(This post is by Christine McCann)
Here’s the latest of our news bulletins from the ongoing crisis at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
State of Nuclear Politics in Japan
A 2004 memorandum discovered by the Mainichi Daily News reveals that the then-Director of the Nuclear Power Planning Division of Japan’s Agency for Natural Resources and Energy instructed a subordinate to conceal the costs of disposing of spent nuclear fuel. The move concealed the fact that reprocessing spent fuel was actually more expensive than dumping it—in effect, promoting nuclear reprocessing. Just two months later, a government panel proposed using 19 trillion yen in government funds to underwrite operations at the Rokkasho nuclear reprocessing plant in Aomori Prefecture. Masaya Yasui, the director in question, has denied the claims, although the memo clearly stated, “The subordinate notified Director Yasui yesterday of the existence of the estimate. The director ordered the subordinate to ‘keep it away from the eyes of the general public.’” In spite of his participation in the cover-up, Yasui is currently in charge of nuclear safety reforms in Japan in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster.
Two commissioners of Japan’s five-person Nuclear Safety Commission (NSC), including its Chair, and 22 of its 84 members received donations from nuclear power companies and manufacturers, totalling over 85 million yen ($1.1 million) over a five-year period. Huruki Madarame was appointed NSC Chair in 2010. He received four million yen from Mitsubishi Heavy Ltd. between 2004 and 2009, but insists that the donations had no impact on his decisions regarding the safety of nuclear reactors.
A panel of experts, led by Kiyoshi Kurokawa, former head of Japan’s National Science Council and a professor at the University of Tokyo, will begin an investigation into the Fukushima nuclear disaster this month. Although the panel is independent from the government, both houses of Japan’s parliament approved Kurokawa’s appointment. The panel plans to examine issues not addressed by the government or TEPCO, as well as the response of the utility and government officials, including then-Prime Minister Naoto Kan. They plan to submit a report within approximately six months.
In response to increasing popular discomfort with nuclear power in Japan, the nation’s utilities have begun to lobby communities located near nuclear reactors, which might be forced to evacuate in the case of a nuclear disaster. Many municipalities are expressing safety concerns and demanding proof that plants are safe; experts say this could effectively block the restart of 48 of the country’s 54 offline nuclear reactors. By May, the remaining six reactors are expected to go offline for routine checkups, and will not be restarted unless local communities agree.
Japanese prosecutors have dropped charges against actor Taro Yamamoto and other anti-nuclear protesters. The group was accused of trespassing and interfering with prefectural duties while delivering petitions against restarting nuclear reactors to Saga Prefecture government offices last July. Prosecutors cited “insufficient evidence to acknowledge criminal intent.”
TEPCO
Japan has reversed its decision to allow (Tokyo Electric Power) TEPCO to manage compensation payments to victims of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, and will establish a government fund to expedite compensation payments, in response to numerous complaints from residents about unacceptable delays. The nuclear disaster occurred almost 10 months ago, but TEPCO has been slow to respond to compensation claims.
The President of Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. (SMFG), Koichi Miyata, said his firm will consider providing additional loans to TEPCO, the first time a major bank has done so. Miyata stressed the need for sound management at TEPCO and “smooth payments of compensation” for victims of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. While admitting that TEPCO may need to accept a public injection of funds in order to make those compensation payments, he said that TEPCO should remain independent, and government control of the company should be limited. Japan is considering injecting up to one trillion yen into the beleaguered utility, although TEPCO is trying to avoid that situation by raising utility rates to cover costs of decommissioning reactors and higher costs of thermal power. Last week, TEPCO President Toshio Nishizawa said, “It is the right of electric power companies to raise electricity charges,” a comment strongly criticized by Yukio Edano, the head of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI). Earlier this year, a government panel revealed that TEPCO had been consistently overcharging consumers for the past decade.
Contamination (Includes Human Exposure)
Residents living near the Fukushima Daiichi plant are expressing frustration at differing contamination standards used by local municipalities. In spite of repeated requests from residents for guidance regarding safe radiation levels, the Education Ministry did not release guidelines for hotspots—1 microsievert per hour or higher—until October. By that time, some communities had established their own standards, many using the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) recommendation of 1 millisievert per year. That number translates to 0.23 microsieverts per hour. Others set their own arbitrary limits. The Education Ministry says that the 1 microsievert per hour limit is for hotspots, and the .23 microsieverts per hour limit applies to areas requiring decontamination. Local governments, however, are confused about which standard they should be using. In Tokyo, some ward officials reportedly refused to establish any radiation standards, saying that if high cesium levels were detected, it could damage the ward’s reputation.
A newly-opened facility in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, allows residents to scan groceries and soil for radiation. The process, which uses LB 200 gamma spectroscopy equipment, costs 980 yen for 20 minutes and measures cesium levels as low as 20Becquerels. The facility’s popularity illustrates a new reality in Japan, where teachers regularly measure schoolyards for contamination and Aeon, Japan’s largest supermarket chain, now posts cesium levels of each item in its produce department.
Decontamination
Japan’s nuclear decontamination law went into effect on January 1 in Fukushima Prefecture. Buildings, soil, and waste in over a hundred municipalities where cesium levels exceed one millisievert per year will be eligible for decontamination by the central government.
Almost ten months after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, and three months after the government lifted evacuation orders in the 20-30 km zone around the Fukushima Daiichi plant, 54% of evacuees from that area have failed to return home. Evacuees cite radiation fears, delayed decontamination efforts, lack of employment, and closed schools for their reluctance to repopulate evacuated areas.
Other Nuclear News
Officials are investigating the cause of a fire in a Russian nuclear submarine at a shipyard near Murmansk. Russia’s Defense Ministry and Foreign Ministry said no radiation leaked as a result of the incident, and conditions on the sub remained normal, although some crewmembers were hospitalized for smoke inhalation.
A change in Spain’s government means that an aging nuclear reactor may be allowed to operate beyond its previously-planned closing in 2013. The Garona plant, jointly operated by the Iberdrola and Endesa power companies, hit its 40-year lifespan this year. However, Jose Soria, Industry Minister of the newly-elected enter-right government, is considering allowing the reactor to continue operating. Environmental organizations are protesting the move.