Nuclear accidents in Japan

1991/06/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Energia

Within a month in Japan there have been four nuclear accidents that have troubled people. More than a quarter of the electric power is nuclear in Japan and the existing intentions until 2010 are the construction of 40 new nuclear reactors.

On 9 February, radioactive gas fled the 50-megawatt reactor in northern Osaka, Mihama. The accident occurred when one of the tubes that has the heat exchanger was broken. This rupture of pipes allowed the passage of 30 tons of radioactive water from the primary cooling system of the reactor to the secondary. Of course, the reactor operation had to be completely paralyzed.

This has been the biggest accident in Japan. Despite the leakage of gases into the atmosphere, no increase in radiation was observed in the atmosphere.

On 21 February, the operation of the Niyata nuclear power plant in northern Tokyo was interrupted by a problem in the turbine system.

A day later, a leak was detected in a pressure vessel at the Onagawa nuclear power plant near Sendai. Finally, a new leak was detected at the Tokai Mura nuclear power plant in the Tokyo area.

According to local authorities, this type of accident is normal, but what happened in Chernobyl was not a joke.