Appeal from Japan to worldwide civil organizations concerning stabilization of Fukushima Daiichi Unit 4 high-level radioactive waste

Workers (in white radiation protection suits, beneath damaged girders overhead) beside surface of elevated high-level radioactive waste storage pool at Fukushima Daiichi Unit 4Green Action Kyodo, Shut Tomari Now!, and 70 additional Japanese civil organizations have launched an international petition requesting United Nations intervention to stabilize the Fukushima Daiichi Unit 4 irradiated nuclear fuel storage pool (see photo, left). For over a year now, the entire Unit 4 reactor building, including its high-level radioactive waste storage pool, has been listing in the aftermath of the 3/11/11 earthquake, tsunami, meltdowns, and explosions. A strong enough earthquake could topple the pool, or collapse its floor, resulting in loss of the cooling water and a radioactive waste inferno discharging up to 8 times the radioactive Cesium-137 released at Chernobyl. Such a disaster could cause fatal radiation dose rates, necessitating the evacuation of all workers from the entire Fukushima Daiichi site, risking fires in a total of seven high-level radioactive waste storage pools containing 85 times the radioactive Cesium-137 released by Chernobyl.

The Japanese organizers have explained the petition's purpose as: "To urge the United Nations to act on stabilizing the Fukushima Daiichi Unit 4 spent nuclear fuel pool, the further deterioration of which could result in a catastrophic release of radiation with international consequences. We will submit the petition to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and continue to work on gathering international support for stabilizing the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant."

They request organizational signers only at this time. Please sign your group onto this petition, and urge other groups to sign on as well, by visiting the petition's homepage.