A proposal to change decommissioning rules in Japan could mean that operators will contribute to funds only during operation, and not, as previously, for a decade after final shutdown. The changes were proposed by a subcommittee of the country’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on 19 October, according to a report by Atoms in Japan. In common with most countries, Japan’s nuclear operators build up a fund for decommissioning and disposal of radioactive waste by gradually putting money aside during the operating life of the reactor. In Japan this had been defined as the licensed operating period, which is nominally 40 years, plus ten further years.
World Nuclear News 21st Oct 2016 read more »
The wall of ice being built around the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan is so far failing prevent contaminated groundwater flowing into the sea. Fast groundwater flow caused by heavy rains is thought to be preventing the complete freezing of the unprecedented 1.5km barrier of ice, the Nikkei Asian Review reports today. Experts hoped the wall, which they began freezing in March, would cut the amount of newly contaminated water pooling in a test well outside the barrier to 70 tonnes a day, but heavy rain during the September typhoons increased that to more than 1,000 tonnes on some days.
Global Construction Review 21st Oct 2016 read more »