Nuclear plant and Earthquake in Kashiwazaki

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originally uploaded by Dean-san.

KASHIWAZAKI— A 6.8 magnitude earthquake rocked the world's largest nuclear plant on Monday, causing a transformer fire. Since then, revelations have been coming out about spills and leaks at the plant.

Hundreds were injured by the quake, at least nine have died, thousands are in emergency shelters. But, if any of the four working reactors had lost power to their coolant system, it could have gone much worse. From the Citizens' Nuclear Information Center:

Even after automatic shutdown, the fuel in the reactor core is still extremely hot, so it is necessary to maintain a continual flow of coolant. If it is not maintained, the fuel could melt, leading to the release of highly radioactive material into the environment. Under some circumstances, it could also result in an explosion.

Despite the potential seriousness of this fire, TEPCO failed to announce whether the transformer continued to operate, or whether the emergency generator started up.

The ground vibrations were more severe than the nuclear plant was designed to withstand, and there are some indications that a previously undiscovered fault line runs under the plant. Japan is one of the world's most earthquake prone countries, and also one of the most reliant on nuclear power. Not a good combination.

The delay in reporting leaks and spills also comes as no surprise to industry watchers, but it does seem that Japan's government may finally be loosing patience with an industry rocked by scandal for the past decade.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters, "They raised the alert too late. I have sent stern instructions that such alerts must be raised seriously and swiftly." He continued, "Those involved should reflect on their actions."

"Nuclear power can only operate with the people's trust," Abe told reporters. The litany below shows that the betrayal of peoples trust is standing operating procedure for Japan's nuclear industry.

Nuclear power is never safe, but it can be made less safe through a potent combination of lies, cover-ups and geological fault lines.

Japan's earthquake safety standards are inadequate! This fact can no longer be disputed. Given that the size and location of this earthquake was not predicted, it is essential that a thorough geological survey be carried out of the surrounding area, both on land and at sea. This should be a top priority for Japanese goverment.

Modified from greenpeace(source)