Posted in: American engineers design plan to help Fukushima clean-up See in context
Nandakandmanda, good point, there are all kinds of isotopes lying around everywhere, cesium is the most prelevant as far as we are aware - I recieved a letter from TEPGOvts lawyers that there is no proximate cause for us to have removed our family from an area 5-10km from one of the compulsory evacuation zones. Actually I am quite shocked that TEPGOvt is allowing the US anywhere near this - a few months ago their lawyers were arguing that the ownership of radioactive particles was transferred once released from the reactors - if it lands in your lungs or land, you own it - breathtaking!!
I have been out of southern Miyagi for a couple of months now and it sounds like things have not improved - they are trying to shrink the evacuation zone, while there are reports of new leaks, mysterious black powder on the streets in some of the towns just outside. Tokyo has had at least 2 waves of high radiation flow over it - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?.
Random samples of earth taken back to the US by Arnie Gunderson were tested recently and would be classed as nuclear waste in the US - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?
This makes this type of initiative vital. however the real question should be - WHY are we decontaminating at all when the likelihood of RE-CONTAMINATION is huge.
The spent fuel pools on top of reactors, 3 and 4 contain enough irradiated fuel to make a good part of the country uninhabitable if the water drains from the damaged containers - very real problem that even prompted a senior Japanese diplomat, ex ambassador to Switzerland to send a letter to Ban Ki Moon about his fears for a global catastrophe http://akiomatsumura.com/2012/04/682.html - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?
The disgraceful situation has been brought in front of the people of the US, Senator Ron Wyden after his tour of the plant decried the incredibly weak defences against another tsunami, a few backs of rocks and raised the spent fuel pools issue, these pools have no back up pumping systems, they are listing, will crack in a M7 earthquake, would potentially release 85 times the amount of Chernobyls cesium - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?
I hope, pray that this change will be a real one, but we have been shafted so many times that I doubt that - all the while TEPGOvt keep telling us it is safe and we will be able to return to decontaminated areas soon.
-2 ( +3 / -5 )
Posted in: Shimokobe to become TEPCO chairman See in context
So, they are bringing in an outsider??? and he will be replacing the head of the turkey, and this classes as news in Japan. I have been out of southern Miyagi for a couple of months now and it sounds like things have not improved - they are trying to shrink the evacuation zone, while there are reports of new leaks, mysterious black powder on the streets in some of the towns just outside. Tokyo has had at least 2 waves of high radiation flow over it - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?.
Random samples of earth taken back to the US by Arnie Gunderson were tested recently and would be classed as nuclear waste in the US - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?
The spent fuel pools on top of reactors, 3 and 4 contain enough irradiated fuel to make a good part of the country uninhabitable if the water drains from the damaged containers - very real problem that even prompted a senior Japanese diplomat, ex ambassador to Switzerland to send a letter to Ban Ki Moon about his fears for a global catastrophe http://akiomatsumura.com/2012/04/682.html - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?
The disgraceful situation has been brought in front of the people of the US, Senator Ron Wyden after his tour of the plant decried the incredibly weak defences against another tsunami, a few backs of rocks and raised the spent fuel pools issue, these pools have no back up pumping systems, they are listing, will crack in a M7 earthquake, would potentially release 85 times the amount of Chernobyls cesium - where are TEPGOvt talking about that?
I hope, pray that this change will be a real one, but we have been shafted so many times that I doubt that - all the while TEPGOvt keep telling us it is safe and we will be able to return to decontaminated areas soon.
Good luck Shimokobe-san
-4 ( +1 / -5 )
Posted in: TEPCO says Fukushima No. 2 reactor water level only 60 cms from bottom See in context
From what I have been reading online, the hydrogen levels have been rising over the last 2 weeks, as of yesterday registering 4 times higher and the temperature was at 103%, but this article says differently. There was a radiation spike detected over Tokyo (Adachi-ku and Shinagawa-ku monitors) reading 3 times the 'normal' level at about 2230 on March 25 - this would suggest a venting of the radioactive gases to avoid another explosion - nothing from the govt or TEPCO - maybe we can graft those together because they are pretty much the same thing - TEPCOvernment.
I have joined my family in the UK now, our thoughts are with all of our family and friends we left behind in Ishinomaki, Marumori, Sendai and Tokyo - be safe!!!
-1 ( +4 / -5 )
Posted in: Fishing boat lost in tsunami spotted off western Canada See in context
The timeline for the Fukushima explosions was not 4 days, but within 24 hours of the tsunami, plenty of time to heavily contaminate a lot of debris being swept back into the sea.
1st explosion Saturday afternoon, c.1530, 12th March - Reactor 1
-5 ( +0 / -5 )
Posted in: 500 piglets burn to death in blaze See in context
Farm - Ibaraki Factory farming - bad Eating meat - environmentally unfriendly Dead pigs from fire - full insurance cover Pigs unfit for human consumption due to radiation - virtually no compensation
Expectation - more fires in the future, more suicides of organic farmers in the region
-3 ( +1 / -5 )
Posted in: Volunteers still needed in Tohoku See in context
Elbuda, you make a good point, but my point here is less than 5% of students in Sendai - you can see the tsunami area from the classroom windows. Also the survey question was not on the ground volunteering, it was any assistance/volunteering of any kind, anywhere, anytime. Elsewhere, the numbers were much lower.
The common answer to what they were doing to help was to simply continue shopping to support all of the chain stores in the city providing minimum wage jobs -- very poor response.
-5 ( +0 / -5 )
Posted in: Volunteers still needed in Tohoku See in context
I worked up in the Ishinomaki area for over half a year and saw volunteer numbers drop off dramatically up to about a month ago when I left Japan. I also did an unscientific survey of over 1,000 students in Sendai universities and was shocked to find that less than 5% of them had volunteered any time from Mar 11,2011 until Feb 2012. From what I understand this is not unusual, this was a great concern and we initiated volunteer seminars and info centre in the city.
If the youth of Japan have not been spurred into action by the Tsunami and nuclear incident, I wonder what calamity can ever drag them away from the nightly dross on TV, their keitai or the web.
-4 ( +1 / -5 )
Posted in: Mayor of village near Fukushima plant urges residents to return to homes See in context
understandable and emotive call from local people traumatized by these events, however it is the duty of officials to protect the people and this is a total failure to do that. The risks of further large earthquakes are very high. The reality of total melt throughs, steam explosions, continued releases of radioactivity and hot particles, secondary contamination from burning or pollen and ground water pollution have not been assessed yet or have only been assessed with less than 10 months of data.
Local officials do not have the capacity or training to make these decisions, even in consultation with central govt as they can't grasp the full picture or access and understand independent sourced information. My wife and I know our local nuclear incident 'expert', he was put in place by our local govt to serve our local area of 16,000 residents many wirthin 40-50kms of the plants and some within 10km of IItate mura, a farmer with no knowledge of the science or incident - in fact we have been consulted and asked to provide information for them, rather than the other way round - this also true of all of the areas that were evacuated.
Tepco and the govt have admitted they have no model for forecasting the effects of the disaster, until they do local officials are simply leading their people back into harms way, but then the trauma that has been caused by the criminal acts of the major players here is clear for all to see.
I fear for the future of my friends here.
12 ( +15 / -4 )
Posted in: Gov't says no to free medical care for children under 18 in Fukushima See in context
Ok, the govt has shirked responsibility - no shock there.
Now, set up a voluntary fund that has shares of contribution matching the amount of money the company, organisation, political party, consumer has benefited from nuclear energy, TEPCO ties, cheap electricity, here is the twist - set the rates and then any party who refuses must state its reasons, apply publicly to be exempt, meet with the families of the children etc.
that will allow to work out exactly which companies, organisations etc. to boycott in the future - name and shame them.
1 ( +5 / -4 )
Posted in: Quake drives tourist numbers to rock bottom See in context
P.S. lets not forget that the tourism industry has been compensated upto 80% for their losses, while farmers and home owners covered by the radioactive filth have been barely compensated within Fukushima and not at all if you live in Ibaragi, Miyagi or elsewhere, curious?
1 ( +6 / -5 )
Posted in: At least 10 groups dealing with disaster kept no detailed records of meetings See in context
anybody shocked by this has been asleep over the past 10 months
4 ( +7 / -3 )
Posted in: Chugoku Electric shuts Shimane No. 2 reactor, leaving Japan with only 3 reactors online See in context
huge increase in fossil fuel imports. The alternatives are proven, clean and readily available - the debate is over but the vested interests and our power hungry lifestyles won't permit a sustainable future.
0 ( +4 / -4 )
Posted in: Quake drives tourist numbers to rock bottom See in context
come on - tourists are sensible, they don't believe a single word of reassurance from a criminally negligent government, and what in the past 10 months has proved them wrong?
6 ( +11 / -5 )
Posted in: Japan starts eco-point program for housing See in context
So, see if I understand this ---we lost our house due to excessive levels of radiation ---TEPCO and govt has refused compensation of any kind due to location a breath inside Miyagi on the Fukushima border ---they destroyed the local environment---but if I use money I don't have---they use my taxes-----to give me eco-points---to bring my family back ---so they can live in an eco-nightmare----get sick---then use medical services paid for by taxes again.
Great, now I am clear on that, it all makes sense ---find me a builder.
-2 ( +1 / -3 )
Posted in: Flu cases increasing rapidly across Japan; Tokai hard hit See in context
fair comment Nicky, some peers have come out against it - using this logic most stats coming out of govt would therefore be similarly unreliable as they are funded by the pronuke lobby.
My point is where are the baseline stats for Japan in this regard and how much research has been done since. Children in our villages just 15km from the evacuation zone have been tested once, over 2 months ago and results have yet to be released. Nosebleeds, blackend eyes, severe fatigue, metallic taste in the mouth and lack of concentration - the kids are suffering and this flu will probably be even worse than usual
-3 ( +0 / -3 )
Posted in: Plan calls for TEPCO to be nationalized for at least 10 years See in context
Still not sure why releases about TEPCO and the government's handling of the nuclear crisis are not under the Crime heading on this site?
7 ( +8 / -3 )
Posted in: Flu cases increasing rapidly across Japan; Tokai hard hit See in context
I hope this will end up being a standard flu season, rather than something else. However we should consider the real possibilitiy that the effects of Iodine and Xenon gas exposure, even at low levels depresses our immune systems - that is what the thyroid gland is all about.
The peer reviewed, reported statistical analysis in the US of between 14,000-20,000 additional deaths of the immune system compromised (babies,Aids,aged) caused by Fukushima fallout should be considered here. On one of the radio shows, the researcher wondered aloud whether the Japanese govt has even been tracking these types of stats - unfortunately past experience leads us to believe that is a no. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdow_6pN6jY
Vaccinations, from all accounts that I have read over the years, they do give excellent cover for the flu strains selected, however they depress the immune system for other conditions, other strains of flu, common colds and possibly pnumonia etc.
Everyone take care and I hope compassion for our fellow man will shine through in the coming years, unlike over the last 9 months of nuclear crisis.
-2 ( +2 / -4 )
Posted in: Japan to declare Fukushima nuclear plant in stable condition See in context
I am sure there is progress, but the reactors are not just vulnerable to earthquakes, how about another tsunami, typhoons, heavy snow, equipment failure, structural collapse, human error.... These conditions have been achieved with hundreds of tons of groundwater leaking into and most probably out of the buildings. The contamination of ground water poses a very serious longterm problem for the area - are the officials making this declaration stable?
2 ( +8 / -6 )
Posted in: Traces of radioactive cesium found in Meiji baby formula See in context
Well well, no surprise here - Meiji must have sensed they were in a no win situation and played the only card they had - a little cynical -- I know but sorry, this last 8 months has been a bit tough up here. While we are on the subject of children, my wife just told me that TEPCO just announced the value of putting a child at risk. They will pay 400,000 yen per child in Fukushima, 80,000 per adult, whether they moved or not. Not sure on the details yet, but that is the price. Of course, nothing to be paid to our communities in the very south of Miyagi. So it is already a pittance, unless it is a small token payment for inconvenience cause and they will then pay 200x that as a final settlement, excluding private health costs for the next 10 generations, so as to not burden the tax payer further, no local or national taxes until everything is cleared up, retraining and resettlement support for the youth, lifetime psychological counseling, education system to teach the children how to deal with societal prejudice, especially when they come to marry or their children's children do and so on - a little bit naive-- I know but sorry, this last 8 months has been a bit tough up here.
2 ( +8 / -6 )
Posted in: Radioactive cesium detected in rice from more Fukushima areas See in context
Where is the proof they don't?
1 ( +5 / -4 )
Posted in: Radioactive cesium detected in rice from more Fukushima areas See in context
They do not tell us where in Watari these farms are, however for those of you reading this down south, Watari is basically part of Fukushima city - home to c.300,000 people. The media forgets to mention that this is semi-urban because heaven forbid city folk would be suffering. The testing is getting better, but people in the area have been eating contaminated food for 8 months. Many areas, including our about 20 kms north use wells for drinking water and/or ground water for irrigation - so many of us have been drinking it too. There has also been the cases where farmers have been burning straw/stubble - it is likely to be heavily contaminated along with the momigara (ricehulls). There has been no testing of these byproducts, only the finished, packaged and washed rice
-1 ( +2 / -3 )
Posted in: TEPCO internal report says quake caused little damage to Fukushima nuclear plant See in context
I find it interesting that their report is less in depth than the claim documents that they sent to us - only 130 pages.
They failed to check the majority of the back-up systems prior to the issuance of the permit to keep running the place and admitted such just weeks before the tsunami and we are supposed to believe an 'internal' report are they *;-`/@ joking. A simple fact was that as Yong yang states the perimeter radiation alarms sounded prior to the tsunami hitting, meaning a massive release of radioactive material. This would have caused a huge problem by itself, if only the total collapse of the power station hadn't followed shortly after.
-3 ( +2 / -5 )
Posted in: Gov't calls on citizens, businesses to begin winter energy-saving measures See in context
How about insulate buildings properly, reduce the insane level of cement produced here, invest in sensible, localized alternative power mixes, get off the otaku obsessive need for a house full of gadgets, get some exercise and eat a good diet so you are no complaining it feels cold all the time due to your terrible physical condition, remove all drinks machines country wide, have all convenience stores close over night, take down 3 out of every 4 traffic lights, switch off the vast majority of appalling neon - in fact get a life that revolves around something other than 'your convenience' - might be a start, but who will start doing that?
-1 ( +2 / -3 )
Posted in: Study shows deeper meltdown than thought at Fukushima nuclear reactor See in context
wanderlust
Good information, I had heard of this before, but not in so much detail. The level of complicity is breathtaking, unless you have worked within the system here and then it seems just like business as usual. We could ease back and depend upon he good nature of the corporations and powers that be to do the right thing.
I have already had a number of conversations with the pro-nuclear lobby on this, all maintaining that even with a disaster such as this factored in, nuclear energy is still the cheapest option - this is true when the govt/tepco are paying a cent on the dollar when it comes to compensation.
2 million irradiated, the price of a child's health, elderly immolating themselves, organic farmers suicide, the phsycological scars of children and adults shunned as nuclear refugees, the shame felt by those who left, the broken communities, young women from Fukushima rejected by prospective partners, the guilt of farmers selling their produce --- the list goes on and on.
But hey, we still get cheap electricity, no ---- nuclear energy is immoral, dirty, expensive and we can do better.
-1 ( +2 / -3 )
Posted in: Study shows deeper meltdown than thought at Fukushima nuclear reactor See in context
kurisupisu
I can't tell what is farce ---- everything coming out of TEPCO, TEPCO lawyers, Central Govt Officials, Academic experts touring Fukushima saying everything is okay, and anyone who says they know what is going on in inside those reactors
or reality..
-3 ( +0 / -3 )
Posted in: Study shows deeper meltdown than thought at Fukushima nuclear reactor See in context
Anyone surprised here has spent the last 8 months with their head in the sand - along with 99% of the population.
Officials coming to Fukushima have made it perfectly clear that they deem the residents of the area as nothing more than animals, the situation with the reactors is unknowable, residents within the region should move their children as no one has any idea of how devastating the situation could be once highly volatile molten cores hit low temperature ground water pockets in enclosed space - explosive? toxic for sure.
-2 ( +1 / -3 )
Posted in: TEPCO to sell KDDI stake to raise funds for compensation See in context
This liquidation of assets is peanuts, the real cost of compensation, if it wasn't going to be paid at 1cent on the dollar, is truly gigantic and should be shouldered, at least in part, by the users of the product itself - electricity. A solidarity levy perhaps?
The Fukushima plants generated electricity for Tokyo, but were deemed too risky to build in Tokyo's environs. They named them 'Fukushima' which means everything that comes from the prefecture will be tainted by association forever. No one in Tokyo gave a damn as long as the lights stayed on and you got to keep all your electrical appliances running until hotspots started popping up - meanwhile the rural people got what they deserved I guess for not abandoning their beautiful villages and heading for the 'lights' of the big city.
A moment of reflection in the big smoke - while up here we have to clean up the capital's #!@ big cloud of poison.
-3 ( +0 / -3 )
Posted in: Gov't bans sale of rice from part of Fukushima See in context
These farms are only about 10 km from our area and this will likely to spread as the testing improves. A very big concern is that stubble burning and the use of ricehulls on farmland and as feed seems to be continuing with little testing of the radiation levels. This is the consequence of a piecemeal approach and the officials should be made responsible for their actions - educate and properly compensate the farmers - yes, but also the multitude of small holders who are not farming commercially.
6 ( +8 / -3 )
Posted in: Hirano under fire for calling tsunami victims 'idiots' See in context
IDIOT
-2 ( +3 / -5 )
Posted in: TEPCO asks for Y700 bil in gov't aid to help cover compensation See in context
This 700 bill is partly coming from the pockets of families like my own that 'voluntarily' evacuated with small children, in our case with severe respiratory issues. Child benefit is being cut to boot. We will receive nothing from these rounds of compensation!!
For house, land and business owners outside the 20km exclusion zone, there is a simple compensation method available to access this situation regardless of voluntary evacuation or not. Compare the market value of the home/land/business prior to the radiation release to the real market value today. For those renting, a percentage of that same value can be used.
Personal trauma, travel costs and resettlement expenses can then be added to that. Seems fair treatment to me.
-2 ( +1 / -3 )
Posted in: Chelsea star Sam Kerr's 'stupid and white' remark was 'hostile': prosecutors
Posted in: Trump says U.S. Steel will get investment from Nippon Steel, instead of being bought by it
Posted in: Gov't to expedite release of rice reserves amid surging prices
Posted in: Japan’s wagyu heart-shaped steaks are the perfect alternative to Valentine’s Day sweets