Fukushima Incident Research Articles

Analisis Regulasi Manajemen Sistem Keselamatan Instalasi Nuklir dalam Mewujudkan Ketahanan Energi Indonesia

The rising energy demand in Indonesia has led to the planning of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP) as a sustainable solution, with implementation targeted around 2030. The government has emphasized the need for strict regulations, especially in safety management, reinforced by lessons from the Fukushima incident in Japan. This study underscores the critical role of regulatory analysis in the safety management of nuclear installations, which is essential for achieving energy security in Indonesia. By evaluating regulatory design and management system implementation, the research aims to identify key steps to support a safety culture in nuclear installations. Adopting a qualitative approach focused on policy analysis, this study evaluates aspects of Safety Management System Regulations in Nuclear Installations for Indonesia's Energy Security. The findings highlight the importance of structured management systems to enhance nuclear safety, providing a solid foundation for energy security. Strengthening regulations and implementing a systematic approach will ensure that Indonesia’s nuclear installations meet high safety standards, contributing positively to the country’s energy security.

The extraterritorial human rights obligations of Japan in regard to Fukushima nuclear contaminated water

This article adopts a human rights approach to observe Japan’s policy on releasing nuclear contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean. It aims to provide a new discourse for stakeholders to push Japan to deal with Fukushima’s water in a responsible way. In doing so, it needs to elucidate an important normative question, namely whether a State has extraterritorial human rights obligations, given that international human rights law was traditionally perceived to deal with relationship between a State and its population. This stereotype would frustrate the world people to challenge the Japan’s decision based on human rights. In the era of economic globalization, however, there is an increasing need for the extraterritorial application of human rights treaties. Human rights theory and practice have gradually developed the jurisprudence on extraterritorial obligations of States based on an interpretation of jurisdiction. Such an approach has expanded from regulating State overseas military actions to tackling trans-boundary environmental harms. In the latter sense, the Fukushima incident is a good case, which urgently calls for a comprehensive examination of Japan’s extraterritorial human rights obligations. This article undertakes such a task by providing a logical interpretation of human rights treaty provisions. It is argued that the release of nuclear contaminated water entails a variety of extraterritorial obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights on the part of Japan.

Radiation hazards of the Ukraine nuclear power plants: how can international blood and marrow stem cell transplant societies help?

Any conflict in countries that process nuclear power plants raises concerns of the potential radiation injuries to the people in that region and beyond such as the current conflict in Ukraine. International healthcare organizations and societies should prepare for the potential scenarios of nuclear incidents. The Worldwide Network for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (WBMT) and its members, have recent experience preparing for this type of events such as the Fukushima incident in 2011. In this article, we discuss the risks of radiation exposure, current guidelines, and scientific evidence on hematopoietic support, including the role of hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HCT) for those exposed to nuclear radiation, and the role that the WBMT and other global BMT societies can play in triaging and managing people suffering from radiation injuries.

Reflections on international dispute settlement mechanisms for the Fukushima contaminated water discharge

The Japanese government's attempt to discharge the water contaminated by the Fukushima nuclear reactor into the sea raises some international legal issues. International law prescribes settlement mechanisms for disputes relating to transboundary environmental damage; however, legal challenges have appeared in the disposal of the Fukushima contaminated water discharge. This paper argues that despite the uncertainty of the potential pollution damage of the discharge plan, Japan's decision has already violated multiple obligations arising from international conventions, customary international laws, and the general principles of law. This paper, after a wide examination of the possible international dispute settlement mechanisms, proposes that certain actions will be beneficial for potentially affected states: applying for an advisory procedure or requesting provisional measures under a contentious procedure. Furthermore, the Fukushima incident presents the international community with an opportunity to consider legal questions related to the consequences of nuclear accidents in the future, including the disposal standards and procedures of nuclear-contaminated materials particularly. Furthermore, to concretize the procedural and substantive requirements according to the international laws, a new international cooperative mechanism is needed.

Exchanging atoms for influence: Competition in Southeast Asia’s nuclear market

ABSTRACT Although nuclear energy has yet to enter any of the energy mixes of the countries of Southeast Asia, there is the potential that some of these countries – in particular the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand – will launch nuclear energy generation projects in the near future. Despite rampant anti-nuclear sentiment in the region (exacerbated by the 2011 Fukushima incident), the need to meet fast-growing energy demands while simultaneously reducing carbon emissions has caused some Southeast Asian countries to consider nuclear energy as a theoretically clean, safe, and reliable alternative to fossil fuel. To satisfy this potential Southeast Asian nuclear market, China, Russia, South Korea, and Japan are stepping in. Each of these countries has strengths and weaknesses as a nuclear vendor. Consequently, given the enormous strategic as well as economic benefits that nuclear exports offer, countries that make forays into the Southeast Asian nuclear market will likely wield significant influence in the region for a considerable period of time. Therefore, although the prospect for a nuclear market in Southeast Asia is still hazy, the relative competitiveness of these potential nuclear vendors in the region deserves attention.

Dynamic modeling and controlling of a spent nuclear fuel storage pool under periodic operation and station blackout conditions

The Fukushima incident provided the lesson that spent fuel storage pool (SFSP) require adequate analysis of thermal performance. This study aims to investigate the dynamic behaviors of SFSP under normal- and station blackout (SBO) conditions. The well-mixed approach is utilized and considers the heat and mass transfer processes in developing a dynamic model using Stella software. This dynamic model is validated against experimental data undertaken at the G.A. Siwabessy Reactor SFSP. The model’s predicted results are in good agreement with the experimental data, with a mean relative deviation (MRD) of 0.0085%–0.042% and a mean squared error (MSE) of 0.0006–0.0047. The simulation results show that the cooling system requires additional time operation in the planned addition of spent nuclear fuel (SNF). The survival time under SBO without human intervention for current inventory, addition of 120 SNF, and 60-years reactor operation are 142 days, 104.4 days, and 45.8 days, respectively.

Uranium(VI) bioassociation by different fungi – a comparative study into molecular processes

After the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents it has become clear that fungi can take up and accumulate large quantities of radionuclides and heavy metals, but the underlying processes are not well understood yet. For this study, the molecular interactions of uranium(VI) with the white-rot fungi, Schizophyllum commune and Pleurotus ostreatus, and the soil-living fungus, Leucoagaricus naucinus, were investigated. First, the uranium concentration in the biomass was determined by time-dependent bioassociation experiments. To characterize the molecular interactions, uranium was localized in the biomass by transmission electron microscopy analysis. Second, the formed uranyl complexes in both biomass and supernatant were determined by fluorescence spectroscopy. Additionally, possible bioligands in the supernatant were identified. The results show that the discernible interactions between metals and fungi are similar, namely biosorption, accumulation, and subsequent crystallization. But at the same time, the underlying biochemical mechanisms are different and specific to the fungal species. In addition, Schizophyllum commune was found to be the only fungus that, under the chosen experimental conditions, released tryptophan and other indole derivatives in the presence of uranium(VI) as determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. These released substances most likely act as messenger molecules rather than serving the direct detoxification of uranium(VI).

Impact of decontamination on individual radiation doses from external exposure among residents of Minamisoma City after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant incident in Japan: a retrospective observational study

Following the Fukushima incident, radiation doses from external exposure accounted for the majority of the total doses. Although countermeasures are being implemented, with the aim of reducing radiation exposure, little information is available on the effects of decontamination on individual doses among the residents of radioactively contaminated areas. To evaluate the effectiveness of the decontamination measures in reducing individual doses, and to examine the influence of the timing of decontamination and the district, data were analysed for 18 392 adults and 3 650 children in Minamisoma City, Fukushima, who participated in a voluntary screening programme using individual radiation dosimeters (Glass Badge) between June 2013 and September 2016. The dose reduction rates (DRR) were calculated for one year by comparing the first and last three-month measurement results between areas with and without decontamination. Using a regression approach and Monte Carlo simulation, the dose reduction rate by decontamination eliminating the effect of physical decay (DRRd′) was also estimated as a function of the timing of the decontamination and the dose at the time of starting the decontamination. The annual DRR in areas with decontamination for both adults and children were significantly higher than those in areas without decontamination, depending on the timing of decontamination: 31%–36% for 2013–14 for adults in decontamination areas and 33%–35% for children in decontamination areas, compared to 12%–23% and 13%–23% for adults and children in areas without decontamination, respectively. There was a positive correlation between DRRd′ and individual doses, and DRRd′ was estimated at 30%–40% for adults and children with doses of 3 mSv y−1 in 2013 and 2014. This study demonstrated that decontamination does lower individual doses from external exposure. The higher the dose at the time of starting the decontamination, the greater the dose reduction rate by decontamination, regardless of the timing of the decontamination. Our study confirms that decontamination was useful for high-dose areas in the later phases of the incident.

Silicate coating to prevent leaching from radiolabeled surrogate far-field fallout in aqueous environments

Recent characterization of radioactive particles indicate that a large percentage of the radioactivity observed during the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear meltdown was insoluble 137Cs bound within silica microparticles. Therefore, much of the decontamination research performed prior to the Fukushima incident that used either soluble radionuclides deposited onto wet surfaces or large (∼100 μm) particles characteristic of nuclear weapons fallout do not accurately represent the characteristics of potential contamination. Thus, the common practice of extrapolating radioactive decontamination methods generically to all radioactive release events is, at best, suspect. In response, a method to produce chemically-inert, radiolabeled silica particles was developed. Binding 152Eu within a sodium silicate coating required proper temperature control and ethanol was beneficial as a volatile dispersant to limit residues. In the end, a step-wise method, which first deposited 152Eu or 241Am as a nitrate salt, decomposed the salt to a sesquioxide, and finally coated the surface with sodium silicate led to dispersed particles of the desired 2 or 0.5 μm diameters. Dynamic light scattering and scanning election microscopy confirmed the particle size was unchanged. Leaching studies into several common decontaminants were performed to ensure particle inertness. Our approach allows for substitution of other radionuclides making it a robust, simple, and novel method to produce inert particle surrogates for a release event that allows direct comparison of decontamination techniques and contaminant fate studies, greatly aiding the development of response and recovery plans.

Ghost in the Shell: An After-Thought on Pierre Huygue’s Human Mask

Ghost in the Shell: An After-Thought on Pierre Huygue’s Human Mask Michio Hayashi (bio) The animal looks at us, and we are naked before it. Thinking perhaps begins there.1 Jacques Derrida In the opening sequence of Human Mask (2014) by Pierre Huyghe, the eye-level camera (a drone?) moves slowly and smoothly, with occasional fast-forward effects, in an abandoned village and captures the remains of ruined houses and buildings one by one. With no sign of human presence, the ghostly structures—surrounded by empty streets, parking lots, and dysfunctional electricity poles—suggest that time there no longer unfolds through anthropocentric actions or narratives. As the camera proceeds midair into the depths of the deserted town, one hears in the background a now-useless evacuation order, coming out of a loudspeaker, reverberating in (and vanishing into) the void. The whole screen is pervaded by an eerie machinic time of unpredictable cinematic movements; in fact, the sudden shifts in camera speed intensify the inhuman precision of the surgical dissection of reality. The combination of this “post-apocalyptic” scene and the “robotic” cinematography of the opening sequence creates a strange sci-fi atmosphere and suspends the viewer’s ability to differentiate fiction and reality. Various visual signs in the sequence, such as the style of the destroyed buildings and the letters on the billboards, suggest that the film was produced in the aftermath of the triple disasters—the earthquake, the tsunami, and the Fukushima nuclear powerplant crisis—that hit the entire Tōhoku region of Japan on March 11, 2011. As a result of these incidents, hundreds of thousands of people had to evacuate their homes to avoid possible exposure to high-level radiation; although evacuees from areas at a distance from the powerplant are now slowly returning to their hometowns (there are, of course, evacuees from the same areas who have decided not to return for various reasons), many towns [End Page 81] and villages around the powerplant still remain abandoned and will remain so for decades to come because of their exposure to radiation. The visual reference to the Fukushima incident in Human Mask, is, however, minimal. Nothing in the film clearly explains the cause of the post-apocalyptic landscape in the opening sequence or offers any notion of what is to come. For the entire length of the film, which is about nineteen minutes long, the camera stays inside an abandoned house after the opening sequence and follows the aimless movements or non-movements of a monkey—a Japanese macaque—wearing a girl-faced-mask with long hair, somewhat reminiscent of (but not exactly the same as) a Noh mask, passing uneventful time in solitude. There is no drama, no action (except for the futile repetition of erratic movements), and no scenery change. The film thus unfolds as a sort of Beckettian quasi-documentary of anti-climactic confinement and waiting. But waiting for what? We don’t know. This waiting, if this is waiting at all, seems to be completely cut off from an outside world whose shifting conditions can only be surmised by changing lights (or radiation?) behind the window, an emergency-warning broadcast that reverberates over abandoned houses and streets, and drops of (contaminated) rain hitting the roof of the house. No allusion to Godot.2 This apparent contextual vacuity or indeterminateness leaves the film open to a range of comparative analyses and, indeed, invites the viewer to drift into the space of an uncertain but fertile connectivity. Following this evocative lure (that could well be a trap), in this essay, I have decided to let myself drift into the space of Human Mask from multiple entrance points that are not necessarily commensurable with each other. Therefore, in this essay, thematic, structural, or historical-contextual perspectives intermingle and cacophonously resonate with each other. The approach taken here is intentionally centrifugal but not centripetal; the discussion extends in multiple directions in the hope of weaving an exemplary web of interpretive threads whose configuration remains temporary and open for further consideration. The purpose of doing so is not to fold those threads back into the center to solidify a concentric architecture of meaning, but rather to...

Nuclear frames in the Irish media: Implications for conversations on nuclear power generation in the age of climate change

Keeping within the temperature limits set by the Paris Agreement on climate action will be a significant challenge. Nuclear power generation may contribute to achieving these targets, however, there are significant environmental, economic and health risks attached. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, this paper explores how nuclear power generation is framed in the Irish print media, and discusses the implications of these frames for how nuclear power is perceived within the context of climate change mitigation in Ireland. Two Irish broadsheet papers, the Irish Times and the Irish Independent were selected for data collection, focusing on Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents. The prevalence of informational and balanced articles suggest that to some extent, an open debate on nuclear is already occurring. Nevertheless, significantly more articles take an anti-nuclear stance (34% in 1986 and 27.5% in 2011) than pro-nuclear (2.1% in 1986 and 3.3% in 2011), reflecting the lack of public appetite for nuclear power. This may limit the potential for a wider debate to occur within the context of reducing domestic emissions. Considering the urgency of addressing climate change, a full and balanced societal debate on how nuclear power, other energy alternatives (e.g. wind) and the energy sector more generally, can contribute to national climate policy targets may be necessary.

Hydrothermal Corrosion of SiC and FeCrAl for Accident Tolerant Fuel Cladding

Since the Fukushima incident in 2011, the nuclear industry has sought to replace Zircaloy fuel cladding with a material which will better withstand a beyond-design-basis incident. A suitable material must possess superior oxidation resistance in high temperature steam (1200-1700°) to withstand a loss of coolant accident, while maintaining good hydrothermal corrosion properties for environmental compatibility during normal operating conditions (288-320°C water). In addition to corrosion issues, a suitable material must also demonstrate sufficient mechanical strength, creep resistance, radiation tolerance, and favorable neutronics. Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are engaged in testing of two leading candidates for accident tolerant fuel cladding: iron-chomium-aluminum (FeCrAl) alloys, and silicon carbide ceramic matrix composites (SiC/SiC). FeCrAl alloys have shown excellent oxidation resistance due to the formation of a passive alumina film in high temperature steam, and a protective Fe-Cr spinel layer in water. SiC/SiC has shown excellent corrosive properties in high temperature steam, but a tendency to dissolve in LWR water. To improve performance of SiC normal operating conditions, several candidate coatings are being considered, including Cr, CrN, and TiN. This work presents results of hydrothermal corrosion experiments on FeCrAl alloys and coated SiC in boiling water reactor hydrogen water chemistry (BWR-HWC) and normal water chemistry (BWR-NWC) (288°C with 150 ppb H2 or 2 ppm O2 respectively). FeCrAl samples generally exhibited low corrosion rates. Hydrothermal corrosion properties of current FeCrAl alloys are compared to older generations. CVD-SiC and SiC/SiC exhibited significant mass loss during exposure. SiC samples coated with Cr and CrN adhered well to their substrates, and effectively mitigated dissolution, with acceptable corrosion rates. This work was funded by the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy Advanced Fuels Campaign

Electricity market integration and the impact of unilateral policy reforms

We investigate the impact that two German energy reforms—phase-out of nuclear power plants after the Fukushima incident and expansion of renewables due to fixed feed-in tariffs—had on neighbouring countries’ consumers. The unilateral German reforms generated substantial negative and positive impacts, respectively, in neighbouring countries with the highest overall effect of German policy found in France, not Germany; an annual negative impact on consumers of €3.15 billion. We also find significant differences in market integration between neighbouring countries by calculating ratios between the estimated policy decisions’ impacts before and after controlling for interconnector congestion.

Taiwan’s Anti-Nuclear Movement: The Making of a Militant Citizen Movement

ABSTRACT Social movement studies have constantly focused on research relating to movement strategy, without reaching a consensus on the most viable strategies for realising a movement’s goal. Instead of conceptualising movement strategy as merely a product of movement leaders’ rational calculations, this article analyses a case of strategy shift attributable to leadership replacement and unexpected events. This article examines the significant breakthroughs achieved by Taiwan’s anti-nuclear movement following Japan’s Fukushima Incident in 2011, as well as the 2014 Sunflower Movement in Taiwan. It argues that a militant citizen movement came into being because a new wave of activism employed non-partisan leadership and demonstrated a willingness to employ disruptive tactics. Mounting protests generated a split among members of the traditionally pro-nuclear Kuomintang political party, which was forced to halt the construction of the fourth nuclear power plant in 2014. With the regime change in 2016 that brought the more environment-friendly Democratic Progressive Party to power, Taiwan is now on course to phase out nuclear energy.

Towards an Integrated Spot LNG Market: An Interim Assessment

This paper examines whether, and to what extent, the spot LNG markets in different regions (East Asia, Iberia, Northwest Europe, and South America) are integrated and how market integration evolves over time. We first lay out a framework of market integration in the context of global LNG market where the main supplier (e.g. Qatar) may have market power. Estimating a time-varying coefficients model, we find that a varying degree of market integration exists between all four LNG indices particularly after the Fukushima incident in 2011. We complement the time-varying coefficient analysis with a test of price convergence among the LNG indices using the Phillips-Sul (2007) methodology. The results reveal that, there is strong evidence that the spot LNG prices are converging after the Fukushima accident and they are also converging with the price of NBP in the UK. The empirical result is consistent with the change of market power of the main supplier.

Tsunami Mitigation: Natural and Artificial Barriers, and Public Participation

Tsunami may be defined as a series of long wavelength waves, having period from 30 min to a couple of hours, occurring due to the displacement of a large volume of water in ocean or a big lake. The various initiating events would include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, underwater explosions, underwater landslides and meteorite impact. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami exemplified this hazard for the Indian coast, especially the eastern one. The Fukushima incident in 2011 drew fresh attention to tsunami analysis, early detection and tsunami protection among nuclear community. Tsunami protection may be in active form like seawall to resist the incoming wave. Investigators have also brought out the passive resistance offered by coastal features like sand dunes, mangroves, vegetation, coral reefs and artificial structures. The present article brings together the information regarding passive tsunami protection, available in recent literature.

Reflection, the Public, and the Modern Machine: An Investigation of the Fukushima Disaster in Relation to the Concepts of Truth and Morality

AbstractIn March 2011, Japan suffered a massive earthquake. The resultant tsunami hit the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor and it was later revealed that the reactor was actually in a state of meltdown. While it is still unclear how many people will be affected, both mentally and physically, by the radio-active fallout, the extent to which our lives are subject to the unimaginable risks of scientific technology has become patently clear. This paper strives to clarify the risks of scientific technology in relation to instrumental reason, critical thinking, plurality, and subsequently, the significance of the public realm in contemporary world affairs, with a specific focus on the Fukushima incident. In so doing, I shall introduce arguments regarding scientific technology by such thinkers as Arendt, Heidegger, and Horkheimer as well as the Kyoto School philosophers. This paper also focuses on the issue of morality in order to address the notion of the lack of critical thinking and the disappearance of the public.

Commentary: New Currents in Science: The Challenge of Quality, examining the discrepancies and incongruities between Japanese techno-scientific policy and the citizens’ science movement in post-3/11 Japan

This commentary is inspired by my participation in the conference on post normal science: New Currents in Science: The Challenges of Quality, 2016, Ispra.First, I will describe Japanese commitment to PNS, which consists of a part of the long history of the Japanese response to European citizens' science/technology movement, in the framework of the introduction of Post-Normal Science in East Asia.Then I will re-examine the relationship between techno-science and democracy after 3/11 Japan, where triple disaster has radically changed the relationship between science/technology and society, and hence the very nature of Japan as a democratic society. Japan had been returning to an authoritarian state and technocratic nation in the aftermath of 3/11. As for the citizens' sphere, since 3/11, Japanese society has been badly divided; in fact, the current division of Japanese society is as bad as that of the Trumpian US.I have applied several conceptual tools to analyze this post-3/11 situation of Japan, that it was created by a combination of 'disaster capitalism' (a concept described by Naomi Klein (2008)), and 'normalcy bias'. The new political climate in post-3/11 Japan results in part from the politics of emergency, and partly from the manipulation and distortion of democracy.From the viewpoint of democracy and science, cases of thyroid cancer in Fukushima and its surroundings are a serious and even pathetically painful issue. One hundred seventy two children in and around Fukushima have already had their thyroids removed in surgical operations. But any suggestion of causality between the Fukushima incident and thyroid cancer is officially rejected. It is announced by the authority's voice that "radioactivity risk is safe, take it, because risk creates chance", like the proclamation given in the novel 1984 by George Orwell. Behind this is another historical psychology, that Japan has overcome Hiroshima and Nagasaki and made a great success in economic development. Post 3/11 Japan is judged as not a good place to discuss science and technology in a deliberate manner supported by a reasonable democracy with mutual understanding and value-free examination of techno-science in action. But, in this time of serious social divide and political populism, can PNS and a citizens' science approach now lead the way to fill in the gap? Are there any lessons from PNS that can be applied to post3/11 Japan? The question is still open.

Educational Activity for the Radiation Emergency System in the Northern Part of Japan: Meeting Report on "The 3rd Educational Symposium on Radiation and Health (ESRAH) by Young Scientists in 2016".

In the northern part of Japan, close cooperation is essential in preparing for any possible emergency response to radiation accidents because several facilities, such as the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facility, the MOX Fuel Fabrication Plant and the Vitrified Waste Storage Center, exist in Rokkasho Village (Aomori Prefecture). After the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in 2011, special attention should be given to the relationship between radiation and human health, as well as establishing a system for managing with a radiation emergency. In the area of Hokkaido and Aomori prefectures in Japan, since 2008 an exchange meeting between Hokkaido University and Hirosaki University has been held every year to have opportunities to discuss radiation effects on human health and to collect the latest news on monitoring environmental radiation. This meeting was elevated to an international meeting in 2014 titled "Educational Symposium on Radiation and Health (ESRAH) by Young Scientists". The 3rd ESRAH meeting took place in 2016, with the theme "Investigating Radiation Impact on the Environmental and Health". Here we report the meeting findings on the continuing educational efforts after the Fukushima incident, what was accomplished in terms of building a community educational approaches, and future goals.

Why do people stay in or leave Fukushima?

AbstractFrom the originally constructed survey data from 2011 Fukushima incident, this paper empirically assessed the sources of failures in disaster risk mitigation in short run. Although residential relocation from the cites at risk is one of the effective risk reduction measures, the relocation incurs mobility costs of developing social capital such as communities or searching public services such as education and medical institutions. The estimation results showed that the residents in the disaster cites of 2011 Fukushima incident can tolerate higher risks of radiation exposure when they have attachment to the original residence or higher demands for the public services, and can stay in the cites at risks consequently. Because the tolerance level can depend on the information associated with the risks, the results imply that the authorities’ providing the correct information is one of the keys for the disaster risk reduction in short run.