 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
. |
No major damage to safety at Japan nuclear plant: UN team
Tokyo (AFP) Feb 1, 2008 A UN expert said Friday there was no significant damage affecting safety at the world's largest nuclear plant in Japan after his team entered a reactor for the first time since a major earthquake. But Philippe Jamet, leader of the 12 experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said the incident showed the need to build plants to withstand bigger-than-expected earthquakes. "Basically this mission confirmed that we did not see at the present time a significant damage on the safety-related parts of the plant," Jamet said after five days inspecting the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant northwest of Tokyo. "Of course, on the other hand, the fact that the earthquake that occurred was much bigger than the one that was taken into account at the designing stage of the plant is also a very important lesson," he told reporters. "And of course, these results will be taken into account to develop the international safety standards of the IAEA," Jamet said. It was the second IAEA inspection of the giant plant, which remains shut since the earthquake last year, but the first to go inside a reactor. Jamet said the team will return to Vienna on Monday and issue a final report in two or three weeks. The 6.8-magnitude earthquake that rocked central Japan in July killed 11 people, but none of the deaths or injuries were linked to the nuclear plant. The plant automatically shut down, but a fire broke out at the section generating electricity. The operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., said water containing a small amount of radiation leaked into the Sea of Japan (East Sea) and radioactive particles blew out of an exhaust pipe filter. The company came under criticism for initially underreporting the severity of the incident. Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone nations, experiencing about 20 percent of the world's powerful tremors. Despite its propensity for earthquakes, Japan relies on nuclear plants for nearly one-third of its power needs as it has virtually no natural energy resources. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links Civil Nuclear Energy Science, Technology and News Powering The World in the 21st Century at Energy-Daily.com
hello world
Uranium reserves in Mali 'highly encouraging': Australian company
Dakar (AFP) Feb 2, 2008Australian mining company Oklo Uranium Limited said Saturday the result of prospecting for uranium in Mali was "highly encouraging", with widespread elevated uranium levels in the northeastern Kidal region. |
. |
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2007 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
