The National Academies of Sciences report on Fukushima, mandated by the US Congress, was released recently.  The focus of this report is on lessons learned that can improve safety at U.S. nuclear power plants. Among many recommendations  is one that the NRC and the U.S. nuclear industry must continuously monitor and maintain a strong safety culture and should examine opportunities to increase the transparency of and communication about their efforts to assess and improve nuclear safety.

Also addressed was the need to have radiation monitoring instruments available for rapid deployment in the event of an emergency, with a request for plant operators to consider deploying monitoring instrumentation beyond the 10 mile evacuation zones.  The report is thick, but packed with good information available here. 

In a related event on post Fukushima Daiichi transparency in Japan, the Asahi Shimbun reports on interviews with a top former Kansai Electric Power Executive on secret payments to government officials to promote the nuclear industry.  Read the article here.