Staff Writer | November 8, 2013 | 12:24pm EST
TEPCO is getting ready to remove 1500 nuclear fuel rods at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, in hopes to control the radiation leakage once and for all.
Fukushima I nuclear power plant before the 2011 explosion. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
FUTABA DISTRICT, JAPAN (INTELLIHUB) — The damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, owned and operated by TEPCO, will be undergoing a dangerous clean-up procedure in the coming days causing concerns that another mishap may occur. The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant was ravaged after a massive earthquake and tsunami struck the facility back in March of 2011.
So far TEPCO decommissioned Fukushima’s 4 rector units, the last of which was decommissioned in April of 2013, however a 30km evacuation zone still exists around the facility as one can acquire 6 days worth of radiation in just a short few hour visit to the facility.
Checkpoints are rampant throughout the area, as only authorized vehicles and personnel are allowed in. The scene is reminisce of a martial law type scenario.
Recently journalists and camera crews from CNN were allowed inside the reactor #4 unit, where TEPCO approved them for a video report, although “strict rules” were imposed on the journalists reporting on the damage from the inside. The journalist were only allowed to tour pre-approved areas with escort.
TEPCO said recently that they think and hope most of the fuel rods are intact and remain undamaged, decreasing the chance of something going wrong during the procedure.
Over the coming weeks about 1500 radioactive nuclear fuel rods will be removed from the damaged cooling pool, then transported to a safer location 100 meters away in a massive effort to stop the radiation leaking into the environment. Most if not all of the debris was removed out of the pool with an underwater vacuum cleaner like device earlier on to minimize the chance of disaster during this highly dangerous procedure.
An entire new building structure has been built around the damaged fuel pool to minimize the byproduct if such a disaster were to arise from a failed clean-up attempt.
In other parts of the plant clean-up was moving along, but just not fast enough. The efforts were spotty as TEPCO has announced they are only focusing on critical and essential clean-up and repairs art this time.
New seawall barriers have been built to “prevent an estimated 300 tones of contaminated ground water from seeping into the ocean daily”, said Paula Hancocks with CNN. “The tips of yellow and pink ribbons sticking up from the earth indicate where an underground barrier has been constructed. Liquid cement has been injected into the ground to try to keep the water within the plant itself.
The coming days will be crucial to the efforts to stabilize the nuclear power plant. TEPCO rejected alarmist comments from some quarters that any mistake in removing the spent fuel rods could spark another nuclear disaster.”, reported CNN.[1]
Sources:
[1] Journey to the heart of Fukushima’s crippled nuclear plant – CNN.com
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TEPCO to Begin Dangerous Removal of 1500 Nuclear Fuel Rods Soon
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