Open Intelligence / Energy

8/19/2011: Cesium-134: 87,000 becquerels/cubic centimeters Cesium-137: 74,000 becquerels/cubic centimeter

Kyotoresident said... I wonder why the emphasis is only on iodine and cesium in media reports. Are they the most dangerous? Plenty of other stuff came out of Fukushima. Anyone know anything about this stuff? Xe-133, Sr-89, Sr-90, Ba-140, Te-127m, Te129m, Te-131m, Te-132, Ru-103, Ru-106, Zr-95, Ce-141, Ce-144, Np-239, Pu-238, Pu-239, Pu-240, Pu-241, Y-91, Pr-143, Nd-147, Cm-242, Sb-127, Sb-129, Mo-99All of this was let out in large quantities. Some more than cesium and iodine, some less.(data from Tepco)

arevamirpal::laprimavera said... They are the most abundant, the easiest to detect

And the response in each case has - quite reasonably - to ask why it wasn't done previously," he said. "And this is no different."

As well as being slow to broaden the monitoring, Mr Gill says the figures being provided by the authorities are "extremely inconsistent."The education ministry, charged with compiling data, says on its web site that the maximum level of radiation in Fukushima Prefecture at present is 2.3 microsieverts per hour, while elsewhere on the same site it is showing a reading of 16.2 microsieverts in the hamlet of Nagadoro, on the edge of the exclusion zone.

Not only is that figure extremely high, but it's not going down," said Gill. "The village authorities' official line is that the residents will be able to go back in two years, and that might be so in some areas, but it is almost certainly out of the question for other areas."

Radioactive cesium was detected in the brown rice in the preliminary testing. Total 52 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was found, with 23 becquerels/kg of cesium-134 and 29 becquerels/kg of cesium-137. The amount was far below the national provisional safety limit (500 becquerels/kg total radioactive cesium).

Next to detect cesium in rice was Chiba.

From Mainichi Shinbun (8/26/2011):

Chiba Prefecture announced on August 25 that 47 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was found in the mochi-rice (glutinous rice) grown in Shirai City in Chiba Prefecture in the preliminary test before the harvest to survey the effect of radioactive materials from the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident. The amount of radioactive cesium was far below the national provisional safety limit (500 becquerels/kg). It is the second case of radioactive cesium detection in the country, the first one being in Hokota City in Ibaraki Prefecture.

According to the division for safe agriculture promotion in Chiba prefectural government, the brown rice taken at two locations within Shirai City on August 22 was tested. From one location, 47 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was detected, with cesium 134 22 becquerels/kg and cesium-137 25 becquerels/kg. The prefectural government plans to conduct the full survey on the brown rice after the harvest by the end of August, and if the rice tests under the provisional safety limit it will be allowed to be shipped.But in Fukushima, hardly any radioactive cesium was detected in the early harvest rice.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (8/26/2011):

Fukushima Prefecture announced on August 26 the test results of the early-harvest rice harvested in a location in Nihonmatsu City, two locations in Motomiya City, and one location in Koriyama City.

From the location in Nihonmatsu City, 22 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was found. No radioactive cesium was detected in all the other locations. Based on the results, the prefectural government has allowed the rice harvested in these locations, except for one in Motomiya City, to be shipped. It will be the first shipment of rice from Fukushima after the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident.

According to Fukushima Prefecture, two types of early-harvest rice harvested on August 25 and 26 were tested. When the rice in the Nihonmatsu City location was milled, no radioactive materials were detected. As to the location in Motomiya City (Arai-mura), the testing was done on all rice fields. If the results show the level of radioactive cesium is less than the provisional safety limit, the rice will be allowed to be shipped.

These cities are located in "Naka-dori" (middle third) of Fukushima Prefecture where highly radioactive rice hay has been found. 500,000 becquerels/kg of cesium was found in rice hay in Koriyama City, and in Motomiya City, 57 kilometers west of Fukushima I Nuke Plant, the number was even higher at 690,000 becquerels/kg. For your reference, Fukushima's radioactive cesium detection limit, according to the prefecture: 10 becquerels/kg

Radioactive cesium (cesium-137) in rice in Fukushima before the accident: ND to 0.14 becquerels/kg, after milling Radioactive cesium (cesium-137) in rice in Chiba before the accident: ND, after milling

Radioactive cesium (cesium-137) in rice in Ibaraki before the accident: ND to 0.045 becquerel/kg, after milling (source data for radioactive cesium in rice in Fukushima, Chiba, Ibaraki from Japan Chemical Analysis Center, from 2000 to 2009)

An advertising company in Tokyo won the contract, which is estimated at 70 million yen ($913,000). The project started this month and will likely continue until March. The agency said the Internet is overrun by discussions that are often unsubstantiated. One example, it said, is a posting that recommended mouthwash containing iodine as a safeguard against possible exposure to radiation.

Upon identifying erroneous information, the agency will carry at its website "correct information" in a Q&A format after consulting with experts. The agency will not demand that the original texts and postings be deleted. It will also not ask for the posters' identity. But the agency's new project drew fire on the Internet immediately after it was announced.

Some blasted it as suppression of free speech. Others criticized the government for trying to weed out information that it deems unfavorable, at the same time it appears ill-equipped to send out information properly and in a timely manner.

The Japan Federation of Bar Associations denounced the project in a statement on July 29, arguing it threatens to infringe on freedom of speech. "The government will likely restrict free discussions by unilaterally criticizing what it regards as 'inaccurate' and imperil freedom of expression," said the statement released under the president's name.

Kazuo Hizumi, a lawyer who compiled the statement, raised doubts about the legitimacy of government surveillance. "Many people look to online information because they do not trust what the government says," he said. "Providing accurate information is what the government is supposed to do in the first place; not spending money on a project to interfere with circulation of information."

Indeed, except in the three metropolitan areas around Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, where major companies are concentrated, the utility companies are usually the largest corporations in terms of gross sales in their respective regions. One notable exception is Chugoku Electric Power Co., whose turnover lags that of Mazda Motor Corp. headquartered in Hiroshima.

The typical power structure in each of Japan's 47 prefectures is an "iron triangle" composed of the prefectural government, regional banks and local newspapers. Beneath this triangle are groups of corporations, such as general contractors, that are linked to politicians. It is noteworthy that, except in Hokkaido and Okinawa, the regional electric company transcends this powerful triangle because it monopolizes the power supply in two or more prefectures. For example, Tohoku Electric Power Co. covers seven prefectures in northeastern Japan, and even Hokuriku Electric Power Co., with sales of less than ¥500 billion a year, serves three prefectures. This fact has led the utilities to think that they are above the prefectural governments.

In prefectures where nuclear power plants are located, tense relationships exist between governors and power companies. Governors often try to prevent power companies from doing as they like concerning the operation of nuclear power plants. At the same time, governors want to avoid confrontations with companies because of their vote-generation potential.

A bitter confrontation took place in the gubernatorial election in Fukushima Prefecture in 1988. In his first bid to become prefectural governor, Eisaku Sato (not the former prime minister by the same name) faced a candidate backed by Tokyo Electric Power Co. After Sato won, severe conflicts ensued between him and Tepco, which has nuclear power stations in Fukushima Prefecture that supply electricity to the areas it serves. Sato sought to impose rigid conditions on the operation of the Fukushima Nos. 1 and 2 nuclear power plants and on the use of mixed oxide fuel, which contains plutonium, amid local residents' fears of nuclear power generation.

Although Sato also won subsequent elections, he resigned following his arrest in 2006 in a scandal related to dam construction. Tepco did not come out as the ultimate winner either, as its ranking officials were investigated over their alleged involvement in the same scandal. Confrontations between power companies and governors have various roots, but the main one is that the former are far more powerful than the latter. This overwhelming influence stems primarily from the enormous investments that power companies make to build or renew facilities to generate, transform or distribute electricity. Such investments have been necessary to keep up with the growing demand for electricity.

During the peak year of 1993, capital investment by Japan's 10 electric power companies exceeded ¥5 trillion, with ¥1.7 trillion coming from Tepco alone. In 2009, Tohoku Electric Power Co., which serves the seven prefectures in the Tohoku region, invested ¥274.7 billion, which accounted for 24.4 percent of total capital investment in the region, according to statistics compiled by the Development Bank of Japan.

Comparable figures were 25.5 percent from Kyushu Electric Power, which serves seven prefectures on Kyushu; 22.5 percent from Chugoku Electric Power, serving the five prefectures in the western part of Honshu; and 27.6 percent from Shikoku Electric Power, which supplies power to the four prefectures on Shikoku.

Although power companies possess undisputed influence, the way they have accumulated it is unusual in the history of Japan's postwar economic development. By contrast, companies in the steel, oil, electronics, precision-machine, automobile, shipbuilding and other industries have had to battle it out for market share domestically before gaining international competitiveness.

Power utilities help politicians by providing them with campaign funds; METI helps maintain the industry's regional monopolies; and the power companies provide high-paying positions into which former METI bureaucrats "parachute." The politicians and the bureaucrats jointly promote nuclear power generation, which helps protect the vested interest of the power companies.

Media HighlightsThe Wall Street Journal reports that the Japanese government unveiled a plan to reduce radiation levels in Fukushima prefecture in two years. The central government is responsible for cleaning up areas where annual exposures could exceed 2 rem. Local authorities and community groups will play a key role in cleaning up less contaminated areas.

Upcoming EventsU.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will conduct a public meeting at 1 p.m. Aug. 31 to hear comments on the recommendations of the agency’s near-term Japan task force. According to the meeting’s agenda, the staff will propose which of the task force recommendations the commission should act on without “unnecessary delay.”

It’d be hard to find a Russian who knows more about nuclear energy than Vladimir Alexeyevich Smirnov.  A renowned scientist, Vladimir Alexeyevich Smirnov’s former service as head of TENEX helped create a landmark treaty between the United States and Russia in which bomb-grade uranium was converted into usable nuclear energy.  As Vladimir Alexeyevich Smirnov’s work details, nuclear energy involves no smoldering smokestacks or polluting gasses; it releases nothing into the atmosphere: no carbon monoxide, no sulfur, no mercury.  It takes up very little land, and can power up to 2 million homes.  And with modern technology, spent nuclear fuel can be safely removed and reprocessed to yield new reactor fuel and drastically reduce the amount of waste needed at disposal. 

In November, a landmark law on energy efficiency was passed in Russia detailing the government’s strategy to encourage energy-saving in upcoming years.  There’s no better source than Vladimir Alexeyevich Smirnov to turn to during this key phase of Russia’s development.  Energy service companies are far and few between in Russia, but if Vladimir Alexeyevich Smirnov’s experience with TENEX is any indicator, these companies are in a good position to make profits and be of service to a region that’s quickly becoming green. 

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SUBJECT: RUSSIA'S ATOMSTROYEXPORT CANNOT FULFILL EXISTING INTERNATIONAL NUCLEAR ENERGY CONTRACTS, BUT SEEKS NEW ONES REF A: ANKARA 111, REF B: 08 YEREVAN 1049, REF C: 08 MOSCOW 908 MOSCOW 00000851 001.2 OF 003

¶1. (SBU) Summary: Russian policymakers are relying on Russia's competitive advantage in civilian nuclear power to help it diversify its natural resources-based economy. Atomstroyexport, Russia's international nuclear power plant constructor is diligently pursuing construction contracts for 11 new nuclear reactors in India, Iran, Bulgaria, and Ukraine. It is in active discussions on another six reactors (two in China and a Build-Own-Operate plant with four reactors in Turkey). At least four other countries have stated their interest in having Russian-design reactors as their entry into the nuclear power arena. However, the crunch on credit, insufficient machine-building infrastructure, and a paucity of trained specialists make it unlikely that Atomstroyexport will be able to realize all of these plans soon. End Summary.

"In principle, we will not build new nuclear plants; then there will be no more nuclear plants in 40 years," Maehara said, adding that Japan needs to seek "the best energy mix" while it phases out of its nuclear-reliant energy policy.Before the March accident, Japan derived about 30 percent of its electricity from nuclear plants, and the government intended to increase that to 50 percent by 2030 — a plan that has now been scrapped.

Kaieda, whose minister was broadly responsible for nuclear energy promotion, said he planned to decommission aging nuclear plants found to have problems during stress tests, but did not detail his vision for the future of atomic energy.He promised to speed up decontaminaton efforts and launch health check programs for concerned residents.

"We will achieve a cold shutdown of the reactors as soon as possible," Kaieda said. "I will take concrete measures to address the residents' concerns about their health."Kan announced Friday he would resign after serving nearly 15 months that have been plagued by ruling party infighting, gridlock in parliament and clamorous criticism of his administration's reponse to the March disasters and ensuing nuclear crisis.The Japanese public, yearning for political unity and resolve in the wake of the catastrophe, has grown disgusted with the squabbles and blame-trading that have dominated parliamentary sessions.

the gathering also helped bring out some policy differences between the five, which also includes Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda, considered a fiscal conservative, former Transport Minister Sumio Mabuchi and Agricultural Minister Michihiko Kano.Maehara said he would favor reaching out to key opposition parties to form a limited "grand coalition" on certain key policies, such as tsunami reconstruction, social security and tax reforms. Maehara also said he would support a U.S.-backed free trade zone called the Trans-Pacific Partnership.Kaieda, a 62-year-old former television commentator on economic matters, said the so-called TPP needed to be studied more and rejected the idea of a grand coalition, saying the party had not even discussed such a proposal.

A China hawk, Maehara, 49, gained prominence by taking a firm stand toward Beijing during a territorial spat last year over some disputed islands in the East China Sea