nuclear-news

At last, attention to the irradiated animals at Fukushima

“We can’t turn a blind eye to Japan’s abandoned animals that have not received adequate food or water for more than a month and continue to receive dangerous levels of radiation.”…

Animal Attraction: IFAW convenes nuclear radiation experts for landmark animal rescue summit in Japan, by Stacy Fox, khou.com,  April 29, 2011, The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW – www.ifaw.org) is organizing a gathering of radiation and animal rescue experts from the United States and Japan to discuss the current crisis and develop steps to provide aid to animals inside the evacuation zone. The team of experts will meet from May 2 -3 at the International House of Japan in Tokyo.

Currently, there is limited information available for decontamination and/or treatment of animals affected by radiation, nor is there any standards established for determining when an animal has been exposed to an unsafe level of radiation. Little is known about the survivability of wildlife and pets – or the viability of farm animals – exposed to radiation.

The goal of the IFAW-led summit is to develop response procedures and protocols to monitor, evacuate, and treat animals contaminated by radiation. The subject matter experts will cover issues such as radiation exposure, animal physiology, animal behavior, animal rescue and evacuation techniques, animal decontamination, animal sheltering and husbandry, wildlife habitat and rehabilitation, and human responder safety.

The committee includes representatives from the Japanese Ministry of Environment, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA): APHIS Animal Care and Wildlife Services, United States Army Veterinary Corps, veterinary and toxicology experts, academicians, and IFAW.

“We have been interviewing people from the evacuated towns and we’ve seen video evidence of a large number of animals, including livestock, horses, and companion animals that have been left behind,” said Dr. Dick Green, IFAW Disaster Manager. “We can’t turn a blind eye to Japan’s abandoned animals that have not received adequate food or water for more than a month and continue to receive dangerous levels of radiation.”…..

http://www.khou.com/community/blogs/animal-attraction/Animal-Attraction–120949354.html

April 30, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | - Fukushima 2011, Japan, Religion and ethics