Tens of thousands of gallons of radioactive water leaked from an underground storage tank at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi power plant this past Saturday. It is still uncertain how much water has reached the soil, but the Tokyo Electric Power Company said that radiation levels outside the pool have risen, indicating that some water is getting out. Thousands more gallons may leak before the pool can be emptied, said TEPCO.

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Post tags: fukushima daiichi disaster, fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant, fukushima daiichi power plant, japan nuclear disaster, nuclear disaster Japan 2011, nuclear power plants, radioactive water Daiichi, Tepco nuclear power plant, tsunami disaster Japan 2011, water leak Daiichi

Japan is located in a seismically and volcanically active part of the world – which is why the country’s decision to build nuclear power plants has always been so controversial. As the Fukushima incident showed, a large-scale natural disaster has the potential to be devastating. Recently a team of geologists discovered that a nuclear reactor in Tsuruga is located on an active seismic fault, and now the Japanese government is considering scrapping the plant.

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Post tags: caesium, fish, Fukushima, Fukushima disaster, geology, greenlings, nuclear power plant, nuclear power plants, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, radiation, radiation levels, seismic region, shellfish

The Fukushima disaster following the tsunami that hit Japan in 2011 was an eye-opening event that caused many to wonder just how safe nuclear power is. Thanks to a new study commissioned as a result of the disaster, we have an answer – and it doesn’t look good. The results of the study show that of 145 reactors examined in Europe, the vast majority of them fail in one or more safety preparedness aspects.

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Post tags: Europe Power Plants, European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group, Fukushima disaster, Fukushima safety, natural disasters, nuclear power, nuclear power plants, nuclear safety

Despite shutting down all their nuclear plants last month in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, Japan has hinted that its relationship with nuclear power may not be completely over. The mayor of one town in the Fukui prefecture is making moves to restart two of its reactors, citing concerns over energy shortages and the impact of closures on the local economy — including the mayor’s own company.

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Post tags: Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima earthquake, fukushima heating up, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, fukushima reactor 2, japan blackouts, japan nuclear power, japan nuclear power plant, japan power cuts, japan renewable energy, japan tsunami, nuclear energy, nuclear power, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant

According to a new report published in the highly-respected journal PNAS, the levels of radiation caused by the Fukushima nuclear disaster and experienced by marine organisms throughout the food chain are “well below levels which could cause harm to ocean biodiversity, and even in the most part below levels experienced due to naturally-occurring radionuclides.” However there are other factors that could have a greater impact on wildlife.

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Post tags: fukushima cancer levels, Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima earthquake, fukushima heating up, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, fukushima radiation cancer, fukushima radiation levels, fukushima reactor 2, japan nuclear power plant, japan tsunami, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant

We’ve been covering the news on Germany’s nuclear phase-out for months, but this unique series of photographs provides a fascinating view into the power plants themselves. ‘Critical Mass/Kritische Masse’ is a selection of stunning images by photographer Michael Danner that offer up a more intimate perspective on the impact of the country’s phase-out policy. In this series he documents 17 nuclear power plants, highlighting their rarely seen interiors.

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Post tags: Critical Mass/Kritische Masse, environmental photography, green art, michael danner, nuclear phase out germany, nuclear power plants, sustainable photography

Since Japan shut down all its nuclear power stations in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, the country has been exploring ways to replace the 30 percent of national power which was generated by nuclear energy. Ideas to diversify the national power grid range from tapping into local geothermal springs to investing in tidal power. At present however, the country faces blackouts, and as a result the government is urging businesses and households to cut electricity usage by up to 15%.

Read the rest of After Closure of All Nuclear Power Plants, Japan Urges Population To Cut Power Use By 15% To Avoid Blackouts

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Post tags: Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima earthquake, fukushima heating up, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, fukushima reactor 2, japan blackouts, japan nuclear power, japan nuclear power plant, japan power cuts, japan renewable energy, japan tsunami, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant

A lot has happened since the Fukushima nuclear disaster. In the 15 months since the power plant was damaged by a double-whammy of an earthquake and a tsunami, the nuclear state has been described as worse than Chernobyl and the country has shut down all its reactors. Now that the country is nuclear-free, the problem is that without this power source, their emissions are set to rise as they become more reliant on fossil fuels. However, there may be another solution – Japan’s thermal springs.

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Post tags: Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima earthquake, fukushima heating up, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, fukushima reactor 2, japan geothermal, japan nuclear power plant, japan renewable energy, japan thermal springs, japan tsunami, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant

Tomorrow Japan will become completely nuclear free for the first time since 1970 as it shuts down the Tomari nuclear reactor on the island of Hokkaido. One by one the country’s 54 nuclear reactors have been shuttered for maintenance, but they have not reopened because of the public’s fears over their safety. Anti-nuclear demonstrators plan on celebrating Tomari’s shutdown, but one consequence Japan faces is a 15 percent increase in greenhouse gas emissions because of its increased reliance on fossil fuels.

Read the rest of Japan Goes Completely Nuclear Free, But Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Fossil Fuels Surge

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Post tags: fukushima daiichi, greenhouse gas emissions, Japan, nuclear energy, nuclear free, nuclear power, nuclear power plants, oil and gas, tomari nuclear reactor

Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant crisis was one of the most severe environmental disasters of the past year – and now it appears that it’s far from over, as the temperature at reactor number 2 just soared up 26.7 degrees Celsius in the past few hours. The news comes soon after Japan announced an official “cold shutdown” of the damaged plant, and authorities have announced that they no idea why the temperature is increasing.

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Post tags: Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima earthquake, fukushima heating up, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, fukushima reactor 2, japan nuclear power plant, japan tsunami, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant, TEPCO, tokyo electric power company

When the tsunami struck Japan earlier in the year, the country suffered a devastating loss of life and a nuclear meltdown. However it seems like it will not be the only country affected by the disaster. In July, we reported how debris from the coastline was swept into the ocean and was being carried by ocean currents towards Hawaii. We first learned that the debris would hit the west coast of North America by 2014, but scientists now believe that the 20 MILLION TONS of rubbish could hit sooner.

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Post tags: Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, hawaii tsunami debris to hit, japan nuclear power plant, japan tsunami, japanese debris tsunami hawaii, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant, tsunami debris hawaii

The Chernobyl disaster resulted in the creation of a 30km exclusion zone, a specially trained police force that is excluded from regular civic rule, and cities that have been deserted and left to be reclaimed by nature. It was the worst nuclear accident in the world – that is, until the Japanese tsunami struck Fukushima. According to the Japanese government, the accident has unleashed 168 Hiroshima bombs’ worth of radioactive material, making it the area around Fukushima more dangerous than safety standards set for the areas around Chernobyl.

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Post tags: Fukushima Chernobyl, fukushima nuclear disaster chernobyl, japan nuclear power plant, japan tsunami, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant

While the Japanese tsunami has reignited the concerns over nuclear power, one thing is clear – the rules governing the location of their construction are sure to change. One would argue that the construction of a nuclear power plant in a seismically unstable region was always a cause for concern, but Michael C. Constantinou, PhD, professor of civil, structural and environmental engineering at the University at Buffalo has said that the next generation of nuclear power plants and other energy facilities will be greatly influenced by the lessons learnt from the recent tragedy.

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Post tags: japan nuclear power plant, japan tsunami, nuclear power plant construction, nuclear power plants, seismic areas, seismic nuclear power plant