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The Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant was built in 1971-1979 in Okum and is operated by the Tokyo Power Company (TEPCO). The nuclear power plant has six power units with a total capacity of 4.7 gigawatts.
Earthquake and accident
On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9-9.1 earthquake was recorded in the Pacific Ocean off the east coast of Japan. The movement of the earth’s crust was the strongest in the history of the country, causing a huge tsunami that washed away houses and cars from the coastal settlements on the surface.
The maximum height of the waves in some places was 40.5 meters. More than 20,000 people died or disappeared. people.
PHOTO GALLERY. Fukushima region devastated by the tsunami
An accident occurred almost immediately after the Fukushima-1 earthquake and tsunami. The reactors shut down, but then the external power supply was lost. Not only that, the wave filled the backup diesel generators and the cooling system of the first three reactors failed. With the loss of refrigeration, the reactors began to melt.
The reaction of zirconium parazirconium and water vapor released hydrogen, set off explosions and collapsed the buildings containing the reactors.
The fifth and sixth reactors did not suffer, since a diesel generator was maintained there, which ensured the cooling of both the reactors and the nuclear fuel pools.
During the settlement of the accident, the Japanese authorities intervened intensively in the process. A report by an independent commission published in 2012 said the government was ineffective and gave unnecessary instructions, thus disrupting rescue operations.
Consequences of the accident and radioactive contamination
The seventh – highest – level of international nuclear events has been classified as this nuclear disaster.
The accident caused the release of radioactive materials into the atmosphere and into the ocean, including radioactive iodine 131 and cesium 137. Negligible amounts of plutonium were also detected in the area of the power plant.
The total amount of radionuclide contaminants was 20%. total emissions after the Chernobyl accident. Residents had to be evacuated within a 30-kilometer radius of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). The amount of contaminated land is 3 percent. Territories of Japan.
Radioactive materials have been found in drinking water and food not only in Fukushima prefecture but also in other regions of Japan. At that time, many countries had banned the import of “irradiated” food and machines from Japan.
For the first time since the Chernobyl accident, nuclear power has been affected. The world community has once again wondered whether nuclear power can be safe in principle. Later, many countries froze their development projects in this direction, and Germany said it would close its last nuclear power plant by 2022 and develop alternative energy sources.
Non-compliance with security requirements.
As it turned out later, not enough attention was paid to safety during the construction and subsequent operation of the nuclear power plant.
In 1967, TEPCO dug the shoreline and laid the foundations of the power plant at 10 meters above sea level, instead of the expected 30. This was done to facilitate the transportation of the necessary materials.
An internal TEPCO study in 2000 showed that action must be taken in response to a potential tsunami. The company’s researchers recommended that the structures be installed, but management decided that “the technological reliability of the research cannot be verified.”
What happened after? In 2008, another internal report that referred to possible damage to the reactors by waves exceeding 10.2 meters was rejected. According to the management, “the risk is not justified.”
Effects removal
The plan approved by the Japanese authorities states that the complete elimination of the consequences of the accident at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant can be implemented in 30-40 years. Currently, the plant is completely closed.
During the disaster itself, unlike in the Chernobyl case, there were no deaths or illnesses directly related to the disaster: neither the plant workers nor the population were affected, according to a report by the World Health Organization.
However, Japan’s shares when a sudden evacuation of 100 thousand. it is believed that the people could provoke about a thousand. deaths, mostly older than 66 years.
A restricted area with a radius of 20 kilometers is being established around Fukushima, and the cleaning of the damaged reactors is gradually being carried out at the power plant itself.
The actual impact of the Fukushima nuclear power plant on the environment is still unknown, although there have been reports of mutations in various species of mutations in wildlife.
Financial losses
The total amount of compensation to be paid to TEPCO, which was requested through the courts, is 7 trillion yen (more than 50 billion euros).
The accident is expected to cost Japanese taxpayers 12 trillion yen (more than 95 billion euros) to cover losses.
2016 December. Japan has estimated the cost of decontamination, offsetting, dismantling and storage of radioactive waste at 21.5 trillion. yen (166 billion euros).
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