Nov 08 (Japan Times) - Small amounts of radioactive cesium were detected on a glove of a worker at an nuclear facility in Aomori Prefecture last month, Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. said Thursday.
However, as the worker was not himself exposed to any radiation and none was recorded outside the building, it is believed the cesium was the result of a previous leak.
The company suspects the cesium leaked from a container of high-level radioactive liquid waste in July 2010 at the spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant, which has yet to start operations. In the previous incident, a facility worker was exposed to radiation.
According to a report submitted to the Nuclear Regulation Authority, a trace of cesium was detected on Oct. 27 on the glove of the worker, who was working on the second floor of the building.
Japan Nuclear Fuel said it found radioactive contamination at three spots on the same floor, adding the spots had since been cleaned up.
The authority instructed the company to conduct a probe into the latest incident, saying it is obvious that it failed to conduct sufficient decontamination work when the 2010 incident occurred.
