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The March 11, 2011, Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami sparked a humanitarian disaster in northeastern Japan. They were responsible for more than 15,900 deaths and 2,600 missing persons as well as physical infrastructure damages exceeding $200 billion. The earthquake and tsunami also initiated a severe nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. Three of the six reactors at the plant sustained severe core damage and released hydrogen and radioactive materials. Explosion of the released hydrogen damaged three reactor buildings and impeded onsite emergency response efforts. The accident prompted widespread evacuations of local populations, large economic losses, and the eventual shutdown of all nuclear power plants in Japan. Lessons Learned from the Fukushima Nuclear Accident for Improving Safety and Security of U.S. Nuclear Plants is a study of the Fukushima Daiichi accident. This report examines the causes of the crisis, the performance of safety systems at the plant, and the responses of its operators following the earthquake and tsunami. The report then considers the lessons that can be learned and their implications for U.S. safety and storage of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste, commercial nuclear reactor safety and security regulations, and design improvements. Lessons Learned makes recommendations to improve plant systems, resources, and operator training to enable effective ad hoc responses to severe accidents. This report's recommendations to incorporate modern risk concepts into safety regulations and improve the nuclear safety culture will help the industry prepare for events that could challenge the design of plant structures and lead to a loss of critical safety functions. In providing a broad-scope, high-level examination of the accident, Lessons Learned is meant to complement earlier evaluations by industry and regulators. This in-depth review will be an essential resource for the nuclear power industry, policy makers, and anyone interested in the state of U.S. preparedness and response in the face of crisis situations.

Following the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in March 2011, the Japanese government implemented extensive decontamination and waste management measures, including the establishment of an interim storage facility in Okuma and Futaba. This study aims to analyze residents’ trust in the information provided by the public authorities regarding this facility and to identify factors influencing that trust. A survey was conducted among 1,558 former residents of Tomioka, Okuma, and Futaba who were 18 years or older and held resident cards for one of these towns in both March 2011 and 2024. The questionnaire collected data on demographic variables; intention to return; thoughts on the storage facility; trust in public information; concerns about radiation-related genetic risks and negative perceptions due to the nuclear accident; and mental health status, assessed using the mental component of the SF-8 health survey. The results showed that 57.7% of respondents trusted the information provided by the public authorities regarding the storage facility. Factors significantly associated with trust included their acceptance of the facility, lack of concerns about radiation-related genetic risks, lack of concerns about negative images resulting from the nuclear accident, and good mental health status. A logistic regression analysis indicated that acceptance of the facility and good mental health significantly increased the likelihood of trusting information provided by the public authorities, while concerns about genetic risks and negative images significantly decreased it. These findings underscore the vital importance of recognizing and addressing residents’ concerns about health risks and negative perceptions related to nuclear waste management. By supporting the mental well-being of the community and fostering transparent communication, authorities can build trust and improve the acceptance of waste management facilities. Actively engaging with residents and responding to their worries facilitates the identification of adequate and acceptable recovery efforts after a nuclear accident.

The long-term effect of 137Cs re-suspension from contaminated soil and forests due to the Fukushima nuclear accident has been quantitatively assessed by numerical simulation, a field experiment on dust emission flux in a contaminated area (town of Namie, Fukushima prefecture), and air concentration measurements inside (Namie) and outside (city of Tsukuba, Ibaraki prefecture) the contaminated area. In order to assess the long-term effect, the full year of 2013 was selected to study just after the start of the field experiments. The 137Cs concentrations at Namie and Tsukuba were approximately 10−1–1 and 10−2–10−1 mBq m−3, respectively. The observed monthly median concentration at Namie was 1 to 2 orders of magnitude larger than that at Tsukuba. This observed difference between the two sites was consistent with the simulated difference, indicating successful modeling of 137Cs re-suspension and atmospheric transport. The estimated re-suspension rate was approximately 10−6 day−1, which was significantly lower than the decreasing rate of the ambient gamma dose rate in Fukushima prefecture (10−4–10−3 day−1) as a result of radioactive decay, migration in the soil and biota, and decontamination. Consequently, re-suspension contributed negligibly in reducing ground radioactivity. The dust emission model could reproduce the air concentration of 137Cs in winter, whereas the summer air concentration was underestimated by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude. Re-suspension from forests at a constant rate of 10−7 h−1, multiplied by the green area fraction, could explain the air concentration of 137Cs at Namie and its seasonal variation. The simulated contribution of dust re-suspension to the air concentration was 0.7–0.9 in the cold season and 0.2–0.4 in the warm season at both sites; the remainder of the contribution was re-suspension from forest. The re-suspension mechanisms, especially through the forest ecosystems, remain unknown. This is the first study that provides a crude estimation of the long-term assessment of radiocesium re-suspension. Additional research activities should investigate the processes/mechanisms governing the re-suspension over the long term. This could be achieved through conducting additional field experiments and numerical simulations.

Large-scale decontamination work has been carried out in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station accident in Japan in 2011. The soil that was removed and the wastes that were generated during the decontamination will be finally disposed of outside Fukushima Prefecture by 2045. To ensure successful and socially acceptable implementation of this final disposal process, it is essential to have a good understanding of what is considered important by the public. We used a choice-based conjoint analysis in the form of a web-based questionnaire to examine the relative importance of several factors in the choice of the final disposal sites of the removed soil and incinerated ash of the wastes. The questionnaires covered four attributes and 12 levels, namely the distance between the disposal site and a person’s residential area, procedural fairness (decision process), distributive fairness (direct mitigation of inequity through multiple siting locations), and the volume and radioactivity of the substances to be disposed. Responses were received from 4000 people nationwide, excluding Fukushima residents. The results showed that the respondents gave high importance to choosing sites that were far from residential areas and to the two types of fairness, especially distributive fairness. The respondents showed no preference for the volume and radioactivity. This indicates that the public cares about the fairness of the siting for the final disposal sites and feels uncomfortable with plans for a final disposal site located close to them. Distributive fairness is necessary to pursue consensus in addition to procedural fairness.

Background As a part of the decontamination process after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident of 2011, 1.32 million tonnes of tritium-containing water will be discharged from the power plant into the Pacific Ocean. Although radiobiological impacts of the treated water discharge on the public and the environment were reported to be minimal, Tomioka and Okuma locals expressed unease regarding the long-term recovery of their towns, which are economically dependent on the agricultural, fishery, and tourism sectors. This study presents thoughts, perceptions and concerns of Tomioka and Okuma locals regarding the discharge of FDNPP-treated water containing tritium into the Pacific Ocean to facilitate a more inclusive decision-making process that respects local stakeholder interests. Methods Conducted from November to December 2022, surveys were mailed to current residents and evacuees aged 20 years or older registered with the town councils. Results Out of 1268 included responses, 71.5% were from those > 65 years. 65.6% were unemployed, 76.2% routinely visited hospitals, and 85.5% did not live with children. 61% did not want to return to Okuma/Tomioka. Anxiety about radiation-related health effects (38.7%), consuming food produced in Okuma/Tomioka (48.0%) and genetic effects (45.3%) were low. >50% reported poor physical and mental health. 40% were acceptive, 31.4% were unsure, and 29.7% objected to the discharge plans. Multinomial regression analysis revealed that, compared to acceptive responders, those who objected were more likely to be female, unemployed, and have anxiety about radiation-related genetic effects and poor mental health. Unsure responders were similarly more likely to be female, anxious about radiation-related genetic effects and have poor mental health. Conclusion The poor mental health of the locals, connected to high levels of risk perception and anxiety about the loss of economic opportunities related to the discharge plans, must be addressed. The 30-year discharge process could handicap local industries and hamper post-disaster socioeconomic recovery due to the circulation of false rumours among consumers. These results highlight the need to actively involve residents in the towns’ recovery process to address local concerns. The focus should be on the judicious combination of transparent science with the human aspect of recovery and narratives highlighting dialogues between local stakeholders and experts to enable the locals and the general public to make informed decisions about their protection and future.

The unexpected accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in Japan, which occurred on March 11th, 2011, after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami struck the north-eastern coast of Japan, released radionuclides into the environment. Today, because of the amounts of radionuclides released and their relatively long half-life, the levels of radiocesium contaminating foodstuffs remain a significant food safety concern. Foodstuffs in Japan have been sampled and monitored for 134,137 Cs since the accident. More than 2.5 million samples of foodstuffs have been examined with the results reported monthly during each Japanese fiscal year (FY, from April 1 st to March 31 st ) from 2012 to 2021. A total of 5,695 samples of foodstuffs within the “general foodstuffs” category collected during this whole period and 13 foodstuffs within the “drinking water including soft drinks containing tea as a raw material” category sampled in FY 2012 were found to exceed the Japanese maximum permitted level (JML) set at 100 and 10 Bq/kg, respectively. No samples from the “milk and infant foodstuffs” category exceeded the JML (50 Bq/kg). The annual proportions of foodstuffs exceeding the JML in the “general foodstuffs” category varied between 0.37% and 2.57%, and were highest in FY 2012. The 134,137 Cs concentration for more than 99% of the foodstuffs monitored and reported has been low and not exceeding the JML in recent years, except for those foodstuffs that are difficult to cultivate, feed or manage, such as wild mushrooms, plants, animals and fish. The monitoring data for foodstuffs show the current status of food safety risks from 134,137 Cs contamination, particularly for cultured and aquaculture foodstuffs on the market in Japan.

Resettlement to their radiation-contaminated hometown could be an option for people displaced at the time of a nuclear disaster; however, little information is available on the safety implications of these resettlement programs. Kawauchi village, located 12-30 km southwest of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, was one of the 11 municipalities where mandatory evacuation was ordered by the central government. This village was also the first municipality to organize the return of the villagers. To assess the validity of the Kawauchi villagers' resettlement program, the levels of internal Cesium (Cs) exposures were comparatively measured in returnees, commuters, and non-returnees among the Kawauchi villagers using a whole body counter. Of 149 individuals, 5 villagers had traceable levels of Cs exposure; the median detected level was 333 Bq/body (range, 309-1050 Bq/kg), and 5.3 Bq/kg (range, 5.1-18.2 Bq/kg). Median annual effective doses of villagers with traceable Cs were 1.1 x 10(-2) mSv/y (range, 1.0 x 10(-2)-4.1 x 10(-2) mSv/y). Although returnees had higher chances of consuming locally produced vegetables, Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel test showed that their level of internal radiation exposure was not significantly higher than that in the other 2 groups (p=0.643). The present findings in Kawauchi village imply that it is possible to maintain internal radiation exposure at very low levels even in a highly radiation-contaminated region at the time of a nuclear disaster. Moreover, the risks for internal radiation exposure could be limited with a strict food control intervention after resettlement to the radiation-contaminated village. It is crucial to establish an adequate number of radio-contaminated testing sites within the village, to provide immediate test result feedback to the villagers, and to provide education regarding the importance of re-testing in reducing the risk of high internal radiation exposure.

The identification of thyroid cancers among children after the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident propelled concerns regarding long-term radiation effects on thyroid cancer in children affected by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident in Fukushima, Japan. Herein we consider the potential association between absorbed dose in the thyroid and the risk of developing thyroid cancer as detected by ultrasonography on 300 473 children and adolescents aged 0–18 years in Fukushima. The absorbed dose mentioned in the present study indicates the sum of that from external exposure and that from internally deposited radionuclides. We grouped participants according to estimated absorbed doses in each of 59 municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture, based on The United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) 2013 report. The 59 municipalities were assigned to quartiles by dose. We limited our analyses to participants aged ≥6 years because only one case of thyroid cancer was observed in participants aged ≤5 years; 164 299 participants were included in the final analysis. Compared with the lowest dose quartile, the age- and sex-adjusted rate ratios (95% confidence intervals) for the low-middle, high-middle and highest quartiles were 2.00 (0.84–4.80), 1.34 (0.50–3.59) and 1.42 (0.55–3.67) for the 6–14-year-old groups and 1.99 (0.70–5.70), 0.54 (0.13–2.31) and 0.51 (0.12–2.15) for the >15-year-old group, respectively. No dose-dependent pattern emerged from the geographical distribution of absorbed doses by municipality, as estimated by UNSCEAR, and the detection of thyroid cancer among participants within 4–6 years after the accident. Ongoing surveillance might further clarify the effects of low-dose radiation exposure on thyroid cancer in Fukushima.