Japan paving the way for nuclear reactor restarts next summer
The Nuclear Regulation Authority is expected to start preliminary safety checks on offline nuclear reactors after an outline of new standards becomes available.
The NRA has already indicated that the utilities do not have to implement all necessary improvements before the reactors would be allowed to restart.
Thought the NRC accepted authority for the safety of reactors which they approve for restart, they stressed that the government was the only party that decided which reactors would be restarted. The Liberal Democratic Party, which is poised to return to power in the next election, has not made its stance on electricity reform clear and uncertainties remain.
Source: The Japan Times
Japan Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party call for the immediate closure of all nuclear power plants.
Source: The Japan Times
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry panel votes to open the retail electricity market to new entrants, and allow consumers to choose their own power suppliers
Hiroshi Yamaguchi, vice president of Tokyo Electric Power Co., said the retail market should be liberalized only after a secure supply of electricity is ensured.
“It would be risky to change the system” when supply is outweighing demand by a small margin because the system would be transferred while electricity is supplied to consumers, he said.
Source: The Japan Times
NRA to be investigated to ensure functioning properly from viewpoint of ordinary citizens
Source: JiJi Press
Source: NHK
Japan to widen definition of active faults
The Nuclear Regulatory Authority proposed widening the definition of active faults by examining land forms and geological conditions in the past 400,000 years if other data is limited.
Source: JiJi Press
Active faults suspected directly beneath Shiga nuclear reactor
Source: JiJi Press
Hitachi designs new robot developed for removing rubble from Fukushima Daiichi
Source: JiJi
TEPCO subcontractor accused of underreporting employee radiation exposure levels at Fukushima Daiichi
The Tomioka Labor Inspection Office in the prefecture sent papers on the subcontractor, Akusesu Aomori, and its president to the Fukushima District Public Prosecutors Office for the alleged violation of the Industrial Safety and Health Act.
According to the labor office and other sources, the 55-year-old Akusesu Aomori president placed lead over dosimeters carried by four company employees working at Fukushima Daiichi, in an attempt to underreport the workers’ radiation exposure levels.
Source: The Daily Yomiuri
Source: JiJi Press