Japan's nuclear plans
in disarray By Suvendrini Kakuchi
TOKYO - Reports of radiation leakages at a
nuclear power plant after the Niigata earthquake
on Monday have raised widespread public alarm and
dealt a devastating blow to the Japanese
government's plans to boost the nuclear-power
industry, both domestically and abroad.
"The problems now being reported from the
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant are deeply
alarming. They prove that Japan is not prepared
for a nuclear-power disaster, especially during an
earthquake, and can never be,'' said Professor
Hiroaki Koide, a
nuclear-safety specialist at
Kyoto University.
The quake left nine
people dead and more than 1,000 injured and forced
thousands out of their homes and into makeshift
shelters. None of the deaths or injuries were
related to power plant itself.
The
earthquake registered 6.8 on the Richter scale,
whereas the seven nuclear power plants in the
complex were designed for a maximum 6.5 quake. The
tremors caused some 50 problems at the nuclear
plant, including water leakages, fire, and the
toppling of more than 400 drums containing
low-level radioactive waste, some of which broke
open.
Even though the plant sat on an
geologic fault, it had been considered unlikely to
be affected by an earthquake. A new
safety-allowance standard to minimize accidents
had just been designed for the plant. The
standards, admitted officials, will probably have
to be reviewed after a detailed analysis of the
accident.
Akira Fukushima, deputy director
general at the Nuclear and Industrial Safety
Agency, told reporters on Wednesday that the plant
has been shut down and that the government is
taking a strict stance against a quick resumption
of operations. "The delayed reaction to the
accident by the operators of the plant is a
serious concern. We have ordered an
investigation," he said.
The fire, the
first at a nuclear plant hit by an earthquake, was
extinguished within two hours, with officials
reporting no major threat to the public. On
Monday, though, Japanese media carried reports of
a leak of radioactive water from one of three
reactors, some of it into the Sea of Japan.
Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), runs
seven reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa complex
that have total generating capacity of more than
8,000 megawatts, making the nuclear plant the
world's largest.
The director of the
International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed
ElBaradei, was in Kuala Lumpur when he heard of
the earthquake. He urged Japanese nuclear
regulatory authorities to conduct a thorough and
transparent investigation into the quake's
aftermath.
Lately, Japan has been focusing
on expanding its nuclear-power capabilities by
pointing out that this carbon-free energy is
essential to combat global warming caused by the
burning of fossil fuels such as oil and coal and
resulting in greenhouse-gas emissions.
Japan has 55 nuclear power plants that
supply 30% of its electricity. The government is
planning to begin building another plant this year
and is extending support - in the form of
technology transfer - to energy-short countries in
Asia that are considering or planning nuclear
plants.
According to the International
Energy Agency based in Paris, the world's energy
needs will rise by 51% by 2030 because of
industrialization and population growth, which
could lead to an environmental nightmare.
Japan's latest nuclear-power policy pushes
an alternative solution by promising to ensure its
safety through technology that includes sound
storage methods for highly radioactive nuclear
waste.
But activists argue that the
Japanese government is being irresponsible by not
taking into consideration the dangers posed by
this industry as well as the high costs involved.
Indeed, the latest crisis in the nuclear
plant in Niigata prefecture is being closely
followed by the Japanese media, which had until
recently focused on the pollution-free benefits of
nuclear power.
The Tokyo Shimbun, a
leading daily, questioned the reliability of data
for building sites provided by industry and
government experts after it was revealed that the
site was on a fault line and susceptible to
tremors. The Asahi Shimbun carried details of how
TEPCO underestimated the amount of radioactive
water that leaked into the sea.
Hideaki
Ban, director of the Citizens' Nuclear Information
Center, said the accident reveals poor planning
and the determination of the government to expand
nuclear power along with top electric-power
companies.
"There have been several
accidents in nuclear plants across Japan, but
officials toe the same line - revisions rather
than holding Japanese operators of nuclear
reactors responsible by shutting down the plants.
The target is money rather than safety," he said.
Another bone of contention with
anti-nuclear-power experts is the lack of
transparency on information released by the
government on the nuclear industry. "When there is
an accident, we have to wait for information to be
released by the government - which is a problem
when it comes to our own analysis," said Ban, a
scientist himself.
He said his
organization has been inundated by calls from
people in Niigata asking for an independent
analysis of the accident.
Nuclear-safety
specialist Koide said his research indicates that
Japan's electrical needs can be supported by
hydro-power given the country's abundant rivers
and mountainous features. "Nuclear plants are a
danger in earthquake-prone Japan. There is simply
no foolproof safety standard. The whole industry
is being pushed by companies with the backing of
the government," he said.
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