Fukushima

8 Months, 10 Mishaps: A Look At Fukushima Errors

October 30, 2013 Mari Yamaguchi, www.japantoday.com Educate! Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

Workers overfill a tank, spilling radioactive water on the ground. Another mistakenly pushes a button, stalling a pump for a vital cooling system. Six others get soaked with toxic water when they remove the wrong pipe. All over the course of one week in October. A string of mishaps this year at the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, which was swamped by a tsunami in 2011, is raising doubts about the operator’s ability to tackle the crisis and prompting concern that another disaster could be in the making. Worried Japanese regulators are taking a more hands-on approach than usual to seek solutions to what they say appear to be fundamental problems. Human error is mostly to blame, as workers deal with a seemingly unending stream of crises. Tanaka said earlier this month the repeated “silly mistakes” are a sign of declining morale and sense of responsibility.

Over 1300 Fukushima Residents Demand Nuclear Officials Face Jail

October 29, 2013 Common Dreams, www.commondreams.org Educate! Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

Over 1300 residents of Fukushima filed a criminal complaint on Monday against 33 people including Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) executives and workers in government organizations saying that they are responsible for negligence over the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant disaster and should go to jail. "The Fukushima nuclear accident is the worst corporate crime in Japan's history and caused significant damage to the life, health and assets of the people of Fukushima and the rest of Japan," the group, the Plaintiffs Against the Fukushima Nuclear Plant, said on its website.

VIDEO: Russell’s Brand New Revolution & Chris Hedges On Class War

October 27, 2013 Dennis Trainor, Jr., www.acronymtv.com Resistance Report Corporatism, Finance and the Economy, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy, Occupy, Video

Resistance Report: While watching Russell Brand’s BBC interview, it is not hard to imagine two families in Middle America, neighbors, watching separately in the comfort of their own homes as Russell Brand does his bit and each nod in lonely agreement. “Yes!”, they are likely to say- “this Russell Brand fellow is right.” But family A has to work hard at a job they are made to feel they are lucky to have buying something, selling something, or processing something when, like their inner Lloyd Dobbler, they don’t want to buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, they don't want to do that. And Family B is doing the same thing. Both are trying to keep up with the Joneses, as they the expression goes. Family B is competing to send their kids to better schools and than Family A; and Family A is competing just as hard to beat out family B. They are each other’s Jones.

Everything You Need to Know About the Fukushima Crisis

October 24, 2013 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.truth-out.org Educate! Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

The story of Fukushima should be on the front pages of every newspaper. Instead, it is rarely mentioned. The problems at Fukushima are unprecedented in human experience and involve a high risk of radiation events larger than any that the global community has ever experienced. It is going to take the best engineering minds in the world to solve these problems and to diminish their global impact. When we researched the realities of Fukushima in preparation for this article, words like apocalyptic, cataclysmic and Earth-threatening came to mind. But, when we say such things, people react as if we were the little red hen screaming "the sky is falling" and the reports are ignored. So, we’re going to present what is known in this article and you can decide whether we are facing a potentially cataclysmic event.

Human Rights Experts Call For Immediate Action On Fukushima

October 22, 2013 Staff, www.PopularResistance.org Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Health Care, Nuclear Energy

Two conflicting reports on Fukushima – one by the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health and the other by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) that will be presented to the UN General Assembly on October 25 at the 3rd and 4th Committees respectively. Mr. Grover, the Special Rapporteur, will speak about his report, and Dr. Rachow will discuss a PSR/IPPNW critique (www.psr.org/assets/pdfs/critique-of-unscear-fukushima.pdf) of the UNSCEAR report and how it can be strengthened. Ms. Inoue will discuss the human rights concerns regarding conditions in Japan. The global implications of these reports will be highlighted. Since the March 2011 nuclear disaster in Fukushima, individuals and communities in Japan continue to be exposed to dangerous levels of radioactivity. There are serious concerns about consequent health effects for citizens in contaminated areas. Residents have a right to live in a safe and healthy environment, however, sufficient protective measures and support are not being provided.

Senior Adviser For Fukushima Cleanup Says Foreign Assistance Needed

October 18, 2013 Faith Aquino, japandailypress.com Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

One of the senior advisers of the Fukushima cleanup said that Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) needs foreign assistance. The utility operator may have already sought foreign assistance, but the ones currently available seem to be not enough to ensure that the defunct nuclear plant causes no more trouble. “They need to have a number of foreign firms to come in and assist them with the cleanup,” said Lady Barbara Judge in an interview in Tokyo. Lady Judge, a lawyer by profession, was in charge of the U.K. Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) from 2004 until 2010. During her tenure as head of the agency, a number of nuclear plants were decommissioned while overseeing the cleanup of plutonium and uranium leak at the Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) at Sellafield in Cumbria of northwestern England.

Radioactivity Level Spikes 6,500 Times At Fukushima Well

October 18, 2013 Staff, rt.com Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

Radioactivity levels in a well near a storage tank at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan have risen immensely on Thursday, the plant’s operator has reported. Officials of the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) said on Friday they detected 400,000 becquerels per liter of beta ray-emitting radioactive substances - including strontium - at the site, a level 6,500 times higher than readings taken on Wednesday, NHK World reported. The storage tank leaked over 300 tons of contaminated water in August, some of which is believed to have found its way into the sea through a ditch. The well in question is about 10 meters from the tank and was dug to gauge leakage. TEPCO said the findings show that radioactive substances like strontium have reached the groundwater. High levels of tritium, which transfers much easier in water than strontium, had already been detected.

Fukushima: A Global Solution To A Global Threat

October 10, 2013 Green Shadow Cabinet subcommittee on Fukushima, www.popularresistance.org Resist! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Health Care, Nuclear Energy

In November, 2013, TEPCO plans to begin removal of 1,300 spent fuel rods located in the heavily-damaged Building 4. The rods are in a pool that is 100 feet above the ground. The roof over this pool was destroyed in the earthquake and tsunami two years ago and debris litters the pool which further complicates removal of the rods. Under normal operation, these rods were moved by computer-assisted cranes that knew their exact location, but that equipment was destroyed. The rods must be removed under manual control because of the debris and damage that has displaced them. This is a task that has never been attempted before that requires great skill and precision. If a spent fuel rod breaks, gets too close to another rod or is exposed to the air, there could be a massive release of radiation into the air. Helen Caldicott writes that in the worst case scenario such an accident could release “the radioactive equivalent of 14,000 Hiroshima-sized bombs and 10 times more cesium than Chernobyl.” This would badly contaminate the Northern Hemisphere.

Japan Asks For World’s Help On Fukushima Leaks

October 6, 2013 Staff, www,america.aljazeera.com Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Sunday that Japan is open to receiving overseas help to contain widening disaster at the crippled nuclear plant in Fukushima, where radioactive water leaks and other mishaps are now reported almost daily. "We are wide open to receive the most advanced knowledge from overseas to contain the problem," Abe said in his English speech to open the conference on energy and environment at an international science forum in Kyoto in western Japan. "My country needs your knowledge and expertise," he said. Despite Abe's reassurances to the International Olympic Committee last month that the leaks were "under control," many Japanese believe he was glossing over problems at the plant.

A Video Tour Of The Problems At Fukushima

October 4, 2013 Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy, Video

The Planned Risky Repair of Fukushima Scheduled for This November Could Create Radiation Disaster Equal To 85 Chernobyls This is a 20 minute video about all the really intense details and current challenges of each and every reactor at the Fukushima site. Each week Fairewinds receives many questions about the ongoing tragedy unfolding in Japan as a result of the triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Join us as Fairewinds' Chief Engineer Arnie Gundersen highlights the many problems facing Japan as he takes you on a tour of the Fukushima Daiichi site by combining satellite video, animated graphics and photos to create a comprehensive and easy to follow video tour.

Worldwide Demand For UN Takeover At Fukushima

October 4, 2013 Harvey Wasserman, www.ecowatch.com Educate! Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

The much-hyped “nuclear renaissance” has turned into a global rout. In the face of massive grassroots opposition and the falling price of renewable energy and natural gas, operating reactors are shutting and proposed new ones are being cancelled. This lessens the radioactive burden on the planet. But it makes the aging reactor fleet ever more dangerous. A crumbling industry with diminished resources and a disappearing workforce cannot safely caretake the decrepit, deteriorating 400-odd commercial reactors still licensed to operate worldwide. All of which pales before the crisis at Fukushima. Since the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami, the six-reactor Daichi site has plunged into lethal chaos.

Risky Fukushima Repair: 15,000 Times Radiation Of Hiroshima, 85 Chernobyls

October 2, 2013 Gaius Publius, www.americablog.com Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

This is the problem today. There are about 1300 fuel rods stored in that room, packed together vertically in racks. Think of a pack of cigarettes standing upright with the top of the pack removed. Normally, the movement of fuel rods is done by a computer-driven machine that reaches into the room from above and removes or replaces a fuel rod by drawing it upward or lowering it downward. The machine knows to the millimeter where each fuel rod is located. Also, the rods are undamaged — perfectly straight. The problem is that this pack of cigarettes is crumpled, and the process must done manually. Therefore, the likelihood that some of the fuel rods will break is high. If that happens and fuel rods are exposed to the air — BOOM. What does “boom” look like?

VIDEO: Acronym TV Weekly Resistance Report 008

September 21, 2013 Denis Trainor, Jr, and AcronymTV, www.popularresistance.org Resistance Report Fukushima, Occupy, Petraeus

Stories covered in this episode of the Resistance Report: 1) NYPD Sucker Punches Protester Calling For CUNY To Drop Gen. David Petraeus, 2) Occupy Wall Street Celebrates 2nd Birthday, 3) Fukushima, two Months To Save the World, 4) Can We End The U.S. Empire?, 5) The Class War Escalates - The Resistance Report is a trusted and growing outlet for movement building news, analysis, interviews and editorial commentary. Creator and host Dennis Trainor, Jr was active in the Occupy movement and helped plan the Occupation of Washington, DC at Freedom Plaza.

Earthquake, 5.3 On Richter Scale, Strikes Fukushima

September 20, 2013 Jon Queally, www.commondreams.org Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake struck early Friday at a depth of about 13 miles under Fukushima Prefecture and about 110 miles northeast of Tokyo. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue an alert. Because Japan sits within one of the most active earthquake zones in the world, nuclear experts have repeatedly warned that the technology is ill-suited to the geographic location and the people of Japan have actively campaigned its government to permanently shut down the nation's remaining reactors, calling for transition to a system of renewable and sustainable energy.

Typhoon Hits Japan As Fukushima Operator Releases Water Into Sea

September 17, 2013 Staff, www.afp.com Educate! Energy, Environment, Fukushima, Nuclear Energy

Typhoon Man-yi hit Japan Monday, leaving two people dead and forcing the operator of the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant to release rainwater with low levels of radiation into the ocean. The typhoon also hit the northeast, including the Fukushima area, bringing heavy rain to areas near the broken plant run by Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO). Workers were pumping out water from areas near tanks storing radioactive water, from which leaks are believed to have seeped into groundwater. "But we decided to release the water into sea as we reached a conclusion that it can be regarded as rainfall after we monitored levels of radiation," TEPCO spokesman Yo Koshimizu said. According to the spokesman, one litre of the water contained up to 24 becquerels of strontium and other radioactive materials -- below the 30 becquerel per litre safety limit imposed by Japanese authorities for a possible release to the environment. However, it was unknown how much water was released to sea under the "emergency measure," Koshimizu said.

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