Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Fukushima Reactor No. 1 in 2008 (photo: Kyoto News via AP)
Only weeks before the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, government regulators approved another 10-year lease for the oldest nuclear reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant—even though warnings existed about the safety of the 40-year-old facility.
Regulators knew the backup diesel-powered generators for Reactor No. 1 had stress cracks, making the engines vulnerable to corrosion from seawater and rainwater. As it turned out, the generators failed after the tsunami hit the plant, causing a shutdown of the vital cooling system.
Also, it’s been revealed that plant operators didn’t bother to inspect 33 pieces of equipment related to the cooling systems, including water pumps and diesel generators, as required by the government to extend the life of the aging reactors.
With public opinion opposed to building new reactors, the industry has sought to prolong the life of nuclear plants beyond the 40-year spans that were originally intended.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Japan Extended Reactor’s Life, Despite Warning (by Hiroko Tabuchi, Norimitsu Onishi and Ken Belson, New York Times)
Japan Nuclear Firm Admits Missing Safety Checks at Disaster-Hit Plant (by Justin McCurry, The Guardian)
Meltdown at Japanese Nuclear Power Plant…A Disaster Waiting to Happen (by David Wallechinsky, AllGov)
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