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Drones to monitor Japan’s ionising radiation.

Japan to develop drones to monitor radiation http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/technology/sci-tech/japan-to-develop-drones-to-monitor-radiation-20120613-208zs.html#ixzz1xnWor9LB June 13, 2012 Japan’s atomic energy authority and the country’s space agency has announced a joint project to develop a drone to measure radioactivity in the environment after last year’s nuclear disaster. Japan has been forced to invent or improve systems for measuring radioactive contamination Continue reading →

June 14, 2012 Posted by | Japan, technology | Leave a comment

Shareholder meetings could be the next impediment to restarting Japan’s nuclear power industry

Fukushima Watch: Next Nuclear Battleground — Utilities’ Shareholder Meetings, WSJ, June 13, 2012,   By Mitsuru Obe With the government inching closer to restarting the first nuclear reactors since last year’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, a new battleground between Japan’s pro- and anti-nuclear camps is emerging: the annual shareholder meetings of the country’s big power companies in June.

Japan’s four biggest utilities hold their shareholder meetings on June 27. The meeting that’s drawing a lot of attention these days is that of Kansai Electric Power Co., which relied on
nuclear plants to supply around half of its electricity, and operates the Oi nuclear plant, whose No. 3 and 4 reactors are first in line to restart. Kansai Electric supplies energy to the region around the city of Osaka, Japan’s third-biggest metropolis and the utility’s largest shareholder, with 8.92% of outstanding shares.

And Osaka has submitted proposals to Kansai Electric that it exit nuclear power and separate
its power-generation operations from distribution and transmission — or control of the electricity grid. Continue reading →

June 14, 2012 Posted by | business and costs, Japan | Leave a comment

Charge nuclear officials under criminal law, say Fukushima residents

Fukushima residents call for criminal charges against nuclear officials http://articles.cnn.com/2012-06-11/asia/world_asia_japan-nuclear-complaint_1_fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-plant-fukushima-residents-tepco?_s=PM:ASIA June 11, 2012|By Kyung Lah, CNN The executives of the Japanese utility that owns the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant and a number of the country’s government officials should go to jail, according to a complaint filed by more than 1,000 local residents on Monday.

A total of 1,324 people lodged the unusual criminal complaint with the Fukushima prosecutor’s office, naming Tsunehisa Katsumata, the chairman of Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) and 32 others.

The complaint argues that the 33 TEPCO executives and government officials are responsible for causing the nuclear disaster that followed the March 11 earthquake and tsunami and exposing the people of Fukushima to radiation.

June 13, 2012 Posted by | Fukushima 2012, Japan, opposition to nuclear | 1 Comment

Disinformation to Japanese public on the relative costs of nuclear and renewable energy

Weapons of Disinformation The most common item in this process of manipulating the public discussion in favor of a vested interest has been the publishing of studies and reports by private “scientific” institutes. These papers by so-called “energy experts” are disguised as objective scientific assessments of the current situation and future developments…. their sole purpose is to convince the public and industrial and political leaders who might not have enough subject knowledge to notice the bias.

Japan: Ignorance and/or Dishonesty of “Energy Experts”, Clean Technica, JUNE 11, 2012 BY THOMAS   Currently, the main focus is on the struggle about whether or not to restart two nuclear reactors at the Ōi Nuclear Power Plant, which has a combined capacity of 2.2 GW of electric power.
Those forces in favor of a nuclear comeback proclaim that there would be no alternative to a restart. According to them, reactivating two nuclear reactors is the only way to ensure the stability of the power grid in the Kansai region, Japan’s second-largest industrial area.
In order to convince the public, industry leaders and the government of this so-called existential necessity, the so-called “nuclear village” bombards the discussion with doomsday scenarios about how dangerous blackouts are – how they risk lives and the economy — as well as trying to reestablish the perception that nuclear power would be the cheapest form of electricity generation.
Considering that the so-called “nuclear village” of Japan finds itself in the unfamiliar situation of an uphill battle to regain trust and favorable public opinion, it is trying everything it can to change the odds in its favor once again. Continue reading →

June 13, 2012 Posted by | Japan, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Japan’s secrecy over the true extent of Fukushima radiation

Japan Used Claims of Inaccuracy To Divert Release of Critical Radioactive Material at Fukushima Nuclear Plant, Spy Ghana 12 June 12,  Japanese officials have failed to justify why it took them over a month to disclose large-scale releases of radioactive material in mid-March at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Continue reading →

June 13, 2012 Posted by | Fukushima 2012, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Proposed nuclear reactor restarts in Japan – ‘woefully unprepared for accidents’

critics say the offsite center in Oi is woefully unprepared for a severe accident on the scale of Fukushima. 

Fukushima Watch: Japan Gets ‘Feudal’ on Reactor Restarts  By Chester Dawson and Mitsuru Obe, WSJ, June 12, 2012  As the Japanese government moves full steam ahead with plans to bring back online the first nuclear reactors since last year’s crisis in Fukushima, the town of Oi is preparing to roll out the futons for a pair of long-term visiting V.I.P.s from Tokyo. The two high-ranking government officials are being sent to the rural seaside town as part of a promise made last month by nuclear disaster minister Goshi Hosono, in order to pave the way for restarts of Oi’s No. 3 and No. 4 reactors—a controversial decision amid widespread public anxiety about nuclear safety. Continue reading →

June 13, 2012 Posted by | Japan, safety | Leave a comment

World Health Organisation dancing to nuclear lobby’s tune on Fukushima radiation?

Dr. Caldicott says the WHO only focuses on thyroid cancer and ignores all other cancers and other radiation related diseases.

“There is a substantially increased incidence of thyroid tumors among exposed children, up to 50 percent of those tested by ultrasound. But instead of biopsying these tumors, they are ‘following’ them, i.e. doing nothing, which means they are
not being diagnosed and many of these children are therefore destined to die, because almost certainly
many of the tumors will be malignant,”     ….          She is far from alone in her views.

The Fukushima Battleground Over Science, By Aron Lamm, Epoch Times, 8 June 12,   More than a year after the Fukushima nuclear incident, there is still much disagreement about many aspects of its actual consequences. A recent example is a report by the World Health Organization, which estimates radiation doses and cancer risks in the wake of the disaster.
Its findings are being criticized by other medical professionals who use different assumptions and different science, and accuse the WHO of downplaying the gravity of the health risks for people living in the affected area…… Continue reading →

June 11, 2012 Posted by | Fukushima 2012, spinbuster | Leave a comment

Decommissioning is far cheaper than radioactive fallout cleanup!

 Decommissioning is far cheaper than radioactive fallout cleanup!  Here is a quote from an Areva Executive VP, made on 3/21/11:    “Clearly we’re witnessing one of the greatest disasters in modern time”
Left unmentioned in the  article,  (How hard is it to dismantle 150 nuclear reactors? ) are these TWO Important issues:

1. The TEPCO Gang controlled Labor Middlemen are also making a killing off this Trillion Dollar Eco-Disaster, by providing disposable labors like the original 50 responders whose records seem to have vanished, while making BIG money for TEPCO… See: http://is.gd/Ljj4Ff

2. Regarding the highly radioactive material itself:
I wonder if any of the Japanese Leaders are asking (on or off the record), what happened to all the highly radioactive materials that are now missing from Fukushima and what they are doing to recover them ASAP. Since it is true that that TEPCO is using GANG supplied labor then it must be worrisome that much of this highly radioactive material may have been stolen to be later sold to terrorist organizations because of it’s dirty weapon potential for BIG money! I hope some future terrorist dirty explosion does not contain Fukushima radioactive debris, as it will give the phrase “Made in Japan” a new meaning!

A comment from Capt D on http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/how-hard-is-it-to-dismantle-150-nuclear-reactors-europes-about-to-find-out/2012/06/09/gJQA2EH0PV_blog.html

June 11, 2012 Posted by | Japan, secrets,lies and civil liberties | Leave a comment

Fukushima radiation worse than we’ve been told

The meltdown at Fukushima is releasing far more radiation into the atmosphere [than the Nagasaki A bomb] and if unit 4 were to tumble, it would have the same effect as 1,100 A-bombs…..  much more radiation than we’ve been led to believe has made its way to the American shores. 

Fukushima forum: Dr. John Apsley says U.S. is feeling the effects of radiation, Donna Anderson Coast to Coast Radio Examiner  10 June 12, Dr. John Apsley appeared on the Fukushima forum on Coast to Coast AM on Saturday, June 9, 2012 .
For more than 30 years Dr. Apsley , author of “Fukushima Meltdown & Modern Radiation: Protecting Ourselves and Our Future Generations ” has specialized in cell regeneration and accelerated wound repair. He appeared on the show to deliver his findings on the effects of
Fukushima radioactive fall-out on the Japanese people, as well as Americans. Continue reading →

June 11, 2012 Posted by | Fukushima 2012 | Leave a comment

Japanese government ‘in the pocket of the nuclear industry’ will restart reactors

“By ignoring them and continuing his reckless push to restart Ohi, prime minister Noda is compromising the health and safety of millions, and showing just how deep his government is in the pocket of the nuclear industry,”

U-turn on nuclear as Japan PM decides: ‘We can’t do without it’ Scotsman.com 9 June 2012  Japan’s prime minister has ruled that two mothballed nuclear reactors in the west of the country must be restarted to protect jobs and ensure the “survival of society”, risking a backlash amid safety fears more than a year after the Fukushima disaster. Continue reading →

June 9, 2012 Posted by | Japan, politics | Leave a comment

Japan’s re-opened nuclear plants will not be safe until after 2015

Filtered vents that could substantially reduce radiation leaks in case of an accident ; a radiation-free crisis management building; and fences to block debris washed up by a tsunami won’t be ready until 2015. This means the plant, as well as plant workers and residents, won’t be fully protected from radiation leaks in case of a Fukushima-class crisis…

Japan readies for reopening of nuclear reactors amid safety concerns, guardian.co.uk,   8 June 2012 Prime minister Yoshihiko Noda assures citizens’ safety and says reactors must be restarted to boost economy… Prime minister Yoshihiko Noda said the government has taken ample safety measures to ensure the two reactors in western Japan would not leak radiation ifan earthquake or tsunami as severe as last year’s should strike them. Continue reading →

June 9, 2012 Posted by | Japan, safety | Leave a comment

Japan mulling over energy options for the future

A key element in the national dialogue will be the future energy mix for Japan to 2030. Three advisory committees – to METI, Environment and Cabinet – have been consulted and the government is ready to put out three options for public consultation

The government appears to have got the message that the public want more choice in their energy supply.

It will be interesting to see what happens when they let the public have their say.

Japan’s energy dilemma: a renewables embrace?, Climate Spectator,  8 Jun 2012. Gwen Andrews “……..modeling by the Institute of Energy Economics of Japan demonstrates the immensely difficult choices the country is facing……

The announcement of the restarts may be twinned with another announcement, of a ‘national dialogue’ on future energy policy. Japan reviews its energy policy plan every three years, with the last review completed in June 2010. The events of ‘3/11’, as the Japanese call the tsunami disaster, has brought forward a fierce debate on where the
country goes from here.
The debate is notable in that it is front page news, Continue reading →

June 8, 2012 Posted by | Japan, politics | Leave a comment

Fukushima nuclear disaster remains a problem for the whole world

324 Civic organizations from all over the world have submitted a petition called “An Urgent Request for UN Intervention to Stabilize the Fukushima Unit 4 Spent Nuclear Fuel”, Mr. Murata said noting that those organizations are also demanding a moratorium on Japan’s nuclear reactors.

 ”the nuclear village and nuclear dictatorship is exposed, and public opinion and their movements are strong.”Nuclear village is a term for the Japanese distorted social structure in which the pronuclear politicians, scholars and companies have more power than those who are skeptical of nuclear energy. Anti-nuclear protests have been ignored for more than 40 years.

Fukushima Reactor Global Security Issue: Japanese Former Diplomat http://www.panorientnews.com/en/news.php?k=1784, June 7, 2012 Tokyo- (PanOrient News)The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant Number 4 reactor presents a security problem for the entire world, Mitsuhei Murata, Japan’s former ambassador to Switzerland said.

Fukushima Daiichi plants are “not under control at all… and the situation with nuclear reactors in Japan is like vehicles being driven without a license,” Mr. Murata told a news conference at the foreign correspondents’ club of Japan on June 5. Continue reading →

June 8, 2012 Posted by | Fukushima 2012, safety | Leave a comment

Japanese lawmakers plan for new nuclear regulatory body

Opposition wins on nuke watchdog, Japan Times, Kyodo 7 June 12, The administration will effectively accept a plan proposed by opposition parties to set up an independent “nuclear regulatory commission,” lawmakers said following talks between ruling and opposition parties to explore amending a bill to create a new nuclear regulatory agency. Continue reading →

June 8, 2012 Posted by | Japan, politics | Leave a comment

Japan’s energy future could be nuclear free

Japan considers nuclear-free future Options require big boost for renewable energy sources. Nature, David Cyranoski 06 June 2012 It’s official: nuclear power will have a much smaller role in Japan’s energy future than was once thought. Since the meltdowns and gas explosions at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station in March 2011, all of Japan’s remaining reactors have been shut down for inspections and maintenance.

Last week the government offered a glimpse of their future, and that of the country’s nuclear power in general, when it published an outline of four ways to satisfy Japan’s future energy demands. One scenario recommends using a market mechanism to determine the nuclear contribution. Under the other three, nuclear power would supply at most one-quarter of Japan’s energy by 2030 — and in one case, none at all. Continue reading →

June 7, 2012 Posted by | ENERGY, Japan | Leave a comment

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