Lingering death for fast reactor as Monju suspended

"Japan’s nuclear watchdog will indefinitely suspend the use of the Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor over the operator’s disregard for safety that continued even after the Fukushima nuclear crisis raised concerns across the nation," writes Hideki Muroya in the Asahi Shimbun. "The Nuclear Regulation Authority's order will deal a further blow to Japan’s nuclear fuel recycling program, which has long been plagued by technical problems and scandals.

"In the latest case, the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, operator of Monju, was found to have skipped inspections of nearly 10,000 pieces of equipment since 2010, including crucial devices in the safety and emergency systems at the plant, based in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture.

"The company also violated its own safety regulations, according to the NRA.

"'Even when the reactor is offline, things stand in such a state,' an NRA official said after an on-site inspection of the reactor in February. “We cannot possibly approve a restart.” Read more. (Picture shows a still from video footage inside Monju during the 1995 sodium fire).

Japan should pull the plug on reprocessing: editorial

Now that the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) - Japan's equivalent to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission - has put a hold on starting up the Rokkasho reprocessing plant (pictured), the Asahi Shimbun, a leading Japan daily newspaper, has called in an editorial for a cancellation of the project. The NRA will not allow pre-operational tests at the plant until new safety standards are in place. The Asahi Shimbun wisely opines: "We need to face the fact that the government’s program to establish a nuclear fuel recycling system is as good as dead. If the plant starts operating, the plutonium it churns out will pile up with no definite plan to use it. The situation could spark concerns within the international community that Japan’s nuclear power generation might contribute to nuclear proliferation."

An additional reason to abandon the reprocessing plan is that "the project to develop fast breeder reactors, which are supposed to play a central role in the recycling system, has been stalled for years due to a series of problems at the Monju fast breeder prototype reactor in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture. There is little prospect for commercialization of the technology."

Groups like Green Action have been fighting for years to prevent the start-up of Rokkasho. Victory now looks a step closer.

Japanese court rejects case demanding evacuation of children

A court in Sendai, Japan, has ruled that the city of Koriyama has no legal obligation to evacuate its children even though it acknowledged that radiation levels in the Fukushima prefecture city exceed levels deemed safe prior to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor meltdowns. The decision leaves families burdened with the expense of self-evacuating. A lawyer for the Koriyma parents and activists who brought the suit declared the decision unfairly victimizes children who had "absolutely no responsibility" for the nuclear disaster. Children who should be enjoying carefree childhoods are now instead subjected to the fears and realities of radiation exposure and the possibility of cancer manifesting later in life (see picture). The ruling can be appealed. Koriyama is located about 40 miles from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power reactors. Read more.

A plea for the evacuation of Fukushima's children

Update on April 19, 2013 by admin

And please sign the petition. The Sendai High Court is expected  to make its judgment on the appeal for the collective evacuation trial, very soon.nThe judgment on the evacuation trial for saving children from dangerous exposure will affect not only the lives of the children, who are plaintiffs, but also those of Japanese children as a whole. And it will decide the shape of future Japan. 

"Fukushima tank springs major leak: 120 tons of radioactive water escape from underground facility"

Where did it go?: Workers examine an underground tank Saturday that leaked 120 tons of highly radioactive water at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant in the town of Okuma. | KYODOAs reported by Kyodo in the Japan Times, a water storage tank holding more than 13,000 tons of highly radioactively contaminated water was leaked 120 tons into the ground, and may leak another 47 tons before the remainder can be transferred to other tanks nearby. The amount of radioactivity already leaked is estimated to contain 710 billion becquerels of radioactivity.

The article reports: '“It is the largest amount of radioactive substances that has been leaked” since the crippled facility’s cold shutdown was declared in December 2011, Tepco official Masayuki Ono said.'