|
SEARCH ALL
|
FACTS & STATISTICS
Advanced view
|
|
Search encyclopedia, statistics and forums:
|
|
|
Japan's Nuclear Crisis and the World's Riskiest Nuclear Facilities
 The Japan nuclear crisis has elevated concerns on the dangerous consequences of nuclear power. The damage caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear facility has raised safety issues to global attention.
As Japan and the world continues to grapple with the impact of the natural calamity, there is increasing scrutiny on Japan's planning and management ability in the event of a nuclear disaster. For instance, Japan Today recently reported that about 800 workers at the Fukushima facility were given regular medical checkups - almost two months after the crisis erupted.
The global attention towards the Japan nuclear crisis is understandable. There are 409 operable nuclear reactors in the world and Japan plans to build another 12 more nuclear facilities.
The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation lists the following potential dangers posed by nuclear energy:
- Risks of Proliferation
Nuclear fission produces a waste product - plutonium, which can be used for productive as well as destructive purposes. While it can be used as fuel in nuclear plants, only 18 pounds of this element is enough to create a Nagasaki-type bomb.
- Risk of Accident
The abandoned Chernobyl nuclear plant remains a stark reminder of the destructive power of a nuclear accident. The explosion () of one of the reactors at the Ukraine facility resulted to a fallout that reached as far as Scotland where radiation levels were recorded at 10,000 times above normal. The Three Mile Island nuclear accident ( ) and a list of other similar mishaps () highlight the risk of accident at these plants.
- Environmental Degradation
The generation of nuclear energy involves processes that are environmentally destructive: the mining of uranium, the production of plutonium and the release of radioactive isotopes into the environment.
- Nuclear Waste
The Foundation maintains there is no known method of safely disposing nuclear waste. A component of nuclear waste - Plutonium-239, has a very long half-life: 24,000 years.
As each nuclear facility is built differently and under different specifications, the need for the most appropriate safety measures and risk mitigation plan is tantamount.
In March, the Wall Street Journal came out with an analysis of the world's nuclear reactors and the earthquake risk faced by each plant. The Journal used information by the World Nuclear Association, the Global Seismic Hazard Program, and a study by the Swiss Seismological Service and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Based on this analysis, the following nuclear reactors are considered the riskiest in the world because of the level of seismic activity in the area they are in and their proximity to the coast:
Reactor name | Country | Capacity (net) megawatts | Reactor Status | Type of reactor | Miles from coast | Seismic range |
|---|
Humboldt Bay | United States | 63 | Shut down | Commercial Reactor | 0.36 | 4. High Activity | Lungmen-1 | Taiwan | 1,300 | Under construction | Commercial Reactor | 1.86 | 4. High Activity | Lungmen-2 | Taiwan | 1,300 | Under construction | Commercial Reactor | 1.83 | 4. High Activity | Vallecitos VBWR | United States | 5 | Shut down | Commercial Reactor | 10.00 | 4. High Activity | Maanshan-1 | Taiwan | 890 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 2.11 | 4. High Activity | Maanshan-2 | Taiwan | 890 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 2.11 | 4. High Activity | Kuosheng-1 | Taiwan | 948 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.64 | 4. High Activity | Kuosheng-2 | Taiwan | 948 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.66 | 4. High Activity | Hamaoka-1 | Japan | 515 | Shut down | Commercial Reactor | 1.03 | 4. High Activity | Hamaoka-2 | Japan | 806 | Shut down | Commercial Reactor | 1.00 | 4. High Activity | Hamaoka-3 | Japan | 1,056 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.96 | 4. High Activity | Hamaoka-4 | Japan | 1,092 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.93 | 4. High Activity | Hamaoka-5 | Japan | 1,380 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.90 | 4. High Activity | Chin Shan-1 | Taiwan | 604 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.65 | 4. High Activity | Chin Shan-2 | Taiwan | 604 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.67 | 4. High Activity | Onagawa-1 | Japan | 498 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 2.32 | 4. High Activity | Onagawa-2 | Japan | 796 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 2.32 | 4. High Activity | Onagawa-3 | Japan | 796 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 2.32 | 4. High Activity | Diablo Canyon-1 | United States | 1,130 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.74 | 4. High Activity | Diablo Canyon-2 | United States | 1,160 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.71 | 4. High Activity | Mihama-1 | Japan | 320 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.10 | 4. High Activity | Mihama-2 | Japan | 470 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.11 | 4. High Activity | Mihama-3 | Japan | 780 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.16 | 4. High Activity | Monju | Japan | 246 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.74 | 4. High Activity | Tsuruga-1 | Japan | 341 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.26 | 4. High Activity | Tsuruga-2 | Japan | 1,115 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.21 | 4. High Activity | Fugen ATR | Japan | 148 | Shut down | Commercial Reactor | 0.77 | 4. High Activity | Armenia-1 (Metsamor) | Armenia | 376 | Shut down | Commercial Reactor | 10.00 | 4. High Activity | Armenia-2 (Metsamor) | Armenia | 376 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 10.00 | 4. High Activity | Armenia-3 (Metsamor) | Armenia | 1,060 | Planned | Commercial Reactor | 10.00 | 4. High Activity | Ohi-1 | Japan | 1,120 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 4.63 | 4. High Activity | Ohi-2 | Japan | 1,120 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 4.59 | 4. High Activity | Ohi-3 | Japan | 1,127 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 4.52 | 4. High Activity | Ohi-4 | Japan | 1,127 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 4.52 | 4. High Activity | Takahama-1 | Japan | 780 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 1.07 | 4. High Activity | Takahama-2 | Japan | 780 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 1.09 | 4. High Activity | Takahama-3 | Japan | 830 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 1.11 | 4. High Activity | Takahama-4 | Japan | 830 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 1.14 | 4. High Activity | Shika-1 | Japan | 505 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.65 | 4. High Activity | Shika-2 | Japan | 1,358 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 0.60 | 4. High Activity | Krsko | Slovenia | 676 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 10.00 | 4. High Activity | Shimane-3 | Japan | 1,375 | Under construction | Commercial Reactor | 1.02 | 4. High Activity | Shimane-1 | Japan | 439 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 1.11 | 4. High Activity | Shimane-2 | Japan | 789 | Operating | Commercial Reactor | 1.07 | 4. High Activity |
Surprisingly, none of the Fukushima Daiichi reactors made the list. All ten of them were listed as "3. Elevated Activity."
References:
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/issues/nuclear-energy-&-waste/nuclear-energy-fact-sheet.htm
|
Feeds |
Contact