Japan Nuke Plant Leaks 300 Tons of Radioactive Water

Forum Contacts RSS		RUSSIAN

RIA Novosti, PUBLISHED August 26, 2013

The operator of Japan's tsunami-crippled nuclear power plant said Tuesday that about 300 tons of highly radioactive water has leaked from one of the hundreds of storage tanks there – its worst leak yet from one of the vessels.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the contaminated water leaked from a steel storage tank at the wrecked Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. TEPCO hasn't figured out how or where the water leaked from, but suspects it did so through a valve connected to a gutter around the tank.

TEPCO spokesman Masayuki Ono said the leaked water seeped into the ground after largely escaping piles of sandbags added to a concrete barrier around the tank. Workers have been pumping out the puddle and the remaining water in the tank and will transfer it to other containers.

The water's radiation level, measured about 50 centimeters (2 feet) above the puddle, is about 100 millisieverts per hour – five times the annual exposure limit for plant workers, Ono said.

The plant suffered multiple meltdowns following Japan's massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. Hundreds of tanks were built around the plant to store massive amounts of contaminated water coming from the three melted reactors, as well as underground water running into reactor and turbine basements.

Four other tanks of the same design had similar leaks since last year. Ono said the latest leak was the worst from a tank in terms of volume.

TEPCO says the tanks that have leaked used rubber seams and were intended to last about five years. Ono said TEPCO plans to build additional tanks with welded seams that are more watertight.

The massive amount of radioactive water is among the most pressing issues affecting the cleanup process, which is expected to take decades. There have been other leaks of contaminated water at the plant, and some of it is entering the sea. Plant workers are trying to reduce the leaks using measures such as building chemical underground walls, but they have made little improvement.

Topics: NPP Fukushima Daiichi

Other news:

China Offers Russia Floating Nuke Plant Joint Project

It was proposed that a joint venture should be established with investments from both sides.

Russia Eyes Nuclear Power Project in Finland – Source

A government source told RIA Novosti.

The transaction on consolidation of a 100% stake in Uranium One Inc. by ARMZ Uranium Holding Co. has received court approval and regulatory approval

The transaction on consolidation of a 100% stake in Uranium One Inc. by ARMZ Uranium Holding Co. has been approved both by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Canada, and regulators in Russia, Australia and the USA.

Hero of the day

Jacques Repussard: knowledge, independence, proximity

They told me: "Mr Repussard, we're not used to responding to anti-nuclear organisations". To which I replied: "We will not reveal any state or trade secrets, but we will not leave them without any answer".

INTERVIEW

Georgy Toshinsky
Not quite so. The authors of the concept, which was difficult to be realized in practice, turned to a clearer concept of a standing wave reactor (TP-1) that in principle allows finding the solution to the tasks stated for TWRs.

OPINION

Alexander Yakovenko
The preparatory committee for the 2015 NPT review conference took place in Geneva on April 22-May 3. Russia views strengthening the NPT regime as a crucial task and considers it a foreign policy priority.