Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == A response to Barry Brooks from Australian anti-nuclear activist Jim Green Spinning Fukushima By Jim Green from Online Opinion ( http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=11754&page=0) How have Australian scientists handled the difficult task of keeping us informed about the unfolding nuclear disaster in Japan? The first thing to note is that precious few Australian scientists have featured in the media. The most prominent have been Prof Aidan Byrne from the Australian National University, RMIT Chancellor Dr Ziggy Switkowski, and Prof. Barry Brook from Adelaide University. A clear pattern is evident - those with the greatest ideological attachment to nuclear power have provided the most inaccurate commentary. The best of the bunch has been Prof. Byrne. He has presented the facts as he understands them and has willingly acknowledged major information gaps. Dr Switkowski has been gently spinning the issue, repeatedly reassuring us that lessons will be learned, improvements will be made. However, history shows that nuclear lessons are not properly learned. The OECD's Nuclear Energy Agency notes that "lessons may be learned but too often they are subsequently forgotten, or they are learned but by the wrong people, or they are learned but not acted upon. The Nuclear Energy Agency says the pattern of the same type of accident recurring time and time again at different nuclear plants needs to be "much improved". The situation in Japan illustrates the point - it has become increasingly obvious over the past decade that greater protection against seismic risks is necessary, but the nuclear utilities haven't wanted to spend the money and the Japanese nuclear regulator and the government haven't forced the utilities to act. Prof. Brook is a strident nuclear power advocate and host of the bravenewclimate.com blog, which has received an astonishing half a million web 'hits' since the crisis in Japan began. Prof. Brook has egg on his face. Make that an omelette. He has maintained a running commentary in the media and on his website insisting that the situation is under control and that there is no reason for concern. His message remained unchanged even as it was revealed that efforts to cool the nuclear reactor cores were meeting with mixed success, even as deliberate and uncontrolled radiation releases occurred, even as the outer containment buildings exploded, even as 200,000 people were being evacuated, even as a fire led to spent nuclear fuel releasing radiation directly to the environment, and even as radiation monitors detected alarming jumps in radioactivity near the reactor and low levels of radiation as far away as Tokyo. On Saturday, Prof. Brook came out swinging, insisting that "There is no credible risk of a serious accident." Phew. That afternoon, after the first explosion at Fukushima, Prof. Brook made numerous assertions, most of which turned out to be wrong: "The risk of meltdown is extremely small, and the death toll from any such accident, even if it occurred, will be zero. There will be no breach of containment and no release of radioactivity beyond, at the very most, some venting of mildly radioactive steam to relieve pressure. Those spreading FUD [fear, uncertainty and doubt] at the moment will be the ones left with egg on their faces. I am happy to be quoted forever after on the above if I am wrong ... but I won't be. The only reactor that has a small probability of being 'finished' is unit 1. And I doubt that, but it may be offline for a year or more." On Saturday night, Prof. Brook asserted that: "When the dust settles, people will realise how well the Japanese reactors - even the 40 year old one - stood up to this incredibly energetic earthquake event." The dust is (hopefully) settling and it seems likely that four reactors will be write-offs. On Sunday morning, Prof. Brook said of the unfolding disaster: "I don't see the ramifications of this as damaging at all to nuclear power's prospects" and that "it will provide a great conversation starter for talking intelligently to people about nuclear safety." But Fukushima will likely prove a great conversation starter for talking intelligently to people about nuclear/hazards/. Not recommended at parties. On Sunday afternoon, Prof. Brook was congratulating himself on his 'just the facts' approach in media interviews. He pondered: "What has this earthquake taught us? That it's much, much riskier to choose to live next to the ocean than it is to live next to a nuclear power station." Well, the lesson for people in Fukushima is that if you live next to the ocean/and/next to a nuclear power station, then you're/really/stuffed. On Monday, when the second explosion at Fukushima occurred, Prof. Brook was still insisting that
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Gary MacLennan writes: > I was very struck here by what Fidel Castro wrote on this > natural disaster. We are living through events which are all too horrible > to contemplate - yet they are all too real. > > On the political front the hopes I had for the Arab revolution are being > murdered by the mad butcher Qaddafi and the other tyrants. > > Economically I am witnessing in my native country, Ireland, the sad spectre > of mass immigration arising once more. Elsewhere around the world > "austerity" is now the order of the day. > > In ecological terms the poor people of Japan may actually be witnessing the > capital city of their country rendered unlivable, for make no mistake about > it that is what is at stake here. > My sentiments exactly. Though I happened to be out of Japan when the disaster struck, I am currently in the process of evacuating a family member who remains there. We have essentially left our house as is, and my wife her job, and do not know if or when it will ever be possible to go back. Nevertheless, these are minor travails compared to the suffering of people further east and north in the country, or of those who do not have the option of leaving. Lajany Otum Send list submissions to: Marxism@greenhouse.economics.utah.edu Set your options at: http://greenhouse.economics.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Agreed Lajany. I was very struck here by what Fidel Castro wrote on this natural disaster. We are living through events which are all too horrible to contemplate - yet they are all too real. On the political front the hopes I had for the Arab revolution are being murdered by the mad butcher Qaddafi and the other tyrants. Economically I am witnessing in my native country, Ireland, the sad spectre of mass immigration arising once more. Elsewhere around the world "austerity" is now the order of the day. In ecological terms the poor people of Japant may actually be witnessing the capital city of their country rendered unlivable, for make no mistake about it that is what is at stake here. comradely Gary Send list submissions to: Marxism@greenhouse.economics.utah.edu Set your options at: http://greenhouse.economics.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Gary MacLennan writes: > We all hope that David's pronouncement about the situation at Fukushima > stabilising prove to be true. Whatever one's stance on nuclear power there > is no room for schadenfreude here. The alternative to the plant being > brought under control is just too horrible to contemplate. But the latest > from the live Al Jazeera blog plus what Lajany has posted from the BBC site > would suggest that the situation is currently not yet stable. > A foreign resident of Japan whom I know just went to the local immigration office to process some paperwork before planned evacuation tomorrow. The immigration official at hand advised that those who have the means ought to get out of the country, and fast if at all possible. The official described his own position as "akirameru shikanai", which translates in this context to him being resigned to his fate. And this in a western region of Japan which is too far from Tohoku to feel the shaking of the quake. Even though I have been a refugee once before in my life, what is happening to the people of Japan today after the combined earthquake and nuclear disasters is one of the saddest things I have ever witnessed. Lajany Otum Send list submissions to: Marxism@greenhouse.economics.utah.edu Set your options at: http://greenhouse.economics.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == On 3/15/11 10:24 PM, DW wrote: > First, the situation is clearly (but slowly) stabilising. As each day > passes, the amount of thermal heat (caused by radioactive decay of the > fission products) that remains in the reactor fuel assemblies > decreases exponentially. > TOKYO (AFP) - Japan is ready to seek cooperation with the US military as it battles to avert catastrophe at a stricken nuclear plant hit by fire and explosions as radiation levels spike, the government said Wednesday. Send list submissions to: Marxism@greenhouse.economics.utah.edu Set your options at: http://greenhouse.economics.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == We all hope that David's pronouncement about the situation at Fukushima stabilising prove to be true. Whatever one's stance on nuclear power there is no room for schadenfreude here. The alternative to the plant being brought under control is just too horrible to contemplate. But the latest from the live Al Jazeera blog plus what Lajany has posted from the BBC site would suggest that the situation is currently not yet stable. ** - Timestamp: 12:00am Yukio Edano, the chief cabinet secretary, held a brief conference about the nuclear situation, these are the key points. - An appeal not to panic buy fuel especially in areas not affected by the quake, they think the containment vessel on Reactor No3 has been damaged - Radioaction levels have fluctuated throughout the day, at one point all staff were evacuated for safety due to a dramatic increase in radiation at the front gate. - Temperatures are rising in reactors number 5/6 and in the spent fuel rod tank in reactor no 4. - They are considering the option of spraying water onto the heating reactors from the air.There are issues getting water into Reactor number 4 containment pool comradely Gary Send list submissions to: Marxism@greenhouse.economics.utah.edu Set your options at: http://greenhouse.economics.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == On 3/15/11 10:24 PM, DW wrote: > First, the situation is clearly (but slowly) stabilising. As each day > passes, the amount of thermal heat (caused by radioactive decay of the > fission products) that remains in the reactor fuel assemblies > decreases exponentially. This just in from the BBC: A spike in radiation levels at Japan's stricken Fukushima nuclear plant has forced workers to suspend their operation, a government spokesman says. He was speaking after smoke was seen rising from reactor three. Earlier, a blaze struck reactor four for the second time in two days. Friday's 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami, which killed thousands, damaged the plant's cooling functions. On Wednesday, Japanese Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said at a news briefing that workers at Fukushima had been withdrawn following the rise in radiation levels. It is believed that about 50 employees had been working at the plant to try to stabilise its four reactors. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12755739 Send list submissions to: Marxism@greenhouse.economics.utah.edu Set your options at: http://greenhouse.economics.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == On 3/15/11 10:24 PM, DW wrote: First, the situation is clearly (but slowly) stabilising. As each day passes, the amount of thermal heat (caused by radioactive decay of the fission products) that remains in the reactor fuel assemblies decreases exponentially. http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/latest-nuclear-plant-explosion-in-japan-raises-radiation-fears/2011/03/15/ABwTmha_story.html Latest nuclear plant explosion in Japan raises radiation fears By Brian Vastag, Tuesday, March 15, 10:12 PM New assessments of the explosion at Unit 2 of Japan’s stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant Tuesday heightened fears that it will begin spewing large amounts of radiation. The explosion probably damaged the main protective shield around the uranium-filled core inside one of the plant’s six reactors. Such a breach would be the first at a nuclear power plant since the Chernobyl catastrophe in the Soviet Union 25 years ago. The latest explosion — compounded by a fire in a different unit Wednesday morning — marked yet another setback in the five-day battle to stabilize the Daiichi facility, which suffered heavy damage to its cooling systems after Friday’s earthquake and tsunami. Other explosions occurred earlier at two of the plant’s reactors. The blast Tuesday t Unit 2 was not outwardly visible, but potentially more dangerous because it may have created an escape route for radioactive material bottled up inside the thick steel-and-concrete reactor tube. Radiation-laced steam is probably building up between that tube and the building that houses it, experts said, triggering fears that the pressure would blow apart the structure, emitting radiation from the core. “They’re putting water into the core and generating steam, and that steam has to go somewhere,” said Arnie Gunderson, a nuclear engineer with 40 years of experience overseeing the Vermont Yankee nuclear facility, whose reactors are of the same vintage and design as those at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. “It has to be carrying radiation.” Nuclear experts have repeatedly stressed that radiation releases on the scale of Chernobyl are unlikely or even impossible, given the Japanese plant’s heavier engineering and additional layers of containment. Still, Tokyo Electric Power Co., which operates the Daiichi facility, said radiation briefly rose to dangerous levels at the plant Tuesday morning. On Wednesday morning, the Japanese government raised the permitted radiation exposure for plant workers by 2.5 times to allow them to work longer, according to NHK TV. Crews noted a drop in pressure inside the reactor and also within a doughnut-shaped structure below, called a suppression pool. The simultaneous loss of pressure in those two places indicates serious damage, nuclear experts said. The explosion probably happened after the streams of seawater that crews have been pumping into the reactor faltered. The fuel rods were left completely exposed to the air for some time, Tepco said in a statement. Without water, the rods grew white-hot and possibly melted through the steel-and-concrete tube. Tepco said a skeleton crew of 50 to 70 employees — far fewer than the 1,400 or more at the plant during normal operations — were working in shifts to keep seawater flowing to the three reactors now in trouble. The removal of most of the plant’s workers “is a sign to me that they have given up trying to prevent a disaster and gone into the mode of trying to clean up afterward,” Gunderson said. Also on Tuesday, and again on Wednesday morning, fires temporarily flared up in Unit 4, causing fear that spent uranium fuel sitting in a pool above the reactor was burning. Such a conflagration would generate intense concentrations of cesium-137 and other dangerous radioactive isotopes. A spokesperson for the Nuclear Energy Institute, an industry lobbying group, said that Tepco concluded that the first fire in Unit 4 was not in the spent fuel pool, “but rather in a corner of the reactor building’s fourth floor.” The company briefly considered spraying water into holes in the Unit 4 building — caused by the previous explosions at the site — with helicopters. The company abandoned that plan, but still may use fire trucks to shoot water into the building. Such a measure would be a last-ditch effort to prevent the spent fuel from burning and to keep cesium-137 and other radioactive isotopes from being released into the air. “This is scary,” said Lake Barrett, a nuclear engineer who directed the cleanup of the Three Mile Island nuclear facility in Pennsylvania. “The plans in a severe accident are to just get a fire hose in there, get any kind of water to keep water in the pool above the fuel. ” With
Re: [Marxism] Daily update from bravenewclimate.com on Fukushima
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == On 3/15/11 10:24 PM, DW wrote: First, the situation is clearly (but slowly) stabilising. As each day passes, the amount of thermal heat (caused by radioactive decay of the fission products) that remains in the reactor fuel assemblies decreases exponentially. NY Times March 15, 2011 Last Defense at Troubled Reactors: 50 Japanese Workers By KEITH BRADSHER and HIROKO TABUCHI A small crew of technicians, braving radiation and fire, became the only people remaining at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station on Tuesday — and perhaps Japan’s last chance of preventing a broader nuclear catastrophe. They crawl through labyrinths of equipment in utter darkness pierced only by their flashlights, listening for periodic explosions as hydrogen gas escaping from crippled reactors ignites on contact with air. They breathe through uncomfortable respirators or carry heavy oxygen tanks on their backs. They wear white, full-body jumpsuits with snug-fitting hoods that provide scant protection from the invisible radiation sleeting through their bodies. They are the faceless 50, the unnamed operators who stayed behind. They have volunteered, or been assigned, to pump seawater on dangerously exposed nuclear fuel, already thought to be partly melting and spewing radioactive material, to prevent full meltdowns that could throw thousands of tons of radioactive dust high into the air and imperil millions of their compatriots. They struggled on Tuesday and Wednesday to keep hundreds of gallons of seawater a minute flowing through temporary fire pumps into the three stricken reactors, Nos. 1, 2 and 3. Among the many problems they faced was what appeared to be yet another fire at the plant. The workers are being asked to make escalating — and perhaps existential — sacrifices that so far are being only implicitly acknowledged: Japan’s Health Ministry said Tuesday it was raising the legal limit on the amount of radiation to which each worker could be exposed, to 250 millisieverts from 100 millisieverts, five times the maximum exposure permitted for American nuclear plant workers. The change means that workers can now remain on site longer, the ministry said. “It would be unthinkable to raise it further than that, considering the health of the workers,” the health minister, Yoko Komiyama, said at a news conference. Tokyo Electric Power, the plant’s operator, has said almost nothing at all about the workers, including how long a worker is expected to endure exposure. The few details Tokyo Electric has made available paint a dire picture. Five workers have died since the quake and 22 more have been injured for various reasons, while two are missing. One worker was hospitalized after suddenly grasping his chest and finding himself unable to stand, and another needed treatment after receiving a blast of radiation near a damaged reactor. Eleven workers were injured in a hydrogen explosion at reactor No. 3. Nuclear reactor operators say that their profession is typified by the same kind of esprit de corps found among firefighters and elite military units. Lunchroom conversations at reactors frequently turn to what operators would do in a severe emergency. The consensus is always that they would warn their families to flee before staying at their posts to the end, said Michael Friedlander, a former senior operator at three American power plants for a total of 13 years. “You’re certainly worried about the health and safety of your family, but you have an obligation to stay at the facility,” he said. “There is a sense of loyalty and camaraderie when you’ve trained with guys, you’ve done shifts with them for years.” Adding to this natural bonding, jobs in Japan confer identity, command loyalty and inspire a particularly fervent kind of dedication. Economic straits have chipped away at the hallowed idea of lifetime employment for many Japanese, but the workplace remains a potent source of community. Mr. Friedlander said that he had no doubt that in an identical accident in the United States, 50 volunteers could be found to stay behind after everyone else evacuated from an extremely hazardous environment. But Japanese are raised to believe that individuals sacrifice for the good of the group. The reactor operators face extraordinary risks. Tokyo Electric evacuated 750 emergency staff members from the stricken plant on Tuesday, leaving only about 50, when radiation levels soared. By comparison, standard staffing levels at the three active General Electric reactors on the site would be 10 to 12 people apiece including supervisors — an indication that the small crew left behind is barely larger than the contingent on duty on a quiet day. Daiichi is not
