Qualla: Shika Nuclear Power Plant

Shika Nuclear Power Plant: Introduction

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Hirorinmasa, CC BY-SA 3.0. For fifteen minutes on June 18, 1999, a nuclear reactor on the coast of Japan's Noto Peninsula ran out of control, and nobody outside the plant was told. Three control rods fell out of position by accident during an inspection at Unit 1 of the Shika Nuclear Power Plant, triggering an unintended self-sustaining fission chain reaction. Operators regained control, logged what had happened, and then buried the records. The cover-up held for nearly eight years. It was not until March 15, 2007, that Hokuriku Electric Power Company admitted the truth, after the national Nuclear and Industrial Safety Authority ordered all power plant operators to review their records for unreported incidents. By then, the Shika plant had already become a case study in the gap between what nuclear operators know and what the public is told.

Image: Hirorinmasa | CC BY-SA 3.0

Shika Nuclear Power Plant: Built on the Quiet Coast

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit っ, Public domain. The Shika Nuclear Power Plant sits on a 395-acre site in the town of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, facing the Sea of Japan on the western coast of the Noto Peninsula. Construction of Unit 1 began on July 1, 1989, and took three years. The reactor achieved its first criticality on N...

Image: っ | Public domain

Shika Nuclear Power Plant: Fifteen Minutes of Silence

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Hirorinmasa, CC BY-SA 3.0. The 1999 criticality incident was classified, once it finally came to light in 2007, as an INES Level 2 event, meaning it was a significant safety concern but did not release radiation outside the plant. Three of the reactor's 89 control rods moved out of position due to mistaken...

Image: Hirorinmasa | CC BY-SA 3.0

Shika Nuclear Power Plant: After Fukushima

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Gtogk, CC BY-SA 4.0. The 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster changed everything for Japan's nuclear industry, and Shika was no exception. Both units were temporarily shut down in March 2011 to undergo safety upgrades mandated by new regulations. Construction of a reinforced concrete seawall began...

Image: Gtogk | CC BY-SA 4.0

Shika Nuclear Power Plant: The Earth Shakes

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Atsasebo, CC BY-SA 3.0. On January 1, 2024, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck the Noto Peninsula, the most powerful quake to hit the region in recorded memory. The Shika plant, though offline, was the closest nuclear facility to the epicenter. More than 400 liters of water sloshed from spent fuel pools ...

Image: Atsasebo | CC BY-SA 3.0