Removal of melted fuel from stricken #Fukushima reactors may be advanced a bit

via Japan Times / June 10, 2013 / The government and Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Monday they may be able to start removing the melted fuel inside the crippled nuclear reactors at the Fukushima No. 1 complex around 18 months earlier than initially planned, although this action would still be years away. The process would reportedly begin with the removal of fuel assemblies from the outside-reactor spent-fuel pools of … Continue reading

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ACTION ALERT DEMAND ACTION NOW

ACTION ALERT, WRITE OR CALL NRC COMMISSION AND DEMAND THEY TAKE LEGAL ACTION AGAINST SCE EXECUTIVES WHO LIED TO THE NRC. ITEM 2 DEMAND THE SCHEDULING OF THE ADJUDICATED PUBLIC HEARING.

Email address and Phone #’s of the NRC commission below.
Chairman@nrc.gov Tel: 301-415-1750
CMRSVINICKI@nrc.gov Tel: 301-415-1855
CMRAPOSTOLAKIS@nrc.gov Tel: 301-415-1810
CMRMAGWOOD@nrc.gov Tel: 301-415-8420
CMROSTENDORFF@nrc.gov Tel: 301-415-1800
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/ap-exclusive-calif-sen-boxer-wants-justice-dept-probe-on-troubled-san-onofre-nuclear-plant/2013/05/28/5aaf8d48-c77e-11e2-9cd9-3b9a22a4000a_story.html
AP Exclusive: Calif Sen Boxer wants Justice Dept probe on troubled San Onofre nuclear plant
Aging Nuke Plants On Fault Lines In Tsunami Hazard Zones = Fukushimas… Any Questions?
PLEASE Turn off a light for Fukushima USA / San Onofre

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Decom SONGS Activist Press Conference

Anti-Nuclear Activists hold a press conference in response to Southern California Edison announcing plans to retire the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant. Rate payers have contributed over $3 BILLION to the San Onofre Decommission fund, That’s what we…

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Gregory Jaczko Fukushima Lessons for California

You do not have to be against nuclear power,
to be against restarting the San Onofre nuclear power plant. 

Lessons for California from Gregory Jaczko, Former Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission



In this segment the Former Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, shares his views on nuclear safety issues in the U.S. in the light of the on-going Fukushima disaster, and his view that San Onofre should not be restarted.

The public forum, held June 4, 2013 in the San Diego City Council chambers, was organized by Torgen Johnson.

In addition to Prime Minister Kan (ably translated by Cathy Iwane) speakers included:
Gregory Jaczko, Former Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Peter A. Bradford, former member of the NRC; and Kendra Ulrich, Friends of the Earth.

Captured by EON and reposted here as a public service.

Gregory Jaczko Fukushima Lessons for California
Nuclear Accidents Do Happen. ~ Gregory Jaczko


Aging Nuke Plants On Fault Lines In Tsunami Hazard Zones = Fukushimas… Any Questions?
PLEASE Turn off a light for Fukushima USA / San Onofre

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The Naoto Kan Line

You do not have to be against nuclear power, 

to be against restarting the San Onofre nuclear power plant. 

Lessons for California from the former Prime Minister of Japan at the start of the Fukushima crisis Naoto Kan.

In this segment, Mr. Kan relates his experiences and conclusions regarding the on-going Fukushima disaster and shares his views on the dangers of nuclear power.

The public forum, held June 4, 2013 in the San Diego City Council chambers, was organized by Torgen Johnson

Captured by EON and re-posted here as a public service.

The Naoto Kan Line
Former Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan warned today that the worst-case nuclear accident at Fukushima would have required evacuating a 190-mile radius from from the disaster.

Aging Nuke Plants On Fault Lines In Tsunami Hazard Zones = Fukushimas… Any Questions?
PLEASE Turn off a light for Fukushima USA / San Onofre

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Nuke regulators inspect damaged #Fukushima reactor building to analyze disaster

via The Mainichi / June 06, 2013 / The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) has inspected the badly-damaged reactor building of the No. 1 reactor at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant for the first time as part of its efforts to analyze the possible causes of the nuclear disaster. The NRA released photographs (below) of the interior of the fourth floor of the No. 1 reactor building on June … Continue reading

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Leak Found in Steel Tank for Water at #Fukushima

via Russia Today / June 06, 2013 / The operator of the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant said Wednesday that it had found a leak in one of the hundreds of steel tanks used to store radioactive water at the plant, raising renewed questions about the company’s ability to handle the plant’s cleanup. The discovery comes a day after the operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, or Tepco, admitted that it … Continue reading

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Fukushima survey lists 12 confirmed, 15 suspected thyroid cancer cases

via Kyodo News / June 05, 2013 / An ongoing study on the impact of radiation on Fukushima residents from the crippled atomic power plant has found 12 minors with confirmed thyroid cancer diagnoses, up from three in a report in February, with 15 others suspected to have cancer, up from seven, sources familiar with the matter said Tuesday. The figures were taken from about 174,000 people aged 18 or … Continue reading

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The Status of Nuclear Fuel Stored at #Fukushima

By Masako Sawai / CNIC / June 1, 2013 / This report summarizes the status of nuclear fuel stored at the Fukushima Daiichi (F1) and Fukushima Daini (F2) nuclear power plants. Fuel in the reactors and fuel in the spent fuel pools at F1 and F2 Table 1 lists the data for the nuclear fuel loaded (melted down) in the reactors and fuel stored in the fuel pools in the … Continue reading

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#Fukushima – Too many unknowns about the accident and the current state

By Chihiro Kamisawa / CNIC / June 1, 2013 / One of Japan’s major newspapers, the Asahi Shimbun, reported on February 7 that Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) had obstructed the investigation of the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS) by the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC). TEPCO clearly gave commission members false explanations concerning the condition of the Unit 1 reactor … Continue reading

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Leaking Radioactive Water at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

By Hideyuki Ban / CNIC / June 1, 2013 / The constantly increasing amount of radioactive water stored at the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is becoming a grave problem. This article focuses on the contaminated water leaks. Despite the fact that no one knows where or in what condition the melted nuclear fuel from the reactor core is located at present, it is absolutely … Continue reading

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Decontamination – Sluggish and Ineffective

By Hideyuki Ban / CNIC / June 1, 2013 Decontamination is now ongoing in many areas, including Fukushima. This article summarizes the current state of decontamination. Although we use the term “decontamination,” since the radiation does not disappear, it should perhaps more properly be termed “relocated contamination,” but here we use the term “decontamination.” Basic Policy The actual organization carrying out the decontamination differs according to the degree of contamination … Continue reading

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Radiation Bulletin: Fuel Cycle/DOE: May 27th – June 2nd 2013

radbullThe Radiation Bulletin is published by the Abalone Alliance Clearinghouse.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle is the Achilles heal of the nuclear industry. From uranium mining to the deadly spent fuel of reactors, here’s the news that never makes the national news for a reason. This edition of the Radiation Bulletin includes a lot of Department of Energy news.

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Video: Women of Fukushima (trailer)

Six Japanese women offer brutally honest views on the state of the clean-up, the cover-ups and untruths since the nuclear accident in Fukushima, and how it has affected their lives, homes and families. via Women-of-Fukushima.com / June 03, 2013 / Over a year since three reactors went into meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, a broad, disparate anti-nuclear movement is growing in Japan. Nowhere is that more apparent, … Continue reading

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Tokyo Anti-Nuclear Rally Draws Thousands (PICTURES)

via RT.com / June 2, 2013 / Thousands of demonstrators have gathered in Tokyo to protest restarting of nuclear reactors the government is considering. Around 7,500 people participated in the anti-nuclear protests in the Japanese capital, according to organizers cited by AFP. The demonstrators gathered in a park in central Tokyo, marched through the city and rallied outside the offices of Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), operator of the Fukushima … Continue reading

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Frightened to return: A Fukushima father’s story

via Independent.co.uk / June 2, 2013 / Like most fathers, Yoji Fujimoto frets about the health of his young children. In addition to normal parental concerns about the food they eat, the air they breathe and the environment they will inherit, however, he must add one more: the radioactive fallout from a nuclear disaster. Three days after meltdown began at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant on 11 March 2011, Mr … Continue reading

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Gov’t suggests TEPCO freeze soil around Fukushima plant

via Japan Today / May 31, 2013 / A government panel of experts on Thursday recommended that Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) consider freezing the soil around the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to reduce the amount of radioactive groundwater being generated by water flowing into the plant. According to the panel’s plan, pipes would be placed in the ground and filled with coolant at a temperature of minus … Continue reading

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Last no-go zone designation in Fukushima lifted

via JapanTimes.co.jp / via May 29, 2013 / The government lifted the last no-go zone designation in Fukushima Prefecture on Tuesday, more than 26 months after three reactors at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant suffered core meltdowns, but certain areas remain uninhabitable. In the town of Futaba, the last no-go zone has been reorganized into areas where the return of residents is deemed “difficult” and those where preparations can … Continue reading

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Ground freeze urged to curb seepage into Fukushima No. 1 radioactive basements

via JapanTimes.co.jp / May 30, 2013 / To reduce the flow of groundwater into the crippled reactor buildings at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 atomic plant, the government told Tepco on Thursday to freeze the soil around them. Walls of frozen soil can be created by inserting pipes into the soil and injecting them with coolant. Tokyo-based major general contractor Kajima Corp. came up with the idea. A … Continue reading

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Exposed: Japanese Officials Upped Radiation Yardsticks to Dodge Compensation Costs

by Andrea Germanos / Common Dreams / May 26, 2013 / Japanese officials raised the level of acceptable radiation doses for evacuees of the Fukushima nuclear disaster to avoid increasing costs for compensation, Japan’s Asahi Shimbun reported on Saturday. A 5-millisieverts per year dose, the same level of exposure used as a yardstick to relocate residents after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, was proposed at an unofficial meeting of ministers in … Continue reading

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At Least 4 Nuclear Plants Will Apply for Restart in July

via EX-SKF / May 27, 2013 / If they are approved, there will be 8 additional reactors, including one with MOX fuel, will be online in Japan, in addition to two reactors at Ooi Nuclear Power Plant. These plants are: Takahama Nuclear Power Plant (pictured): Reactor 3 (MOX), Reactor 4, operated by Kansai Electric Power Company; Ikata Nuclear Power Plant: Reactor 3, operated by Shikoku Electric Power Company; Sendai Nuclear … Continue reading

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At Least 4 Nuclear Plants Will Apply for Restart in July

via EX-SKF / May 27, 2013 / If they are approved, there will be 8 additional reactors, including one with MOX fuel, will be online in Japan, in addition to two reactors at Ooi Nuclear Power Plant. These plants are: Takahama Nuclear Power Plant (pictured): Reactor 3 (MOX), Reactor 4, operated by Kansai Electric Power Company; Ikata Nuclear Power Plant: Reactor 3, operated by Shikoku Electric Power Company; Sendai Nuclear … Continue reading

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Fukushima subcontractor fires employees for whistle-blowing

via JapanDailyPress.com / May 27, 2013 / A subcontractor hired by the Fukushima Prefectural government to do nuclear disaster cleanup has been ordered by the Labor Standards Inspection Office to properly implement labor practices after it was reported that they fired three male employees without prior notice. The men claim that they were fired because they reported the company’s corner-cutting. The labor standards office said that the city of Fukushima … Continue reading

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Radiation Bulletin: Fuel Cycle/DOE: May 20th – 26th 2013

radbullThe Radiation Bulletin is published by the Abalone Alliance Clearinghouse.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle is the Achilles heal of the nuclear industry. From uranium mining to the deadly spent fuel of reactors, here’s the news that never makes the national news for a reason. This edition of the Radiation Bulletin includes a lot of Department of Energy news.

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Expand health survey beyond Fukushima: U.N

via The Japan Times / May 27, 2013 / Japan’s health survey on the effects of the March 2011 nuclear crisis should be expanded to include areas outside Fukushima Prefecture, a U.N. expert said. The health management survey should be provided to residents in all affected areas by radiation exposure higher than 1 millisievert per year, Anand Grover, the U.N. special rapporteur on health, said in a report. The report … Continue reading

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#Radioactive Materials Leak at Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC)

via EX-SKF / May 24, 2013 / Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), who operates J-PARC, didn’t bother to notify the Nuclear Regulatory Agency (secretariat of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority, mostly made of people from NISA) for 2 days, because they did not think there was any leak of radioactive materials. According to Asahi, the researchers suffer internal radiation of exposure of 1.7 millisievert, and the contamination of the facility is … Continue reading

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U.N. mulls excluding nuclear accidents from disaster prevention plan

via Kyodo News / May 21, 2013 / The United Nations is considering excluding measures to prevent a nuclear accident caused by earthquake and tsunami from a new framework on disaster risk reduction expected to be adopted at the next world conference in 2015, U.N. sources said Tuesday. A Japanese government official involved in drafting the new framework, which will be discussed at the U.N.-sponsored World Conference on Disaster Reduction … Continue reading

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Fukushima plant struggles to keep staff

via Tokyo AP / May 23, 2013 / Keeping the meltdown-stricken Fukushima nuclear plant in northeastern Japan in stable condition requires a cast of thousands. Increasingly the plant’s operator is struggling to find enough workers, a trend that many expect to worsen and hamper progress in the decades-long effort to safely decommission it. Tokyo Electric Power Co., the utility that runs the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant that melted down in March … Continue reading

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Nuclear regulators acknowledge fault below Tsuruga reactor is active

via NewsOnJapan.com / May 23, 2013 / The Nuclear Regulation Authority accepted on Wednesday an assessment that a reactor at the Tsuruga plant in western Japan is sitting above an active fault, making it increasingly difficult for the facility to resume operation. It is the first time Japan’s regulatory authorities have acknowledged an existing reactor is located above a fault feared to move in the future, according to an NRA … Continue reading

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Farmers plant rice near crippled Fukushima site

via The Star / May 22, 2013 / Farmers have resumed planting rice for market only 15 kilometres (nine miles) from Japan’s crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station, a local official said Wednesday. It was the first time since the March 2011 earthquake-tsunami-nuclear disaster that farmers have gone inside the former 20-kilometre “no-go” zone around the doomed plant to sow rice intended for sale. The zone has been redefined to … Continue reading

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Radiation Bulletin: Fuel Cycle/DOE: May 13th – 19th 2013

radbullThe Radiation Bulletin is published by the Abalone Alliance Clearinghouse.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle is the Achilles heal of the nuclear industry. From uranium mining to the deadly spent fuel of reactors, here’s the news that never makes the national news for a reason. This edition of the Radiation Bulletin includes a lot of Department of Energy news.

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Terrorist drill held for Fukushima plant

via Japan Times / May 12, 2013 / Police and the Japan Coast Guard conducted a joint drill Saturday to prepare for a possible terrorist attack on the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. About 150 officers and other people, including members of a special assault team of the police, participated in the drill at the Fukushima No. 2 nuclear power plant, about 10 km from Fukushima No. 1. Both … Continue reading

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Leaks, Rats and Radioactivity: Fukushima’s Nuclear Cleanup Is Faltering

by Bryan Walsh / via Time / May 1, 2013 / Honestly, if the consequences weren’t potentially so dire, the ongoing struggles to clean up the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in northern Japan would be the stuff of comedy. In March, an extended blackout disabled power to a vital cooling system for days. The cause: a rat that had apparently been chewing on cables in a switchboard. As if that’s … Continue reading

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New cover for fuel removal at Fukushima

via World Nuclear News / May 14, 2013 / A four-year process is planned to rebuild the cover over Fukushima Daiichi 1, equipping it to remove used reactor fuel still stored there. Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) will take away the roof of the temporary cover structure that was put in place to reduce radioactive emissions to air in the six months after the accident in 2011. This will give … Continue reading

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How Fukushima Contamination May Have Spread via Waterways

via Wall Street Journal / by Yuko Takeo / May 13, 2013 / A new study offers fresh insights into how radioactive contamination from the Fukushima nuclear disaster may have spread through Japan’s interconnected waterways, reaching some freshwater fish hundreds of kilometers away. The research by two Japanese academics published in “Nature” magazine late last month reports traces of cesium found in 2011 “even in Shizuoka prefecture, 400 km south-west from the … Continue reading

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Overview of active cesium contamination of freshwater fish in Fukushima and Eastern Japan

Toshiaki Mizuno1 Hideya Kubo1 Affiliations Contributions Corresponding author Scientific Reports 3, Article number: 1742 doi:10.1038/srep01742 Received 13 March 2012 Accepted 05 April 2013 Published 29 April 2013   Article tools PDF Download as PDF (536 KB) View interactive PDF in ReadCube Citation Reprints Rights & permissions Metrics This paper focuses on an overview of radioactive cesium 137 (quasi-Cs137 included Cs134) contamination of freshwater fish in Fukushima and eastern Japan based … Continue reading

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Radiation Bulletin: Fuel Cycle/DOE: May 6th – 12th 2013

radbullThe Radiation Bulletin is published by the Abalone Alliance Clearinghouse.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle is the Achilles heal of the nuclear industry. From uranium mining to the deadly spent fuel of reactors, here’s the news that never makes the national news for a reason. This edition of the Radiation Bulletin includes a lot of Department of Energy news.

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Radiation Bulletin: Fuel Cycle/DOE: April 29th – May 5th 2013

radbullThe Radiation Bulletin is published by the Abalone Alliance Clearinghouse.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle is the Achilles heal of the nuclear industry. From uranium mining to the deadly spent fuel of reactors, here’s the news that never makes the national news for a reason. This edition of the Radiation Bulletin includes a lot of Department of Energy news.

Continue reading