In September 2013, chief nuclear officers (CNOs) representing companies that operate U.S. commercial nuclear energy facilities spent a week in Japan, where they engaged in dialogue with their Japanese colleagues and toured Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Daiichi and Daini sites. Twenty-three CNOs toured the facilities, met with the Japan Nuclear Safety Institute and held a day-long exchange with CNOs representing all the nuclear electric utilities in Japan.

1. U.S. Chief Nuclear Officers
Historic Visit to Japan
September 9-13, 2013

2. Chief Nuclear Officers from U.S. Nuclear Power
Plants Participated in a Historic Exchange

3. Objectives
• See firsthand the consequences of the Fukushima
accident, and interact with Japanese CNO counterparts
• Gain in-depth understanding of strategies that allowed
some reactors to withstand the earthquake/tsunami while
others did not
• Convey to Japanese CNOs the benefits U.S. industry has
gained by working collaboratively to improve nuclear safety
culture
• Enable each U.S. CNO the opportunity to prepare a
personal message for his/her organization reflecting the
Fukushima experience
• Establish an ongoing dialogue with Japanese industry

4. Overview
• Tour Fukushima Daiichi
• Tour Fukushima Daini
• Dialogue with Fukushima operators and
managers on shift on 3/11/11
• Dialogue with Japanese CNOs

5. Memorable Event, Unforgettable Images
• March 11, 2011: Magnitude 9 earthquake occurs
off East coast of Japan triggering multiple
tsunamis, some approaching 50 feet in
height, that overtake Daiichi, Daini sites
• Communities around Daiichi devastated by
earthquake and tsunami; restricted due to
radiological release
• Today, 12 miles of Japanese land is restricted.
Daiichi decommissioning is a 40-year project

6. Fukushima Daiichi 4

7. Fukushima Daiichi Exclusion Zone

8. Contaminated Soil Disposition

9. CNOs at Fukushima Daiichi

10. Lessons Learned for U.S. Industry
• Leadership in a crisis, coupled with the trust and
dedication of a well-trained staff, can determine the
ultimate outcome of a crisis
• Understanding roles and responsibilities, especially in
the areas of command and control and
communications, is essential
• TEPCO’s analysis: “[Daiichi] personnel … were
overwhelmed with handling reports and responding to
outside inquiries, including those from the head
office… The situation did not allow them to
concentrate on their duties.”

11. Lessons Learned for U.S. Industry
• Daini staff laid more than 6 miles of cable to maintain
power to vital safety systems and safely shut down all
reactors
- Without established procedure or pre-staged equipment
- Despite multiple severe aftershocks and additional
tsunami threats
- Often in total darkness
• The Daini story of recovery has not been widely
communicated. Hundreds of Daini personnel remained
on site around the clock for a month following the
devastation. They saved their site and are heroes

12. Lessons Learned for U.S. Industry
• A well-conceived FLEX strategy works. The
strategy developed by U.S. operators is sound
• FLEX strategies must be effectively drilled
across every operating crew and emergency
response team
• Spent fuel storage pools are robust. All pools
at Daiichi and Daini have no problematic
leakage

13. Lessons Learned for U.S. Industry
• U.S. CNO teamwork
and collaboration is a
strength of our
industry.
• APS’ Randy Edington:
“I have every U.S.
CNO on my speed
dial”

14. U.S. CNO Commitments
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We are our sites’ first safety officers
We are collaborators
We are one another’s biggest critics
We are accountable to our industry — starting
with commitment and accountability to one
another