Check those faults

July 4, 2012

Nuclear safety body calls for more studies on faults under 3 plants

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20120704p2g00m0dm039000c.html

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency on Tuesday stressed the need for additional studies on fault fracture zones or soft earth layers running under three nuclear power plants in Fukui Prefecture.

The three plants are Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Mihama and Takahama plants and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency's Monju fast breeder reactor facility, according to a report presented by the safety agency at a meeting of its expert panel the same day.

In particular, close attention should be paid to the Monju and Mihama plants as fault fracture zones could move together with active faults running nearby, it said.

The agency also called for the collection of fault-related information on 13 other nuclear reactors including those at Kansai Electric's Oi nuclear plant in Fukui Prefecture, where a reactor has been reactivated after being idled for over 15 months for mandatory checks.