ID :
174959
Tue, 04/12/2011 - 17:28
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/174959
The shortlink copeid
Severity level up to 7, rise in radioactive release unlikely
TOKYO (Kyodo) - Japanese authorities said Tuesday they do not expect the radioactive release from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to heavily increase amid the ongoing restoration efforts, although they recognized the disaster has reached the highest severity level of 7 on an international scale.
A series of aftershocks of the March 11 earthquake that rattled the areas around the plant on Monday and Tuesday have raised concerns over the plant conditions, but water injection to the troubled Nos. 1 to 3 reactors, which is vital to keep the nuclear fuel inside cool, was not disrupted by the latest magnitude 6.3 quake at 2:07 p.m. Tuesday.
The aftershocks have forced workers to temporarily evacuate, apparently interrupting the efforts to restore the radiation-leaking plant located on the Pacific coast, such as the work to remove pools of highly radioactive water found at the site.
The upgrading of the severity level of the Fukushima accident from 5 to 7, the same level as the world's worst nuclear catastrophe in 1986 in Chernobyl, further raises concerns over the disaster's impact on human health and environment.
The government, however, stressed that Japan's situation is different from Chernobyl, as the amount of the radioactive substances released from the Fukushima plant is so far about 10 percent of that from the former Soviet nuclear plant.
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda told a press conference a large part of the radioactive materials release took place at the early days of the crisis when hydrogen explosions occurred, and that plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. is working hard to prevent a recurrence.
While the strong aftershock on Monday resulted in the suspension of an operation to inject nitrogen into the No. 1 reactor to reduce the potential risks of hydrogen explosion, the government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said that the work resumed and was not affected in the Tuesday afternoon quake.
The utility firm was hoping to start from Monday pumping out some 700 tons of highly contaminated water from an underground trench to a nearby storage area it secured in the No. 2 reactor turbine building, and the work finally began from 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, TEPCO said.
The start of the work had already been delayed before the aftershocks rattled the plant on Monday and Tuesday because a leak was found in a hose to be used to transfer the polluted water.
Water containing radioactive substances has been found in the basements of the Nos. 1 to 3 reactor turbine buildings, as well as in tunnel-like trenches connected to them. Transferring the water, totaling some 60,000 tons, to nearby tanks and other places is seen as vital to move ahead with work to restore the damaged key cooling functions of the reactors.
The pools of contaminated water are believed to be a side effect of the emergency measure of pouring massive amounts of water into the reactors and their spent nuclear fuel pools to cool them down, as they lost their cooling functions following the March 11 quake and ensuing tsunami. Some of the highly polluted water leaked into the Pacific Ocean.
Meanwhile, TEPCO said that the latest quake did not affect the Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant, located near the Daiichi plant.
A series of aftershocks of the March 11 earthquake that rattled the areas around the plant on Monday and Tuesday have raised concerns over the plant conditions, but water injection to the troubled Nos. 1 to 3 reactors, which is vital to keep the nuclear fuel inside cool, was not disrupted by the latest magnitude 6.3 quake at 2:07 p.m. Tuesday.
The aftershocks have forced workers to temporarily evacuate, apparently interrupting the efforts to restore the radiation-leaking plant located on the Pacific coast, such as the work to remove pools of highly radioactive water found at the site.
The upgrading of the severity level of the Fukushima accident from 5 to 7, the same level as the world's worst nuclear catastrophe in 1986 in Chernobyl, further raises concerns over the disaster's impact on human health and environment.
The government, however, stressed that Japan's situation is different from Chernobyl, as the amount of the radioactive substances released from the Fukushima plant is so far about 10 percent of that from the former Soviet nuclear plant.
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda told a press conference a large part of the radioactive materials release took place at the early days of the crisis when hydrogen explosions occurred, and that plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. is working hard to prevent a recurrence.
While the strong aftershock on Monday resulted in the suspension of an operation to inject nitrogen into the No. 1 reactor to reduce the potential risks of hydrogen explosion, the government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said that the work resumed and was not affected in the Tuesday afternoon quake.
The utility firm was hoping to start from Monday pumping out some 700 tons of highly contaminated water from an underground trench to a nearby storage area it secured in the No. 2 reactor turbine building, and the work finally began from 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, TEPCO said.
The start of the work had already been delayed before the aftershocks rattled the plant on Monday and Tuesday because a leak was found in a hose to be used to transfer the polluted water.
Water containing radioactive substances has been found in the basements of the Nos. 1 to 3 reactor turbine buildings, as well as in tunnel-like trenches connected to them. Transferring the water, totaling some 60,000 tons, to nearby tanks and other places is seen as vital to move ahead with work to restore the damaged key cooling functions of the reactors.
The pools of contaminated water are believed to be a side effect of the emergency measure of pouring massive amounts of water into the reactors and their spent nuclear fuel pools to cool them down, as they lost their cooling functions following the March 11 quake and ensuing tsunami. Some of the highly polluted water leaked into the Pacific Ocean.
Meanwhile, TEPCO said that the latest quake did not affect the Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant, located near the Daiichi plant.
