Hamaoka Unit 5 likely permanently crippled due to seawater corrosion
Chubu Electric Power Company has announced that it detected fresh corrosion from seawater in the Unit 5 reactor. The Japanese government ordered the utility to shut down all 5 reactors onsite in May…
NRC representation of San Onofre outage contested
Over the course of the last year while the San Onofre reactors have been shut down by steam generator failures, readers may have visited and read the NRC’s representation of the steam generator…
Fukushima Daiichi disaster proved nuclear reactors are a potential Pandora’s Box for proliferation
Concerns over nuclear weapons proliferation has re-emphasized the need for swift and accurate detection of nuclear tests conducted anywhere in the world. Most nuclear weapons states publicly declare their nuclear status by way…
Japan may have to change decontamination efforts after labor shortages
Decontamination efforts in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster are facing serious problems, most of which seem to be of their own creation. In reality, the decontamination efforts to date have…
Tsuruga nuclear power plant likely on active fault says NRA report
According to a new report released by the Nuclear Regulation Authority, “The crush zone running under the Tsuruga power station is very likely an active fault.” The report also highlights the direction of…
Workers at Fukushima Daiichi drill new hole in torus of Unit 2 for survey
On Sunday and Monday, workers at Fukushima Daiichi carried out operations at the Unit 2 reactor to drill a new penetration on the first floor to insert a dosimeter, thermometer, and camera. The…
April 3rd, 2011- NRC PMT – Surface radioactivity screening levels
Attached is a pdf of screening values for release of materials with surface contamination from the draft ANSI/HPS N13.12 Surface and Volume Radioactivity Standards for Clearance. The radioactivity concentration (screening value) for Cs-137…
Nuclear Regulatory Commission delays decision on San Onofre restart
According to an updated timeline posted on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s website, a decision to restart the San Onofre Unit 2 reactor has been delayed until the end of May. According to Victor…
Radioactive cesium in calves found higher than mothers after Fukushima Daiichi disaster
After the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster released enormous amounts of radiation into the environment, scientists and researchers in Japan began monitoring the concentration of Cesium-134 and Cesium-137 in the organs of 79 abandoned…
TEPCO plans to dump water stored at Fukushima Daiichi into Pacific
TEPCO has announced that it plans to dump contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean after processing it to reduce radioactive materials to legally permissible levels. By “processing”, TEPCO means once-high radioactive content has…
Japan may halt nuclear reactors again says NRA chairman
At a press conference on Wednesday, Nuclear Regulation Authority chairman Shunichi Tanaka said that the agency will not allow the Ohi reactors to continue operations if they fail to meet nuclear safety standards….
San Diego School District calls for NRC to conduct adjudicatory license amendment hearing process at San Onofre
The Board of Education of the San Diego Unified School District has passed a resolution Tuesday night, which calls for the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission to conduct an adjudicatory license amendment hearing…
Contaminated water still a serious issue at Fukushima Daiichi
Nearly two years after the onset of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, over 220,000 metric tons of contaminated water have been collected and stored on site, still another 75,000 tons remains in the…
Japan’s nuclear regulatory authority releases new nuclear safety standards draft
Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority presented a draft outline of new safety standards for nuclear power plants in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, including countermeasures against severe accidents and criteria for…
NRC to review spent fuel regulations
After more than 20 years of non-action, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing its policies, regulations, guidance, and technical needs in several key areas, such as: retrievability, cladding integrity, and safe…
Japanese nuclear plant operators charge over 90 million dollars per year to pay local authorities
A report by NHK has shown that operators of nuclear power plants in Japan charge the public users over 90 million dollars per year, in order to cover payments made to local authorities…
March 26th, 2011 – Don’t build nuclear plants in highly seismic areas thank you very much
MALE PARTICIPANT: Yes, Mike, the last thing I heard was the Russians showed up a week ago but then they left. MR. FRANOVITCH: Wow. That’s interesting. DR. SHERON: And their President gave them…
Record contamination detected in fish caught inside of Fukushima Daiichi harbor
TEPCO announced that it had captured a Murasoi fish from inside of the harbor at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Analysis detected 254,000 becquerels per kilogram of radioactive cesium in the…
Japan to mandate BWR reactors to install filtered vents after Fukushima disaster
A commissioner of the Nuclear Regulation Authority of Japan told reporters this week that the nation’s boiling water reactors will not be allowed to restart until they have installed filtered ventilation systems to…
March 24th, 2011 – Neutron source found 1 mile from Fukushima Daiichi – Maybe from Unit 3 explosion
Male Participant: You know, we do believe that based on information from TEPCO and identification of neutron sources, you know, found at the one mile from the plant that some fuel may have…
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