Lessons Learned from the Accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station: Nuclear Security Perspectives

The nuclear accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (NPS), or Fukushima Accident, was caused by the devastating tsunami associated with the Great East Japan Earthquake. It demonstrated that total station blackout and loss of core cooling and spent fuel pool cooling should be prevented at the time of natural disasters. At the same time, it became clear that a similar extensive nuclear accident could be caused by a terrorist attack on vital equipment that is essential for maintaining NPS power supply, core cooling and spent fuel pool cooling. Thus the Advisory Committee on Nuclear Security (ACNS), established in December 2006 under the Atomic Energy Commission of Japan (JAEC), initiated the review of Fukushima Accident to extract lessons learned from nuclear security perspectives and made a report to JAEC in November 2011, summarizing the result of its review and recommending appropriate measures to overcome nuclear security vulnerabilities that have been identified by Fukushima Accident. This paper presents the content of the ACNS report and the response of the relevant Japanese Government agencies and licensees to its recommendations.