Vent facilities to be installed in all Japanese nuclear plants

 The Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan will install vent facilities in all nuclear power plants in Japan.

"Drastic measures" are necessary to maintain the public acceptance of nuclear power, said Makoto Yagi, chairman of the federation.  "We would like to ensure local people have a sense of security by avoiding their long-term evacuation and contamination of the soil as much as possible," he pointed out.

This facilities will enhance the safety of the plants by releasing vapor from reactor containment vessels when pressure inside rises in the event of an accident. It will have a filtering function to remove radioactive substances from vapor before releasing it from the containers.

With the decision to install vent facilities in all domestic nuclear plants, the federation hopes to facilitate public understanding about the restart of reactors idled for checkups, which has met strong local opposition since the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant crippled by the earthquake and tsunami disaster of March 11, 2011, industry watchers said.

Most boiling water reactors in Japan, such as those at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima Daiichi plant, are equipped with vent facilities which, however, have no filtering function.

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