The IAEA has reported that they have been informed by Japanese authorities that the lowest state of emergency (Article 10*) at the Onagawa nuclear power plant has been reported by Tohoku Electric Power Company, but that the three boiling water reactor units at the Onagawa nuclear power plant. which are newer than the Fukushima units, are under control and are not experiencing cooling problems.
The alert was declared because radioactivity readings exceeding allowed levels in the area surrounding the plant were detected. At this point it is not known if the radioactivity originated in the Onagawa reactors or elsewhere.
*Article 10 (1) of Japan’s Act on Special Measures Concerning Nuclear Emergency Preparedness
When a nuclear emergency preparedness manager has been notified
that a radiation dose above the limit specified by a Cabinet Order has been
detected, pursuant to the provisions of a Cabinet Order, near the border of an
area where the nuclear site is located or has discovered such fact for him/herself,
he/she shall, pursuant to the provisions of an ordinance of the competent ministry
and the nuclear operator emergency action plan, immediately notify the
competent minister, the competent prefectural governor, the competent mayor of
a municipality and the related neighboring prefectural governors (in the case of
the occurrence of an event pertaining to transport outside the nuclear site, the
competent minister, and a prefectural governor and the mayor of a municipality
who have jurisdiction over the place where said event has occurred) to that effect.
In this case, the competent prefectural governor and the related neighboring
prefectural governors shall notify the mayors of related surrounding
municipalities to that effect.
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