[Column] Nothing has even started – 350 of 1,000 tones tanks are ready to leak from the flange part

 

Unfortunately, I am the only one who has been warning about the contaminated water of Fukushima plant in English.

 

The first time I featured the problem on column was last November.

[Column] X-day – when Fukushima plant discharges millions of tones of the contaminated water to Pacific ocean [URL 1]

I remember I was writing this in my head in the freezing cold shower of Sofia -Bulgaria.

At that time, there were not much people to take it seriously.

but I continued.

 

On the second 311, I wrote this as I was concerned about Fukushima being forgotten by the world.

27% of the highly contaminated water tanks will need repairs in 2016, “1,000 tones for each” [URL 2]

 

The situation is going as exactly anticipated. (slightly worse)

 

Nuclear Regulation Authority classified the 300m3 leakage as “INES Level.3”.

International media, even BBC, are coming back to cover it.

 

For me, it’s not they covered it, it’s they have been ignoring all the other problems.

 

They still look like they are downplaying.

but they actually know it’s worse than how it looks so they are covering it.

 

This 300m3 of leakage is just the beginning.

As a proof, Tepco found 2 more leakages after a couple of days after the 300m3 leakage.

 

These are all same type of the tanks called flange type.

They are not welded but sealed by rubber, which is vulnerable.

They are supposed to last 5 years but they are used in the highly radioactive place quite near the sea.

It’s already starting to fall down.

Tepco states they needed to build tanks very urgently, didn’t have time to weld them. They still keep making this flange type tanks.

 

Each one has 1,000 tones of water.

and there are 300~350 of the flange type tanks in Fukushima nuclear plant. (and it’s increasing day by day)

The potentially leaked water doesn’t have β nuclides (Strontium-90 etc) filtered, and Cesium-134/137 levels are still high.

 

This time, Tepco couldn’t even survey the surface dose of the leaked water because it is “too hot”.

If we are not unlucky, the too hot water won’t leak from 300~350 of 1,000 tones tanks in the plant area.

 

Tepco took 1 month to announce the 300m3 leakage.

Nobody knows how many other leakages are hidden at this very moment.

 

Nothing has even started yet.

 

 

You can ignore the truth but the truth won’t ignore you.

_____

Français :

[Édito] Rien n’a été fait : 350 citernes de 1 000 tonnes sont sur le point de fuir au niveau des collerettes

 

Je suis malheureusement le seul a avoir prévenu en anglais du danger des eaux extrêmement radioactives.

La première fois que j’ai mis ce problème en avant, c’était en novembre dernier :
[Edito] X-day – Quand la centrale de Fukushima balance des millions de tonnes d’eau contaminée dans l’océan Pacifique

Je me souviens de l’avoir écrit dans ma tête pendant une douche glacée à Sofia en Bulgarie.
Il n’y a pas eu beaucoup de monde à ce moment là pour vraiment le prendre au sérieux.
mais j’ai persisté.

Pendant le second 11-3, j’ai écris ceci parce que j’étais inquiet de voir le monde oublier Fukushima :
27% des réservoirs à eaux hautement contaminées vont nécessiter des réparations en 2016, “1 000 tonnes chacun”

La situation évolue exactement comme prévu (en pire)

La Nuclear Regulation Authority a classé la fuite des 300 m³ en “Niveau 3 INES”.
La presse Internationale, et même la BBC, reviennent en parler.

Pour moi, ce n’est pas pour le couvrir, ils ont voulu ignorer tous les autres problèmes.
Tout indique qu’ils continuent de minimiser.
mais, en fait, ils savent que c’est pire que ce à quoi ça ressemble alors ils couvrent.

Cette fuite de 300 m³ n’est qu’un début.
La preuve, dans les deux jours suivants Tepco en a trouvé 2 autres.

Toutes ces citernes sont du même type, dit type à collerette.
Elles ne sont pas soudées mais caoutchoutées, c’est plus fragile.
Elles sont supposées durer 5 ans mais elles sont utilisées dans un emplacement radioactif près de la mer.
Ça commence déjà à lâcher.
Tepco affirme qu’ils avaient du les construire en grande urgence, qu’ils n’avaient pas le temps de les souder. Ils continuent de monter des citernes de type à collerette.

Chacune contient 1 000 tonnes d’eau.
et on a entre 300 et 350 citernes à collerette dans la centrale nucléaire de Fukushima. (et ça augmente tous les jours)
Ces eaux menaçant de fuir n’ont pas été filtrées de leurs β-nucléides (strontium 90, etc.) et la radioactivité des césium 134/137 y est toujours intense.

Tepco ne pouvait même pas prendre la dose en surface de l’eau de la fuite cette fois-ci parce que c’est “trop chaud”.
Si on a pas trop de malchance, les eaux extrêmement radioactives de toutes ces 300~350 citernes de 1 000 tonnes dans la centrale ne vont pas fuir.

Il a fallu 1 mois pour que Tepco avoue la fuite de ces 300 m³.
Personne ne sait combien d’autres sont cachées en ce moment.

Rien n’a encore vraiment commencé.

Vous pouvez ignorer la vérité mais la vérité ne vous ignorera pas.

  1. I suggest a ground penetrating radar survey of the land inland of Fukushima Plants and laterally uphill. The goal being to determine where groundwater is flowing and at what depth it generally flows. Also to determine the near-site soil geology.
    With this information, a dyke could be enacted to divert groundwater around the area of the Reactors, and the radioactive water tanks. If there are large subsurface preferential channels, boreholes could be drilled and the rainwater subsurface piping could be directly pumped around the Reactor site to sea.
    Cameras of overland flow could monitor surface flows and surface concrete canals build; IDK how much surface flow the area has. Water tracers could be released at higher gorund elevations and then measured at shore. I doubt the utility of radio-tracers. I view storing all this water as a distraction from higher priority goals; if you wait too many decades to get at the melted fuel blobs, another earthquake will hit.

  2. Hello Iori-San,

    I am quite concerned about when they will start to move the fuel rods in November as I live in Tokyo with my family.
    I am hoping to move overseas before they start. I may have to convince my wife. There is no major panic here although everyone knows its not good. Of course its inconvenient to leave my work amd move away from japan with my family. But the health of my family is more important. I don’t have much confidence in Tepco. If there is an accident, I know there will be chaos and it will behard to leave Tokyo then.

      1. Thank you for your reply. On 3/11 I left with my family to Ireland. I wish we had stayed. If it just continues to emit radiation by sea and air, than what sort of a future can you have here when you are always worried about contamination in food or in water. The effects of radiation can accumulate over time. We may not drop dead suddenly, but over time i know its not good for your health. Chernobyl was a case study, you cant deny that radiation is dangerous and causes health risks. I have two daughters 1 and 3. It would be selfish of me to ignore the health hazards and just do nothing…

  3. What fuel rods? What were once fuel assemblies are now three big globs of self-heating, highly radioactive lava. The technonogy needed to fix the problem dose not exist. Leaving Tokyo sounds like agood idea to me.

  4. @ greyhawk
    There are many many spent fuel rods(2200? Comes to mind) in cooling pools ON TOP of reactor buildings. These rods are still reacting and must be kept cool or they will heat up and cause more radiation and then explosiion

  5. Your headline should be something like: “Tepco Uses Rubber Welds Instead of Steel, Causes Dangerous Leak”
    or “Conditions at Fukushima Worsen as Tepco Stumbles Again”

  6. Dear Fukushima Diary,
    Thank you for publishing this information. It seems as if the world’s people get very concerned when the radioactivity flows to the ocean. I can see why. But it is interesting to note that this has been going on to some degree since almost the beginning. Sure, it is sad to think of the effect this has and will have on the environment and seafood in particular. Unfortunately, though, I believe many people think this situation was resolved a couple of years ago, and that in any case is too far away to be important to them personally. It is appalling how egocentric many are.

    On the other hand, I have kept up with info about Fukushima almost daily since the beginning, because my gut feeling is that this has the potential of developing into an increased disaster for the Japanese people. I share your concern that storing of huge amounts of highly radioactive water is a ticking time bomb. What happens if more of these tanks leak? (I hear from the expert in Japan that this is likely to occur.) Worst of all, in my opinion, is if this contaminated water gets into the Japanese drinking water supply. I will say another prayer for this situation when I finish this note. With a caring heart, Sarah

Comments are closed.

About this site

This website updates the latest news about the Fukushima nuclear plant and also archives the past news from 2011. Because it's always updated and added live, articles, categories and the tags are not necessarily fitted in the latest format.
I am the writer of this website. About page remains in 2014. This is because my memory about 311 was clearer than now, 2023, and I think it can have a historical value. Now I'm living in Romania with 3 cats as an independent data scientist.
Actually, nothing has progressed in the plant since 2011. We still don't even know what is going on inside. They must keep cooling the crippled reactors by water, but additionally groundwater keeps flowing into the reactor buildings from the broken parts. This is why highly contaminated water is always produced more than it can circulate. Tepco is planning to officially discharge this water to the Pacific but Tritium is still remaining in it. They dilute this with seawater so that it is legally safe, but scientifically the same amount of radioactive tritium is contained. They say it is safe to discharge, but none of them have drunk it.

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