SimplyInfo » Entries tagged with "water"
New Fukushima Admissions Buried In TEPCO Reporting
[Translate] TEPCO’s reporting as of late has made knowing what is going on a serious challenge. They still release rather important information, it is just hard to find and rarely makes the major papers. This is one such major revelation and admission about unit 1. TEPCO mentions in the roadmap information released only in Japanese around the end of May that they intend to fill the torus room of unit 1 with grout like cement. Apparently absent from this plan is any process to deal with or further confirm the location of the melted fuel in the torus room. Radiation readings found at floor penetrations on the first floor into the torus room have extremely high radiation readings and areas of melted fuel have been found in inspection locations around the torus … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
TEPCO Caught Unable To Do Radioactive Analysis Properly
[Translate] This ads another big hit to TEPCO’s credibility or any notion they can handle the Fukushima disaster on their own. TEPCO has been telling the public there is no cesium in the bypass well water as part of their effort to convince fishing groups and others that they should be allowed to dump about 200 tons per day of groundwater from the plant. Officials from the NRA noticed an error in the way TEPCO has been processing samples at Fukushima Daiichi. In the process they need to take into account the high background radiation at the plant but have failed to do this properly. This appears to not be an isolated incident but an ongoing problem. Radiation testing being done since 2011 could all be underestimating the levels of contamination. TEPCO apparently … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
ALPS System Fails To Remove All Contamination As Planned
[Translate] Testing of the ALPS decontamination system at Fukushima Daiichi has failed a critical test of the filtration system. Minyu-Net is reporting that small amounts of iodine 129 and cobalt remained after processing the water through ALPS. TEPCO has reported this to the NRA and is looking to see if an adjustment in the system could improve the removal performance. Iodine 129 has a half life of 15.7 million years so removal is critical. This article would not be possible without the extensive efforts of the SimplyInfo research team Join the conversation at chat.simplyinfo.org All content is copyright SimplyInfo.org. Content may also be copyright of other specific original authors or creators and was reproduced here with limited permission. While we welcome the sharing of information or promoting our work, please do so with respect to … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
TEPCO’s New Meltdown In Tokyo
[Translate] Last week TEPCO announced at a press conference that they would be unable to build the underground wall hoped to block some of the water infiltration and leaking at the plant. TEPCO’s current worry about the plan is that it would create a situation where the highly contaminated water in the reactor buildings could flow out. There was an earlier plan mentioned where they would create some sort of underground clay walls around the reactor buildings to stem the movement of water. It was not clear if this idea has also been ruled out. TEPCO commented at the press conference “We wish anyone could suggest any good idea in this discussion.“ The same week TEPCO makes the rather strange claim that the pond of highly radioactive water that was leaking considerably, … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
TEPCO Begins Dumping Contaminated Water Into The Sea
[Translate] TEPCO has begun dumping groundwater pumped out of a set of wells inland from the reactors into the Pacific. TEPCO dumped 200 tons of groundwater yesterday as a test. They claim it has the same radiation level as nearby rivers but did not say what that level was or the actual substances in the water. Previous tests of the well water detected tritium and cesium but at low levels. TEPCO still needs to gain the approval of the government and local fishing groups before continued groundwater dumping can begin. TEPCO also admitted that the radiation levels at the edge of the plant grounds could go up. They cited the transfer of highly radioactive water in one of the leaking ponds as the source. The water is being moved to above ground metal tanks … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Current Challenges & Progress At Fukushima Daiichi
[Translate] TEPCO’s testing of the ALPS system intended to remove all contamination except tritium continues but now it is not expected to be out of the testing phase until fall 2013 at the earliest. TEPCO also admitted that the system is not completely removing contaminants as expected and the radiation levels around the equipment was rising. Right now neither issue was halting work but could become a problem over time if not resolved. This throws a huge problem into the contaminated water problems. TEPCO currently has no plan do deal with this issue. They have begun building more tanks on site and still hope to use the groundwater bypass system but that has not been approved or fully implemented. The radiation increases around ALPS could cause a bigger problem down the road if the … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Sisyphus With A Paper Cup; TEPCO’s Enormous Water Problem
[Translate] The contaminated water problems at Fukushima Daiichi have been plaguing the plant since day one. In recent months the problems have once again shown themselves to be too much for TEPCO to deal with while the plant continues to contaminate the environment. TEPCO stated that they were again, out of space only to find space after it became apparent the government would not allow them to dump contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean. This is something TEPCO has asked to do repeatedly since 2011 when they dumped contaminated water into the Pacific on top of what has been leaking. Contamination and contaminated water from the failed reactors is still making its way out of the plant a number of ways, all with long term major implications for the environment and public … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
US Nuclear; Failing Casks, Cracked Concrete And Foot Dragging On Safety
[Translate] 30 of the US’s 100+ nuclear plants have ordered spent fuel pool water level monitoring systems. The issue of this kind of equipment came up again during hurricane Sandy as both members of the public and experts questioned if the nuclear plants impacted by the storm had upgraded spent fuel pool equipment. The new equipment to monitor and provide water to the pool was suggested by the post Fukushima committee that looked at what failed and could fail at US reactors. It is not clear if the remaining units in the US have not ordered such equipment or have already ordered such equipment. The water level monitoring system is only part of the suggested upgrades and comes with a 7 day battery pack. Dry Casks Failing In The US The NRC found multiple … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Fukushima School Swimming Pools As High As 100,000 bq/kg
[Translate] School swimming pools in Fukushima have been found to have some with over 100,000 bq/kg, concentrated in mud in the pools. A pool in Fukushima City registered 119,461 bq/kg. from the mud at the bottom of the pool. One in Minamisoma had 8,468 bq/kg. Both pools had not been cleaned out since the March 2011 disaster. Asahi Shimbun mentions some schools cleaned their pools early on but dumped the contaminated water and silt back into the environment. This would contribute to the environmental contamination and can make its way into rivers and streams. The central government is responsible for aiding the clean up due to the high levels but so far have not done anything to clean up the pools. The pools are yet another example of places where radiation can hyper concentrate and … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Strontium 90 Will Contaminate Coastal Groundwater In 10 Years
[Translate] Strontium 90 found to be leaking out of the ponds installed by TEPCO is expected to contaminate the coastal groundwater near the plant in 10 years. Kyodo News cites the NRA for this statistic. Certain ponds at the plant held the backwash sludge water from the reverse osmosis system, adding to the high levels of contaminants in the water. This article would not be possible without the extensive efforts of the SimplyInfo research team Join the conversation at chat.simplyinfo.org All content is copyright SimplyInfo.org. Content may also be copyright of other specific original authors or creators and was reproduced here with limited permission. While we welcome the sharing of information or promoting our work, please do so with respect to the large amount of effort and time that goes into our research and analysis. … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Fukushima Daiichi Technical Update Report
[Translate] TEPCO has begun pumping water out of the number 2 pond at the plant to above ground tanks. TEPCO cites the decision due to this tank leaking the most. Water is being moved at 20 tons per hour. Radiation levels around the number 2 pond have been rising. In a TEPCO report some work done on the power system for the unit 2 spent fuel pool is cited. TEPCO used pink plastic sheeting to make what they classified as small animal protection. TEPCO apparently does not understand rats and mice do not see plastic sheet as a challenge. TEPCO found extremely high radiation levels and plutonium concentrations in the port. The areas directly near the reactor intakes had been concreted over to try to keep radiation levels down. The areas where the … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
How TEPCO Manages A Disaster
[Translate] This is how TEPCO solves a highly radioactive water leak. These pipes are part of the pond system that was found to be leaking via the transfer pipes this week. Sheets of plastic and buckets. This article would not be possible without the extensive efforts of the SimplyInfo research team Join the conversation at chat.simplyinfo.org All content is copyright SimplyInfo.org. Content may also be copyright of other specific original authors or creators and was reproduced here with limited permission. While we welcome the sharing of information or promoting our work, please do so with respect to the large amount of effort and time that goes into our research and analysis. Referring to something or a quote is great, copying it all or in substantial parts is not so great. If you wish to … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Water Leaks At Daiichi Expose New Widescale Failures At TEPCO
[Translate] The extent of the problems at Fukushima Daiichi has come to light in the past few weeks as multiple failures ended up in the news. NRA is expressing their concern. The NRA head commented that the water situation at Daiichi is on the verge of collapse but that there is no choice but to keep adding water to the reactors. A recent Japan Today article cites the reason for TEPCO’s design choices for the storage ponds was cost, they were cheaper. Maeda, the company that built the ponds blames TEPCO’s design choices for the problem and declared that TEPCO drew up the plan, not Maeda. There have also been questions raised why TEPCO chose what was a landfill design for solid waste debris for ponds intended to hold contaminated water. TEPCO … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
TEPCO To Remove Water From Ponds By June
[Translate] TEPCO announced a big press conference to be held out at J Village. So far the only report out of this event is that TEPCO has announced they will remove all of the water from the ponds by June. This came with obligatory bowing by TEPCO executives. The journalists that had to travel out to J Village for this must have been thrilled to have to go all the way there for something that could have been done in Tokyo. A government industry minister has said he will make TEPCO move all pond water into above ground steel tanks. Strontium has been detected outside the number 1 pond Antimony and Ruthenium were also found outside the number 1 pond. Other readings for the pond are under analysis. TEPCO also released this rough … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Company Involved In Decontamination Scandal Built Daiichi Pit Tanks
[Translate] The company that built the now leaking pit tanks at Fukushima Daiichi was also involved in the recent scandal involving decontamination work being done around Fukushima Prefecture. Asahi Shimbun found construction companies hired to try to clean up areas of high radiation were dumping leaves and soil into ditches and streams creating an even bigger problem. One of the companies found to be doing this is Maeda Construction. Maeda was also working on some zeolite absorption projects as part of the prefecture decontamination work. The company has been in business since 1919 and has done various large scale projects such as dams and airports. Maeda Construction built the pit tanks at Fukushima Daiichi. Maeda is also building the sea wall at Fukushima Daiichi. The tanks original purpose was to hold less contaminated water … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
ANOTHER Leak In A Pit Tank At Fukushima Daiichi
[Translate] TEPCO is now reporting another leak in one of the pit tanks at Fukushima Daiichi. The number 3 pit tank has now been found to be leaking and strontium was found outside the tank. TEPCO claims only 3 liters of water has leaked from this tank but fails to explain how such a small amount of water vs. a huge tank could be determined. The number 3 tank sits next to the number 2 tank TEPCO admitted was leaking large amounts of highly contaminated water on Friday. The water held in the number 3 tank is the same type as in the number 2 tank. Jiji is reporting that the radiation levels around the number 2 tank are rising. TEPCO claims they have set up an emergency task force to deal … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Update On Water Leak At Fukushima Daiichi
[Translate] We documented the early information on the radioactive water leak at Daiichi here. TEPCO and the Japanese media have released some additional information on the situation. TEPCO still insists they don’t think the water has reached the sea but the only reason they give is because there isn’t a drainage ditch nearby. Kyodo News reports TEPCO thinks the transfer to the other tank will take 5 days. TEPCO has added multiple pumps to try to expedite the process. What is not mentioned is that this effort now ruins another “clean” water tank TEPCO intended to use for storing the cleaner water produced by the ALPS system once it is in operation. The Asahi Shimbun report cites from TEPCO that the water that leaked was about 710 billion becquerels. They do think it … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
High Level Water Leak At Fukushima Daiichi
[Translate] Update: Reporting from various sources that were following the press conference. TEPCO plans to move the water from the leaking tank (#2) to another underground tank (#1). TEPCO refers to them as tanks but they are the lined pools. They think it could take 2 weeks to completely transfer the water. The leaking pool sits 800 meters from the sea. They don’t think it is leaking to the sea by way of drainage ditches but said they have no way of preventing it from happening since the leak is underground. Update: TEPCO admits that 100 tons of highly contaminated water may have leaked out of the pond. Fukushima Diary has been monitoring the press conference and provided an exchange between the TEPCO rep and a reporter from Asahi where TEPCO admits … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Issues At Fukushima Daiichi And More Nuclear Changes In Japan
[Translate] Denki Shimbun raises concerns about the delays in the new ALPS water decontamination system to be used at Fukushima Daiichi. The NRA has asked for further safety standards for the system before they give operation approval. This has added to the growing list of delays for the new system. Not mentioned in the Denki Shimbun article is the extensive delay after TEPCO discovered the sludge storage containers would catastrophically fail if dropped. The water problem at Fukushima Daiichi continues to grow. The current delay puts full decontamination of the current water on site at 1.5 years. The additional delays could make it take another 5 years to clean the water on site. Japan’s NRA has put the issue of operating extensions for aging nuclear reactors on hold. The issue of new … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
More Water Storage Issues At Fukushima Daiichi
[Translate] Fukushima Daiichi is again suffering from another water storage crunch. TEPCO has begun cutting down trees on site to allow more space for water tanks to be installed but plant water supervisor Yuichi Okamura said the space is still running out. TEPCO is considering dumping some treated water into the ocean once again. The current treatment systems remove cesium from the water but TEPCO has been unwilling to document what other dangerous isotopes are left in the water after treatment. Dumping the treated water could still have a damaging impact on the local area and the Pacific. They recently installed some above ground covered pools to store excess water in. The growing landscape of metal tanks seen in the image above is from early 2012. In September 2012 TEPCO installed the … Read entire article »
Filed under: The Latest
Get SimplyInfo.org RSS Feed
