Japan's nuclear power station newly marked heavy earthquake and tsunami

The Japan Atomic Energy Regulatory Commission officially passed the new safety standards for nuclear power plants in Japan on the 19th. The new standard draws lessons from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and strengthens measures to cope with the earthquake and tsunami. It will be formally implemented on July 8.

According to the new standards, power companies must take measures to prevent serious accidents that cause large-scale leakage of radioactive materials. Whether or not relevant measures were taken before is decided by the power companies. The new standard requires the nuclear power station to set up an “exhaust valve with a filter”, set up an “emergency control room” to cope with terrorist activities and natural disasters, and provide a control room that can remotely control the reactor containment.

With respect to earthquake protection, the new safety standard stipulates that the scope of active faults to be considered in the seismic design of a nuclear power plant should be changed from “from 130,000 to 120,000 years ago when there was activity” to “up to 400,000 years ago. ". Nuclear power plant reactors and other important facilities are to be built on foundations without active faults.

With regard to measures against tsunami, the new standard requires that the entire nuclear power station be set to prevent tsunami standards, and that breakwaters that meet the highest seismic standards should be installed, and relevant measures must be taken for active volcanoes, tornadoes, and so on.

The new standard stipulates that the term of operation of a nuclear power plant is limited to 40 years in principle. In individual cases it may be allowed to extend for a maximum of 20 years, but the new standard must also be met and special inspections must be conducted.

In March 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake caused the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. After the accident, Japan's 50 commercial nuclear power units were suspended due to regular inspections and other reasons. Japan was once in a state of zero nuclear power.

It is expected that from July 8th onwards, at least four power companies in Japan will apply for safety inspections to restart 12 nuclear reactors. It is reported that the Japanese government will determine whether nuclear power plants can be restarted after the Nuclear Regulatory Commission confirms the safety of nuclear power plants from a technical point of view and obtains the consent of local governments.