Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant: IAEA Report Slams Japan For Not Acting On Tsunami Danger Knowledge
Source: International Business Times
Japan did not do enough to protect the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, which was severely damaged by a giant wall of water in March 2011, despite authorities being aware of threats to the facility from earthquakes and tsunamis, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stated in a report. The U.N. nuclear watchdog also criticized Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), the plant's operator, for not acting on the warnings.
The IAEA said, in its final report on the March 2011 disaster, which was the result of a massive earthquake and subsequent tsunami, that a new method applied between 2007 and 2009 had predicted a magnitude-8.3 quake off the coast of Fukushima that could lead to a tsunami hitting the facility. On March 11, 2011, a magnitude-9 earthquake struck off Japan's northeastern coast, triggering a massive tsunami that ultimately cost the Japanese government about $300 billion in damages.
“The Fukushima Daiichi NPP (nuclear power plant) had some weaknesses which were not fully evaluated by a probabilistic safety assessment, as recommended by the IAEA safety standards,” the report obtained by Kyodo News, a Japanese news agency, stated.
TEPCO did not take the necessary precautions despite the analysis, the IAEA report, which is expected to act as a reference for nuclear safety measures worldwide, reportedly stated. The incident was the world's worst nuclear disaster since the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine.
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Read more: http://www.ibtimes.com/fukushima-nuclear-power-plant-iaea-report-slams-japan-not-acting-tsunami-danger-1936492
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From Greg Palast*
Fukushima: They Knew
This month marks the 3rd Anniversary of the Fukushima Nuclear disaster.
By Greg Palast for FreePress.org
Monday, March 10, 2014
EXCERPT...
I was ready to vomit. Because I knew who had designed the plant, who had built it and whom Tokyo Electric Power was having rebuild it: Shaw Construction. The latest alias of Stone & Webster, the designated builder for every one of the four new nuclear plants that the Obama Administration has approved for billions in federal studies.
But I had The Notebook, the diaries of the earthquake inspector for the company. I'd squirreled it out sometime before the Trade Center went down. I shouldn't have done that. Too bad.
All field engineers keep a diary. Gordon Dick, a supervisor, wasn’t sup- posed to show his to us. I asked him to show it to us and, reluctantly, he directed me to these notes about the “SQ” tests.
SQ is nuclear-speak for “Seismic Qualification.” A seismically qualified nuclear plant won’t melt down if you shake it. A “seismic event” can be an earthquake or a Christmas present from Al Qaeda. You can’t run a nuclear reactor in the USA or Europe or Japan without certified SQ.
This much is clear from his notebook: This nuclear plant will melt down in an earthquake. The plant dismally failed to meet the Seismic I (shaking) standards required by U.S. and international rules.
Here’s what we learned: Dick’s subordinate at the nuclear plant, Robert Wiesel, conducted the standard seismic review. Wiesel flunked his company. No good. Dick then ordered Wiesel to change his report to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, change it from failed to passed. Dick didn’t want to make Wiesel do it, but Dick was under the gun himself, acting on direct command from corporate chiefs. From The Notebook:
Wiesel was very upset. He seemed very nervous. Very agitated. [He said,] “I believe these are bad results and I believe it’s reportable,” and then he took the volume of federal regulations from the shelf and went to section 50.55(e), which describes reportable deficiencies at a nuclear plant and [they] read the section together, with Wiesel pointing to the appropriate paragraphs that federal law clearly required [them and the company] to report the Category II, Seismic I deficiencies.
Wiesel then expressed his concern that he was afraid that if he [Wiesel] reported the deficiencies, he would be fired, but that if he didn’t report the deficiencies, he would be breaking a federal law. . . .
CONTINUED...
http://www.gregpalast.com/fukushima-they-knew-3/
Which is why TEPCO, Japan, Nuke Inc and the USA went out of their way the other day to play up the tsunami's role:
Tsunami, not Quake, Seen as Main Cause of Fukushima Accident
by Mari Iwata
Wall Street Journal, Oct. 8, 2014
Japan’s nuclear regulator said Wednesday that the tsunami following the March 11, 2011, earthquake–not the quake itself–was the main cause of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
The conclusion matters because of the implications for other nuclear-power plants. Virtually all of Japan is prone to earthquakes, but some places are relatively protected from tsunamis. Currently all of the nation’s 48 reactors are offline, and the government is weighing whether to restart some next year.
In the March 2011 nuclear accident, three reactors melted down after the plant lost main and backup power, paralyzing cooling systems.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority studied why the No.1 reactor lost backup power and concluded on Wednesday in a report that the tsunami was the main cause, based on data about temperature, pressure and other parameters. Those data were stable immediately after the earthquake hit at 2:46 p.m., suggesting the plant didn’t suffer critical damage until the arrival of the tsunami some 45 minutes later.
A previous investigation by Japan’s parliament had left more room for the possibility that the earthquake itself did significant damage.
The regulator said it would translate the report into English and post it on its website. The Japanese-language version is here.
“You cannot say there was no damage by the earthquake at all. But you can say the major cause was the tsunami, looking at the data,” said Tamotsu Kozaki, a nuclear engineering professor of the Hokkaido University.
CONTINUED...
http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2014/10/08/tsunami-not-quake-seen-as-main-cause-of-fukushima-accident/
Which is not what the scientists said, way back when they were warning TEPCO, which elected to take the cheapskate's way out.
Here's a bit to add to the atomic pile:
Masanobu Shishikura: The Man Who Predicted the Tsunami in 2009.
British scientist 'predicted nuclear power station problem'
Toshiaki Sakai: Utility Engineer Warned of Tsunami Threat at Japanese Nuclear Plant in 2007
Apart from venting hot air in committee meetings, TEPCO did nothing, and hoped for the best.
Thank you for caring about what is happening to the people of Japan and our planet, bananas.
OP: http://metamorphosis.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6348582