Nuclear Energy: How Fukushima Changed Everything
Nuclear Energy:
How Fukushima Changed Everything.
After the Chernobyl disaster of April 26th, 1986, it was often said that the nuclear industry no longer had the resilience to survive another major nuclear accident. The industry hoped that the sentiment behind the Chernobyl accident could be eased on the basis that it was the consequence of a flaw in design that was unique to the Soviet Union’s reactors and that they had been operated in such a way that would not have been acceptable in the West. Then, Fukushima changed everything. That, at least, was the popular view adopted in the aftermath of March 11, 2011, by the press, media and across the Internet blogging community. A nuclear accident in such a densely populated and well-developed country would transform the way nuclear energy is perceived, as well as, determine the way it would be used, or not used, in the years to come. This analysis attempts to overview its causes, evaluate its impact, and understand its consequences on future nuclear development.
Causes
On October 30th, 2011, the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC) was enacted, creating an independent commission whose sole purpose was to investigate the Fukushima accident with the authority to request documentation and evidence required from whomever they saw fit. This independent commission was the first in the history of Japan’s constitutional government. Their main mandate was to investigate the direct and indirect causes of the Tokyo Electric Power Company Fukushima nuclear power plant accident that occurred on March 11, 2011 in conjunction with the Great East Japan Earthquake. This event triggered an extremely severe nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daichii Nuclear Power Plant, owned and operated by the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). It was declared Level 7 (“Severe Accident”) by the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES). At the moment the earthquake struck, nuclear reactor units 1 to 3 were
How Fukushima Changed Everything.
After the Chernobyl disaster of April 26th, 1986, it was often said that the nuclear industry no longer had the resilience to survive another major nuclear accident. The industry hoped that the sentiment behind the Chernobyl accident could be eased on the basis that it was the consequence of a flaw in design that was unique to the Soviet Union’s reactors and that they had been operated in such a way that would not have been acceptable in the West. Then, Fukushima changed everything. That, at least, was the popular view adopted in the aftermath of March 11, 2011, by the press, media and across the Internet blogging community. A nuclear accident in such a densely populated and well-developed country would transform the way nuclear energy is perceived, as well as, determine the way it would be used, or not used, in the years to come. This analysis attempts to overview its causes, evaluate its impact, and understand its consequences on future nuclear development.
Causes
On October 30th, 2011, the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC) was enacted, creating an independent commission whose sole purpose was to investigate the Fukushima accident with the authority to request documentation and evidence required from whomever they saw fit. This independent commission was the first in the history of Japan’s constitutional government. Their main mandate was to investigate the direct and indirect causes of the Tokyo Electric Power Company Fukushima nuclear power plant accident that occurred on March 11, 2011 in conjunction with the Great East Japan Earthquake. This event triggered an extremely severe nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daichii Nuclear Power Plant, owned and operated by the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). It was declared Level 7 (“Severe Accident”) by the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES). At the moment the earthquake struck, nuclear reactor units 1 to 3 were
References: Lincoln L. Davies. “Beyond Fukushima: Disasters, Nuclear Energy, and Energy Law.” Brigham Young University Law Review. (2011): 1937-1990. The Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission. “The National Diet of Japan.” (2012): 1-15. Dr. med. Alex Rosen. “Effects of the Fukushima nuclear meltdowns on environment and health.” (2012): 1-18. Paul L. Joskow & John E. Parsons. “The Future of Nuclear Power After Fukushima”. MIT Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research. (2012): 1-30. Roland Schenkel. “Nuclear Energy Acceptance and Potential Role to Meet Future Energy Demand. Which Technical/Scientific Achievements Are Needed?”. European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Transuranium Elements. (2012): 356-364. Winifred Bird. “As Fukushima Cleanup Begins, Long-term Impacts are Weighed”. Yale Environment 360. (2012): 1. Karl K. Turekian et al. “ Fukushima-derived radionuclides in the ocean and biota off Japan”. PNAS. (2012): 1-5. Nuclear Energy: How Fukushima Changed Everything. 10