information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
13 Mars 2015
Kyodo
FUKUSHIMA – Workers on Friday began delivering soil and other radiation-tainted waste generated by the decontamination work following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis to a makeshift storage yard at a storage facility in the prefecture.
The government plans to build depositories on around 16 sq. km of land in the towns of Okuma and Futaba, which host the crippled Fukushima No. 1 power plant, to eventually store massive amounts of radioactive waste. But the plan remains highly uncertain amid slow progress in negotiations with landowners.
Contaminated waste was delivered Friday to a section of the site in Okuma, but shipments to the Futaba section were delayed until March 25 at the request of local authorities.
The Environment Ministry decided to move the waste — still being stored near residents’ homes and other places across the prefecture four years after the crisis began — to the temporary storage yard.
“The start of delivery marks a major step forward for the rebirth and reconstruction of Fukushima. I’d like to thank local communities for accepting it,” Environment Minister Yoshio Mochizuki told a news conference Friday.
Over the next year, around 43,000 cu. meters of waste — equivalent to less than 1 percent of the estimated total of 22 million cu. meters created by the Fukushima No. 1 reactor meltdowns — will be delivered, the ministry said.
The government is negotiating with about 2,400 landowners to secure the land needed for the facilities, but many people have voiced strong concern that the storage could end up being permanent if the land is acquired by the state. Others are refusing to sell because the land was owned by their families for generations.
March 12, 2015
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20150313_01.html
Mar. 12, 2015 - Updated 21:54 UTC+1
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html
Mar. 12, 2015 - Updated 21:54 UTC+1
As cleanup work continues, workers in Fukushima Prefecture will start transferring contaminated materials to an intermediate storage facility.
Soil and debris tainted by nuclear fallout from the 2011 accident have been piling up across the prefecture.
Construction of a storage facility began only last month due to difficulties in finding a suitable site. It is located in an area between 2 towns near the stricken nuclear plant. The transfer will start on Friday, without waiting for completion of the facility.
The Environment Ministry is aiming to transport 1,000 cubic meters of contaminated materials each from 43 municipalities in the prefecture, during the first year.
So far the government has only secured enough land to accommodate 20,000 cubic meters, roughly 0.1 percent of the planned size.
The completed 16-square-kilometers intermediate storage facility will hold up to 22 million cubic meters of contaminated soil and debris.
It is unclear when construction of the facility will be completed due to difficult negotiations with landowners.
At the same time the government must start looking for a final disposal site for the contaminated materials. Officials promised the citizens of Fukushima that if they host the intermediate facility for 30 years, the final storage site would be outside their prefecture.
People from Okuma, one of the 2 towns hosting the intermediate facility, have expressed mixed feelings.
A man in his 30s who used to live within the planned site said he has given up returning to the town. He believes the intermediate facility will end up becoming the final one, as other prefectures will not want to accept the contaminated debris.
A woman whose home stands near the planned site said she will not be able to return to her hometown when the facility is completed.
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