Economic pain of Japan’s nuclear disaster
Six Months: Counting the Cost, WSJ, By Yoree Koh, 11 Sept 11, The March 11 disasters have taken a heavy toll on Japan, in every conceivable way. In other posts, JRT looks at the impact on survivors’ lives and challenges for the future. Below is an update on the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis as seen in the simplest of measures – numbers……..
Nuclear Effect:
23 – number of times the government ordered bans on distribution of certain produce from select prefectures due to radiation contamination as of Sept. 10, according to the Ministry of Health.
26 – the number of different types of food items, including vegetables, fish and beef, at various points banned from distribution due to radioactive contamination, as named in orders released by the Ministry of Health as of Sept. 10.
380 tons – the amount of beef from cattle suspected of being fed rice straw with high concentrations of radioactive cesium the government purchased, according to the Nikkei business daily…..
Y120,000 – maximum monthly compensation Tokyo Power Electric Co. is to pay each evacuee between March and August for the anguish they suffered because they had to flee from their homes.
Y112.2 billion – total compensation Tepco has paid on a provisional basis to evacuees, farmers, companies and others affected by the accident as of Aug. 30……..http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2011/09/11/six-months-counting-the-cost/
Fukushima radiation into sea at least 3 times greater than previously estimated
Sea radiation ‘3 times higher than thought’, The Yomiuri Shimbun, 10 Sept 11, The total amount of radioactive substances released into the sea as a result of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant is believed to have been three times the initial estimate by the plant’s operator, according to the Japan Atomic Energy Agency.
A team led by senior researcher Takuya Kobayashi estimated the actual quantity at 15,000 terabecquerels, including substances in polluted water and substances released into the air that eventually fell into the sea. Tera means one trillion.
The figure is more than triple the estimate by Tokyo Electric Power Co. Also, the new estimate does not include cesium-134, meaning the actual total could be even larger. The research team will announce its findings at a conference of the Atomic Energy Society of Japan scheduled to start in Kitakyushu on Sept. 19….. http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110909005415.htm
Former Japanese Prime Minister insisted on emergency action at Fukushima
Former Japan PM ‘prevented nuclear plant pullout’, Google News, (AFP) – 9 Sept 11, TOKYO — Former premier Naoto Kan prevented the operator of a stricken Japanese nuclear plant from abandoning it after the March tsunami and forced its older employees onto the frontline, a newspaper reported Friday.People who were then in senior government positions have said executives at Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) sought to withdraw from the Fukushima Daiichi plant on March 15 after it had been hit by a series of explosions. Continue reading
Uncertain future as radiation leak continues from Fukushima nuclear plant
Fukushima Radiation expert says outcome of nuke crisis hard to predict, warns of further dangers, Paul Langley’s Nuclear History Blog(Mainichi Japan) September 9,2011 http://mdn.mainichi.jp/perspectives/news/20110909p2a00m0na016000c.html by Hiroaki Koide “.……. At present, I believe that there is a possibility that massive amounts of radioactive materials will be released into the environment again. Continue reading
Japan’s nuclear refugees – six months later
Six Months: The Nuclear Refugees, WSJ, 9 Sept 11, Since becoming self-appointed “nuclear refugees” in early July, Minako Ishigooka and her 14-month-old son have been living in a single room in a hostel in Naha, the prefectural seat of the southern island chain of Okinawa.
Just a few blocks away, the city’s main commercial strip is bustling with vacationers, but Ms. Ishigoooka’s days are spent on mundane tasks like making meals for her son and taking him out for walks. After he goes down for the night, she sits at the inn’s communal computer until 2 a.m. to gather news about radiation on Twitter.
She and her son have been to the beach only once but that doesn’t bother her. “At least here, I can let him play outside,” the 35-year-old mother from Tokyo says.
Fears of flare-ups in the nuclear situation or worries about radiation contamination of food have driven some residents of cities hundreds of kilometers from the disaster-struck Fukushima Daiichi plant to seek new homes. Many of them are mothers with young children like Ms. Ishigooka — the group most vulnerable to the potential effects of radiation……
One thing that makes the life rewarding for the nuclear refugees is the warm welcome from the local residents. Ms. Tatsuno says the nuclear evacuees have one thing in common with the Okinawans, who have long felt they were made to shoulder the burden of hosting U.S. bases to protect the entire nation: Deep mistrust of the government in Tokyo.
“They understand that whenever the government uses the word ‘safe’, you have to take it with a pinch of salt,” she says…. http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2011/09/09/six-months-the-nuclear-refugees/
India’s government will weaken its nuclear safeguards
Government plans nuclear watchdog with limited power, India Today, 10 Sept 11 A new Bill introduced in Parliament for setting up a Nuclear SafetyRegulatory Authority (NSRA) could result in a regulatory system much weaker than the existing one. Continue reading
Japanese govt admits that it underestimated Fukushima radiation
Japan’s former Prime Ministers fears on Fukushima – a ‘national disaster’
Russia giving up on plan for nuclear plant in Haripur, India
Russia wants West Bengal nuclear plant relocated, Sachin Parashar, TNN | Sep 9, 2011,Times of India NEW DELHI: The government is looking at allotting another site for nuclear reactor to Russia in place of Haripur in West Bengal, a location marred by controversy. Confirming that the Russians have officially sought another site, government sources indicated a new site could be allotted soon.
The Mamta Banerjee-led government in the state announced last month that it was going to scrap the project, but it did not prevent Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from making a
strong case for nuclear energy when he visited Kolkata later.
“There is no decision yet but we are looking at the request from the Russians. We can allot another site to them,” said a senior government source. The Russians have been expressing concern about protests in Haripur since last year, but the government was still hopeful of a way out. With Mamata’s regime not relenting, the Centre has been forced to think of other alternative sites.
West Bengal power minister said in the assembly last month that the government would not allow any nuclear power plant to be set up in the state. Russia’s state-owned nuclear power 
equipment and service giant Rosatom had asked the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) to consider allotting it another site for the plant. ……
Rosatom chief Sergei Kiriyenko had earlier said that a total of 12 nuclear power units were to be built at Kudankulam and Haripur. Haripur was said to be an important part of the Centre’s plans for achieving its target of generating 30,000MW of nuclear power by 2030.
Unsafe radiation levels in Kanto region, beyond Fukushima
The story also alludes to the strength of alternative information networks in the wake of the March crisis – after announcing her daughter’s test results on Twitter, the mother’s number of followers jumped from a number of close acquaintances to 700 people asking for details and advice about how to have their own children tested…..
While airborne radiation has lessened as emissions from the Fukushima Daiichi plant have decreased, there are concerns across the Kanto region of radioactive buildup in the soil….
Readings in one area of Saitama were over 900,000 Bq – a level greater than that which resulted in forced relocation after Chernobyl
Contamination Outside Fukushima, JapanFocus, Sep. 04, 2011 Matthew Penney The extent of radioactive contamination in Fukushima Prefecture is at the center of important debates as some scientists, NGOs, and citizen’s groups argue that the Japanese government has not gone far enough in dealing with the fallout from the Fukushima Daiichi accident and has deliberately downplayed the potential health effects of radiation. With so much attention focused on Fukushima, however, there has been less consideration of the impact of the crisis, ongoing since March 11, on other parts of Japan. Continue reading
Still no way to monitor radiation in Mayapuri scrap market
No radiation detectors still in Mayapuri scrap market – Hindustan Times, 6 Sept 11, Even 16 months after it was hit by radiation, leaving one person dead and eight seriously injured, the Mayapuri market in west Delhi, the biggest scrap market in India, still does not have a regulatory body. In April 2010, radioactive Cobalt 60 from a Delhi University (DU) laboratory thatwas auctioned off found its way to the market.
Although six professors were charge sheeted by the Delhi Police on Friday, the scrap dealers are still on the edge, as there is no mechanism to detect hazardous materials.
“The market is not equipped with detectors, even though it is common practice in steel recycling factories in other countries. The presence of toxic heavy metals and harmful chemicals threatens people living in the area,” said Deepak Jain, who suffered radiation injuries in the crisis last April.
Sharad Sinha, a scrap dealer, said, “We have been facing an acute shortage of workers after the incident. Ever since the incident, no one wants to come and work here.” No radiation detectors still in Mayapuri scrap market – Hindustan Times
Poor radiation safety at Indian university
Atomic energy regulator shuts down radiotherapy machines at Safdarjung – Indian Express, 3 Sept 11, In line for its first MCI inspection after being brought under the Indraprastha University (IP), the radiotherapy department of Safdarjung hospital and Vardhaman Medical College, faces risk of derecognition. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), the apex body monitoring radiation safety standards in hospitals, has already directed the department to shut down two cobalt and one brachytherapy machines due to a dearth of radiation safety norms and inadequate posts of radiation safety officers. ..Atomic energy regulator shuts down radiotherapy machines at Safdarjung – Indian Express
People can stay in Japanese town, but avoid the radiation outdoors
—as long as residents don’t spend too long outside, and avoid spots such as parks and forests, where radioactive elements tend to gather. Radioactive cesium has a tendency to bind to earth, and flow along with silt in water.
In One Japanese City, Hot Spots to Avoid, Government Advises Residents of Contaminated Town to Stay—but Keep Clear of Places With Radiation Risk, WSJ, 3 Sept. By PHRED DVORAK, DATE, Japan—This sprawling city, 35 miles away from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi reactors, is leading the next phase of Japan’s struggles with radiation: deciding how to handle populations in contaminated communities where the level isn’t high enough to justify evacuation. Continue reading
New Japanese PM committed to phasing out nuclear power
New Japan PM targets nuclear power, New York Times / September 3, 2011 TOKYO – Japan’s new prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, promised yesterday to keep Japan on its path of phasing out nuclear power, saying it was “unrealistic’’ to build any reactors in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear crisis or extend those at the end of their life spans……
In his inaugural address yesterday, Noda said he was committed to phasing out nuclear power, a path set by Kan. But Noda also stressed that reducing Japan’s dependence on nuclear power would be a gradual process and that reactors that have fallen idle over safety fears since the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant would be restarted, albeit after stringent checks and gaining the understanding of local communities.
“To build new reactors is unrealistic, and we will decommission reactors at the end of their life spans,’’ he said. “But it is also impossible to immediately reduce our dependence to zero,’’ he said… http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2011/09/03/new_japanese_prime_minister_vows_to_continue_phasing_out_nuclear_power/
Radiation carelessness – 6 Indian professors charged
6 Delhi University teachers face charges. The Asian Age, Sep 03, 2011 | The Delhi police on Friday filed a charge sheet in a city court against six Delhi University professors in the 2010 Mayapuri radiation case for endangering lives by auctioning an radioactive gamma irradiator without following mandatory precautions.
The chargesheet, filed before metropolitan magistrate Lovleen, covers Delhi University teachers including the then head of chemistry department V.S. Parmar and the then dean of sciences Roop Lal.
Besides them, Rakesh Kumar, Ramesh Chandra Rastogi, Ashok Prasad and Rita Kakkar have also been chargesheeted under various penal provisions dealing with causing death by rash and negligent acts and causing grievous hurt.
The court is likely to take cognisance of the probe report on September 21. http://www.asianage.com/delhi/6-du-teachers-face-charges-919
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