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30-km nuke safety zone may not be enough http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20121024a3.html Kyodo Radiation doses beyond 30 km from four nuclear plants, including those in Niigata and Fukui prefectures, could reach 100 millisieverts in the first seven days amid a severe meltdown crisis like the one that started in March 2011 at the Fukushima No. 1 complex, according to estimates by the Nuclear Regulation Authority.The NRA is crafting new guidelines on nuclear disaster mitigation measures based on the Fukushima disaster and has proposed a radius of 30 km from a nuclear plant as a rough standard for areas where special preparations against fallout exposure should be made.

The latest simulation results, however, could lead local governments to require preparations in areas beyond the 30-km zone.

The four nuclear power stations are Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata Prefecture and Fukushima No. 2 plant in Fukushima Prefecture, Kansai Electric Power Co.’s Oi plant in Fukui Prefecture, and Chubu Electric Power Co.’s Hamaoka plant in Shizuoka Prefecture.

The NRA assumed two scenarios — one in which the amount of radioactive substances released is as high as in the Fukushima disaster and the other in which all reactors at each plant suffer meltdowns — to identify areas in which exposure could reach 100 millisieverts in the first seven days. The simulation did not take into account the geography around the plants.

For Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, areas located within a 40-km radius of the plant would register 100 millisieverts.

October 24, 2012 - Posted by | Japan, safety

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