Japan's Nuclear Watchdog Halts Plant's Reactor Safety Screening Over Falsified Data (apnews.com) 33
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: Japan's nuclear watchdog said Wednesday it is scrapping the safety screening for two reactors at the Hamaoka nuclear power plant in central Japan, after its operator was found to have fabricated data about earthquake risks. It was a setback to Japan's attempts to accelerate nuclear reactor restarts. Less than a quarter of commercial nuclear reactors are operational in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi meltdowns, but rising energy costs and pressure to reduce carbon emissions have pushed the government to prioritize nuclear power.
Chubu Electric Power Co. had applied for safety screening to resume operations at the No. 3 and 4 reactors at the Hamaoka plant in 2014 and 2015. Two other reactors at the plant are being decommissioned, and a fifth is idle. The plant, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) west of Tokyo, is located on a coastal area known for potential risks from so-called Nankai Trough megaquakes. The Nuclear Regulation Authority said it started an internal investigation last February, after receiving a tip from a whistleblower that the utility had for years provided fabricated data that underestimated potential seismic risks. The regulator suspended the screening for the reactors after it confirmed the falsification and the utility acknowledged the fabrication in mid-December, said Shinsuke Yamanaka, the watchdog's chair. The NRA is also considering inspecting the utility headquarters.
[...] The scandal surfaced Monday when Chubu Electric President Kingo Hayashi acknowledged that workers at the utility used inappropriate seismic data with an alleged intention to underestimate seismic risks. He apologized and pledged to establish an independent panel for investigation. The screening, including data that had been approved earlier, would have to start from scratch or possibly be rejected entirely, Yamanaka said. The NRA will decide on the case next week, without waiting for the utility's probe results, he said. "Ensuring safety is the first and foremost responsibility for nuclear plant operators," Yamanaka said. "It is outrageous and it's a serious challenge to safety regulation."
Chubu Electric Power Co. had applied for safety screening to resume operations at the No. 3 and 4 reactors at the Hamaoka plant in 2014 and 2015. Two other reactors at the plant are being decommissioned, and a fifth is idle. The plant, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) west of Tokyo, is located on a coastal area known for potential risks from so-called Nankai Trough megaquakes. The Nuclear Regulation Authority said it started an internal investigation last February, after receiving a tip from a whistleblower that the utility had for years provided fabricated data that underestimated potential seismic risks. The regulator suspended the screening for the reactors after it confirmed the falsification and the utility acknowledged the fabrication in mid-December, said Shinsuke Yamanaka, the watchdog's chair. The NRA is also considering inspecting the utility headquarters.
[...] The scandal surfaced Monday when Chubu Electric President Kingo Hayashi acknowledged that workers at the utility used inappropriate seismic data with an alleged intention to underestimate seismic risks. He apologized and pledged to establish an independent panel for investigation. The screening, including data that had been approved earlier, would have to start from scratch or possibly be rejected entirely, Yamanaka said. The NRA will decide on the case next week, without waiting for the utility's probe results, he said. "Ensuring safety is the first and foremost responsibility for nuclear plant operators," Yamanaka said. "It is outrageous and it's a serious challenge to safety regulation."
Current score (Score:4, Interesting)
"Of Japan’s 57 commercial reactors, 13 are currently in operation, 20 are offline and 24 others are being decommissioned, according to NRA."
Fucking Christ (Score:4, Interesting)
In America nuclear power is basically worthless because we've got plenty of land and we can just build out wind and solar. And yes you can do base power just fine with those even with minimal amounts of energy storage.
Japan though really does have a land shortage. So I could see there being utility and having nuclear power except for the safety concerns.
I keep saying this but the problems with nuclear aren't technical they're social. Human beings always want to cut corners for maximum short-term profit. And after Fukushima none of the people responsible were punished.
I bring this up on every thread but will anyone who wants to see nuclear power address the social problems? How do you prevent the CEO from cutting corners on safety until the inevitable disaster? Don't tell me how many lives oil kills or whatever because I don't care. A gas-powered plant never caused the city to be evacuated for 10 years.
I want a real answer for the social problems. Not misdirection or somebody changing the subject but an answer. Does anyone have the balls to even try to answer?
Re:Fucking Christ (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
We are automating too fast and we are running out of work for people to do but we aren't completely eliminating the need for work.
So we are going to have a class of completely useless people that we just don't have a place for in society and then we're going to have a class of people who we still need to do work. And the more competent and smart and skilled you are the more like
Re: (Score:1)
The entire thing was caused by a private company ignoring their engineers warnings that a tsunami would cause a melt down.
Not quite. The overall assumption back then was that Japan as a high-tech nation was capable of building and operating earthquake- and tsunami-proof nuclear sites even in their high risk area. .... and nobody noticed the emergency power generators placed at sea-level. Obviously not water-proof.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah but I really do wish I could figure out a solution to those social problems. Because I think they're going to doom us.
We are automating too fast and we are running out of work for people to do but we aren't completely eliminating the need for work.
The second half there has been said for a very long time but failed to materialize into broad social collapse-- it is the underlying profit motives that have caused chaos time and time again.
As for the social problems, education (especially liberal arts) is generally pointed to as the path to resolving these in society. Unfortunately, we are now "at war" with liberal arts because... they have the word Liberal in them?
Re: (Score:2)
Yes. And there are tons of people that do not even have a basic understanding of risk management and then do crap like this. "What, safety certificates? We do not need them, our superior tech is always safe! Fukushima? Naa, did not happen. Tchernobyl? The Russians just cannot do it right. TMI? Nothing happened there, right? Windscale? What is that? You know, lets just fake these certs, they are useless anyways! What is the worst that could happen?".
Given what is at stake here, the very least should be a len
Re: (Score:1)
In Japan. In France. In Germany.
Germany? Referring to the Asse disposal site?
Re: (Score:2)
The world could use a few Kaiju to clean things up around here.
Re: Fucking Christ (Score:2)
How would you know the technical isn't the problem, when data keeps being faked? It's not the first time [ife.no].
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
The shame of having bad data would have made them lose face, which is very very bad in Japanese culture. Fabricating facts and manipulation of data is just a normal part of the culture unfortunately.
https://www.ucanews.com/news/w... [ucanews.com]
One interesting thing is that one of the reasons Japan has such a low official violence and murder rate is that the police will categorize dead bodies discoveries as "abandoned body" rather than declaring a homicide. If they do solve the murder case, then, and only then, will the
Re: (Score:2)
What's the "abandoned body" rate then?
Re:Fucking Christ (Score:5, Informative)
That is nonsense. For example, there is currently a big case where a woman was murdered in her apartment getting a lot of attention. Not found or abandoned, murdered. Suspects unknown.
I've learned that 99% of stuff printed about Japan by foreign press is hopelessly wrong or just made up bullshit.
Re: (Score:2)
That is nonsense.
Somewhat... but shame and honor are still deeply ingrained in Japanese culture. Enough so that it is a plausible explanation.
I've learned that 99% of stuff printed about Japan by foreign press is hopelessly wrong or just made up bullshit.
What I've learned with time is that much of what is being printed is a misunderstanding of the culture or laws in the context. This not a new phenomenon.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
As if to ram the point home, another body was found yesterday, and again the police announced that they are treating it as potential murder.
Re: Fucking Christ (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Indeed. Or this smaller one 35 years before: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
You cannot trust people. You cannot trust commercial organizations. You cannot trust any organization subject to political pressures.
The only solution is redundancies (several different organizations subject to different forces (!) need to really look and all need to be able to raise red flags without negative impact coming back to them) and _personal_ penalties on top of the organizational ones that actually get applied very publ
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Thanks for the reference, I wasn't aware of this.
"
The dam failed catastrophically in 1928, killing at least 431 people in the subsequent flood,[3][4] in what is considered to have been one of the worst American civil engineering disasters of the 20th century and the third-greatest loss of life in California history.[5][6][7]
"
There was a flood in 1862 that killed 4000 (est), and ofc the SF eq (est 6000).
Re: (Score:3)
I am willing to tackle this: It can be done. Nuclear power can be made safe and reliable. But it needs a cultural change. In ordinary engineering, there are smaller, somewhat frequent disasters that keep the memory of people in there active and remind that things need to be done right. And the people responsible do get sent to prison, at least from time to time.
Nuclear power tech has several problems.
(1) It is exceptionally dangerous and massive in its potential accident effects. Hence the standard level of
Re: (Score:2)
>Nuclear power is the stepping stone to the Bomb. (No, I am NOT willing to discuss this. Denying this is on the level of anti-vaxx or flat-earth.) This leads to military interests and unsuitable risk management, because having the Bomb, or the potential for it, is critical for survival of the nation (right?) and any risk becomes acceptable.
This alone tells me you either have zero understanding of nuclear principles, or you are being deliberately disingenuous. Absolutely nothing with civilian power genera
Re: (Score:2)
Japan has good renewable resources, and domestic battery production. The problem is all the money already invested in nuclear. Being left behind on wind turbine development.
It's the same with their slow pace adopting EVs. Too invested in hybrid tech.
Re: (Score:2)
You CAN do baseload with minimal amounts of storage with renewables. True.
It takes two things: Minimal storage for one, which nobody seems to be seriously building... And two, a sturdy grid. Which nobody has, least of all the US.
Re: (Score:2)
And therein lies the problem with nuclear power and advocates, including science commentator Kyle Hill, refuse to acknowledge, admit or even talk about.
Yes, the technology is great, it's safe, and etc. etc. etc. The problem has always been the human aspect and management. And no one offers a solution for that fundamental problem. Nuclear has problems, it has a huge image problem. And it has that problem because management has been lacking - maintenance deferred, safety taken as a byproduct.
No one questions
Re: (Score:2)
Don't tell me how many lives oil kills or whatever because I don't care. A gas-powered plant never caused the city to be evacuated for 10 years.
Quite the contrary.
As we are frequently reminded, the scientific consensus is that there will be hundreds of millions, and perhaps over a billion, Climate Refugees displaced by the end of this century. The coastlines of every continent will be evacuated forever. Due, precisely, to gas/hydrocarbon power.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm not sure an area of high seismic activity and the resulting earthquakes and tsunamis qualifies as "social problem".
Re: (Score:1)
Business as usual (Score:2)
The nuclear assholes will cheat, lie and steal to get their hugely expensive and mostly useless fetishes satisfied. The only difference this time is that somebody did not actively look away.