tagged w/ Prime Minister Naoto Kan
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Los Angeles Times...
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Report: Japan, utility at fault for response to nuclear disaster
December 26, 2011 | 11:33 pm
Report: Japan, utility at fault for response to nuclear disaster
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REPORTING FROM SEOUL -- Japan’s response to the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was flawed by poor communication and delays in releasing data on dangerous radiation leaks at the facility, which was struck by an earthquake-triggered tsunami on March 11, a government-appointed investigative panel has found.
The report attaches blame to both Japan’s central government as well as the utility that operates the plant -- the Tokyo Electric Power Co. -- depicting a scene of harried officials incapable of making decisions to stem radiation leaks as the situation at the coastal plant worsened in the days and weeks following the disaster.
The 507-page interim report, the product of interviews with hundreds of utility workers and government officials, said poor planning also worsened the disaster response, noting that authorities had grossly underestimated tsunami risks that followed the 9.0-magnitude earthquake.
The 40-foot-high tsunami that struck the plant was twice as tall as the highest wave predicted by officials. The erroneous assumption that the plant’s cooling system continued to function after the tsunami struck worsened the disaster, the report claimed.
The report, whose final version is due to be completed next year, also found that plant workers had no clear instructions on how to respond to such a disaster, causing miscommunications, especially when the disaster destroyed backup generators. Ultimately, the series of failures led to the worst nuclear catastrophe since Chernobyl.
Workers failed to immediately seek alternative sources of water to cool the overheating reactors because they assumed the system was working, even though numerous warning signs told them otherwise.
"This accident has taught us an important lesson on how we must be ready for a disaster," concluded the panel, headed by University of Tokyo professor emeritus Yotaro Hatamura.
The government also received its share of criticism after dangerous radioactivity leaked into the atmosphere, causing the evacuation of 80,000 nearby residents, most of whom have still not returned to their homes.
Fearing a national panic, Tokyo government ministries failed to relay critical information to the public, instead using language that attempted to lessen the severity of the evolving crisis, which included meltdowns at three of the plant’s reactors.
Following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, then-Prime Minister Naoto Kan and his advisors had stationed themselves on the fifth floor of the prime minister's office, where they made key decisions in consultation with top ministers and Tepco officials. But the officials did not share information with other crucial ministries or even with the crisis-management headquarters set up in the basement of the office several floors below, the report said.
The panel also faulted government officials for delaying warnings on the spread of radiation in the region around the plant, unnecessarily exposing communities to exposure when they could have been immediately evacuated.
The panel recommended that the government and the utilities that run nuclear plants employ experts knowledgeable in assessing tsunami risks.
"The nuclear disaster is far from over," the report concluded.
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Photo: The Unit 4 reactor building of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station as seen November 12.
Credit: David Guttenfelder / AP Photo
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Report: Japan, utility at fault for response to nuclear... more
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CNN...
Japanese prime minister announces resignation
From Kyung Lah, CNN
August 26, 2011 2:56 a.m. EDT
Click picture to play video
Japan Prime Minister Naoto Kan resigns
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Japan's next prime minister will inherit a series of problems, including soaring debt
Kan has been under pressure to resign since a March earthquake and tsunami
The resignation fulfills his promise to step down after two bills pass
Naoto Kan
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Tokyo, Japan (CNN) -- Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, whose approval rating tumbled following the devastating March earthquake and tsunami, announced his resignation Friday.
Kan announced he is stepping down as party leader during a meeting with members of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan. The party will elect a new leader next week, who will take over as prime minister.
The resignation fulfills his promise to step down after parliament approved two pieces of legislation, including one related to post-earthquake reconstruction.
"I will put my words into action once those two bills are approved," Kan said this month at a Lower House committee session.
Kan believes the two bills -- the deficit-financing bond bill and the new energy promotion bill -- will push forward his reconstruction policies.
The bills passed Friday.
Kan has been under pressure to resign since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami and subsequent nuclear crisis in the nation. The disaster triggered the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl, as cores overheated and spewed radioactive material into surrounding areas.
Soon after the disaster, ratings agency Moody's put the country debt under review for a possible downgrade, as political infighting undermined measures to fix the budget deficit. Moody's officially downgraded Japan's credit on Wednesday, citing its unstable politics
In June, the embattled leader narrowly escaped a vote of no confidence in parliament.
As many as nine candidates, including Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda and former foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, are considered possible contenders for the post of prime minister.
Kan's resignation allows him to remain in office until the ruling party elects its new leader, a move scheduled for Monday.
A day later, parliament will vote in the new leader as prime minister, the sixth premier for the nation in five years.
Japan's next prime minister will inherit a series of problems, including soaring debt, nuclear woes, a shrinking population and a nation struggling to rebuild after the devastating earthquake and tsunami.
.CNN...
Japanese prime minister announces resignation
From Kyung Lah, CNN... more
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Japan islanders oppose proposed nuclear plant, year after year
For decades, residents of Iwaishima have taken an aggressive stand, turning their backs on negotiation. Graying residents, mostly in their 70s, have allied with young antinuclear activists.
By John M. Glionna, Los Angeles Times
May 4, 2011
Reporting from Iwaishima, Japan—
For centuries, Yoshiaki Hashibe's ancestors have chiseled out a natural, no-nonsense existence on this tiny island where farmers and fishermen ride to their labors by bicycle.
Tradition matters here. At 69, veteran fisherman Hashibe does things just like his great-great-grandfather once did, each day venturing out to sea to haul in seaweed, octopus and red snapper.
He barters his extra catch for vegetables from a farmer who lives so close in their town of meandering back alleys that Hashibe can smell his nightly dinner. Villagers are proud of their tightknit camaraderie and historical harmony with nature.
But a utility company plans to build a nuclear power plant just across the bay, at the tip of the Kaminoseki peninsula. After receiving compensation, several nearby communities have hesitantly embraced the project.
Not Iwaishima. Many residents are convinced that the twin reactors will threaten not just their way of life but the long-term survival of the Inland Sea, a national park known as Japan's Galapagos for its range of sea life.
The utility insists that the project is safe, but residents worry about radiation leaks caused by human error. They say the plant's warm water discharge will raise sea temperatures, altering the ecosystem.
So for three decades, since the Chugoku Electric Power Co. unveiled its plans in 1982, islanders have taken an unusually aggressive stand, turning their backs on efforts at negotiation. Graying residents, mostly in their 70s, have in recent years formed an alliance with young antinuclear activists.
Together, they have staged hunger strikes, picketing and sit-ins, using a flotilla of fishing boats and kayaks to block company construction cranes from reaching the site.
As he carved up a fish on the deck of his 40-foot boat, Hashibe said he would continue the fight until he dies.
"There's a graveyard up on the mountain where I'm planning to finish up," he said. "But I won't be able to sleep gently if they build that power plant."
Not everyone is opposed to the plant. About 50 of the island's 500 residents say the plant will bring money and jobs. So much tension has risen between the two camps that many residents here no longer speak to each other.
Then on March 11, a mammoth magnitude 9 earthquake triggered a tsunami that damaged the cooling system at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant along Japan's northeast coast, spilling dangerous radioactive isotopes into the air, soil and sea.
The disaster accomplished what activists couldn't. The utility temporarily suspended plant construction after local officials expressed safety concerns.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan has suggested a possible nationwide freeze on Japan's plans to build 14 or more nuclear power stations by 2030. The nation already has 54 nuclear plants, which supply 30% of its energy.
It remains unclear what effect the Fukushima incident will have on Japan's nuclear future, but other communities — stunned by the continuing nuclear fallout from Fukushima — are looking to the Iwaishima battle as a possible indicator.
"Without our protests, that plant would already be running," said Masue Hayashi, 59, who began her opposition to the project when she was 30. "Those people near Fukushima could have been us."
No nuclear plant project in Japan has ever been stopped outside the voting booth, solely by community activism and protest. This one, Hayashi says, could be the first.
*Japan islanders oppose proposed nuclear plant, year after year
For decades,... more
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http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ed20110407a1.html
Thursday, April 7, 2011
EDITORIAL
Overcoming the nuclear crisis
The crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant does not warrant optimism. Nuclear fuel in the cores of the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 reactors is believed to have been severely damaged. In the No. 4 reactor's storage, where spent nuclear fuel is kept, water evaporated at one point, and a hydrogen explosion released radioactive substances into the environment
The government should pay close attention to proposals made by 16 Japanese experts on nuclear power engineering, nuclear physics and radiology on April 1. It should mobilize all available means to mitigate the crisis.
Tepco is cooling the reactors by pumping water into them by using pumps connected with external power sources. But it cannot stop highly radioactive water from flowing out of the reactors. The more water it pumps into the reactors, the more contaminated water flows outside. Apparently, components for containing radioactive water have been damaged. The No. 2 reactor's suppression pool is feared to have cracked.
On land, the accumulated radiation level during 11 days from March 23 has reached 10.34 millisieverts in the town of Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, just outside the 30-km radius of Fukushima No. 1. Residents inside the zone should evacuate or stay indoors. If the accumulated level over several days reaches a range of 10 to 50 millisieverts, the government calls on residents to stay inside their homes to avoid radiation.
The situation at Fukushima No. 1 is "extremely serious" and demands Japan's all-out efforts, the 16 experts said in their April 1 statement. Three of the 16 — Mr. Shiori Ishino, professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo, Mr. Shunichi Tanaka, former acting chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, and Mr. Shojiro Matsuura, former chairman of the Nuclear Safety Commission — explained the statement at the education and science ministry.
Since those who signed the statement include former members of the AEC, a body that sets the nation's basic policy for development and use of nuclear power, the NSC, a body that sets the nation's basic nuclear safety policy, and scientists belonging to the Atomic Energy Society of Japan, the government and Tepco should share their sense of crisis and humbly follow their proposals.
The 16 "as people who have pushed peaceful use of nuclear power" expressed their regret over the nuclear crisis and apologized to people. But they did not hide their fear that a critical situation may develop at Fukushima No. 1. They do not rule out the possibility that as time goes on, a molten core melts a weak part of a pressure vessel and enters a containment vessel, destroying the reactor's function to contain radioactive substances, or that hydrogen gas forming inside a pressure vessel explodes and destroys a containment vessel, causing serious radioactive contamination over a large expanse of land and sea. They warn that release of a large amount of radioactive substances could make uninhabitable not only the current evacuation zone but also larger areas.
Mr. Tanaka and others said that the current makeshift efforts to cool the No. 1, 2 and 3 reactors will not be able to completely cool down molten nuclear fuel so as it will not burst through the bottom of pressure vessels. They also said the three reactors contain a much larger amount of radioactive substances than the Chernobyl nuclear plant did.
The points made by the statement include: (1) utmost efforts must be made to both prevent the release of a large amount of radioactive substances and to reactivate the residual heat removal system which internally circulates water to cool reactors and spent fuel storages, (2) spent nuclear fuel must be completely immersed in water, (3) detailed measurement of radioactivity both in the air and the soil in various areas and assessment of their effects must be announced so that area-specific measures can be taken and (4) residents should be fully informed before and after radioactive substances are vented from reactors.
It adds that since hydrogen is forming all the time in the reactors, hydrogen explosions must be prevented at any cost.
The statement also calls for (1)increasing personnel at Fukushima No. 1 to lower their exposure to radiation and to enable them to take enough rest and (2) setting up the headquarters for the crisis containing operations inside or near the plant site (so that headquarters personnel share the burden of radiation exposure and pain with on-site workers.)
The 16 experts say it is essential to set up a system in which the NSC will take the lead in strategically and flexibly utilizing the knowledge and experience of Japan's nuclear authorities — including the Japan Atomic Energy Agency and the National Institute of Radiological Sciences — the power and related industries and universities to end the nuclear crisis. Prime Minister Naoto Kan must exercise strong leadership in setting up this system as soon as possible.http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ed20110407a1.html
Thursday, April 7, 2011... more
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Japan quake live blog: Small amount of radiation reaches California, official says
U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Robert Bannister removes mud sediment from behind a damaged building in Hachinohe, Japan.
March 18th, 2011
01:39 PM ET
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit northern Japan on March 11, triggering tsunamis that caused widespread devastation and crippled a nuclear power plant. Are you in an affected area? Send an iReport. Read the full report on the quake's aftermath and check out our interactive explainer on Japan's damaged nuclear reactors.
[1:39 p.m. ET Friday, 2:39 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] Monitors in Sacramento, California, have detected a small amount of radioactive material from the earthquake-struck nuclear power plant in Japan, an official with the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization said. The exact amounts were not available, but were far less than what would be considered harmful to human health, the official said.
[12:55 p.m. ET Friday, 1:52 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] Japan is no stranger to disaster, rebuilding after a history of destructive quakes and tsunamis and the atomic bomb attacks of World War II. But the 9.0 earthquake of March 11 is testing that mettle anew, writes CNN's Eliott C. McLaughlin.
[11:52 a.m. ET Friday, 12:52 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] Japan's Meteorological Agency said Friday that the nation has experienced 262 aftershocks of magnitude 5 or greater. That's a record number of aftershocks for any quake in Japanese history, Kyodo News reports.
[11:28 a.m. ET Friday, 12:28 a.m. Saturday in Tokyo] Seven days after the 9.0 quake off Japan, donations to nonprofit organizations have reached about $87 million, according to a tally by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, a newspaper covering nonprofits. In comparison, one week after the earthquake in Haiti, donations totaled about $275 million. In the case of Hurricane Katrina, it was over $522 million, CNNMoney reports.
[10:57 a.m. ET Friday, 11:57 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] In the wake of the crisis in Japan, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is advising consumers to beware of inadvertently buying fake iodide products that are supposed to help protect against radiation.
[10:41 a.m. ET Friday, 11:41 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] Residents and tourists in Hawaii are helping Japan disaster relief by snapping up T-shirts with the "o" in "aloha" replaced by the red sun in Japan's flag, CNN affiliate KHON reports. People are lining up to buy the shirts, which sell for $20, the station reports. About 1,500 a day are being sold with all proceeds going to the relief effort.
[10:13 a.m. ET Friday, 11:13 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] About 1,000 Navy personnel and their aircraft based at Atsugi Naval Air Facility in Japan are temporarily moving to Guam, the Pacific Daily News reports. F/A-18 Super Hornets, EA-6B Prowlers and E-2C Hawkeye planes of Aircraft Carrier Wing 5 will fly out of Anderson Air Force Base on Guam, according to the report. The wing's helicopters and transport aircraft will remain in Japan to help in relief operations, it said.
[9:49 a.m. ET Friday, 10:49 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] Tokyo has become a "ghost town" compared to its condition before last week's earthquake, iReporter Christina Ras shows in a series of pictures.
[9:43 a.m. ET Friday, 10:43 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] No expansion of the 12.4-mile (20-kilometer) evacuation zone around the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is necessary, Hidehiko Nishiyama, deputy head of Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, said at a briefing Friday.
[9:03 a.m. ET Friday, 10:03 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] Toyota's popular Prius hybrid car may be in short supply in the coming months, Time reports. The car's batteries are made in a factory near Sendai while the vehicle itself is assembled near Tokyo. Although both plants were not damaged in the quake, Toyota does not know when production can resume because of the reduction in power supplies and rolling blackouts now imposed in the affected areas. Time, citing Autodata, says there were 18,000 Priuses available in the U.S. at the beginning of the month.
[8:03 a.m. ET Friday, 9:03 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] The governor of Japan's hard-hit Miyagi prefecture on Friday asked residents who've lost their homes to the earthquake and tsunami to move to other areas while recovery efforts are under way, according to a Kyodo News service report in the Japan Times. Displaced residents could be gone for six months until temporary housing is built, the report said.
"Living conditions will be improved if they move to other prefectures," Gov. Yoshihiro Murai is quoted as saying. "It is a nonbinding request. I hope people affected by the quake will cooperate."
[7:44 a.m. ET Friday, 8:44 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] Japan's death toll in the earthquake and tsunami rose to 6,911 on Friday, the National Police Agency reported. At least 10,316 people are missing.
[7:31 a.m. ET Friday, 8:31 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Friday that the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant remains "very grave." Kan said he is committed to doing all that is needed to overcome the nuclear crisis and stressed that this was not a time for pessimism.
[7:24 a.m. ET Friday, 8:24 p.m. Friday in Tokyo] Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Friday that the nation experienced a "great deal of confusion" in the delivery of relief supplies to earthquake and tsunami victims, but that obstacles are being overcome.Japan quake live blog: Small amount of radiation reaches California, official says... more
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First Breaking News...
MASSIVE QUAKE HITS JAPAN
Tokyo (CNN) -- An 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit Japan early Friday, triggering tsunami alerts and sending people fleeing out of buildings in the capital. The quake rattled buildings and toppled cars off bridges and into waters underneath.
In Tokyo, crowds huddled together and tried to reach relatives via cell phone. Its epicenter was 373 kilometers (231 miles) from Tokyo, the United States Geological Survey said. It triggered a tsunami alert for various countries, the National Weather Service said.
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March 11, 2011 5:35 a.m. EST
Tokyo (CNN) -- An 8.9-magnitude earthquake hit northern Japan on Friday, triggering tsunamis and sending a massive wave filled with debris that included boats and houses inching toward land.
The number of fatalities was unclear, but Japan's Kyodo news reported at least 10 killed and numerous injured.
The quake prompted at least 20 countries and numerous Pacific islands to issue tsunami warnings. It was followed by powerful aftershocks that were felt in capital of Tokyo.
At Tokyo Station, one of Japan's busiest subway stations, people grabbed each other to steady themselves. Children cried. An announcement over the station loudspeaker warned commuters to remain underground.
With bus and train lines interrupted, workers and children poured into the streets after offices and schools were closed.
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan appealed for calm and said there were no reported leaks of radioactive materials from power plants.
Firefighters battled a blaze at an oil refinery in Chiba prefecture near Tokyo.
"This was larger than anyone expected and went on longer than anyone expected," said Matt Alt in Tokyo.
"My wife was the calm one ... she told us to get down and put your back on something, and leave the windows and doors open in case a building shifts so you don't get trapped."
Richard Lloyd Parry said when the quake struck, he looked through a window and saw buildings shaking from side to side.
Such a large earthquake at such a shallow depth creates a lot of energy, said Shenza Chen of the U.S. Geological Survey.
A tsunami is sweeping across the Pacific Ocean, with a wall of water heading toward at more than a dozen countries.
An earthquake of that size can generate dangerous tsunamis to coasts outside the source region, the National Weather Service said.
Humanitarian agencies were working with rescue crews to reach the people affected.
"When such an earthquake impacts a developed country like Japan, our concern also turns to countries like the Philippines and Indonesia, which might not have the same resources," said Rachel Wolff, a spokeswoman for World Vision.
In Philippines alone, the tsunami is expected to hit in the early morning and the government has ordered the evacuation of 19 provinces along the coast, which could affect hundreds of thousands of people
Authorities in at least 20 countries and numerous Pacific islands issued tsunami warnings, the National Weather Service said.
The tsunami could cause damage "along coastlines of all islands in the state of Hawaii," warned the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "Urgent action should be taken to protect lives and property."
Tsunamis are a series of long ocean waves that can last five to 15 minutes and cause extensive flooding in coastal areas. A succession of waves can hit -- often the highest not being the first, said CNN meteorologist Ivan Cabrera.
A day earlier, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck off of Honshu, the country's meteorological agency said.
CNN's Kyung Lah, Faith Karimi and Kevin Voigt contributed to this report.
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March 12 2011 - 3:38PM PT -
CNN's reporting two "MAJOR" aftershocks. Tsunami alerts reinstated.
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March 12 2011 - 11:07PM PT -
Japan upgrades magnitude of killer earthquake to 9.0; USGS keeps number at 8.9.
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March 13 2011 - 2:52PM PT
http://ow.ly/4dvh0
Here is what I think is, thus far, the most horrifying video (no, no dead or dying people) of what the tsunami looked like, taken from someone who had time to get up to higher ground and watch the town around him get destroyed.
Just picked it up from Sean Bonner, on Twitter...
seanbonner Sean Bonner
by BadAstronomer
Seriously, this first person Tsunami video is one of the scariest things I've ever seen.
http://ow.ly/4dvh0
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[Scroll down -- if you're set with oldest to newest -- to see new photos and videos, along with updated news]
http://cbskllc.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/japan-earthquake-today-tsunami-warning.jpg?w=311&h=337First Breaking News...
MASSIVE QUAKE HITS JAPAN
Tokyo (CNN) -- An... more
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