英字新聞
読売、毎日、朝日各社英字新聞の主として社説を学習研究します

１０年以上かかるのではないでしょうか。
腰を据えてかかる必要があります。
放射性物質の処理技術、処理施設は大規模で開発・誘致すればよいです。
新エネルギー開発プロジェクトの推進と同時に実行すれば、
失業問題だけは一気に解決するでしょう。
（スラチャイ）

(Mainichi Japan) June 18, 2011
Mountain of problems still remains before Fukushima plant brought under control
社説：原発工程表　課題は山積したままだ

One cannot help but wonder how far efforts being made by the national government and Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) to bring the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant under control have progressed.
　福島第１原発は事故収束に向け、いったい何合目付近にいるのか。

Two months have passed since TEPCO first unveiled a roadmap for bringing the crippled plant under control, but various problems that have occurred since then show the roadmap was overly optimistic.
東京電力の工程表が示されてから２カ月。当初の見通しの甘さが次々と明らかになり、先の見えない状況が続いている。

Uncertainty over the current state of the power plant and when it could be brought under control continues to disrupt the lives of locals.
　原発の現状把握と収束の見通しの不透明さは、周辺の人々の暮らしも揺さぶり続けている。

Many people probably wonder whether the wisdom and power of Japan and the rest of the world are effectively being brought together and applied in the ongoing efforts at the plant.
日本の総力、世界の知恵が現場に結集されているのか、不安に思う人も多いだろう。

The government and TEPCO recently announced updated roadmaps on bringing the Fukushima plant under control and supporting people affected by it, and they talked about how far measures in the roadmaps have been implemented.
　政府や東電は工程表の改定と進捗（しんちょく）状況を公表したが、

However, they should also give a more general overview of the current situation of the nuclear power station and the outlook for stabilization of the plant, not just talk about specific measures.
個別の対策だけでなく、現状と見通しの全体像を示してほしい。

It would also be good to give an updated assessment of the level of risk involving the plant.
現在の原発のリスクがどの程度なのかも、改めて示すべきではないか。

At the Fukushima plant, of great concern now is how to treat radioactive water collected in the reactor and turbine buildings.
　現時点の大きな懸念材料は、原子炉建屋やタービン建屋にたまっている放射性物質で汚染された水の処理だ。

The massive volume of the water, which is estimated to be at over 100,000 cubic meters, is obstructing work at the plant, and if removal of the contaminated water is delayed, it could leak into the ground around the structures or into the sea.
総量は１０万立方メートルを超すとみられ、現場での作業を阻む。処理が遅れると、汚染水が建屋周辺や海に漏れ出してしまう恐れがある。

TEPCO has been setting up a system that includes parts from French and U.S. makers to decontaminate the radioactive water and return it to the reactors, which would allow cooling of the nuclear fuel without bringing in water from the outside, which could leak and increase the amount of trapped radioactive water.
　東電は汚染水を浄化して原子炉に戻す「循環注水冷却システム」の構築をフランスや米国の装置を組み合わせながら進めてきた。
汚染水を増やさずに核燃料を冷却する苦肉の策だが、

However, running of the system has been delayed after a water leak and other problems.
装置の水漏れなどで稼働が遅れ続けた。

Further delay-causing problems could occur if TEPCO does not first ferret out and correct their root causes.
　たび重なるトラブルの根本的な原因がどこにあるのか。きちんと解明した上でこの先の冷却システムの構築を進めないと、さらに作業が遅れる恐れがある。

Furthermore, although the water circulation system has started now, how long should it be run?
　循環注水冷却システムが稼働しても、それをいつまで続ければいいのか。

It is also not clear what officials mean when they refer to stability of the plant, when we have not only a meltdown in the inner containment vessels, but the possibility of melted fuel having made its way to the outer containment vessels.
メルトダウンどころか、溶融燃料が格納容器にまで漏れ出している可能性がある中で、「原発の安定」が何を意味するのかも、もうひとつはっきりしない。

Dealing with the highly radioactive waste sludge that will be left after cleansing the radioactive water is another problem, and since Japan is encountering this and other issues with the nuclear disaster for the first time, work has had to start from the research and development phase.
　汚染水処理の後に残る高濃度の汚泥の処理も難題だ。初めての経験だけに研究開発から始めなくてはならない。

According to the roadmap, TEPCO will aim to store the radioactive sludge and will evaluate the construction of shielding walls to keep radioactive water from contaminating nearby groundwater and nearby sea in mid-July or later, but the utility and the government should take quicker action.
工程表は、汚泥の保管・管理や、地下水による海の汚染を防ぐ遮蔽（しゃへい）壁の検討を７月中旬以降の課題と位置づけたが、もっと早い対応が必要ではないか。

Measures to minimize nuclear plant workers' exposure to radiation and improve their medical care have been incorporated into the updated roadmap and are important steps needed to support workers at the plant for the years to come.
　今回、新たに工程表に盛り込まれた作業員の放射線管理と医療体制の改善は、今後、何年にもわたる作業を続けるための要でもある。

Workers who had internal exposure to high levels of radiation were recently revealed, but it was months after their exposure.
今ごろになって高い内部被ばくが明らかになってきているが、

The government and TEPCO need to speed up full measurements of workers' exposures to radiation and efforts to minimize their exposure.
もっと迅速に全身測定と被ばく管理を進めるべきだ。

Another problem is that the evacuation of residents near the power plant is still confused.
　周辺住民の避難対策も混乱が続いている。

Although it is important to take care of residents near "hot spots" -- areas of relatively high levels of radiation including ones far from the plant -- the government also needs to give clear guidance to residents in areas that fall under designated evacuation zones while only having had low levels of radiation detected.
避難区域以外でも局所的に線量の高いホットスポット地域の対策は重要だが、一方で、緊急時避難準備区域に指定されながら線量の低い地域の対策も急がれる。

The central government and TEPCO may not have changed the time frames for their roadmaps, but the fact is that a massive number of issues remain to be addressed before the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant is brought under control.
　政府も東電も工程表の目標達成時期を変えていないが、課題は山積したままだ。

毎日新聞　2011年6月18日　2時32分