Radioactive FOOD barometer. Uncomfortable Questions in the Wake of Nuclear Accidents at Fukushima and Chernobyl. Twenty nuclear accidents at the official International Nuclear Event Scale of 4 to 7 have occurred between 1952 and 2011 (Lelieveld et al. 2012). The risk of another major accident during the next 50 years is high and it has been estimated that some 30 million people could be directly affected by such an accident (Lelieveld et al. 2012).
The highest risks occur around major metropolises such as New York, Washington, Atlanta, Toronto, Western Europe, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Tokyo and Osaka. The lessons that have emerged from Chernobyl and Fukushima reveal a range of serious questions that must be answered appropriately, above all for the sake of citizens, but also for the credibility of the nuclear industry, and for framing the ongoing debate over energy alternatives. Question 1: Why are nuclear reactors frequently clustered making problems much greater in case of emergencies? How to get to the other reactors if one melts down completely? References: Dengler, L. and Smits, G. 2011. Google Street View Goes To Namie, Japan. Fukushima farmers return to the land | Environment | DW.DE | 25.12.
Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant was hit by a massive earthquke and tsunami on March 11, 2011. A series of explosions released radiation into the atmosphere, devastating the surrounding countryside. Fukushima Prefecture's 70,000 farmers were forced to dump milk and vegetables into pits because they were no longer able to sell their products on the open market. Japan's government estimates it could take as long as 40 years to clean up the farmland around the Fukushima plant. Yoko Sudo attended a Slow Food conference in Italy earlier this year Yoko Sudo was a renowned organic vegetable grower in this region before the meltdown.
Lost crops Sudo is the head of Slow Food Fukushima and an important voice for Japanese farmers affected by the nuclear crisis. "My aunt was an apple-grower and she inspired me to become a farmer and gave me my passion for agriculture," Sudo said in an interview with DW. The accident at the Daiichi nuclear plant changed her life.
Declining trust in government. Rising doubts about Japan's official radiation figures | Asia | DW.DE | 27.02.2013. As the two-year anniversary of the world's second-worst nuclear accident nears, citizen groups are questioning the accuracy of the government's contamination data for the area around the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant. As she watched footage of the first nuclear reactor located in Fukushima Prefecture exploding in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake on March 11, 2012, Yuko Hirono said it felt as if she were watching a movie. "It was unreal - it was hard to believe, but I had to try to make myself believe it and think realistically what I should do to protect myself and my family," she told DW.
"It would have been much easier to react to the situation optimistically, but I tried to be a realist. " 'Not under control' Hirono has since moved to Glasgow with her Scottish husband and their daughter because she believes the situation at that plant is "not under control. " Some Japanese residents believe the situation is still not under control Easily understandable data Overcoming fears.
Video: Plume rising from outside Fukushima reactors. Radiation & Health What's New - TEPCO subcontractor used lead to fake dosimeter readings at Fukushima plant. Replica of lead plate believed to be used to shield dosimiters thus falsifying worker doseWorkers at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant were ordered to cover their dosimeters with lead plates to keep radiation doses low enough to continue working under dangerous conditions, the Asahi Shimbun has learned. Some refused the orders. Others raised questions about their safety and the legality of the practice. But the man in charge, a senior official of a subcontractor of Tokyo Electric Power Co., warned them that they would lose their jobs--and any chance of employment at other nuclear plants--if they failed to comply.
Asahi Shimbun See also Ministry to search for dosimeter shields at Fukushima plant Officials of the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry will search for lead plates that workers at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant used to shield their dosimeters and later discarded on the plant grounds. Children and Health - Deception in Sieverts: how a measure of radiation damage can actually be used to hide damage. According to a research letter published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), levels of internal cesium contamination after Fukushima are “low…much lower than those reported in studies years after the Chernobyl incident”.
However, longer-term, internal exposure to even low levels of cesium can cause a range of diseases and pre-disease conditions, including cancer. The contamination levels found in the people examined in this research are within this range of concern. For this letter to the editor (Tsubokura, et al.) researchers used actual counts of gamma radiation coming from people’s bodies. Roughly, this count per second of gamma (given in the unit Becquerels or Bq) is then divided by the person’s weight, given in kilograms (kg). This gives a whole body count that is used to derive the amount of radioactive cesium inside the person.
Radiation On West Coast of North America Could End Up Being 10 Times HIGHER than in Japan. In 10 Years, Peak Cesium Levels Off West Coast Could Be 10 Times Higher Than at Coast of Japan We’ve extensively documented the fact that ocean currents bring Japanese radiation to the West Coast of North America, and that – rather than adequate ocean dilution - there could be “pockets” and “streams” of highly-concentrated radiation . Joke F Lübbecke of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and 3 scientists from the GEOMAR Research Center for Marine Geosciences poured tracer dye into coastal waters off of Fukushima, and monitored its progress as it traveled to the West Coast of North America, to find out what might really happen.
They have revealed their results in a new paper published by journal . The paper shows that the West Coast of North American could end up with 137 than the coastal waters off of Japan itself. How could radiation levels be lower closer to the source of contamination: Fukushima? The paper explains: L.A. Air Even Hotter with Radiation - EnviroReporter.com. What better thing to do before appearing on NBC G4-TV’s popular international live television show Attack of the Show! Than test the machines cleaning the air as we have done since the Fukushima Daiichi triple meltdowns began devastating Japan March 11, 2011. The producers of the program asked if I could bring a few samples to illustrate what we have been doing over 13 months that the American and Canadian governments stopped doing long ago – checking for Fukushima fallout contamination in North America.
First establishing background in a ten-minute average, the ambient air registered 45.8 Counts Per Minute (CPM) which, as noted before in prior posts and in radio interviews, is high for the Los Angeles Basin’s relative geology and elevation. Typically, radiation backgrounds at sea level and on an alluvial plane will be in the 12 to 15 CPM range. The detection also trumped our last ‘highest’ Los Angeles air reading taken after 42 days use of two HEPA filter machines on March 7, 2012. Arnie Gundersen & Robert Knight: Latest Updates on Fukushima Daiichi. 300 radioactive Japanese cars stopped at Russian border.
Debris from Japan's Tsunami: Some Helpful Info Courtesy of NOAA | Jordan Weaver. Tepco announces live web cam to be removed from location within hours at Fukushima Daiichi — New view near sludge storage facility planned (PHOTOS) Title: Change of Fukuichi Live Camera Location at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Source: Tokyo Electric Power Company Date: July 31, 2012 Fukuichi Live Camera currently installed near the Administration Office Building at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Station has been offering real-time images of mainly Unit 1 and 2 since May 31, 2011. In response to the request from viewers and considering the progress of the cover installation for fuel removal at Unit 4, the camera location will be moved to near the Waste Sludge Temporary Storage Facility (on Unit 4 side).
Starting from 11:00 AM on August 1 (planned)*, real-time images of Unit 4 side of the station will be provided.* Images will be unavailable for about an hour from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM on August 1 due to the switching. Related Posts. Study: Radiation from Fukushima could cause up to 1,300 cancer deaths. Stanford University researchers say that radiation released by the tsunami-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant likely will cause the cancer deaths of 130 Japanese residents—but the cancer death toll could go as high as 1,300. On March 11, 2011, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake shook Japan, triggering a tsunami that killed 20,000 people and crippled the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. To assess the disaster's health impact, researchers used atmospheric modeling to map the trajectories of the radioactive gases released from the plant. They also analyzed data from the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization to predict the health effects of the gases.
The study , which was published in Energy & Environmental Science , determined a large range for the estimated number of cancer cases and cancer deaths because of uncertainties in modeling emissions and projecting health outcomes. Specifically, it determined that the disaster will cause: If it had happened in California. Fukushima: DEADLY RADIATION, TEPCO government Bailout Update 6/27/12. Gundersen: I’ve been working on US West Coast to get testing for radioactivity — Gov’t should either alleviate the fear, or announce the salmon are radioactive (AUDIO) Venting Was A Major Source Of Radioactivity Near Fukushima Plant. Japan/IAEA to Hold Fukushima Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Safety. A team from the IAEA visits the technical support center at the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station during a technical mission on 26 May 2011.
(Photo: G. Webb/IAEA) On 17 February 2012, the Japanese Government announced that it will hold The Fukushima Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Safety, in co-sponsorship with the IAEA. Convening in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, from 15 to 17 December 2012, the Conference will be organized in two sessions. Opening with a Ministerial Session on 15 December 2012, to be followed by technical experts' sessions. The International Ministerial Conference's principal objective is to contribute to strengthening nuclear safety worldwide.
Action Plan After the nuclear accident at TEPCO's Fukushima Nuclear Power Stations on 11 March 2011, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano dispatched an International Experts Fact-Finding Mission to the site of the accident, and convened a Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Safety in Vienna in June 2011. Key Work Areas Transparency. Fukushima Nuclear Accident Update Log. Updates of 2 June 2011 Staff Report → Chronology of Updates:2 June | 12-18 May | 4-11 May | 5 May | 3 May | 2 May | 28 April | 27 April | 26 April | 21 April | 20 April | 19 April | 18 April | 15 April | 14 April | 13 April | 12 April | 11 April | 10 April | 9 April | 8 April | 7 April | 6 April | 5 April | 4 April | 3 April | 2 April | 1 April | 31 March | 30 March | 29 March | 28 March | 27 March | 26 March | 25 March | 24 March | 23 March | 22 March | 21 March | 20 March | 19 March | 18 March | 17 March | 16 March | 15 March | 14 March | 13 March | 12 March | 11 March | Full Update → Important Note on Updates IAEA Briefing on Fukushima Nuclear Accident (2 June 2011, 18:30 UTC) Presentations: → Summary of Reactor Status → Fukushima Radiological Monitoring and Consequences → Fukushima Marine Environment Monitoring → Watch Video On Thursday, 2 June 2011, the IAEA provided the following information on the status of nuclear safety in Japan: 1. 2.
Protective Actions Food Restrictions 3. 4. Warning to North America - Plutonium Risk Grows! FUKUSHIMA: Pacific Ocean Will Not Dilute Dumped Radioactive Water. The operator of the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant has been dumping something like a thousand tons per day of radioactive water into the Pacific ocean. Remember, the reactors are “riddled with meltdown holes”, building 4 – with more radiation than all nuclear bombs ever dropped or tested – is missing entire walls, and building 3 is a pile of rubble.
The whole complex is leaking like a sieve, and the rivers of water pumped into the reactors every day are just pouring into the ocean (with only a slight delay). Most people assume that the ocean will dilute the radiation from Fukushima enough that any radiation reaching the West Coast of the U.S. will be low. For example, the Congressional Research Service wrote in April: Scientists have stated that radiation in the ocean very quickly becomes diluted and would not be a problem beyond the coast of Japan. And a Woods Hole oceanographer said: Specifically, we noted more than a year ago: Here is what the North Pacific Gyre looks like: NPR reports:
Report: U.S. tuna supplies tainted by Fukushima radiation - San Antonio Business Journal. Scientists have found trace elements of radioactive isotopes in Pacific bluefin tuna migrating from coastal Japan to the shores of Southern California, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. The amount of radioactivity in the fish was one-tenth the level scientists in the United States and Japan considered dangerous. However, the study confirmed the long-term impact that the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster is having on the environment even though the tsunami and subsequent nuclear plant damage took place a year ago. Scientists will test for radioactive isotopes on additional migrating bluefin tuna, as well as albacore tuna, sea turtles, and several shark species this summer, the Wall Street Journal also reported. Receive free daily breaking business news direct to your inbox or mobile device. Click on this link to sign up. James Aldridge oversees online content of the newspaper; edits and reports stories for the online edition.
Bluefin tuna found off California coast- radiaiton ten times normal amount. Source: InvernoDreaming via Flickr Caption: Bluefin tuna have been found with levels of radioactivity ten times higher than in previous years Bluefin tuna have made a long trek across the Pacific Ocean, carrying with them radiation levels a reported 10 times higher than in past years as a result of the March 2011 disaster that left Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear reactor badly damaged. The massive bluefin tuna have carried radioactive contamination across 6,000 miles of ocean to the shores of California, according to findings published online Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
This finding is the first time a large migrating fish has been found to carry radioactivity over such a long distance. Smaller fish and plankton have previously been found with elevated levels of radiation in Japanese waters. Nicholas Fisher, one of the researchers with the National Academy of Sciences, who participated in the study said, “We were frankly kind of startled.” Tepco faces $10 billion loss. Tepco's losses have been put at ¥781.6 billion ($9.8 billion) for financial year 2012. About half of this stems from the cost of compensation and cleanup; the other half is from the higher cost of generation in Japan's shaken power market.
Decreases in Japanese electricity use over the year as a result of consumer efforts to conserve power and also a decline in national production activities in the wake of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami led to an 8.6% decrease in electricity sales for the company. Despite an increase in the unit price of electricity, this resulted in a fall of 0.9% in electricity revenues for the company at a time when ordinary expenses shot up by 13.2% over 2010 figures to ¥5802 billion ($72.7 billion).
The company's ordinary loss for the financial year from 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012 was ¥400.4 billion ($5.0 billion), with net losses of ¥781.6 billion ($9.8 billion) when the huge extra expenses of the Fukushima accident are taken into account. Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant Weekly Review. Japan firms want 'safety first' on nuclear restarts: poll.
Fukushima Daiichi: Inside the debacle. Radioactive Bluefin Tuna In U.S. Traced To Japan Nuclear Disaster. Japan farmers plant, pray for radiation-free rice. Japanese government criticized for downplaying nuclear disaster | Asia | DW.DE | 18.04.
Radiation didn't cause Fukushima No. 1 deaths: U.N. Concern in Japan about the possibility of a new explosion in central Fukushima. Three notes on Fukushima: humanities after/in crisis. Small amounts of radiation from Japan reactor found in U.S. Japan Nuclear Operator Examines Risky Unit. Ron Wyden's nuclear field trip. TEPCO: Not Enough Money To Handle Fukushima Nuclear Reactor 4 Problems Sen. Ron Wyden urges Japan to move faster to clean up, contain radioactive danger from stricken nuclear plants. Fukushima’s Unstable and Dangerous Spent Fuel Pools « Bill Totten's Weblog. US senator warns that Fukushima plant cleanup is too slow. Japan raises nuclear threat level as radiation cloud heads for Britain - Earth-issues.com.
Spent Fuel Vulnerability To Extreme Weather Events | Delaware Way. Radioactive Dust From Japan Hit North America 3 Days After Meltdown. Japan's Nuclear Dead Zone Spreads Far and Wide - Fukushima's North Pacific Radioactive Seawater Plume Approaches Alaska! ~ The CELESTIAL Convergence. Individual_and_Group_Radiation_Protection_and_Contamination_Avoidance_index.
Fukushima reactor No. 4 vulnerable to catastrophic collapse; could unleash 85 times Cesium-137 radiation of Chernobyl; human civilization on the brink. Living with radiation a year after Fukushima | Asia | DW.DE | 10.03. Fukushima’s nuclear reactor problems continue. Growing outrage over Washington Post editorial: Thousands are suffering and countless more will die as a result of exposure to Fukushima radiation — Contamination is widespread and growing.
Trivializing Fukushima. New Zealand scientists voice concerns over “most unusual event” in 20 years of studies. Fukushima...radiation so high - even robots not safe. Resources Related to Fukushima Nuclear Crisis. Fukushima - Our Entire Civilization is Hanging by a Thread. iRobot Warrior and PackBot Robots Support U.S. Nuclear Power Plant Operations. Dartmouth scientists track radioactive iodine from Japan nuclear reactor meltdown. America’s Failed Energy Policies and the Reason Why. Tepco Reports Another Radioactive Water Leak at Fukushima Plant. World is ignoring most important lesson from Fukushima nuclear disaster. Tsunami 'ghost ship' sunk by US coastguard | World news. Apr 6: Possible Fukushima Leak Renews Concerns About Plant’s Stability at Sanhati. Thousands stage Japan anti-nuclear protest. Something Fishy: CRS Report Downplays Fukushima’s Effect on US Marine Environment | capitoilette.
Fukushima daiichi nuclear plant « Radioactive fallout in the United States due to the Fukushima nuclear plant accident - Journal of Environmental Monitoring. After 500 Years in Family, Rice Farmers Forced Off Land by Fukushima | PBS NewsHour | March 12, 2012. Peter C. Burns: The Future of Nuclear Energy: Living with the Risk of Meltdowns.
SLO County details emergency plans. Fukushima, Europe's nuclear test. Update 1-Khan Resources hits hurdle in ARMZ litigation. Canadian province lifts uranium mining moratorium in Labrador. Big Dollars for Big Land Exploration | Article. Fukushima nuclear disaster is a lesson for India: PUCL. Radioactive Water from Fukushima Nuke Plant Leaks into Pacific Ocean. Reporter Works At Fukushima, Exposes Real Situation At The Plant. Fukushima and nuclear power, 9 months on. ‘Cold Shutdown’ refers to global perception of Fukushima – Not crippled plant. Workers 'didn't check' nuclear reactor pressure day before explosion. Japanese media cast doubts over nuclear plant cold shutdown.
JAPAN Fukushima: doubts raised about the nuclear plant shut down. Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant News, Photos and Videos. Fukushima Evacuations Too Late Outside No-Go Zone. Red alert: Fukushima nuclear reactor 4 possibly collapsing, say sources, mass evacuations may be necessary. The Fukushima Nuclear Disaster: Confirmed - Fukushima Disaster Contaminated Pacific Ocean With 50 MILLION Times Normal Radiation, Leaks Still Ongoing! Report highlights radiation outside Fukushima. Japanese to fit 1,000 monkeys with Geiger counters to test radiation levels in Fukushima.
Fukushima-Reaktor: Tepco befürchtet erneute Kernspaltung. AKW-Ruine in Fukushima: Der atomare Schrecken kehrt zurück - Wissen. Havariertes Atomkraftwerk in Fukushima: Soldaten dekontaminieren die Sperrzone. Updates on Fukushima: | Fairewinds Associates, Inc.