consequently, a lot of start up troubles and travails are to be anticipated, although I would have hoped, not this many.

I would advise anyone worrying about the food/water to buy their own testing equipment. Buy a dosimeter to calculate your external dose. And pay for a whole body scan every 6 months to check their internal dose.

As to the state of the workers at the plant, other than the workers who stayed there through March, none has a particularly high total internal plus external dose.

 

[dorispulaski]

It looks like there will soon be an additional water decontamination system.

Toshiba develops nuclear decontamination system
Japanese electronics maker Toshiba has developed a system to decontaminate radioactive wastewater at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant from early August.

The system, nicknamed Sarry, was shown to media at a plant in Yokohama on Thursday. It consists of a series of 14 tanks, each 1.4 meters wide and 3.6 meters high.

Minerals put inside the tanks are to absorb radioactive cesium and strontium and reduce levels of radioactivity in contaminated water by a factor of about one million.

A decontamination system in place at the Fukushima plant since June has been accident-prone and running at 73 percent capacity, far below the target of 90 percent.

The new equipment is expected to be used in parallel with or as a supplement to the existing one.

A Toshiba official says the firm made the new system simpler than the existing one by studying problems it developed.

Thursday, July 14, 2011 19:26 +0900 (JST)

 

[dorispulaski]

July 15 th 9:00 PM status from TEPCO

At Fukushima Daini, they've been cleaning the air monitors

9:00 PM July 15th
Seven Peripheral measurement points (1.6, 1.3,1.7, 1.5, 1.5, 1.0, 1.2) microSieverts per hour

Fukushima Daiichi
9:00 PM July 15th

Eight peripheral measurement points (5, 24, 15, 14, 17, 38, 115, 94 )microSieverts per hour
Main Office Building 329 microSieverts per hour
Main Gate 35 microSieverts per hour
West Gate 13 microSieverts per hour

Unit 1

At 8:55 am on July 15, we confirmed that the amount of water injected into the reactor decreased, we adjusted the water injection at 3.5 ㎥/h. Water is currently injected at approx. 3.9㎥/h through reactor feed water system piping arrangement.

Unit 3
- At 8:01 pm on July 14, injection of nitrogen gas into the Primary Containment Vessel started.


From 3:15 pm on July 10 to 11:11 am on July 15, we transferred the accumulated water from the turbine building of Unit 3 to Centralized Radiation Waste Treatment Facility Process Main Building.
Other
-At 11:22 on July 12, in order to reduce radiation level on the 5th floor of the reactor building of Unit 4, we started fresh water injection to the reactor well and the pool to put equipment temporarily. However we found water leakage from injection water line and stopped the injection on 12:03 on the same day. As a result of survey, we found water leakage from a connection part with water hose. Today, after changing the hose, we started water injection at 11:50 am, but we found water leakage from injection water line and stopped water injection at 12:45 am. After changing the hose, we started water injection at 1:05 pm on July 15.

-From 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on July 14, we transferred low radioactive accumulated water in the outside temporary tanks to Mega Float.

-From 10:09 am on July 13 to 11:02 am on July 15, we transferred accumulated water from the turbine building of Unit 2 to Centralized Radiation Waste Treatment Facility Process Main Building.
- At 11:00 am on July 13, we stopped cesium adsorption instruments of the accumulated water treatment facility for replacement of cesium adsorption tower. And then we started system flushing, but at 1:07 pm on July 13, we stopped flushing because we found leakage near connection part of the chemical injection line of coagulation settling device of the facility. As repairing of the leakage point was completed at 12:07 pm on July 14, we started up the facility at 2:58 pm, and resumed operation of the water treatment at 6:30 pm. Thereafter, at 5:14 am on July 15, we stopped the water treatment facility to investigate the cause of reduction from rated water flow. And then we started the water treatment facility at 2:21 pm.

-At 1:05 pm on July 15th, we exchanged injection hoses with new ones and started injecting fresh water in the reactor well and equipment storage pool.

At 6:38 am on July 15th, we found that cooling makeup water was not sprayed in the cooling tower in the second order of circulating cooling system in the spent fuel pool for Unit 2. At 8:22 am on the same day we stopped the circulating pumps in the second order cooling tower and the fans. After that, we confirmed the feed water valves from the filtering water tanks are closed. At 11:47 am on the same we opened the valves and confirmed feeding water from the filtering water tanks and resumed operating the circulating pump and the fans.

-At approximately 1 pm on July 13, we found that the portable monitoring post measuring dose rate at the main gate indicates zero. We checked the equipment at the site and found no malfunction. Then we restarted the equipment at the main anti-earthquake building and it indicates normal value at approximately 2:55 pm. However, at around 10:00 pm on July 13, we found that the portable monitoring post measuring dose rate indicates zero, again. Then, the equipment did not work although we restarted the equipment again, at 6:15 pm on July 14, we replaced with alternative portable monitoring post and was restored. We also confirmed monitoring data was at the same level as before the equipment failure.

Sea floor soil was analyzed; samples take 7/14
Daiichi north channel
cesium 137 9,600 becquerels per kg
Daiichi south channel
cesium 137 1,700 becquerels per kg
Daini North channel
cesium 137 570 becquerels per kg
Iwasawa shore
cesium 137 490 becquerels per kg


DAINI

○ At 3:09 pm on July 15, the emergency diesel generator (B) of Unit 1 is restored and in a standby state. As a result, the emergency power source of Unit1 is secured from emergency diesel generator (B) of Unit 1 and emergency diesel generator (B) of Unit 2, 3.

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110715_02-e.pdf

Data on water analysis system
Cesium 137 before treatment: 1,700,000 becquerels per cm [sup]3[/sup]
Cesium 137 after 2nd treament: 2.9 becquerels per cm [sup]3[/sup]

Cesium 134 before treatment: 1,500,000 becquerels per cm [sup]3[/sup]
Cesium 134 after 2nd treament: 2.4 becquerelsper cm [sup]3[/sup]

Iodine 131 before treatment: 8,300 becquerels per cm [sup]3[/sup] (initial measurement is unsure)
Iodine 131 after treatment: 239 becquerels per cm [sup]3[/sup]

Chlorine before treatment (desalinization) 8,000 per cm [sup]3[/sup]
Chlorine after treatment (desalinization) 19 per cm [sup]3[/sup]

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/images/handouts_110714_06-e.pdf
Proposed new water system (SARRY)

 

[dorispulaski]

NHK articles
July 15th

Kan has clarified that his nuclear free future statement was about his own wishes, not government policy.

It explains a lot about how & why the Genkai reactor restart was deep sixed by suddenly imposing stress tests, though, and also why Kaieda was maneuvered into resigning.

TEPCO checking for gas leak from No. 3 reactor
The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is checking for gas leaks in the No. 3 reactor, into which nitrogen is being injected to prevent a hydrogen explosion.

Tokyo Electric Power Company has injected more than 200 cubic meters of nitrogen into the reactor's containment vessel since Thursday evening. But it says the interior air pressure has increased very little.

TEPCO says gas may be leaking from a damaged part of the container.

Also on Friday, TEPCO restarted a system for decontaminating highly radioactive water after a 9-hour stoppage to vent air from a pipe that was slowing down operations.

But it says the system's capability is still more than 20 percent lower than the target figure.

Nitrogen injection and the operation of the water decontamination system are essential for TEPCO to complete the first step of its plan to bring the plant under control.

The utility is still suffering 1 problem after another, with just 2 days left before the first target date of July 17th.
Friday, July 15, 2011 20:14 +0900 (JST)

Nuclear agency releases stress test details
Japan's nuclear agency has drawn up methods for stress-testing the country's nuclear power plants, but has yet to release a timetable for checking those facilities already idled for inspection.

The 2-stage tests involve computer simulations to gauge a reactor's resistance to earthquakes, tsunamis, and loss of power and cooling capacity.

The first-stage tests will apply to reactors halted for regular checkups. The secondary tests are for all reactors and involve simulations for an earthquake accompanied by tsunami.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency says it will ask utilities to report the results of the secondary tests this year, but does not refer to the deadline for the primary tests. This leaves the timing for restarting halted reactors unclear.

A nuclear agency official says that the agency's only role will be to check whether the tests are conducted properly.

The minister in charge of the nuclear crisis, Goshi Hosono, says politicians should not meddle in the work of the agency, or that of the other watchdog body, the Nuclear Safety Commission.

Hosono said the government will decide on restarting reactors when results of the primary tests are available.

The nuclear commission has approved the agency's proposed tests, but asked that explanations of the process be clarified for the general public.

The agency plans to submit a revised version of its test plans next week.
Friday, July 15, 2011 19:41 +0900 (JST)

NISA had the SPEEDI simulation of where the fallout occurred. They should have been on this from the beginning, in my opinion.

All Fukushima cattle may face radiation checks
Japanese health minister Ritsuo Hosokawa has said he is considering a plan to expand radiation tests on cattle to include animals raised outside the evacuation zones in Fukushima Prefecture.

Hosokawa made the remarks on Friday after it was learned that hay kept by a farmer in Asakawa Town in Fukushima was found to contain high levels of radioactive cesium.

Tests conducted on the hay revealed that it contained up to 97,000 becquerels of cesium per kilogram -- 73 times the government-set safety limit.

Asakawa Town is located about 60 kilometers away from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant. It is outside the government-designated evacuation zones.

The farmer said he has already shipped 42 heads of cattle that ate the hay to meat-processing plants in Tokyo, Yokohama, Chiba and Sendai.

Hosokawa says the health ministry is considering a plan to expand radiation testing to more cattle in Fukushima. Prefectural authorities have already decided to test all cattle in the evacuation zone.

Hosokawa also said the government will do its best to trace the whereabouts of the meat from the 42 cows.

The cattle farmer told reporters that he never imagined the hay would be contaminated because it came from far away from the damaged nuclear plant.
Friday, July 15, 2011 14:15 +0900 (JST)

Tea unsafe in Japan; safe in NYC?
As I demonstrated before, the Japanes regulatory limit for tea is quite wacko.

Safety of Shizuoka tea promoted in NY
Shizuoka Prefecture has held a tea sampling session in New York to promote the safety of its products.

Business in Shizuoka, the largest tea producing region in Japan, has been affected by the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Shizuoka officials on Thursday invited 100 people, including those who sell Japanese tea at their shops, and offered them cups of 2 brands of green tea.

Shizuoka Governor Heita Kawakatsu told the participants that his prefecture has tested locally grown tea and found that the level of radioactive substances is below the official safety limit.

He added that Shizuoka is 400 kilometers away from Fukushima.

One person at the event said he thinks Shizuoka tea is very safe, adding that he couldn't even drink water if he was worried about radioactivity.

But another said that unless the Japanese government takes appropriate measures, it would remain difficult for Japan to export tea.
Friday, July 15, 2011 13:27 +0900 (JST)

And in a similar story, as Japanese distrust Hitachi's nuclear reactors, Lithuanians give Hitachi a vote of confidence.

Hitachi wins Lithuania nuclear plant bidding right
Japanese electronics giant Hitachi says it has obtained preferential negotiating rights for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Lithuania.

Lithuania is planning to build the facility around 2020. The Baltic country has been facing power shortages since 2009, when it closed a nuclear plant that was built in the Soviet-era and used a Chernobyl-type reactor.

Japanese companies Hitachi and Toshiba, each teaming up with US partners, have put in bids for the contract.

Lithuania's government decided on Thursday to give preferential negotiating rights to Hitachi.

With its US partner General Electric, Hitachi is proposing to build a state-of-the-art nuclear plant.

The company says it will improve the safety of the facility by securing an emergency alternative power source. It is adding the feature in light of the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Hitachi aims to reach a formal contract with Lithuania over the 5 billion dollar project by the end of the year.
Friday, July 15, 2011 11:56 +0900 (JST)

Monju fast-breeder reactor project may be reviewed
Japan's science minister has suggested that the government may have to abandon the project to develop an experimental fast-breeder nuclear reactor.

Yoshiaki Takaki told reporters on Friday that it is natural to discuss the future of the Monju project in light of the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

He said the issue of whether to continue or abandon Monju must be discussed in the context of Japan's overall energy policy.

The government regards the fast-breeder reactor as Japan's next-generation nuclear power plant and hope to put it into practical use in about 40 years.

Monju, located in Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture, has been suspended since last August due to a technical problem. The trouble occurred only 3 months after Monju resumed operation in May last year following a 14-year shutdown caused by a leakage of sodium coolant in 1995.
Friday, July 15, 2011 14:58 +0900 (JST)

Great catastrophes do not only destroy the present; they also destroy our living links with history.

Quake-hit hydroelectric facility loses cultural status
A section of a historic building in northeastern Japan will lose its designation as an important cultural property after being badly damaged by the March 11th earthquake.

The advisory panel of the Agency for Cultural Affairs conveyed the decision to the culture minister on Friday.

The Ishioka Daiichi Power Plant in Ibaraki Prefecture is a hydroelectric power station built using reinforced concrete. It was completed in 1911 as Japan's first power generating facility.

Ten sections of the plant were added to the national list of important cultural properties in 2008 for their historical value.

But the March 11th quake severely damaged the plant, toppling its concrete water tank, one of the designated properties, from the foundations.

The advisory panel concluded the tank's structure would be difficult to repair, and that the collapsed ground it stood on impossible to restore.

More than 700 nationally designated cultural assets were damaged in the March 11th disaster. The Ishioka water tank is the first to have its designation revoked, although the plant's 9 other historic structures remain on the cultural property list.
Friday, July 15, 2011 17:29 +0900 (JST)

But somehow the living can keep up links themselves:

Summer festival climaxes in Hakata
Groups of men carrying heavy floats on their shoulders dashed through the streets of Hakata in western Japan, in the climax of a time-honored summer festival on Friday.

The Hakata Gion Yamakasa festival dates back to the 13th century. Legend has it that a Buddhist priest was carried around town on the shoulders of local people, sprinkling purified water to ward off an epidemic.

Before dawn, the first group of men ran into the compound of Kushida Shrine, carrying a float.

They circled around a flag, sang a celebratory song and went into the streets, as a crowd at the shrine cheered them on.

Seven other groups followed at 5-minute intervals, carrying floats that weighed over one ton each.

The float bearers shouted and chanted as they ran down the 5-kilometer course, while onlookers splashed them with water.
Friday, July 15, 2011 09:40 +0900 (JST)

And watermelon is the very essence of summer

Watermelons bring smiles
An Agricultural cooperative in Tottori Prefecture brought watermelons and smiles to the faces of elementary schools students in the Tohoku region where they are still suffering from the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Over 200 students of Isatomae and Natari elementary schools received 17 watermelons. Both are located in the town of Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture.

Natari Elementary School was destroyed by the tsunami, so they are now sharing classes with Isatomae where only the yard and first floor were flooded.

After teachers cut the melons in the schoolyard, students enjoyed the cool, refreshing fruit, as they sweated in the hot sun.
One boy says the watermelon is sweet and tastes good.
The Natari Elementary School principal, Yoko Shibayama, says she is so happy to see the children's smiling faces.
Friday, July 15, 2011 02:16 +0900 (JST)

This is odd, but somehow charming.

Bastille Day party celebrated in Fukushima; Evacuees invited
The French government held a party in Fukushima Prefecture on Thursday to celebrate Bastille Day. It invited 500 survivors of the March 11th disaster to the event in Koriyama City.

The French government holds parties around the world on July 14th each year to commemorate the 1789 French Revolution. In Japan, the event is usually held at the French ambassador's residence in Tokyo.

French Culture and Communication Minister Frederic Mitterrand told attendees that this is a time to affirm friendships and hopes that Japan and France can strengthen their solidarity.

Fukushima Governor Yuhei Sato expressed his gratitude to the French government for holding such an important event in his prefecture. He also said he thinks the nuclear disaster can be brought under control with the cooperation of French companies.

Guests were treated to the country's famous cuisine and performances by chansons.

One female evacuee said she is very grateful and wants to communicate with French people using the few French words she knows.
Friday, July 15, 2011 06:48 +0900 (JST)

 

[dorispulaski]

And a few articles from around the world:

People have expressed a lot of concern about Fort Calhoun reactor in Nebraska, which has been affected by the flooding Missouri River, particular after a truck operator ran into the temporary 8 foot high water wall, breaching it.. More info at the links:

http://www.omaha.com/article/20110713/NEWS01/707139892

The Omaha Public Power District has begun taking steps to resume operations at the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station, said Dave Bannister, chief nuclear officer. The plant, about 20 miles north of Omaha, has been offline since early April, first for maintenance, then because of flooding.
Bannister said workers have begun some of the tasks needed to get the nuclear plant running again, such as recalibrating equipment that was being worked on as part of the maintenance outage.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20110711/NEWS01/707119933/568


The latest on flooding: July 11Matt Miller/The World Herald
Published Monday July 11, 2011

New flood wall: The Omaha Public Power District has installed a new barrier around its Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station and is now pumping out floodwaters from the Missouri River. OPPD installed the new 8-foot-tall, water-filled barrier around the plant to replace a similar one that failed two weeks ago after a worker inadvertently punctured it with a loader. The utility planned to pump out the water behind the new barrier on Sunday to create a dry area around the plant, so it will be easier for workers to get around. BLAIR, Neb. (AP) — Workers at the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant continue to pump out Missouri River floodwaters from behind the new barrier they installed around the plant.

Fort Cooper, one of the two reactors in Nebraska affected by the flooding of the Missouri River is back in normal service.


http://www.omaha.com/article/20110712/NEWS01/110719849/0

Alert status lifted at Cooper reactorBy Nancy Gaarder
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

The Missouri River has dropped enough near Brownville, Neb., that the Cooper Nuclear Station no longer is required to operate in an alert mode.

Since the morning of June 19, the nuclear power plant had been operating at the lowest of four alert levels established by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission. That category is known as a “Notification of Unusual Event.”
At 9:47 a.m. Tuesday, Nebraska Public Power District, which owns the plant, was able to lift that designation.

The alert status was triggered by the river reaching 899 feet above sea level. For the past several days the river has consistently been below that level, NPPD said.

On Tuesday, the river was at 895.8 feet.

Art Zaremba, NPPD's director of nuclear safety assurance, said Cooper will continue to monitor flood conditions.

The majority of flood barricades at the plant will remain in place.

“Should conditions change and river levels increase, plant personnel are prepared – as we always are – to respond appropriately,” he said.

The state's second nuclear reactor, Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station north of Omaha, remains in a Notification of Unusual Event mode.

The Fort Calhoun reactor, which belongs to the Omaha Public Power District, has remained off line because of flooding. Cooper has continued operating, uninterrupted.

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/R...t_linked_to_reactors_study_finds-1307115.html

No link between childhood cancer and living next to a reactor in Switzerland

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=natures-nuclear-reactors-the-two-bi-2011-07-13

And an article about the naturally occurring nuclear reactors in Gabon, Africa (Oklo)

 

[let`s talk]

Lovely TEPCO http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110716p2a00m0na016000c.html