Fukushima A Long Way ‘Til Cleanup
B. McPherson
When the nuclear power plant at Fukushima Daiichi failed
during the earthquake and tsunami in April of 2011, it was thought at first,
that a sincere effort on the part of TEPCO and the Japanese government would be
made to clean up the mess as best they could.
Unfortunately that has not been the case. From the very
beginning of the crisis, it looks as if company executives were emphasizing
saving face more than reacting to the crisis. As radiation leaked over the
nearby residents, the true extent of the danger was minimized.
A series of accidents at the wrecked plant might have been
laughable if not for their dire consequences. Huge amounts of radioactive water
leaked into the Pacific Ocean. Fuel rods remain in danger of ignition when power to cooling fails. Rats
electrocuted themselves shutting off electricity.
Evacuees have been moved out of the worst contaminated areas
now, but are awaiting compensation for the loss of their farms and homes. The
initial target date for any returnees is 2017. Compensation has been paid to
some businesses, but individuals face a long, complicated route to claim from
TEPCO. The original claim forms were 60 pages long with 2 215 sections to be
filled in.
The Japanese government has become a shareholder in the
electric company which allows the formerly private company to shift some of the
costs of compensation to the Japanese taxpayer.
A recent UN report castigates the actions of those
responsible for ensuring the health and safety of the former residents and
clean-up crews. There have been tales of radioactive waste dumped into rivers
and buried in playgrounds. Now word is filtering out that some sub-contractors
are deliberately seeking to circumvent those safety inspections that are being
conducted.
Even more incriminating is the case of a subcontractor in Koriyama, wherein a worker was able to record an official announcing the “surprise” inspection and how the workers should handle the questioning of the inspectors. In the recording, the official was very explicit in saying that they should tell the inspectors that they receive full pay even though this was not true. Fukushima Update
The crisis at Fukushima nuclear installation is the second
worst nuclear power accident recorded. These radiation releases do not stop at
borders. The whole world is affected to some extent by the competency and
honesty of those charged with cleaning up the mess. After watching for two
years the stumbling, the obfuscation, the manipulation of the law, the
disregard for those most deeply affected by the failure of the plant, I can
only hope that the nuclear plants in Japan are all shut down.
I would rather light my way with candles than see my
children die early because of nuclear radiation.
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