May 19-29 1NTERNATIONAL URANIUM FILM FESTIVAL Live and online
INTERNATIONAL URANIUM FILM FESTIVAL
THE ATOMIC AGE FILM FESTIVAL
International Uranium Film Festival @URANIUMFESTIVAL
Nucler war! The legacy of uranium mining! Is nuclear power a solution against climate change? These are the issues of the 11. International Uranium Film Festival May 19 – 29, 2022, Modern Art Museum Rio de Janeiro
(Live and Online). Mark the date, join us and spread the word. Thank you. uraniumfilmfestival.org/en/rio-2022
Climate change: The global climate crisis is also a health crisis
Climate change: The global climate crisis is also a health crisis
Without effective climate action, more than 100 million people could be forced back into poverty by 2030, according to estimates from the World Bank.
US Government Secret Files: Human Experiments With Plutonium Side Effects
by SOFREP, 22 May 22, ” …………………………………… The Manhattan Project………….. The most famous development of the Manhattan Project was when they produced atomic bombs, two of which were the Little Boy Bomb and the Fat Man Bomb, that were dropped on the two cities of Japan, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki. There was also this not-so-famous bomb that was supposed to be the third bomb to be dropped in Japan had they not surrendered, known as the Demon Core (know why it was called as such here.)
Although a huge chunk of the Manhattan Project was dedicated to the development and production of the weapons, a small portion of it was dedicated to studying the health effects of the radioactive materials involved in the project, which was Plutonium.
Human Experiments
…………………. the huge amounts of radioactive materials used in the experiments also led to widespread contamination even outside of the research facilities. They wanted to know exactly the risks and dangers that these researchers were facing, so they began studying the effects of radiation on human bodies.
The plutonium toxicity studies began with rats as the main subject. These were quickly deemed inconclusive, so they decided to move the experiments onto human trials beginning in 1945. They didn’t realize at the time that rats are pretty resistant to radiation. At that time, details about plutonium were not yet disclosed to the public, so they decided that for the secrecy of it, they would not inform anyone outside of scientific circles about the trials, not even the human test subjects.
A total of eighteen human subjects were selected and injected with plutonium without their knowledge from 1945 until 1947, their ages ranging from 4 to 69. One common thing about them was their diagnosis of a terminal illness.
Patient CAL-1
One of the involuntary subjects of the human radiation experiment was a house painter from Ohio in his late 50s named Albert Stevens, or patient CAL-1. At that time, he had checked into the University of California Hospital in San Francisco and was diagnosed with terminal cancer. It was suggested that a gastroscopy be performed to make sure that the diagnosis was accurate, but it never really happened. And so Stevens was chosen for the study because, according to acting chief of radiology Earl Miller, “he was doomed” to die.
Before he underwent the operation that would try to rid him of cancer, Stevens was injected with what would be known as the highest accumulated radiation dose in any human, 131 kBq (3.55 µCi) of plutonium. After that, stool and urine samples were taken from Stevens for analysis. He then underwent an operation to remove his cancer, which included taking out parts of his liver, entire spleen, lymph nodes, part of his pancreas, part of his omentum, and most of his ninth rib.
When some of the materials removed from Stevens were analyzed, they discovered that Stevens was misdiagnosed and did not have cancer in the first place. He was, in fact, suffering from a large gastric ulcer. He and his family were not informed about it and were instead told that his recovery was speedy. ………….. https://sofrep.com/news/us-government-secret-files-human-experiments-with-plutonium-side-effects/
Entergy shuts down Palisades nuclear station ahead of time
Entergy Corp said on Friday it has permanently shut a nuclear power
station in Michigan despite a Biden administration plan to rescue plants
like it because they generate electricity virtually free of carbon
emissions. Entergy closed the 800-Megawatt Palisades plant in Michigan that
had operated for more than 50 years. “After careful monitoring, operators
made the conservative decision to shut down the plant early due to the
performance of a control rod drive seal,” Entergy said in a statement about
the plant.
Reuters 21st May 2022
New book – does nuclear power have a future?
| Dave Elliott: Nuclear power’s development has been both exciting and difficult, as well as controversial. In this new book, an updated and much expanded second edition of the 2017 text that I wrote for the Institute of Physics (IoP), I look first at the early history of nuclear innovation in the 1950s, when, growing out of the weapons programme, a wide range of ideas for uranium fission reactors were tested, mainly in the USA and UK. As it attempts to show, many of the pilot projects were unsuccessful, indeed some proved dangerous, but some viable lines of power plant development were identified, mostly water-cooled reactors. The book then moves on to the present, when, with economic problems facing the current generation of water-cooled nuclear plants, some of the other older ideas are being revisited. The book looks critically at progress on these ideas so far and asks will any of them be successful, or will nuclear fission prove to be a dead end as an energy option? It also looks at the state of play with nuclear fusion, a parallel development often seen as providing the ultimate energy source for the long term, and it asks whether that is likely to be viable in time to respond to climate change. Overall, it adopts a critical approach. With renewable expanding rapidly around the world as their costs fall, the case for nuclear is, arguably, much weakened. It is still possible that it will revive, with new cheaper technology, but that case has to be made, not just assumed. Nuclear power is often promoted as a viable energy option for major expansion in the future, perhaps alongside renewables, but it clearly has significant problems. By looking back to the past, and also at current progress with new nuclear technology based on earlier ideas, this book aims to identify whether nuclear has a future. Renew Extra 21st May 2022 https://renewextraweekly.blogspot.com/2022/05/nuclear-power-past-present-and-future.html |
UK’s energy policy (for a nuclear ”renaissance”) ignores the fastest and most cost-effective measure – SAVING ENERGY
| Andrew Warrant: Energy policy is big news again. Initially, because fuel prices are rocketing, and set to rise even more this autumn. Plus the invasion of Ukraine has precipitated a determination to minimise the amount of gas and oil purchased in future from Russia. These two factors have prompted Prime Minister Boris Johnson to devise a new energy security strategy. Published last month, its reception was uniformly dismissive. Not so much because of the energy supply sources it concentrated upon but mainly because it entirely omitted any serious consideration of the policy area deemed most capable of providing swift cost-effective solutions. Saving energy. The Times’ editorial was unsparingly contemptuous. The UK government’s new energy security strategy amounted to “little more than a glorified press release.” The “eye-catching announcement” of eight new nuclear power plants offers “no analysis of why Britain had succeeded in starting construction on just one new reactor in the 16 years since Tony Blair announced a nuclear renaissance.” It added: “What is certain isthis new nuclear programme will not bring energy bills down any time soon. if ever. Instead, it will push bills up as the costs of construction are passed on to consumers. Nor will it do much in the near term to reduce Britain’s reliance on Russian oil and gas given that it takes at least a decade to build a nuclear power station.” While no doubt well-intentioned, Rishi Sunak’s attempts to alleviate the cost of living – including through a £150 council tax rebate for most homes and a £200 loan towards energy bills – have been overly complicated and badly targeted. And, as Helen Barnard of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has pointed out, the £2.4bn the Treasury lost cutting fuel duty would have covered the cost of insulating a third of all social housing in the country. “Theconsultancy E3G has calculated that new energy efficiency measures could reduce the heating bills for poorly insulated homes by an average of £500 and end the UK’s dependence on Russian gas (which is admittedly quite limited) within a year. There is a very revealing explanation for why no new plans are being proposed. It is that “this is not being imposed on people and is a gradual transition following the grain of behaviour. The British people are no-nonsense pragmatists who can make decisions based on the information.” But if an Englishman’s home really is his castle, then why did fears for COVID 19 lock everybody inside their castle? If we want people to support delivery of a collective good like energy security or climate mitigation, then it is sensible to see it as collective action. And for Government to lead it. The parallel with the pandemic is spot on.Energy in Buildings and Industry 18th May 2022 https://eibi.co.uk/article/collective-spirit-required-to-ensure-energy-security/ |
Global heating brings megadrought and water shortages to over half of the USA
The “megadrought” gripping the southwestern US has driven water levels
at the two largest reservoirs to record lows, forcing unprecedented
government intervention to protect water and power supplies across seven
states.
Millions of Americans already contending with critical water
shortages now face the prospect of black outs as energy demand grows during
heatwaves just as hydroelectric power supply is strained. A US power
regulator this week warned that a big swath of the US was at risk of
blackouts, partly as a result of drought conditions curtailing
hydroelectric supplies.
US government climate scientists have said more
than half the country is enduring drought conditions, while a separate
study estimated that the drought affecting southwestern states was the
worst to hit the region for 1,200 years after being exacerbated by human
activity.
FT 21st May 2022
https://www.ft.com/content/9f00dfff-3a44-483f-9d5a-f58db7806046
UK Home Secretary PRITI PATEL WAS PART OF CIA-LINKED LOBBY GROUP WITH HUSBAND OF ASSANGE JUDGE
Home Secretary Priti Patel, who will soon decide whether to extradite Julian Assange to the US, has been a political adviser to – and been funded by – a right-wing lobby group which has attacked Assange in the British media for a decade. DECLASSIFIED UK, MATT KENNARD, 29 MARCH 2022
- Patel sat on advisory council of Henry Jackson Society (HJS) with Lord Arbuthnot, whose wife later made two key legal rulings against Assange
- Former CIA director James Woolsey has been an HJS patron since 2006
- HJS has hosted three other ex-CIA directors in London since 2014
- Patel was paid £2,500 by HJS to fly to Washington for a “security” programme in the US Congress
- Patel ignores Declassified’s request for clarification of her role in HJS
Priti Patel sat on the Henry Jackson Society’s (HJS) advisory council from around 2013-16, although the exact dates are unclear as neither the HJS nor Patel responded to Declassified’s requests for clarification.
She has also received funds from the HJS, and was paid £2,500 by the group to visit Washington in March 2013 to attend a “security” programme in the US Congress.
Patel, who became an MP in 2010 and was appointed Home Secretary in 2019, also hosted an HJS event in parliament soon after she returned from Washington.
After the UK Supreme Court said this month it was refusing to hear Assange’s appeal of a High Court decision against him, the WikiLeaks founder’s fate now lies in Patel’s hands. He faces life in prison in the US.
The HJS, which was founded in 2005 and does not disclose its funders, has links to the CIA, the intelligence agency behind the prosecution of Assange and which reportedly developed plans to assassinate him.
One of the HJS’s international patrons is James Woolsey, CIA director from 1993-95, who was in this role throughout the period Patel was advising the group. Woolsey’s affiliation to the HJS goes back to at least 2006, soon after it was founded.
In 2014, the group hosted General David Petraeus, CIA director from 2011-12, at a UK parliament meeting from which all media were barred.
Three years later, in 2017, the HJS organised another event at parliament with General Michael Hayden, CIA director from 2006-9, to “discuss the current state of the American Intelligence Community and its relationships with foreign partners.”
Hayden described “the relationship within the Five Eyes community as strong as ever, despite potential concerns over recent intelligence leaks between members.” Five Eyes is an intelligence alliance comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and the US.
‘Perception of bias’
During a visit to the UK in July 2020, then US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke at a roundtable hosted by the HJS with what the Washington Post referred to as a group of “hawkish” members of the Conservative Party.
As director of the CIA in 2017, Pompeo had launched a blistering attack on WikiLeaks calling the media organisation a “hostile intelligence service” that makes “common cause with dictators”.
Pompeo did not provide evidence but added a threat: “To give them the space to crush us with misappropriated secrets is a perversion of what our great Constitution stands for. It ends now.”
On the HJS advisory council at the same time as Patel was Lord James Arbuthnot, a former Conservative defence minister. His wife, Lady Emma Arbuthnot, was Westminster Chief Magistrate from 2016-2021.
For part of her tenure, she was in charge of the Assange case and made two key rulings against him in 2018. Lady Arbuthnot eventually stepped aside from ruling on the case because of a “perception of bias” but never declared a conflict of interest.
The links between Patel and Lord Arbuthnot go further. In 2010, soon after becoming an MP, Patel was appointed one of five parliamentary officers of the Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI) when the group was chaired by Lord Arbuthnot.
CFI has been described as “beyond doubt the most well-connected and probably the best funded of all Westminster lobbying groups”. It also does not disclose its funders.
Patel was forced to resign as Secretary of State for International Development in November 2017 after it was revealed that she had held more than a dozen undeclared meetings with Israeli ministers and organisations while on holiday in the country.
Many of these were arranged by CFI’s honorary president, Lord Polak. Patel’s resignation letter accepted that her conduct “fell below…standards of transparency and openness”.
HJS staff have been repeatedly critical of Julian Assange and WikiLeaks in the British media since 2011 when its then associate director, Douglas Murray, engaged in a combative debate with Assange.
………. Over the following years, the HJS and its staff continued to be among the most active civil society voices for impugning the motives and reputation of Assange.
This stands in contrast to nearly all human rights and press freedom organisations which argue that extraditing the WikiLeaks publisher to the US would be a grave blow to media freedom.
‘Conspiracy theories’
In October 2016, the HJS released a statement to the media, which claimed: “Mr Assange has a long track record of stealing and distributing information, peddling conspiracy theories, and casting aspersions on the moral standing of western democratic governments. He has done this whilst supporting, and being supported by, autocratic regimes.”
No evidence was supplied to support the assertions.
A number of other HJS staff—including spokesperson Sam Armstrong and then chief of staff Ellie Green—have made anti-Assange interventions in the British media.
Secrecy
In October 2019, as home secretary, Patel visited Washington again to meet William Barr, the US Attorney General who was then in charge of the Assange case as head of the Department of Justice.
Together they signed the Cloud Act which made it easier for American and British law enforcement agencies to demand electronic data on targets as they undertake investigations.
Assange’s defence team had previously raised the concern in court that Barr may be using Assange’s extradition case in the UK for political ends.
In August 2020, Declassified requested basic information about Patel’s 2019 trip to Washington. The Home Office confirmed it held the information but refused to release it because the department considered “that disclosure of some of the information would prejudice relations between the UK and the United States”.
In May 2020, Declassified also requested information about any calls or emails made or received by Patel since she became Home Secretary which concerned the case of Julian Assange, or mentioned his name.
The Home Office told us “we can neither confirm nor deny whether we hold the information you have requested” because “to do so either way would disclose information that constitutes the personal data of Julian Assange”.
The same request for Sajid Javid’s tenure as Home Secretary from 2018-19 was rejected because the department said “we have carried out a thorough search and we have established that the Home Office does not hold the information that you have requested.”
This was despite the fact Javid signed the initial US extradition request for Assange in June 2019. The shadow home secretary at the time, Diane Abbott, opposed approving the US extradition request.
Declassified previously revealed that before signing the US request, Javid had attended six secretive meetings, some attended by former CIA directors, which were organised by a US lobby group which has published calls for Assange to be assassinated or taken down.
The Home Office recently admitted it had eight officials working on Operation Pelican, the UK government campaign to seize Assange from the Ecuadorian embassy in London.
The department, however, claimed it did not know which other UK government ministries were involved in the operation.
Priti Patel and the Henry Jackson Society did not respond to requests for information and comment. https://declassifieduk.org/priti-patel-was-part-of-cia-linked-lobby-group-with-husband-of-assange-judge/
May 22 Energy News — geoharvey
Opinion: ¶ “From Alternative Fuels To Rationing Trips: A Guide To More Sustainable Flying” • Aviation accounts for just 3.5% of our total planet-warming emissions. Matteo Mirolo, aviation policy officer at Transport & Environment, a European campaign group for cleaner transportation, said there are lots of solutions, but they are not ready yet. Others agree. […]
May 22 Energy News — geoharvey
Seismic intensity of 5 on the Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan; operation suspended between Takahagi and Tomioka on Joban Line
May 22, 2022
At around 0:24 p.m. on March 22, an earthquake centered off the coast of Ibaraki Prefecture hit Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture, with an intensity of just under 5 on the Japanese seismic scale, while Koriyama City, Hirono Town, Tomioka Town, Namie Town, and other areas in Fukushima Prefecture registered an intensity of 4 on the Japanese scale. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the epicenter was about 5 km deep, and the magnitude of the quake was estimated at 6.0. There is no concern of a tsunami from this quake.
According to East Japan Railway Company, the earthquake caused a temporary power outage on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line between Shin-Shirakawa and Shiroishi Zao, suspending operations, which resumed at 0:32 pm. The line was reportedly delayed by up to 10 minutes.
Also, due to the earthquake, operation is suspended on the Joban Line between Takahagi (Takahagi City, Ibaraki Prefecture) and Tomioka (Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture) on the up and down lines.
https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASQ5Q44YWQ5QUTIL00F.html?fbclid=IwAR23WM3gBJHdz7AUbi7pmI1lkOKNgpPyNpvK_TRmjrqeTGOk52FCnPCen8w
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant contaminated water, after all… “Protect our oceans!
May 21, 2022
Environmental Groups Perform Against Ocean Discharge of “Contaminated Water from Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant
Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Commission Virtually Approves Ocean Discharge of Contaminated Water
Members of environmental citizen groups, including the Korean Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health and the Sea Committee of the Environmental Movement Coalition, held an emergency press conference in front of the Japanese Embassy in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of March 20, and made their opposition to the oceanic discharge of radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant clear.
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority effectively approved Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s plan to mix radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant with seawater and discharge it into the ocean starting next spring on March 18. TEPCO plans to treat the contaminated water with a multinuclide removal system (ALPS) and then dilute it with seawater to lower the tritium (triple hydrogen) concentration before discharging it into the sea. Once the approval process is complete, TEPCO plans to obtain the consent of the local authorities in charge and begin construction of facilities for the discharge in earnest. We collected photos of the site.
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority effectively approved TEPCO’s plan to mix radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant with seawater and discharge it into the sea starting next spring on March 18.
Jung Hyo Kim, Reporter (Inquiries: japan@hani.co.kr)
http://japan.hani.co.kr/arti/politics/43525.html?fbclid=IwAR23_nH_28-qvQTVP4UdvLlVro5H-m9EKbIJwhVYCoTWLH4cdRVAc_V9WyU
S. Korea denies report of alleged approval of Japan’s Fukushima water release plan
May 20, 2022
SEOUL, May 20 (Yonhap) — South Korea on Friday denied a Japanese media report claiming the Seoul government agreed to Tokyo’s plan to release radioactive water into the ocean from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant.
Earlier this week, a Japanese news agency reported that the new Yoon Suk-yeol government appears to be planning to have consultations with Japan on the premise that Tokyo will discharge contaminated water as planned, while the former Moon Jae-in government objected to the plan.
“Our government has never gone for Japan’s Fukushima water release plan. We are concerned about some arbitrary and subjective media reports,” Seoul’s foreign ministry said in a text message sent to reporters.
The ministry vowed utmost efforts to come up with “needed responses to have the contaminated water be disposed in a way that meets international laws and standards and in a safe manner from objective and scientific perspectives,” while continuing consultations with Japan.
In April 2021, Japan announced a plan to start discharging the radioactive water into the sea in 2023 in what is expected to be a decadeslong process, as all storage tanks at the Fukushima plant are expected to be full as early as fall of 2022.
Earlier this week, Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority gave initial approval for Tokyo Electric Power’s discharge plan, with final approval likely to come following a 30-day public comment period.
https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20220520010800320?section=national/national
Korea to keep close tabs on Japan’s Fukushima water discharge plan
May 22, 2022
Korea will step up communication with Japan and the U.N. nuclear watchdog to address health and security concerns over Tokyo’s planned release of radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the ocean, the foreign ministry said Thursday.
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority gave initial approval Wednesday for Tokyo Electric Power’s plan to discharge water from the plant starting around early 2023. Final approval is planned following a 30-day public comment period.
The foreign ministry said it remains committed to its efforts to ensure Japan safely releases the contaminated water from the plant in line with “international laws and standards” based on “objective and scientific perspective.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is tasked with conducting safety reviews on the planned water release.
“The government will continue to strengthen communication between Korea and Japan, as well as with the international community including the IAEA, by prioritizing public health and security in relation to the (Fukushima) contaminated water,” ministry spokesperson Choi Young-sam told a press briefing.
In April 2021, Japan announced a plan to start discharging the radioactive water in 2023 in what is expected to be a decades-long process, as all storage tanks at the Fukushima plant are expected to be full as early as the fall of this year. (Yonhap)
Japan’s nuclear water disposal plan irresponsible
May 20, 2022
Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority granted initial approval on Wednesday for the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s plan to pipe contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power station into the ocean.
The water was used to cool damaged reactors after tsunami waves crashed into the nuclear power plant at Fukushima, knocking out its backup electricity supply and triggering meltdowns in three of its reactors, following an earthquake in 2011.
The decision shows the Japanese government and the Japanese company stand together in diverting this problem toward humankind. And the Japanese people are among the first who will suffer because of this disastrous plan. Local reports show many Japanese residents have already expressed strong opposition to the plan.
Satoshi Nozaki, head of the Fukushima Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives Associations, said the plan will spell the death knell of the local fisheries industry. Already, importers from the world over have rejected agricultural and fishery products from Fukushima.
A Fukushima resident surnamed Uno expressed her anger against the decision saying this is something that will affect generations to come.
Japan’s immediate neighbors, residents of China and the Republic of Korea, will face no less harm from the radioactive discharge. Chinese and ROK fishermen might have to abandon fishing in the region.
On hearing that they would be served fish from Fukushima, athletes from the ROK had brought their own food with them to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
All seas being interconnected, neither North America nor Europe can escape the fate if Japan discharges the contaminated water into the ocean; a CCTV report had said the nuclear waste water from Fukushima would reach North America within 57 days.
The Tokyo Electric Power Company started manufacturing pipes for discharging the water in April and the discharge is scheduled to begin nearly next year. The world should stop Japan from carrying out this disastrous plan.
http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202205/20/WS6286df99a310fd2b29e5dddb.html
Japan OKs plan to release Fukushima nuclear plant wastewater
Japan’s nuclear regulator has approved plans by the operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant to release its treated radioactive wastewater into the sea next year, saying the outlined methods are safe and risks to the environment minimal
By Mari Yamaguchi Associated Press
May 18, 2022
TOKYO — Japan’s nuclear regulator on Wednesday approved plans by the operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant to release its treated radioactive wastewater into the sea next year, saying the outlined methods are safe and risks to the environment minimal.
The plan was submitted by the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings in December based on the government’s decision last year to release the wastewater as a necessary step for the ongoing plant cleanup and decommission.
A massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011 destroyed the Fukushima plant’s cooling systems, causing the meltdown of three reactors and the release of large amounts of radiation. Water that has been used to cool the three damaged reactor cores, which remain highly radioactive, has since leaked but was collected and stored in tanks.
There is still concern in the community and neighboring countries about the potential health hazards of the release of the wastewater that includes tritium — a byproduct of nuclear power production and a possible carcinogen at high levels.
The government and TEPCO say more than 60 isotopes selected for treatment can be lowered to meet safety standards, except for tritium, but that it is safe if diluted. Scientists say impact of long term low-dose exposure to the environment and humans are unknown, and that tritium can have a bigger impact on humans when consumed in fish than in water.
Japan nuclear authority chairman Toyoshi Fuketa said that the plan is made conservatively so the radiation impact on the environment could be still below the legal limit in case of any thinkable risks.
Under the plan, TEPCO will transport water that has been treated to below releasable levels through a pipeline from the tanks to a coastal facility, where the water is diluted with seawater.
From there, the water will enter an undersea tunnel to be discharged at a point about 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) from the plant to ensure safety and minimize the impact on local fishing and the environment, according to TEPCO.
The plan will become official after a 30-day public review, a formality that is not expected to overturn the approval.
The green light came just as the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Director Mariano Grossi arrived in Japan for meetings with top officials to discuss the plan, which has received international attention.
Fuketa will meet with Grossi on Friday after the IAEA director’s visit to the Fukushima plant on Thursday and meetings with other Japanese officials.
The government and TEPCO plan to begin gradually releasing the treated water in spring 2023.
The contaminated water is being stored in about 1,000 tanks at the damaged plant, which officials say must be removed so that facilities can be built for its decommissioning. The tanks are expected to reach their capacity of 1.37 million tons next year — slower than an earlier estimate of later this year.
Japan has sought the IAEA’s assistance to ensure the water release meets international safety standards, and to reassure local fishing and other communities as well as neighboring countries that have sharply criticized the plan.
A team of experts from the IAEA visited the plant in February and March for meetings with Japanese government and TEPCO officials. The task force, in a report issued late April, said Japan is making “significant progress” on the plan and taking appropriate steps toward the planned discharge.
Regulatory Commission approves plan to discharge treated water containing tritium, etc., into the sea.
May 18, 2022
The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) has approved a plan formulated by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) to discharge into the sea water containing tritium and other radioactive materials that have accumulated at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in accordance with government policy.
At the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, in addition to groundwater and rainwater flowing into the reactor buildings, contaminated water containing radioactive materials is generated as a result of cooling melted-down nuclear fuel, and after purification, the so-called “treated water” still contains tritium and other radioactive materials that are difficult to remove.
The government has decided that the ever-increasing amount of treated water cannot continue to be stored on the plant’s premises, so it will be diluted to a concentration below the standard and discharged into the sea around next spring.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) has been reviewing the plan.
At its meeting on March 18, the Nuclear Regulation Authority took up a draft review document summarizing the discussions to date, including a method to check the concentration of tritium and other substances in the treated water before discharging it, and an assessment of the effects of exposure to the surrounding environment and people, as described in the plan.
As a result, the Regulatory Commission approved TEPCO’s plan, finding no problems with the content of the review.
After soliciting opinions from the public for about a month from the 19th, the plan is expected to be officially approved.
TEPCO has been working since last December on the entrance and exit of the undersea tunnel for the offshore discharge, and after obtaining the approval of Fukushima Prefecture and local authorities, will start full-scale construction of facilities to dilute the treated water with seawater and the tunnel itself, aiming to complete the work around mid-April next year. The construction is scheduled to be completed by mid-April of next year.
However, concerns about harmful rumors persist, especially among local residents and fishermen, and the issue is how the government and TEPCO will gain the understanding of all concerned parties.
Fishermen’s Cooperative “Firmly Opposed”]
Haruhiko Terasawa, head of the Miyagi Prefectural Fisheries Cooperative Association, commented on the Nuclear Regulation Commission’s approval of TEPCO’s plan to discharge treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean, “Ascidians caught in Miyagi Prefecture still cannot be exported to some countries. We are firmly opposed to the discharge of treated water into the ocean, and we hope that the government will first create an environment in which we can fish with peace of mind.
He added, “After the earthquake and the nuclear power plant accident, it was hard for us to sell seafood from Miyagi Prefecture. I don’t want to feel that way again. From overseas, the seas of Miyagi Prefecture and Fukushima Prefecture are seen as the same region, so I want Miyagi Prefecture to provide the same level of support as Fukushima Prefecture, where the nuclear power plant is located,” he said, calling on the national government and TEPCO to provide explanations that are satisfactory to local fishermen and take concrete measures to prevent harmful rumors.
Governor Murai: “Take measures against reputational rumors.”
In response to the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s approval of a plan to discharge into the sea water containing tritium and other radioactive materials that have accumulated at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, Governor Murai stated, “The prefecture will continue to request that disposal methods other than discharging into the sea be considered, and will also seek more concrete measures to ensure that our past efforts and achievements toward reconstruction will not be undone. In addition, the prefectural government will ask the central government and TEPCO to take more concrete and effective measures against rumors to ensure that the efforts and achievements made so far toward reconstruction will not be undone.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/tohoku-news/20220518/6000019337.html?fbclid=IwAR3Y2DpVdxBz2yQ-fNdJAy7xxM9SF_qkNYmGoB_SgZTsPmLyi5l–HDQY7Y
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THE DAMNED
The human fallout of Britain’s nuclear bombs
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INTERNATIONAL URANIUM FILM FESTIVAL
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International Uranium Film Festival @URANIUMFESTIVAL
Nucler war! The legacy of uranium mining! Is nuclear power a solution against climate change? These are the issues of the 11. International Uranium Film Festival May 19 – 29, 2022, Modern Art Museum Rio de Janeiro
(Live and Online). Mark the date, join us and spread the word. Thank you. uraniumfilmfestival.org/en/rio-2022
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