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US West Coast seafoods should be tested for radiation

Calls for US seafood testing after revelations of Fukushima radiation leaks http://japandailypress.com/calls-for-us-seafood-testing-after-revelations-of-fukushima-radiation-leaks-1633993/  AUGUST 16, 2013 by IDA TORRES NUCLEAR EXPERTS IN THE UNITED STATES ARE CALLING FOR TESTING OF SEAFOOD CAUGHT IN THE WEST COAST WATERS AS NEWS CAME OUT THAT THE FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI PLANT HAS BEEN LEAKING CONTAMINATED WATER INTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN FOR SOME TIME NOW. THE PLANT OPERATOR TOKYO ELECTRIC POWER ADMITTED LAST WEEK THAT EVERYDAY, 300 TONS OF WATER CONTAINING RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS HAVE BEEN SEEPING INTO THE OCEAN.

Dr. Arjun Makhijani, president of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, said that because the Pacific Oceanis such a large body of water, the contaminated water would have already been diluted by the time it reached the West Coast. But he acknowledges that no one knows up until now how contaminated the ocean has become and so a sampling of the US West Coast waters would be helpful, as well as a random sampling of seafood caught from that area.

The immediate concern though is for the people in Fukushima, particularly the fishermen, residents and cleanup crews, who are possibly directly affected by the leaks. There is fear that the spike in levels of strontium 90 which bio-concentrates in the bones of fish and algae. He said the accumulation effect of the radioactive strontium 90 could be extremely dangerous for a pregnant woman who has eaten or drank contaminated materials because the baby will be born with a weak immune system. Joseph Mangano, executive director of the nonprofit Radiation and Public Health Project, said that “a cocktail of more than 100 radioactive chemicals” from Fukushima can bring certain dangers when ingested through food or just breathing contaminated air. Health risks include birth defects and thyroid cancer.

August 16, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Fukushima 2013, oceans