Anti-nuclear activists and the media are no doubt hyping what is going on in Japan, but the nuclear incident is relatively minor. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has a scale for nuclear incidents. What is happening at Fukushima is a level 4 on the scale, which means relatively minor. Chernobyl was a 7. Experts in the Japanese nuclear industry say a Chernobyl-type accident is just not going to happen. The Japan Times reports:
While the outcome of the crisis at a nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture remains uncertain, experts Sunday were quick to stress there are no signs of a critical meltdown, let alone a catastrophe comparable to the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
“I think the worst scenario has been avoided,” said Hiromi Ogawa, a former engineer at Toshiba Corp. who managed its nuclear power generation project.
Other pundits dismissed the notion of comparing the Fukushima crisis to Chernobyl, noting that the two plants differ in basic construction, including the setup of the reinforced containment vessel.
Ogawa said that the seawater poured into the Fukushima No. 1 reactor had halted the nuclear reaction and that cooling was under way.
Ogawa added that the reactor’s pressure vessel and container appear to be sound, indicating its fuel has been confined.
“It is clearly different from the case of Chernobyl, in which a reactor itself exploded and fissile substances spread outside,” he said.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano also offered assurances, telling a news conference Sunday that the government “has confirmed that pumping of seawater is being processed as scheduled.”
The nuclear rods are now completely covered with water and radiation levels around the facility are not rising, the government’s top spokesman said, adding that the release of pressure through vents and cooling the reactor with water will “allow us to manage the nuclear reactor safely and under a stable condition.”
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