Japan Atomic Emergency Bulletin #2
Radio Ecoshock | 13.03.2011 06:34 | Ecology | Energy Crisis | Technology
Japanese news says six reactors are in danger of melting down. One has already blown up. The government covers up while hundreds of thousands evacuate. The world economy could blow up as well.
This is Alex Smith of Radio Ecoshock with Bulletin Number Two concerning the atomic emergency in Japan, following the record-breaking earthquake and tsunami in March, 2011.
As of ten o'clock Pacific Time, Saturday the containment building of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor #1 has blown up. The video of a violent explosion is seen all over Network
news and the Internet.
Now we learn up to six Japanese nuclear reactors are out of control and in danger of melting down.
The cause of the first explosion was likely not atomic, but caused by extreme heat generated by an atomic pile with insuffient cooling. Japanese government officials admit the
radioactive rods inside the reactor were above the water line, emitting radioactivity and heat.
The government was attempting to release pressure and heat from the reactor, when the outer concrete shell of the structure blew up.
The direct cause may have been thermal decompostion of water into it's consituent elements, including oxygen and hydrogen. Hydrogen is very flamable, and may have blown the
building. That would put the temperature inside the reactor building over 1000 degrees Celsius.
http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/japans-evolving-nuclear-accident/54345
The other possibility is a steam explosion. Water suddenly and rapidly expands into steam, while interacting with molten metals in the reactor core, and under pressure. Again, this
requires very high heat as well.
In either case, a solid concrete building around an over-heating and out-of-control reactor was blown into dust. The Japanese government claims that the reactor itself was not
damaged. Even less believable, the government then said emissions of radioactive materials declined after the explosion.
Meanwhile, the government increased the area for evacuations from 5 to 10 kilometers, and then to 20 km (12.4 miles) following the explosion. By the end of Sunday, about 170,000
people were evacuated from their homes, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Most of them would be wondering whether they would ever be allowed to return to their homes again. Many of those evacuated from Chernobyl were never allowed to return, to an
area left as a radioactive wasteland. Whether this happens in Japan depends on the extent of the melt-downs to come.
It turns out both the operating company Tokyo electric Power (Tepco) and the government knew that at least two other reactors were also in danger of melting down, but this was not
announced until almost 24 hours later, on Sunday morning in Japan. Tepco was releasing more radioactive steam from other reactors at both the Number 1 and Number 2 plants.
More radioactivity, with few announcements.
The government is now admitting that at least 160 people have been irradiated, including some patients and ambulance workers at a hospital some miles away. Thousands are being
checked with wands for radioactivity, another frightening experienc, espeically for parents with children. Officials are also showing tablets on television, ready in case children in the
region are exposed to thyroid destroying radioactive particles.
The radioactive element caesium has been detected outside the power plant. This can only come from the reactor core.
The utility company admitted Sunday morning that in the No.1 Fukushima plant, they could no longer cool the reactor core. That made 2 reactors heading toward, or already fully
involved in, a melt-down. On the same day, Kyodo, the official Japanese news agency, said this was "the sixth reactor overall at the Fukushima No. 1 and No.2 plants to undergo
cooling failure since the massive earthquakt and ensuing tsunami struck Japan on Friday."
Six reactors in cooling failure - a multiple chain of system failures in Japan. The outcome is not known at this time. Perhaps the government, following its performance so far, is
covering up not just the risks, but the damage already done.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano onsunday told the press that a "partial meltdown" is "higly possible" - but the heat and danger are so high, no one can get close enough to the
reactors to see what is happening. He admitted the fuel rods had been exposed for some time.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/asia-pacific/partial-meltdown-likely-underway-at-reactor-japanese-official/article1939779/
Various American nuclear experts say they think a melt-down has already occured in at least one reactor.
These reactors are old, commissioned around 1971, built by Westinghouse.
The Japanese government was warned these and other reactors in Japan were unsafe, due to the likelyhood of earthquakes. Seismologist Ishibashi Katsuhiko, a professor at Kobe
University, told government ministers that Japanese atomic plants at Shika, Onagawa and Kashiwazaki-Kariwa were all hit by earthquakes larger than their design capabilities,
between 2005 and 2007.
The older Fukushima plants were built to withstand just 7.0 (on the scale used inWestern countries) - and not 8.9 as actually occured.
After the Kushiwazaki reactor caught fire, and released radioactivity following an earthquake July 16, 2007 - Professor Katsuhiko warned the government many reactors were unsafe,
due to predictable seismic activity. The government took no action.
Futher, there has been a trend in the nuclear power industry world-wide to build reactors both near Seismic faults, like several in California. Two big reactors at San Onofre and Diablo
Canyon were not designed to withstand such an earthquake. American scientists point out a quake in California could be even larger, due to the opposing tectonic plates just off
shore.
But also, around the world, nuclear power plants were built at the sea-side. That allows the reactors to dump their heated water into the sea (which harms the nearby ecosystem). But
it also sets them up for tsunami damage once a quake occurs. I am still searching for the number of ocean-side nuclear plants, but it could be up to 100, in over a dozen countries. All
of them are at extreme danger from a tsunami.
It appears that the tsunami, rather than the earthquake, flooded the reactor buildings in Japan, knocking out controls, but also the diesel backup systems and other safety measures.
Now the government and the utility are using their last hope: flooding the damaged reactors, up to half a dozen of them, with sea water and Boron.
From everything I have read, this means those reactors can never be reopened. The salt damage will be too extensive to repair. It is the end for most reactors at the Fukushima site.
that could be a big relief for the local residents - if their homes and schools are not irradiated, closing the area possible for a hundred years or more.
I have not even discussed another nuclear facility that is also damaged, which houses radioactive waste from the reactors. Few details have been provided about that situation, as
those waste pools must also be constantly cooled.
During all this, the goverment of Japan, and the utility company, have been soft-pedalling the situation, to avoid panic. I have heard officials say the concrete container buildng just had
its walls "fall down" - even as we saw video of a big explosion. At almost every press appearance, the repeated radiation releases from an admited "partial melt-down" (whatever that
means) is always "minor" and of no health concern.
It is just this withholding of information, which even President Obama complained about, that happened at Chernobyl, at Three Mile Island, and at the next nuclear accident near you.
Authorities simply cannot be trusted in these matters. That is the record, and that is happening now.
We move from the developing nuclear accident, to the larger impact this has on the world economy. As I said in my first podcast Friday night, big car manufacturers like Toyota and
Honda have completely closed down their operations. Sony had several semi-conductor plants in the Northern part of Japan, in the quake-struck area. Several airports are closed,
the Tokyo airport is refusing many flights except Japan Airlines. All the sea ports are closed. Some of them are inoperable.
As the world's third largest economy, Japan matters. The country was starting to climb out of a long-term recession, the government claimed, although others doubt official statistics.
This grand-scale disaster may provide a short burst of rebuilding jobs, as the cost of pushing Japanese government debt into a stratosphere, teetering again on the edge of
bankruptcy.
Japan's national debt is already more than twice it's Gross Domestic Product. The government of Japan makes countries like Greece and Spain look like good credit risks (and they
are close to bankruptcy).
In order to pay for the rebuilding, we can expect Japanese insurance companies, big business and big investment funds to sell off their huge holdings in U.S. Treasury bonds. Japan
is second only to China as the largest holder of U.S Treasuries, holding an estimated 882 billion dollars worth.
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203423404576186753638020570.html?mod=BOL_twm_mw
It Japan starts selling, America will have even more trouble selling the debt it needs just to operate the government, which is still in heavy deficit spending. Nobody knows the impact
this change in money flow will have on either economy.
Others speculate that Japan will stop buying eurozone bonds. Again, Japanese insurance companies were buying into European investments, apparently as part of the so-called
Shadow Banking system. That is unregistered trades between private parties, not held on public books, with unregulated trading.
At the financial blog Zero Hedge, star writer Tyler Durden asks "Will The Japanese Earthquake Be The Straw That Breaks Europe's Back?"
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/will-japanese-earthquake-be-straw-breaks-europes-back
That is, will this disaster finally trip various European countries, or even the whole Euro system, into bankruptcy?
Of course, this demonstration of the huge risks, and unstoppable accidents, could paralyze new nuclear construction world-wide. The new Japanese government had promised a
program of renewable energy during the election, but afterwards switched to a very expensive promise of more nuclear building. That seems unlikely now.
Greens who have criticized nuclear power as inherently unsafe are suddenly appearing on television again, after a long time in exile. In the German Parliament, there are calls for an
end to Germany's nuclear plants.
Today, Saturday, anti-nuclear protesters held a demonstration by creating a human chain 45 kilimeters long, running from Stuttgart to an old nuclear power plant, still running despite
promises it would be closed. That was at least 50,000 people in the demonstration, just two weeks before an election that could see more Greens elected in Germany.
On the ground back in Japan, there are at least a quarter of a million people in temporary shelters. Likely there are thousands still awaiting rescue. Even in the big cities, basic food-
stuffs and bottled water have disappeared off store shelves. Being prepared with stored food and water is always a good idea.
Gasoline stations have run out, or are rationing. Many telephone systems are not working. Million of people are without power. Thousands of people are still missing and presumed
dead.
Tokyo streets look like a ghost-town. And while the clock ticks, six nuclear reactors are overheating, threatening to close off large parts of that island nation into a long-lasting
radioactive no-man's land.
Even though I have warned about the dangers of nuclear power for more than 30 years, I sincerely hope that does not happen. If the technicians and workers can pump enough sea
water into those half dozen reactors, to prevent a complete and total melt-down and release, I will cheer along with all the people of Japan.
And then we have to imagine the new carbon-free future - without this insanely dangerous nuclear technology.
I'm Alex Smith for Radio Ecoshock.
You can read this bulletin at our blog site, http://www.ecoshock.info. Listen to more shows on nuclear power risks, by using our audio on demand menu, on the main page at
http://www.ecoshock.org.
As of ten o'clock Pacific Time, Saturday the containment building of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor #1 has blown up. The video of a violent explosion is seen all over Network
news and the Internet.
Now we learn up to six Japanese nuclear reactors are out of control and in danger of melting down.
The cause of the first explosion was likely not atomic, but caused by extreme heat generated by an atomic pile with insuffient cooling. Japanese government officials admit the
radioactive rods inside the reactor were above the water line, emitting radioactivity and heat.
The government was attempting to release pressure and heat from the reactor, when the outer concrete shell of the structure blew up.
The direct cause may have been thermal decompostion of water into it's consituent elements, including oxygen and hydrogen. Hydrogen is very flamable, and may have blown the
building. That would put the temperature inside the reactor building over 1000 degrees Celsius.
http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/japans-evolving-nuclear-accident/54345 The other possibility is a steam explosion. Water suddenly and rapidly expands into steam, while interacting with molten metals in the reactor core, and under pressure. Again, this
requires very high heat as well.
In either case, a solid concrete building around an over-heating and out-of-control reactor was blown into dust. The Japanese government claims that the reactor itself was not
damaged. Even less believable, the government then said emissions of radioactive materials declined after the explosion.
Meanwhile, the government increased the area for evacuations from 5 to 10 kilometers, and then to 20 km (12.4 miles) following the explosion. By the end of Sunday, about 170,000
people were evacuated from their homes, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Most of them would be wondering whether they would ever be allowed to return to their homes again. Many of those evacuated from Chernobyl were never allowed to return, to an
area left as a radioactive wasteland. Whether this happens in Japan depends on the extent of the melt-downs to come.
It turns out both the operating company Tokyo electric Power (Tepco) and the government knew that at least two other reactors were also in danger of melting down, but this was not
announced until almost 24 hours later, on Sunday morning in Japan. Tepco was releasing more radioactive steam from other reactors at both the Number 1 and Number 2 plants.
More radioactivity, with few announcements.
The government is now admitting that at least 160 people have been irradiated, including some patients and ambulance workers at a hospital some miles away. Thousands are being
checked with wands for radioactivity, another frightening experienc, espeically for parents with children. Officials are also showing tablets on television, ready in case children in the
region are exposed to thyroid destroying radioactive particles.
The radioactive element caesium has been detected outside the power plant. This can only come from the reactor core.
The utility company admitted Sunday morning that in the No.1 Fukushima plant, they could no longer cool the reactor core. That made 2 reactors heading toward, or already fully
involved in, a melt-down. On the same day, Kyodo, the official Japanese news agency, said this was "the sixth reactor overall at the Fukushima No. 1 and No.2 plants to undergo
cooling failure since the massive earthquakt and ensuing tsunami struck Japan on Friday."
Six reactors in cooling failure - a multiple chain of system failures in Japan. The outcome is not known at this time. Perhaps the government, following its performance so far, is
covering up not just the risks, but the damage already done.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano onsunday told the press that a "partial meltdown" is "higly possible" - but the heat and danger are so high, no one can get close enough to the
reactors to see what is happening. He admitted the fuel rods had been exposed for some time.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/asia-pacific/partial-meltdown-likely-underway-at-reactor-japanese-official/article1939779/ Various American nuclear experts say they think a melt-down has already occured in at least one reactor.
These reactors are old, commissioned around 1971, built by Westinghouse.
The Japanese government was warned these and other reactors in Japan were unsafe, due to the likelyhood of earthquakes. Seismologist Ishibashi Katsuhiko, a professor at Kobe
University, told government ministers that Japanese atomic plants at Shika, Onagawa and Kashiwazaki-Kariwa were all hit by earthquakes larger than their design capabilities,
between 2005 and 2007.
The older Fukushima plants were built to withstand just 7.0 (on the scale used inWestern countries) - and not 8.9 as actually occured.
After the Kushiwazaki reactor caught fire, and released radioactivity following an earthquake July 16, 2007 - Professor Katsuhiko warned the government many reactors were unsafe,
due to predictable seismic activity. The government took no action.
Futher, there has been a trend in the nuclear power industry world-wide to build reactors both near Seismic faults, like several in California. Two big reactors at San Onofre and Diablo
Canyon were not designed to withstand such an earthquake. American scientists point out a quake in California could be even larger, due to the opposing tectonic plates just off
shore.
But also, around the world, nuclear power plants were built at the sea-side. That allows the reactors to dump their heated water into the sea (which harms the nearby ecosystem). But
it also sets them up for tsunami damage once a quake occurs. I am still searching for the number of ocean-side nuclear plants, but it could be up to 100, in over a dozen countries. All
of them are at extreme danger from a tsunami.
It appears that the tsunami, rather than the earthquake, flooded the reactor buildings in Japan, knocking out controls, but also the diesel backup systems and other safety measures.
Now the government and the utility are using their last hope: flooding the damaged reactors, up to half a dozen of them, with sea water and Boron.
From everything I have read, this means those reactors can never be reopened. The salt damage will be too extensive to repair. It is the end for most reactors at the Fukushima site.
that could be a big relief for the local residents - if their homes and schools are not irradiated, closing the area possible for a hundred years or more.
I have not even discussed another nuclear facility that is also damaged, which houses radioactive waste from the reactors. Few details have been provided about that situation, as
those waste pools must also be constantly cooled.
During all this, the goverment of Japan, and the utility company, have been soft-pedalling the situation, to avoid panic. I have heard officials say the concrete container buildng just had
its walls "fall down" - even as we saw video of a big explosion. At almost every press appearance, the repeated radiation releases from an admited "partial melt-down" (whatever that
means) is always "minor" and of no health concern.
It is just this withholding of information, which even President Obama complained about, that happened at Chernobyl, at Three Mile Island, and at the next nuclear accident near you.
Authorities simply cannot be trusted in these matters. That is the record, and that is happening now.
We move from the developing nuclear accident, to the larger impact this has on the world economy. As I said in my first podcast Friday night, big car manufacturers like Toyota and
Honda have completely closed down their operations. Sony had several semi-conductor plants in the Northern part of Japan, in the quake-struck area. Several airports are closed,
the Tokyo airport is refusing many flights except Japan Airlines. All the sea ports are closed. Some of them are inoperable.
As the world's third largest economy, Japan matters. The country was starting to climb out of a long-term recession, the government claimed, although others doubt official statistics.
This grand-scale disaster may provide a short burst of rebuilding jobs, as the cost of pushing Japanese government debt into a stratosphere, teetering again on the edge of
bankruptcy.
Japan's national debt is already more than twice it's Gross Domestic Product. The government of Japan makes countries like Greece and Spain look like good credit risks (and they
are close to bankruptcy).
In order to pay for the rebuilding, we can expect Japanese insurance companies, big business and big investment funds to sell off their huge holdings in U.S. Treasury bonds. Japan
is second only to China as the largest holder of U.S Treasuries, holding an estimated 882 billion dollars worth.
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203423404576186753638020570.html?mod=BOL_twm_mw It Japan starts selling, America will have even more trouble selling the debt it needs just to operate the government, which is still in heavy deficit spending. Nobody knows the impact
this change in money flow will have on either economy.
Others speculate that Japan will stop buying eurozone bonds. Again, Japanese insurance companies were buying into European investments, apparently as part of the so-called
Shadow Banking system. That is unregistered trades between private parties, not held on public books, with unregulated trading.
At the financial blog Zero Hedge, star writer Tyler Durden asks "Will The Japanese Earthquake Be The Straw That Breaks Europe's Back?"
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/will-japanese-earthquake-be-straw-breaks-europes-back That is, will this disaster finally trip various European countries, or even the whole Euro system, into bankruptcy?
Of course, this demonstration of the huge risks, and unstoppable accidents, could paralyze new nuclear construction world-wide. The new Japanese government had promised a
program of renewable energy during the election, but afterwards switched to a very expensive promise of more nuclear building. That seems unlikely now.
Greens who have criticized nuclear power as inherently unsafe are suddenly appearing on television again, after a long time in exile. In the German Parliament, there are calls for an
end to Germany's nuclear plants.
Today, Saturday, anti-nuclear protesters held a demonstration by creating a human chain 45 kilimeters long, running from Stuttgart to an old nuclear power plant, still running despite
promises it would be closed. That was at least 50,000 people in the demonstration, just two weeks before an election that could see more Greens elected in Germany.
On the ground back in Japan, there are at least a quarter of a million people in temporary shelters. Likely there are thousands still awaiting rescue. Even in the big cities, basic food-
stuffs and bottled water have disappeared off store shelves. Being prepared with stored food and water is always a good idea.
Gasoline stations have run out, or are rationing. Many telephone systems are not working. Million of people are without power. Thousands of people are still missing and presumed
dead.
Tokyo streets look like a ghost-town. And while the clock ticks, six nuclear reactors are overheating, threatening to close off large parts of that island nation into a long-lasting
radioactive no-man's land.
Even though I have warned about the dangers of nuclear power for more than 30 years, I sincerely hope that does not happen. If the technicians and workers can pump enough sea
water into those half dozen reactors, to prevent a complete and total melt-down and release, I will cheer along with all the people of Japan.
And then we have to imagine the new carbon-free future - without this insanely dangerous nuclear technology.
I'm Alex Smith for Radio Ecoshock.
You can read this bulletin at our blog site,
http://www.ecoshock.info. Listen to more shows on nuclear power risks, by using our audio on demand menu, on the main page at http://www.ecoshock.org.
Radio Ecoshock
Homepage:
http://www.ecoshock.org
Comments
Hide the following 4 comments
no nuclear
13.03.2011 08:36
nigh
Q&A: how dangerous is the nuclear ‘meltdown’ at Fukushima?
14.03.2011 03:44
Mark Henderson Science Editor
The Times, March 14 2011 12:01AM
Based on interviews with Professor Robin Grimes, director of the Centre for Nuclear Engineering, Imperial College London, and Paddy Regan, Professor of Nuclear Physics, University of Surrey
What has happened to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors?
Three of the plant’s six reactors were running at the time of the earthquake and were immediately shut down. Control rods were inserted into the core to stop nuclear fission.
Even after shutdown, a reactor will remain hot because of residual radioactive decay in its fuel rods. So water must be pumped in to cover these rods and cool them.
Grid electricity for these pumps failed, and an hour later back-up diesel generators were swamped by the tsunami. Battery power was insufficient to cool all the reactors fully, causing reactor 1 to overheat. Reactor 3 later overheated as well, reportedly because of a water injection failure.
What are the consequences of overheating?
Much of the water covering the fuel rods turns to steam, exposing more of the rods and raising temperatures further. The steam also increases pressure within the reactor vessel. If this increases too much, rupture is possible. Rising temperatures can also cause meltdown.
What is meltdown and does it matter?
It occurs when the zirconium alloy casings of fuel rods melt, exposing the uranium or plutonium fuel and radioactive by-products such as caesium-137. This radioactive material can then mix with steam, so that if there is an explosion it can be released to the atmosphere.
Melting fuel rods also clog the bottom of the core, but this is more of an issue for clean-up than public safety. It is technically possible for molten fuel to melt the containment vessels around the core, but it is extremely unlikely.
A meltdown does not mean there will inevitably be an explosion or major radiation release. Reactors are designed to contain meltdowns.
Are the reactors in meltdown?
The Japanese authorities have given conflicting statements. As caesium-137 has been detected outside reactor 1, a partial meltdown is possible. The situation in reactor 3 is uncertain.
What is being done about it?
Steam has been deliberately vented from the containment vessels to lower pressure. Low levels of radioactive isotopes are present in this steam, but it does not present a serious health risk. Evacuations are precautionary.
Seawater has been pumped in to cool the reactors, together with boric acid which catches neutrons and reduces heat from residual decay. The methods are untested, but nuclear engineers believe they should work.
What was the explosion on Saturday?
In overheated reactors, water can react with zirconium to produce hydrogen. Once vented from the containment chamber, this ignited to cause the explosion. Though dramatic, it did not damage the containment chamber. The outer walls that were destroyed were nothing more than a weatherproof shell, and are not involved in containing the reactor core.
How does this compare with other nuclear accidents?
It is most similar to the Three Mile Island disaster of 1979, though less serious. Fukushima is rated at 4 on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s 7-point scale, while Three Mile Island was rated 5. Three Mile Island involved a partial core meltdown, which was fully contained with little radiation release.
Is a Chernobyl-type disaster possible?
No. The circumstances of Chernobyl (a level-7 disaster) were fundamentally different. A botched safety test while the reactor was running caused a surge of pressure, explosions and a fire. This was worsened because the reactor lacked adequate containment — its design would not have been permitted outside the Soviet Union — so a plume of radioactive debris was thrown into the atmosphere.
Will there be a nuclear explosion?
No. Nuclear reactors cannot produce these. Even Chernobyl was the result of pressure and chemical explosions that threw out radioactive material: more similar to a “dirty bomb” than an atomic bomb.
What are the risks to public health?
So long as the containment vessels around the core remain intact, there will be minimal risk.
What does this mean for nuclear power in the UK?
Anti-nuclear campaigners are likely to seize on the incident to portray nuclear power as inherently unsafe, and Chris Huhne the Energy Secretary, yesterday asked the Chief Nuclear Inspector to investigate its implications.
Several factors, though, limit its relevance to the UK. Britain is not in a seismically active zone where severe earthquakes are a risk. The Fukushima reactors are also old designs very different from those that would be chosen if Britain built new atomic plants.
The Japanese plants have foundered because they have active safety systems in which water must be pumped in to cool them down. New reactors have passive safety systems, which use natural forces such as gravity and convection to cool down, so they “fail safe” without intervention.
Reality check
Little reality in 'reality check'.
14.03.2011 09:44
Published from the CNIC
Context and further reading
Revelation of Endless N-damage Cover-ups
the “TEPCO scandal” and the adverse trend of easing inspection standards
There has been a series of significant nuclear accidents over the past few years. To name a few, there was the Monju sodium leakage accident in December 1995, the Tokai reprocessing plant asphalt drum explosion accident in March 1997, and the JCO criticality accident in September 1999. On each occasion, the electric companies claimed that the nuclear power plants are operated with strict safety management. Since August 2002, however, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the largest electric utility in the nation and several other electric companies have plunged into a chain of scandals. On August 29 at 6 p.m., the Nuclear Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) announced at a press conference that TEPCO had falsified voluntary inspection reports and concealed it for many years. TEPCO admitted the stated facts at the press conference later in the same day. According to the agency, TEPCO has falsified the inspection records and attempted to hide cracks in reactor vessel shrouds in 13 units of the 17 nuclear power plants owned by TEPCO, including Fukushima I (6 reactors), Fukushima II (4 reactors), and Kashiwazaki-Kariwa (7 reactors). However, the agency maintained that there should be no problem regarding the safety of the nuclear power plants. Ironically, the safety assessment by the agency was based on TEPCO’s calculation.The TEPCO’s wrongdoings were exposed as a result of a whistle-blowing by a former engineer at General Electric International Inc. (GEII) in information given to the then Ministry of International Economy and Industry (MITI) (the former body of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, METI) on July 2000. The tip-offs revealed the falsification of inspection records regarding cracks in a steam dryer, as well as the attempt to hide the repair work for the cracks by the editing of video tapes. This insider’s information was never taken seriously by the then MITI (after January 2001, the NISA took over administrative authority from the METI) and the case was left virtually untouched for two years. “We needed a time to protect the status of the whistle-blower and we didn’t know whether we had the right to investigate the case,” said the agency after the press conference on August 29. On the contrary, it was found later that the METI leaked the whistle-blower’s name to TEPCO, which clearly suggests the Ministry failed to support the person who blew the whistle on corporate corruption. While TEPCO had not taken any appropriate measures against the insider’s tip-offs, it set up a special joint inspection group in conjunction with GEII on May 2002 to investigate the case, suspecting that there might be more falsification cases in the company.
It has been confirmed that there are 29 cases of falsification, which were related to damage in many parts of the reactor pressure vessel such as core shroud, jet pump, access hole cover, feed water spurger, on-core monitor housing and others. The NISA and the TEPCO published interim reports on September 13 and 17 respectively, which addressed the 29 suspected cases in more detail. Regarding the cracks detected in the core shroud, according to the report, they had been already found at Fukushima I Unit-1 and Unit-4 in 1993, where the cracks in the middle part of the shroud at Fukushima I Unit-2 in 1994 were reported officially as the first case. The magnitude of the cracks in Fukushima I Unit-2 turned out to be far greater and more serious than the ones announced by the official report. It has also become clear that reactors in Fukushima I Unit 1, 3, and 5 have cracks in each shroud, so the claim that no cracks were found in the core shrouds and that they were replaced as a “preventive measure” is completely false.
It is reported that cracks were found in the core shrouds of Fukushima II Unit 2, 3, and 4 and Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, 1 and 3, which is composed of the anti-stress collision crack material (SUS316L) after 10 years of their operation. It is now clear that there were more than 29 falsification scandals.
On September 20, other damage cover-ups in the re-circulation pipe system were revealed in TEPCO’s eight nuclear reactors, as well as Onagawa Unit-1 of Tohoku Electric Power Company and Hamaoka Unit-1 of Chubu Electric Power Company. In addition, other cracks in the core shroud were found at Onagawa Unit-1, Hamaoka Unit-4, Tsuruga Unit-1 (Japan Atomic Power Co., Ltd), and Shimane Unit-1. As has been pointed out, this series of cover-ups showed the scandal was not merely TEPCO’s particular problem but involved most of the nation’s electric companies (see map below).
Electric companies have made most data falsifications during voluntary inspection. There have been a growing number of damage cover-ups and data falsifications around 1994 when electric companies had started shortening the time for a periodical inspection having learned from the “success” experience in the U.S. In the same period, similar cracks were found in the core shroud of BWRs in many countries including the U.S., Sweden, Taiwan, Spain, and Germany, which have become serious issues in such countries. Although similar cases were also found in some of the reactors in Japan, electric companies only partially announced these accidents to the public.
Moreover, TEPCO falsified data from the containment vessel leak rate inspections conducted during periodical inspection at Fukushima I Unit-1by injecting compressed air into the containment vessel in order to pass the inspection. The falsification of containment vessel leak rate inspections at Fukushima I Unit-1 was revealed at the end of September, one month after the TEPCO scandal, and the TEPCO received the penalty of suspending the operation of Unit-1 for 12 months when it admitted the camouflage with the inspection report. However, it has been pointed out that a similar camouflage method during the inspections has been conducted in other units of the Fukushima II. Has the camouflage only been practiced in Fukushima I Unit-1?
The “healthiness” of Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV)’s head parts at PWRs should be another focal point. As mentioned earlier in this article, replacements of the core shroud were carried out as a “preventive measure,” which means to ensure the “healthiness” of the shroud, at Fukushima I-1, I-3, and I-5. However, TEPCO never reported to the agency that there were cracks in these shrouds. Several electric companies (Kansai Electric Power Co., Shikoku Electric Power Co., and Kyushu Electric Power Co.) have replaced their 11 units of reactor vessel head (all of them are PWRs) as a “preventive measure”. Did these reactor vessel heads have any defects at the replacements?
Although each electric power company submitted their interim survey reports on the scandal on November 15 according to NISA’s request, the reports only addressed the history of voluntary inspections conducted for the past 3 years. What about the voluntary inspections conducted more than 3 years ago, or the examination records by inspection companies and the periodical inspections other than voluntary inspections? According to several sources, the then MITI has instructed electric companies to hide accident reports. Although NISA only accused TEPCO, it has never attempted to investigate the MITI itself. The TEPCO scandal only reflects the tip of the iceberg; the depth of the injustice by the electric companies and bureaucrats concerning nuclear power in Japan has not yet become fully resolved. However, the administrative body such as NISA is trying to adversely ease nuclear safety regulations despite the fact that “failure in the regulation” was the primary cause of the scandal.
In order to increase the availability factor of nuclear power plants, NISA has been preparing to simplify periodical inspection procedures. The agency is trying to introduce into nuclear safety regulation the so-called "safety allowance measure", which reflects the assessment of defects during operation. The proposed measure is intended to supplement the present technical standard, which defines the specifications of plant design and modification. The measure is intend to cut costs incurred by the maintenance of aged nuclear plants, and adoption of the standard should directly lead to lower the safety margin of nuclear reactor. Especially for aged nuclear power plants, more severe safety regulations should be established by applying the principle of preservation of order and public safety.
While the TEPCO scandal has had enormous societal impact, local governments of electric power source area, where they have been cooperating in the development of nuclear energy, rage at the scandal, realizing that they have been deceived, and their anger is ever stronger. Prior agreement on the Plu-thermal program was canceled not only by Fukushima prefecture, which has criticized the government nuclear policy, but also by Niigata prefecture. The Plu-thermal program has effectively come to an end. Then, there is no rationale for the plutonium use. What is Rokkasho reprocessing plant for, which has been constructed to start operation in 2005? We should abandon nuclear power, which is only maintained with falsification.
(Chihiro Kamisawa and Satoshi Fujino)

Map: The TEPCO scandal triggered the revelation of numerous damage cover-ups at the NPPs of other electric power companies. However, these cover-ups are only the tip of the iceberg. The scandal resulted in a setback for the Plu-thermal program (mixed oxide of uranium and plutonium fuel in LWR), which raised more questions about the reprocessing plant planned in operation 2005.
Operational Editorial.
Weary, at this Warry Situation.
14.03.2011 19:59
In matter-in-motion what we have hear is a threat many times worse than Chernobyl if all six atomic nuclear power plants explode or meltdown. Already three are in critical position and the U.s. Is moving its aircraft carrier which was stationed 100 miles out to sea further away to avoid the radiation that it has detected to the east of the radiation burn out, and a helicopter 60 miles away to the north of Fukushima turned away as it detected radiation.
This is true of all Atomic Nuclear Radiation Power plants and none of them are fully safe or clean and all of them have emitted radiation constantly since their inception of which the worlds entire livability is at risk.
That is while they function as well as the fact that the waste cannot be contained and radiation pollution is occuring from every plant. Take for instance in the U.s.A., the Hanford Atomic Nuclear waste dump in Washington state.. Radioactive radiation has been reported to be killing the living web of life in the leaks into the Columbia River, the surrouding air, and land.
It is not inconsequential that the Nuclear industry is actually overseeing the destruction of the web of life globally and they will not listen to the voices of the knowledgeable peope who have qualitified and identified the truth that Atomic Nuclear Power Plants are twentieth century failed technology, and should be shut down globally.
There already is 54 hydrogen and atomic bombs lost on the Ocean bottom by the U.S. Military along with 9 Atomic reactor motors from the Navy. That is ensuring the killing of the oceans, and the life in them for however long it takes for them to leak out, and beyond.
Helen Cauldicott says that in fact the entire planet is at risk of losing all forms of life from this dangerous and inevitable catastrophy called Atomic Nuclear Power Plants. That is so and we are growing old and weary from having our proofs and truths poo-pooed all the time by fraudulent authorities, that are too arrogant for their own good and all the living planets good.
Viva socialist liberation. Re-tool to the renewables such as wind, tidal, and solar power which transforms to electricity and is more power than all the fossil fuels or poison radiation of uranium. End pollution war, not endless wars for more pollution.
Union Jack