|
Japan
2012-04-01 All
the laboratories refused to check the deformed rabbit,
posted by Mochizuki on April 1st, 2012
 Late
April of 2011, an earless rabbit was born near the boarder of
30km zone.
The
video was bashed to say “don’t cause panic”.
Now
the rabbit is living in Saitama with another owner.
The
former owner, Ms Sugimoto says, they asked laboratories to check
the earless rabbit to see if it has something to do with radiation,
but all the institution refused to see it.
2012-04-01 Fukushima
monthly fallout now 10 times higher than last September,
ENENews.com
2012-04-01
~M6 quake hits Fukushima, intensity 5- of 7 —
Tepco webcam shifts position (PHOTOS & VIDEO),
by ENENews.com
2012-04-01 Voice
of the streets 4/1/2012, posted by Mochizuki on
April 1st, 2012
[Japanese
script] junjun (@petsboobee) April 1, 2012
<Translate>
(The
wife/mother who evacuated with her kids. Her husband is remaining
in Fukushima to work.) back to the apartment and texted to husband/father.
He replied to tell us to see the lowest box of the 3 layered
drawers. We found letters from father to each of us. My daughter
can’t read letters yet so I read it to her, she cried
and teared. My son told her not to cry anymore, he was not going
to cry because he is a man. He was such a cry baby but trying
not to cry with his tears kept in the eyes.
<End>
[Japanese
script] j.mp/HuqGlV #iwakamiyasumi
—
(@komatsunotsuma) April 1, 2012
<Translate>
A
high school girl in Fukushima city suddenly died of heart attack.
Recently young people to die of heart attack are increasing
in Fukushima. The population of 15~19 years old in Fukushima
city is very small. Even if there is only one case, it’s
statistically too high.
<End>
[Japanese
script] Yoki [Japanese script] #ikumen
—
??-Ukoh- (@Ukoh_rain) March 31, 2012
<Translate>
(This
family is trying to evacuate Japan. The wife left Japan before
her husband and baby. This is the tweet of father. The baby
has been missing her mother since she left and she got sick
immediately after she’s apart from her mother.)
I’m
worried about our baby but my wife in NZ must be worried more.
If she becomes more feverish, I really have to take her to the
hospital. She must be exhausted even though she’s energetic
usually. shall sleep beside her tonight..
<End>
PS.
I started video tweet.
2012-04-01 Cesium-Laden
Food..., majiasblog.blogspot.com
Foods
with excessive radiation under new rule found in 8 prefectures
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20120401p2g00m0dm012000c.html
[excerpted]
(Kyodo) -- "Food items containing levels of radioactive
cesium exceeding a new limit, to be enforced from Sunday, have
been found in 421 instances in eight prefectures since January
this year, a survey by the health ministry showed Saturday.
The
food items with levels exceeding 100 becquerels per kilogram
of cesium were found in Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, Yamagata,
Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba prefectures in the survey
conducted through March 21, according to the Ministry of Health,
Labor and Welfare...."
Majia
here: Approximately 80% of the contaminated food items were
fish from both the sea and rivers. The rest of the cases were
from shitake mushrooms and wild meat (boars and birds).
The
highest radiation reported recently was found in a type of "landlocked
salmon"
[excerpted]
"The yamame, or landlocked masu salmon, caught in the Niida
River in Iitate, Fukushima Prefecture, measured 18,700 becquerels
of radioactive cesium per kilogram, a reading over 37 times
more than the government-imposed provisional limit of 500 becquerels
per kilogram..."
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20120330p2a00m0na008000c.html
2012-04-02 Tokyo
elementary school conceals contamination situation,
posted by Mochizuki on April 2nd, 2012
Elementary
schools in Tokyo are concealing the actual contamination situation
to parents and decontaminate secretly.
Arakawa
ku in Tokyo refused to conduct radiation measurement for 8 months
from 311 to early November to say it’s all safe.
They
finally measured radiation level in the early November and measured
6.46 µSv/h in an elementary school.
From
other places, they also measured high level of radiation such
as 3.04 µSv/h from sand pit or 2.57 µSv/h from gutter
etc..
Children
were let play in extremely radioactive place and touch highly
contaminated sand and soil for 8 months.
Additionally,
Arakawa local government published the data only on the web
and decontaminated secretly.
At
the place where they measured 4.45µSv/h, the school staff
removed all the soil but the radiation level didn’t get
decreased. In the end, they had to pave the place with concrete,
but it was all done secretly, parents were not informed of.
2012-04-02 Black
substance is covering all the Kanto area, posted
by Mochizuki, fukushima-diary.com, on April 2nd, 2012
Black
substance (cyanobacteria) is spreading all over Kanto area.
The
very similar substance was found in Kashiwa Chiba, where is
known to be a hotspot.
?
It looks like mixture of lichens and dried soil.
44
µSv/h from 200g of the sample.
The
person who found this has been having health problem, burn on
finger (for 3 months) and the bruise on thighs (for 9 months).
The black circle on the left bottom of the picture is the size
of the bruise back in July. It’s growing.
2012-04-02 Japan
on ‘high alert’ for typhoon-class storm —
Fukushima Daiichi in path Tuesday night (VIDEO),
ENENews.com
2012-04-02 Reports
of radioactive black cyanobacteria spreading to Tokyo area
(PHOTOS), ENENews.com
2012-04-02 Mainichi
Expert Sr. Writer: Gov’t sources say No. 4 pool a grave
concern — Storage pool barely intact — We have no
time to humor senseless thinking of those who downplay the risks,
ENENews.com
2012-04-02 Nuclear
Expert: Fukushima Daiichi like a horror movie where creature
keeps coming up from grave (AUDIO), ENENews.com
2012-04-02 Radioactive
Waste Specialist: Would be just a few hours before fuel catches
fire in Reactor No. 4 pool if cooling water supply was lost
(VIDEO), ENENews.com
2012-04-02 Host
says Fukushima Daiichi was on fire before tsunami hit
(AUDIO & VIDEO), ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Radioactive
storm, Posted by Mochizuki, fukushima-diary.com,
on April 3rd, 2012
Following
up this article..Tornade
watch for eastern Japan
The
storm increased radiation level around in Kanto area.
2012-04-03 Over
100°C? New Tepco data shows temperature spiked at two gauges
in Reactor No. 2 — Similar rise patterns for both charts,
ENENews.com
2012-04-03 JMA:
A “rare” situation — “This is like the
core of a typhoon, but it is staying for a long time”
— 135 km/h winds recorded due west of Fukushima (VIDEO),
ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Tokyo
radiation monitor spikes to 400% average after storm passes
Fukushima, Japan (VIDEO), ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Study:
Fukushima contamination may be spreading south of Tokyo —
NOT blocked by Kuroshio Current as widely reported — “A
potential pathway for contaminated water”,
ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Former
Prime Minister Kan reveals nuclear coverup — After Fukushima
he’s “devoting himself to nuclear activism, he now
wants to abolish nuclear power in Japan” (VIDEOS),
ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Scientists
measured 2,000 trillion becquerels of Cs-137 in one study area
— Would’ve been much higher, but radioactivity was
transported away by time of sampling, ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Forever:
Iodine-129 “a growing radiological risk” —
15.7 million year half-life — Almost undetectable —
Traveled along with iodine-131 from Fukushima — Concentrates
in hotspots, ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Highest
Estimate Yet: Fukushima about equal to Chernobyl, says US gov’t
funded study, ENENews.com
2012-04-03 Confederate
hired by JP gov was from Junior Chamber International Japan,
posted by Mochizuki on April 3rd, 2012
Following
up this article..Picture
of the confederate from government
It
turned out that the confederates were the members of Junior
Chamber International Japan. (JCI?Link)
This
Authorization of Public Interest Incorporated Associations was
accused of sexual harassment twice in 1998, indecent assault
and murder-robbery in 2003, embezzlement in 2004, accidental
mortality in 2006. Japanese former prime minister Asotaro was
the chairman in 1978, he and his close associates used the group
as its constituency.
This
group was involved in the manipulating questionary to mislead
people to accept the radioactive debris in Kiryu shi Gunma.
Question
“What do you think about accepting debris which is not,
or almost not contaminated ?”
Also,
they attended at the speech of Hosono, minister of environment
to spread the radioactive debris of other places than in Kyoto.
It
is not known how and why they are involved in the political
situation to spread the radioactive debris to all over Japan.
2012-04-03 Radioactive
Seas, majiasblog.blogspot.com
Mainichi:
Cesium up to 100 times levels before disaster found in plankton
far off nuke plant
[excerpted]
Radioactive cesium up to 100 times pre-nuclear disaster levels
has been detected in plankton inhabiting the sea far from the
crippled nuclear plant following the March 2011 disaster, according
to a survey conducted by Japanese and U.S. researchers.
The
high concentration of cesium, which is believed to derive from
the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant, suggests that radioactive
substances that have leaked from the complex are spreading extensively
in the sea.
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20120403p2a00m0na009000c.html
Read
the above with the headline at Enenews: Scientists measured
2,000 trillion becquerels of Cs-137 in one study area —
Would’ve been much higher, but radioactivity was transported
away by time of sampling
http://enenews.com/scientists-measured-2000-trillion-becquerels-cs-137-one-
study-area-wouldve-higher-radioactivity-transported-away-time-sampling
source
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2012/03/26/1120794109.full.pdf+html?with-ds=yes
2012-04-03 Marine
contamination reached Philippines last April, posted
by Mochizuki, fukushima-diary.com, on April 3rd, 2012
Kobayashi
fellow-researcher from Japan Atomic Energy Agency analyzed that
18,000 trillion Bq of Iodine 131 and cesium 134 + 137 directly
leaked from Fukushima to Pacific ocean.
However,
because it is the estimation after 3/26, it would be much more
than that if it includes what leaked from 3/11 to 3/25.
Also,
it will be a several times much as 18,000 trillion Bq to count
the radiation to fall from air down to the sea.
From
their simulation, marine contamination already reached Philippines
by 4/10/2011, will reach Hawaii by March of 2014, where is 5300
km away from Fukushima.
Source
2012-04-03 Corruption
in the Nuclear Industry: Another Example, majiasblog.blogspot.com
Asahi:
Power industry donated millions to influential research agency"
"The
electric power industry donated 250 million yen ($3 million)
to the Japan Atomic Energy Agency over four years, including
55.1 million yen after the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear
plant last year."
http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201204020171.html
Tuesday,
April 3, 2012 WSJ:
"Japan Tallies Upheaval's Toll", majiasblog.blogspot.com
Wall
Street Journal page A10 April 3, 2012 by Y. Hayashi
[excerpt]
"A government panel estimates Teco will have to pay [in
yen] 4.5 trillion in compensation by the accident's second anniversary
in March 2003. That figure could eventually grow by 'several
trillion yen,' according to Standard and Poor's analyst Hiroki
Shibata.
'The
scope of what will be covered by compensation is still very
much undefined' he added....
[a
resident] estimates that fewer than 150 of Odaka's 7,300 households
have agreed with Tepco's assessment of their claims and received
payments for basic expenses related to evacuation..."
2012-04-04 Cyanobacteria
over 1,000,000 Bq/kg outside Minamisoma City Hall (VIDEOS),
ENENews.com
2012-04-04 Kyodo:
Radioactive fish at 400% gov’t limit found 200km inland
at lake in Gunma, ENENews.com
2012-04-04 Tepco
was concerned about high winds damaging Reactor No. 1 —
Risk that cover “would spill over to the reactor building”
— Only designed for winds of 56 mph, ENENews.com
2012-04-04 Kyodo:
Storm may have halted nitrogen injections at three Fukushima
reactors for hours — Tepco says no fears of hydrogen explosion,
ENENews.com
2012-04-04 Video
shows dark smoke from Fukushima Daiichi blowing over Japan on
Mar. 15, 2011 after explosion at Reactor No. 3,
ENENews.com
2012-04-04 Caldicott:
If Spent Fuel Pool No. 4 collapses I am evacuating my family
from Boston (VIDEO), ENENews.com
2012-04-04 Fukushima
Ocean Contamination, majiasblog.blogspot.com
Fukushima
Radiation Spreads Across Pacific Ocean. By Jesse Emspak, LiveScience
03 April 12 http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/312-16/10778-fukushima-radiation-spreads-across-pacific-ocean
[excerpted]
"Radioactive material from the Fukushima nuclear disaster
has been found in tiny sea creatures and ocean water some 186
miles (300 kilometers) off the coast of Japan, revealing the
extent of the release and the direction pollutants might take
in a future environmental disaster.
"In
some places, the researchers from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
(WHOI) discovered cesium radiation hundreds to thousands of
times higher than would be expected naturally, with ocean eddies
and larger currents both guiding the "radioactive debris"
and concentrating it..."
read
entire article linked above
The
ocean contamination is simply unprecedented.
Fukushima
nuclear pollution in sea was world's worst: French institute.
Japan Today Oct. 28, 2011 - http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/fukushima-nuclear
-pollution-in-sea-was-worlds-worst-french-institute
Ken
Buesseler, a scientist at Massachusetts’s Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, told the paper that Fukushima was by far the largest
accidental release of radioactive material into ocean waters—exceeding,
by a magnitude of 100, the Chernobyl contamination of the Black
Sea.
(cited in Alex Roslin http://www.straight.com/article-491941/vancouver/what-are-officials-hiding-about-fukushima?page=0%2C2)
Greenpeace
Finds High Levels of Ocean Radioactive Contamination
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/press/releases/Greenpeace-Fukushima-
radiation-research-reveals-serious-marine-contamination/
Runoff
of radioactive water from the "feed and bleed" operation
at Fukushima has been continuous now for over 1 year.
I
cannot imagine the consequences of this degree of contamination
in ocean ecologies already collapsing from pollution and over-fishing.
We
will surely pay the price for destroying the oceans, as contamination
bio-accumulates in OUR bodies
http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0624/biologist-ocean-pollution-threatening-human-food-supply/
http://majiasblog.blogspot.com/2012/04/radioactive-seas.html
2012-04-04 [for this date] Deformation
of dandelion in Adachi ku Tokyo, posted by Mochizuki
on April 6th, 2012
Deformed
dandelion was found in Adachi ku Tokyo on 4/4/2012.
2012-04-04 Dispossessed
in Japan: No Timely Publication of Radiation Releases, Continuous
Revisions of Amounts, majiasblog.blogspot.com
Fukushima
has laid bare the complicity of governments with a corporate
order that attaches little to no value to human life or the
vitality of the biosphere.
During
the midst of these disasters, Japanese authorities insisted
that there was little to no danger. On March 12, University
of Tokyo Professor Naoto Sekimura appeared repeatedly on Japanese
television to reassure local residents that all was under control.
David McNeill of CNN reports Sekimura’s comments: “‘Only
a small part of the fuel may have melted and leaked outside,’
he said. Residents near the power station should ‘stay
calm,’ because ‘most of the fuel remains inside
the reactor, which has stopped operating and is being cooled.’
(McNeill)”
In
April, a former nuclear regulator who had served as a consultant
to TEPCO in April claimed publicly that there was no danger
of a total meltdown (Ex-Regulator).
In
addition to withholding information about the state of the reactors,
Tepco and the Japanese Government suppressed information about
the scale of radiation released. It took Japanese officials
over a month to disclose large scale radiation releases that
occurred at the Fukushima plant in mid-March (see Tabuchi, Bradsher
and Pollack).
Japan
used a system called Speedi—System for Prediction of Environmental
Emergency Dose information—to model March radiation releases
and blamed the delay in reporting results to the public in mid-April
to their efforts to narrow the margin of error in their calculations,
although nuclear regulators in other countries were privy to
Speedi’s results early on.
In
June 2011, Japan’s nuclear safety agency acknowledged
suspicion that the official statement of the radiation releases
for March of 370,000 terabecquerels (publicized in April) had
been grossly under-estimated. At that time, Japan's nuclear
safety agency doubled the amount of radiation previously reported
by TEPCO to have “leaked” from the Fukushima Daiichi
plan in the first week of the accident. This new figure reported
in June 2011 by the Japanese Nuclear Safety Agency of 770,000
terabequerels of (equivalent to 770,000,000,000,000 becquerels)
radiation released failed to calculated radiation losses after
the first week into the air or sea (see McCurry).
In
July of 2011, the Atomic Energy Society of Japan publicly criticized
the Japanese government and TEPCO for delays in reporting Speedi
data to the public, as illustrated here:
[excerpted]
"The society notes that there is the possibility that the
damage to people's health from radiation exposure has increased
because the government, Tepco and other related institutions
did not properly disclose information on the status of the nuclear
accidents and the environmental contamination by radioactive
substances. It says that although they had information that
must be disclosed, they have not done so. An example that surfaced
recently is the education and science ministry's failure to
immediately disclose the name of a radiation hot spot in Namie,
Fukushima Prefecture." (see “Nuclear Accident Disclosure”)
In
February of 2012 scientists from the Meteorological Research
Institute released data collected in April and May of 2011,which
calculated that 40,000 trillion becquerels of radiation released
was from Cesium alone. This figure did not include subsequent
air emissions or releases of radioactive water into the ocean
from the plant. Radioactive water has been produced continuously
for over one year now as Tepco douses the reactors with water
to prevent fission from escalating (see Taubchi).
The
latest word on the radiation releases was released on April
3, 2012 when the Japanese Jiji Press reported that in March
2011 the Japanese government had failed to share with the public
a Speedi estimate that approximately 10 trillion becquerels
per hour of radioactive iodine were released on March 14, 2011
(see Japan fails).
The
ongoing contamination of Japan, the Pacific Ocean and the northern
hemisphere continues as Tepco struggles with three reactors
that have total loss of containment.
The
collective welfare of the population was clearly not the priority
of the Japanese energy corporation Tepco, nor Japanese policy
makers, in the wake of the Fukushima disaster.
ENDNOTES
David
McNeill “Who's Telling the Truth On the Fukushima Meltdown?”
CNNGo.Com (2011, June 15):| CNNGo.com http://www.cnngo.com/tokyo/life/tell-me-about-it/david-mcneill-whos-telling-truth-fukushima-448215#ixzz1PMTJwTk1
Ex-Regulator
Resigns from Tepco,” Reuters video (2011, April 19): http://www.reuters.com/article/video/idUSTRE73I10E20110419?videoId=204721879
Hiroko
Tabuchi, Keith Bradsher, and Andrew Pollack “Japanese
Officials on Defensive as Nuclear Alert Level Rises,”
The New York Times (2011, April 13): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/13/world/asia/13japan.html.
Tabuchi,
Bradsher, and Pollack “Japanese Officials on Defensive,”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/13/world/asia/13japan.html
“Nuclear
Accident Disclosure,” Japan Times (2011, July 8):
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ed20110708a1.html.
Justin
McCurry “Japan Doubles Fukushima Radiation Leak Estimate.
Inquiry Launched Into Nuclear Disaster as Studies Reveal Contamination
More Widely Spread Than First Thought,” The Guardian (2011,
June 7): http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/07/japan-doubles-fukushima-radiation-leak-estimate.
McCurry
“Japan Doubles Fukushima Radiation,”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/07/japan-doubles-fukushima-radiation-leak-estimate.
Akiko
Okazaki. “Scientists:Far more cesium released than previously
believed” Asahi (2012, February 29):
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/fukushima/AJ201202290025
On
March 29, 2012 a Japanese professor of nuclear engineering reported
“Unfortunately, all we can do is keep pumping water inside
the reactors” in response to reports that the drywell
inside reactor 2 had radiation levels of 72.0 sieverts an hour.
Hiroko Taubchi “Japan Nuclear Plant May be Worse Off Than
Thought.” New York Times (2012, March 29): http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/30/world/asia/inquiry-suggests-worse-damage-at-japan-nuclear-plant.html?_R=1&src=tp
Japan
Fails to Disclose 10-T.-Becquerel Radioactive Fallout Estimate.
Jiji Press English News Service [Tokyo] (2012, April 3): Retrieved
from http://login.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest
.com.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/docview/963705047?accountid=4485
also reported at Ex-SKF http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2012/04/wspeedi-simulation-showed-10.html
2012-04-05 Alpha
radiation detected on lid of septic tank at official’s
home (VIDEO), ENENews.com
2012-04-05 WSJ:
Fukushima Leak Renews Concerns About Plant’s Stability
— AP: Officials say no ‘immediate’ health
threat, ENENews.com
2012-04-05 1400
Bq/Kg of Shiitake mushroom served in kindergarten
posted by Mochizuki on April 5th, 2012
1400
Bq/Kg of cesium was measured from Shiitake mushroom served for
school lunch of a kindergarten.
It
was 3/21/2012, in Okazaki city Aichi. 2kg of the mushroom was
served for 530 of the students and staff.
The
mushroom was shipped from Ibaraki prefecture, 30kg has already
been distributed in Okazaki city.
Aichi
local government states, it doesn’t affect promptly. [
more
here]
2012-04-05 2.16
µSv/h from yellow powder posted by Mochizuki
on April 5th, 2012
Following
up this article..Yellow
powder still remains in Tokyo
Before
the black substance covers Kanto area, yellow powder fell in
Kanto.
Radiation
measurement by inspector was recoded by video and updated to
Youtube on 4/9/2011, Tokorozawa Saitama.
It
marked 2.16 µSv/h above the substance. Nuclide analysis
has not been done yet.
2012-04-05 Alpha
ray 0.1µSv/h in Minamisoma, posted by Mochizuki
on April 5th, 2012
Mr.
Oyama, Minamisoma city councilor measured 60 counts of alpha
ray within 300 seconds at his home, on 4/5/2012.
It
was on the lid of a septic tank. The alpha survey meter is about
7~8mm away from the cover itself.
2012-04-05 Local
official measures alpha radiation on bridge railing —
Up to 1,000 times more dangerous than beta or gamma
(VIDEO), ENENews.com
2012-04-05 Tepco:
Strontium leaking into ocean — Tons more highly contaminated
water enters sea — “TEPCO has apologized for the
incident and says it will determine the cause and extent of
the leakage”, ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Former
UN adviser: If No. 4 pool collapses I’ve been told “during
50 years continual, you cannot contain” (VIDEO),
2012-04-06 Nuclear
Expert: Fukushima spent fuel has 85 times more cesium than released
at Chernobyl — “It would destroy the world environment
and our civilization… an issue of human survival”
-Former UN adviser, ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Ambassador
Murata writes to UN Secretary General: “It is no exaggeration
to say that the fate of Japan and the whole world depends on
No. 4 reactor” — Appeals for independent assessment
team, ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Former
Japan Ambassador Warns Gov’t Committee: “A global
catastrophe like we have never before experienced” if
No. 4 collapses — Common Spent Fuel Pool with 6,375 fuel
rods in jeopardy — “Would affect us all for centuries”,
ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Beware
‘Spring Maximum’ for Radioactive Fallout,
ENENews.com
2012-04-06 CNN:
“Sounds unbelieveable, but it’s true” —
Japan paying for travelers to visit Fukushima — $63 to
share photos on Facebook, $63 to answer 5 questions …More,
ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Osaka
Mayor: Japan will collapse if reactors are restarted hastily
— Asahi: New safety standards for restarts written in
just two days, ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Tepco
gets gov’t warning about radioactive leak from Fukushima
Daiichi — “At this time we have reserved the right
to not provide an English version due to potential misunderstandings”,
ENENews.com
2012-04-06 Tepco
Workers Quitting, majiasblog.blogspot.com
TEPCO
workers quitting due to threats, sense of despair
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/tepco-workers-quitting-due-to-threats-sense-of-despair
[excerpted]
"Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said Friday 460 employees
sought voluntary retirement in fiscal 2011, which ended on March
31.
The
number was 3.5 times higher than the usual number, TBS reported.
In March alone, more than 100 employees took voluntary retirement,
officials said at a news conference.
The
main reason given for the increasing number by employees were
threats and bullying of their families by people angry at TEPCO’s
response to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear crisis following last
year’s tsunami. The second most common reason was a sense
of despair over their business future, TBS reported..."
Majia
here: This is a tragic, but also oddly framed, story and I wonder
how accurate the account provided is?
2012-04-06 Decontamination
Smoke and Mirrors, majiasblog.blogspot.com
Decontamination
work reduces radiation by over 60 percent in nuclear plant town
http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20120327p2a00m0na008000c.html
(Mainichi)
March 27, 2012 [excerpted] "The yearly dosage is calculated
by adding the estimated indoor dosage to the estimated outdoor
dosage.
Each
day a person is presumed to spend 16 hours indoors and eight
hours outdoors.
The
estimated daily indoor dosage is calculated by multiplying the
hourly measurement by 0.4 to reflect the lower dosage a person
is presumed to receive indoors, then multiplying this result
by 16 (the number of hours spent indoors).
The
daily outdoor dosage is the hourly measurement multiplied by
8 (the number of hours spent outdoors). Multiplying each of
these figures by 365 and adding them produces an estimated yearly
dosage.
In
parking lots and on roads, the level was reduced from 13.8 microsieverts
per hour (an estimated yearly dosage of 72.5 millisieverts per
year) to 5.3 microsieverts per hour (27.8 millisieverts per
year)...."
Majia
here: These elaborate calculations are truly tragic. They allow
many people in Japan to be exposed to radiation levels that
far exceed the standard set by the Soviets for Chernobyl.
The
Soviets' limit was 5 millisieverts a year (http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110610a6.html).
Furthermore,
Japan's standards FAIL TO ADDRESS INTERNAL EXPOSURE through
INHALATION of contaminated particles and INGESTION of contaminated
beverages and food.
Blogger
EX-SKF has a list of contaminated food recently reported
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2012/04/radioactive-japan-food-items-exceeding.html
[excerpted
from Ex-SKF] "Here's the list of food items that I found
which exceeded the new safety limit of 100 becquerels/kg of
radioactive cesium:
Shiitake
mushrooms: 350 becquerels/kg from Murata-cho, Miyagi Prefecture
Bamboo
shoots: 120 becquerels/kg from Kisarazu City, Chiba Prefecture;
110 becquerels/kg from Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture
Bamboo
shoots: 130 becquerels/kg from Sakae-cho, Chiba Prefecture;
170 becquerels/kg from Abiko City, Chiba Prefecture
"Komon
Kasube" (common skete): 640 becquerels/kg, test fishing
off the coast of Iwaki City, Fukushima
Beef:
106 becquerels/kg from Shibukawa City, Gunma Prefecture (the
cattle had to eat the feed (rye) with 772 becquerels/kg of cesium...)
"Suzuki"
(sea bass): 104 becquerels/kg in Sendai Bay, Miyagi Prefecture
Shiitake
mushrooms: 146 becquerels/kg from Shirosato-machi, Ibaraki Prefecture;
131 becquerels/kg from Sakuragawa City, Ibaraki Prefecture
"Wakasagi"
(pond smelt): 426 becquerels/kg from Akagi Onuma in Gunma Prefecture
1,
2, 4: Nikkei Shinbun (4/4/2012)
3:
Chiba Prefecture press release (4/5/2012)
5:
Yomiuri Shinbun (4/5/2012), Gunma Prefecture press release (4/5/2012)
for meat, and for feed
6:
Miyagi Prefecture press release (4/4/2012)
7:
Ibaraki Prefecture press release (4/2/2012)
8:
Kyodo News (4/3/2012)
Majia
Here: Some Data on Extent of Contamination
"A
June 26 survey found of soil in Fukushima city found all samples
contaminated with cesium levels exceeding legal limit of 10,000
becquerels per kilogram (“45%,” 2011, http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110705p2g00m0dm079000c.html).
Former
senior policy advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Energy, Robert
Alvarez, argued that fully 600 square kilometers were “technically
uninhabitable” because of cesium-137 contamination (cited
in Japan Admits http://www.democracynow.org/2011/6/10/as_japan_nuclear_crisis_worsens_citizen).
In
July, Dr. Chris Busby reported that analyses of air filters
from cars in Tokyo found radiation levels 270 times more contaminated
with Cesium-137 than air levels during the peak of above-ground
atomic testing Report: Air sample in Tokyo 270 times more contaminated
with Cesium-137 than global weapons fallout peak (VIDEO)
http://enenews.com/report-air-in-tokyo-270-times-higher-level-of-cesium-137-than-global-weapons-fallout-peak-video
2012-04-06 STATUS
FOR SPENT FUEL POOL #4: IMMINENT DANGER?, majiasblog.blogspot.com
A
former Japanese diplomat, with a rather extensive history as
secretary generals for United Nations administrative units,
has a webpage that discusses Fukushima.
The
former diplomat is named Akio Matsumura. He has an interesting
personal history and seems to be very concerned about ethics.
He certainly has stature because I found a picture of him posing
with Gorbachev. Here is a short bio
http://wpas.worldpeacefull.com/2012/01/bridges-of-peace-the-diplomacy-of-akio-matsumura/
Akio
Matsumura's webpage has recent excerpts from:
(1)
a correspondence with Robert Alvarez and
(2)
a letter to the United Nations written by a former Japanese
Ambassador to Switzerland.
Here
is the link to this important post by Matsumura http://akiomatsumura.com/2012/04/682.html
I
found it at Enenews:
http://enenews.com/ambassador-murata-writes-secretary-general-exaggeration
-fate-japan-world-depends-4-reactor-appeals-independent-assessment-team
I.
Robert Alvarez's comments about the amount of fuel at Fukushima
Diachi in correspondence with Matsumura
[quote] Based on U.S. Energy Department data, assuming a total
of 11,138 spent fuel assemblies are being stored at the Dai-Ichi
site, nearly all, which is in pools. They contain roughly 336
million curies (~1.2 E+19 Bq) of long-lived radioactivity. About
134 million curies is Cesium-137 — roughly 85 times the
amount of Cs-137 released at the Chernobyl accident as estimated
by the U.S. National Council on Radiation Protection (NCRP).
The total spent reactor fuel inventory at the Fukushima-Daichi
site contains nearly half of the total amount of Cs-137 estimated
by the NCRP to have been released by all atmospheric nuclear
weapons testing, Chernobyl, and world-wide reprocessing plants
(~270 million curies or ~9.9 E+18 Becquerel).
It
is important for the public to understand that reactors that
have been operating for decades, such as those at the Fukushima-Dai-Ichi
site have generated some of the largest concentrations of radioactivity
on the planet.
[end
quote]
II.
Akio Matsumura also has a letter from Japan's former ambassador
to Switzerland, Mitsuhei Murata to the United Nations:
[Excerpt
from Mitsuhei Murata's letter] "I was asked to make a statement
at the public hearing of the Budgetary Committee of the House
of Councilors on March 23. I raised the crucial problem. of
N0.4 reactor of Fukushima containing1535 fuel rods. It could
be fatally damaged by continuing aftershocks. Moreover, 50 meters
away from it exists a common cooling pool for 6 reactors containing
6375 fuel rods!
It
is no exaggeration to say that the fate of Japan and the whole
world depends on NO.4 reactor. This is confirmed by most reliable
experts like Dr. Arnie Gundersen or Dr. Fumiaki Koide."
[end
excerpt from Mitsuhei Murata's letter to the UN]
Majia
here: What is going on with 4? Why is 3 never mentioned? Let
us consider the evidence.
We
know that unit 3 and spent fuel pool 3 are pretty much gone;
they were blown apart in March 2011.
We
don't know what, precisely, is the status of unit 4 because
of the lack of accurate information.
Early
reports from the NRC stated that spent fuel pool 4 was dry,
burning, and missing a wall. I'll include the evidence below.
However,
it is possible that the side of the pool was fixed or not deep
enough to prevent some level of water containment and a continuous
"feed and bleed" operation has kept water on unit
4 spent fuel pool using continuous injections.
I
don't know. I also don't understand why no one mentions the
condition of spent fuel pool #3. No way that one is still around
if you've seen images of the building.
Here
is the data I've collected on unit 4:
JOHN
MONAGER: Unit 1 and 2 is boiling
8
down, and Unit 3 and 4 is having zirc/water reaction.
9
They believe there is essentially no walls on Unit 3.
10
The explosion — I'm sorry — Unit 4. The explosion
11
leveled the walls, leveled the structure for the Unit
12
4 spent-fuel pool all the way down to the approximate
13
level of the bottom of the fuels. So, there's no
14
water in there whatsoever.
15
MALE PARTICIPANT: And no ability to
16
retain water.
http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1205/ML12052A108.pdf
------------------------------
NRC
March Email: “The walls of the Unit 4 spent fuel pool
have collapsed, and there is no water in there”
http://enenews.com/nrc-march-email-the-walls-of-the-unit-4-spent
-fuel-pool-have-collapsed-and-there-is-no-water-in-there
March
16th, 2011 – Unit 4 SFP walls have collapsed – Fuel
may no longer be intact, Enformable, Jan. 11, 2012:
From:
Boska, John
Sent:
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 11:31 AM
To:
Guzman, Richard
Cc:
Pickett, Douglas
Subject:
Developments in Japan
Importance:
High
Rich,
please review and comment, for distribution to our branch.
In
a briefing with Joe Giitter that just ended, we were informed
that the situation is now much worse in Japan. The walls of
the Unit 4 spent fuel pool have collapsed, and there is no water
in there. There were a large number of fuel assemblies in the
pool, and the fuel may no longer be intact. The radiation levels
are increasing so much that it may prove difficult to work on
the other 5 reactors at the site, which could lead to more fuel…
--------------------------------------------------------------
On
the morning of Tue March 15, the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) released a statement warning that the Japanese
authorities had reported a fire in spent fuel pool #4.
Japanese
authorities also today informed the IAEA at 03:50 UTC that the
spent fuel storage pond at the Unit 4 reactor of the Fukushima
Daiichi nuclear power plant was on fire and radioactivity was
being released directly into the atmosphere.
At
the time of these reports, dose rates of up to 400 millisievert
per hour were reported at the site. Japanese authorities stated
that the the fire in the pool was caused by a hydrogen explosion.
(http://www.iaea.org/press/?p=1248)
The
fuel pool fire was reportedly extinguished later on March 15
(IAEA http://www.iaea.org/press/p=1252).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jim
Riccio, a nuclear expert for Greenpeace, reported on March 16
to The Guardian that the spent fuel pool at unit 4 was still
boiling: "The spent fuel pool in unit 4 is boiling, and
once that starts you can't stop it… The threat is that
if you boil off the water, the metal cladding on the fuel rods
that is exposed to the air, and is volatile, will catch fire.
That will propel the radiation even further"
(cited
in Goldenberg, 2011 3/16). Goldenberg, Suzanne. “Japan
Nuclear Crisis: Fire in fuel pools 'would raise radiation exposure'.
The Guardian (2011, March 16): .http://www.guardian.co.
----------------------------------
2012-04-06 2567
Bq/kg from soil in Kashiwa, posted by Mochizuki
on April 6th, 2012
A
media writer “Chidai” measured 2567 Bq/Kg of cesium
from the soil of his garden in Kashiwa Chiba. He measured 110
Bq/kg from Chinese citron growing in the garden. The atmospheric
dose was 0.4µSv/h. Also, another Japanese citizen measured
3.27µSv/h in Kamagaya city Chiba. [more Here]
Former
Japan Ambassador Warns Gov’t Committee: “A global
catastrophe like we have never before experienced” if
No. 4 collapses — Common Spent Fuel Pool with 6,375 fuel
rods in jeopardy — “Would affect us all for centuries”
April 6, 2012
2012-04-06 Voice
of the streets 4/6/2012, Posted by Mochizuki on
April 7th, 2012
… RT @onodekita: [Japanese script] twitter.com/#!/cmk2wl/stat…
—
Saori (@taoyuri21) March 31, 2012
<Translate>
The
child of my boss goes to the elementary school near Tennoz Shinagawa
Tokyo. About 1 week later since they incinerated the debris,
all the fathers of PTA were hospitalized. Cerebral infarction
is included too. Maybe,,there was a connection.
<End>
[Japanese
script] @takaranosumire: [Japanese script]
—
[script] (@odaidokoro) April 6, 2012
<Translate>
The
school planned to send childten to Kashiwa for school trip..
(Kashiwa is known to be hotspot)
<End>
—
bcxxx (@bcxxx) April 6, 2012
<Translate>
(After
the demonstration of 4/6/2012) I talked to police. I said, “See
you if we meet once again.” He was, “I wish they
wouldn’t even have to demonstrate.” Recently I’m
surprised at the comment of police. I was surprised today too.
<End>
— Sonntag-Fujikawa (@sonntag_F) April 6, 2012
<Translate>
About
2 months since city government decontaminated. It was 1µSv/h
just after the decontamination but it’s already 3 times
higher than that. For how long will they leave it there..
<End>
2012-04-07 186
Bq/Kg from tap water in Kashiwa, posted by Mochizuki
on April 7th, 2012
A
Japanese magazine reported they measured 186 Bq/kg from tap
water in Kashiwa. 186 Bq/kg from tap water in Kashiwa Chiba
(3/14/2012) 147 Bq/kg from tap water in Kashiwa Chiba (3/24/2012)
62 Bq/kg from tap water in Tokyo (3/14/2012) 31 Bq/kg from tap
water after filtering in Tokyo (3/14/2012) They used the dosemeter
named [...]
2012-04-07 Robot
destroyed within 2 hours in reactor 2, posted by
Mochizuki on April 7th, 2012
Following
up this article..73Sv/h
in container vessel In this level of radiation, even a disaster
dealing robot is collapsed within less than 2 hours. In Fukushima
plants, robot called Quince is used, which is developed by Chiba
institute of technology and Tohoku university. Assistant professor
Mizutani from Tohoku university states, “The bottle neck
to [...]
2012-04-07 Emergency
medical transport of Tokyo citizen at cherry blossom viewing
spiking up, posted by Mochizuki, fukushima-diary.com,
on April 7th, 2012
From
3/31/2012 to 4/7/2012, 36 people at cherry blossom viewing were
transported for emergency medical care in Tokyo, Tokyo fire
dep reported on 4/7/2012. It’s supposed to be acute alcohol
intoxication. Cherry blossom viewing is a Japanese traditional
activity to picnic around cherry blossom trees. They usually
lie on the ground, have food and [...]
2012-04-07 Final
disposal field can be chosen from everywhere in Japan,
Posted by Mochizuki, fukushima-diary.com, on April 7th, 2012
[Editor's Note: Many experts believe that the most logical way
to store toxic radioactive waste is in places inside Fukushima
that are already hopelessly contaminated rather than spread
it all over Japan in lightly contaminated areas].
Hosono,
minister of environment attended at the town councilor of Naraha
machi Fukushima to request them to accept interim storage facility,
on 4/7/2012.
At the same time, Hosono stated final disposal site must be
chosen from everywhere in Japan to emphasize that they are going
to choose a place for final disposal site from outside of Fukushima.
Hosono
explains that soil and debris from decontamination should be
distributed in 3 different interim storage facilities, in Futaba,
Okuma, and Naraha otherwise it causes significant trafic jam
to take in and it may affect reactor decommissioning.
In March, Japanese government requested these 3 towns to have
interim storage facility but town councilor of Naraha voted
for the opinion to be against accepting interim storage facility.
2012-04-07 Nitrogen
injection stopped again, posted by Mochizuki on
April 7th, 2012
Nitrogen
injection for reactor 1~3 stopped again, Tepco reported on 4/7/2012.
They started the back-up unit one hour later, but still the
reason is not verified. Tepco states, it might be because of
the clogging filter. Nitrogen injection stopped 3 times only
in one month. Including the leakage of highly contaminated water,
troubles are [...]
2012-04-07 Fuel
Pool 4 - Species Assured Destruction SAD , Posted
by Steveo, nukeprofessional.blogspot.com, on Fri, Apr 6, 2012
at 11:38 PM,
A
friend of mine sent me an e-mail last night. The message began,
"Please don't shoot the messenger!
She quoted an article where this statement was made by Robert
Alvarez, former Senior Policy Adviser to the Secretary and Deputy
Assistant Secretary for National Security and the Environment
at the U.S. Department of Energy. Mr. Alvarez was discussing
the precarious condition of the Fukushima Daichi spent fuel
pool at Reactor #4, and the serious threat to human existence
which would result from its collapse. (See article link below
for a full discussion of the scenario.)
According
to Robert Alvarez, former Senior Policy Adviser to the Secretary
and Deputy Assistant Secretary for National Security and the
Environment at the U.S. Department of Energy, if the spent fuel
pool #4 at Fukushima Daichi falls from its precarious perch,
it the result could be the end of civilization as we know it.
Mr. Alvarez was quoted as saying,
"Many
of our readers might find it difficult to appreciate the actual
meaning of the figure, yet we can grasp what 85 times more Cesium-137
than the Chernobyl would mean. It would destroy the world environment
and our civilization. This is not rocket science, nor does it
connect to the pugilistic debate over nuclear power plants.
This is an issue of human survival."
My
friend went on to say, "Every human being and some institutions
on my e-mail list is getting a copy of this e-mail. This is
just too important for you not to know about.
The
time for obfuscation is past, and for failing to take meaningful
action. The situation at Fukushima Daichi could become so dire
it may mean the end of life as we know it. International cooperation
is needed to prevent the collapse of SPF #4. Reactor 2 has little
or no water in it, and it appears its spent fuel pool is also
presently at risk. Three reactors have already melted through
their containment vessels at Fukushima Daichi. Ex-vessel corium
is also known as the 'China syndrome.'
Someone
has to begin telling the truth to the general public. I simply
refuse to keep silent about it to placate anyone, any longer.
Documents recently released under FOIA show the NRC was from
the beginning complicit in hiding the truth from the public.
An NRC spokesperson stated they (the NRC) didn't want 'the media
to get ahold of this story' or to know the potential 'consequences.'
The article cited below contained information obtained under
FOIA. An NRC official was quoted as saying like "tell them
to just stop it" and have the DoE tell independent labs
to quit testing for Fukushima, radiation. See the original statement
here:
http://enenews.com/nrc-weve-stop-labs-testing-fukushima-radiation-directors
-knock-doe-cool-worried-about-talking-press-about-consequences
Here
are some quotations from the article and video where Akio Matsumura
interviewed Robert Alvarez fand Akio. The dire warning about
the consequences of the collapse of Fukushima spent fuel pool
#4 appeared here:
http://akiomatsumura.com/2012/04/682.html
And
see this: http://www.prisonplanet.com/fukushima-reactor-4-life-on-planet-earth-in-the-balance.html
Akio
Matsumura's opening statement in his interview with Robert Alvarez:
"I
asked top spent-fuel pools expert Mr. Robert Alvarez, former
Senior Policy Adviser to the Secretary and Deputy Assistant
Secretary for National Security and the Environment at the U.S.
Department of Energy, for an explanation of the potential impact
of the 11,421 rods.
I
received an astounding response from Mr. Alvarez [updated 4/5/12]:
'
In recent times, more information about the spent fuel situation
at the Fukushima-Dai-Ichi site has become known. It is my understanding
that of the 1,532 spent fuel assemblies in reactor No. 304 assemblies
are fresh and unirradiated. This then leaves 1,231 irradiated
spent fuel rods in pool No. 4, which contain roughly 37 million
curies (~1.4E+18 Becquerel) of long-lived radioactivity. The
No. 4 pool is about 100 feet above ground, is structurally damaged
and is exposed to the open elements. If an earthquake or other
event were to cause this pool to drain this could result in
a catastrophic radiological fire involving nearly 10 times the
amount of Cs-137 released by the Chernobyl accident.
The
infrastructure to safely remove this material was destroyed
as it was at the other three reactors .... the removal of the
spent fuel from the pools at the damaged Fukushima-Dai-Ichi
reactors will require a major and time-consuming re-construction
effort and will be charting in unknown waters. Despite the enormous
destruction cased at the Da–Ichi site, dry casks holding
a smaller amount of spent fuel appear to be unscathed. '
Mr.
Alvarez went on to say in the interview, based on DoE assumptions,
'a total of 11,138 spent fuel assemblies are being stored at
the Dai-Ichi site, nearly all, which is in pools. They contain
roughly 336 million curies (~1.2 E+19 Bq) of long-lived radioactivity.
About 134 million curies is Cesium-137 — roughly 85 times
the amount of Cs-137 released at the Chernobyl accident.' Mr.
Alvarez stated the estimate was based on the assessment of the
U.S. National Council on Radiation Protection (NCRP). The Fukushima
site fuel inventory, he said, contains, 'roughly half the total
amount of Cs-137 estimated by the NCRP to have been released
by all atmospheric nuclear weapons testing, Chernobyl, and world-wide
reprocessing plants (~270 million curies or ~9.9 E+18 Becquerel).
'
The
article also quoted Alvarez as saying, ' It is important for
the public to understand that reactors that have been operating
for decades, such as those at the Fukushima-Dai-Ichi site have
generated some of the largest concentrations of radioactivity
on the planet.
Many
of our readers might find it difficult to appreciate the actual
meaning of the figure, yet we can grasp what 85 times more Cesium-137
than the Chernobyl would mean. It would destroy the world environment
and our civilization. This is not rocket science, nor does it
connect to the pugilistic debate over nuclear power plants.
This is an issue of human survival.' "
2012-04-07 Report
from Japan: Fukushima doctors can’t express anxieties
about radiation or say things that are against what medical
leaders decide to make public (AUDIO), by ENENews.com
2012-04-07 Nuclear
Expert: Fukushima citizens urged to make reports of deformities
or still births — “I don’t believe the Japanese
gov’t wants that info out there” (AUDIO),
by ENENews.com
2012-04-07 MSNBC
on Reactor No. 2: It is beyond human capability, “problem
gets worse and worse and worse” — The really bad
news is this is the good news, as they can’t even determine
what is going on at Reactors No. 1 and 3 (VIDEO),
by ENENews.com
|
patterns used by "