Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Looming power crisis could cost electric firms 2 trillion yen
Efforts to overcome Japan's looming power crisis may cost the country's nine major electricity companies as much as 2 trillion yen in total a year, it has been learned.
With Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO)'s Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant knocked out by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, and the temporary shuttering of Chubu Electric Power Co.'s Hamaoka nuclear power plant, electric companies across Japan are facing the need to boost generating capacity as well as switch to non-nuclear power sources, heaping staggering new costs onto their balance sheets.
Seven of the nine firms fear they will not have a reasonable level of backup generating capacity for Japan's steamy summer months, while rising oil prices are pushing up the cost of non-nuclear power generation. Meanwhile, the possibility of rising electricity charges coupled with an uncertain power supply presents a serious threat to Japan's economic performance.
According to the nine power firms, a combination of regular inspections, the March 11 disaster and other causes have put 37 of Japan's 54 commercial nuclear reactors out of operation. Seventeen are now supplying power to the grid, but five of those must also be shut down for regular inspections by the end of August. The power companies are considering firing up reactors that are now under inspection to meet summertime demand, but local governments have stated that the central government must come up with new nuclear safety standards before they will let any reactors go back into commission.
Read more at http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110607p2a00m0na007000c.html
Japan doubles Fukushima radiation leak estimate
The amount of radiation released by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in the days after the 11 March tsunami could have been more than double that originally estimated by its operator, Japan's nuclear safety agency has said.
The revelation has raised fears that the situation at the plant, where fuel in three reactors suffered meltdown, was more serious than government officials have acknowledged.
In another development that is expected to add to criticism of Japan's handling of the crisis, the agency said molten nuclear fuel dropped to the bottom of the pressure vessel in the No 1 reactor within five hours of the accident, 10 hours earlier than previously thought.
By the end of last week, radiation levels inside the reactor had risen to 4,000 millisieverts per hour, the highest atmospheric reading inside the plant since the disaster.
The agency also speculated that the meltdown in another reactor had been faster than initially estimated by the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco).
It is not clear whether the revised account of the accident, the world's worst since Chernobyl in 1986, would have prompted Tepco to respond differently at the time.
Read more at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/07/japan-doubles-fukushima-radiation-leak-estimate
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Fact Finding Preliminary Report is out now.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Radioactive contamination has been found in tea leaves in Chiba and Gunma prefectures,
Chiba authorities say up to 763 becquerels per kilogram of radioactive cesium were detected in tea leaves picked on Tuesday in Narita and 3 other cities.
The provisional state limit is 500 becquerels per kilogram.
The Chiba government on Wednesday requested tea growers in the 4 cities to voluntarily halt shipments, and asked dealers not to sell the tea produced in the areas.
But 2 tea growers in Narita City reportedly shipped their tea leaves, and dealers sold some processed tea to local consumers.
Radioactive materials in tea leaves exceeding the legal limit was earlier detected in other areas in the prefecture.
In Gunma Prefecture, 780 becquerels per kilogram of radioactive cesium were detected in tea leaves picked on Tuesday in Shibukawa City.
The Gunma government on Wednesday asked farm cooperatives to halt shipment of tea leaves.
This is the first tea contamination case reported in Gunma Prefecture
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Japan sets up independent panel probing Fukushima crisis
Originally published here http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2011/05/92946.html
The Cabinet approved a plan Tuesday to create a third-party expert panel to investigate the ongoing nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant and prevent similar incidents in the future.
Yotaro Hatamura, a veteran researcher on human errors, will head the panel which has power to access accident-related documents and question people concerned including officials of the plant operator, Cabinet members and bureaucrats, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku told a news conference.
Hatamura, 70, an emeritus professor at the University of Tokyo, and the other members, mostly academics, plan to compile a mid-term report on the matters in December and a final report will be due by summer 2012, government officials said.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Very useful information about radiation level
Find below some very useful information. Information in Japanese.
1.Radiation
Radiation level for all prefectures in Japan, Unit = μGy/h
Radiation level in the Tokyo running water supply, Unit = Bq/kg
Radiation level in the running water supply for all prefectures, Unit = Bq/kg
Radiation level in the rain for all prefectures, Unit = Bq/kg
Only when it rains, the value will be up.