Japan Fish And Ocean Contamination
Channel: onthewaytoextinction
Date: 2013-07-13

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/

HIGH LEVELS OF CESIUM FOUND IN FISH OFF IBARAKI

 Researchers have found high levels of radioactive cesium in fish caught early this month off Hitachi in Ibaraki Prefecture, northeast of Tokyo.

Prefectural officials said 1,037 becquerels of cesium were discovered per kilogram of Japanese sea bass. That's more than 10 times the government safety limit.

They said it is the 3rd highest level found in marine products in the region. Higher levels were only previously detected in April 2011 -- one month after the Fukushima nuclear accident. The contaminated fish then was sand lance.

The officials said the sea-bass shipment will not hit the market as it does not meet government restrictions.

They admitted they don't know why such a high dose was detected more than 2 years after the accident.

But they said they are working hard to keep the food supply safe.

Jul. 11, 2013 - Updated 16:05 UTC

TEPCO: SOIL IN WATER COULD RAISE WELL'S RADIATION

 The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant says high levels of radioactive cesium in groundwater may be due to soil mixed into the water.

Tokyo Electric Power Company announced on Tuesday that the level of radioactive cesium in a newly-dug well between the No. 2 reactor and the ocean increased 100 times over the previous 5 days.

The reading was taken close to a site where highly radioactive water from the reactor leaked into the ocean after the nuclear accident in 2011.

In a news conference on Wednesday, officials said that after they filtered the water sample and measured it again, the cesium reading dropped to levels recorded 5 days earlier.

They said contaminated soil could be to blame for the higher readings in the groundwater, and that the soil was likely mixed with the water when workers pumped up a sample for testing.

But the operator said it has not ruled out other causes, and will continue investigating.

Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority says it will check other wells near the No. 3 and 4 reactors, as water in those wells is contaminated with cesium as well.

Jul. 10, 2013 - Updated 17:04 UTC

OVER 1,000 PROTEST CHINA'S NUCLEAR FUEL PLANT PLAN

More than 1,000 people have rallied in a southern Chinese city against a plan to build a nuclear fuel processing plant.

 Protesters gathered in front of the Jiangmen City government office in Guangdong Province on Friday morning, calling for the plan to be halted.

 Protesters carried banners and shouted slogans denouncing the project. Demonstrations continued well into the afternoon as police kept watch.

 Jiangmen authorities announced the plan on July 3rd. It calls for a state-run corporation to build the facility in an industrial park about 30 kilometers from the city center.

 The protesters say most citizens were unaware of the plan until the city's announcement and that such facilities would affect not just the environment but also future generations.

 Such massive protests against nuclear-related facilities are very rare in China, which is moving ahead with the construction of nuclear plants as a state policy.

Jul. 12, 2013 - Updated 11:17 UTC

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