. >>> power e lelectric crews nee to remove hundreds of spent fuel rods. it's a process that's expected to take 40 years. >> translator: the state of emgency is over and we're now in a transition phase with efforts focused on decommissioning. the government will do all it can to help speed up this process. >> during the initial decommissioning phases tepco workers are need to remove the spent fuel. the first part will begin this year. they plan to start in mid-november and complete the process in december 2014, a year earlier than initially scheduled. they want to remove the rods as soon as possible because of concerns about the storage pools quake resistance. high radiation levels will make it difficult to proceed. workers have faced other challenges. last september they accidentally dropped a 470 kilogram into reactor three spent fuel storage pool. that set them back nearly three months. it will be harder to figure out how to remove the melted fuel. managers plan to complete that process in ten years. to meet their deadline they need to have a preliminar