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Cold shutdown possible at Fukushima

TOKYO, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- The earthquake-damaged Fukushima nuclear reactors could be placed in cold shutdown this year, Japanese officials say.

The government said Tokyo Electric Power Co., which owns the reactor, has speeded up its timetable for the plant, The Yomiuri Shimbun reported.

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Officials said Thursday radiation levels and the temperature at the bottom of the reactors are already below those necessary for cold shutdown. The reactor temperature must be below 100 degrees Centigrade or 212 degrees Fahrenheit, the point at which water boils at sea level.

The March quake, which measured 9 on the Richter scale, was followed by a devastating tsunami.

Two studies published last week in the U.S. journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences mapped radioactive soil contamination in the area around the plant, the Los Angeles Times reported. The maps can help officials decide which areas can be farmed without removing soil, which will require extensive decontamination and must be left untouched.

Much of western and northwestern Japan were shielded from radiation by mountains, scientists said. But soil in the area around the plant is so radioactive that anything grown there would be dangerous.

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