Japan - 9.0 Earthquake-Tsunami -Reactor Status, 2011 #6

[essies]

[video=vimeo;23186557]http://vimeo.com/23186557[/video]
http://www.fairewinds.com/home

 

[Quiche]

Ventilator installation starts

Quote: Tokyo Electric Power Co. began installing ventilation equipment Tuesday at the turbine building of the No. 1 reactor at its crippled nuclear plant in Fukushima Prefecture, the utility said.

Six ventilation units will be installed on the turbine building side of double-entry doors leading to the reactor building to remove air in the reactor building via hoses,...

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110503005343.htm


Do these ventilators eventually clean the air, or simply put it out into the environment?

 

[Daisyjane]

http://www.euronews.net/2011/05/04/new-radioactivity-high-off-fukushima/

New radioactivity high off Fukushima

The operator of Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant says that seawater radioactivity fifteen kilometres offshore has risen significantly.

Plant operator TEPCO reports it is 600 times the maximum allowed by law. The company has released a new video of the inside of reactor number one. A US-made robot recorded the images on April 29. Experts confirmed that electricity cables were safe and there were no water leaks, but said radiation levels were higher than expected.

Following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster, hundreds of tons of highly contaminated water from the plant was released into the north Pacific Ocean. As cleanup in the surrounding danger area proceeds, new filtering equipment and fencing were being set up. Tokyo Electric Power has said it may take the rest of this year to bring the nuclear plant back under control.

 

[Quiche]

Fukushima prepares for cold shutdown: Will it finally stabilize Unit 1?

Excerpt:
But important questions remain about how safe the cold shutdown process will be. To bring down the temperature in Unit 1, the company plans to inject water into the primary containment structure – a large, light-bulb-shaped container that surrounds the inner reactor vessel that holds the uranium fuel core.

Will the primary containment structure be able to hold the many tons of water that will fill it – or will it leak or split because it is damaged? Will a new quake or aftershock damage a containment structure that is far heavier because it is full of water?

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2011/0...old-shutdown-Will-it-finally-stabilize-Unit-1

I thought they'd scrapped this idea...

 

[Quiche]

EPA Halts Extra Radiation Monitoring; Focus Shifts To Seafood

Quote: “After a thorough data review showing declining radiation levels related to the Japanese nuclear incident, EPA has returned to the routine RadNet sampling and analysis process for precipitation, drinking water and milk,” according to yesterday’s Daily Data Summary.

Milk and drinking water will return to a regular quarterly schedule and will next be tested in three months. Preciptation will be tested monthly.

http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon...radiation-monitoring-focus-shifts-to-seafood/

This is extremely disappointing-- wth is wrong with this picture!

 

[Daisyjane]

EPA Halts Extra Radiation Monitoring; Focus Shifts To Seafood

Quote: “After a thorough data review showing declining radiation levels related to the Japanese nuclear incident, EPA has returned to the routine RadNet sampling and analysis process for precipitation, drinking water and milk,” according to yesterday’s Daily Data Summary.

Milk and drinking water will return to a regular quarterly schedule and will next be tested in three months. Preciptation will be tested monthly.

http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon...radiation-monitoring-focus-shifts-to-seafood/

This is extremely disappointing-- wth is wrong with this picture!

We hear of a new fluctuation or spike in radiation every 3-4 days. Testing only quarterly is flirting with disaster.

 

[Quiche]

Bill Gates Puts His Money and Mouth Behind Nuclear Power

Quote: Speaking today at the Wired business conference in New York City, Gates, who has invested plenty of money in his friend Nathan Myrhvold's Terrapower, argued that the level of concern we've seen post-Fukushima is an overreaction.

and

While he supports many forms of energy production, Gates dismissed energy ideas that involve individual homes generating their own power and then feeding excess back into a grid. "Not gonna happen," he said. "If you are going for cuteness, go after those things at the home. If you want to solve the energy problems go after the big things in the desert."

http://www.theatlantic.com/technolo...-money-and-mouth-behind-nuclear-power/238300/

:waitasec: The desert? Huh? Did they put this quote in to make him sound loony, because it makes no sense within the context of the paragraph, to me anyway.

 

[Quiche]

I came across this note I wrote right after the disaster began-- it gives the amount of fuel at each reactor. Thought I'd re-post the information, since it's been so long ago.

R-1: 70 tons of fuel/50 tons spent fuel pool

R-2 90 tons of fuel/100 tons spent fuel pool

R-3 90 tons of fuel/90 tons spent fuel pool (MOX)

R-4 90 tons of fuel/130 tons spent fuel pool

R-5 90 tons of fuel/160 tons spent fuel pool

R-6 130 tons of fuel/150 tons spent fuel pool

 

[Trident]

We hear of a new fluctuation or spike in radiation every 3-4 days. Testing only quarterly is flirting with disaster.

Flirting with disaster? As far as I'm concerned disaster is already here and "they" can't raise it high enough, fast enough to do regular testing.

I suggest we all do bending over exercises, and practice kissing it 'cause in about 20 years, if not sooner, the cancers will begin showing up.

Every time I take a drink of water I turn toward Japan and give a toast to the radiation gods. Thank the Lord I don't drink milk.

My opinion only, and I'm glad I'm old and will be dead before this "mess" comes to fruition.

 

[essies]

Very interesting and frightening article from Rolling Stone in your link to the Bill Gates article Quiche.
America’s Nuclear NightmareThe U.S. has 31 reactors just like Japan’s — but regulators are ignoring the risks and boosting industry profits
snip-
The Japanese disaster should have been a wake-up call for boosters of nuclear power. America has 31 aging reactors just like Fukushima, and it wouldn't take an earthquake or tsunami to push many of them to the brink of meltdown. A natural disaster may have triggered the crisis in Japan, but the real problem was that the plant lost power and was unable to keep its cooling systems running — a condition known as "station blackout." At U.S. reactors, power failures have been caused by culprits as mundane as squirrels playing on power lines. In the event of a blackout, operators have only a few hours to restore power before a meltdown begins. All nukes are equipped with backup diesel generators, as well as batteries. But at Fukushima, the diesel generators were swamped by floodwaters, and the batteries lasted a mere eight hours — not nearly long enough to get power restored and avert catastrophe. NRC standards do virtually nothing to prevent such a crisis here at home. Only 11 of America's nuclear reactors have batteries designed to supply power for up to eight hours, while the other 93 have batteries that last half that long.
"The question is not whether we will get an earthquake or a tsunami," says Lochbaum. "The question is whether we are fully prepared for unexpected events, and whether we are doing everything we can to protect the public. I don't think we are. If and when there is a nuclear disaster, I would hate to be the one who has to stand up in front of the American people and say, 'We knew about these problems, but did nothing about them.'"

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/america-s-nuclear-nightmare-20110427?page=1
The comments to this article are also worth reading!!:twocents:

 

[Niner]

I've noticed that the posts have slowed down a bit - but wanted to THANK you all who have posted articles, etc. Haven't posted much on here, but have followed your every word!! Thanks! :great:

 

[mommy23]

Read an article on my phone, Fox news, but I cannot find it on their website, and don't have much time at the moment to look for it deeper. Anyways, It was about Japan sending supplies for the tornado victims here. They wanted to offer what they could as a thank you to the US helping them. Made me tear up a bit. The Japanese are a special group of people. We could all learn something from them :twocents:

And thank you to the few that keep this thread going!!!! It is very much appreciated!!!!!!! :clap:

 

[Quiche]

Tepco starts flooding No. 1 reactor vessel
Nuclear fuel in core must be submerged by water to cool

Quote: On Friday, it increased the amount of water injected into the pressure vessel housing the core of the No. 1 reactor to 8 tons per hour from 6 tons. Its goal is to fill the primary containment vessel with about 7,400 tons of water.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110506x1.html

Remember when it took ten days or so to pump 11,000 tons of badly contaminated water into the only holding space they had? Well, this water will actually be touching the fuel, dirty, dirty, dirty, water-- with no place to go but the ocean, I imagine. I don't know the alternative, but this sure makes me unhappy.

 

[Quiche]

Japan shuts down more nuclear reactors

Quote: Japan’s government has demanded that a controversial nuclear power plant south of Tokyo be shut down while its defences against earthquakes and tsunamis are upgraded, in what would be first forced plant closure in the country since the accident at Fukushima Daiichi in March.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/51dd6960-77da-11e0-ab46-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss

 

[Daisyjane]

http://www.myweathertech.com/2011/05/06/1363/

It appears that very high levels of radiation will be released into the atmosphere if certain steps in regards to the installation of the heat exchanger are not completed.

The information below has been translated from Japanese to English. We can only hope that they get this completed. With wind forecasts continuing to carry high levels of radiation to the west coast, this could only makes the situation in America that much more deadly.

Minutes of meeting between TEPCO and the government on the 1st May. “If the current situation continues, high density radiation will be released on the 8th May.” Mr Hosono said: It is very important to go to the next step regarding the installation of the heat exchanger machine. For the concerned parties, be careful of the sharing of information with high sensitivity so that the same mistakes aren’t made again like the release of the radiated water previously.

 

[essies]

[video=youtube;5MJhdYtowMs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MJhdYtowMs[/video]
Japanese MP: It's Time To Tell The Truth
Kuniko Tanioko: Japan must tell world how it dealt with the nuclear runoff into the ocean

 

[coastal]

Japan shuts down more nuclear reactors

Quote: Japan’s government has demanded that a controversial nuclear power plant south of Tokyo be shut down while its defences against earthquakes and tsunamis are upgraded, in what would be first forced plant closure in the country since the accident at Fukushima Daiichi in March.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/51dd6960-77da-11e0-ab46-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss

Don't celebrate this wise decision just yet:

Japan utility delays decision on halting reactors
Saturday, May 7, 2011
(05-07) 05:45 PDT TOKYO, Japan (AP) --

A Japanese power company postponed its decision Saturday on a government request that it halt three reactors at a coastal nuclear plant until safety measures can be improved to guard against future earthquakes and tsunamis...

...The Hamaoka plant, which is about 125 miles (200 kilometers) west of Tokyo in an area where a major quake is expected within decades, has been a major concern for years....

...He noted that experts estimate there is a 90 percent chance that a quake with a magnitude of 8.0 or higher will strike the region within 30 years...

...Residents of Shizuoka have long demanded a shutdown of the Hamaoka reactors. About 79,800 people live within a 6-mile (10-kilometer) radius of the plant...


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/artic...04/international/i205304D85.DTL#ixzz1LfqsW1xB


<<<snip

 

[Verity]

Japan Officially Orders Censorship Of Truth About Fukushima Nuclear Radiation Disaster
The government of Japan has issued an official order to telecommunications companies and web masters to censor reports which contradict the state media reports that the Fukushima nuclear radiation disaster is over.

http://www.fourwinds10.com/siterun_...ns/nuclear_du_radiation/news.php?q=1303327147

There's no link to the Japanese original order in this report.

 

[Quiche]

Japan Officially Orders Censorship Of Truth About Fukushima Nuclear Radiation Disaster
The government of Japan has issued an official order to telecommunications companies and web masters to censor reports which contradict the state media reports that the Fukushima nuclear radiation disaster is over.

http://www.fourwinds10.com/siterun_...ns/nuclear_du_radiation/news.php?q=1303327147

There's no link to the Japanese original order in this report.

This is the link that they cite as their source-- I don't see anything, but I haven't read every word. I'm going to keep looking around...

http://japanfocus.org/-Makiko-Segawa/3516

eta: I think that would be widespread breaking news, I'm not seeing it this morning. Not to say that we won't tomorrow. mo

 

[essies]

[video=vimeo;23393101]http://vimeo.com/23393101[/video]
A report from the Japanese Nuclear Safety Commission Ex-Secretariat, Dr. Saji, credits the current status of the accident to "luck". Gundersen discusses what could have happened if the wind had been blowing in-land.