Japan’s Tsuruga nuclear reactor ruled unsafe, for permanent closure
JAPAN NUCLEAR REACTOR ATOP ACTIVE FAULT: REGULATOR, Yahoo 7 News, May 23, 2013TOKYO (AFP) – Japan’s nuclear watchdog said Wednesday that one reactor was sitting directly above an active tectonic fault, effectively ruling out a restart forever.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) said it had approved a report from experts which found a crack in the Earth’s crust lying underneath the reactor at a plant in Tsuruga, western Japan, was active. ”There is a need for us to take the report seriously,” NRA chairman
Shunichi Tanaka said.
It is the first time the newly-minted NRA has made such a ruling. It is still investigating possibly-active faults under five other
reactors. A second reactor at Tsuruga, which sits 300 metres (328 yards) away, is not one of this number.
The final decision on a restart rests with the government, who are expected to be asked by plant operator Japan Atomic Power to overrule
the watchdog.
Observers say despite its pro-nuclear stance, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration is unlikely to risk public ire by backing the
operator, meaning the reactor would become the first to be permanently shuttered since the Fukushima disaster……
http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/17290072/japan-nuclear-reactor-atop-active-fault-regulator/
Palisades Nuclear Power Plant needs new tank bottom
(includes slideshow) Palisades Nuclear Power Plant will remain closed until ‘early summer’ to replace bottom of leaking tank M Live Michigan Yvonne Zipp 21 May 13 Fifteen days after it shut down to find and fix a leak in its safety injection refueling water tank (SIRWT), Palisades Nuclear Power Plant announced Monday that it would replace the bottom of the tank and totally reconstitute its subflooring.
The repairs are likely to keep the Covert Township facility, which is owned by New Orleans-based Entergy Corp. offline until at least early summer, said Lindsay Rose, spokeswoman for Palisades in an email. While some Southwest Michigan residents and antinuclear activists had called for a complete replacement of the tank, David Lochbaum, director of the Union of Concerned Scientists’ nuclear safety project, said that replacement vs. repair “is not a black and white call.”
Lochbaum cited as a recent example the San Onofre nuclear plant in California, whose owner paid $780 million to replace two aging steam generators on each of two reactors — one of which failed in January 2012, less than a year after installation. Workers found significant degradation on all of the replacement steam generators, caused by unexpected vibration.
Both reactors are still shut down and a restart date has not yet been set, said Lochbaum.
“Thus, Entergy’s choice on the SIRWT is to either repair an aging component that is heading towards if not already within the wearout zone or to replace it with a brand spanking new tank that inherently has a relatively high chance of failure, too,” wrote Lochbaum…… http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/05/palisades_nuclear_plant_announ.html
Fire alert at Pilgrim nuke plant – “further details not available”
Firefighters called in to U.S. nuclear plant after alert — Overheating in turbine room — “Further details not immediately available”http://enenews.com/developing-firefighters-called-in-to-u-s-nuclear-plant-overheating-in-turbine-room-further-details-not-immediately-available
WXTK,, May 20th, 2013: Firefighters called to Pilgrim nuke plant […] after 4 a.m. According to reports, a motor overheated in the turbine room. That is in a non-nuclear section of the plant. Further details were not immediately available.
The Patriot Ledger: Twelve hours after the protest, at 4:20 a.m. Monday, Plymouth firefighters went inside the plant to check an overheated turbine lubrication pump. Fire Chief Edward Bradley said an electrical overload tripped a plant circuit breaker, automatically sending an alert to the fire department. Bradley said the pump is one of a number of pumps that keep turbine bearings lubricated during production. The pumps are located in a building adjacent to the reactor building.
Excerpt from anonymous tip: “fire in turbine bldg of pilgrim nuclear plant….4 fire trucks respond”
Japan readying to gamble with safety, in restarting nuclear reactors
Crushed By Soaring Energy Costs, Japan Prepares To Reactivate Its Nuclear Power Plants Zero Hedge, by Tyler Durden on 05/19/2013 “….First it was Japan’s economy minister chiming in with his views on the fair value of the USDJPY (apparently, now it is too high), who also made it clear that Japan has no choice but to restart the same nuclear power plants that two years resulted in the biggest nuclear catastrophe since Chernobyl.
And now, proving that Japan has learned absolutely nothing from its recent past, it is now preparing to risk yet another Fukushima, just to make sure that Goldman’s partners have a fresh year of record bonuses, driven by the BOJ’s monetary insanity. Yomiuri Shumbun reports, that just two years after a wholesale shutdown of Japan’s nuclear power plants demanded by the people, Japan is once again going to reactivate its nuclear power plants, much to the chagrin of the already massively irradiated local population.
Tokyo Electric Power Co. has decided to apply to the nuclear regulating body to restart two reactors at its nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture by the end of July, after revised safety standards are implemented earlier that month, it has been learned.
Reactivation of the two reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant could help stabilize the power supply situation for eastern Japan, including the Kanto region, which is part of TEPCO’s service areas; and the Tohoku region, Tohoku Electric Power Co.’s service area for which TEPCO provides electricity. In doing so, the company could prevent electricity fees from rising further.
Reactivation of the reactors could also help TEPCO’s management reconstruction drive, as the utility faces additional fuel costs for thermal power generation to make up for power shortfalls due to the suspension of nuclear power reactors.
The application to the Nuclear Regulation Authority will be made for the Nos. 1 and 7 reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata Prefecture. The move is expected to coincide with similar applications to be filed by four other operators for reactors at their five plants, according to officials.
So which nukes are set to go live?….
The reactors could be reactivated after passing the NRA’s safety inspections and obtaining consent from local governments. The reactors that the four utilities are applying to restart are at:
- Hokkaido Electric Power Co.’s Tomari nuclear power plant in Tomari, Hokkaido.
- Kansai Electric Power Co.’s Takahama nuclear power plant in Takahama, Fukui Prefecture.
- Shikoku Electric Power Co.’s Ikata nuclear power plant in Ikata, Ehime Prefecture.
- Kyushu Electric Power Co.’s Sendai nuclear power plant in Satsuma-Sendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, and Genkai nuclear power plant in Genkai, Saga Prefecture.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant has boiling water reactors–the same type as those at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, which suffered meltdowns following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami…….
Although we doubt it: it is only a matter of time before some Japanese central planner takes the mic, and reads the Goldman script, promising all disastrous future earthquakes and tsunamis have been henceforth banned and made illegal, and the BOJ will guarantee nothing bad can ever happen to the earthquake prone nation, located along one of the most active seismic faultlines in the world. http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-05-19/crushed-soaring-energy-costs-japan-prepares-reactivate-its-nuclear-power-plants
Is there any proper regulation of radioactivity in Malawi’s uranium mines?
Comment on article Man loses sight due to Kayelekera radiation rshaba , 20 May 13, Does this mean that Paladin does not offer protective clothing including protective glasses to its employees? This is a no-brainer for someone dealing with radioactive substance business. I am shocked! It seems Paladin is taking advantage in people’s ignorance by not investing in appropriate protection especially for its front-line employees doing the “dirty” work. I could understand if it were a Chinese or Indian based company,
BUT Australian & Canadian based, my foot! Where are the government regulators? This should be a basic issue on their “checklist”: no protection and insurance cover for front-line staff, no business, simple and straight forward. The problem is that once someone has been exposed to radioactivity then whoever or whatever they come into contact with, will indirectly be exposed to radioactivity. Does the Government run regular radioactive on water, foods etc around the area? http://www.bnltimes.com/index.php/sunday-times/headlines/national/15108-man-loses-sight-due-to-kayelekera-radiation
Radioactive cargo on German ship gutted by fire
Ship with radioactive cargo gutted by fire in Hamburg harbour http://indymedia.org.au/2013/05/18/ship-with-radioactive-cargo-gutted-by-fire-in-hamburg-harbour , 17 May 2013 – – A freighter which burned spectacularly in Hamburg harbour had highly dangerous radioactive substances aboard.
The north German city-state’s social democrat government only today released details of the fire on 1 May because the opposition Greens had put a question on notice.
As well as 8.9 tonnes of uranium hexafluoride the “Atlantic Cartier” also had some 180 tonnes of highly flammable ethanol, several tonnes of explosives, including munitions, and rocket fuel on board.
The highly toxic uranium hexafluofide is a compound used in centrifuges and other plants to enrich uranium. An area contaminated with it would be uninhabitable for a very long time. Continue reading
Radioactive water leaking from Catawba Nuclear Station, USA
Leak of radioactive material at U.S. nuclear plant — Amount unknown, but greater than 100 gallons — “Leaking from the reactor itself”? http://enenews.com/leak-of-nuclear-material-at-u-s-nuclear-plant-amount-unknown-but-greater-than-100-gallons-of-radioactive-water-leaking-from-the-reactor-itself
CharlotteObserver, May. 15, 2013: More than 100 gallons of water with traces of tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, has been leaked from a discharge pipe at the Catawba Nuclear Station [… It] has the potential to reach groundwater, according to the NRC. […] Friends of the Earth, a environmental watchdog group with offices in Columbia, said Wednesday that Duke Energy needs to clarify how large the leak. […] Friends of the Earth also said that Unit 2 at the Catawba plant should be taken out of operation while the leak is investigated and all leaking from the reactor itself, not just from the leaking sump line, is identified and halted. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, drinking water that has tritium can increase the risk of developing cancer.
NRC: Event Notification Report for May 15, 2013 [Catawba Nuclear Station in South Carolina] OFFSITE NOTIFICATION DUE TO LEAK FROM TURBINE BUILDING SUMP CONTAINING TRITIUM […] “Sample exceeding the industry groundwater protection initiative related to radioactivity in groundwater for which a news release is planned and notification to other government agencies will be made.” “A leak greater than 100 gallons containing tritium has the potential to reach groundwater. The source has been identified. Actions to isolate this source are being initiated.” The licensee has identified a leak in a fiberglass discharge pipe from the turbine building sump. The licensee estimates that greater than 100 gallons of water has been discharged through the leak at the present time. The licensee is in the process of installing a temporary sump pump in the turbine building sump in order to isolate the discharge path. Samples indicate a tritium concentration of 8.964 E-6 uCi/mL. […]
See also: Nuclear plant spills radioactive water into Lake Michigan (AUDIO)
1983 – how close it came to nuclear war
New Documents Reveal How a 1980s Nuclear War Scare Became a Full-Blown Crisis WIRED.COM, BY ROBERT BECKHUSE 05.16.13
During 10 days in November 1983, the United States and the Soviet Union nearly started a nuclear war. Newly declassified documents from the CIA, NSA, KGB, and senior officials in both countries reveal just how close we came to mutually assured destruction — over a military exercise.
That exercise, Able Archer 83, simulated the transition by NATO from a conventional war to a nuclear war, culminating in the simulated release of warheads against the Soviet Union. NATO changed its readiness condition during Able Archer to DEFCON 1, the highest level. The Soviets interpreted the simulation as a ruse to conceal a first strike and readied their nukes. At this period in history, and especially during the exercise, a single false alarm or miscalculation could have brought Armageddon……. http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2013/05/able-archer-scare/
‘Near miss’ at Chalk River nuclear reactor
Atomic Energy of Canada playing down ‘near-miss’ at Ontario nuclear reactorBy Steve Mertl | Daily Brew – Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL) is playing down the danger caused by a so-called “near-miss” at its nuclear reactor in Chalk River, Ont., but says it’s still being taken seriously.
An operator mistakenly shut off a pumping system that supplies coolant to the reactor’s core, officials of the Crown corporation told the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission on Wednesday…….
Unless there’s a release of radiation, the public rarely hears about accidents at nuclear facilities, so AECL’s session before the commission provided a rare glimpse into what can happen.
The Chalk River site, about a two-hour drive northwest of Ottawa, is Canada’s foremost nuclear research facility. It’s also the oldest, first established during the Second World War as part of the atomic bomb program. After the war it transitioned into research on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and production of isotopes used in medicine.
The facility was the scene of two nuclear accidents in the 1950s, the first in 1952, severely damaging a reactor and creating 4,500 tons of radioactive water that was dumped in ditches near the Ottawa River. A 1958 incident involving the NRU reactor contaminated the reactor building and surrounding area.
The NRU reactor, which went online in 1957, was temporarily shut down in 2007 to deal with safety issues, raising concern about a worldwide shortage of medical isotopes during the year-long closure. It also suffered a radioactive water leak in 2008. The reactor was shut down again in 2009 for more than a year after the water leak recurred.
The latest incident seems trivial by comparison but could have had serious consequences……
According to a 2011 article in the Guardian newspaper, there have been 33 serious incidents and accidents at nuclear power plants since the first Chalk River meltdown in 1952. That one was rated a Level 5 incident on an ascending scale of 1 to 7…..
A 2011 post on the website of the environmental Bellona Foundation warned of an alarming number of emergency shutdowns, or scrams, and unscheduled repairs at Russian nuclear power stations…..http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/dailybrew/atomic-energy-canada-playing-down-near-miss-ontario-185900047.html
Scientists’ doubts on the safety of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant
Top scientists express safety concerns over Kudankulam nuclear plant NDTV, by Pallava Bagla, Edited by Mala Das | May 14, 2013 New Delhi: Sixty of the country’s leading scientists have written to chief ministers of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, expressing safety concerns over the controversial Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant which received the Supreme Court’s nod earlier this month. The scientists, most of who aren’t specialists in nuclear energy, have sought a safety review of the plant by an “independent panel” of experts.
But the scientists, in their three-page petition, have expressed doubts “particularly with reference to possible sub-standard components” that were supplied to the plant. Recently, four faulty valves were detected in the first reactor unit of the plant; they were later replaced. Some Russian officials had also been arrested recently over alleged corruption in sourcing sub-standard materials from some Russian nuclear plants.
Time to tighten regulation of the uranium market
The Global Market in Natural Uranium—From Proliferation Risk to Non-Proliferation Opportunity U
ranium remains a critical component of civil-military nuclear programs. Today, Ian Anthony and Lina Grip reveal that the global market for natural uranium remains relatively unchecked, as does the activities of new exporters from the developing world.
ISN, By Ian Anthony and Lina Grip for SIPRI, 13 May 13,
The effort to cap the number of nuclear armed states in the world has largely focused on limiting the spread of the industrial items and processes needed for the stages of the fuel cycle that can turn uranium or plutonium into forms that could be used to make a nuclear weapon: enrichment or reprocessing.
The most important suppliers of nuclear technology have recently agreed guidelines to restrict access to the most sensitive industrial items, in the framework of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). Nevertheless, the number of countries proficient in these industrial processes has increased over time, and it is now questionable whether a strategy based on close monitoring of technology ‘choke points’ is by itself a reliable barrier to nuclear proliferation.
Time to tighten regulation of the uranium market?……Restricting access to natural uranium could be an important aspect of the global efforts to obstruct the spread of nuclear weapons. The time is ripe to start thinking seriously about the design of such control measures and how responsibility can be shared across the non-proliferation regime.http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Articles/Detail/?lng=en&id=163968
Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority wants Monju reprocessing plant to stay shut
NRA wants Monju to remain shut downhttp://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/05/14/national/nra-wants-monju-to-remain-shut-down/#.UZQmBqJwpLt Lapses seen in JAEA checks of key reactor components KYODO, STAFF REPORT MAY 14, 2013 The Japan Atomic Energy Agency committed grave safety errors in managing the troubled Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor in Fukui Prefecture, and top officials at the Nuclear Regulation Authority said Monday they plan to make sure it stays closed.
The closure order to the government-linked JAEA will effectively dash any hope of trying to restart the reactor by year’s end, dealing another setback to Japan’s long-stalled plan to set up a nuclear fuel recycling system.
In September, the now-defunct Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency carried out surprise inspections and determined that JAEA failed to regularly check key components of the experimental 280,000-kw reactor, as required by internal rules. Continue reading
Palisades Nuclear Power Plant chronology of incidents over last 6 years
A timeline of incidents at Palisades Nuclear Power Plant since 2007, Michigan Live COVERT TOWNSHIP, MI , 12 May 13– The leak that shut down Palisades Nuclear Power Plant May 5 is one of a series of incidents that have bedeviled the nuclear reactor in recent years.
Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Kristine Svinicki will tour Palisades Nuclear Power Plant on Monday, May 13, at the invitation of U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, who will accompany her……. http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/05/palisades_nuclear_power_plant_14.html
Hanford Nuclear reservation getting ever more dangerous
Hanford Nuclear Cleanup May Be Too Dangerous, Future Of Storage Plant Uncertain http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/09/hanford-nuclear-cleanup-too-dangerous_n_3246263.html?utm_hp_ref=green | By Valerie Brown 05/09/2013 , Scientific American: (click here for original article)
The most toxic and voluminous nuclear waste in the U.S.—208 million liters —sits in decaying underground tanks at the Hanford Site (a nuclear reservation) in southeastern Washington State. It accumulated there from the middle of World War II, when the Manhattan Project invented the first nuclear weapon, to 1987, when the last reactor shut down. The federal government’s current attempt at a permanent solution for safely storing that waste for centuries—the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant here—has hit a major snag in the form of potential chain reactions, hydrogen explosions and leaks from metal corrosion. And the revelation last February that six more of the storage tanks are currently leaking has further ramped up the pressure for resolution. Continue reading
Criminals continue to sustain Japan’s nuclear industry
the dirty secret that yakuza-linked workers and companies have long sustained Japan’s nuclear industry — 
along with yakuza members themselves, ex-convicts, wanted criminals, and drug addicts working there — is now public knowledge.
most of their members are sociopathic felons who would commit theft, assault or murder to make a little money. And if you consider the black-market value of a little plutonium, you may feel a tad uneasy knowing such people have long had access to it — and can still get their hands on nuclear materials.
Of course, why take action when you can spend more time debating about taking action?
it seems more and more likely that criminals have been running the plants for a very long time — they just don’t all have tattoos
Yakuza links put nation at added nuclear risk JAPAN TIMES, BY JAKE ADELSTEIN, 5 MAY 13 On April 15, two alleged terrorists in Boston killed three people, injured more than 170 others and terrified a nation — for about $100 it cost them to modify pressure cookers into bombs. We should be glad they didn’t come to Japan, where they may have been able to explode a ready-made nuclear dirty bomb, kill untold thousands, render huge swaths of the country uninhabitable — and get paid by Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco) in the process.
I wish I were kidding. Japan has more than 50 gigantic nuclear “pressure cookers” ripe for exploitation by terrorists. And they wouldn’t even have to lay siege to the facilities. Instead, they could just walk into a nuclear plant and leave with enough weapons-grade plutonium for a small atomic device — which later could be detonated wherever they chose. How?
In Japan, getting access to a nuclear power plant is very simple: fill out a job application. Continue reading
1 This Month
19 November – Webinar – The Reality of Reprocessing
Time: 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada) / 2:00 PM Eastern / 7:00 PM UK / 8:00 PM CET
Register for the Zoom Event Here
Shut down the radiation-damaged Heysham nuclear reactors now
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
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