nuclear-news

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 Christina Macpherson | environment, Japan | Leave a comment

Japanese govt admits that it underestimated Fukushima radiation

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

People can stay in Japanese town, but avoid the radiation outdoors

—as long as residents don’t spend too long outside, and avoid spots such as parks and forests, where radioactive elements tend to gather. Radioactive cesium has a tendency to bind to earth, and flow along with silt in water.

In One Japanese City, Hot Spots to Avoid, Government Advises Residents of Contaminated Town to Stay—but Keep Clear of Places With Radiation Risk, WSJ, 3 Sept.  By PHRED DVORAK, DATE, Japan—This sprawling city, 35 miles away from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi reactors, is leading the next phase of Japan’s struggles with radiation: deciding how to handle populations in contaminated communities where the level isn’t high enough to justify evacuation. Continue reading →

September 3, 2011 Posted by Christina Macpherson | environment, Japan | Leave a comment