Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


    February 01, 2012

New Leak at Japan Nuclear Plant

   VOA News
   The crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant's No.4 reactor
   building is seen after the removal of debris on the upper side of the
   unit in Fukushima prefecture, January 5, 2012
   Photo: Reuters
   The crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant's No.4 reactor
   building is seen after the removal of debris on the upper side of the
   unit in Fukushima prefecture, January 5, 2012

   Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant has once again sprung a
   leak, releasing more than eight tonnes of potentially radioactive
   water.
   However, officials at the Tokyo Electric Power Company or TEPCO, which
   operates the plant, said Wednesday none of the water has flowed outside
   the nuclear complex.
   TEPCO says a pipe in the Number 4 reactor broke on Tuesday night,
   possibly because of the below-freezing temperatures. They said the leak
   was discovered quickly and stopped by closing a valve.
   The Fukushima-Daiichi powerplant was crippled by a major earthquake and
   tsunami that struck Japan last March. The meltdown triggered was the
   world's worst nuclear crisis since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, and
   eroded public confidence in Japan's nuclear power industry.
   All but three of Japan's remaining 54 nuclear reactors have been shut
   down for safety checks, and the government has abandoned its plan to
   generate more than 50 percent of its energy from nuclear power by 2030.
   The Japanese cabinet approved legislation Tuesday that would create a
   new nuclear watchdog agency and limit a nuclear reactor's operational
   lifespan to 40 years. One of the reactors at the crippled Fukushima
   reactor has been operating for 41 years.