Sources I've been using for updates and comment on the Fukushima Daiichi incident
Fukushima Daiichi, Futaba-gun, Fukushima-ken
Press releases/National and International Agency updates
See end of entry for 8 June update following distribution of IAEA Fact Finding mission's 750 page report and preliminary summary. *
Occasionally look at http://www.gaijinpot.com/ or The Wall Street Journal http://europe.wsj.com/home-page
Selected background Industry and Nuclear Agency links
International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) http://www.iaea.org/
IAEA Fukushima Nuclear Accident News Focus http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/focus/fukushima/
Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan (NSC) http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/index.htm
December 2007 in response to the Kashiwazaki quake NSC creates the Seismic Safety Assessment Special Committee. There had been earlier reviews of the position following the 2000 quake but those had called for plant-specific reviews of seismic safety to be completed in 2008
All NSC decisions 2008-10 by year (period of re-evaluation following 2007 earthquake problem) (some only available in Japanese)
http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/documents/decisions/2010.htm
http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/documents/decisions/2009.htm
http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/documents/decisions/2008.htm
Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) Japan http://www.nisa.meti.go.jp/english/
Japan's regulatory agency for the industry.
Legislative framework resources http://www.nisa.meti.go.jp/english/resources/legislativeframework/index.html
2006 http://www.nisa.meti.go.jp/english/regulation/nuclearsafety/nuclearpowerreactor/topics/seismicreevaluation/seismicsafety.html
2004, a Committee on Ageing Management was established in NISA - The Committee reviewed and discussed the basic policy, guidance documents, and the technical base for ageing management.
Nuclear Power Plant Ageing Management Office (AMO) was established in NISA on Dec. 2004.
Nuclear Power Plant Ageing Evaluation Office (AEO） was established in JNES on same time.
From 2004 NISA presentation Vienna via IAEA http://www.iaea.org/NuclearPower/Downloads/PLIM/2009-May-TM-Vienna/Japan.pdf
P 13 AMTE standard review incl. Earthquake evaluation flow Later pages cover ageing evaluation for reactors over 30 and over 60 years old.
[All age-reviewing in this (in that short presentation at least) appears to be inward-focused on problem stemming from the reactor or related equipment senescence and failure rather than the impingment of external factors compromising the systems or response capabilities. This was of course set before the 2007 and 2009 changes and may well have been revised later.]
Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organisation (JNES) http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/index.html
2010 JNES report on Japan's nuclear operational safety http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/activity/unkan/e-unkanhp2/e-unkanhp2-2010/book1/#page=1 (just published late March 2011)
See especially Section XVII-2 http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/activity/unkan/e-unkanhp2/e-unkanhp2-2010/book1/#page=697 and Section XVII-3 Nuclear Disaster Prevention with P737 (703 on the url) Emergency Response 'concept' diagram
2009 JNES report on Japan's nuclear operational safety http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/activity/unkan/e-unkanhp1/e-unkanhp1-2009/book1/#page=5 P 5 revised decommissioning dates for Fukushima Daiichi Beautifully presented booklet but nothing I could find on earthquake planning or considerations.
JNES Standards
http://www.jnes.go.jp/bousaipage/index-eng.htm (though presumably Japanese version may be more up to date)
NB planned Nov 2010 symposium on seismic safety http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/news/seismic-symposium10.html
JNES incident page for Fukushima Daiichi http://www2.jnes.go.jp/atom-db/en/index.html It is understandable that there isn't a report yet on the March 2011 incident.
Other organisations
World Nuclear Organisation http://www.world-nuclear.org/
World Nuclear Organisation overall incident page 'Tohoku-Chihou-Taiheiyo-Oki Earthquake and Nuclear Power' http://www.world-nuclear.org/fukushima/japanese_tohoku_earthquake.html
World Nuclear on nuclear power in Japan http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf79.html
[Uncertain of the quality of this information - few references to the 2007 quake critical to the 2009 reassessment of the 2004 NSA decisions and none to tsunami effect, plus does not quite accurately reflect the post-2007 reasessments emerging in the NSC '2009 White Paper on Nuclear Safety to be Expected in the Environmental Age - Past Ten Years and the Future Ten Years' and briefing published in March 2010, though it does mention that 'a new inspection system of nuclear facilities came into effect in 2009'.]
World Nuclear on nuclear reactors and earthquakes, Japan in particular, revised March 2011 http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf18.html which refers to the 2007 quake and reactions
Neither of those last two pages, though technically detailed, seems to quite wholly reflect the 2008 NSC decision and 2009 NISA reports which expose the seismic reassessment situation and application of the lessons of 2007 as still to a large extent in progress, though obviously they'd progressed the assimilation of new overall processes and applied them at the affected site.
* 8 June update
1 June Preliminary Summary (available from the IAEA site at http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/focus/fukushima/missionsummary010611.pdf) of the IAEA Fact Finding mission's 750 page report. The following article was based on the latter.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/08/fukushima-nuclear-plant-melt-through
report...acknowledges it was unprepared for an accident of the severity of Fukushima.
It is the first time Japanese authorities have admitted the possibility that the fuel suffered "melt-through" - a more serious scenario than a core meltdown.
The report, which is to be submitted to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said fuel rods in reactors No 1, 2 and 3 had probably not only melted, but also breached their inner containment vessels and accumulated in the outer steel containment vessels.
Press releases/National and International Agency updates
See end of entry for 8 June update following distribution of IAEA Fact Finding mission's 750 page report and preliminary summary. *
- International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Fukushima Nuclear Accident Update Log: http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/tsunamiupdate01.html
- The Japan Atomic Industrial Forum (JAIF)'s homepage updates on the status of each reactor and the spent fuel pools at Fukushima Daiichi: http://www.jaif.or.jp/english/
- Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO)'s own press releases: http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/index-e.html
- World Nuclear Organisation news updates: http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/fukushima_accident_inf129.html
- Less consulted Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan (NSC)'s homepage updates http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/index.htm
- NY Times http://query.nytimes.com/search/sitesearch?query=fukushima+daiichi&srchst=cse
- The Independent http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/
- Reuters http://uk.reuters.com/places/japan
- New Scientist http://www.newscientist.com/
Occasionally look at http://www.gaijinpot.com/ or The Wall Street Journal http://europe.wsj.com/home-page
Selected background Industry and Nuclear Agency links
International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) http://www.iaea.org/
IAEA Fukushima Nuclear Accident News Focus http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/focus/fukushima/
Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan (NSC) http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/index.htm
December 2007 in response to the Kashiwazaki quake NSC creates the Seismic Safety Assessment Special Committee. There had been earlier reviews of the position following the 2000 quake but those had called for plant-specific reviews of seismic safety to be completed in 2008
All NSC decisions 2008-10 by year (period of re-evaluation following 2007 earthquake problem) (some only available in Japanese)
http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/documents/decisions/2010.htm
http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/documents/decisions/2009.htm
http://www.nsc.go.jp/NSCenglish/documents/decisions/2008.htm
Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) Japan http://www.nisa.meti.go.jp/english/
Japan's regulatory agency for the industry.
Legislative framework resources http://www.nisa.meti.go.jp/english/resources/legislativeframework/index.html
2006 http://www.nisa.meti.go.jp/english/regulation/nuclearsafety/nuclearpowerreactor/topics/seismicreevaluation/seismicsafety.html
2004, a Committee on Ageing Management was established in NISA - The Committee reviewed and discussed the basic policy, guidance documents, and the technical base for ageing management.
Nuclear Power Plant Ageing Management Office (AMO) was established in NISA on Dec. 2004.
Nuclear Power Plant Ageing Evaluation Office (AEO） was established in JNES on same time.
From 2004 NISA presentation Vienna via IAEA http://www.iaea.org/NuclearPower/Downloads/PLIM/2009-May-TM-Vienna/Japan.pdf
P 13 AMTE standard review incl. Earthquake evaluation flow Later pages cover ageing evaluation for reactors over 30 and over 60 years old.
[All age-reviewing in this (in that short presentation at least) appears to be inward-focused on problem stemming from the reactor or related equipment senescence and failure rather than the impingment of external factors compromising the systems or response capabilities. This was of course set before the 2007 and 2009 changes and may well have been revised later.]
Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organisation (JNES) http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/index.html
2010 JNES report on Japan's nuclear operational safety http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/activity/unkan/e-unkanhp2/e-unkanhp2-2010/book1/#page=1 (just published late March 2011)
See especially Section XVII-2 http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/activity/unkan/e-unkanhp2/e-unkanhp2-2010/book1/#page=697 and Section XVII-3 Nuclear Disaster Prevention with P737 (703 on the url) Emergency Response 'concept' diagram
2009 JNES report on Japan's nuclear operational safety http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/activity/unkan/e-unkanhp1/e-unkanhp1-2009/book1/#page=5 P 5 revised decommissioning dates for Fukushima Daiichi Beautifully presented booklet but nothing I could find on earthquake planning or considerations.
JNES Standards
http://www.jnes.go.jp/bousaipage/index-eng.htm (though presumably Japanese version may be more up to date)
NB planned Nov 2010 symposium on seismic safety http://www.jnes.go.jp/english/news/seismic-symposium10.html
JNES incident page for Fukushima Daiichi http://www2.jnes.go.jp/atom-db/en/index.html It is understandable that there isn't a report yet on the March 2011 incident.
Other organisations
World Nuclear Organisation http://www.world-nuclear.org/
World Nuclear Organisation overall incident page 'Tohoku-Chihou-Taiheiyo-Oki Earthquake and Nuclear Power' http://www.world-nuclear.org/fukushima/japanese_tohoku_earthquake.html
World Nuclear on nuclear power in Japan http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf79.html
[Uncertain of the quality of this information - few references to the 2007 quake critical to the 2009 reassessment of the 2004 NSA decisions and none to tsunami effect, plus does not quite accurately reflect the post-2007 reasessments emerging in the NSC '2009 White Paper on Nuclear Safety to be Expected in the Environmental Age - Past Ten Years and the Future Ten Years' and briefing published in March 2010, though it does mention that 'a new inspection system of nuclear facilities came into effect in 2009'.]
World Nuclear on nuclear reactors and earthquakes, Japan in particular, revised March 2011 http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf18.html which refers to the 2007 quake and reactions
Neither of those last two pages, though technically detailed, seems to quite wholly reflect the 2008 NSC decision and 2009 NISA reports which expose the seismic reassessment situation and application of the lessons of 2007 as still to a large extent in progress, though obviously they'd progressed the assimilation of new overall processes and applied them at the affected site.
* 8 June update
1 June Preliminary Summary (available from the IAEA site at http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/focus/fukushima/missionsummary010611.pdf) of the IAEA Fact Finding mission's 750 page report. The following article was based on the latter.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/08/fukushima-nuclear-plant-melt-through
report...acknowledges it was unprepared for an accident of the severity of Fukushima.
It is the first time Japanese authorities have admitted the possibility that the fuel suffered "melt-through" - a more serious scenario than a core meltdown.
The report, which is to be submitted to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said fuel rods in reactors No 1, 2 and 3 had probably not only melted, but also breached their inner containment vessels and accumulated in the outer steel containment vessels.