Thursday, April 21, 2011

#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: "Eintritt Verboten" for 20-Radius Residents



"Do Not Enter" signs erected, as the Fukushima Prefectural Police set up 65 roadblocks to control the entrance to the 20-kilometer radius evacuation zone which has now become the "no entry" zone.

(Don't use the regular roads, people.)

In addition, as reported here before, the select areas outside the 20-kilometer radius are now "planned evacuation zone" where the residents are "asked" to leave in about a month's time.

But wait, there's more. According to Yomiuri, the national government led by the increasingly unpopular Democratic Party of Japan coalition will announce the establishment of yet another zone which can be termed as "stay-indoor or evacuate on demand". In that zone, the residents will be required to be ready to comply with the government order - whether to stay indoors or evacuate - at a moment's notice.

Hmmm. Didn't they do this during the World War II? The US bombers are coming! (Air-raid sirens go off blaring.) Hide in the shelter!

3 comments:

netudiant said...

What recourse do the people who are thus dispossessed have?
They are suffering a grievous loss through no fault of their own. Is there no eminent domain process in Japan?

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

Other than wait for the government's money to show up on their bank accounts for compensation, not much.

The government meticulously draws up the different zones to economize on the compensations. If you're outside 20 kilo but inside 30, only your commercial interests get compensated. Or something like that, I'll have to go look for the articles that I read.

Part of the reasons why some people haven't voluntarily left the area is because without the proper order from the government they won't get compensated for whatever loss they sustained. They also need to have a certificate from municipal governments attesting to the degree of damage. Different payout for total wreck and partial wreck for the houses.

Just like in the US, you make rules so that TPTB and big businesses can circumvent them, and small flies get trapped.

Anonymous said...

The best way to dull the enthusiasm for nuclear power would be to run some full scale unannounced 1-month+ long practice evacuations for people living near nuclear power facilities around the world. Throw in rolling blackouts and a few stay indoors ready to flee in a moments notice zones for grins and I imagine people would look at nuclear power in a different light.

I wonder if the "evacuate on demand" zones are due to the anticipated releases the future remediation efforts could cause? I bet there will be some issue with pumping the millions upon millions of gallons of highly irradiated water around the facility in the coming months.

"Oops, the hose popped! STOP THE PUMP! STOP THE PUMP!!!" "WE CAN'T THE ARRGHHH!!!....."

"Sir, the Shizuoka Mega Float was never designed to withstand a typhoon and the reactor buildings are even more damaged by the protective coverings. The coverings tore and channeled tons of rain water into the facilities!!!"

News article excerpt:

"Tepco said on April 17 it will start erecting temporary covers for the damaged building within three months provided radiation falls to levels at which workers can begin construction. The work is expected to be completed in the next three to six months, according to the action plan, which lists the “possibility of the cover being damaged by a big typhoon” as a risk.

The company hasn’t decided what material it will use to temporarily cover the buildings, Tepco spokesman Hajime Motojuku said today."


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-20/tepco-must-end-whack-a-mole-cover-fukushima-reactors-as-typhoons-loom.html

So these guys can't even decide what material to use yet? Why not a pink chiffon with sparkly rhinestones? No reason a nuclear disaster needs to be ugly. The article says they may start sooner but I doubt it operating by committee can take awhile.

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