Tag Archives: japan

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

World War 3 & Government Incompetence: Sanctions a big fail! For the first time North Korea is actually making money off its exports! More proof China will not support sanctions.

19 March 2013/07 Jumada l-Ula 1434/29 Esfand 1391/08 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

A report in the Japanese media suggests that for the first time ever, and despite increasing economic sanctions, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is actually making money off its exports!

The Japan Times says U.S. based economists, Marcus Noland and Stephen Haggard, think North Korea might actually have a trade surplus, thanks to China.

According to the government of the Republic of Korea, North Korea’s trade with China tripled from 2007 to 2011.

Having account surpluses means sanctions have less effect. However, the U.S. economists say one of DPRK’s exports is large amounts of cash, which could be bad for the communist country.  Also, the economists assumed illicit activities in their estimations of North Korea’s trade.

Fukushima

Cooling partially restored at Fukushima Daiichi, cause of power outage still unknown

19 March 2013/07 Jumada l-Ula 1434/29 Esfand 1391/08 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

Tokyo Electric Power Company says they’ve restored cooling of spent fuel pools on the number 1, 2 and 4 reactors. This is the first time TEPCo mentioned Reactor 2 as being affected by the power outage.  Cooling for Reactor 4 pool is being powered by emergency generators.

Cooling is still on hold for the fuel pool on Reactor 3, and a shared pool in Fukushima Daiichi’s  compound.  TEPCo hopes to have cooling restored by tomorrow.

TEPCo has inspected the switchboards from three high voltage distribution systems, and say it appears nothing is wrong with them.   Ironically the electric power company still doesn’t know what caused the massive power outage.

Fukushima

Corporate Incompetence: Cooling of Fukushima Daiichi on hold for second day!

19 March 2013/07 Jumada l-Ula 1434/29 Esfand 1391/08 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

For the second day now, cooling of spent fuel pools on the General Electric designed reactors 1, 3 and 4 is not taking place (1, 3 and 4 are the ones that exploded).   Another spent fuel rod pool and a water decontamination system are also affected.

Tokyo Electric Power Company says they’ve found the reason why they lost power yesterday; three high voltage distribution systems failed.

TEPCo says two were fixed but they can’t figure out the problem with the third, they suspect a switchboard.  TEPCo officials said something shorted out the switchboards, but they don’t know what. Apparently all three systems must be working in order to cool the fuel rod pools.

TEPCo has two more days to fix the problem before temps in fuel pools exceed safety limits.  If not they will resort to fire engines to pump water into the pools.

 

 

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

World War 3: Japan finds nuclear equipment on cargo ship coming from North Korea!

18 March 2013/06 Jumada l-Ula 1434/28 Esfand 1391/07 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

The Japanese government is filing a complaint with the UN Security Council, alleging violations of UN sanctions by DPRK.

Japanese Customs inspectors say they found aluminum rods on a cargo ship that had left North Korea, bound for China.  The rods could be used for nuclear centrifuges, and are covered in the latest UN sanctions.

This is the first time Japan has found such contraband items from North Korea.  The inspection of the ship was done under a 2010 UN sanctions rule.

Fukushima

Cooling at Fukushima Daiichi stops, TEPCo does not know why!

18 March 2013/06 Jumada l-Ula 1434/28 Esfand 1391/07 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

Tokyo Electric Power Company reporting that for an unknown reason the cooling of stored nuclear fuel rods, at the GE designed Fukushima Daiichi power plant, has stopped.

There was an electrical power blackout affecting 2100 spent fuel rods in storage pools for reactors 1, 3 and 4.  TEPCo says temps have been rising slowly but steadily every hour.

A forth pool with 6300 fuel rods was also affected, as well as the water decontamination system.

TEPCo does not know what is causing the power outage.  They claim cooling of the melted reactors have not been affected.

 

International, U.S.

World War 3: North Korea threatens war with Japan!

17 March 2013/05 Jumada l-Ula 1434/27 Esfand 1391/06 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

One of DPRK’s media outlets, Rodong Sinmun, published statements making threats of war with Japan.

Japan has been calling for more sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.  Japanese media say their military officials estimate that North Korea has 200 missiles aimed at Japan.

The commentary from Rodong Sinmun says that if North Korea is pushed to launch a nuclear strike, Japan will not be spared.

Fukushima

2 years later, 22-thousand tons of tsunami debris about to hit North America, follwed by radiation contamination!

15 March 2013/03 Jumada l-Ula 1434/25 Esfand 1391/04 Yi-Mao (2nd month) 4711

Japan’s Environment Ministry says the main part of the mass of tsunami debris, from the 11 March 2011 earthquake caused tsunamis, will begin hitting the Pacific coast of North America by April.

Using computer models they predict about 220000 tons of debris could come ashore. Japan has already paid Canada and the United States $6 million USD to help clean it up.

Following behind the tsunami debris could be radioactive debris from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear melt downs.

Researchers from Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology are following radioactive contamination of the Pacific Ocean.  They say the water near the GE designed reactors is still showing 100 becquerels per liter of cesium 137, far higher than Japanese safe limits.

They added that in the 12 months following June 2011 (when they started tracking it) that 16.1 trillion becquerels of cesium 137 was poured into the Pacific Ocean!  The main ocean current is bringing that contamination towards North America.

The University researchers also concluded that most of the contaminated water is coming from underground sources, not from rainwater runoff as first claimed by Tokyo Electric (TEPCo), the operator of Fukushima Daiichi.  TEPCo officials now agree that the contaminated water is not from rain runoff, and admit they have yet to find the source.

For two years now, radioactive contamination has been pouring into the Pacific Ocean!

Fukushima

2 years later: External water injection partly to blame for Fukushima Daiichi melt downs.

A study involving analysts working for NHK (Nippon Housou Kyoukai/Japan Broadcasting Corporation), and University scientists, found that the initial effort to cool the reactors of Fukushima Daiichi, using fire pumper trucks, was a failure and helped caused the melt down of at least three reactors.

The researchers concluded that 55% of the water never made it to the reactors.  This is because there was no power.  Water entering the cooling system ended up in condenser units rather than the reactors, because the system’s pumps were not working.

Since the 11 March 2011 nuclear disasters Japanese nuclear plants, and local fire departments have been practicing cooling down reactors using fire trucks.  The study showed that if there is no power to operate the internal pumps in the nuclear plant’s cooling system, then at least half the water injected by fire pumper trucks is wasted.

International, U.S.

World War 3: Is China’s vote for sanctions against Korea a trick?

10 March 2013/27 Raby’ ath-Thani 1434/20 Esfand 1391

After defending it’s vote for the latest UN sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Chinese officials now say they will support the North.

Analysts think China voted for the sanctions for purely political reasons and will not do their part to enforce those sanctions.

An editorial in Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun pointed out that the latest UN sanctions will not work if China does not enforce them. Apparently China is the lynch pin of the latest sanctions against DPRK.

Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, believes China is not sincere in their claim of support for the latest sanctions: “There’s no reason to think they’re going to do anything different than they’ve done before. I call this a marginal increase in sanctions.”

 

Fukushima

One thousand companies refuse to pay their electric bills!

04 March 2013/21 Raby’ ath-Thani 1434/14 Esfand 1391

One thousand companies are refusing to pay their higher electric bills, in Japan.

Back in April 2012, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCo) raised their rates by an average of 14.9%.  This was to help cover the costs of dealing with the ongoing Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.

The thousand businesses formally stated they will not renew electricity contracts with TEPCo. TEPCo officials say they have no choice but to shut off power to those companies.