Japan pledges over $470mn to remedy Fukushima nuclear crisis

The government is to spend "tens of billions" of yen to deal with the water crisis after the beleaguered operator of the plant, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), stated it discovered another radiation center, Trade and Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said in a televised interview. "Tokyo Electric has been playing a game of whack-a-mole with problems at the site."

A package of new measures on how to deal with the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima plant, which was besieged by a massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011, are set to be announced on Tuesday.

The total amount pledged is set at 47 billion yen ($473 million), according to Japanese media.

The package includes the construction of a massive underground wall worth US$320,000 to contain groundwater flows. The building of the wall will entail freezing a perimeter of earth around the damaged reactors to stop the groundwater mixing with water being used to cool the melted fuel rods.

Another US$150,000 will be spent on a new system that would dramatically decrease radiation levels in the contaminated water.

source rt.com