Greg Sosson, one of the top feds at the Department of Energy’s nuclear cleanup office, took part this month in the ninth annual forum on decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in Japan.
The annual gathering brings together international cleanup specialists to discuss nuclear remediation and track the progress of remediation following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident.
“This event brings together such a tremendous wealth of knowledge, expertise and experience from nuclear leaders across the globe,” said Sosson, DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) associate principal deputy assistant secretary for field operations in a Tuesday press release. Sosson spoke during a panel discussion at the forum.
“The Office of Environmental Management values the ongoing collaboration between the U.S. and Japan to solve challenges and share progress in cleanup missions,” Sosson said.
The two-day forum, held in early August, is sponsored by Japan’s Nuclear Damage Compensation & Decommissioning Facilitation Corporation.
The first day of the forum took place in Katsurao, one of the villages that were evacuated during the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident, DOE said in the release. So far, only about 35% of the Katsurao population has returned to their homes.
The reactor meltdown at Fukushima was caused by major earthquake that triggered a tsunami that knocked out the plant’s power supply and cooling systems.