Fukushima Earthquake Research Paper

This caused reactors 1 through 3 to go into a meltdown and it created a situation where Japan was on the brink of a major environmental disaster. To fully understand the different events there will be a focus on: factors that caused the meltdown, why this did not impact the other three reactors, the consequences, who is responsible and how these incidents can be prevented in the future. Together, these elements will highlight the underlying effects of this disaster and its impact on the region. ("Fukushima Accident")

The Tohoku tsunami resulted in the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident with three reactors melting down: the largest nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster (Kyutoku et al., 2012). Officials from the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency reported that radiation levels inside and outside the plant were up to 1,000 times and 8 times normal levels respectively (Tabuchi and Walk, 2011). The reactors of the nuclear plant sustained major damage to the cooling system meaning that radioactive isotopes were released into the air, ultimately leading to contamination of soil, water and food. Radioactive chemicals were found in tap water in many cities, as well as in the soil and food products (Hur, 2011). Damage and destruction of water treatment and sewage systems increase the likelihood of outbreaks of cholera and typhoid, although outbreaks are less likely to

(Events of Fukushima Nuclear disaster) The Fukushima Nuclear disaster had many effects on the environment and health, some of its effects on the health are, infection of skin and that is mainly caused because of radiation and chemicals in the water after the incident and little supply of clean water, it also impacted the citizens physiologically (mainly the mothers, kids and workers) who might have diseases as anxiety and depression, problems in pregnancy, related to deficiency of iodine in the body, and some hormones not functioning properly, all these causes might lead to still birth, and miscarriage and finally, radiation syndrome which is caused because of the release of massive amounts of radiation, spread of cancer (as thyroid cancer) because of radiation, and ascend of genetic inheritable diseases As in Diagram 2 (Health Concerns in Fukushima), we can signify that the percentages of cancer increased highly because of the disaster in comparison to nowadays and especially between people of ages (1month-20years)

The Fukushima disaster was caused by an earthquake and its following tsunami which caused a failure in the backup systems (World Nuclear Association, 2016). The tsunami knocked out the generators that powered the cooldown processes for three of the Fukushima power plants which caused the radiation leaks and other complications. Consequentially, the disaster was initially classified as a level 5 on the INES scale. Further investigation after the disaster was under control changed it to a level 7 disaster, the highest level on the INES scale. The estimated radioactive releases were about one tenth of Chernobyl, the worst nuclear disaster in history.

Introduction: The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster was the largest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. It measured 7 on the Nuclear Event Scale, which is the highest rating. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster was initiated by a magnitude 9 earthquake. This earthquake caused a tsunami with waves reaching up to 133 feet to crash on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. This caused major damage to the nuclear plant. Workers were needed to keep this already terrible incident from escalading. The Fukushima Daiichi cleanup workers are

On March 11, 2011, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake occurred off the east coast of Japan, generating massive tsunamis, which severely damaged coastal areas. The earthquake and tsunami also hit the nuclear power plants (NPP) located in the coastal area in Tohoku and led to the loss of the entire core cooling capacity of three reactors of Fukushima Daiichi NPP and severe damage to the nuclear cores.1 Although deaths related to the release of radiation have not been reported six years after the disaster, the Japanese government and medical professionals have noticed an increase in mental health problems in emergency workers and evacuees. Numerous evacuations, physical detachment from homes and personal belongings, and stigmas between evacuees have been

On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 earthquake shook northeastern Japan. The earthquake was felt around the globe. Debris that was washed away still continues to wash up on the beaches of California and other beaches in the US. The residents of this small island are still recovering from this natural disaster. As a result of the earthquake, 19,000 lives were lost and 1.2 buildings were damaged. The earthquake/tsunami cost Japan $574 billion. To make matters worse, the waves of the tsunami damaged a nuclear power plant located in Japan and caused the radioactive material to leak out into the surrounding area.

There have been lots of nuclear accident around the world. One of the accident that had a major impact on the world was the Chernobyl disaster. The disaster took place on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. The disaster was caused by a reaction explosion induced by design faults and staff application errors. The accident took place in the course of scheduled tests to check the power supply mode in the event of external sources loss. Even after 10 days, explosions and ejections of radioactive substances continued. The release of radiation and radioactive substance polluted the places within 30 km of Chernobyl, and those areas have been closed for a long period of

First a look at the effects on the biosphere, or all parts of the living earth. Life on earth was, and still is, dramatically affected by the disaster of Fukushima. The dangerous and harmful effects that hurt animals, marine life, and humans is observed and monitored both near and far from the

March 11, 2011 Fukushima, Japan happened. A tsunami flooded and damaged the plants’ five active reactors. The loss of backup electrical power led to eventual overheating and subsequent meltdowns. The INES also labeled this as a seven. Even though this happened in 2011 it is still early to really know the full consequences both human and environmentally of this event. This disaster highlighted the importance of location when building future nuclear power plants.

“The earthquake and resulting tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 is likely to be the costliest natural disaster on record” ("Economic Impact of the Tsunami"). The nuclear meltdown/explosion that followed is still creating havoc on the Japanese people. The effects of this debilitating disaster will continue to affect the region not only for this generation but generations to come. The area is still riddled with debris not only left from the tsunami, but the radioactive clean-up as well. Much of the area affected by the nuclear disaster is still desolate. No one really knows when or if life can return to normal in the areas that were affected by the nuclear fallout from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

Early in the morning of April 27, 1986, the world experienced its largest nuclear disaster ever (Gould 40). While violating safety protocol during a test, Reactor 4 at the Chernobyl power plant was placed in a severely unstable state, and in a matter of seconds the reactor output shot up to 120 times the rated output (Flavin 8). The resulting steam explosion tossed aside the reactor’s 1,000 ton concrete covering and released radioactive particles up to one and a half miles into the sky (Gould 38). The explosion and resulting fires caused 31 immediate deaths and over a thousand injuries, including radiation poisoning (Flavin 5). After the

On March 11th, 2011, the northern section of Japan was hit by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake, followed by a 15 meter tsunami, causing the death of over 15000 people. (Spacey) Even though the earthquake and the tsunami caused a tremendous amount of deaths in the northern region of Japan, the meltdown of the Fukushima nuclear power plant caused a severe damage to northern Japan’s ecosystem that people still cannot go back to their homes; despite it is 4 years after the disaster. After the earthquake, the tsunami destroyed the power supply used by Fukushima’s three nuclear power stations, causing severe levels of meltdown to be occurred inside the reactors in the timespan of 3 days. It was not until 2 weeks after the tragedy, when the reactors were finally stabilized, and took several months to approach what is called a “cold shutdown condition”, in which the fission in the reactors are completely stopped.(Fukushima A)

Every Friday in Japan, the lawn of the office of the Prime Minister fills up with hundreds of Japanese citizens to protest in concern about the country’s ongoing nuclear program in spite of the meltdown of the Fukushima-Daichi power plant. 170 miles north of Tokyo, the meltdown happened in 2011 after a back to back earthquake and tsunami devastated cooling capabilities within the plant, which subsequently led to the meltdown of one of the reactors. This even displaced tens of thousands of people from their homes. (Junko, and Mullen Jethro) Although no deaths have been attributed to the explosion or subsequent nuclear fallout yet, the full repercussions of the event have yet to been fully experienced. A plan is still being developed of how

The triple disaster: earthquake, tsunami and Fukushima nuclear accident. The earthquake and tsunami caused extensive and severe structural damage in north-eastern Japan, including heavy damage to roads and railways as well as fires in many areas, and a dam collapse. Naoto Kan said, "In the 65 years after the end of World War II, this is the toughest and the most difficult crisis for Japan." Around 4.4 million households in northeastern Japan were left without electricity and 1.5 million without water. The tsunami caused nuclear accidents, primarily the level 7 meltdowns at three reactors in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant complex, and the