The tsunami and earthquake that hit Japan in March of 2011 caused the nuclear power plant in Fukushima to meltdown, and contaminate the surrounding areas with nuclear radiation. Now, the Tokyo Electric Power Co. is moving forward with a plan to build an underground wall of ice to keep the groundwater from mixing with the contaminated water that was used to cool the nuclear reactors after the meltdown.
The tsunami and earthquake that hit Japan in March of 2011 caused the nuclear power plant in Fukushima to meltdown, and contaminate the surrounding areas with nuclear radiation.
Now, the Tokyo Electric Power Co. is moving forward with a plan to build an underground wall of ice to keep the groundwater from mixing with the contaminated water that was used to cool the nuclear reactors after the accident.
The project to build a frozen wall that spans around point 9 miles of land is slated to begin in June with the help of government funding.
They are going to put a system of pipes carrying liquid coolant into the ground to make a perimeter of permafrost around the power plant buildings, which should keep the groundwater out and contain the radioactive water.
There are still many technical considerations to make before the project can move forward, because although similar applications have worked before, they were all smaller than the plan for Fukushima.
Areas around the plant are still off limits and are too dangerous because of high radiation levels.
Another tactic to reduce the amount of radioactive water that the Tokyo Electric Power Co. just started using last week is a system that allows the local groundwater to flow directly into the ocean.
