Fears of radiation and nuclear catastrophe remain the focus of the ongoing calamity in Japan, now in its second week. With aid from around the globe, Japan continues to struggle with the aftereffects of its natural disasters. Meanwhile, the rest of the world contemplates the safety and future of nuclear energy.
Japan remains in shambles after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami wiped out entire towns and killed thousands, but the world's attention is focused on nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, which is located about 150 miles north of heavily populated Tokyo. Radiation levels at the Fukushima complex have spiked since the natural disasters comprised the plant's containment systems, which slowed down response efforts by preventing workers from getting close enough to the problem. The Japanese continue to work to secure external power sources for the reactors at the plant in an attempt to restore cooling systems and prevent any further release of radiation from the nuclear fuel rods in the plant's six reactor units. [See photos of the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and resulting tsunami.]
The nuclear plant was designed with an on-site electrical generator that could maintain the reactors' cooling systems in case a disaster, like the earthquake that occurred March 11, cut off the plant's external power source. However, the tsunami that followed the earthquake proved too much for the facilities' safeguards, shutting down that backup, along with the automatic system that was being used to cool the reactors. The plant's remaining workers and emergency officials last week braved a series of explosions while working to stabilize the temperature of the fuel rods. The cooling measures—from shooting water from firetrucks to dumping seawater from helicopters—have been described by some as "last-ditch" attempts to prevent further meltdown. "When you start pumping seawater into a reactor, it's all over," says Charles Ferguson, president of the Federation of American Scientists. "You can't start using those reactors again."
Last Wednesday, near the height of the emergency at the nuclear plant, Japan's Emperor Akihito delivered an address to calm his nation. He praised the work being done on the ground and encouraged his people to remain hopeful. [Read the U.S. News debate: Does the United States need more nuclear power?]
The United States offered its expertise to help deal with the Fukushima Daiichi complex. According to Gregory Jaczko, head of the government's Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NRC experts on boiling water reactors have been sent to Tokyo to help manage the crisis. Last week, the United States also took a more publicly cautious approach than Japan, recommending that all its citizens within a 50-mile radius of the power plant evacuate. Japan, by contrast, encouraged those within an approximately 12-mile radius to evacuate or stay indoors. The United States also reportedly lent military firetrucks to the Japanese to pump water.
At home, President Obama said Thursday that those on American soil, including in Pacific states and territories, remain safe from radiation released from the Japanese plant. The Environmental Protection Agency, which controls air radiation monitoring sites across the country, reiterated that point this afternoon, stating on its website, "The levels detected are far below levels of concern."
The president last week said he's asking the NRC to do a "comprehensive review" of domestic plants in light of the events in Japan. [Read 10 things you didn't know about the NRC.]
So far, the catastrophe has not prompted any major changes to U.S. energy policy, but it has reignited the nuclear debate.
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