Dangerous Breach Suspected at Japan Nuclear Plant

What does this mean? Doubt if anyone knows for sure but the fact that two men wading into water who received burns because the nuclear level was much higher is not good news. Is it the 'sky is falling' news we have been hearing out of a lot of broadcasters? We doubt it. Right now no one knows for sure the danger to the surrounding area. The information became available a little over an hour ago and the experts are still waiting for more details from testing. The good news is that the plants are shut down so a Chernobyl cannot happen in Japan.

What does this possible breach mean? Other than mandatory evacuations, we have no idea. If there is a breach there will be a release of more contaminents but the worst thing that could happen would be a core meltdown and all sources say that is not going to happen.

In other developments

Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama said later that plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. was issued a "very strong warning" for safety violations and that a thorough review would be conducted once the situation stabilizes.

Looks like Tepco is finally going to be investigated which looks like it should have happened a long time ago. We are still shocked that they were allowed to put spent rods in pools on top of buildings in an earthquake zone.

We will update this story as more details are released.

Dangerous Breach Suspected at Japan Nuclear Plant
Mar 25, 2011 – 9:10 AM READING THIS NOW

Jay Alabaster and Shino Yuasa
AP

TOKYO -- A suspected breach in the core of a reactor at the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant could mean more serious radioactive contamination, Japanese officials revealed Friday, as the prime minister called the country's ongoing fight to stabalize the plant "very grave and serious."

A somber Prime Minister Naoto Kan sounded a pessimistic note at a briefing hours after nuclear safety officials announced what could be a major setback in the urgent mission to stop the plant from leaking radiation, two weeks after a devastating earthquake and tsunami disabled it.

"The situation today at the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant is still very grave and serious. We must remain vigilant," Kan said. "We are not in a position where we can be optimistic. We must treat every development with the utmost care."

The uncertain situation halted work at the nuclear complex, where dozens had been trying feverishly to stop the overheated plant from leaking dangerous radiation. The plant has leaked some low levels of radiation, but a breach could mean a much larger release of contaminants.

Suspicions of a possible breach were raised when two workers waded into water 10,000 times more radioactive than is typical and suffered skin burns, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said.

(snip)

Previous radioactive emissions have come from intentional efforts to vent small amounts of steam through valves to prevent the core from bursting. However, releases from a breach could allow uncontrolled quantities of radioactive contaminants to escape into the surrounding ground or air.

Government spokesman Yukio Edano said "safety measures may not be adequate" and warned that may contribute to rising anxiety among people about how the disaster is being managed.

"We have to make sure that safety is secured for the people working in that area. We truly believe that is incumbent upon us," the chief Cabinet secretary told reporters.

Edano said people living 12 to 20 miles (20 to 30 kilometers) from the plant should still be safe from the radiation as long as they stay indoors. But since supplies are not being delivered to the area fast enough, he said it may be better for residents in the area to voluntarily evacuate to places with better facilities.

"If the current situation is protracted and worsens, then we will not deny the possibility of (mandatory) evacuation," he said.

(snip)

Excerpt: Read More at AOL News about how Japan is coping with the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami. Very sad situation for those areas of Japan hit by the tsunami.

In a blow to the Japanese economy, Nissan Motors may move part of its engine plant line to the United States because of the severe damage their plant took in Japan.

One thing we will say in high praise of the Japanese is that they have had zero looting. Some thugs in this country need to take a look and see what you do in an emergency situation and that is help your neighbors not steal from them. The looting that goes on in this Country after a disaster is shameful.

Bungling, cover-ups define Japanese nuclear power

This one paragraph keeps jumping out in the articles about the problems with the nuclear power plants by Tepco in Japan:

Tepco has safety violations that stretch back decades. In 1978, control rods at one Fukushima reactor dislodged but the accident was not reported because utilities were not required to notify the government of such accidents. In 2006, Tepco reported a negligible amount of radioactive steam seeped from the Fukushima plant — and blew beyond the compound.

Since Fukushima provides power for the Tokyo, there have been rolling blackouts for the last four days. It is mind boggling that that Government regulators would not have paid attention to problems with the nuclear power industry. There are a long list of problems at the nuclear power plants that go unreported and regulators turn their heads. We would expect the Japanese Government to pay much more attention after this.

Authorities said Tokyo and its surrounding area will avoid a massive blackout Thursday night despite fears that Japan's crippled energy grid was being over-taxed by cooler temperatures.

Power demand surged Thursday morning as more people turned their heaters on to combat near-freezing conditions. Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda told reporters that if demand had risen to the same level again in the evening, large swaths of the Tokyo metropolitan area would be without power.

"Normally the peak electricity use usually starts in the evening, and if electricity demand continues at this rate it could lead to a widespread blackout," he said earlier in the day. "We ask that businesses and consumers cut back on their electricity use."

Oil and gas here in the United States need explored to the fullest extent because after these problems in Japan, the American people are not going to want to live anywhere near a nuclear plant even though they are relatively safe today. How does anyone know if the people in charge would be telling the truth? Frankly building a nuclear power plant, no matter the safeguards, on an earthquake area seems stupid. Japan went the nuclear power plant route because of the high cost of importing oil. That is why Obama and this Administration is stupid for not exploring all drilling options in the United States to cut our dependence on foreign oil.

We have noticed during this disaster a lack of comment by the IEAE people from the United Nations. When researching why found this:

Japanese media have criticised the government's handling of the disaster and operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. for its failure to provide enough information on the incident.

The IAEA, which has as a mandate to share information with member states when there is a nuclear emergency, has also been criticised in the media and in comments posted on its Facebook page for providing scant and out-of-date information.

The IAEA says it can provide only the information it receives and verifies.

The head of the IAEA, is heading for Japan today to try and get an understanding of what is happening since the IAEA isn't happy with what they have been receiving from the people in charge:

The U.N. atomic energy chief said he planned to fly to Japan on Thursday to seek first-hand information of what he called a very serious situation at a stricken nuclear power plant in his home country.

Yukiya Amano said he intended to request an extraordinary meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-nation governing board as soon as possible after he returned to Vienna.

Amano's announcements of his trip and the IAEA board session made clear his growing concern over the crisis in Japan.

It also suggested frustration at the Vienna-based agency, which is tasked with fostering the safe use of nuclear energy, about the lack of speedy and detailed information from Japan.

"It is different to receive facts by email from Tokyo to sitting down with them and exchanging views," Amano told a news conference. "We always need to improve the flow of information."

He said he hoped to meet high-level Japanese officials but left open whether he would go to the site of the severely damaged Fukushima plant during his one-day trip.

Amano said it was not the time to say whether developments at the site had spun out of control, as suggested by a European Union energy official in remarks that hit global shares.

The IAEA said it was seeking more information about the water levels at the reactor's spent fuel pools, which are essential for cooling down the high-level radioactive material.

The world will be waiting to see what the new Chief Yukiya Amano of the IAEA will be saying following his visit because right now confidence in how the situation is being handled at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant is almost nil.

Bungling, cover-ups define Japanese nuclear powerBy YURI KAGEYAMA, AP Business Writer
Thu Mar 17, 3:58 am ET

TOKYO – Behind Japan's escalating nuclear crisis sits a scandal-ridden energy industry in a comfy relationship with government regulators often willing to overlook safety lapses.

Leaks of radioactive steam and workers contaminated with radiation are just part of the disturbing catalog of accidents that have occurred over the years and been belatedly reported to the public, if at all.

In one case, workers hand-mixed uranium in stainless steel buckets, instead of processing by machine, so the fuel could be reused, exposing hundreds of workers to radiation. Two later died.

"Everything is a secret," said Kei Sugaoka, a former nuclear power plant engineer in Japan who now lives in California. "There's not enough transparency in the industry."

Sugaoka worked at the same utility that runs the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant where workers are racing to prevent a full meltdown following Friday's 9.0 magnitude quake and tsunami.

In 1989 Sugaoka received an order that horrified him: edit out footage showing cracks in plant steam pipes in video being submitted to regulators. Sugaoka alerted his superiors in the Tokyo Electric Power Co., but nothing happened. He decided to go public in 2000. Three Tepco executives lost their jobs.

The legacy of scandals and cover-ups over Japan's half-century reliance on nuclear power has strained its credibility with the public. That mistrust has been renewed this past week with the crisis at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant. No evidence has emerged of officials hiding information in this catastrophe. But the vagueness and scarcity of details offered by the government and Tepco — and news that seems to grow worse each day — are fueling public anger and frustration.

"I can't believe them," said Taketo Kuga, a cab driver in Tokyo, where low levels of radiation was observed Tuesday, despite being 140 miles (220 kilometers) away from the faulty plant.

Kuga has been busy lately driving to airports and train stations people eager to get out and flee southward. And it unsettles him the information about radiation is all over the Internet, hours before officials make their announcements.

"I don't feel safe," he said.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. official Takeshi Makigami says experts are doing their utmost to get the reactors under control.

"We are doing all that is possible," he told reporters.

Worried that over-dependence on imported oil could undermine Japan's humming economy, the government threw its support into nuclear power, and the industry boomed in profile and influence. The country has 54 nuclear plants, which provide 30 percent of the nation's energy needs, is building two more and studying proposals for 12 more plants.

Before Friday's earthquake and tsunami that triggered the Fukushima crisis and sent the economy reeling, Japan's 11 utility companies, many of them nuclear plant operators, were worth $139 billion on the stock market.

Tepco — the utility that supplies power for Japan's capital and biggest city — accounted for nearly a third of that market capitalization, though its shares have been battered since the disasters, falling 65 percent over the past week to 759 yen ($9.6) Thursday. Last month, it got a boost from the government, which renewed authorization for Tepco to operate Fukushima's 40-year-old Unit 1 reactor for another 10 years.

With such strong government support and a culture that ordinarily frowns upon dissent, regulators tend not to push for rigorous safety, said Amory Lovins, an expert on energy policy and founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute.

"You add all that up and it's a recipe for people to cut corners in operation and regulation," Lovins said.

Competence and transparency issues aside, some say it's just too dangerous to build nuclear plants in an earthquake-prone nation like Japan, where land can liquefy during a major temblor.

"You're building on a heap of tofu," said Philip White of Tokyo-based Citizens' Nuclear Information Center, a group of scientists and activists who have opposed nuclear power since 1975.

"There is absolutely no reason to trust them," he said of those that run Japan's nuclear power plants.

Excerpt: Read More at Yahoo News

CNN Breaking News: Japanese Workers at Fukushim Daiichi Plant have Evacuated

Workers at Japan's damaged Fukushima Daiichi plant have suspended their operations and been evacuated, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said Wednesday.

According to the following video, some of the core has melted:



Excerpt: CNN

Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan ordered a widespread power outage to save energy.

This first morning of Daylight Savings Time (UGH) we wake up to a 3rd nuclear reactor plant under duress with a chance for explosion. The Japanese Prime Minister has now ordered widespread power outages with the warning this is the worst disaster since WWII. As casualties continue to mount, nuclear power plants exploding, and uncalculated numbers of people homeless, the Prime Minister asked the United States for help immediately. Much of the Pacific fleet is headed to Japan to assist. Our resources are second to none and will be used to the fullest in Japan.

Reporters around the world are flocking to Japan, but not sure that is helping because they will be clogging up roads and facilities needed by the residents of Japan. Having someone like CNN who is already in Japan  is one thing but for crews from all over the World to be descending on them seems wrong.

Even though they have had some explosions at nuclear power plants, the second video explains why this will not be a Chenobyl since they immediately shut down the plants unlike in Russia where the plant was still operating.

The pictures from Japan after the tsunami hit look more like a sci-fi movie with the debris moving across the countryside as the water carried along everything in its path including fires burning. It had the feel of being computer generated as cars rushed to avoid the oncoming debris path. It wasn't sci-fi but reality happening at that moment in time and you just sat there in shock as you watched the path across the Countryside.

Hearts and prayers go out to the people of Japan as they start to recover from this disaster of one of the largest earthquakes in history along with the giant tsunami which hit Japan.




Workers scramble to cool reactors; official says 2nd blast possible
By the CNN Wire Staff
March 13, 2011 10:21 a.m. EDT




(CNN) -- Workers continued efforts to cool down fuel rods inside two nuclear reactors Sunday as a Japanese government official warned that a second explosion could occur at the plant.

The aftermath of the devastating earthquake -- from the scores of casualties to the nuclear concerns at the plant in Fukushima prefecture -- marks the "toughest and most difficult crisis for Japan" since the end of World War II, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Sunday.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said an explosion could take place in the building housing the No. 3 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in northeastern Japan.

"There is a possibility that the third reactor may have hydrogen gas that is accumulating in the reactor (that) may potentially cause an explosion," he said.

An explosion caused by hydrogen buildup Saturday blew the roof off a concrete building housing the plant's No. 1 reactor, but the reactor and its containment system were not damaged in the explosion.

Edano said the No. 3 reactor would also likely withstand a similar blast, noting that workers had already released gas from the building to try to prevent an explosion.

Preventing a nuclear disaster in Japan Meanwhile, the prime minister ordered a Tokyo power company to conduct a widespread power outage in an effort to preserve energy as workers try to repair power plants damaged in the earthquake, including nuclear facilities.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company has been instructed to conduct three-hour rolling blackouts as the country faces a 10 million kilowatt shortage, officials said.

At the nuclear plant, workers have been scrambling to cool off fuel rods at both reactors after a massive earthquake and tsunami disabled their cooling systems. Japanese authorities have said there is a "possibility" that a meltdown has occurred in the reactors.

A meltdown is a catastrophic failure of the reactor core, with a potential for widespread radiation release.

But Japanese officials stressed that there were no indications of dangerously high radiation levels in the atmosphere around the two reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in northeastern Japan. They said they were unable to confirm whether a meltdown had occurred because they cannot get close enough to the reactors' cores.

"We are continuing to monitor the radiation, but it is under control," Edano told reporters.

Excerpt: Read More at CNN

Obama State of the Union Fallout

With snow coming down this morning to add to the rain that froze on objects, freezing rain that froze on the sidewalk, and sleet that accumulated like snow on roads and temperatures now below freezing, it is a very good day to stay inside and read the fallout from the State of the Union Obama gave on Wednesday night.

One thing went right -- teleprompters did not fail and he was able to read his entire speech which liberal media members gave high marks. Do they know what he said? Probably not but for an hour Chris Matthews, MSNBC, forgot he was black whatever that means. Who cares about the color of a Obama's skin? It is Obama's agenda that matter to us.

The American Thinker summed by the SOTU given by Obama versus the Rebuttal given by Governor Bob McDonnell of the Commonwealth of Virginia better then any one:

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnel, 01/27/10

January 29, 2010
Obama's sucker punch; McDonnell's knock out punchScott Strzelczyk

Obama ridiculed the justices in a nationally televised speech much to the joy and amusement of Congressional Democrats. Their boisterous standing applause is equally demeaning as Obama's statement.

The President's speech lasted 70 minutes and, to me, sounded just like everything else he says. A friend summed it up nicely by saying "history reference.... bumper sticker quote.... anecdotal story from a swing state about health care.... contemplative pause and look at the horizon.... overstate the obvious with mock sincerity.... blame Bush.... bumper sticker quote....stump speech excerpt.... knowing nod.... reinvent the wheel.... exaggerate accomplishments.... false promise.... blame Bush... repeat.... repeat.... repeat."

Contrast Obama's speech with Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's speech. McDonnell's speech was brief, concise, and delivered with the proper tone and authority we expect from a leader. He summarized the challenges we face; unemployment, intrusive federal government, and the 12 trillion dollar debt. He discussed solutions to the issues. He eloquently quoted Thomas Jefferson, referenced scripture, and stated our founding fathers pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to create our country. And, he was able to communicate this succinctly and without any ambiguity in a mere 15 minutes.

Obama threw a sucker punch last night. McDonnell delivered a knockout punch.

Excerpt: Read More at American Thinker

Michael Barone's article this morning had us chuckling as he decided to wait to write his article after seeing if the media covered certain parts of the Obama SOTU. His fresh perspective after some members of the fawning media fell all over Obama was well worth the wait.

Inside Obama's State of the Union speech
By: Michael Barone
Senior Political Analyst
01/28/10 3:32 PM EST

I know I’m weighing in late—in the old days of journalism this would have been early!—but I want to make a few points about Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech which I haven’t seen elsewhere.

Bows to labor unions. In saluting the resilience of the American people, Obama specifically mentioned people “building cars and teaching kids”—both heavily unionized occupations. (snip)

Where is the “jobs bill”? Obama’s jobs proposals look like pretty small beer. He also called for a National Export Initiative to double exports in five years; just how that would be done he didn’t say (snip) And, as Ira Stoll has pointed out, a five-year program has unfortunate echoes of Stalin’s five-year plans.

He kept boosting the House over the Senate. He commended the House for passing a “jobs bill,” for passing “financial reform,” for passing “a comprehensive energy and climate bill” (no mention of cap-and-trade) and for passing a community colleges bill. (snip)

And at least one senator took umbrage. “I thought he was pointing his finger at the Senate a lot in his speech last night,” said Senator Mary Landrieu, Democrat of Louisiana. “No, I do not think it’s fair.” Obama needs all the Senate votes he can get, especially from moderate Democrats like Landrieu, and he went out of his way to antagonize them, in search of cheap applause.

The Christmas bomber. Obama seemed to acknowledge the government’s failure to anticipate the Christmas bomber. (snip) Translation into English: 50 minutes of interrogation of a captured terrorist by FBI agents who happened to be on duty Christmas Day in Michigan, and who have no knowledge of terrorism networks, is enough. How many Americans agree?

Bones to the left. Obama’s brief discussion of Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran was carefully framed to be consistent with his dovish campaign rhetoric on those subjects. (snip)

Possible reset I: energy. Obama did not signal a pivot to the center, as the Massachusetts result seemed to dictate, on many issues. But he did call for “a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in this country” (his pal Bill Ayers’s father, as CEO of Commonwealth Edison, built lots of nuclear plants in Illinois that haven’t blown up), for “tough decisions about opening new offshore areas for oil and gas” (after reinstating the ban on offshore drilling lifted by the Bush administration) and for “continued investment in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies” (after his vice president said on the 2008 campaign trail that we wouldn’t build any more coal-fired power plants).

Possible reset II: trade. “We will continue to shape a Doha trade agreement that opens global markets” and “will strengthen our trade relations with Asia and with key partners like South Korea, Panama and Colombia.” This sounds like a call for the Democratic Congress to approve the pending Free Trade Agreements with those three countries which labor unions and most Democrats have opposed.

Health care. Obama seemed not to change his stand on health care at all, though it’s obvious that the Democratic bills are not going anywhere. (snip)

Immigration. Supporters of comprehensive immigration reform hoped that Obama, having downplayed the issue in 2009, would raise it in 2010. He did, but only barely, in a single sentence. “And we should continue the work of fixing our broken immigration system—to secure our borders, enforce our laws and ensure that everyone who plays by the rules can contribute to our economy and our nation.”

Excerpt: Read more at the Washington Examiner

Because Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana are heavily involved in the production of oil and natural gas, residents of those states took particular interest in the SOTU speech when Obama threw out some positive initiatives on energy. The drawback is that although it sounded good, he already knew some of the initiatives were going to be blocked by either regulations already on the books or by the Democrat leadership in Congress.

Over the years the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has gained way too much power to rule and regulate which has been hurting our domestic energy oil and gas production for years. We need new and updated refineries but how are you going to get new ones built and on-line with the EPA regulations causing the cost to be build new refineries prohibitive. The US is pretty much at capacity for oil refining yet the EPA is always looking for new ways to hurt domestic oil and gas production. Why? Is it because the vast majority of oil and gas production takes place in Red States? It does make you wonder.

We do have more hope for new nuclear power plants for electricity. We were glad to see President Obama talk about nuclear power plants following up on the initiatives started under the Bush Administration in 2002 after almost three decades of no new power plants. Chances of getting new nuclear plants is much higher then off shore drilling but they also take longer to get up and running. Will Obama carry through to push nuclear energy or will this fall by the wayside like so much of his rhetoric. Only time will tell.

According to the US Dept of Energy, the last reactor built was the "River Bend" plant in Louisiana. Its construction began in March of 1977. The last plant to begin commercial operation is the "Watts Bar" plant in Tennessee, which came online in 1996.

There are nuclear power plants already approved by the State of Florida but will not be operational until 2016 or later. The catch for the Florida residents is they will be helping pay for these plants long before they are finished at the rate of around 4 percent a year. Florida power plants have not received Federal approval to date as applications for design and construction of nuclear power plants have to be submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) of the Department of Energy.

There are currently 16 applications 'Under Review' with two more including one from Florida anticipated as of Feb 2009 with the next release of data in May 2010. Data on the pending nuclear power plants can be found at US Energy Information Administration

In 2002, the Department of Energy in cooperative projects with industry asked the NRC approval for three sites which were approved in FY 2007/2008. One additional application is currently under review as of FY 2009; three more are expected in the FY 2010-2012 time frame. These submittals were for new advanced nuclear power plant designs as part of the cooperative projects.

Design certification for Construction and Operation License (COL)for the initial demonstration projects is expected in early-2011 and construction started 2-3 years after that. The Department of Energy under the Bush Administration instituted the COL as a means of shortening the length of time it takes to get through the process for approval and certification by combining the two applications for Construction and Operation into one.

You can read more on Nuclear Energy at Nuclear Power 2010 from the DOE

While looking through the email, this editorial by Mark Tapscott from the Washington Examiner jumped out as the perfect headline review of the Obama speech -- 'nothing for everybody' which has summed up Obama's rhetoric on the campaign trail and while in office.

A speech with nothing for everybody
Examiner Editorial
January 29, 2010

That was some performance Wednesday night by President Obama, delivering one of the longest-ever State of the Union addresses but offering no evidence whatsoever of a willingness to listen to the swelling nationwide chorus of voices of discontent with his policies. For example, rather than acknowledging that clear majorities of Americans have decisively rejected his signature health care reform plan and suggesting a different approach, Obama doubled down on his insistence that Congress approve his proposal to put federal bureaucrats between patients and their doctors. Thus, Obama's congressional supporters get nothing on which to try to build a credible health care compromise, and his congressional critics come away with nothing beyond vague rhetoric about working together.

For those worried about the 17 percent real unemployment rate (10 percent officially unemployed, plus 7 percent who have given up looking for work), Obama put forward lots of reassuring words about jobs and small business, but only warmed-over ideas from the past as concrete proposals. (snip)

Similarly, why should anybody think the "new jobs bill" Obama asked Congress to put on his desk promptly will work any better than last year's $787 billion economic stimulus program that he said would keep unemployment at or below 8 percent? (snip)

Then there is the Obama freeze on federal spending, which has been praised in this space as a needed first step. The problem, however, is that it is all but invisible, saving a mere $250 billion or so when Washington will spend $4 trillion or more every year. Worse, the freeze does nothing to restrain entitlement spending, the chief factor in the government's swelling annual deficits. (snip)

Excerpt: Read more at the Washington Examiner

We will be watching closely to see if what Obama promised in his SOTU will ever become reality or will it be more hollow rhetoric like his campaign and first year in office. One thing is certain from his SOTU speech -- he gave no cover to Democrats running for office in 2010 as he continues his assault on the American healthcare system with Obamacare which the majority of Americans don't want.