TOKYO, Nov. 3, 2024—Dozens of years and how to dispose of high radioactive substances await for completion, but on Nov. 2, 2024, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) said its engineers succeeded in their experimental extraction of a fraction of highly radioactive debris from one of the out-of-control reactors of Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power station.
TEPCO pulled out less than 3 grams of debris at 09:50 a.m., Nov. 2, putting the substance in a special container for moving it out of the power station to gauze its radiation levels and other data to ensure safe storage outside the compound.
The successful extraction paves the way for taller tasks over the years and/or decades to come as the Fukushima nuclear power station is sitting on an estimated 880 tons of nuclear fuel debris, which is believed to be compounds of concrete and metals that melted in extraordinary heat in the reactors.
TEPCO and the Japanese government must figure out how to extract debris by much larger quantities, reduce radioactivity, how and where to dispose of it.
The work has been delayed since the scheduled start period of 2021 because of defective cameras and other mechanical issues.
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