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URGE PRESIDENT OBAMA TO ACT FORCEFULLY AND ACT NOW TO PREVENT A SECOND FUKUSHIMA DISASTER
May 10, 2012
Dear Friends,
The situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear site remains perilous. The area has been hit with hundreds of earthquakes since the March 11 Great Earthquake and Tsunami that led to the destruction of four reactors and caused release of massive amounts of radiation. The cooling system for all four damaged reactors is jerry-rigged, shaky, and prone to leaks.
Of particular concern is the stability of the irradiated fuel pool at Unit 4, which alone contains about 10 times the amount of radioactive Cesium-137 as was released in the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Today, NIRS met with Kuniko Tanioka, a member of Japan's Parliament, who told us, for example, that the cooling system for the Unit 4 pool recently was broken for 26 hours, with virtually no mention by the media anywhere in the world.
Please urge President Obama to take forceful action now to prevent a new catastrophe at Fukushima.
As Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) put it following his recent visit to Fukushima Daiichi, “The scope of damage to the plants and to the surrounding area was far beyond what I expected and the scope of the challenges to the utility owner, the government of Japan, and to the people of the region are daunting. The precarious status of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear units and the risk presented by the enormous inventory of radioactive materials and spent fuel in the event of further earthquake threats should be of concern to all and a focus of greater international support and assistance.”
Our colleagues in Japan are calling for immediate assistance from the United Nations and establishment of a Nuclear Safety Summit to address the Unit 4 issue. They are seeking support from organizations across the world. If you represent an organization, please provide your support here.
But the United States shouldn't wait for the UN to act--we should begin providing substantive assistance now. All individuals and organizations: Please sign the petition to President Obama and urge him to act now and act forcefully to avert a second catastrophe at Fukushima.
Thanks for all you do,
Michael Mariotte
Executive Director
Nuclear Information and Resource Service
nirsnet@nirs.org
www.nirs.org
P.S. your activism and financial support are what keeps us going. Seriously. Please make a tax-deductible contribution here or after you sign the petition and help us keep doing this essential work.
Have you sent in a letter opposing a second term for nuclear industry-backed NRC Commissioner Kristine Svinicki yet? More than 9,000 letters have been sent to the Senate so far, make sure you send yours too! Act here: http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5502/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=10423
Stay Informed:
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