Saturday, October 22, 2011

Kashiwa City's High Radiation Dirt: Natural Concentration?

57.5 microsieverts/hour radiation on the dirt in Kashiwa City that has maximum 276,000 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium of Fukushima origin was caused by natural concentration by rainwater flowing into the particular location, according to the city who's having a press conference on the scene.

According to the Ministry of Education and Science, there is a drain that collects rain water at that particular location and the drain broke for some unknown reason, contaminating the location.

Really? 57.5 microsieverts/hour?

Japanese Critic Plans "Hotel Radioactivity" in Fukushima (Seriously)

A Japanese critic and commentator with numerous books and writings to his credit says he's planning to build a hotel in Fukushima Prefecture to benefit from the hormesis effect of low-dose radiation.

I don't know anything about this person, never read his book or writings (if you read Japanese, this is his wiki entry). Since the Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident, he has apparently amassed a huge following among those who believe radiation is safe as exists right now in Japan and heavily criticize anyone who disagree with them, experts or lay people.

For a different point of view, from Mr. Takahiko Soejima's post on his site, dated October 18 and posted on October 19, 2011 (my translation hardly does justice to the original Japanese):

都路の活動本部を、弟子たちと現地の支援者たちだけに責(まか)せておくわけにはゆきません。 私が行って、あのあたりに、  宗教研究家の中矢伸一(なかやしんいち)氏らとも協力して、「健康ランド」とか、「低線量(ていせんりょう。微量の意味)の放射線は人体に良い影響を与える」ことの証明としての 「ホテル 放射能」 を建設しようかと、考え始めています。 また、私たちの 愚かな 「放射能コワイ、コワイ」派の敵どもが、私のこの 「ホテル 放射能」 ( 「ホテル・カリフォルニア」ではありません、「アトミック カフェ」でもありません)の話に飛びついて、ギャーギャー騒ぐでしょう。

I cannot just leave the Miyakoji [about 20 kilometers from Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant] headquarters to my disciples and local supporters. I am thinking about building a "Health Land" or a "Hotel Radioactivity" to prove "low-level radiation exerts beneficial effect on human body", in collaboration with Mr. Shinichi Nakaya, a religious scholar. Again, our stupid enemies who say "Radiation is so so scary" will no doubt make a racket about my "Hotel Radioactivity" (it's not "Hotel California" or "Atomic Cafe").

 本当に、この愚か者たちは、自分の脳に張り付いた 放射能恐怖症で、生来の臆病さ と、ものごとを冷静に考えて判断する能力がないから、救いようのない者たちだと、思います。

Seriously, these idiots are just hopeless with their radiation phobia stuck inside their brains, combined with their inherent cowardice and inability to think calmly and judge things.

私たち学問道場が、3月の原発事故の直後から、これほど頑張って、現地に入って活動を続け、冷徹な客観報道をして、「これぐらいの超微量(ちょうびりょう)の放射線量は 人間の体に害を与えない」と 書き続けた。のに、 それでもまだ、説得されないで、今も、バカな恐怖症言論を撒(ま)き散らしている。

Since the beginning of the nuclear accident in March, our group has done a tremendous job in Fukushima, dispatching the objective news and writing "Such a ultra-minute amount of radiation does not harm human body". However, [these idiots] are still not convinced, and continue to spew their stupid words of radiation phobia.

Kashiwa City's Radioactive Dirt: 276,000 Bq/Kg of Cesium

The highly radioactive dirt in Kashiwa City in Chiba, which measured 57.5 microsieverts/hr 30 centimeters below the surface, was not from radium after all or any other nuclides that are used in industrial or medical use (some suggested cobalt-60, for example). It was from radioactive cesium.

On October 22 Kashiwa City announced the result of the analysis of three dirt samples from the location at different depth (one on the surface, two at 30 centimeter deep). The analysis was done on October 22. The unit is becquerels per kilogram:

Sample A (surface dirt)

Radioactive iodine: ND
Cesium-134: 70,200
Cesium-137: 85,100
Total cesium: 155,300

Sample B1 (30 centimeters below the surface)

Radioactive iodine: ND
Cesium-134: 87,000
Cesium-137: 105,000
Total cesium: 192,000

Sample B2 (30 centimeters below the surface)

Radioactive iodine: ND
Cesium-134: 124,000
Cesium-137: 152,000
Total cesium: 276,000

The address of the location is announced by the city as: 柏市根戸字高野台457番3地先. According to the residents, the place is a strip of open space between the residential area and the industrial area, and is used as playground by many residents, young and old.

On receiving the result of the analysis, the Ministry of Education and Science, who had expressed doubt that this high radiation spot in Kashiwa had anything to do with the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident, now says it cannot deny that it is the result of the accident. The ratio of cesium-134 and cesium-137 is consistent with the radio from the accident.



Some speculate that someone in the city cleaned out his house and dumped the resulting radioactive sludge and dirt in this location.

What I find it odd is the mismatch of the radiation on the dirt surface, 57.5 microsieverts/hour, and the density of radioactive cesium, maximum 276,000 becquerels/kilogram. The density is too low to account for the extremely high radiation. Cesium alone may not account for the high radiation, but There's no mention in the city's announcement whether it is going to test for other gamma nuclides not to mention alpha and beta.

Friday, October 21, 2011

Must Read: Asahi Shinbun "Trap of Prometheus" Series Part 1 - Men in Protective Clothing (7, 8) "No One Helped My Parents"

(Installment 1, Installments 2 and 3, Installments 4 and 5, Installment 6, Installments 7 and 8, Installments 9 and 10, Installments 11 and 12)

Asahi Shinbun's series "Trap of Prometheus" - Men in Protective Clothing documents what happened in Namie-machi in Fukushima Prefecture right after the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident.

If you read Japanese, you can read all installments (1-12) in one location, at this blog.

Even if the series is written by a reporter at a major Japanese newspaper, not many Japanese are aware of it, which, after the initial launch, was buried in the 3rd page of the printed version.

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防護服の男(7) 早く東京へ来なさい

Men in Protective Clothing (7) Come to Tokyo ASAP

東京に住む娘の携帯電話の指示で転々と避難を続けた者もいた。菅野みずえの家に避難した門馬洋(もんま・ひろし)(67)と昌子(しょうこ)(68)の夫婦だ。

There are people who moved from one place to another on instructions from their daughter in Tokyo via cellphone. Hiroshi (age 67) and Shoko (age 68) Monma, for example, who evacuated to Mizue Sugano's house [in Namie-machi].

 自宅は浪江町の権現堂地区で、原発まで10キロない。3月12日朝、町の防災無線が「津島に逃げてください」と避難を呼びかけた。車で知り合いのみずえの家に避難した。

The couple's house was in Gongendo District of Namie-machi, less than 10 kilometers from the nuclear plant. In the morning of March 12, the town's emergency radio communication system alerted the residents to evacuate to Tsushima District. The couple went to Mizue's house in Tsushima; Mizue was their acquaintance.

 菅野家には昼前に着いた。昌子はみずえの炊き出しを手伝い、お握りを握った。夕食後、25人の避難民たちが自己紹介しあった。知り合いが何人もいた。

They arrived at the Suganos before noon. Shoko helped Mizue prepare food for the evacuees. After supper, 25 evacuees introduced themselves to each other. There were many that the couple knew.

 みずえから白い防護服の男たちの話を聞かされたときは、夫婦はずるずる居残った。

When Mizue told them about the men in white protective clothing, they stayed on.

 しかし、翌13日朝、再びみずえから逃げるようにいわれ、昼前に菅野家を出発した。

But the next morning on March 13, Mizue told them again to flee, and they departed before noon.

 とにかく北へ逃げようと、南相馬市を目指した。コンビニも商店も閉まっていた。レストランを見つけた。納豆定食が残っていたので、それを食べた。3軒のホテルに断られ、ようやく見つけたホテルに泊まった。

They headed north toward Minami Soma City. Convenience stores and shops were all closed. They found a restaurant that was still open, and ate the only available set meal. 3 hotels turned them down, the 4th agreed to put them up for the night.

 14日夜、福島空港から飛行機に乗り、15日に東京の長女と合流した。

They hopped on the plane at the Fukushima Airport on March 14 night, and met with their eldest daughter in Tokyo on March 15.

 長女の真理子(36)は地震のあと、両親の携帯を呼び続けた。11日の地震直後に、一度通じただけで連絡が途絶える。あとはメールだけだった。

Their eldest daughter Mariko (age 36) kept calling the parents' cellphone after the quake. She got connected only once, right after the March 11 quake; after that, only by emails.

 しかし、メールの返信も途絶えた12日の午前8時43分。

But the last reply to her email was at 8:43AM on March 12.

 「お父さんとお母さんの無事を神様にお祈りしています」

"I'm praying for your safety."

 テレビやインターネットで、原発事故の新しい情報を必死で探し、両親に送り続けた。

She did her best to look for the latest information on the nuke plant accident from TV and the Internet, and kept sending it to her parents.

 1号機が水素爆発した12日の午後9時。真理子はテレビで専門家が「大丈夫」と言っているのを聞いた。「爆発は外壁だけで、放射能をまき散らすものではなかったと判明」。そんなメールを送った。大変な誤りだった。

At 9PM on March 12 after Reactor 1 had a hydrogen explosion, Mariko heard the experts on TV saying, "Not a problem". "The explosion just blew out the outer walls, and not the kind that would release radioactive material", she wrote to her parents. That turned out to be totally false.

 両親が南相馬市に再避難した13日には「女川原発まで放射能が飛んでいる。そこも危ない。東京に来なさい」。

When her parents evacuated to Minami Soma City on March 13, she wrote to them, "Radioactive fallout even to Onagawa Nuke Plant. It's dangerous there. Come to Tokyo."

 そして14日の正午。「3号機が11時半に爆発した。早く東京へ」

And at noon on March 14, "Reactor 3 exploded at 11:30. Come to Tokyo ASAP."

 父は「そこまで行かなくてもいいじゃないか」と返してきた。真理子は「とにかく早く来なさい!」と叱った。

Her father replied, "I don't think we need to go that far". Mariko scolded her father. "Just do as I say!"

 責任のある人たちは、だれも両親を助けてくれようとしなかった。真理子にはその不信感だけが残る。(前田基行)

People in the position of authority did nothing to help her parents. That feeling of distrust is what Mariko is left with. (Reporting by Motoyuki Maeda)

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防護服の男(8) 「ふるさと」歌えない

Men in Protective Clothing (8) Can't Sing a Song About Home

 菅野みずえの家に避難した門馬洋(67)は元高校教師だ。福島第一原発がつくられた40年前から反原発運動にかかわっていた。

Hiroshi Monma (age 67), who first evacuated to Mizue Sugano's house, used to be a high school teacher. He had also been involved in anti-nuclear movement for 40 years since Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant was built.

 当時住んでいた楢葉町(ならはまち)の町営住宅に、住民3人が集まって始めた運動だ。県知事や町長らに危険性を訴え続けた。東京電力とは数年前から毎月1回交渉し、3月22日も交渉が予定されていた。

It started with 3 residents when they got together in Monma's then-house in Naraha-machi. They continued to appeal the danger of the nuclear plant to the governor of the prefecture and the town's mayor. They had also been meeting with TEPCO once a month for several years, and the monthly meeting was scheduled on March 22.

 原告404人で隣の福島第二原発について裁判を起こしたが負けた。そのとき仙台高裁の裁判長が述べた言葉を今もはっきり覚えている。

The group of 404 people sued over Fukushima II Nuclear Power Plant and lost. Monma still clearly remembers what the chief justice of the Sendai High Court said.

 「反対ばかりしていないで落ち着いて考える必要がある。原発をやめるわけにはいかないだろうから」

"Instead of just blindly protesting against the nuclear power plant, we need to calm down and think. For we probably cannot afford to stop the nuclear power plant."

 それから21年。原発は安全だという幻想はあっけなく崩壊した。

It's been 21 years since the verdict. The illusion that nuclear power plants are safe has been shattered all too easily.

 「東京電力の想定がいかに甘いか。そのために多くの人に、どれだけの被害を与えたか。いったいどう責任を取るつもりなのか」

"It shows how optimistic TEPCO's assumption was. Because of that, so many people have suffered so much damage. How is the company going to take responsibility?"

 しかし、浪江町が今回の事故で「殺人行為だ」と国や東京電力を非難していることについても、同様に違和感がある。

However, he also feels ill at ease with the accusation of Namie-machi against the national government and TEPCO, saying what they did [or didn't do] was "homicide".

 浪江町にも、東北電力の原発建設計画が40年前からあった。浪江町議会が誘致を求めていたものだった。

There is a plan for Tohoku Electric to build a nuclear power plant in Namie-machi; the plan was first floated 40 years ago. The Namie-machi Town Assembly has been actively inviting the plant.

 昨年、町内会の会合で町議が洋を見ながらいった。「原発で浪江町の未来は明るくなる。門馬先生は反対でしょうが……」

Last year, one assemblyman told Hiroshi in a neighborhood meeting. "The nuclear power plant will brighten up the future for Namie-machi. I know you are against it, but..."

 7月に一時帰宅したとき線量を測った。家の近くで毎時4マイクロシーベルトあった。

When he returned to his home temporarily in July, he measured the radiation. Near the house, it was 4 microsieverts/hour.

 畑には大きな柿の木がある。長女の真理子(36)が生まれたときに植えたものだ。300個以上の実をつけた年もあった。

There is a big persimmon tree in the field. He planted the tree when his eldest daughter Mariko (age 36) was born. There were years when the tree had more than 300 persimmon fruits.

 「もう実がなっても食べられませんね。汚染されてしまったから」

"We can't eat the fruits anymore. They have been contaminated."

 30年ほど前、町内の体育館を借り、東京の劇団を呼んで放射能漏れ事故をテーマにした劇をやったことがあった。原発事故で町民が逃げ惑うというストーリーだった。それが現実になった。

About 30 years ago, [his anti-nuke group?] rented a school gym and invited a theatrical company from Tokyo to put on the play about an accident where radioactive materials leaked from a nuclear power plant. It was a story of town's residents running around trying to escape a nuclear accident. It now became the reality.

 夫婦は東京都北区の団地に身を落ち着けている。

The husband and wife now lives in a housing development complex in Kita-ku in Tokyo.

 家賃は13万5千円と高いが、長女の家の近くに住むため、そこに決めた。東京電力からもらった仮払金100万円を家賃の支払いにあてる。

The monthly rent is rather high at 135,000 yen [US$1,774], but they decided on that location to be close to their eldest daughter. 1 million yen temporary advance from TEPCO is being used to pay the rent.

 洋は福島にいたころから合唱が好きだった。7月、北区で合唱団の催しがあるのを知り、妻の昌子(68)と参加してみた。

Hiroshi always liked singing in a chorus when he lived in Fukushima. In July, he knew about a chorus in Kita-ku, and tried it out with his wife Shoko (age 68).

 兎(うさぎ)追いしかの山、の「故郷(ふるさと)」を歌った。洋も昌子も途中で歌えなくなった。(前田基行)

They sang "Furusato (Home)". "The mountain that I used to chase a rabbit.." Hiroshi and Shoko could not finish the song. (Reporting by Motoyuki Maeda)

==================================

The song is in formal, written-style Japanese, and it roughly runs like this in English (which just doesn't do justice to the original Japanese):

The mountain that I used to chase a rabbit
The river that I used to fish
I still dream of my old home
I cannot forget my old home

How are my parents who still live there?
How are my old friends?
When it rains, when the wind blows
I always think about my old home

Someday when I achieve my dream
I shall return to my old home
Where the mountains are green
Where the water is clear


Well, they have destroyed my "home", too. I don't have a clean, radiation-free place to come home to any more. And they are running around like chickens with heads cut off, promising "decontamination" to people and promising domestic tax hikes to foreign politicians, selling nuke plants, and telling people it's OK to eat contaminated food and forcing school children to attend schools in high radiation areas.

#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Just Released Video of Reactor 3 Upper Floors

or what used to be the upper floors. TEPCO took the video on October 12 when they did the dust sampling. The camera was mounted on the crane boom.

You get to see the mangled steel beams and other incredible mess, against the clear blue sky of October. Surreal in a way.


Don't forget to view Quince effort on Reactor 2, and carbon-based TEPCO workers' effort on Reactor 1.

#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Video of Inside Reactor 1

Weekend video galore. (Have you seen the video Quince took of Reactor 2?)

This one was taken by carbon-based TEPCO employees as they surveyed Reactor 1 (Isolation Condenser, in particular). The video was taken on October 18, and uploaded to TEPCO's "Photos for Press" page on October 21.

The workers spent most of the time on the 4th floor, surveying the integrity of the pipes for the Isolation Condenser. You do get to see the 3rd and 2nd floors toward the end of the video. One worker calls out the radiation numbers periodically. The highest number I heard was "189" on the 2nd floor.

You can see the light coming in from outside on the 4th floor, giving a warm orange glow to the scene of utter destruction on the 4th floor:


You can download the video at TEPCO, here. Or view it here.



(UPDATE: For this effort, the workers (TEPCO employees) got as much as 9.44 millisieverts external radiation exposure, according to Mainichi Shinbun Japanese.)

Video of Inside Reactor 2, Maybe the Last Video of Quince Who Was Lost in the Building

Asahi Shinbun says Quince was lost on the 3rd floor on the way back from the 5th floor, but from the press conference on October 20 (see my post), I didn't think TEPCO's Matsumoto was very clear as to exactly where. But anyway, either the 3rd floor (up to 40 millisieverts/hr radiation) or the 5th floor (250 millisieverts/hr radiation), the human coworkers would have to brave high radiation to retrieve Quince.

Here's the video that the hard-working Quince took of Reactor 2 building before it lost its way, from TEPCO's "Photos for the Press" page (for your own copy, click here to download):

57.5 Microsieverts/Hr in Kashiwa City, Chiba

After the Setagaya-ku, Tokyo's radiation scare turned out to be radium, what could this be this time in Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture, where the radiation level remains elevated?

From Nikkei Shinbun (11:24PM JST 10/21/2011):

千葉県柏市は21日、同市根戸の市有地で毎時57.5マイクロシーベルトの高い放射線量を計測したと発表した。原因は不明だが計測値が極端に高いため「福島第1原子力発電所事故の影響とは考えにくい」(総務部)としている。

Kashiwa City in Chiba Prefecture announced on October 21 that the very high radiation of 57.5 microsieverts/hour was detected on the land owned by the city in Nedo District. The cause of the high radiation is unknown. Since the measured number is extremely high, "It is hard to believe this is from the Fukushima I Nuclear Plant accident", says the city's general affairs department.

 現場は更地で、57.5マイクロシーベルトは地表から30センチ程度掘ったところで計測。10メートル離れると毎時0.3マイクロシーベルトまで低下した。市は半径3メートル以内を立ち入り禁止にし、24日以降に土の除去などを進める方針。

It is a vacant lot, and 57.5 microsieverts/hour radiation was detected 30 centimeter below the surface of the ground. The radiation dropped to 0.3 microsievert/hour at 10 meters from the spot. The city has designated the 3-meter radius from the spot as off-limit, and is planning to remove the soil sometime after October 24.

 18日に市民から高い放射線量を計測したとの連絡を受け調査した。

The city had received information from a citizen on October 18 that there was a high radiation spot, and the city tested on its own.

The city's announcement is here (in Japanese). According to the announcement,

  • The city received a telephone call on October 18 from the neighborhood association that there was a high radiation spot;

  • On October 19, the city measured the radiation at the location which is owned by the city. Radiation exceeding 10 microsieverts/hour was measured at a particular spot;

  • On October 20, with the officials of the neighborhood association present, the city measured the radiation again. The radiation survey meter of the city couldn't not measure over 10 microsieverts/hour;

  • On October 21, the city asked the Chiba Prefectural Environment Foundation to measure the radiation. After digging the soil at the location, maximum 57.5 microsieverts/hour at 30 centimeters below the surface was confirmed.

The yellow marker is where the spot is (from a tweet by a resident):


It's a thin strip of land in the middle of residential/commercial mixed neighborhood.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Robot Quince Found High Radiation on 5th Floor of Reactor 2, and Was Lost

Reactors 1 through 3 at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant continue to have high radiation levels, too high for humans to work for any length of time effectively. The Japanese robot Quince entered the Reactor 2 building to survey the radiation and temperature on October 20.

Following is my quick report on the October 20 press conference (I watched the video).

Quince entered and measured radiation for the first time on the 3rd, 4th and 5th floor of the reactor building since the accident.

TEPCO's Matsumoto said that Reactor 3 had the highest radiation level (many spots exceeding 100 millisieverts/hour), Reactor 2 second, then Reactor 1.

In Reactor 2, the radiation was the highest on the 5th floor, near the reactor well. It was 250 millisieverts/hour. Matsumoto said the high radiation was probably the result of the gaseous leak from the Containment Vessel, which was seen in the video taken on September 17.

Matsumoto called the attention to the crane on the 5th floor, which was rusted due to exposure to radioactive steam from the reactor.

The main purpose of the survey by Quince this time was to check the 3rd floor, where they may have to enter in case of a trouble of the gas management system that they will install. In the diagram, the green patch on the upper left corner is where the flammable gas measurement system is located. If the gas management system doesn't work, they would need to open the valve of the system.

But for all the work, Quince got lost on the 5th floor. The communication from the robot was cut off all of a sudden, and they don't know where the robot is or what happened to the robot. Matsumoto said they would consult with the experts to figure out how to retrieve the robot in the high radiation environment. Human co-workers of Quince may have to go to the 5th floor.





Radioactive Materials in Rivers, Wells Detected in Fukushima Much Higher Than Pre-Nuke Accident Levels

(Clarification: Plutonium was measured by the Ministry, but it was below the detection limit in the 10 locations measured, as described in the article.)

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The Ministry of Education and Science (and the media reporting the news) is spinning it as "good news" that radioactive materials detected in river water and well water in Fukushima Prefecture are "far less than the provisional safety limit".

If you compare the measured level to the provisional safety limit for water which is high as 200 becquerels/liter for radioactive cesium for adults, well yes, it is far less.

If you compare the level to the one before the Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident, it is a different story altogether. The highest strontium-90 level in the Ministry's survey is 5.14 times the highest level measured in 2009, and the highest cesium-137 level is 6,500 times the highest level measured in 2009.

The Ministry's announcement (10/20/2011) is here (in Japanese, PDF).

From Asahi Shinbun (10/20/2011):

東京電力福島第一原発の事故で放出された放射性物質について、文部科学省は20日、原発から20キロ圏内を除く福島県内の河川と井戸計101カ所での水の汚染状況を公表した。セシウムやストロンチウムなどを調べたが、飲用基準を上回るような高い濃度は認められなかったという。

The Ministry of Education and Science announced the result of the survey of water contamination in rivers and wells in Fukushima Prefecture, except in the 20-kilometer radius from the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant. Nuclides such as cesium and strontium were tested, but according to the Ministry there was no detection of radioactive materials exceeding the standard for drinking water.

 6~8月に2回調査した。事故後の調査で土壌のセシウムの蓄積量が比較的高い場所から、河川50カ所と井戸51カ所を選んだ。セシウム、ヨウ素131は101カ所すべてで調べ、ストロンチウムとプルトニウムは空中の放射線量が高い河川10カ所で調査。同様に井戸6カ所でストロンチウムだけを調べた。

The Ministry did the survey twice in June and August. It selected the survey locations from the areas that showed relatively high level of cesium deposition in soil in the Ministry's aerial survey after the accident. 50 river locations and 51 wells were selected. Radioactive cesium and iodine-131 were measured in all 101 locations. Strontium and plutonium were measured in 10 river locations where the air radiation was high. Similarly, at 6 wells, only strontium was measured.

 半減期30年のセシウム137は、河川では南相馬市真野地区(第一原発の北北西約37キロ)の1キロあたり2.0ベクレルが最も高く、平均値0.58ベクレル。井戸は本宮市糠沢(同西約54キロ)の1.1ベクレルが最高で、平均値は0.49ベクレルだった。

The highest cesium-137 (half life 30 years) for the river water was detected in Mano District in Minami Soma City (37 kilometers north by northwest from the nuke plant), at 2.0 becquerels/kg. The average amount of cesium-137 in river water was 0.58 becquerels/kg. The highest cesium-137 for the well water was detected in Nukazawa in Motomiya City (54 kilometers west of the plant), at 1.1 becquerels/kg. The average for well water was 0.49 becquerels/kg.

 文科省は「河川水、井戸水のいずれも飲食制限に関する暫定基準値200ベクレルより非常に小さい」とする。ただし同省による2009年の全国調査では、河川の最大値は秋田県の0.00037ベクレル(福島県は不検出)で福島の2.0ベクレルはその約5400倍。井戸の1.1ベクレルは09年の蛇口水の最高値の約6500倍になる。

According to the Ministry of Education and Science, "Radioactive materials in both river water and well water are far below the provisional safety limit of 200 becquerels/kg". However, according to the Ministry's national survey in 2009, the highest level in river water was found in Akita Prefecture at 0.00037 becquerels/kg (ND in Fukushima). So, 2.0 becquerels/kg of cesium-137 detected this time in Fukushima is 5,400 times as much as the highest level in 2009 in river water. As to 1.1 becquerels/kg of cesium-137 from the well water, it is 6,500 times as much as the highest level detected in tap water in 2009.

 ストロンチウム90(半減期約30年)の最大値はいわき市小名浜の河川で0.018ベクレルで、09年調査の最大値の5.14倍。井戸水は事故前と変わらなかった。プルトニウム、ヨウ素131は検出限界値以下だった。

The largest amount of strontium-90 (half life 30 years) was detected in a river in Onahama in Iwaki City, at 0.018 becquerels/kg, 5.14 times the level detected in the 2009 survey. Strontium-90 in well water was the same level as before the accident. Plutonium and iodine-131 were below the detection limit.

 文科省は各最大値の河川水を1年飲み続けた場合の被曝(ひばく)線量を計算。セシウム137は0.025ミリシーベルト、ストロンチウム90は0.00049ミリシーベルトになるという。

According to the Ministry's calculation on the internal radiation if one drinks the river water that had the maximum amount of radioactive materials for one year, cesium-137 would result in 0.025 millisievert, and strontium-90 in 0.00049 millisievert.

Hmmm. They tested an alpha emitter (plutonium) and a beta emitter (strontium) in water in locations with high air radiation? What does high air radiation have to do with alpha and beta emitters? And what about other nuclides, like cobalt-60?

The Ministry of Education tested water at these locations twice: first in late June to early July, then in early August. Looking at the result, there are two locations where the amount of radioactive cesium significantly INCREASED during the one month, indicating perhaps the inflow of radioactive materials from the surrounding mountains.

The Ministry's document has very poor resolution, but here's the page that shows charts of cesium-137 detections (page 19 in the document):

The detection limit for the Ministry of Education's survey was meaningfully low. For radioactive cesium and iodine-131, the detection limit was 0.1 becquerel/kg. For plutonium, it was 8 x 10^-6 becquerel/kg (0.000008 becquerel/kg), strontium-89 at 4 x 10^-3 becquerel/kg (0.004 becquerel/kg), and strontium-90 at 6 x 10^-4 becquerel/kg (0.0006 becquerel/kg).

Compare that to the survey by the Ministry of the Environment in May, where the detection limit for radioactive materials in river water was 10 becquerels/kg. The Ministry proudly declared on the announcement that no radioactive cesium or iodine was detected.

The first measurement was at the end of June, so there was no danger of detecting high level of iodine-131 in the water. (How convenient.) I wonder if I can find the data of the measurement that the Ministry did back in March and April in the areas now admitted by the government to have been heavily contaminated, such as Namie-machi and Iitate-mura.

7 Microsieverts/Hr Radiation Measured in Matsudo City, Chiba

According to Mainichi Shinbun (linked and translated below), the group of Japanese Communist Party assemblymen in Matsudo City in Chiba Prefecture released the result of their radiation survey of 144 locations in the city, and found 37 locations with over 1 microsievert/hour radiation. The highest was 7 microsieverts/hour. If you stand on the spot 24 hours a day for one year, you would get 61 millisieverts of external radiation.

Matsudo City, located on the western edge of Chiba Prefecture, are one of the cities and towns that have relatively high overall radiation in Kanto. (The map (version 4) is by Professor Yukio Hayakawa of Gunma University. Matsudo City is circled in red.)

The Communist Party assemblymen in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly did the similar survey of Tokyo back in May, which helped force the Tokyo government to start monitoring radiation in more details.

From Mainichi Shinbun (10/20/2011):

千葉県松戸市の共産党市議団は20日、同市内の公園、民家、保育園など144カ所での空間放射線量の測定結果を発表した。1カ所あたり最大25地点で測定し、農業用ビニールハウスそばで記録した毎時約7.0マイクロシーベルトが最高。37カ所で同1マイクロシーベルト以上の地点があった。

The group of Japanese Communist Party assemblymen in Matsudo City in Chiba Prefecture announced on October 20 the result of the air radiation survey of 144 locations in the city. The locations included parks, private residences, and nursery schools. They measured up to 25 points in one location, and the highest radiation was recorded at the side of an agricultural greenhouse, at 7 microsieverts/hour. More than 1 microsievert/hour radiation was measured at 37 locations.

 調査には市民ら約1830人が参加し、先月7日から今月17日、各地点の地上5センチで計測。同市議団は同約7.0マイクロシーベルトを記録した場所については「風評被害の恐れがあり、場所やその後の対応も答えられない」と話している。公園での最高値は西ノ下公園(同市西馬橋幸町)砂場の同約3.42マイクロシーベルトで、連絡を受けた市が除染し、同0.3マイクロシーベルトに低下した。

1,830 Matsudo City residents also participated in the survey that was carried out from September 7 to October 17. The radiation was measured at 5 centimeters off the ground at each location. The group says it will not reveal the details of the location that measured 7.0 microsieverts/hour radiation for the fear of "baseless rumors". The highest measurement in parks was recorded at the sand box of Nishinoshita Park, at 3.42 microsieverts/hour. The group notified the city, who decontaminated the sand pit. The radiation was reduced to 0.3 microsievert/hour after decontamination.

 同市はこれまでも、市民が独自に測定した地点で再測定するなどし、既に約10カ所で緊急除染を実施。今後も、公園などでより詳細な調査を進める。

The city has already carried out emergency decontamination at 10 locations after confirming the radiation measurements done by the city residents. It will conduct a more detailed survey in parks.

 砂場など特定の場所で局所的に高い汚染が確認される傾向が強く、同市議団は「比較的安全と考えられていた場所で突出した数値が出て驚いている。より細やかな調査が急務だ」と話している。

Localized, high radiation contamination has been consistently found in places like sand boxes. The group says, "We are surprised at the very high numbers in locations that have been considered relatively safe. We should make it an urgent task to conduct a more detailed survey."

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Germany's "Heute Show" Making Fun of TEPCO, Japanese Government

The clip below is from their show in April, making fun of the NISA, TEPCO and the Japanese government over their handling of the Fukushima I Nuke Plant disaster. A very popular video in Japan now. Some are wondering why none of the comedians in Japan is able to do the same.

(English translation by 007bratsche (Viola) and captioning by Tokyo Brown Tabby)

#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: 450 Tonnes of Groundwater Per Day Seeping into Reactor/Turbine Bldgs

Since the end of June when the contaminated water treatment system started the operation, total 50,000 tonnes of groundwater have seeped into the reactor buildings and turbine buildings at Fukushima I Nuke Plant. Now, the total amount of contaminated water (highly contaminated water plus not-so-highly contaminated, treated water) at the plant has grown from 127,000 tonnes at the end of June to 175,000 tonnes as of October 18, according to Asahi Shinbun.

Does TEPCO have any plan to stop the flow of groundwater into the reactor buildings and turbine buildings, which just adds to the amount of highly contaminated water to be treated and stored? TEPCO is fast running out of storage space, even with cutting down more trees to make room for the storage tanks.

Other than spraying the low-contamination, treated water on the premise, the answer is no. No plan, as TEPCO is running out of money that it is willing to spend on Fukushima I Nuke Plant.

From Asahi Shinbun (10/19/2011):

原発事故の復旧を目指す東京電力福島第一原発の原子炉建屋やタービン建屋内に、この4カ月間で計約5万トンの地下水が流れ込み、放射能汚染水が4割増えたことが分かった。流入はいまも続き、浄化後の汚染水が増え続けて保管場所が不足する恐れがあるほか、水処理施設の不具合と大雨が重なれば、建屋から汚染水があふれる可能性もある。

It has been discovered that the contaminated water has increased by 40% in 4 months inside the reactor buildings and turbine buildings at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, with the inflow of ground water of about 50,000 tonnes. The flow still continues. TEPCO may run out of storage space for the treated, still-contaminated, water. There is also a possibility of the highly contaminated water overflowing from the buildings if a problem at the water treatment facility and a heavy rain coincide.

 東京電力の公表データをもとに朝日新聞が試算したところ、水処理施設が本格稼働した6月下旬以降、1~4号機の建屋地下には1日あたり約450トンの地下水が流れ込み続けている。建屋の壁などに損傷部があるためとみられる。

According to the calculation done by Asahi Shinbun based on the data published by TEPCO, about 450 tonnes of ground water per day have been flowing into the buildings of Reactors 1 through 4 since the end of June when the contaminated water treatment facility started the operation. It is considered that there are damages in the walls of the buildings.

 流入量は降雨と連動しており、台風による大雨後の9月下旬には倍増、1週間で約7700トンの地下水が流れ込んでいた。

The amount of groundwater into the buildings fluctuates with the rainfall. At the end of September when it rained heavily because of a typhoon, the amount of ground water doubled, and about 7,700 tonnes of water seeped into the buildings in that week.

 流入した地下水は建屋地下の汚染水と混じり、高濃度放射能汚染水として水処理施設に送られる。放射能濃度を下げ、塩分を除去した水は、原子炉の注水に使われる。

The groundwater would mix with the contaminated water in the basement of the buildings, and this highly contaminated water is being sent to the water treatment facility. After the density of radioactive materials in the water is lowered and salt removed, the treated water is being used for cooling the reactors.

 この「循環注水冷却」が始まった6月下旬、原発敷地内には、高濃度放射能汚染水と処理後の汚染水が計約12万7千トンあったが、地下水が流入した結果、10月18日現在、4割増えて約17万5千トンに。すべて、外部に放出できない水だ。

When the circulatory water injection and cooling system started in late June, there were 127,000 tonnes of contaminated water (highly contaminated water plus the treated water with low contamination). However, as the result of the groundwater inflow, there are now 175,000 tonnes of contaminated water, a 40% increase, as of October 18. None of the water could be released outside the plant.

 淡水化処理に伴って出る塩分の濃い濃縮廃液は専用のタンクにためられるが、増え続ければタンクを増やす必要がある。現在、毎月2万トン分のタンクを増設しており、タンク置き場を確保するため、東電は原発敷地内の森を伐採している。水を蒸発させることで量を減らす装置があるが、現在は稼働していない。

Concentrated, highly saline waste water after the desalination process is stored in the special tanks. As more water is processed, more tanks are needed. TEPCO is installing 20,000 tonnes storage tanks every month. To secure the space for the tanks the company has been cutting down the trees in the plant compound. There is a system to evaporate water to reduce the amount of waste water, but it is not currently used.

 原子炉冷却に使った高濃度汚染水がたまるタービン建屋の水位は現在、あふれる恐れがある高さの約1メートル下にあり、大雨が降ってすぐにあふれ出るレベルではないが、水処理装置の不具合が重なれば、循環が滞って水位が一気に上昇する恐れがある。

The water level in the turbine buildings where the highly contaminated water after the reactor cooling accumulates is 1 meter below the level at which there is a danger of overflowing. It is not the level that would cause immediate overflow after a heavy rain. However, if the heavy rain is coupled with a trouble at the water treatment system that hampers the water circulation, the water level could rise very rapidly.

 水処理施設の能力は1日1400トン。東電は、施設が順調に稼働しており、循環注水冷却が安定していることを強調するが、処理すべき水が増えている現状が続けば、施設に過分な負荷がかかり、不具合につながりかねない。

The treatment capacity of the water treatment facility is 1,400 tonnes per day. TEPCO emphasizes that the facility is running smoothly and the circulatory water injection system is stable. However, if the current situation continues where groundwater keeps coming into the buildings that needs to be treated, the water treatment facility will be taxed with excess load, which may cause a problem.

 地下水流入を完全に止めるのは難しく、東電は対策工事を計画していない。汚染水がたまり続けることに対して、東電の原子力・立地本部の松本純一本部長代理は「建屋の地下部分を使わずに水を循環させる、よりコンパクトな水処理にしないと、流入する地下水の処理が必要な状況からぬけられない」としているが、根本解決のめどは立っていない。

It is difficult to stop the inflow of groundwater completely, and TEPCO is not planning any countermeasure construction. Regarding the continued inflow of groundwater into the buildings, TEPCO's Junichi Matsumoto says, "We have to come up with a more compact water treatment system in which we can circulate water without using the basements of the buildings. Otherwise we would be stuck in a situation where we have to treat the groundwater coming into the basements." However, there is no prospect of fundamentally solving the problem.

And there will be no such prospect, as TEPCO is now proven to be very good at looking the other way. Over 10 sieverts/hour ultra-hot spot? Not a problem, we will just cordon off the area. What is causing 10 sieverts/hour radiation? Why it's not our problem. How much over 10 sieverts/hour? We don't know because we don't measure such things. High hydrogen concentration in the pipe? Not a problem, we will just blow nitrogen gas. What is causing the high hydrogen concentration? It's not our problem. A worker died after 1 week of work at the plant. Why? It's not our problem, it's the subcontractor's problem...

TEPCO's Subsidiary Selected to Burn Disaster Debris from Iwate on Tokyo Bay

I forgot to write about it in the English blog, but the readers of my Japanese blog knew. Now everyone will know that the contractor who will burn the burnable part of the disaster (radioactive) debris from Miyako City in Iwate Prefecture is a subsidiary of TEPCO, called "Tokyo Rinkai (Waterfront) Recycle Power Company" located on the very landfill on Tokyo Bay that the radioactive debris and ashes will be buried.

Here's the brief background:

The Tokyo Metropolitan government signed an agreement with Iwate Prefecture on September 30 to accept disaster debris from Iwate Prefecture, starting with that of Miyako City, without much consultation at all with the Metropolitan Assembly or the residents of Tokyo. Then, it did the public solicitation to line up the waste disposal companies who would take the debris, smash them into small pieces and bring them to the landfill in Tokyo Bay. One of the stipulations (link is in Japanese, PDF) by the Tokyo government was that the applicants must select a contractor who could burn the burnable part of the disaster debris with the daily capacity of 100 tonnes and above.

Well, my quick search on the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Environment showed that there was only ONE company that could burn 100 tonnes of debris or more per day, and that was TEPCO's subsidiary, Tokyo Rinkai Recycle Power Company.

Sure enough, on October 19, the Tokyo Metropolitan government announced the 4 companies it selected to handle the disaster radioactive debris from Iwate, and these 4 companies all selected the TEPCO subsidiary to handle the burnable portion of the debris. Of course they did because that was the only choice.

From the October 19 announcement:

先行事業分から発生する可燃性廃棄物の焼却施設は、募集要領に示された要件を満たした焼却施設を選定することになっています。今回は、すべての処分業者が東京臨海リサイクルパワー株式会社(江東区青海三丁目地先)を選定しました。

As to the facility to burn the burnable debris from this pilot project, the companies are required to select a facility which satisfies the condition specified in the application form. All the companies have selected Tokyo Rinkai Recycle Power Company (Aomi, Koto-ku).

That stipulation was probably put in just to make sure the TEPCO subsidiary would have a cut in the juicy job.

The company is a joint venture of 5 large corporations:

It receives subsidies from the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and sells electricity generated from the waste processing to TEPCO. Now it will make profit burning radioactive debris for the recovery of Iwate Prefecture.

Comment Section of This Blog

In case some of the readers haven't figured out, there are certain things you need to know.

First, this is my personal blog, not a public, free-topic forum. I haven't actively censored the comments (except for whatever Google decides to put in the SPAM folder, which is a real pain), but I can, and I will if the current situation continues.

What is the current situation as I see it?

  • Totally off-topic (i.e. unrelated to the post that the comment section is attached to) comments on religions, personal attacks or ridicules on posters who some readers don't agree with;

  • And these comments just keep going on and on.

I have kept the comment section of the blog open, so that people can share information, opinions and ideas RELATING TO the on-going nuclear crisis in Japan and the posts that I write. I welcome criticism to the posts, as well as criticism on other posters that you may disagree with, in a civil way.

However, I do not tolerate persistent personal attacks, and comments on religions that have very little to do with the posts or this blog which has been covering the events in Japan since March 11.

If the current situation continues, I will start actively removing the posts that I believe may be discouraging other people from posting comments and information by totally crowding out others.

2nd-Pick "Sayama-cha" Tea in Saitama: 84% Contained Radioactive Cesium, 9% Exceeded Provisional Safety Limit

The Saitama prefectural government decided to test all teas from all tea plantations in the prefecture (it is one of the major tea growing regions in Japan), after the Ministry of Health and Labor did the random testing of Saitama teas that were sold in the market in September and found radioactive cesium exceeding the provisional safety limit of 500 becquerels/kg.

When the prefectural government tested the tea between May and July, they picked only 38 samples to test, and declared safe after they all tested "below the provisional safety limit".

On October 19, Saitama announced the result of its testing of the 2nd-pick teas (made from tea leaves picked after the new leaves were picked) of the prefecture's 1,081 brands of "Sayama-cha" tea at 216 tea growers and blenders.

Of 1,081 brands,

  • 97 (or 9% of total) were found with radioactive cesium exceeding the provisional safety limit, as much as 2,063 becquerels/kg;

  • 912 (or 84% of total) were found with radioactive cesium below the provisional safety limit, but as much as 490 becquerels/kg. (I'm counting the number of the brands again to make sure, but I don't think I'm far off.)

Again, the provisional safety limit is 500 becquerels/kg. Saitama Prefecture says it will affix the seal of testing on the packages of those teas that tested below the provisional safety limit, including the one with 490 becquerels/kg of cesium, so that the consumers will feel safe. All this label says is that the tea has been tested for radiation. The sunny mark at the top is supposed to indicate everything is OK.

They have already sold most of the teas that exceeded the provisional safety limit for cesium.

Below is the list of teas that exceeded the provisional safety limit, from the Saitama Prefecture website:


For the list of teas that tested below the provisional safety limit but still contained significant amount of radioactive cesium, go to the Saitama website.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Decon Bubble in Fukushima: Contractors Charging US$13,000 Per House

Yet another fine example of how a government is so good at misallocating the resource. By pledging to pour hundreds of billions of yen (probably in trillions) into "decontaminating" Fukushima, the Japanese government has already spawned a brand-new industry of residential decontamination. Who are the industry participants? Cleaners, painters, just about anyone who has a high-pressure washer.

Some are apparently charging 1 million yen (US$13,000) to hose down your house. As you can see in the video in the previous post, their idea of "decontamination" looks little more than year-end cleanup. Power washing seems to somehow turn cleanup into "decontamination".

From Yomiuri Shinbun (10/19/2011):

東京電力福島第一原子力発電所事故による放射性物質の除染作業が本格化している福島県で、個人宅の除染に100万円を業者から請求されるなどのトラブルが起き始めている。

As decontamination work gets underway in Fukushima Prefecture to remove radioactive materials from the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident, so do troubles with the decontamination contractors. Some are asking 1 million yen [US$13,000] to decontaminate a house.

 費用を巡るトラブルは今後増える恐れがあり、標準的な作業内容や目安となる費用などを盛り込んだガイドラインを設ける必要性を指摘する声も出ている。

Disputes over the cost may increase in the future, and there are some who point out that there should be a guideline specifying what constitutes the standard decontamination work and the cost associated with it.

 除染を巡っては、市内全域についての除染計画をまとめた福島市のように、自治体が計画を掲げて特定区域で重点的に作業を進める動きがある一方で、住民が直接業者に除染を依頼したり、業者がセールスしたりする例も少なくない。

Regarding decontamination, some municipalities like Fukushima City have the city-wide decontamination plan and focus on particular areas to decontaminate. On the other hand, there are cases where the residents hire contractors for decontamination on their own. There are also active sales promotion by the contractors.

 トラブルになるのはこれらのケースが多く、県除染対策課には、「業者に住宅の除染を行ってもらったら、100万円を請求された」という苦情が寄せられた。同様の苦情は数件来ているという。

Disputes mostly rise from the latter cases. The Fukushima prefectural department in charge of decontamination has received a complaint from a resident who was presented with a bill for 1 million yen by the contractor who did the decontamination work for his residence. The department says it has received similar complaints.

 福島市にも除染の費用を巡る相談は多く、業者に20万円で除染を頼んだ市民から「この費用は、国か東電がもってくれるのか」という問い合わせもあったという。

Fukushima City has received inquiries from the residents about the cost of decontamination. One resident who hired the contractor to decontaminate for 200,000 yen [US$2,600] asked the city whether or not this cost would be paid by either the national government or TEPCO.

 民家などの除染を行う専門業者はこれまでおらず、清掃業や塗装業などから続々と参入している。南相馬市のビル管理業者は「住宅の清掃とほぼ同様の方法で算出すると、住宅1棟につき20万~30万円が相場ではないか」と話す。

There were no contractors specialized in decontaminating residences, until now. Many cleaning companies and painters are entering the field. One building management company in Minami Soma City says, "If we calculate the same way as the cleaning of a personal residence, 200,000 to 300,000 yen per residence would be appropriate."

Hmmm. Decontamination is not the same as cleaning, really. But from what I've heard directly from people who have witnessed the so-called "decontamination" in Fukushima and what I've seen on video, they are one and the same.

Blasting the roof and wall with power washer after more than 7 months may not even be enough to dislodge radioactive cesium, as Professor Yamauchi has analyzed. Even if it does, it simply moves cesium to somewhere else, like the neighbor's yard or onto the public road. Then, particularly in the case of Fukushima, the contaminated mountains and forests surrounding the cities and towns will supply radioactive cesium and other nuclides over time with rain and wind.

But no matter. Money is there to be made, as near-endless supply of money flowing from the national government to "decontaminate" Fukushima and make people stay.

If blasting with power washer does decontaminate, I am pretty sure Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians have done that long time ago.

Prime Minister Noda, whom you can see in the video in the previous post, won the leadership election thanks to his oratorical skills and NHK misreporting on the votes available for Banri Kaieda, looks absolutely clueless. Just as his predecessor, the whole thing looks way over his head.

This Is How "Decontamination" Is Done, and To Be Done in Fukushima

As Prime Minister Noda looked on, workers contracted by Fukushima City "decontaminated" a relatively new-looking residence in Onami District in Fukushima City on October 18. It is to be served as "model decontamination" for the rest of the district, as well as for the city.

It amounts to nothing more than power washing to "move" radioactive materials from one place to another.

Onami District of Fukushima City, along with another district (Watari District), has high air radiation and soil contamination. In the "model decontamination" work done by the city in August, the radiation hardly went down, while in several locations it went up. Quite a "model decontamination". It is probably a model distribution of government money among well-connected contractors.

This is a footage of the TBS news:

#Radioactive Tea from TOKYO: 3 Exceeding Provisional Safety Limit for Cesium

550 to 690 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium detected in the commercial teas grown in 3 tea plantations in Tokyo. The Tokyo Metropolitan government tested 30 teas in early October, and radioactive cesium was detected from 29 of them.

Back in May, three elementary school in Itabashi-ku, Tokyo had the pupils pick radioactive tea leaves (2,700 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium) as part of their social studies activities. But that wasn't, apparently, a big deal since it was not a commercial product.

Mainichi Shinbun (10/18/2011):

東京都は18日、都内の3茶園で栽培された東京狭山茶から、国の暫定規制値(1キロ当たり500ベクレル)を超える550~690ベクレルの放射性セシウムを検出したと発表した。都内で流通を目的にした製茶からの検出は初。

Tokyo Municipal government announced on October 18 that 550 to 690 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium, exceeding the national provisional safety limit of 500 becquerels/kg, was detected from the "Tokyo Sayama-cha" tea from three tea plantations in Tokyo. It is the first time radioactive cesium was detected from commercial teas grown in Tokyo.

 都産業労働局によると、該当の茶葉は武蔵村山市、瑞穂町、あきる野市の3茶園で5月ごろに摘まれた。一部を生産農家が消費したが流通はしておらず、計500キロは茶園が保管しているという。都は各茶園に対し廃棄を要請した。

According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Industry and Labor, the teas were picked in May at three tea plantations in Musashi Murayama City, Mizuho-machi, and Akiruno City. Part of the teas was consumed by the growers themselves but the rest haven't been sold yet. The tea plantations store 500 kg, which the Tokyo government has requested them to discard.

Discard how? Dump them in a garbage can as regular garbage, I suppose, since the radiation level is "low".

It was not until October 6 that the Tokyo Metropolitan government conducted a more extensive testing of the green teas grown, picked, and processed in Tokyo in May, after it learned of the teas grown in neighboring Saitama and Chiba Prefectures found with radioactive cesium exceeding the provisional safety limit.

If you look at the Tokyo government announcement, radioactive cesium was detected in significant amount in ALL but one teas tested. However, except for the three that exceeded the provisional safety limit, they can be sold without any restriction, and probably have been already sold. (The image of the announcement below is from savechild.net, with highlight on teas in which radioactive cesium was detected.)


Monday, October 17, 2011

The Economist: Global Debt Clock - Some Countries Look More Dead Than Others

The world is toast and Japan is a basket case. And Japan's new Finance Minister pledged (though no one demanded it) 5% hike in consumption tax at G20 so that the new Japanese administration continue more government wasteful spending like inviting 10,000 foreigners and IAEA to Japan and building a cancer hospital for Dr. Yamashita.

The UK paper The Economist has an interactive "global debt clock". Here's a screen shot with the public (government) debt burden per capita for Japan, the US, and Greece (basket case in EU). The numbers don't include the future government obligations like pensions and medical care programs.

I don't know how The Economist is counting the US public debt; the last I checked (conveniently on this blog, in the left column), it was well over US$14 trillion, approaching 15 trillion. But taking the numbers from The Economist, Japan has more public (government) debt than the US with the population about 40% that of the US.

Per capita public debt, according to The Economist:

  • Japan: $86,262

  • US: $33,555

  • Greece: $34,304

Per capita public debt of the US is approaching that of the EU basket case. When George W. Bush took office, it was $10,836. When Barack Obama took office, it was $19,945. In 2012, it is expected to be $37,952, according to The Economist.

#Radioactive Used Car: 20.38 Microsieverts/Hr Car Destined for Kenya Stopped

at a car exporter in Kawasaki City, in Kanagawa Prefecture.

At least, used cars for export get tested for radiation. And those cars rejected for export for high radiation? Where will they go? (Anecdotal evidence suggests they are simply sold inside Japan.)

From Sankei Shinbun (10/17/2011):

川崎市は17日、同市川崎区東扇島の中古車輸出会社に運び込まれた乗用車1台から毎時20・38マイクロシーベルトの放射線量を検出したと発表した。市は「人体に直ちに影響がある数値ではない」としている。

Kawasaki City announced on October 17 that a used car brought in to a used car exporter in Higashi Ogijima in Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki City tested 20.38 microsieverts/hr radiation. According to the city, "That level of radiation does not have immediate effect on human body."

 市によると、検出された車は千葉県のオークション会場で競り落とされ、輸出手続きのため川崎市の会社に運び込まれた。以前は福島県のいわきナンバーだったという。ケニアに輸出される予定だったが、競り落とした業者に引き取られた。

According to the city, the car was auctioned off in Chiba, and brought to the exporter in Kawasaki City for export. The license plate number was previously that of Iwaki City in Fukushima Prefecture. The car was destined for Kenya, but instead the dealer who had won the car in the auction took it back.

 川崎港に運び込まれる中古車について、市は毎時5マイクロシーベルトを超えた場合に通報するよう事業者に求めている。

The city requires the dealers to report if any used car brought to the port of Kawasaki [for export] exceeds 5 microsieverts/hour radiation.

Let's see. 20 microsieverts/hour, and if you are on the road 2 hours a day for one year you would get 14.6 millisieverts external radiation from the car alone. Since it is less than 20 millisieverts, that's nothing in the current Japan.

The residents who lived within the 20-kilometer radius from Fukushima I Nuke Plant have been returning to their homes to retrieve cars and other items from their homes. Movement of cars in and out of Fukushima Prefecture is not restricted, except for the 20-kilometer radius residents whose cars need to be checked for radiation at J-Village. Many cars out of Fukushima, even those within the 20-kilometer radius area, have been transported by land to various locations in Japan. Only when the cars are sold to the exporters, then they are tested for radiation.

TEPCO Submitted the Uncensored Severe Accident Manual, But Didn't (and Couldn't) Use It Anyway

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) is currently reviewing the document to determine which part can be safely disclosed to the public, but it doesn't seem to matter anyway.

In yesterday's (October 17, 2011) joint press conference of all relevant government agencies and TEPCO, TEPCO submitted the progress report on its "roadmap" (link is TEPCO's English) to stabilize the situation at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant. In the press conference, there was a mention of the "Severe Accident Manual" that TEPCO had been criticized for blackening it out almost completely for "confidentiality" concern.

Independent journalist Ryuichi Kino asked TEPCO's Matsumoto about the Manual, and it turned out that TEPCO didn't (and couldn't) use the Manual anyway. Kino tweets:

じゃあ地震の時にはシビアアクシデント手順書を使ったのかと思ったんだけども、松本さんの答えはNO。地震直後は自動でスクラムしているので、通常の運転手順書で作業したと。ではシビアアクシデント手順書はいつから使ったのかと聞いたら、使ってないと回答

So I thought TEPCO must have used this Severe Accident Manual on March 11 earthquake. [TEPCO's] Matsumoto's answer was "No". The reactors were automatically scrammed after the earthquake, which was the normal operating procedure. So the company proceeded with the normal operating manual. So I asked when TEPCO started using the Severe Accident Manual. The answer was that it never did.

津波以降の事象は想定を超えているものであり、全電源喪失で真っ暗になった中で弁を開閉する作業のようなものは、シビアアクシデント手順書には書いてないと。この記事の追認だけども、最初から使える状況ではなかったっていうことみたいだなあ。→

The events at the plant after the tsunami were beyond what was expected, and procedures like opening and closing the valves in the complete darkness after all-station blackout are not in the Severe Accident Manual. So, just like this article (Kyodo News) says, the Manual was not usable from the beginning.

The link Kino gives goes to Kyodo News Japanese article (10/2/2011). Most newspapers used the part about "no hydrogen explosion in the Reactor 2 suppression chamber", but not about the Severe Accident Manual. From 10/2/2011 Kyodo News:

東京電力福島第1原発事故で、過酷事故などに対応する「運転操作手順書」が役に立たなかったとする報告書を東電の社内事故調査委員会がまとめたことが2日、分かった。手順書は、非常用ディーゼル発電機などが動くことを前提としていたが全て動かず、事故対応に生かせなかった。

It was revealed on October 2 that TEPCO's accident investigation committee concluded that the Severe Accident Manual had been useless. The Manual had assumed that the emergency power supplies like diesel generators would be operational; in reality they all failed, and couldn't be used to deal with the accident.

 また2号機の圧力抑制プール付近では水素爆発はなかったと、従来と異なる判断を示した。

The committee also determined that there was no hydrogen explosion near the Suppression Chamber of Reactor 2, a different conclusion from what it had been assumed.

TEPCO's (for that matter, all nuclear power plant operators') severe accident procedure relied on having electricity available somehow.

So what DID TEPCO use to deal with the accident?

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Radioactive Debris: Ministry of the Environment to Municipalities - Don't Tell Anyone, Don't Say No

As reported here a number of times, Japan's Ministry of the Environment under Goshi Hosono (who is also in charge of the Fuku I nuclear accident) is more than ever eager to spread radiation throughout Japan by forcing the municipalities (except one - Tokyo - who will be happily burning the debris from Iwate after a bogus test of mixing radioactive debris with regular garbage to reduce the density of radioactive materials in the ashes) to accept disaster debris from Tohoku.

Someone in Japan uploaded the notice from the Ministry to the people in charge of waste disposal in the municipalities, dated October 7, 2011. It is a questionnaire that the Ministry wants the municipalities to fill and send back to the Ministry via email, asking about the current status in the municipalities on their effort to accept disaster debris. The Ministry wants to know how much debris they can take in, what types of debris, what type of disposal available. The similar survey was done several months ago, but since then the local oppositions have grown. So the Ministry wants to persuade the wavering municipalities.

The notice is not what the Ministry would put up on their website as "press release" because it is not a press release. Rather, it is a document only seen by local officials.

The notice is an outrage for anyone who oppose moving the radioactive debris to their cities and towns, particularly those in the western Japan where the radioactive fallout from Fukushima I Nuke Plant has been close to zero. (Internal radiation exposure is another matter, which is happening in the western Japan also.)

Why?

First:

なお、本調査の結果について、個別の地方公共団体名は公表しないこととしています。

When we announce the result of the survey, the names of the individual municipalities will not be disclosed.

Unlike the earlier survey where all the names of the municipalities were disclosed and which led to the citizens' oppositions in those municipalities, the Ministry is assuring them their names won't be disclosed this time.

Second, in the multiple choices on the current effort level at the municipalities, there is no choice to say "No" to the debris. There are three choices, and they are:

A:既に受け入れを実施している
A: Already accepting the debris

B:被災地への職員派遣や検討会議の設置等の具体的な検討を行っている
B: Effort already ongoing such as sending the personnel to the disaster area and setting up the committee to discuss the acceptance

C:被災地への職員派遣や検討会議の設置等は行っていないが、受入れに向けた検討を行っている

C: Hasn't started sending the personnel to the disaster area or setting up the committee, but ongoing discussion toward accepting the debris

There should have been D: No plan to accept any debris from the disaster area, period.

To top it off, when it actually comes to bringing the disaster debris to those municipalities who will have secretly said yes, the residents may or may not be consulted if the case of Aichi Prefecture is any indication:

Chunichi Shinbun (10/15/2011; don't expect the link to remain long for this paper. If it is gone, go here for the full copy of the article) reports a comment from the Ministry of the Environment:

「実際に受け入れる時は、市町村側が住民に説明することなどを検討したい」

"When the actual acceptance of the debris happens, we may consider having the municipalities explain to the residents."

Doing the rudimentary reading-between-the-lines exercise, I think the Ministry is saying it does not require that the municipalities explain the debris acceptance to the residents, and it certainly does not require that the explanation be done beforehand.

Some on the net call the Ministry as "The Ministry of the Environmental Destruction". That's about right.

Here's a page from the scanned copy of the Ministry's notice, detailing what information the Ministry wants from the municipalities including the above multiple choice question:



#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Mountains of Tyvek Suits at J-Village

Discarded Tyvek suits, 480,000 of them, which TEPCO would have to treat as low-level radioactive waste and dispose accordingly (unlike regular garbage or sewer sludge ash in Tokyo, which may be more contaminated than the Tyvek suits in Fuku I):

New Tyvek suits being distributed. Inventory at J-village, about 500,000:


A Tyvek suit costs about 1,000 yen (US$13) average in Japan, so it is costing TEPCO 1 billion yen ($13 million). As is usual for a big corporation like TEPCO, cost-cutting always starts at the bottom; the company is asking the Fuku I workers not to take more than one Tyvek suit.

According to one of the workers who tweet from Fukushima I Nuke Plant, TEPCO has already downgraded Tyvek suits quality. It used to be 1,440 yen per piece, now it's 840 yen, achieving 40% cost reduction.

The government, whether national or prefectural, shows no sign of helping TEPCO in any way when it comes to supporting and taking care of the workers at Fuku I. Instead, they want to waste taxpayers' money on inviting foreigners on free Japan trips (1 billion yen), inviting big social media writers (1.5 billion yen) to Tohoku, inviting IAEA "decontamination" mission who just recommended relaxing the standards (1 billion yen). Fukushima Prefecture is really raking in, over 100 billion yen for building a new cancer hospital at the medical university presided by Dr. Shunichi Yamashita.

Wasteful government spending continues no matter what happened, is happening, and will happen. That's how it goes, no matter where.

Must Read: Asahi Shinbun "Trap of Prometheus" Series Part 1 - Men in Protective Clothing (6) "It Could Have Been Us"

(Installment 1, Installments 2 and 3, Installments 4 and 5, Installment 6, Installments 7 and 8, Installments 9 and 10, Installments 11 and 12)

Asahi Shinbun's series "Trap of Prometheus" - Men in Protective Clothing, which documents what happened in Namie-machi in Fukushima Prefecture right after the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident.

If you read Japanese, you can read all installments (1-12) in one location, at this blog.

Even if the series is written by a reporter at a major Japanese newspaper, not many Japanese are aware of it, which, after the initial launch, was buried in the 3rd page of the printed version.

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防護服の男(6)ハエがたかっていた

Men in Protective Clothing (6) Flies were swarming

谷田(やつだ)みさ子(62)は浪江町で生まれ育った。中学生のころ、東京電力が福島第一原発づくりを始めた。

Misako Yatsuda (age 62) was born and raised in Namie-machi. When she was in junior high school, TEPCO started to build Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant [1960s].

 高校卒業後、上京して就職したが、1年半で浪江町に戻った。そのあとは東電一色の生活だった。

After graduating from high school, she went to Tokyo to work, but came back to Namie-machi after one and a half year. Since then, her life evolved around TEPCO.

 結婚し、3人の子を育てながら焼き鳥屋をやった。客は原発で働く作業員たちだった。

She got married, opened a yakitori restaurant while raising 3 children. The customers were the workers at the plant.

 その後は東電の社員寮に勤める。

Then she worked at the employee dormitories of TEPCO.

 昨年の夏まで10年間働いた。食事をつくり、若い社員らに「やつだっち」と呼ばれて慕われた。女子寮には、女子サッカーのなでしこジャパンで活躍した鮫島彩選手らがいた。「みんないい子でかわいかったです」

She worked there for 10 years until the summer of 2010. She cooked for them, and she was loved by the young TEPCO workers. In the women's dormitory there were female soccer players who went on to win the Women's World Cup Soccer. "There were all good people, very dear to me."

 子供たちの手が離れてからは、東電の管理職の寮に住み込んだ。

After her children grew up, she became a live-in employee at the dormitory for TEPCO managers.

 思い出すのは選挙の時の東電の力の入れようだ。

She still remembers how hard TEPCO worked the elections.

 町長選挙や県議会議員選挙があると、寮の食堂が東電幹部らの待機場所となった。支援候補が当選すると、幹部はそろってお祝いに駆けつけた。「電力会社は政治とがっちりつながっているんだな」と感心した。

Whenever there was a mayoral election or a prefectural assembly election, the dining hall of the dorm was turned into a staging area for the TEPCO management. When the candidate that TEPCO backed won, the management rushed to the candidate and celebrated. She was impressed. "An electric power company has such a strong connection with the politicians."

 これまでの人生の半分以上を東電とかかわってきた。にもかかわらず、今度の事故では東電から何の情報もなかった。

More than half her life, she has been involved with TEPCO. Nonetheless, there was no information from TEPCO on this nuclear accident.

 愛知県春日井市に避難してからはいっそう情報が入らなくなった。福島県の地元紙を郵送してもらい、隅から隅まで目を通す。

Information is even more scarce in Kasugai City in Aichi Prefecture where she evacuated. She has the local Fukushima newspaper mailed to her, and reads every page.

 これから生活はどうなるのか。補償はどうなるのか。不安だらけだ。

How is she going to make a living? What about compensation? She is full of anxiety.

 6月、浪江町の家に一時帰宅した。冷凍庫は地震でひっくり返ったままで、腐った食材にハエがたかっていた。

In June, she temporarily returned to her home in Namie-machi. The refrigerator was overturned by the earthquake. Flies were swarming on the rotten food stuff.

 8月末、自分の車を引き取りに再び福島に戻った。夫が車を運転し、春日井市から高速道路で8時間かかった。広野町の体育館で防護服に着替え、用意されたバスに乗り込んだ。

At the end of August, she went back to Fukushima again to get her car. Her husband drove, and it took them 8 hours on the highway from Kasugai City. She changed into a protective clothing in a school gym in Hirono-machi, and got on a bus arranged by [the government].

 バスが止まると、首輪をつけた2匹の犬が足元に寄ってきた。途中、道ばたで猫が2匹死んでいるのを見た。

When the bus stopped [at the destination], two dogs with collars came to her. She saw two cats dead on the side of the road.

 「一歩間違えたら、私たちがああなっていたのかな」

"It could have been us."

 事故後、長女は郡山に、次女は新潟に、家族は散り散りになっている。

After the accident, her eldest daughter's family lives in Koriyama City. Her second daughter's family lives in Niigata Prefecture. Her family has been scattered.

 9月、福島県の仮設住宅に入居を申し込んだ。

In September, she applied for the temporary housing in Fukushima Prefecture.

 「福島は何十年も暮らした土地ですから。戻りたい」。涙がこぼれた。(前田基行)

"I have lived in Fukushima for decades. I want to go back." She cried. (reported by Motoyuki Maeda)

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