Job Openings for Olympic Construction and Interim Storage Facilities
If you had to choose just one construction site currently under construction in Japan as the most important one, which site would you pick?
Is it the Chuo Maglev Line, which has been making headlines due to allegations of bid-rigging? Or is it the New National Stadium, designed by Kengo Kuma and currently under construction for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics—a project that has even resulted in suicides?
Or perhaps it’s the Shibuya Station redevelopment project, which is said to happen once every 100 years? No, in Japan—where individualism has taken root from the government to the private sector—some people might say that building their own home is the most important thing.
However, if you asked me, I would say without hesitation that the interim storage facility in Fukushima Prefecture is the most important construction project.
While the sporting event is important, Fukushima—which is working toward recovery—is facing a shortage of construction engineers.
I, too, am technically involved with the interim storage facility, but it is true that there have been various negative news reports regarding the decontamination project. While information restrictions are strict for that reason, I wonder if it’s appropriate to suppress even information that needs to be shared. Wouldn’t that amount to following the bad practices of the construction industry?
With that in mind, I would like to write about the issues surrounding interim storage facilities. I hope to serve as a bridge between the media and general contractors and help alleviate the shortage of engineers at these facilities, even if only slightly.
There are three types of construction projects for interim storage facilities
An interim storage facility is a facility used to store contaminated waste and other materials generated during decontamination work in Fukushima Prefecture. Because the materials are stored there only until they are sent for final disposal, it is referred to as “interim” storage; it serves as a destination for decontaminated soil and other materials currently held at temporary storage sites.
Geographically, we are proceeding with construction in Ōkuma and Futaba Towns, which surround the site of the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, where the explosion occurred. Some people suggest placing it near the National Diet building, but that is, of course, a bad joke.
Construction work on interim storage facilities can be broadly divided into the following three categories.
- Development and Construction of Waste Reception and Sorting Facilities
- Development and Construction of Waste Volume Reduction Facilities
- Construction Management for the Transportation of Decontamination Waste
The two earthwork projects mentioned above involve what are commonly referred to as cut and fill operations, and are no different from general civil engineering work. However, there are times when we wear Tyvek suits.
The job duties are something that anyone with general civil engineering experience can handle, and since heavy equipment is also used, civil engineering projects don’t require that many workers.
As for construction work, since manufacturers often oversee the installation of conveyor belts and other tasks, there is not a significant shortage of construction workers.
The area where the labor shortage is most severe is the third category: “Transportation and Construction Management of Decontamination Waste.”
Job Opening for Transportation and Construction Management at an Interim Storage Facility
According to the Ministry of the Environment, the volume of decontamination waste scheduled for transport to interim storage facilities amounts to approximately 14 million cubic meters. Furthermore, there are a total of 321 temporary storage sites, including temporary temporary storage sites and temporary storage locations.
As of July 31, 2018, 102 temporary storage sites had completed the removal of materials. This means that decontaminated soil and other materials must still be removed from the remaining 219 temporary storage sites.
Since at least one construction supervisor is required for each temporary storage site, a total of 219 construction supervisors will be needed—though this figure represents the cumulative number. Furthermore, decontamination work is still ongoing in some areas, and the number of temporary storage sites is increasing in those areas.
Looking at the status of transportation as of August 28, 2018, only 8% has been delivered so far. There is an extreme labor shortage. Furthermore, the work at the interim storage facility—unlike conventional decontamination work—cannot be performed by amateurs who have only dabbled in construction.
The Role of Interim Storage Facilities: Ensuring Decontamination Waste Doesn't Go Missing
The scope of work for “Transport and Construction Management of Decontamination Waste” can be broadly categorized into the following two types of work.
- Responsible for removing waste from temporary storage sites throughout Fukushima Prefecture
- Person in Charge of Receiving Materials at the Interim Storage Facility
Both loading and unloading are essentially the same process.
Since waste generated during decontamination is tracked individually with tags, when it is removed from the temporary storage site, the barcode is scanned, and the construction supervisor signs off on the iPad. After that, the transport vehicle loaded with the decontamination waste departs for the interim storage facility.
Ensuring safety during loading is a standard part of the job, but since there are four or five representatives from the client side—such as the Ministry of the Environment and JESCO—stationed at each temporary storage site, part of the job involves dealing with government officials regarding any issues that arise during transport. It’s very challenging because the client’s policies change constantly, and the construction plan is practically nonexistent.
And above all, the one thing a field supervisor must never do is allow decontamination waste to go missing.
Just the other day, there was a television report (August 1, 2018) about a subcontractor of a major general contractor that buried decontamination waste outside of designated sites, raising suspicions of a violation of the “Act on Special Measures Concerning the Handling of Radioactive Contamination.” Although this incident involved the demolition of a house prior to the waste being transported to a temporary storage site, strict management is essential when transporting decontamination waste to and from such sites.
Job Description for Decontamination Waste Transportation and Construction Management
To be honest, the work involved in “transport and construction management of decontamination waste” itself isn’t complicated.
However, it’s a real challenge because huge sums of money are changing hands within such a small area, and there are also bad practices and prejudices in the construction industry, which remains stuck in the past.
There are also instances where workers lack a sense of responsibility. For example, they might discard masks and work gloves used during decontamination at nearby convenience stores, or walk into stores while still wearing muddy work boots. Raising workers’ awareness of proper conduct is part of the job. If site supervisors are lax in their oversight, it can lead to the illegal dumping of decontamination waste, as has been reported in the news.
Some people mistakenly believe that because they have experience with decontamination work, they are also capable of managing transportation and construction projects, but that is a major mistake.
Since construction managers must oversee the site with a small staff—including handling communications with clients—we require candidates with experience in construction management for large-scale projects, as well as those with backgrounds at general contractors, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, NEXCO, and similar organizations.
Are there any motivated engineers out there in Japan who would like to work in transportation and construction management for an interim storage facility?
