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If there had been no tsunami would the Japanese Fukushima nuclear plants be operating today?

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If the quake disabled the plant (as some reports suggest) by damaging the containment vessel, probably no. But that is a topic of politics or justice and not physics. – whoplisp Jul 23 '11 at 18:43
I have read that all the reactors SCRAMed successfully, and none of the reactors were damaged, so thare was no fundamental reason they could not have fired back up again. Damaged containment structures would constitute a saftey/regulatory reason for the affected reactor to go into full shutdown awaiting repairs. – dmckee♦ Jul 23 '11 at 19:05
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BTW---Welcome to Physics.SE! We entertained some Fukushima related questions in the immediate aftermath of the event, but I don't see this question as being about physics as such. I know, this site seems like the best match on Stack Exchange, but that does not mean the question is on topic. – dmckee♦ Jul 23 '11 at 19:13
Sorry to comment on a closed question, but just wanted to note that the SCRAMing wasn't successful: there were meltdowns in several reactors. That's why workers there have spent months risking their lives to bring and keep the reactors under control. NHK World provides ongoing information in English, for anyone interested. – EnergyNumbers Jul 24 '11 at 8:05
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The SCRAMs were successful in the sense that the chain reactions stopped. The fuel melted because the residual decay heat (which is unavoidable) couldn't be dissipated with the cooling systems off-line. – Scott Carnahan Jul 24 '11 at 8:15

closed as off topic by dmckee♦ Jul 23 '11 at 19:05

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