Kyoto discussed as back up Capital in case of ( further ) Disaster , decontamination work at unit 2 . Japan priorities screwed up concerning nuclear plant restarts - even after the debacle still unfolding at Fukuhima , Japan's government continues to lay down as a door mat for power company profits !

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/ed20120603a1.html

Quickstep to restarting reactors

The union of nine local governments in Kansai — the Shiga, Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Wakayama, Tokushima and Tottori prefectures plus Osaka and Sakai cities — on Wednesday softened its opposition to the restart of the Nos. 3 and 4 reactors at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s (Kepco's) Oi nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture.

The union's turnaround has removed one of the last major obstacles to the central government's effort to bring the reactors back on line. The central government is expected to make a final decision soon on restarting the reactors.

Behind the union's turnaround was the central government's pressure and lobbying by Kepco and the Kansai Economic Federation, headed by Kepco Chairman Shosuke Mori. The call for a 15 percent reduction in power consumption apparently played an important role. If the central government decides to restart the Oi reactors, it will be a decision made in the absence of a solid foundation to ensure the safety of nuclear power generation.

The sole "scientific basis" for restarting the Oi reactors 3 and 4 is the results of a stress test. But a stress test is, after all, a computer simulation whose results can vary depending on the data fed into computers and the computer programs used.

In addition, the data and programs used have not been disclosed and third-party checks are impossible. Thus outside parties cannot determine whether the test is appropriate. Stress tests are merely being used as an excuse for the central government and power companies to restart reactors.

In a stress test, each reactor's safety margin to prevent severe accidents is measured by taking into account such factors as earthquakes, tsunamis, loss of all power sources and loss of cooling functions. But nobody can tell how much of a safety margin in a computer simulation can ensure the prevention of severe accidents. Nuclear Safety Commission Chairman Haruki Madarame himself stated in February that stress tests could not be used to gauge the safety of nuclear power plants.

The central government's dangerous obsession with restarting the reactors is highlighted by the fact that it has not even worked out a road map to phase out nuclear power generation.

If the central government decides to restart the Oi reactors, it will be clear that it has not given serious thought to the nuclear catastrophe at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

Thorough scrutiny of the Fukushima nuclear crisis has yet to be completed, and no new nuclear safety standards and regulations based on the Fukushima disaster have been devised. Despite these glaring omissions, the central government is making an all-out effort to bring the Oi reactors on line.

Apart from the stress test results, the central government is going to use provisional safety standards as an excuse to restart the Oi reactors. They were devised in April in just three days by the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, which is part of the trade and industry ministry, whose mission is to promote nuclear power.

It is clear that the provisional standards have not made the public confident that the central government is sincerely working to ensure nuclear safety.

Even if the provisional safety standards are applied, it will take three years for Kepco to install a seismically isolated emergency command center as well as filters to remove radioactive substances if such substances are vented from reactor cores during an emergency.

It must be pointed out that the central government is pushing for the restart of the reactors in the absence of concrete means to prevent the release of radioactive substances in the event of a severe accident and a concrete plan to evacuate people in communities near a stricken nuclear power plant.

Moreover, the central government and nuclear power industry are not equipped with technologies to solve the long-term issue of how to safely store the highly radioactive waste that is accumulating as the result of nuclear power generation.

The central government is pushing for the restart of the Oi Nos. 3 and 4 reactors at a time when opinion polls show that about 60 percent of those surveyed oppose the reactor restart, and despite the fact that small and medium-size companies as well as service companies in the Kansai region have expressed their readiness to conserve electricity consumption on the premise that no nuclear plants would be operating this summer.

Whether intentional or not, the central government's decision will deal a severe blow to this energy-savings mindset.

The recent development with regard to the restart of the Oi reactor points to further deterioration of the quality of Japan's politics. Fearful of public opinion opposing the restart, the central government waited for a change in the political mood.

The union of the Kansai local governments softened its opposition to the restart because it feared complaints about possible rolling blackouts imposed during peak demand periods in the region serviced by Kepco. But the union did not clearly call for the restart. In short, no politicians want to take responsibility for making a concrete decision.

The Oi assembly on May 15 agreed to the restart of the Oi reactors. About half of the town's budget is funded by nuclear power-related subsidies and tax revenues. The central government should must take steps to diversify the local economy and end its reliance on the nuclear industry.

and.....

http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/noda-says-reactor-restart-necessary-once-safety-is-assured?utm_campaign=jt_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=jt_newsletter_2012-05-31_AM

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The governor of the host prefecture of Fukui and the mayor of the town of Ohi where the reactors are located have yet to give final approval, although Ohi’s local assembly has signed off on resuming operations.

and....

http://www.simplyinfo.org/?p=6193

Japanese Nuclear Plant Restarts = Corporate Welfare


http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2012/06/kyoto-proposes-to-become-backup-capital.html

SATURDAY, JUNE 2, 2012

Kyoto Proposes to Become "Backup Capital" in a Disaster

They are counting that whatever disaster hits Tokyo won't hit Kyoto at the same time.

Kyoto is not without danger, as it is located downwind from the "Nuclear Ginza" (including Ooi Nuclear Power Plant and Monju) in Fukui Prefecture. For that matter, nowhere in Japan seems safe from a nuclear accident.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (5/31/2012):

皇室や文化庁 京へ移転を 首都バックアップ検討委

Capital backup committee suggests the Imperial Household and the Agency for Cultural Affairs move to Kyoto

災害時の首都機能バックアップに関する検討委員会が３０日、上京区で開かれ、京都が受け持つことができる機能について、皇室の居住や文化庁の移転などとする中間報告がほぼまとまった。近く、国に提案する。

A meeting of a study committee regarding the backup of functions of the capital in time of a disaster was held on May 30 in Kamigyoku [district of Kyoto City]. The interim report was almost complete, which would include having the Imperial Household residing in Kyoto and moving the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

　検討会は府や京都市、学識経験者らで構成。機能を受け入れるエリアとしては、京都市中心部と桂イノベーションパーク、らくなん進都、学研都市を対象としている。

The committee is made up of officials in Kyoto Prefecture and Kyoto City and persons of experience and academic standing. The areas that would host the backup functions would be Kyoto City center, Katsura Innovation Park, Rakunan Shinto, [Kansai] Cultural and Academic Research City.

　検討会では、京都は首都圏と同時に被災する可能性が低く、地理的にもアクセスしやすい利便性があることを確認。その上で、京都御所や京都迎賓館があることから、皇室の人々の居住や儀礼の実施を受け入れやすいと判断した。また、文化庁や観光庁の移転、国会や首相官邸の代替施設となる可能性があるため国立京都国際会館の機能を強化することも国に提案する。The committee acknowledged Kyoto to have a low possibility to be hit by a disaster at the same time as the Tokyo metropolitan areas, and to be easily accessible geographically. In addition, the existence of Kyoto Imperial Palace and Kyoto State Guest House makes it easier for the Imperial Household to reside in Kyoto and conduct ceremonies. The committee will suggest to the national government to move the Agency for Cultural Affairs and Japan Tourism Agency and to strengthen the Kyoto International Conference Hall to serve as the National Diet and the Prime Minister's Official Residence.

and....

http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2012/06/high-beta-radiation-on-floor-surface-in.html

SATURDAY, JUNE 2, 2012

High Beta Radiation on Floor Surface in Reactor 2 Building at #Fukushima I Nuke Plant

As Toshiba workers splashed strippable paint on the floor at the Truck Bay Door of the Reactor 2 building (southwest corner) and stripped the paint to remove radioactive materials on the floor to lower the radiation for the future work (installing thermocouples), they were mostly removing the radioactive materials emitting beta radiation.

Outside Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, if the gamma radiation levels are measured in microsievert/hour in single or double-digit (i.e. 2 microsieverts/hour or 20 microsieverts/hour), they are considered high. The samples of the "black dust (thing, material, plant, dirt, etc.) measure anything from 0.6 microsievert/hour to over 50 microsieverts/hour depending on the locations, usually measuring gamma ray only.

At the entrance of the Reactor 2 building, the radiation levels on the floor are measured in millisieverts/hour. Of the four decon methods tried on the floor, vacuuming and strippable paint were somewhat effective in reducing the gamma radiation. Strippable paint was the most effective in reducing the beta radiation, and wet mopping and vacuuming were somewhat effective. Dry mopping spread the beta contamination, instead of reducing it.

10 millisieverts/hour is 10,000 microsieverts/hour.

I'm waiting to see if TEPCO does the nuclide analysis of the vacuumed dust or stripped paint, but TEPCO being TEPCO I don't have much hope. I'd love to know what kind of radioactivity by what nuclide would cause such high radiation levels.

From TEPCO's Working Group meeting reference material, pages 8 to 18 (I added English labels; 5/28/2012):

All this work is to later install thermocouples in the Containment Vessel, and that will have to be done by human workers. The Truck Bay Door is one of the two ways to get to the possible installation locations (there are two). Near one of the installation location candidates, there is a spot whose surface radiation exceeds 3,000 millisievert/hour (3 sieverts/hour or 3 million microsieverts/hour, take your pick). TEPCO's first choice is to install on top of the TIP Room by entering from the Truck Bay Door (access route 1, in blue). They may not be too keen to do the installation work near 3,000 millisievert/hour location...

and.....

SATURDAY, JUNE 2, 2012

Workers Decontaminate the Entrance to #Fukushima Reactor 2 in Prep for Installing Thermocouples

Workers wearing suits marked with "Toshiba" logo hustled to spread yellow, strippable paint on the floor of the entrance (Truck Bay Door) to the Reactor 2 building at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant. The workers had tested different methods to decontaminate, and using the strippable paint had proven to be most effective.

(UPDATE) Workers were mostly removing beta nuclides by using the paint. See my new post on the decon testing which has the beta+gamma radiation levels on the floor surface.