International Nuclear Watch & Discussion

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 11 Mar 2011 22:47

^^^ Story from NYtimes..(About Fukushima Nuclear plant and recent 8.9 earthquake in Japan)
Emergency Declared at Japanese Nuclear Plant

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 12 Mar 2011 02:48

Japan struggling to cool down nuclear reactor, minister says

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 12 Mar 2011 15:54

Japan's Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant explodes

Huge blast at Japan nuclear power plant

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 12 Mar 2011 15:59

Explosion Rocks Japan Nuclear Plant After Quake

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 12 Mar 2011 16:15

Video of explosion

Sanatanan · Post by **Sanatanan** » 12 Mar 2011 18:58

1. I think links in this web page may give authentic information on current status of Fukushima Daiichi npp. Perhaps you may like to visit it from time to time to get updated information.

2. This may also be a useful site for getting periodically updated information.

3. Article (popular science level) from BBC.

To me, the English language TV Channels in India that I have seen so far, seem to be chasing TRP ratings on this issue (aftermath of the Earthquake and subsequent Tsunami events at Fukushima npp), at the expense of objective reporting.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 13 Mar 2011 02:28

The Japanese nuclear safety agency rated the damage at a nuclear power plant at Fukushima at a four on a scale of one to seven. (This is not quite as bad as the Three Mile Island which was rated 5.
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsh ... h/ines.pdf

For reference:

LEVEL 7 - MAJOR ACCIDENT

A major release of radioactive material with widespread health and environmental effects requiring implementation of planned and extended countermeasures.

* CHERNOBYL, Soviet Union (now Ukraine), 1986

LEVEL 6 - SERIOUS ACCIDENT:

A significant release of radioactive material likely to require implementation of planned countermeasures.

* KYSHTYM, Soviet Union (now Russia), 1957 - Significant

release of radioactive material to the environment

from explosion of high activity waste tank

--------------------------------------------------------

LEVEL 5 - ACCIDENT WITH WIDER CONSEQUENSES:

A limited release of radioactive material likely to require implementation of some planned countermeasures and several deaths from radiation.

* THREE MILE ISLAND, USA, 1979 - Severe damage to reactor core. This event galvanized opposition to a growing anti-nuclear power movement in the United States. After this event, energy companies did not start the construction of any new reactors in the United States for over 30 years and stopped work on several reactors that were already under construction

* WINDSCALE PILE, UK, 1957 - A release of radioactive material following a fire in a reactor core

* GOIANIA, Brazil, 1987 - Four people died and six people

received high doses of radiation

--------------------------------------------------------

LEVEL 4 - ACCIDENT WITH LOCAL CONSEQUENCES:

A minor release of radioactive material unlikely to result in implementation of planned countermeasures other than local food controls and fuel melt or damage to fuel resulting in more than 0.1 percent release of core inventory and the release of significant quantities of radioactive material within an installation with a high probability of significant public exposure

* TOKAIMURA, Japan, 1999 - Fatal overexposures of workers

following a criticality event at a nuclear facility

* SAINT LAURENT DES EAUX, France, 1980 - Melting of onehannel of fuel in the reactor with no release outside the site

* FLEURUS, Belgium, 2006 - Severe health effects for worker at a commercial irradiation facility as a result of high doses of radiation

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 13 Mar 2011 02:59

Xpost.
From the press release
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-co ... 301-e.html

Plant Status of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (as of 2am March 13th)

All 6 units of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station have been shut down.

Unit 1(Shut down)
- Reactor has been shut down. However, the unit is under inspection due to
the explosive sound and white smoke that was confirmed after the big
quake occurred at 3:36PM.
- We have been injecting sea water and boric acid which absorbs neutron
into the reactor core.

Unit 2(Shut down)
- Reactor and Reactor Core Isolation Cooling System have been shut down.
Current reactor water level is lower than normal level, but the water
level is steady. After fully securing safety, we are preparing to
implement a measure to reduce the pressure of the reactor containment
vessels under the instruction of the national government.

Unit 3(Shut down)
- Reactor has been shut down and we continue injecting water by High
Pressure Core Injection System. After fully securing safety, we are
preparing to implement a measure to reduce the pressure of the reactor
containment vessels under the instruction of the national government.
- Currently, we do not believe there is any reactor coolant leakage
inside the reactor containment vessel.

Unit 4 (shut down due to regular inspection)
- Reactor has been shut down and sufficient level of reactor coolant to
ensure safety is maintained.
- Currently, we do not believe there is any reactor coolant leakage inside
the reactor containment vessel.

Unit 5 (outage due to regular inspection)
- Reactor has been shut down and sufficient level of reactor coolant to
ensure safety is maintained.
- Currently, we do not believe there is any reactor coolant leakage inside
the reactor containment vessel.

Unit 6 (outage due to regular inspection)
- Reactor has been shut down and sufficient level of reactor coolant to
ensure safety is maintained.
- Currently, we do not believe there is any reactor coolant leakage
inside the reactor containment vessel.

Casualty
- 2 workers of cooperative firm were injured at the occurrence of the
earthquake, and were transported to the hospital.
- 1 TEPCO employee who was not able to stand by his own with his hand
holding left chest was transported to the hospital by an ambulance.
- 1 subcontract worker at important earthquake-proof building was
unconscious and transported to the hospital by an ambulance.
- The radiation exposure of 1 TEPCO employee, who was working inside the
reactor building, exceeded 100mSv and was transported to the hospital.
- 4 workers were injured and transported to the hospital after explosive
sound and white smoke were confirmed around the Unit 1.
- Presence of 2 TEPCO employees at the site are not confirmed

Others
- We measured radioactive materials inside of the nuclear power station
area (outdoor) by monitoring car and confirmed that radioactive
materials level is higher than ordinary level. Also, the level at
monitoring post is higher than ordinary level. We will continue to
monitor in detail the possibility of radioactive material being
discharged from exhaust stack or discharge canal. The national
government has instructed evacuation for those local residents within
20km radius of the periphery because it's possible that radioactive
materials are discharged.

- We will continue to take all measures to restore the security of
the site and to monitor the environment of the site periphery.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 13 Mar 2011 03:18

Those rods are exposed:

Japan struggles with nuclear reactors in wake of quake

@Daiichi

Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) was dribbling out information slower than some experts wanted: it said Saturday that it detected cesium-137 and other isotopes near Unit 1 early in the day. Cesium is a byproduct of the nuclear fission process that occurs in nuclear plants.

As a last ditch effort:

Crews at a nuclear plant struck by an earthquake, then a tsunami and then an explosion in the span of 36 hours resorted Saturday to flooding a feverish nuclear reactor with sea water in hopes of preventing a meltdown of its core.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 13 Mar 2011 04:00

India breaks ranks with BRICS on N-fuel

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 13 Mar 2011 08:09

Japan struggles with nuclear reactors in wake of quake

A meltdown may be under way at one of Fukushima Daiichi's nuclear power reactors in northern Japan, an official with Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency told CNN Sunday.

"There is a possibility, we see the possibility of a meltdown," said Toshihiro Bannai, director of the agency's international affairs office, in a telephone interview from the agency's headquarters in Tokyo. "At this point, we have still not confirmed that there is an actual meltdown, but there is a possibility."

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 13 Mar 2011 08:23

Japan Scrambles to Avert Meltdown After Another Nuclear Reactor Fails

Japanese officials announced Sunday that the cooling system at a second nuclear reactor crippled by Japan’s devastating earthquake had failed completely, even as they took the extraordinary step of flooding a separate reactor with seawater in a last-ditch effort to avoid a nuclear meltdown.

Sanatanan · Post by **Sanatanan** » 13 Mar 2011 13:16

Latest Updates UPDATE AS OF 7:30 P.M. EST, SATURDAY, MARCH 12

[quote]Clarifying earlier reports, Ichiro Fujisaki, ambassador of Japan to the United States, said no explosion occurred in the reactor containment at Fukushima Daiichi’s Unit 1. Fujisaki told CNN during its 6 p.m. EST broadcast on March 12 that officials are taking steps to stabilize two other shut down reactors at the site. He confirmed that none of six reactors at the site were in danger of a meltdown[/quote]

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 13 Mar 2011 19:32

BBC: IAEA reports state of emergency declared at Onagawa nuclear reactor

Sanatanan · Post by **Sanatanan** » 13 Mar 2011 19:51

Partial nuclear meltdown at Fukushima 'no disaster', expert says

Any partial meltdown of nuclear fuel in a quake-hit power plant in Japan "is not a disaster" and a complete meltdown is unlikely, a German industry expert said on Sunday.

Robert Engel, a structural analyst and senior engineer at Switzerland's Leibstadt nuclear power plant, said he believed Japanese authorities would be able to manage the situation at the damaged Fukushima facility north of Tokyo.
. . .

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 13 Mar 2011 21:15

Japan Earthquake: State Of Emergency Declared At Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant

The U.N. nuclear agency says Japan has declared a state of emergency at another earthquake-affected nuclear plant where higher-than-permitted levels of radioactivity were measured.

The International Atomic Energy Agency says Japan informed it that the source of the radioactivity at the Onagawa power plant is being investigated. It said all three reactors at the plant are under control.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 13 Mar 2011 21:16

France Urges Citizens To Leave Tokyo Ahead Of Possible 'Radioactive Plume'

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 14 Mar 2011 00:18

From above link:

the French Embassy urged its citizens Sunday to leave the area around Tokyo – 170 miles (270 kilometers) from Fukushima Dai-ichi – in case the crisis deepened and a "radioactive plume" headed for the area around the capital. The statement acknowledged that the possibility was looking unlikely.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 14 Mar 2011 02:35

The Hindu
Nuclear power station plans criticised by pressure groups
The Guardian - ‎1 hour ago‎
China, along with Turkey, India, Indonesia and the US, has plans to construct more nuclear power stations. Photograph: Adrian Bradshaw/EPA Environmental pressure groups are calling on governments in the US, India, China, Turkey, and Indonesia

----------------------
They want to control all energy sources and also deny new energy source

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 14 Mar 2011 02:53

Japan Nuclear Emergency Casts Cloud Over Australian Aspirations

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 14 Mar 2011 02:58

Why I am not worried about Japan’s nuclear reactors

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 14 Mar 2011 04:30

The world's nuclear fate rests in Japan

A post-quake meltdown could end people's trust in atomic energy. But the planet would suffer for it

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 14 Mar 2011 05:45

Gerard wrote:Why I am not worried about Japan’s nuclear reactors

Nice and accurate. can also be seen at here

If you want to stay informed, please forget the usual media outlets and consult the following websites:

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS_Ba ... 03111.html
http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS_Ve ... 03111.html
http://bravenewclimate.com/2011/03/12/j ... arthquake/
http://ansnuclearcafe.org/2011/03/11/me ... -in-japan/

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 14 Mar 2011 16:41

Radioactive Releases in Japan Could Last Months, Experts Say

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 14 Mar 2011 17:51

are khan reactors safe?

http://money.cnn.com/2011/03/13/news/ec ... htm?hpt=T1

he distribution of radiation-blocking potassium iodide pills to everyone living within 20 miles of a reactor. (Such pills are now disbursed to people within 10 miles of a reactor.)

In the United States, perhaps the most vulnerable plants are the two in California built on the Pacific coast near the San Andreas fault.

Those plants were built to withstand a magnitude 7.5 earthquake,"I don't think we should renew those operating licenses," he said.

The dawn of international dhoti shiver (IDS) shall change the way future nuclear plants will be erected.

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 14 Mar 2011 18:15

Gerard & Amber G,

Much thanks. There is tremendous irresponsibility in MSM reporting about Fukushima and overall Japanese nuclear industry.

Unfortunately, the MSM has now made liability insurance much more costly, at least in the short run, for the construction of new PWR plants.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 14 Mar 2011 20:41

17 in U.S. Navy Treated for Contamination

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 14 Mar 2011 20:42

Radioactive Releases in Japan Could Last Months, Experts Say

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 14 Mar 2011 21:51

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commen ... 15/English

Japan’s Nuclear Morality Tale
Brahma Chellaney

During the record-breaking 2003 heat wave in France, operations at 17 commercial nuclear reactors had to be scaled back or stopped because of rapidly rising temperatures in rivers and lake. Spain’s reactor at Santa María de Garoña was shut for a week in July 2006 after high temperatures were recorded in the Ebro River.

France likes to showcase its nuclear power industry, which supplies 78% of the country’s electricity. But such is the nuclear industry’s water intensity that EDF withdraws up to 19 billion cubic meters of water per year from rivers and lakes, or roughly half of France’s total freshwater consumption

When the Indian Ocean tsunami struck, the Madras reactor’s core could be kept in safe shutdown condition because the electrical systems had been ingeniously installed on higher ground than the plant itself. And, unlike Fukushima, which bore a direct impact, Madras was far away from the epicenter of the earthquake that unleashed the tsunami.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 02:30

Most of these Japanese reactors are 40 years old and then (like in the US) they made some calculations that will have to be revised.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 04:51

Japanese officials say nuclear fuel rods exposed to air

Reporting from Tokyo and Natori, Japan
A hydrogen explosion Tuesday morning destroyed the outer building of the quake-damaged nuclear reactor no. 2 at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant. Engineers had been struggling overnight to cool the nuclear core and stave off a meltdown that could release radioactivity over a wide area. It was the third reactor at the site whose external structure had been damaged by such an explosion.

Neither of the reactor containment vessels of reactors no. 1 and no. 3 had been damaged in the earlier explosion and there is no evidence so far to suggest the vessel of no. 2 has been damaged either.

In extraordinary televised scenes, three executives from the utility that runs the crippled complex in Fukushima prefecture, about 150 miles north of Tokyo, acknowledged that pumps funneling seawater into one of the reactors had halted temporarily, a major setback in efforts to cool the superheated core.

"We are trying to reopen the valve," said one of the officials from the Tokyo Electric Power Co. as they passed the microphone back and forth among themselves. "The fuel rods are exposed. We are trying to get the pressure down and pump water into the pressure vessel again."

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 05:08

Kyodo News Agency:

March 15, 2011 :: Blast heard at Fukushima's No.2 reactor: gov't

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 05:55

The damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Okuma, Japan, on Monday.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 06:56

Areva responds to concerns over Japan's nuclear emergency

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 07:03

Japan-style earthquake and tsunami unlikely to hit Southern California, experts say

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 08:01

Detroit Free Press:

Japan: Nuclear reactor on fire, radiation leaking

Mort Walker · Post by **Mort Walker** » 15 Mar 2011 08:03

MIT's Nuclear Science & Engineering Dept. has a good update.
http://mitnse.com/

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 15 Mar 2011 08:27

NYTimes:

Japan nuclear plant crisis: Fourth reactor on fire as blasts spark fear of serious radiation release

A fourth reactor was on fire and there were fears that the steel containment vessel protecting the plant's nuclear core had been breached - the worst-case scenario in such situations.

vera_k · Post by **vera_k** » 15 Mar 2011 09:29

Germany suspends deal to extend nuclear plant life

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 16 Mar 2011 00:03

http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/03/1 ... AL20110315

Chernobyl clean-up expert slams Japan, IAEA

The Chernobyl experience was not studied properly because who has money for studying? Only industry.

"But industry doesn't like it," he said in an interview in Vienna where the former director of the Soviet Spetsatom clean-up agency now teaches and advises on nuclear safety. Austria's environment ministry has used him as an adviser.

Andreev said a fire which released radiation on Tuesday involving spent fuel rods stored close to reactors at Fukushima looked like an example of putting profit before safety:

"The Japanese were very greedy and they used every square inch of the space. But when you have a dense placing of spent fuel in the basin you have a high possibility of fire if the water is removed from the basin," Andreev said.