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Fukushima 2011 Nuclear Power Plant Disaster:
A call for alternatives or evidence for improvement?
How did a Nuclear Power Plant in one of the most advanced countries in the world fail?
What Happened?Sendai Earthquake:
Biggest Natural Catastrophy of the last 10centuries. A 9.0 magnitude earthquake moves northern Japan 8 feet to the eastDisastrous tsunami wave follows hitting the Northeast coast of Japan
And Inside?Power plant is shut down after first sysmic shock hence relying solely on maingrid electricity supplyNuclear fission is interrupted and power plant staff is on alertMain supply of electric power cuts outDiesel Generators kick in, but fail soon after because engines are flooded from waterBatteries take over cooling system, but are designed to endure only 8 hoursManual operation takes on flooding cooling chamber with seawater
And then??
The cooling chambers are insulated with a layer of Zirconium cladding, which is excellent for its purpose but when exposed with temperatures above 2000°C it reacts with boiling water creating Hydrogen.At high pressure and concentration hydrogen is highly explosive...
Sat 12th: **Explosion in Reactor No.1**Release of Radioactive steam
Mon 14th: **Explosion in Reactor No.3**Tue 15th: **Explosion in Reactor No.2**
Release of Radioactive Steam Partial Meltdown of Reactor No.2 Dangerously high levels of radiation on site 750 workers out of the 800 are sent home
**Reactor No.4 catches fire** No fuel rods in its Core Failure at cooling spent fuel in cooling pool Spent fuel is left exposed to atmosphere Radiation rises to 400millisieverts an hour
Wed 16th: **2nd Explosion at Reactor No.3** Tears open inner containment Reactor 3 is Steaming Reactor 1 is Smoking Reactor 4 Reignites (2 plant workers are lost in the fire) Radiation rises to 1000millisieverts an hour (Sickness after 1 hour) TEPCO orders workers to leave the power plant
R.5 & 6 are heating up, R.3 is steaming, R.1 is still smoking and R.4 is still burning Workers return on site in the late afernoon once the cloud has reduced and measure a mere 1.5millisievert per hour
Severity Rating Raised to Level SevenTogether with Chernobyl (1986 Disaster)
Category Fukushima Daiichi Chernobyl
Date 11 March 2011 26 April 1986
Accident Detail Magnitude 9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunami damage power plant system, causing cooling system to fail
Sudden power output surge during testing. An intense fire burnt radioactive fuel for 10 days.
Reactors Concerned Six total but only 3 concerned and cooling pool for spent fuel
Four, but only one involved
Radiation Released 370,000 Terabecquerels 5.2 milion Terabecquerels
Area Affected 50 km radius 500 km radius
Directly Related deaths None so far 64 (UN 2008)
Longterm health damage Not known, low risk 6,000 cases of thyroid cancer (2005)
International Reactionism
France takes 75% of its energy from Nuclear PowerNuclear policy approved in 1970 following the oil price shock19 Nuclear Plants within which 58 reactorsGreen Party EU Parlament member D. CohnBendit has proposed a REFERENDUM for France
Before Fukushima, Germany was undergoing a 3month safety review of all of its Nuclear Power Plants to asses a potential extention of the production life.Seven of its Nuclear Plants have been omitted from the review and this has caused people to suspect that the government is disregarding nuclear safety in favour of energy profitability.
Germany's chancellor, Angela Merkel, has already invested considerable capital in the project and is reluctant to withdraw the initiative in light of what has happened at the Fukushima Power Plant
Germany's public opinion had already been heavily affected by the happenings at Chernobyl Power Plant during the disaster in 1986
Preliminary elections held in March have revealed an unusual majority (47.2%) for the Green Party over Merkel's democratic party (39%) in the BadenWurternberg region which has historically been democratic (since 1956)BadenWurternberg is one of Europe's whealthiest regions.
Italy closed its Nuclear power plants as a result of a REFERENDUM held soon after the Chernobyl dysaster. Ever since the Italian energy multinational colossus ENEL has continued to invest in foreign nuclear development with the prospect of taking nuclear power back to Italy in the future
Italy imports 10% of its energy demand from foreign bordering nuclear power plants hence making nuclear prohibition rather pointless given the widespread damage that a Nuclear power plant disaster causes to its geographical surroundings
This year Italy scheduled a REFERENDUM on the 12th & 13th of May in order to ridiscuss the 70 legislative and regulatory measures that prohibited Nuclear power production.
The radioactive leaks at Fukushima this March have brought about considerable political debate. In order to obtain an objective result from a REFERENDUM, Italy has postponed its date for one year.
President Obama has always and will
continue to pursue Nuclear Energy
production.
He explains that Nuclear Energy
provides a cheap alternative to other
forms of energy and holds a relatively
low carbon footprint when compared
to more traditional gas or coalfired
plants.
“It is not possible to achieve a climate solution based on existing
technology without a significant reliance on nuclear power.”
President Obama
America currently produces 30% of
worldwide Nuclear Energy
China has recently overtaken the US for total Carbon Dioxide emissions. Its increase in energy demand growing at 20% per annum calls for a change in the electricity grid supply. By 2020 they intend to create a tenfold increase in Nuclear capacity.Following the Fukushima events it has temporarily suspended its plans to start construction on its AP1000 plants. China intends to review the events of Fukushima with particular regards to the siting of the plants and the control of radiation release.
India holds a flourishing and largely indigenous nuclear power program. It intends to supply 25% of it electricity on Nuclear energy by 2050.However the events at Fukushima have spurred an outburst of scientific and academic protests opposing the construction of its first large scale Nuclear plants, which are planned in highly sysmic areas and rely on French technology with no safety track record.
How risky is Nuclear Energy?Worst Nuclear Reactor Accident:Chernobyl (Ukraine)Total Death Toll:
4,000 (World Health Organization)200,000 (Greenpeace)985,000 (Russian Report)
Other Consequences : 350,400 had to evacuate the area and resettled in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus
Worst Renewable Energy Accident:Banqiao Dam (China)Total Death Toll:
26,000 – 171,000 (depending on source)
Other Consequences : 11 milion people lost their houses.Power loss of 19GW equalling that of 20 Nuclear Reactors
St. Francis Dam (USA – 1928)
Death Toll: 600 people
Malpasset Dam (France – 1959)
Death Toll: 450 people
Vajont Dam (Italy – 1963)
Death Toll: 1,450 people
Terrorist ThreatOperation Chastise
Möhne Dam and the Eder Dam (Germany 1943)
Death Toll: 1,200 people
Deepwater Horizon (BP), Gulf of Mexico (2010) 570,000 tons
Kuwait Oil Fires (1991) 170m tons
Lakeview Gusher, USA (1910) 1.2m tons
Gulf War Oil Spill (1991) 1m tons
Ixtoc I, Mexico (1980) 470,000 tons
SS Atlantic Exp (1979) 287,000 tons
Fergana Valley, Uzbekistan (1991)
285,000 tons
Nowruz Field Platform, Iran (1983) 260,000 tons
Energy independence:
The condition in which a country is not beholden to foreign nations or fluctuations of the market in meeting its energy needs. Most countries would like to have a greater degree of energy independence.
Natural Gas: 09:25 Sept 12 2068
Crude Oil: 20:58 Oct 22 2047
Coal: 20:05 May 19 2140
Uranium: 23.12 Nov 28 2144
Source: European Energy portal
Expiration Dates
Energy Efficiency
1g Uranium235 = 3700 tons coal
Uranium235 (1.5 years) Coal (1 day)
Waste: 2tons of radioactive spent fuel Waste: 350,000 tons of ash, 4 million tons of Carbon Dioxide, Carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides to the environment
The Nuclear waste generated for the energy to satisfy a typical family over a period of a lifetime is as small as a golf ball
