Japan cuts radiation exposure limits for children

They raise it, then they lower it, how convenient

This goes to show everyone that the Japanese government has been lying to everyone from the start of all of this crises in Japan. So now that they have lowered the safety levels to 0.534 millisieverts per year from 20, what will happen to all everyone that has been effected with high radiation levels! Is there a compensation for everyone in Fukushima Prefecture and all of the places in Japan with high radiation levels! I think the Government of Japan needs to give everyone an honest answer for their lack of honesty and their incompetence of the way that they are handling this situation!

Well this should prove challenging for municipal authorities in hot spots. Suddenly their area is over the limit for children. Confusion will likely ensue.

I had a little chuckle when I read the article. This will go down just like all the other laws in Japan like, wearing a bicycle helmet if you are under 13, wearing a seat belt in the back seat, listening to an MP3 player on a bicycle, stopping at a red light, speeding and drink driving, nobody gives a fat rat's and this legislation is purely an 'on paper' law.

Do you really believe Joe Bloggs can figure out microsivets, millisivets, bequels, against the background of the per hour calculation? Changing everything and then relying on untrained school teachers or parent comitees whatever, will lead to confusion and sadly, threats to the children's health.

Call me cynical but....any coincidence that they raised it to 20 mlSv per year when it was thought children would be getting a dose somewhere between 5-13 mlSv per year, and now they have confirmed children in Fukushima are getting an anerage dose of .537mlSv per year they are lowering it back to 1mlSv again....I mean, anyone would think they were trying to avoid having to pay out compensation claims or something, but no, surely not.

"The education ministry delivered the instruction to all schools across the nation including Fukushima where high levels of radiation were released from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant crippled by the March 11 quake and tsunami."

Ummm... telling people that the limit has been lowered is not an 'instruction'; telling them what to do if the limit is surpassed WOULD be. My guess is that they simply said what the new limit is and left it 'up to the municipalities what to do' and made it, 'voluntary for people in such spots to leave'.

As with Disillusioned, I see nobody caring until it's too late. What's more, I see people complaining about the lowered level because it is 'inconvenient' for them since their child attends such and such school and that area is a hot spot. The government will rescind these 'instructions' due to said complaints, with the opposition party in government stating they will raise the limit if elected, and the cabinet saying it's unpopular and should not be enforced.

The education ministry has said children’s radiation exposure at schools in Fukushima is currently estimated at 0.534 millisievert per year.

Is this article just talking about the exposure in the classroom or does it include the school lunches and the routes children take to get to and from school.

I think it was pointed out originally when the 20mSv legislation had been passed that it was only for being on the safe side of the law if children received extreme radiation doses. If the radiation from Fukushima Daiichi fallout stays below 1mSv/a for children, then the radiation levels are really not much above average places around the world. Please compare with this table

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Background_radiation.

If the government really manages to keep the overall exposure of children below the 1 mSv/a level, then the probability of lasting damage would be almost negligible even for children. Somehow, I cannot believe that these numbers can be true, if many places in Fukushima city or Koriyama come with aerial doses of 3 microSv per hour and children pass there every day. There must be something wrong with the measurement, because 0.5 mSv/a is only a fifth of the world average of natural radiation. It might be that they restricted the dose to a dose from cesium or something. Don't trust these numbers!

45% of children tested near Fukushima plant have radioactive elements in thyroid glands: JT article Aug. 20th

The official said that the iodine concentrations found in tests that the government carried out about five months ago in Fukushima Prefecture were not considered alarming in terms of their health impact.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said none of the children suffered contamination beyond the equivalent of 0.2 microsieverts (mSv) per hour, the standard set by Japan’s Nuclear Safety Commission.

Only one child showed a contamination level of 0.1 mSv per hour, the highest of the group, the official said without giving the child’s sex or age

I don't think they were checking for internal radiation because in looking at the picture of the 45% of chidren tested near Fukushima plant have radioactive elements in thyroid glands the technicians seem to be using an External Probe Attachement Surface Contamination Monitor. Which I don't think Measures Internal radiation.

Following the accident, Japan raised the exposure limit for both adults and children from one to 20 millisieverts per year, matching the maximum exposure level for nuclear industry workers in many countries.

Still SUCH a shady move.

Messing around with the numbers to suit. It's a pure disgrace. Who ever is behind this scam really ought to be put behind bars.

Is there any link between the lowering radiation exposure limits for children to a Japanese PM election?

The timing of this move is very interesting. Or am I the only one who is reading too much?

Regardless, kids are victims. Shame! They couldn't do this sooner to protect them.

its too late thinking about the radiation problem right after almost 6 months. the second part of the article. i can image people who lived around fukushima would like to go back for a while. but i dont think its safe enough even with masks, head covers and so. i hear from japanese people: its safe. because the government said it. the only thing the government could do together with the tepco: bow very deep and say: moushi wake gozaimasendeshta. and the life goes on.... results, ideas, information... thats what i miss from the government

It does feel like a carny trick, doesn't it? I'm at a loss for the people of that area. It is clearly apparent that the government has no idea what to do. I wouldn't blindly say that, but more and more it seems the suffering and inaction increase. We see sob stories and human moments manufactured to make us believe the people there are(can) rebuild. At what cost? To make us feel better for these people in a few news items and produced pieces is a disgrace. Is there any method to this insanity? I hate to side with the truthers on this, but damn. It's hard to believe that the government continues to lie and manipulate news all for what?

In France, we have a little story that sums up everything in Japan. This is the story of a barber who wants to increase the number of people visiting his shop. He wonders how to proceed, again and again. And suddenly, eureka ! He takes a big sheet of paper and writes down on it: FREE TOMORROW ! He sticks the sheet on the wall outside of his shop and waits. The first customer comes upon, and asks: is it free today ? NO, answers the barber. It will be free tomorrow. A second customer comes and asks the same question. Same answer. There had never been so many customers in a raw, and the barber comes back home, very happy but very tired. The day after, still a little bit tired, he goes to his shop and soon after, comes in a customer. Is it free, today ? No, answers the barber, free tomorrow, it's written down on the board outside ! He shaves the customer, who pays his due and leave claiming "So, see you tomorrow !". At that time, the barber, finally waken up sees his mistake: yesterday, it was tomorrow... but tomorrow is always tomorrow for today !

That's how was born the expression "Tomorrow, we shave for free" (Demain, on rase gratis) that means that tomorrow will always be an unreachable word given. Here, the japanese government has said, once again: we will do but as always, this too-good-to-be-real thing is not for today, nor for tomorrow, nor for this year. No, it's always for in two years, in ten years, in twenty years.

Who can believe their words anylonger ?

This government is a joke. Please, Japanese people, kick them out of office now.

You would think they would come up with a level and stick to it. By not doing so, all sorts of interpretation becomes possible.

But honestly, I cannot tell you if the crisis levels are safe, and the old levels born of a high standard, or if the old levels were safe and the crisis levels not, and they feed us dangerous food for the sake of Japan Agriculture turning a buck or to avoid a food shortage.

But I am middle age. The acceptable level for children should be low, ALWAYS. I have had a chance to live, and they haven't. The crisis has nothing to do with them, even if only a little to do with me.

I cannot understand for the life of me why Japanese people arent going crazy over this very very obvious manipulation and complete lack of regard for childrens safety. But then again, yes I can. They were raised not to question and to accept authority by the education system which...erm....the government designed and enforced? - hey, wait a minute!

A lot of Japanese people here are very worried and angry about the lack of regard for their children's safety and for their chidren's children's safety: here is just one of them, Dr Kodama of the

"Video footage of Tatsuhiko Kodama's impassioned speech before a Diet committee in July went viral online recently, showing the medical expert's shocking revelation that the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant spewed some 30 times more radioactive materials than the fallout from the Hiroshima atomic bombing."

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110824f2.html

Dr Kodama is a medical doctor specialized in cancer treatment and a leading authority on the effects of radiation on people's health at the University of Tokyo. Over 1,000,000 views of his speech in Japanese already. Now there are versions with English, French and Japanese subtitles on Youtube. If all you good folk here in Tokyo, Japan and around the world who are in support of the truth and concerned about the health of the good people of the Fukushima area and Touhoku disaster region can kindly share on to your social networks maybe we can get this English version to go over 1,000,000 and even more viral too. This will help put world pressure and support getting fast, effective healthy solutions to this ongoing disaster that threatens so many adults and children now and in the future. Spread his words please, for the sake of us all in Japan and our children's children too. Thank you.

Prof. Kodama Angry about Japanese Gov.'s Gross Negligence (Part 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dlf4gOvzxYc&feature=related

Changing the official limit or sweep the playground does not change the fact that these children a breathing and eating radiation every day. Move them away.

Now I really am confused as to what is going on!!!

The radiation in the air is just part of the problem. The real danger is once it is in you body - from food, dust or water. That why saying the 0.54 is no problem and that it is comparable to other countries is misleading. However lowering it back to 1mSv is step in the right direction.

Next step should be banning foods from Tohoku region until reliable testing can be developed. Until than import. yes even food from China is safer.

Fire the new prime minister and get a new one. It is his fault.

does someone have the article translated by another site? I don't understand what is the limit suppose to mean, a exposure limit applies to tepco employees, would imply they can't be forced to work if their yearly exposure is above the limit, perhaps they woudl have to hire other employees, but its a school, does it mean they can't go to school above that limit? Are the school responsible for measuring the limit then? But its a school, its not like they are supposedly more radiated risk associated wtih going to school, how does not letting kids go to school help? And its a yearly exposure not a daily one? It just so meaningless, please help.