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The government called for increased cooperation to extend the market for traditional crafts, such as "Kokeshi" wooden dolls in Miyagi Prefecture and ironware in Iwate Prefecture. ...
late spring -
the old kettle
still shines
tarda primavera -
il vecchio bollitore
ancora brilla
Tr. Moussia
. Ironware from Iwate - Tetsubin 鉄瓶
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Gabi reports:
Seawater found in coolant at Hamaoka plant
. Hamaoka Power Plant .
The analysis of the early stages at Fukushima reveal a rapid meltdown, see below.
. . . . .
24,178 dead or missing.
Check out a comment
on prevention prouject from GeoHazards International, a Tsunami Evacuation Raised Earth Park (TEREP).
The government is in trouble.
The Kan cabinet approval rate stands at 28%.
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Bulletins from NHK Online
source : www3.nhk.or.jp
Monday, May 16, 2011 05:31
Rapid meltdown occurs in No.1 reactor
Tokyo Electric Power Company says most of the fuel rods in the No.1 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant had dropped to the bottom of the pressure vessel within 16 hours of the earthquake on March 11th.
The plant operator revealed its findings on Sunday.
TEPCO said it analyzed the data and calculated a timeline for developments in the No. 1 reactor on the assumption that it lost its cooling system as soon as the tsunami hit.
The firm said that about four and half hours after the quake the level of water in the pressure vessel fell below the top of fuel rods and that parts of them began melting.
The temperature of the rods is believed to have reached 2,800 degrees Celsius at this stage, and the meltdown advanced rapidly.
Almost all the rods melted and dropped to the bottom of the pressure vessel by 6:50 am on March 12th.
TEPCO said the temperature dropped after water was poured into the reactor starting at 5:50 AM the same day.
The firm says the melted rods created small holes in the bottom of the vessel. It believes the amount of radioactive substances that could spread from the reactor will be limited.
NHK's correspondent says TEPCO should analyze the situations at the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors as soon as possible.
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TEPCO makes effort to grasp precise water levels
Tokyo Electric Power Company will fix gauges in two of the reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to determine precise water levels.
It appears there was a problem with the gauge in the No.1 reactor that showed the level of cooling water at about half the level of the fuel rods. The gauge was fixed on Thursday and then revealed that the rods were completely exposed and melted down.
TEPCO says the gauges at the No.2 and 3 reactors might not be showing the actual water levels, and that the worst case is that the rods have melted down.
The company says the temperatures of the two reactors are stable, so it can proceed with cooling them even if finds that meltdown took place.
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TEPCO: No.4 blast due to hydrogen from No.3
The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant says the March 15th explosion at the No.4 reactor building may have been caused by hydrogen from the No. 3 reactor.
Tokyo Electric Power Company has been investigating the cause of the explosion and fires.
It was initially thought that the March 15th explosion was triggered by hydrogen produced by damaged spent fuel rods in a pool inside the No.4 reactor building. But photographs of the pool taken in April show no damage to the rods.
TEPCO focused on ducts from the No.4 and neighboring No.3 reactor buildings that join into a single duct before an exhaust pipe.
The company says that when it vented gas from the No.3 reactor through the duct, hydrogen may have seeped into the No.4 reactor building. Hydrogen that accumulated in the upper part of the No.4 reactor building may have caused the explosion.
Some experts had suggested that oil in the reactor building could have been one of the reasons for the blast.
By assessing damage to the building, TEPCO says the blast was likely due to a hydrogen explosion, and that oil may have triggered fires after the blast.
TEPCO says workers will go into the reactor buildings and fix the gauges, getting the precise data on water levels needed to continue cooling the reactors.
But conditions inside the buildings are not known and the operation will be difficult.
Monday, May 16, 2011 05:31
Radioactivity at intake of No.3 reactor rises
Radioactive materials in the ocean near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant rose to 3,300 times the legal limit on Sunday.
Tokyo Electric Power Company says it measured 200 becquerels of cesium-134 per cubic centimeter on Sunday morning near the water intake of the No. 3 reactor. The level was higher than on the previous day, when it was 2,300 times the legal limit.
220 becquerels of cesium-137 per cubic centimeter was also detected. At 2,400 times the legal limit, the level exceeded the one found the day before.
On Wednesday, highly radioactive water was found leaking into the ocean from a pit located near the water intake of the No. 3 reactor. 32,000 times the legal limit of cesium-134 was detected there.
TEPCO also reported 2,100 times the legal limit of radioactive iodine was found in seawater near the water intake of the No. 2 reactor. Three points among four research areas along the shoreline also exceeded the legal limit. And 1.7 times the legal limit of Cesium was found close to drainage gates near the No. 5 and No. 6 reactors.
TEPCO says the changes in readings are within a margin of day-to-day volatility. The company will continue to monitor radioactivity levels near the plant.
Monday, May 16, 2011 10:30
More prefectures want radiation forecast system
More prefectures across Japan are calling on the government to expand a computer system that predicts how radioactive materials will spread in the event of a nuclear accident. The data could be useful in drawing up evacuation plans for residents living around nuclear power plants.
The system, called SPEEDI, makes projections based on weather and geographical conditions and currently sends the data to 19 prefectures around the country.
The forecast by SPEEDI turned out to be fairly accurate after the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi power station.
Radioactive materials spread beyond the 10-kilometer radius around the Fukushima plant initially assumed by the government in its disaster preparedness plan.
People living in areas more than 30 kilometers away are now having to evacuate their homes to minimize radiation exposure.
Shiga Prefecture in western Japan is one of the prefectures that has asked for the radiation forecast system. It lies 13 kilometers from a nuclear power plant in neighboring Fukui Prefecture.
Shiga Governor Yukiko Kada says it is unreasonable to draw up evacuation plans simply based on the distance from nuclear power plants. She says such plans should be studied based on data the system provides.
Kyoto Prefecture, also neighboring Fukui, has decided to expand the scope of its disaster preparedness plan to cover areas 20 kilometers from the power plant in Fukui.
Monday, May 16, 2011 13:16
TEPCO: Fuel rods partially exposed above water
The operator of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says it believes the melted fuel rods in the No. 1 reactor are partially exposed above the water's surface.
Tokyo Electric Power Company says the reactor's fuel rods have melted and fallen to the bottom. It says holes were created and the containment vessel was also damaged. A large amount of highly radioactive water is believed to be leaking into the reactor building.
TEPCO says that as of 11 AM on Sunday, the temperature of the reactor's upper section was 110.4 degrees Celsius, and the lower part was 88.6 degrees.
It says it believes that the exposed fuel is generating hot vapor.
The company also says the temperature of the reactor's upper section fell more than 15 degrees after it increased the amount of cooling water being injected into the reactor from 8 to 10 tons per hour on Sunday.
The utility says it will carefully monitor the reactor's temperatures.
Monday, May 16, 2011 11:32
Whereabouts of over 9,000 evacuees unknown
Municipal governments in Fukushima Prefecture say they are unable to confirm the whereabouts of more than 9,000 people who were forced to evacuate after the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
Residents of 8 municipalities within the 20-kilometer no-entry zone around the plant had to leave the area. Local governments do not know where about 9,200 of them, or 12 percent of the population, have relocated to.
As a result, the governments have not been able to help these survivors. They cannot issue disaster certificates, pay aid funds, or explain procedures for brief home visits.
The governments are concerned they will face difficulties rebuilding their towns and villages if these residents remain unaccounted for.
The central government says it will work to make the public aware of a toll-free phone number for survivors, and a system that notifies the 8 localities when evacuees contact a municipality they have fled to.
Monday, May 16, 2011 13:16
TEPCO: Fuel rods partially exposed above water
The operator of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says it believes the melted fuel rods in the No. 1 reactor are partially exposed above the water's surface.
Tokyo Electric Power Company says the reactor's fuel rods have melted and fallen to the bottom. It says holes were created and the containment vessel was also damaged. A large amount of highly radioactive water is believed to be leaking into the reactor building.
TEPCO says that as of 11 AM on Sunday, the temperature of the reactor's upper section was 110.4 degrees Celsius, and the lower part was 88.6 degrees.
It says it believes that the exposed fuel is generating hot vapor.
The company also says the temperature of the reactor's upper section fell more than 15 degrees after it increased the amount of cooling water being injected into the reactor from 8 to 10 tons per hour on Sunday.
The utility says it will carefully monitor the reactor's temperatures.
Monday, May 16, 2011 13:16
Kan: Fukushima plant may be contained as scheduled
Prime Minister Naoto Kan says the accident-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant may be brought under control in 6 to 9 months as laid out in a timetable released by its operator last month.
Speaking at the Lower House Budget Committee on Monday, Kan referred to the schedule drawn up by Tokyo Electric Power Company in mid-April. The utility is set to announce on Tuesday a new version of the schedule, revised after a series of developments at the plant.
Kan indicated that work to cool down and stabilize the reactors at the plant may be completed in 6 to 9 months, as projected in the original timeline.
He also said the government will release its own timetable on the accident, including prospects for residents forced to evacuate due to radiation leakage.
Meanwhile, TEPCO President Masataka Shimizu testified about compensation payments for people affected by the nuclear accident.
Shimizu said that it is extremely difficult for the company to get loans or raise funds through issuing corporate bonds. He said that if the company is to compensate for various types of damage, it may run short of money and be unable to pay compensation in a fair and swift way.
The president asked the Diet to pass legislation during its current session to realize a government framework to help his company make payments. The current session is due to end later next month.
Monday, May 16, 2011 14:13
Fukushima prosecutor chief transferred
The top district prosecutor in Fukushima has been replaced over the release of crime suspects by his office in the aftermath of the March 11th disaster in eastern Japan.
The Justice Ministry took the action on Monday for Akira Nakamura, the chief of the Fukushima District Public Prosecutors Office.
The office released 31 crime suspects after the earthquake and tsunami, saying the disaster had made it difficult to carry out investigations to substantiate the charges against them.
In reporting the decision to the Sendai High Prosecutors Office, the Fukushima office said the suspects had committed minor crimes.
However, it was later discovered that one was suspected of sexual assault. Another was arrested on break-in charges.
Justice Minister Satsuki Eda said the releases were inappropriate. He said they were made without sufficient coordination with the relevant institutions and caused anxiety to local residents. The Sendai High Public Prosecutors Office also told Nakamura, the chief Fukushima district prosecutor, to take measures to prevent a recurrence.
Nakamura was transferred to a post at the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office. The chief of the Kagoshima District Prosecutors Office, Iikura Tatsuya, succeeded him.
Monday, May 16, 2011 19:49
TEPCO to move radioactive water from No.3 reactor
The operator of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says it will start transferring highly radioactive water from the No.3 reactor building to a temporary storage facility as early as Tuesday.
Tokyo Electric Power Company estimates that there is about 22,000 tons of highly radioactive water in the reactor's turbine building and in a connecting tunnel.
The utility says the water in the basement of the turbine building was about 1.4 meters high as of Monday morning, a rise of more than 20 centimeters over the past 2 weeks. Part of the water leaked into the sea last week.
TEPCO says it will move about 4,000 tons of the contaminated water to the waste processing facility. The pace of the transfer will be 10 tons per hour.
The company says it took steps to make the waste facility more watertight, and received approval from the government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.
Monday, May 16, 2011 19:49
Fukushima companies want nuke plant scrapped
Companies operating near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant have demanded that its operator permanently shut down the damaged facility as its radiation leaks are harming their business.
About 120 business people attended a briefing by Tokyo Electric Power Company in Iwaki City on Monday to hear how the utility is addressing the accident at the plant.
Iwaki is more than 30 kilometers away from the nuclear plant and so outside the evacuation zone.
But manufacturers in the city say clients are demanding radiation checks for their products. Sales of local farm produce have fallen.
TEPCO officials said the utility will have to revise its strategy to stabilize Reactor No. 1, where nuclear fuel rods are believed to have melted.
But they said the initial plan for stabilizing the No.1 and other reactors by January next year remains unchanged.
The officials declined to say when the plant will be decommissioned, on the grounds that TEPCO does not know what is taking place inside the reactors and so cannot give timelines.
Monday, May 16, 2011 19:49
Governors' nuclear demands
Prefectures hosting nuclear power plants have agreed to demand that the central government establish clearer nuclear safety standards.
The governors of 14 prefectures met in Tokyo on Monday.
They discussed ways to ease residents' concerns over nuclear safety in the wake of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant caused by the March 11th earthquake and tsunami.
Aomori Governor Shingo Mimura, who chairs the group, said the Fukushima accident will likely have a variety of impacts on prefectures hosting nuclear facilities.
The prefectural leaders agreed to ask the central government to fully investigate the Fukushima nuclear accident. They also want a rational explanation of Prime Minister Naoto Kan's request to shut down the Hamaoka power plant in central Japan. They are demanding that the government set clearer standards and conditions for nuclear safety.
Currently 35 reactors, or two-thirds of Japan's total, are shut down. Some were stopped after the March disaster while others remain down after routine inspections.
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Voices from around
. Daily Radiation Levels .
. . . . .
Japan Times :
Core of reactor 1 melted 16 hours after quake
The meltdown at reactor No. 1 in Fukushima happened more quickly than feared, ...
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110516a1.html
Quake 'hurt reactors before tsunami'
High radiation readings in the No. 1 reactor building on March 11 suggest that the quake rather than the tsunami set the course for the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant.
High radiation readings taken in the No. 1 reactor building the night of March 11 suggest it was the quake rather than the loss of cooling that critically damaged the Fukushima No. 1 power plant, a utility source said Saturday.
The belated disclosure could trigger a review of quake-preparedness at nuclear facilities across the country. Many have been focusing on increasing defenses against tsunami, which knocked out the plant's poorly placed emergency power generators. ...
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110516a3.html
First evacuations begin from widened no-go zone
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110516a2.html
Families caring for quake orphans tap few benefits
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110516a6.html
. . .
Two-thirds back Kan over Hamaoka closure
Prime Minister Naoto Kan's decision to request the closure of the Hamaoka nuclear power plant was supported by 66.2 percent of the public, a new poll says.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110516a4.html
Trouble hampered cold shutdown at Hamaoka
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110516a5.html
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