Continuing Surprises (Mostly Unfortunate) for Japan Nuclear Industry

The fourth anniversary of the multiple meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi no. 1 power plant passed in relative quiet, but events there have hardly become less troubling.  The good news first:  TEPCO and its contractors have now completed the move of all spent and fresh fuel from the high and wide-open secondary containment of reactor Unit 4 to a safer ground-level location.  They performed the work on time and almost without incident, despite the fears of many nuclear scientists and policymakers.  Removal of molten fuel debris in Units 1, 2, and 3 will be more challenging, but Japan’s extensive experience with robotics should be helpful there, says Dr. Dale Klein, former chairman of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission and now chair of TEPCO’s Nuclear Reform Monitoring Committee.

A team of 15 experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency looked on the bright side in the draft of its recent third review of decommissioning efforts at Fukushima.  They found progress in the following areas as well as the fuel maneuver:

• The creation in 2014 of an exclusive new branch of TEPCO, Fukushima Daiichi Decontamination and Decommissioning Engineering Company, to manage on-site radioactive waste management and decommissioning activities.
• The establishment of the Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Facilitation Corporation.
• Improvements in the situation on-site:
1. Improvement and expansion of systems to clean contaminated water;
2. Installation of new, improved tanks to store contaminated water;
3. Operation of an underground water bypass system; and
4. Cleanup of the site, reducing radiological dose to the workforce.

The report also cited some of the remaining challenges:

• Persistent underground water ingress to main buildings and the accumulation of contaminated water on-site;
• Need for a more sustainable solution than the current practice of storing contaminated water ;
• Long-term management of radioactive waste; and
• Removal of spent nuclear fuel, damaged fuel, and fuel debris.

Read more at Continuing Surprises (Mostly Unfortunate) for Japan Nuclear Industry