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Water decontamination system halted at Fukushima plant

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“But we still have room to store toxic water so there is no immediate concern.”

Ah hu! So, when should we start to panic? When you run out of space to store the water or when you realise you can't fix the machine before you run out of storage space? Gees!

5 ( +7 / -2 )

@zichi Sorry for wasting your time old son. Your actually preaching to the converted. Knowing more than a few academics in this country at the top end of the university system, I fully understand the issues you raise. That being said, however, the current structure supporting the clean up does not instill much confidence. One of the root causes of this whole mess is that the administrators and the companies have never been at arms length from one another. The old "amakudari" paradigm doesn't even begin to explain how bad the situation is. Moreover, academic push back against the status quo has been squelched. If you remember back to when the annual radiation exposure levels for children and workers were established, the first expert the government called on (possibly a Hongo TAFE Professor) excused himself from the process because he didn't want to be party to a whitewash. Moreover, a lot of really smart people at TIT, etc. are being side-lined because their views don't match the established government line. It is not conducive to transparency. Moreover, as we discussed the other day, the negative image of this whole mess is driving away some very smart students. Instead of signing up for nuclear engineering at places like TIT and Hongo TAFE, these kids are going into other branches of the sciences. As such, it is difficult to know where future leaders will be found. Again, as I said earlier, the US has an advantage over Japan in that it has a constant levy of atomic power engineers who have been taught under the rigorous programs of the United States Navy. The only real solution I believe is for Japan to admit defeat and call on the IAEA to call the shots.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

@zichi

All that you say makes perfect sense to me.

So here's the question. Isn't there a politician running around saying the same thing?

If the exact same thing were happening in the US, I'm sure there'd be some senator or congressman doing the rounds of the news/talk shows saying what you are suggesting.

If there is a politician out there doing everything they can trying to at least get better conditions for the workers, but at best agitating and putting pressure to achieve your suggestion of a replacement agency for Tepco - could you tell me.

If there isn't one , then I feel like this country is lost.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

According to today's weather report for the Tokyo area, the wind is supposed to be blowing in from the direction of the crippled nuclear power plant. Hope those guys up there know what they're doing concerning the air we are breathing down here ...

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Three years. The time it took for Japan to modernize from the onset of the Meiji era would have been quicker than the time it takes for the Fukushima Problem to be resolved.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Perhaps another mouse that cause the system to stop ?

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Can be cooled reactors contaminated water? Because if so it should do so, and the heat which must give this contaminated water to peel from there through the heat exchangers, designed and contact with no contaminated water.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Agreed, TEPCO is making a hash of the whole mess. If they weren't connected to the government they would be out of there.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Utrack,

We need a Nuclear Physicist like Johannes Weber posting again so we get an understanding of the situation.....

Was Johannes actually a Nuclear Physicist?

Anyway, there are plenty of people with scientific and technical qualifications who post on these stories.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

DisillusionedMar. 19, 2014 - 03:32PM JST

Ah hu! So, when should we start to panic?

I would say you should not panic.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

@zichi Really nice idea that should have been done long ago. The only problem is the logic behind it. Simply put, the regulators, the companies, the bureaucrats, etc., are all intertwined with one another. Moreover, I seriously doubt if the government could rustle up the required technical expertise to fill the gap if TEPCO were shown the door. Of course, there are certain academics around the place who might have the policy nous. However, unlike other countries (for example the United States) who have a number of nuclear engineers from outside the system (many having started their careers as naval officers in charge of the power on nuclear powered ships and submarines), there is no real alternative talent pool to draw on. Of course, the locals could call on outside help. But they didn't really feel inclined to do so when S hit the F, so I don't know think they will do so now. Thus, we unfortunately are stuck with the status quo (as much as it disgusts us).

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Many people are really concerned but decontaminated water is being re-used again. No new tanks are being build

1 ( +1 / -0 )

We've been here before: the experimental ALPS is suspended because of a problem. TEPCO fix it and no one pays any notice until the next problem occurs.

I would be worried if the downtime was anywhere near the length of time it operates, but that is not the case.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

We need a Nuclear Physicist like Johannes Weber posting again so we get an understanding of the situation.....

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Zichi,

"Anyway, there are plenty of people with scientific and technical qualifications who post on these stories."

like yourself, agreed.

you too.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Unbelievable, suggest the management start wearing clown masks similar to John Wayne Gasye.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

ALPS is toooooo sophisticated for the daily Work, it will have failures until the end of this crisis and everyone who "want to know it" knew it already!

TEPCO is just preparing the Public for a massive release of contaminated Water with this News.

PS: i am sure that TEPCO provide no idea what they think to do with all the Sludge of ALPS, that Stuff will be highly, i mean immense highly and concentrated contaminated with all the evil!

Tokyo, 0.095mcSv/h

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Patience. We'll learn in August what this is about.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Even more skeletons coming out of the closet pretty soon?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I'm not defending TEPCO, but I wonder if anyone else could have handled things better? Apart from Chernobyl there's been nothing like this accident, so the teams out there are basically doing everything off the cuff... there is no precedent.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

TEPCO FAIL has to keep failing, what else do they do?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

“But we still have room to store toxic water so there is no immediate concern.”

Yeah, last I heard the Pacific Ocean isn't full yet. Plenty of room for "storage". :(

0 ( +0 / -0 )

If there is no nuclear energy plant, there is no need for decontamination system, Check Wikipedia articles on, say California Energy plan because Calif has big Pacific Ocean in West. Or Nevada Energy as Nevada does not have Ocean. Maybe Las Vegas Energy type article to investigate how Las Vegas manage its huge power need without nuclear energy plant. 24 hour glittering city.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Instead of trying to save a dime and losing a dollar why not build a water-tight shell in the earth surrounding the facility. it may be really expensive and a large scale project, because it has to done piecewise. as Johannes Weber posted back in 2011...

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Yay. More Fukushima stories. Now that the percentage of a meltdown is no longer 万が一 but is closer to about 2 in 50 in Japan over a 40 year spread, I wonder if the villages that host reactors will be less willing to host them. I also wonder if the power comanies will update the statistics for future PR.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Nuclear is not tht bad. All ype of energies have their pros and cons. A mix of them all will always be the best.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

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