nuclear-news

11 Years after the Nuclear Accident, Tomioka Town, Fukushima: A “Reconstruction Base” in a Place Where No One Can Live

February 7, 2022
On January 26, restrictions on entry were lifted in a part of the difficult-to-return area designated in Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture, following the accident at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The town and the government aim to lift the evacuation order for the reconstruction center in the spring of 2023.

The town and the government are aiming to lift the evacuation order in the spring of 2023. This spring, for the first time in 11 years since the nuclear accident, people will be able to walk under cherry blossoms in full bloom in Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture, on January 26, 2022.

On January 26, I walked around the area with a dosimeter in hand to assess the situation of radioactive contamination. The air radiation levels shown in the photo were measured at a height of one meter from the ground. The government’s long-term target for decontamination is 0.23 microsieverts per hour. The average natural radiation level in Japan is estimated to be 0.05 microsieverts per hour.

Houses being dismantled by heavy machinery. The same kind of work was going on here and there in the reconstruction center (The figure is the hourly radiation level near the location where the photo was taken. The unit is microsieverts.)

(3) Along the rows of cherry blossom trees, there were many empty lots after the demolition of houses. (The figure is the radiation level per hour near the location where the photo was taken; the unit is microsievert.)

(4) The remains of a TEPCO employee dormitory. 4) The site of a TEPCO employee dormitory, where bags containing garbage from decontamination were lined up (The figure shows the hourly radiation level near the location where the photo was taken. Unit: microsievert)

　The area that is now off-limits is about 390 hectares, mainly in the Yonomori district east of Yonomori Station on the Joban Line. The area used to be a residential area with a famous cherry blossom viewing spot, but now it has become nothing but vacant lots and is in a state of disrepair. Close to the station and surrounding a large park, there were many apartments as well as single-family houses, and there was also a dormitory for TEPCO employees.

There was also a dormitory for TEPCO employees. 5) A light passenger car with a flat tire was abandoned at the site of a former supermarket. (The figures are the hourly radiation levels near the location of the photo shoot, in microsieverts.)

(6) At the Night Forest Tsutsumi Park, the pond had dried up and weeds were growing thickly. Unit: microsievert)

(7) Bicycles and trash from decontamination were placed in front of a house with broken windows (The figure shows the hourly radiation level near the shooting location. Unit: microsievert)

(⑧) At a car dealership along Route 6, the glass was broken and the ceiling had fallen in (The figure shows the hourly radiation level near the location where the photo was taken. Unit: microsievert)

　The number of registered residents as of January 1 was 2,729. The town will start a “preparatory lodging” program during the major holidays this spring, allowing residents to sleep in their homes in the reconstruction center. (Kenta Onozawa)

(9) At the temporary storage site for decontaminated garbage, the dismantling of the sandbags that covered the perimeter of the garbage to shield it from radiation was in progress. Unit: microsievert)

10) The boundary between the reconstruction center and the difficult-to-return area. The area at the back of the photo has not yet been decontaminated and there is no prospect of lifting the evacuation order (The figure shows the hourly radiation level near the location where the photo was taken. Unit: microsievert)

The area was designated by the government after the accident at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant as a “difficult-to-return area” with high radiation levels, and is being developed so that residents can live there after priority decontamination.
https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/158755?fbclid=IwAR24oLt_xTtnf9fAkfsVdDbNU132uvlGYswOXuiSTyXa4I01HNl38W4Qq5I

February 9, 2022 - Posted by dunrenard | Fuk 2022 | Fukushima Prefecture, Fukushima Radiation, Tomioka