Radioactive water slows Fukushima cleanup
Print Edition
The radioactive water that has accumulated at Japan’s crippled nuclear power plant remains the biggest problem hampering the cleanup process three years after the disaster.
The Fukushima Dai-ichi plant has stabilized substantially since the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami destroyed its power and cooling system, triggering meltdowns.
Massive amounts of water are being used to cool the melted cores at three reactors, but contaminated water has seeped into the Pacific and leaked from tanks.
Plant chief Akira Ono said yesterday that improving water management is crucial not only to the plant cleanup but also decontamination of the area so evacuees can return to their homes.
“The most pressing issue for us is the contaminated water, rather than decommissioning,” Ono said during a plant tour for foreign media.
“Unless we resolve the problem, fear among society continues and the evacuees cannot return home.”
Experts say the leaks are spreading radiation across the plant and into the sea, hampering the cleanup.
Plant operator the Tokyo Electric Power Co is to build an underground ice wall around reactor units to block contaminated water leaking out and keep underground water from flowing in.
Yesterday, workers were making final preparations to activate an experimental ice wall at the plant.
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