Patches of higher-than-average radioactivity found in Tokyo park

@Stuart, Thank you very much. I also got email back from Katsushika-ku concerning 1.22microSv/h level at the park. As you said, I'm going to research myself and combine what I have learned. Thanks again for your great help.

Blair Herron: After re-reading Thomas Anderson's (very Clear and well stated comment) I believe he has answered most of your questions, except breaking down "percentage's", comparing apple's to oranges. As far as your 1.22 micro sv/h, Zichi, has already answered that question on another post. (one Man's food is another's poison) and not just because of different bacteria, allergen's and microbes. The average Human body runs at 10 to 100 milivolts, depending on their size,density,hydration and mineral content. All electricity, has its own unique or specific (wave signature), since humans run on different voltage levels, we all are effected differently by energy! This is why there is (more than one answer) to questions. If you really seeking "Truth" or just trying to understand, please research some things yourself, and combined What you learn from (all sides)

Thomas Anderson: thank you very much for your information to Blair and myself!, I just got home from a short day at work. Also, thank you Basroll, for your input, though I disagree, I will do my best to respond to Basroll and Blair's comments.

Blair HerronJul. 03, 2012 - 12:22PM JST

(extra question: Stuart says man-made and natural made radiation are different. Do you agree? If so, how are they different when it comes to 1.22mmicroSv/h?)

Radiation is radiation. However, there are different types and energies. Cs-137 actually mainly produces beta decay (think heavy sunburn), and it's decay product is what actually produces gamma rays. The gamma ray radiation is most harmful in terms of environmental radiation, while alpha and beta are more damaging internally. Natural radiation sources can usually have very similar biological effects if too much is present.

Thomas AndersonJul. 03, 2012 - 11:24AM JST

The current scientific opinion is that 1 milliSv is enough energy to go through a single DNA cell and break off the chain (which is tested and proved to be true). Now, the DNA can obviously repair itself, but when it INCORRECTLY repair itself, that's how cancer is developed.

Current biological models show that a single cell as a very, very low chance of ever becoming cancer. For every cancer starter cell, another million damaged cells properly killed themselves or were eaten by white blood cells. For every damaged cell, another several thousand to million cells are fully repaired. In fact, it's more likely for you to spontaneously develop cancer from no outside interference than by radiation.

The current model by BEIR ( “Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation”) states that for exposure less than 100 mSv, the chance of incurring cancer will increase by 1% per 1 milliSv/year IN ADDITION to the natural background radiation level.

You are referencing the linear no-threshold model, which is pretty controversial in that there is a lot of research stating that the model is only really useful above 10mSv, and below that it falls apart. In fact, UNSCEAR supports the model only after stating that it may in fact not be accurate. The model tends to overestimate damage at low doses, and was originally used to estimate fallout dangers for planning purposes. Even so, it is not 1% per mSv, the current estimates are 0.001 increase for the first mSv, and up to 0.04 for 100mSv.

Cesium, strontium and iodine can be more problematic, because they mimic the natural properties that are needed by our bodies like calcium. which may cause bone marrow cancer, thyroid cancer, etc.

Sr90 was not a major component of Fukusima fallout. Radio-iodine has a half life of 8 days, so two months later it was practically gone, and today there is almost nothing left over at all. Cesium (technically Caesium) actually is quite easy to remove, especially in small doses. Typically has a biological halflife of 70 days and prussian blue can be used to shorten that to 30 days. Unless you ingest in the 100s of nanogram range (higher than most soil samples inside the nuclear plant area), you should be fine.

Stuart haywardJul. 03, 2012 - 09:06AM JST

The measurements themselves ARE "in question", do you think the "City" would actually close area's of the park if ther were "no problem", do you think the "City" would spen lots of money to clean and remove " non dangerous material's"

1) No question on level, just how it got there.

2) The "city" would if it made people re-elect the leaders

3) They will pass off the costs to TEPCO, central government, or simply hide it under the rug like they did the passport/ gaijin card check point funds.

@Thomas Anderson,

Thank you very much for the information. Would you please dumb it down for me and answer these three questions? I’m not good at physics. If it's too much a bother, that’s ok.

1 What would man-made 1.22microSv/h do to children?

2 If you think cancer risk would increase, how much percent (with 1.22microSv/h level)?

3 If you think 0.059microSv/h (Tokyo on 7/2) is safe enough, why is the level/amount of cesium not harmful?

(extra question: Stuart says man-made and natural made radiation are different. Do you agree? If so, how are they different when it comes to 1.22mmicroSv/h?)

The current scientific opinion is that 1 milliSv is enough energy to go through a single DNA cell and break off the chain (which is tested and proved to be true). Now, the DNA can obviously repair itself, but when it INCORRECTLY repair itself, that's how cancer is developed.

The current model by BEIR ( “Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation”) states that for exposure less than 100 mSv, the chance of incurring cancer will increase by 1% per 1 milliSv/year IN ADDITION to the natural background radiation level.

Cesium, strontium and iodine can be more problematic, because they mimic the natural properties that are needed by our bodies like calcium. which may cause bone marrow cancer, thyroid cancer, etc.

Strontium-90 mimics the properties of calcium and is taken up by living organisms and made a part of their electrolytes as well as deposited in bones. As a part of the bones, it is not subsequently excreted like cesium-137 would be. It has the potential for causing cancer or damaging the rapidly reproducing bone marrow cells.

Iodine-131 is a major concern in any kind of radiation release from a nuclear accident because it is volatile and because it is highly radioactive, having an 8 day half-life. It is of further concern in the human body because iodine is quickly swept up by the thyroid, so that the total intake of iodine becomes concentrated there.

Cesium-137 and strontium-90 are the most dangerous radioisotopes to the environment in terms of their long-term effects. Their intermediate half-lives of about 30 years suggests that they are not only highly radioactive but that they have a long enough halflife to be around for hundreds of years. Iodine-131 may give a higher initial dose, but its short halflife of 8 days ensures that it will soon be gone. Besides its persistence and high activity, cesium-137 has the further insidious property of being mistaken for potassium by living organisms and taken up as part of the fluid electrolytes. This means that it is passed on up the food chain and reconcentrated from the environment by that process.

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/nucene/fisfrag.html

Again I will say, young children have not fully developed their emmune systems yet, and since radioactive cesium attacks The emmune system, it "Can Be Dangerous" Also, comparing Natural accruing radiation to "man made radioactive cesium, waist", is two very different things, if I can Find the time I will explain to you. Lastly Please read Clemon Simons June 28,2012 - 11:06 AM

Thank you very much, Stuart. I understand that young children have not fully developed their emmune systems yet, and since radioactive cesium attacks the emmune system, it can be dangerous. My question is what would 1.22microSv/h level of radiation do to children. I read Clemon post and his link quite throughly trying to find what 1.22microSv/h means. They didn’t explain anywhere, instead “It’s dangerous. Stay away from there.” I would stay away from there if they say it’s really dangerous with scientific proof.

I did a little research myself and I found out that 1.22microSv/h=10.693milliSv/y that is the same level as Guarapari (Brazil). This high level of radiation does not seem to have caused ill effects on the residents of the area (Wikipedia). But you say man-made and natural made are different. So again, what would man-made 1.22microSv/h do to children while natural 1.22microSv/h is not so harmful?

You repeatedly explained to me that radioactive cesium is dangerous to children. I understand that. The radiation level of Tokyo from the monitoring post on 7/2 was 0.059microSv/h. Do you think it is dangerous or safe? With 0.059microSv/h level, would the cesium be harmful or safe enough? Would 1.22microSv/h increase cancer risk? If so, how much? According to WSJ, for the people in Fukushima who were exposed to the radiation, their chance of getting cancer has increased by 0.0002%.

I would really appreciate if you help me with my questions. I would like specific answers with the level of radiation (1.22microSv/h) because it is the whole point of the problem at Mizumoto park.

[my questions]

1 What would man-made 1.22microSv/h do to children?

2 If you think cancer risk would increase, how much percent (with 1.22microSv/h level)?

3 If you think 0.059microSv/h (Tokyo on 7/2) is safe enough, why is the level/amount of cesium not harmful?

(extra question: I still don’t understand why you bring up Takashi Kabayama’s death to my question. Is it relevant?)

Blair Herron: June 28, 2012- 4:40 PM please help me understand how THESE levels of radioactive cesium would affect kid's? What about adults?

The measurements themselves ARE "in question", do you think the "City" would actually close area's of the park if ther were "no problem", do you think the "City" would spen lots of money to clean and remove " non dangerous material's" Do you think they would just except all the " Bad News" about this Park, even if there was "no problem" Again I will say, young children have not fully developed their emmune systems yet, and since radioactive cesium attacks The emmune system, it "Can Be Dangerous" Also, comparing Natural accruing radiation to "man made radioactive cesium, waist", is two very different things, if I can Find the time I will explain to you. Lastly Please read Clemon Simons June 28,2012 - 11:06 AM

If you multiply those reading by the number of hours in 1 year, appox 8765, then you would arrive at the total radiation you would receive if you stood on those spots 24/7 for 1year.

Thank you, zichi.

So 1.22microSv/h=10.693milliSv/y that is the same level as Guarapari (Brazil) which is a well-known tourist destination, known for its curving white sand beaches, whose population is 101,116 (2005) This high level of radiation does not seem to have caused ill effects on the residents of the area (Wikipedia)

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

So basically, if you are standing at one of 9 places in Mizumoto Park for 24/7 for 1 year, you get same amount of radiation from living in a beautiful beach town Guarapari, Brazil. Is that correct?

there’s nothing to worry about with 1.22 microSv/h

Yep, that's what I was told.

Did they say why?

No, they didn't.

From the looks of some of the other posts at under similar articles, I'd say we have quite a few experts.

Hopefully they'll be helpful...

Awww…the moderator hasn’t removed my dumb posts yet.

Anyway, I just want to know what 1.22 microSv/h means. At those places so called radiation hotspot in Tokatsu area (Kashiwa, Nagareyama, Abiko…) in Chiba prefecture, the radiation level is 0.4~0.5microSv/h, which is the same level as Colorado state USA. So I can understand that the government says there’s nothing to worry about. Clemens says the people said there’s nothing to worry about with 1.22 microSv/h. Did they say why? I don’t want to start screaming, “WOW!!! 1.22microSv/h!!! We’d better stay away from there!!!” without knowing what 1.22microSv/h means!!!

@Stuart hayward

Anyone with young children should stay clear of these levels of radioactive cesium

Please help me understand how these levels of radioactive cesium would affect kids? What about adults? (this is a pure question. I'm not your enemy, btw)

shhhh...

Clemen Simon: Thanks again, for your input and "Warnings"!. After reading Lourdes Suhell Goya comments as well as yours, you have to wonder if there is some very powerful people trying to keep this (off the radar!!!) I've never heard of someone killing themselves with a plastic bag before, sound like US mafia.

Actually, I had heard rumors since last year, the very moment we stopped visiting the park.

Clemens i am sorry that you got the information about the park just now, but since around may last year (when the Hot spot maps began to circulate) the park is in the NO NO list of every mom i know. The sludge of the pond where the kids play at summer is specially to be avoid.

Only took two weeks for these govt dick heads to go and investigate

Actually, it took them three and a half months (since the findings were reported by the locals).

Members of the local assembly first reported the radiation on June 11. A government official visited the park on Monday to confirm the readings

Only took two weeks for these govt dick heads to go and investigate, just as well they were efficient. :p and radiation contamintaion is nothing to be taken seriously.

Stuart,

「こどもと区民を放射能から守る葛飾連絡会」found it.

Yes, as per the link I posted. What I've heard is that the people to thank consist of a group of parents who are worried for the safety of their children. They started out renting geiger counters from Tsutaya dvd rental store in Mizumoto and Kanamachi and things escalated from there. As you know this park is quite large and the only park in Tokyo with riverside town scenery and is a very popular spot and safe place for parents to let their children and pets go wild. Every year there are various festivals which draw busses full of people from all over.The irises and lilies are especially popular during this time of year but the park gets really crowded during the "hanami" season. There is also a camp ground, a BBQ area and a wild bird observation area. Unfortunately, now that the news is finally out, this park will perhaps turn into wasteland.

As for politicians' involvement... at the early stages (June 2011), Mr. Kabayama, a Tokyo city councilor of the Liberal Democratic Party (whistleblower?) died after measuring radiation in Mizumoto Park. He measured radiation levels in various areas in Tokyo and posted it on his blog. About one year ago on July 1, 2011 he was found dead with a plastic bag over his head. The cops ruled it suicide although none of his posts on the blog suggest any intention. In fact, he seemed very motivated to measure more spots in and around Tokyo. There are those who believe he was silenced for his findings.

"Higher than average"? That's nothing to worry then given how radioactivity is a million times higher at Fukushima.

Basroll: I apologize to you, and will reframe from sarcasm, when speaking to you!.

In your responce to me you wonder why (you get slapped) for using irony to point out hyporicy? Please read your own Comments, at the (end of the day,)you might see that many of your own statement are (very hypocritical). With this( story ) or topic, remember that people like (me) and my (7 year old son), have played at this park, many times!. If my child's health has been compromised by these dangerous materials, I will be mad at myself for not knowing!!!!! If you can sometimes put yourself in someone else's shoe's, before you speak, I promise to give more respect. We all are human, we all make mistakes, I do, everyday! , but I will continue trying to learn from them. Thank you, Basroll

I live w¥also very close to this park (misato area), this is without doubt Fukushima contamination.The park is huge,is shared by Katsushika ku and Misato shi.Both Katsushika and Misato have higher readings than the rest of tokyo and Saitama, thats why they call it the Misato-Kashiwa hot spot. All my mama tomodachi are aware that the park is dangerous,we dont take our kids there and will keep away because the size and topography of the park means that is impossible to decontaminate.

Oops, Clemens' link above says こどもと区民を放射能から守る葛飾連絡会...

Moderator, you can delete everything I said here. Thank you.

Basroil, you do have a bad rep, people give you a neg for seeing your nick. You did ask the right questions just now. However, the bias is from your side. You should present the same questions to Tepco and MEXT as well. Unlike individuals, they have ideological bias against reporting everything honestly.

And no, nobody cares that they're already from "a prestigious university", whatever that might mean. Was their education relevant? Was it up to speed with modern times? With what grades did they graduate? There is no value to a university degree from a university that you can graduate by simply hanging around.

Clemens, I found who found it. You are right. 「こどもと区民を放射能から守る葛飾連絡会」found it.

http://rpkatushika.blog.fc2.com/blog-date-201202.html

Those politicians are trying to steal the thunder

Oh… OK. I stand corrected. When I read the news on Tokyo shimbun and Katsushika-ku website, they said 間放射線量が高い場所があると共産党都議団が指摘し, I thought 共産党都議団pointed out means they found it. Thank you for the correction, Clemens. So, Who are exactly共産党都議団? They are not politicians? Their website says the 議員 are those 8 people. They are not politicians?

http://www.jcptogidan.gr.jp/togi02/index.html

Please help me understand. Who exactly found it ? Who are Katsushika-ku Contact Association?

The contamination is most likely from Fukushima but the transmission is likely to be from nearby incineration plants as the policy of many local governments is to burn radioactively contaminated debris.Radiation accumulates over time and national policies in effect in Japan will ensure that the spread of,and the concentrations will show an upward progression......

Blair,

Those politicians are trying to steal the thunder ( what else is new eh?!) of the actual people who collected the data.

As you can see, the Katsushika-ku Contact Association got their data on March 6, 2012, while those politicians you mentions just came over and confirmed it all on June 19, 2012. The government confirmed "their" (lol) "findings" last Monday.

thank heavens for these people walking around and checking things.

Members of the Tokyo metropolitan assembly (Communist Party Kachi Kayoko and others) found it.

http://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/national/news/CK2012062402000092.html

Stuart haywardJun. 27, 2012 - 10:47PM JST

Basroll: (the electrical engineer) You are still hung up on the testing devices, please read Clemens Simon June 27 09:26pm. It probably won't matter to you because everyone (but you) only test with toys.

I haven't seen your (camping tent)at the sealed off area of the park, what's up!

I wonder why I get slapped for using irony to point out hypocracy under the tense of "Impolite to other user", yet you can bash me all you want with impunity... I smell bias

Yup, good job Clemens!

Basroll: (the electrical engineer) You are still hung up on the testing devices, please read Clemens Simon June 27 09:26pm. It probably won't matter to you because everyone (but you) only test with toys.

I haven't seen your (camping tent)at the sealed off area of the park, what's up!

No problem.

I forgot to mention that the officials told me they are examining the cause of the "phenomenon".

Clemens Simon: I really do appreciate your follow up information, Thank you!

Thank you for the phone # to the people in charge, my Japaneses is OK , but not the "best" and no one there speaks English, maybe you could explain better than, (Nothing to worry about)!

Of course.

Upon pressure from the locals, they checked 9 spots in the park and detected increased (abnormal) concentrations of radioactive cesium. All of the 9 spots were found to be above the "normal" levels as indicated by the guidelines provided by the government. The levels (of 1 and 1.2 microsievert) are the same as in the above article. Whe I asked them if they had checked or planned to check more areas (only 9 spots in such a big park seems rather insufficient to me), they told me that would be impossible. When asked about any health risks, they assured me it was safe to visit the park even with children. For the moment they have sealed of the (one!) area where the level was highest i.e. one small part of the parking area.

The following is a website where you can find reading results of basically the whole park, provided by th locals. Their geiger counters seem to have worked weel enough as the 9 spots checked by the government officials on Monday confirmed their findings.

http://ogurock.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-49.html

12 tables each indicated with an area number (1-103) and an area name in addition to a radioactive cesium reading taken 1 meter from ground level and another taken 5cm from ground level.

No. 68 is 1.55 at 5cm No. 103 is 1.28 at 5cm

Hope this helps.

JapanGalJun. 27, 2012 - 07:10PM JST

I registered 2.4 as my highest readings in Setagaya.

Down where I surf I had readings of 1.8

Here to stay kids.

What device at what distance, what other instruments did you have? Etc. I doubt you read even a quarter of that .

1-microseivert concentrations of radioactive cesium were detected.

I registered 2.4 as my highest readings in Setagaya.

Down where I surf I had readings of 1.8

Here to stay kids.

Clemens Simon: Thank you for the phone # to the people in charge, my Japaneses is OK , but not the "best" and no one there speaks English, maybe you could explain better than, (Nothing to worry about)!

Basroll: ( The electrical engineer), are you positive that all the (test done) were with " only toys" , please bring your sophisticated testing equipment and provide us with real information. Stones and rocks are known to have naturally accruing radiation, but not this level of radioactive cesium!!!

I just called the peeps in charge (03-5320-5363) and asked them about the 1 microsievert concentrations.

"Nothing to worry about." was their reply (in short).

sswayJun. 27, 2012 - 03:51PM JST

But as many are quick to say "his device is probably miscalibrated" or "he does not know how to test" or "that level is safe to be around unless you plan to stay around it 24/7" or "this has nothing to do with Fukushima". What a crazy, crazy world we now live in.

Rather than say miscalibrated, he's probably just using a toy. Most dosimeters can't tell the difference between potassium, iodine, and cesium, and while biologically there's not much difference when not inhaled or ingested, there is a big difference in source. Interestingly, if you follow the river, you see no less than five large hospitals a few factories, and most interestingly, a stone quarry. Stones in the area are known to contain fairly high levels of uranium, and considering the waste water ponds there, some of that toxic (for other reasons) water probably gets into the river.

Now, 0.15microSv/h is 1.3mSv a year, or about half of the Japanese average radiation before Fukushima, If the guy is getting 1.1 microSv/h on the ground but 0.15 on a concrete block, he's doing something wrong, since concrete has 4-5ppm of uranium/thorium and puts out about 11000Bq per square meter for a 30cm thick brick. Hard to convert Bq to microSv, but assuming about same absorption as K40, you would get 0.1microSv from the concrete alone. My guess is that the soil there isn't too deep and it actually has a large amount of rock and concrete, which could easily bring up the doses quickly.

@Stuart. Quite right. There is simply not enough known for those who believe this is safe to live around to make a judgement. When there is a doubt the best thing is to stray on the side of caution always. If you care about your health and that of your children and so forth down the line you had best move as far as you can from these contaminants (not only cesium of course as a lot has been spread around since Fukushima Daiichi blew up).

Of course, the title of this piece could be used for anywhere on the planet: with the concept of 'average' 50% of anything will be higher than average, 50% lower than average.

For everyone that soo strongly believes this is safe, (prove it), by playing,eating and maybe camping at this park, bring the whole Family.

For everyone else, who is (not an expert), please be safe and keep your children away, until we learn more and get things cleaned up. Doesn't matter where it came from, ( Radioactive cesium is dangerous!)

More radiation? Nothing new here ...

Search for this on youtube: "世田谷区 下野毛排水樋管前 1m0.15μSv/h 地表1.1μSv/h". This individual found by the Tamagawa river, beside Futako Tamagawa (I am sure many of you visit near this area), 1.1μSv/h on the ground.

But as many are quick to say "his device is probably miscalibrated" or "he does not know how to test" or "that level is safe to be around unless you plan to stay around it 24/7" or "this has nothing to do with Fukushima". What a crazy, crazy world we now live in.

If you want to see the rest of this guy's youtube channel look for user "CHANBUKIMI". You can also search for others looking for hotspots by searching for "μSv/h" or similar terms. But again these folks are probably just fear mongering. Nothing to worry about, continue working and consuming to support the economy. That is most important.

Normal geiger counters are generally not used for radiation detection, since most can only tell where a source is, not what it is. For that, you need much more sophisticated equipment and training, neither of which can be mass produced to check everywhere.

Glad you said that. The average geiger counter, within the average person's budget is gamma-only, and gamma rays can travel millions of miles without stopping. The only clue they give is that radiation levels are stronger than normal background levels. A more expensive α+β+γ geiger counter can help pinpoint the source, but you can only guess what exactly you are measuring, not being able to tell until you take a sample to a lab.

Safecast.org has a project of measuring background radiation in many areas and plotting it on a map. It kind of helps diffuse hysteria when every contributor comes up with roughly the same readings, except for more heavily contaminated areas, where readings may change as soon as you cross the street. Overall, i think it's good to see the public getting involved and notifying authorities when something like this appears, whether it is natural deposits or a "lost" manmade object. It's like finding asbestos buried in a kids playground... should be removed and replaced with clean new soil. When things like that become routine, people will stop being so paranoid and hysterical....

Zen studentJun. 27, 2012 - 12:20PM JST

Why hasn't TEPCO been out there measuring public places where children play? Why should civilians have to do it?

That's exactly my point. Experts should be the ones going around using geigercounters not your regular Joe Blow Kenji Tanaka. Or, does this mean that a large number of TEPCO workers are not trained in how to use geigercounters?

I understand that this radiation may or may not be due to Fukushima but it's like a prison, if a prisoner escapes from your prison, it's your job to find out where he/she has escaped to. Right? Same applies here.

Both TEPCO and independent researchers use wind, rain, ocean current, and other models to check what areas may be at risk. TEPCO checks those at risk areas, but because it does, it doesn't have enough people to check every random point outside the area. Normal geiger counters are generally not used for radiation detection, since most can only tell where a source is, not what it is. For that, you need much more sophisticated equipment and training, neither of which can be mass produced to check everywhere.

Additionally, radiation is NOT like a prisoner, it is more like a pet sparrow. If the sparrow leaves your cage, you can guess where it will go, but then again people will see sparrows everywhere and assume it's yours. Perhaps you did make a wrong guess, but more likely than not it's got nothing to do with your sparrow. And like a pet sparrow, you can't always expect to find it, but at least you can tell people where you think it will be. But people will never believe you because they never noticed sparrows are everywhere.

There is absolutely no indication to suggest that the source of the contamination would matter in the slightest.

Basroil is right in the fact that laymen waving shiny new geiger counters probably cannot determine the source and severity of the contamination, and there are many non-catastrophic. But since MEXT data (i.e. in Yomiuri) shows that present radiation levels are less than even natural pre-Fukushima background radiation, I wouldn't put too much weight on them any more than supermarket inspectors doing their rounds. Problem with MEXT is same as Tepco, lack of ethics, not of skill.

There are several Japanese individuals who document both their measurements and results in detail, unlike MEXT and Tepco. Those two seem to think that expecting proper documentation is "an attack on their honesty" or something like that. Somebody needs to tell them they need to have some before it can be attacked. And only successful defence earns them respect and trust. If even possible anymore...

I hope we all agree that radioactive cesium is dangerous! Well maybe not Basroll, and because Clemens Simon practically lives right next to it, he might have a (change of heart) Anyone with young children should stay clear of these levels of radioactive cesium, it doesn't matter who originally took these readings, it was backed up by government officials( after) the locals reported it!.

basroil, let me rephrase my point.

Why hasn't TEPCO been out there measuring public places where children play? Why should civilians have to do it?

random people with cheap toys will say there's contamination when all they found was an old light up watch or a hole that was dug too deep and is actually just leaking radon.

That's exactly my point. Experts should be the ones going around using geigercounters not your regular Joe Blow Kenji Tanaka. Or, does this mean that a large number of TEPCO workers are not trained in how to use geigercounters?

I understand that this radiation may or may not be due to Fukushima but it's like a prison, if a prisoner escapes from your prison, it's your job to find out where he/she has escaped to. Right? Same applies here.

Zen studentJun. 27, 2012 - 11:50AM JST

And why is it other people than TEPCO who are finding them?

Easy, people don't know how to properly measure and take readings. MEXT probably can do a decent job, but random people with cheap toys will say there's contamination when all they found was an old light up watch or a hole that was dug too deep and is actually just leaking radon.

I live just down the road from this place too and although it is nothing to get too worried about at this stage, it is alarming in terms of 'just how many more hotspots are out there that we don't know about'? And why is it other people than TEPCO who are finding them?

I practically live right next to it!

Rick KisaJun. 27, 2012 - 11:13AM JST

Rather worrying especially that we know the spoilt Fukushima reactors still spew radiation though in reportedly smaller amounts. Then we have the Oi restarted reactors that gave us a security scare last week..........

You can't even be certain that it's from Fukushima, and there's NO indication it's recent. If you are afraid, be afraid of the known carcinogens released by the old, unfiltered coal plants they are using in place of Oi right now.

Official measurements confirmed that around the park in nine separate locations, 1-microseivert concentrations of radioactive cesium were detected.

Rather worrying especially that we know the spoilt Fukushima reactors still spew radiation though in reportedly smaller amounts. Then we have the Oi restarted reactors that gave us a security scare last week..........

@basroil,

Not only Brazil... Mexico and Thailand too, and many other places. Salvage yard employees breaking up radiotherapy equipment and then irradiating everyone around. Ignorance can be pretty lethal.

While it's easy to jump to the conclusion that it is fallout from Fukushima, it could easily be something else -- namely the hospital waste that basroil suggests. At the moment we don't know, so it seems silly to argue it's one or the other.

tmarie: "Or is this a group of the public folks who are testing and bring the results to the attention of the government??"

I'm willing to bet that's what it is. And if so, thank heavens for these people walking around and checking things.

walteryJun. 27, 2012 - 07:34AM JST

My guess is the rain has moved heavy particles to one place.

Not really a possibility unless somehow particulate Cs was being blown south west when all the winds there go north east. And considering how soluable Cs is in water (about four times more so than salt), you can't expect accumulation due to water. Hell, practically all the Cs137 released can be put into a bathtub.

LowlyJun. 27, 2012 - 07:57AM JST

This could be Fukushima, just saying not only possibility. Esp if at one or two isolated locations.

Highly doubtful if an isolated area. The readings of 1.2 microSv is high even for areas inside the exclusion zone (though far below any level to be concerned), and are therefore either a misreading or a non-Fukushima source. My guess is that someone at the hospital across the street "accidentally" disposed of radiotherapy fuel near the park. It's happened before in Brazil, and given that it's expensive to dispose of and the authorities and public will automatically blame Fukushima, it's the perfect crime.

I'm sure the park is perfectly safe to eat. It's been tested with magic wands, and it's delicious.

Japan after 3/11 is like "Alice in Wonderland". What are bureaucrats with their B.A of Liberal Arts from a "fancy university" doing there instead of actual experts? Y'know, the people who actually know about physics?

This happened before, and it didn't have anything to do with Fukushima. I think it was something to do with an onsen that was adding radioactive ingredients that had gone out of business and had still stored the radioactive stuff.

This could be Fukushima, just saying not only possibility. Esp if at one or two isolated locations.

My guess is the rain has moved heavy particles to one place.

Now, if the government has told us that all is safe, why are people out there testing parks and other areas? What are we not being told? Or is this a group of the public folks who are testing and bring the results to the attention of the government??