Following the earthquake and tsunami that struck northern Japan, AREVA is mobilizing its forces to provide support to residents of the affected area and to the rescue workers and personnel working near the Fukushima nuclear plant.
AREVA has chartered a plane that will depart for Japan as soon as possible to deliver 3,000 activated charcoal protective masks, 10,000 overalls and 20,000 gloves. The aircraft will also carry 100 tons of boric acid, a neutron absorber, made available by EDF.
French rescue workers left for Japan early this week with radioactivity detection equipment provided by AREVA’s subsidiary, Canberra, specializing in the manufacture of nuclear detection and measurement equipment. Equipment in AREVA’s Tokyo offices has already been made available to the Japanese security teams.
The Group also decided as of Monday to donate one million euros to the Japanese Red Cross.
From the NY Times on what is being called the “Fukushima 50.” Simply put: they are heroes.
A small crew of technicians, braving radiation and fire, became the only people remaining at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station on Tuesday….They crawl through labyrinths of equipment in utter darkness pierced only by their flashlights, listening for periodic explosions as hydrogen gas escaping from crippled reactors ignites on contact with air….
Nuclear reactor operators say that their profession is typified by the same kind of esprit de corps found among firefighters and elite military units.
“You’re certainly worried about the health and safety of your family, but you have an obligation to stay at the facility,” he said. “There is a sense of loyalty and camaraderie when you’ve trained with guys, you’ve done shifts with them for years.”
….Tokyo Electric has refused to release the names or any other information about the 50 workers who stayed behind, nor have utility executives said anything about how they are being relieved as they become tired or ill.
Some of those battling flames and spraying water at reactors at Daiichi are members of Japan’s Self-Defense Force, police officers or firefighters.
Ricardo Byrd, Executive Director, National Association of Neighborhoods
The crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex, caused by the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami off the northeast coast of Japan is causing some people to ask questions about the use of nuclear energy in the United States. Can the same thing happen here? Should we rethink or even halt our own use of nuclear energy in the United States?
Such reactions are understandable – what’s happening in Japan is very serious and should raise questions. But it’s also important to rationally assess the situation so that we can learn from this crisis before considering any changes to America’s approach to nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is and should remain an important part of America’s energy portfolio and safety is always the number one priority. We know that no energy source is completely safe – every energy alternative has its dangers and drawbacks. The key is to do everything possible to make our use of all forms of energy not just safe, but super safe.
When we are in the middle of a crisis like this, it is tempting to have a knee-jerk reaction. But now is not the time for drastic or rash changes to America’s nuclear energy policy. Let’s remain calm, rational and focused so that we can learn the right lessons and use them to make the right decisions about America’s energy future.
Discussing the tenants of the nuclear industry, AREVA North America CEO Jacques Besnainou appeared on CNBC to share how safety in the central concern of the industry for today and in the future.
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He also shared his industry expertise on Bloomberg earlier this morning.
An 9.0 magnitude earthquake, and Tsunami, has damaged nuclear power stations in Japan. ANS Nuclear Cafe began at | 0800 | 2011 03 11 | a media clip service (Web Page: http://ansnuclearcafe.wordpress.com Twitter feed @djysrv) on breaking news about the status of nuclear energy facilities in Japan. The news reports are in descending order based on time/date stamps where available or when posted.
The Nuclear Energy Institute’s President Marvin Fertel appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press today to explain the situation with the Japanese reactors affected by the earthquake and tsunami.
We are continuing to monitor the situation in Japan in the wake of the earthquake. For reliable information regarding the nuclear plants affected please contact the Nuclear Energy Insitute at www.nei.org.
Other good sources include the World Nuclear Association at www.world-nuclear.org or International Atomic Energy Association at www.iaea.org.
With the 8.9 magnitude earthquake that hit off Japan’s shore earlier today, the country’s nuclear facilities have also felt the effect. The Japanese prime minister and the industry’s safety agency have said that all plants in the country are safe.
While utilities are currently managing issues with cooling water systems at the Fukushima plant and a fire in the non-nuclear portion of the Onagawa plant, the country’s nuclear reactors have performed as designed and constructed to withstand earthquakes.
According to information on the local reactors from the Nuclear Energy Institute:
The Japan Atomic Industry Forum (JAIF) issued a notice saying all 11 reactors in the north-eastern part of Japan that were operating had shut down automatically. It noted that the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) said no damage to nuclear power plants had been reported as of 3:16 p.m. local time. Japanese prime minister Naoto Kan made a statement on television in which he noted that there was no indication of any radioactive release.
The International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) has released information as part of an Earthquake and Tsunami Update Page noting that Japanese authorities have Onagawa, Fukushima-Daini and Tokai nuclear power plants were also shut down automatically, and no radiation release has been detected.
Today marks an important step for Japan’s energy independence and for the future of the nuclear industry. As World Nuclear News and others are reporting, Kyushu Electric Power Company restarted Unit 3 of the Genkai nuclear power plant using MOX (mixed oxide) fuel recycled at AREVA’s MELOX facility in Marcoule, France. Eventually, the Genkai plant plans to use MOX fuel at one-quarter of their 193 assemblies.
Because of Japan’s unique place on the world stage – a nation with a large energy appetite but relatively few natural resources – they’ve embarked on a plan to generate fully 40% of their energy from nuclear power and to start their own recycling operations on the islands, instead of sending their used nuclear fuel to France for recycling (as they’d done up until 1998, when they started collecting their own fuel). They’ve known for a long time that just storing away once-used
nuclear fuel and calling it “waste” – as we do here in the U.S. – doesn’t make sense. Not only does recycling get more energy out of the used nuclear fuel, it also reduces the volume of the most dangerous waste by over 60%.
We’re proud to be working with Japan in taking this first step toward a cleaner, carbon-free, independent energy future. Japan’s example makes it clear that a crucial stepping stone toward sustainability and energy independence – not only in Japan, but here in the U.S. and Canada as well – is expanding the use of nuclear power and putting in place a program to recycle used fuel.
Kyushu is one of the first of AREVA’s agreements to supply MOX fuel to Japan; the latest came in September with Chogoku.
A small crew of technicians, braving radiation and fire, became the only people remaining at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station on Tuesday….They crawl through labyrinths of equipment in utter darkness pierced only by their flashlights, listening for periodic explosions as hydrogen gas escaping from crippled reactors ignites on contact with air…. 
The crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex, caused by the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami off the northeast coast of Japan is causing some people to ask questions about the use of nuclear energy in the United States. Can the same thing happen here? Should we rethink or even halt our own use of nuclear energy in the United States?
