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Top ten places in dangerous radioactivity

Just wait till the communist parties in China and North Korea finally fall, and the truth is out. You haven’t heard/seen real horror stories yet! Already, China’s known pollution is horrifying, 

Fukushima Tops List of World’s 10 Most Radioactive Places Fellowship of the Minds – Conservatives who love America 24 Sept 11  Our media have the attention span of a child.

The damaged nuclear reactors of Fukushima Daiichi, Japan, have fallen off the radar of our media’s interest, but that doesn’t mean things are hunky dory.

On the contrary, according to the 2010 report by the non-profit Blacksmith Institute, the most radioactive places are listed, with Chernobyl the worst.  But now, Fukushima can top the list of the world’s ten most radioactive places. Yes, Fukushima is more radioactive than Chernobyl!

10. Hanford, U.S.A. Continue reading →

October 3, 2011 Posted by | 2 WORLD, environment, wastes | Leave a comment

Plutonium in soil 40 Km from Fukushima nuclear plant

Plutonium 40km from Fukushima plant, FT.com Asia Pacific By Mure Dickie in Tokyo, 3 Oct 11  Small amounts of plutonium believed to have escaped from Japan’s tsunami-crippled    nuclear plant have been detected in soil more than 40km away, say government researchers, a finding that will fuel already widespread fears about radiation risk……

The plutonium was found at six sites – including one in Iitate around 40km from the plant – all of which are subject to evacuation orders. However, plutonium’s long half-life and the potential for even small amounts to pose a health hazard if ingested is likely to make it a focus of popular concern.

Japanese authorities, who significantly underestimated radiation releases from the plant in the early days of the crisis, have since struggled to convince the public that they are able effectively to guard against radiation health threats…. http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7e3af460-ece6-11e0-be97-00144feab49a.html#axzz1Zkkm68Sy

October 3, 2011 Posted by | - Fukushima 2011, - plutonium, environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Radioactive contamination of ocean continues from Fukushima

the Fukushima disaster appeared to be by far the largest accidental release of radioactive material into the sea…..

The working hypothesis is that contaminated sediments and groundwater near the coast are continuing to contaminate the seas, …

 fuller understanding of the effect on fish that are commercially harvested will probably take several years of data following several feeding cycles,

Fukushima’s Contamination Produces Some Surprises at Sea, NYT, By DAVID JOLLY, September 28, 2011, Six months after the accident at Fukushima Daiichi, the news flow from the stricken nuclear power plant has slowed, but scientific studies of radioactive material in the ocean are just beginning to bear fruit.

The word from the land is bad enough. ….

Off the coast, the early results indicate that very large amounts of radioactive materials were released, and may still be leaking, and that rather than being spread through the whole ocean, currents are keeping a lot of the material concentrated. Continue reading →

October 1, 2011 Posted by | Japan, oceans | Leave a comment

Radiation lingering in sea near Fukushima

 much of the radioactive material will still be sinking down to the seabed and being absorbed by marine life

Fukushima’s radioactive sea contamination lingers, New Scientist  September 2011 by Andy Coghlan Levels of radiation in the sea off the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant remain stubbornly high six months after the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan on 11 March.

After levels peaked at around 100,000 becquerels per cubic metre of seawater in early April, much of the radioactive iodine, caesium and plutonium from Fukushima was expected to rapidly disperse in the Pacific Ocean. Continue reading →

October 1, 2011 Posted by | Japan, oceans | Leave a comment

Colorado uranium mine still leaking radioactivity – Cotter ordered to stop this

Colorado regulators order Cotter to do more to stop uranium contamination of water.By Karen E. Crummy, The Denver Post 29 sept 11 Uranium-laden water from a contaminated mine is still flowing into Ralston Creek, leading state regulators Wednesday to demand that the mine’s owner divert creek water away from its facility and find the source of the contamination…… Continue reading →

September 30, 2011 Posted by | environment, USA | Leave a comment

USA’s Koch brothers’ campaign against the environment

Rand Paul Wants Koch Brothers Thrown in Jail!  By Brad Friedman on 9/23/2011 ,”………. Koch Industries was indicted by the DoJ in 2000 for knowingly dumping “at least 91 metric tons of uncontrolled benzene in its liquid waste streams” at its Corpus Christi refinery, and for conspiring to cover it an attempt to deceive regulators.

After George W. Bush took office in 2001, however, “his Attorney General John Ashcroft dropped 88 counts against Koch for the benzene spill and cover-up” in exchange for a guilty plea to falsifying documents and a $20 million fine (a settlement from $350 million in potential fines.)

The Kochs made out pretty well in exchange for their $32,200 contribution to the 2000 Bush campaign. The job killing Koch brothers are making out even better under Barack Obama. But more on that later.

Suffice to say, neither the Kochs, nor anybody who works for them, went to jail for “dump[ing] benzene in the stream,” as Paul is calling for, even as he calls for doing away with even more environmental regulations in his remarks to The Street.

As we’ve been highlighting of late, the Republicans have been on a tear against clean air and water regulation by the EPA recently, and have shown themselves willing to partner with their various front groups in the media, at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and with folks like the Koch brothers to simply make stuff up about such regulations “killing jobs”, in their 2012 “mother of all wars” to regain the White House…. http://www.bradblog.com/?p=8778

September 24, 2011 Posted by | environment, politics, USA | Leave a comment

Dounreay nuclear plant’s radioactive pollution of Scotland’s North coast seabed

“Once again, we see the nuclear industry causing a problem it can’t solve, and dumping the cost and consequence on the rest of us,” 

Scottish nuclear fuel leak ‘will never be completely cleaned up’ The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has abandoned its aim to remove all traces of contamination from the north coast seabed s  guardian.co.uk,  21 September 2011 Radioactive contamination that leaked for more than two decades from the Dounreay nuclear plant on the north coast of Scotland will never be completely cleaned up, a Scottish government agency has admitted. Continue reading →

September 22, 2011 Posted by | oceans, UK, wastes | Leave a comment

Radiation danger in mushrooms in Japan

Radiation fears, shipment bans, weigh heavily on mushroom pickers, growers, Mainichi Daily News, 17 Sept 11, The ban on wild mushroom shipments from 43 Fukushima Prefecture municipalities announced on Sept. 15, paired with widespread radiation fears, is discouraging pickers from their usual mushroom-hunting trips into the woods.

The ban came after wild mushrooms containing cesium beyond the legal limit of 500 becquerels per kilogram were found in the prefecture. Tawny milkcap mushrooms containing cesium over the legal limit, meanwhile, have also been found in Takahagi, Ibaraki Prefecture, endangering  mushroom-picking in that region as well.

In the town of Tanagura in Fukushima, tawny milkcap mushrooms picked this month were found to contain 28,000 becquerels of cesium, or 56 times the legal limit. The town is famous for matsutake mushroom hunting between the end of September and late October each year….. http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110916p2a00m0na012000c.html

September 17, 2011 Posted by | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Tomioka a nuclear ghost town

Inside Japan’s nuclear ghost zone, By David ShukmanEnvironment & science correspondent, BBC News 13 sept 11, As David Shukman enters the exclusion zone, he finds cattle that have starved to death. Nothing stirs in the empty heart of Tomioka, a community of 16,000 now reduced to the eerie status of a ghost town after the nuclear disaster at Fukushima. Continue reading →

September 14, 2011 Posted by | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

World waits for Fukushima nuclear plant to be brought under control

“The whole world is waiting for Japan to bring the nuclear accident under control,” said Japan’s new prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, last Thursday when he visited the plant

6 months into Japan’s cleanup, radiation a major worry, By Craig Dale, CBC News  Sep 12, 2011 “……Decontamination The Japanese government is now conducting extensive aerial surveys, from the northeast to the central part of the country, to track the spread of radiation from Fukushima Daiichi. Continue reading →

September 13, 2011 Posted by | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Fukushima radiation into sea at least 3 times greater than previously estimated

Sea radiation ‘3 times higher than thought’, The Yomiuri Shimbun, 10 Sept 11, The total amount of radioactive substances released into the sea as a result of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant is believed to have been three times the initial estimate by the plant’s operator, according to the Japan Atomic Energy Agency.

A team led by senior researcher Takuya Kobayashi estimated the actual quantity at 15,000 terabecquerels, including substances in polluted water and substances released into the air that eventually fell into the sea. Tera means one trillion.

The figure is more than triple the estimate by Tokyo Electric Power Co. Also, the new estimate does not include cesium-134, meaning the actual total could be even larger. The research team will announce its findings at a conference of the Atomic Energy Society of Japan scheduled to start in Kitakyushu on Sept. 19….. http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110909005415.htm

September 10, 2011 Posted by | Japan, oceans | Leave a comment

Japan’s nuclear refugees – six months later

Six Months: The Nuclear Refugees, WSJ, 9 Sept 11, Since becoming self-appointed “nuclear refugees” in early July, Minako Ishigooka and her 14-month-old son have been living in a single room in a hostel in Naha, the prefectural seat of the southern island chain of Okinawa.

Just a few blocks away, the city’s main commercial strip is bustling with vacationers, but Ms. Ishigoooka’s days are spent on mundane tasks like making meals for her son and taking him out for walks. After he goes down for the night, she sits at the inn’s communal computer until 2 a.m. to gather news about radiation on Twitter.

She and her son have been to the beach only once but that doesn’t bother her. “At least here, I can let him play outside,” the 35-year-old mother from Tokyo says.

Fears of flare-ups in the nuclear situation or worries about radiation contamination of food have driven some residents of cities hundreds of kilometers from the disaster-struck Fukushima Daiichi plant to seek new homes. Many of them are mothers with young children like Ms. Ishigooka — the group most vulnerable to the potential effects of radiation……

One thing that makes the life rewarding for the nuclear refugees is the warm welcome from the local residents. Ms. Tatsuno says the nuclear evacuees have one thing in common with the Okinawans, who have long felt they were made to shoulder the burden of hosting U.S. bases to protect the entire nation: Deep mistrust of the government in Tokyo.

“They understand that whenever the government uses the word ‘safe’,  you have to take it with a pinch of  salt,” she says…. http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2011/09/09/six-months-the-nuclear-refugees/

September 10, 2011 Posted by | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Japanese govt admits that it underestimated Fukushima radiation

Tokyo Underestimated Radiation After Disasters, New Report Says, WSJ SEPTEMBER 8, 2011, By MITSURU OBE TOKYO—The Japanese government initially underestimated radiation releases from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, in part because of untimely rain, and so exposed people unnecessarily, a report released this week by a government research institute says. Continue reading →

September 9, 2011 Posted by | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Unsafe radiation levels in Kanto region, beyond Fukushima

The story also alludes to the strength of alternative information networks in the wake of the March crisis – after announcing her daughter’s test results on Twitter, the mother’s number of followers jumped from a number of close acquaintances to 700 people asking for details and advice about how to have their own children tested…..

While airborne radiation has lessened as emissions from the Fukushima Daiichi plant have decreased, there are concerns across the Kanto region of radioactive buildup in the soil….

Readings in one area of Saitama were over 900,000 Bq – a level greater than that which resulted in forced relocation after Chernobyl 

Contamination Outside Fukushima, JapanFocus, Sep. 04, 2011 Matthew Penney The extent of radioactive contamination in Fukushima Prefecture is at the center of important debates as some scientists, NGOs, and citizen’s groups argue that the Japanese government has not gone far enough in dealing with the fallout from the Fukushima Daiichi accident and has deliberately downplayed the potential health effects of radiation. With so much attention focused on Fukushima, however, there has been less consideration of the impact of the crisis, ongoing since March 11, on other parts of Japan. Continue reading →

September 6, 2011 Posted by | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Farmland ruined by radioactive “superdumps” from uranium mining

He blames the recent toxic and radioactive spillages on Mine Waste Solutions, a subsidiary of Canadian First Uranium, which is reprocessing mining waste from 15 old slimes dams – some of which are located on his expansive farm – in the Klerksdorp area….

Superdumps are huge dams that store toxic waste form the smaller, historical dumps that are reprocessed for gold and uranium.

(South Africa) Radioactive spillages condemn farmlandAugust 31 2011  IOL Science Tech, By Sheree Bega INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPERS Johan Kondos can only use a small portion of his land to grow lucerne.   “……This lone field, and a few beloved cattle, is all Kondos has left of his farm in Hartbeesfontein in the North West.

Like many of his neighbours, he blames surrounding mining operations for contaminating his farm, situated about 5km from the Vaal River.

“Some of the pollution is historic but some of it is so recent, it’s still wet,” he explains.

“I’ve had calves born with two heads on my farm. At one time I was having 70 percent abortions and very high mortality with my animals. They drank from the Koekemoerspruit and ate the lucerne I produced.

He blames the recent toxic and radioactive spillages on Mine Waste Solutions, a subsidiary of Canadian First Uranium, which is reprocessing mining waste from 15 old slimes dams – some of which are located on his expansive farm – in the Klerksdorp area.

As part of this, the company is also constructing a controversial central tailings storage facility, or superdump, about 2km from the Vaal River, touting it as a model rehabilitation plan, where the mining waste from the 15 tailings dams is piped. Superdumps are huge dams that store toxic waste form the smaller, historical dumps that are reprocessed for gold and uranium.

In July, the National Nuclear Regulator (NNR) shut down Mine Waste Solutions’ operations after its inspection revealed spillages and leakages of tailings materials along the company’s extensive pipeline and on the properties of farmers like Kondos.

But a week later, Mine Waste Solutions was back on line, stating it said it had been given conditional approval to restart operations provided it follow an “enhanced pipeline maintenance programme” and submit monthly reports.

Radioactive spillages condemn farmland – IOL SciTech | IOL.co.za

September 5, 2011 Posted by | environment, South Africa, Uranium | Leave a comment

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