Saturday, March 19, 2011

Radioactive Iodine Found in Tokyo's Water Supply; Food Sales Banned in Fukushima

This is obviously terrible news. I note that up to now most reports have discussed the dangers of one dose of radiation, but ongoing radiation is entirely different situation. The doses in the water in Tokyo appear low at this point, but increases in levels are the most likely scenario.

Here's NyPo with the details:
Public health fears were raised after traces of radioactive iodine were found in Tokyo's tap water Saturday and Japanese authorities stopped food sales in the areas around the Fukushima nuclear plant.

Government sources told Kyodo News that radioactive iodine reached the water supply of the country's capital -- home to 36 million people -- in the wake of the emergency at the quake-hit Fukushima No. 1 power plant.
Abnormal levels of radioactive iodine were also found in the water supply in the central prefectures of Gunma, Tochigi, Saitama, Chiba and Niigata, an official at Japan's science ministry told AFP. But the levels were far below Japan's legal limit, added the official, who did not want to be named.
Meanwhile, Japanese authorities halted all food sales in the areas around the Fukushima plant, according to UN watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), after high levels of radioactivity were found in milk and spinach in the region.
NyPo does go on to quote an official who finally discusses the drinking of contaminated milk for a year, but, at this point, we are not talking about just contaminated milk, but water supplies and likely airborne radiation---all for extended periods of time:
"Radiation exceeding the limit under Japanese law was detected," government spokesman Yukio Edano said Saturday. But he urged consumers to remain calm, claiming that drinking the contaminated milk for a year would only add up to the same radiation level as one CT scan.

UPDATE: Correction from Reuters: IAEA: Japan considering whether to halt sale of food from Fukushima prefecture (not has ordered)

1 comment:

  1. They should stop selling spinach in Ibaraki as well:
    http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110319D19JF396.htm

    ReplyDelete