FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI DISASTER

The Fukushima Daiichi disaster is known as the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. On March 11, 2011, an earthquake measuring 9.0 in magnitude triggered a tsunami to hit the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.This caused all three of the plant’s nuclear reactors to meltdown because their cores melted when the tsunami cut off power supply and their cooling system. Heat exchangers then started dumping reactor waste and decay to the ocean. There were many visible explosions caused by hydrogen gas in units 1 and 3 and a suspected explosion in unit 2 caused radiation to be released.  The next day, the plant began releasing radioactive material and more than 100,000 people were evacuated from their homes to make sure that no one would be exposed to the radiation. There was possible radiation in food, water and air supply to be polluted with radiation.

I found a video from One Year Later that I found to be very interesting. It shows the affects of Fukushima and how it is still a problem even after one year.

   Now almost four years later, the affects of Fukushima are still prevalent. Radiation from this disaster has spread across the ocean because of the waste that was in the sea. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has began to focus on restarting nuclear power plants and decreasing reliance on international trade. Japan is working to improve building a wall of ice. A wall of ice is the best solution to reduce the flow of radioactive water leaking from Fukushima. The wall will stop 400 tons of groundwater being containimated everyday.The project is expected to be completed by March 2015 and has costed $320 million.

Resources

1. http://www.4thmedia.org/2013/03/the-severity-of-the-fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-disaster-comparing-chernobyl-and-fukushima/

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_Daiichi_nuclear_disaster

3. http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Safety-and-Security/Safety-of-Plants/Fukushima-Accident/