Decontamination of Fukushima expressway

Expressway in Fukushima nuke disaster no-go zone to be decontaminated by June '13

In this March 2012 file photo, radioactive decontamination workers monitor radiation levels on a section of the Joban Expressway inside the no-go zone around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant. (Mainichi)

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20120831p2a00m0na003000c.html

Decontamination of the Joban Expressway running through the Fukushima nuclear disaster no-go zone will begin later this year and be completed by June next year, Environment Minister Goshi Hosono said on Aug. 31.

The decision is based on the results of decontamination experiments the Environment Ministry conducted from March to July at three locations on the 17-kilometer section of expressway inside the 20-kilometer radius no-go zone around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant. The experiments included high-pressure washing and the removal of surface soil along the expressway.

As a result, radiation levels in Futaba, which at 227 millisieverts per year were the highest of the three locations, fell 81 percent to 44 millisieverts -- significantly lower than the 50 millisievert upper limit for the passage of ordinary vehicles.

The Joban Expressway connects Miyagi and Ibaraki prefectures via the Hamadori district of Fukushima Prefecture.

When fully opened to traffic, it is expected to be a key distribution route between the Tohoku and Kanto regions. The 17-kilometer section of expressway between the Hirono and Joban-Tomioka interchanges has been closed since the outbreak of the nuclear disaster in March 2011.

Furthermore, construction work on a 32-kilometer section between Joban-Tomioka and Minamisoma interchanges, which was to have been completed by fiscal 2011, has been suspended because of the impact of the nuclear crisis.

The construction work will resume if decontamination work decreases radiation levels in the area sufficiently.