Japan plant rating raised to level 7

[Armistead]

" Japan's nuclear regulators raised the severity level of the crisis at a stricken nuclear plant Tuesday to rank it on par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, citing the amount of radiation released in the accident.

The regulators said the rating was being raised from 5 to 7 - the highest level on an international scale overseen by the International Atomic Energy Agency. However, there was no sign of any significant change at the tsunami-stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant.

The new ranking signifies a "major accident" with "wider consequences" than the previous level, according to the Vienna-based IAEA.

"We have upgraded the severity level to 7 as the impact of radiation leaks has been widespread from the air, vegetables, tap water and the ocean," said Minoru Oogoda of Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the plant, is still estimating the total amount of radioactive material that might be released by the accident, said company spokesman Junichi Matsumoto.

He acknowledged the amount of radioactivity released might even exceed the amount emitted by Chernobyl. "


Wonder how Tokyo will be effected by this..

[TorpX]

My impression was that the level 5 rating was exceeded some time ago. This seems like a formality to me. Perhaps they wanted to delay this because they were afraid of panic.

[GoldenRivet]

Like i said in that other thread a few weeks ago that i was basically laughed out of - a large chunk of the region will be uninhabitable for many years to come.

some years from now, we will likely be seeing images like this of that area coming out of Japan.

very disturbing.

[Matador.es]

In Holland a debate was rising about our only nuclear plant. We have a small one and dont have any natural hazards except flooding. What about in the states? Does the same question lives? How dependant are the states of nuclear energy?

[Castout]

7 from 5 when did they get to 6? You mean they skipped?


Asians and saving faces . Give it a break I mean it was a NATURAL disaster that caused this. Or are they implying their authority had the power to stop the earthquake and the resulting tsunami?! Damn what a cocky. Stupid but cocky.

[Skybird]

Don't worry. The Japanese also said that the max rating now is only "temporary".

The political hesitation do fully realise the dimension of the events and the full meaning of them for Japan, can only be explained by that slowly they become aware that for a nation sitting on a small island in one of the geologically most active regions of this planet, having almost 5 dozen nuclear reactors does not sound like a good idea.

Now that they have learned what the term "residual risk" means, many probably ask themselves if after Nagasaki and Hiroshima they have chosen the right path when making their economical rebirth depending on nuclear power so exclusively. Since the pro-nuke lobby is extremely powerful and has brainwashed the Japanese since decades (military nukes are bad, civilian nuke is great), they are slowly stumbling towards what later may show to be something not short of a full cultural revolution.

What amazes me is that Japan, land of the robots, so far does nto seem to have used robots of Japanese production at Fukushima. Special machinery from Germany, and robots from America, Canada and Germany were reported to have been the only ones being used so far. Where is the Sonybot when you need him?

[Catfish]

Robots, especially when they are fitted with transistors, printed circuits and micro processors, are extremely vulnerable to radiation.
There was a reason why the Mig-29 partially used vacuum tubes for basic flight systems in case of an electromagnetic impulse, or radiation.
Two robots have been tried, and they stopped a hundred meters from the plant or so they said due to circuit failures.

Certainly, there are also special radiation suits made in the US that have been sent to Japan, but they never used them, i am sure the workers were never shown them at all. Plastic bags are so much better.
As well i saw at at least one photo the workers did not wear their oxygen masks right - it's all about "saving faces"

Greetings,
Catfish

[Penguin]

Originally Posted by GoldenRivet

Like i said in that other thread a few weeks ago that i was basically laughed out of - a large chunk of the region will be uninhabitable for many years to come.

some years from now, we will likely be seeing images like this of that area coming out of Japan.

very disturbing.

There is one big difference between the Chernobyl region and Fukushima: the population density. It was relatively easy to make a no-go area around Pripjat, not to forget Volincy in Belarus http://www.science-connections.com/b...Paper_1821.pdf - since these areas consist mostly of forest and agricultural land.

This map gives a good overview:

[DarkFish]

Glad I'm out of the country. The first and maybe the only time I'm in Japan, and immediately an earthquake, a tsunami and a nuclear crisis hit the country Seems I attract disasters or something...

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by DarkFish

Glad I'm out of the country. The first and maybe the only time I'm in Japan, and immediately an earthquake, a tsunami and a nuclear crisis hit the country Seems I attract disasters or something...

Reminds me of a quote by Peter Falk in that famous crime parody movie, I just don't get the title right now, many famous detectives meet in a villa where their host is getting assassinated and demands them to solve the case. Falk tells his darling (translated from the German version):

"Trusting you...? Honey, last time I trusted a woman was in 1940, and one week later the Germans marched into Paris."