TEPCO HOPES TO DUMP MORE "TREATED" WATER!

#Fukushima #nuclear cleanup remains plagued by complexities

Story by Julian Ryall, March 11, 2024

"#Japan on Monday marked the anniversary of the #March2011 earthquake and tsunami that destroyed three of the six reactors at the #FukushimaDaiichi nuclear power plant.

"Shortly after the magnitude-9 earthquake struck on March 11, a series of tsunami inundated four of the reactor buildings and set off a chain reaction in three reactors that resulted in the release of significant amounts of radioactivity into the environment.

Tens of thousands of local people were quickly evacuated and, over the following years, the reactors were stabilized.

"The challenge in recent years has been to gather the large amounts of nuclear fuel that escaped from the reactors in order to halt the release of more #radiation — something that had never been attempted before and has to be carried out in buildings where radioactive #contamination remains dangerously elevated and where debris from the tsunami and subsequent hydrogen explosions still litters the area.

"Tokyo Electric Power Co (#TEPCO), the operator of the plant, has estimated that work to make the plant safe will take between 30 and 40 years, but recent reports on progress at the site have been largely negative.

"In January, TEPCO announced that it would have to delay plans to commence in March the test use of a robotic arm to remove radioactive material from the No. 2 reactor. The initial plan called for tests using the robotic limb to take place in 2021 but were delayed by technical glitches.

"TEPCO is now aiming to have the remote-controlled arm operational in October, although that will be three years behind the original schedule.

"Other areas of the project have also experienced challenges, with the first drones and a robot sent into the No. 1 reactor building earlier this month also suffering faults that meant they had to be withdrawn before they could complete their mission to locate molten fuel debris that has leaked from the reactor and map other damage.

"TEPCO, however, maintains that steady progress is being made and that the 30- to 40-year target for decommissioning remains viable.

[...]

"In addition, each of the three crippled reactors has its own set of specific challenges and there is no disposal site for the highly radioactive nuclear waste that must be recovered from the site, he pointed out.

The key steps now are to remove all the spent nuclear fuel, whether intact or leaked, from inside reactor buildings one and two, and the retrieval and disposal of fuel debris from the partial core meltdowns.

"Gorgues said he favors speeding up the release of treated water from the plant in order to dismantle the hundreds of storage tanks that presently occupy much of the site, with that land needed for new waste treatment and storage facilities.

"The expert also played down suggestions that TEPCO is likely to miss its declared timeline for the decommissioning process, emphasizing that the three- or four-decade schedule is 'a target' rather than a deadline."

https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/other/fukushima-nuclear-cleanup-remains-plagued-by-complexities/ar-BB1jGXw8

13 years after meltdown, the head of Japan's nuclear cleanup is probing mysteries inside reactors

By Mari Yamaguchi | AP
March 7, 2024

TOKYO - “As Japan prepares to mark the 13th anniversary of its worst-ever nuclear disaster, the man in charge of cleaning it up says his team is fighting to bring a sample out of the heart of the site’s radioactive debris.

“A decades-long project to clean up the remains of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is preparing to remove damaged fuel debris from the plant’s reactors, but much about what’s inside them is still a mystery.

“The key to unlocking that mystery — and figuring out how to clean it up — is a sample of melted fuel from inside a reactor, said Akira Ono, head of decommissioning for Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, in an interview with The Associated Press.

“Getting that sample would be like penetrating 'the main keep of the castle' in the battle of decommissioning, Ono said. 'We have achieved a number of things, but we still have a lot of thinking to do to tackle the unprecedented task of removing melted fuel.'

“A magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011, damaged the Fukushima Daiichi plant’s cooling systems, causing three of its reactors to meltdown, releasing radiation and driving thousands of residents from their homes. Some areas near the plant are still unlivable.

“About 880 tons of highly radioactive melted nuclear fuel remains inside the three damaged reactors, but no one knows what condition the melted fuel is in or exactly where in the reactors it fell. That data is crucial to make a plan to remove it safely, said Ono.

“Since a 2019 robot probe first looked inside the No. 2 reactor — the least damaged — TEPCO has been trying to extract a small amount of melted debris from it using a robotic arm. That effort has been delayed for more than two years as the team works out how to get the robot past the wreckage. The team’s next attempt will come in October, using a previously tested device that resembles a fishing rod to get a preliminary sample out, while waiting technical improvements to the robotic arm, Ono said.

“Last month, the plant made its first drone flight into the worst-hit reactor, No. 1 reactor, to investigate the melted debris, but had to cancel a second day of exploration after a secondary robot that helped with data transmission failed.

“’We are new to these things and sometimes encounter unanticipated mishaps on the ground. But they are all valuable lessons learned for our next steps,’ Ono said.

“Critics say the 30- to 40-year cleanup target set by the government and TEPCO is overly optimistic.

“The lack of data, technology and plans on what to do with the fatally radioactive melted fuel and other nuclear waste at the end makes it difficult to have a clear view of how the plant complex and its surroundings may end up when the cleanup ends.

“Ono has said the utility’s role is to do its best to tackle the challenges one at a time and safely.

“Last August, the plant began discharging treated water into the sea, which Ono said was a major step forward. If the next attempt to recover a sample from the No. 2 reactor succeeds, it will be 'a huge step' and 'a major change of stage,' he said.

“#FukushimaDaiichi is currently releasing a fourth 7,800-ton batch of water. So far, daily seawater sampling results have met safety standards [using faulty dosimeters?], but the controversial plan has faced protests from local fishers and neighboring countries, especially China, which has banned Japanese seafood imports.

"TEPCO finished removing all spent fuel rods from a cooling pool at No. 4 reactor in 2014 and from the No. 3 reactor pool in 2021. It plans to complete removal of the rods from the No. 1 and No. 2 pools by 2031.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/03/07/japan-fukushima-nuclear-reactor-meltdown-debris/6f0151ea-dc59-11ee-b5e9-ad4573c62315_story.html

#Fukushima Up Close, 13 Years Later

by Robert Hunziker
October 13, 2023

"The world is turning to #NuclearPower as a solution to #GlobalWarming, but it is postulated herein that it is a huge mistake that endangers society. One #nuclear #meltdown causes as much damage over the long-term as a major #war. Moreover, according to Dr. #PaulDorfman, chair of the Nuclear Consulting Group, former secretary to the UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Internal Radiation: 'It’s important to understand that nuclear is very likely to be a significant climate casualty.'

"#BeyondNuclearInternational recently published an article about the status of Fukushima as well as an exposé of how the nuclear industry gets away with responsibility for #radiation-caused (1) deaths (2) chronic conditions like #cancer (3) #genetic deformities: A Strategy of Concealment, September 24, 2023, by #KolinKobayashi, who is a Tokyo-born France-based anti-nuclear #activist journalist also serving as president of Echo-Exchange. Kobayashi’s work was posted by CounterPunch under the title: How Agencies That Promote Nuclear Power Are Quietly Managing Its Disaster Narrative.

"The following synopsis, including editorial license that adds important death details which defy the nuclear industry’s bogus claims about nuclear safety, opens closed pathways to what’s really going on.

"After thirteen years, the declaration of a State of Emergency for #FukushimaDaiichi Nuclear Power Plant still cannot be lifted because of many unknowns, as well as ubiquitous deadly radiation levels. The destroyed reactors are tinderboxes of highly radioactive spent fuel rods that contain more cesium-137 than eighty-five (85) #Chernobyls. Cesium-137 in or near a human body erupts into a series of maladies, one after another in short order, depending upon level of exposure: (1) nausea (2) vomiting (3) diarrhea (4) bleeding (5) coma leading to death.

"The spent fuel rods at the Fukushima nuclear reactor site are stored in pools of water on the top floor of compromised reactor buildings 100 feet above ground level, except for Unit 3 which completed removal of its spent fuel rods in 2019, an extremely slow, laborious process that’s highly dangerous.

"Stored spent fuel rods in open pools of water are the epitome of high-risk. 'If the 440 tonne vessel collapses, it could hit the storage pool next to it. If this pool is damaged, even partially, another major disaster could occur.' (Kobayashi) In that regard, there’s significant risk of collapse in the event of a strong #earthquake. And #Japan is one of the most earthquake prone countries in the world. 'The city (Tokyo) government’s experts reckon there is a 70% chance of a magnitude 7, or higher, quake hitting the capital within the next 30 years.' (Source: Japan is Preparing for a Massive Earthquake, The Economist, August 31, 2023)

"If exposed to open air, #SpentFuel rods erupt into a sizzling zirconium fire followed by massive radiation bursts of the most toxic material on the planet. It can upend an entire countryside and force evacuation of major cities. According to the widely recognized nuclear expert Paul Blanch: 'Continual storage in spent fuel pools is the most unsafe thing you could do.' Paul Blanch, registered professional engineer, US Navy Reactor Operator & Instructor with 55 years of experience with nuclear engineering and regulatory agencies, is widely recognized as one of America’s leading experts on nuclear power.

"#FukushimaDaichi Nuclear Power Plant will remain a high-risk explosive scenario for decades ahead. After all, a program for future decommissioning is unclear and overall radiation guesstimates are formidable. All the structures where decommissioning will take place are highly radioactive and as such nearly impossible for the dangers to worker exposure."

Read more:
https://www.counterpunch.org/2023/10/13/fukushima-up-close-13-years-later/

#FukushimaWater #WaterIsLife #TEPCOLies
#NuclearPlants #NoNewNukes #ClimateChange #PacificOcean #Pollution
#Bioaccumulation #NoNukes #RethinkNotRestart