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Fukushima Is Here
500 people assembled on October 19th on Ocean Beach in San Francisco and formed the letters with their bodies to demonstrate their growing concern about eventual fallout on the west coast. Credit and More Information: FukushimaResponse.org
An ocean current called the North Pacific Gyre is bringing Japanese radiation to the West Coast of North America:
The leg of the Gyre closest to Japan - the Kuroshio current - begins right next to Fukushima:

While many people assume that the ocean will dilute the Fukushima radiation, a previously-secret 1955 U.S. government report concluded that the ocean may not adequately dilute radiation from nuclear accidents, and there could be “pockets” and “streams” of highly-concentrated radiation. Physicians for Social Responsibility notes:
An interesting fact for people living on the US west coast is also included in the UNSCEAR [United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation] report: only about 5% of the directly discharged radiation was deposited within a radius of 80 km from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power station. The rest was distributed in the Pacific Ocean. 3-D simulations have been carried out for the Pacific basin, showing that within 5–6 years, the emissions would reach the North American coastline, with uncertain consequences for food safety and health of the local population.
The University of Hawaii’s International Pacific Research Center created a graphic showing the projected dispersion of debris from Japan:
Last year, scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and 3 scientists from the GEOMAR Research Center for Marine Geosciences showed that radiation on the West Coast of North America could end up being 10 times higher than in Japan:
After 10 years the concentrations become nearly homogeneous over the whole Pacific, with higher values in the east, extending along the North American coast with a maximum (~1 × 10?4) off Baja California. *** With caution given to the various idealizations (unknown actual oceanic state during release, unknown release area, no biological effects included, see section 3.4), the following conclusions may be drawn. (i) Dilution due to swift horizontal and vertical dispersion in the vicinity of the energetic Kuroshio regime leads to a rapid decrease of radioactivity levels during the first 2 years, with a decline of near-surface peak concentrations to values around 10 Bq m?3 (based on a total input of 10 PBq). The strong lateral dispersion, related to the vigorous eddy fields in the mid-latitude western Pacific, appears significantly under-estimated in the non-eddying (0.5°) model version. (ii) The subsequent pace of dilution is strongly reduced, owing to the eastward advection of the main tracer cloud towards the much less energetic areas of the central and eastern North Pacific. (iii) The magnitude of additional peak radioactivity should drop to values comparable to the pre-Fukushima levels after 6–9 years (i.e. total peak concentrations would then have declined below twice pre-Fukushima levels). (iv) By then the tracer cloud will span almost the entire North Pacific, with peak concentrations off the North American coast an order-of-magnitude higher than in the western Pacific. ***
(“Order-of-magnitude” is a scientific term which means 10 times higher. The “Western Pacific” means Japan’s East Coast.) In May, a team of scientists from Spain, Australia and France concluded that the radioactive cesium would look more like this:
A team of top Chinese scientists has just published a study in the Science China Earth Sciences journal showing that the radioactive plume crosses the ocean in a nearly straight line toward North America, and that it appears to stay together with little dispersion:
On March 30, 2011, the Japan Central News Agency reported the monitored radioactive pollutions that were 4000 times higher than the standard level. Whether or not these nuclear pollutants will be transported to the Pacific-neighboring countries through oceanic circulations becomes a world-wide concern. *** The time scale of the nuclear pollutants reaching the west coast of America is 3.2 years if it is estimated using the surface drifting buoys and 3.9 years if it is estimated using the nuclear pollutant particulate tracers. ***
The half life of cesium-137 is so long that it produces more damage to human. Figure 4 gives the examples of the distribution of the impact strength of Cesium-137 at year 1.5 (panel (a)), year 3.5 (panel (b)), and year 4 (panel (c)). *** It is worth noting that due to the current near the shore cannot be well reconstructed by the global ocean reanalysis, some nuclear pollutant particulate tracers may come to rest in near shore area, which may result in additional uncertainty in the estimation of the impact strength. *** Since the major transport mechanism of nuclear pollutants for the west coast of America is the Kuroshio-extension currents, after four years, the impact strength of Cesium-137 in the west coast area of America is as high as 4%.
Bluefin tuna on the California shore tested positive for radiation from Fukushima, and there are reports of highly radioactive fish in Canada. The CBS show The Doctors warned that we should be moderate with our fish intake, and children and pregnant women should be especially careful:
BONUS:
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Might be a good idea, if there are any humans left to do any work. Robots don't work, the radiation frys the electronics.
And what do we do with the tanker after it becomes lethally radiated, and the ionizing radiation starts to dissolve the hull, especially since it's sitting in salt water? Wouldn't last two years.
I suggest starting a really bad drinking habit. Pickling is our last hope.
Are you really so ignorant as to believe that ionizing radiation could dissolve the hull of a ship? How did you get to be this stupid? Ah, now I remember; go to American public school, but don't pay attention; and then be careful to never read anything but mindless rubbish for twenty years thereafter. Congratulations; you live in a delusional dream world.
Yo SAT, you got owned there. Any reply?
"While nuclear reactors are usually in sturdy housings, it was not immediately realized that long-term neutron bombardment can embrittle steel. When, for example, ex-Soviet submarine reactors are not given full maintenance or decommissioning, there is a cumulative hazard that steel in the containment, or piping that can reach the core, might lose strength and break. Understanding those effects as a function of radiation type and density can help predict when poorly maintained nuclear facilities might become orders of magnitude more hazardous.[5] "During power operations of light-water-cooled, pressurized water nuclear power reactors, radiation-induced embrittlement will degrade certain mechanical properties important to maintaining the structural integrity of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV). Specifically, fast-neutron (E > 1 MeV) radiation-induced embrittlement of the RPV steel could lead to a compromise of the vessel integrity, under extreme conditions of temperature and pressure, through a reduction in the steel’s fracture toughness. This so-called fast-neutron embrittlement is a complex function of many factors including the neutron fluence, the neutron energy spectrum, and the chemical composition of the steel. Additional factors may also come into play, such as the neutron fluence-rate, whose effects have not been fully investigated. Because of the obvious safety implications brought about by a potential breech in the pressure vessel’s integrity, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (US NRC) has issued requirements designed to help ensure that the structural integrity of the reactor pressure vessel is preserved." (CIRMS-4 p. 76). The requirements of this objective, however, assume that the reactor was built to stringent safety factors."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_MASINT#Effects_of_Ionizing_Radiati...
'Effects of gamma-radiation versus H2O2 on carbon steel corrosion'"The effect of ionizing radiation on steel corrosion is an important materials issue in nuclear reactors. In the presence of ionizing radiation water decomposes into both oxidizing and reducing species (e.g., (OH)-O-center dot, H2O2, O-center dot(2)-) whose net interactions with steels are not fully understood. The effect of radiation on the corrosion kinetics of carbon steel has been studied at pH 10.6 and room temperature, using electrochemical and chemical speciation analyses. The present study investigates the effect of gamma-radiation on carbon steel corrosion and compares it with that of chemically added H2O2, which is considered to be the key radiolytically produced oxidant at room temperature. Various oxide films were pre-grown potentiostatically on carbon steel electrodes, and then exposed to either gamma-radiation at a dose rate of similar to 6.8 kGy h(-1) or to H2O2 in a concentration range of 10(-6) to 10(-2) M. The corrosion kinetics were studied by monitoring the corrosion potential (E-CORR), and periodically performing linear polarization (LP) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved."
http://sun.chem.uwo.ca/content/effects-gamma-radiation-versus-h2o2-carbo...
Do you want more?
They should have just used hydrogen peroxide as a coolant, then the engineering would have worked, neh? I hear LIQUID SODIUM makes a good coolant too (it burns in contact with air, water, etc)...
Liquid sodium would be the coolant of choice in fast breeders, because it doesn't slow down neutrons. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Experimental_Breeder_Reactor_I). All fast breeders are dangerous designs.
You're doing a disservice with radiation fear mongering. Yes, Fukushima is a mess, and locally a health danger. But look at the levels you are talking about 10Bq/m3 for Ce137, that's ridiculously small. You get orders of magnitude more from the (naturally occuring) Potassium 40 in sea water.
Also, anyone that panics about this stuff and smokes is a moron. You get way, way more radiation from smoking cigs. If you want to reduce your radiation exposure - (1) Stop smoking! (2) Vent your house regularly and get it tested for Radon. (3) Minimize medical imaging (up to 2000 mrem/test) (4) Manage long distance air travel.
I am not too concerned with Lethal Doses to Humans. What I am concerned with is lethal doces delivered to the Ocean's Plankton.
Plankton generate 70% of the World's Breathable Oxygen. If they die off then the Atmosphere is not replenished.
If they die off, as the base of the Oceanic Food Chain, we are going to see Famine affect Marine Life. That will consequentially affect the Human Food Supply chain.
Why did you refuse to address those concerns in my previous post? It seems as if my concerns have some validity that you wish to ignore?
I worked as a Teaching Assistant for both Physics Departments at the two Universities where I attended. There was goint to be an Anti Nuke Protest as the Military was going to relocate some Heavy Water close to my Campus.
That was laughable. Tritium is not a threat. So I had a piece of Pitchblende Ore. It was so hot...NOT. It was so hot that I put it in my pocket right next to my "Family Jewels".
I was going to toss that Rock up and down while the protest was happening. Then I was planning to announce that I had exposed them to more Radiant Energy that they would have received from that Tritium in 100 Years...which is the Truth.
My Physics Department Chair nixed my idea...damn him. He claimed that he would have to bail me out of Jail (???)
What? I asked that in astonishment. He replied, "We are responsible for you." Now that was a "Golden Ticket". I never redeemed it.
It is not that I am Anti-Nuke.
Fukushima is much worse than Chernobyl. And it is the denial which will create a catastrophe of epic proportion.
Address my concerns and convince me that I am mistaken.
I hear the 'Tritium is not a threat' argument a lot. Once it becomes organically bonded, being used in place of normal hydrogen in the body, Tritium can become a real problem.
http://www.beyondnuclear.org/storage/tritium_01252010_buriedpipes_bn_bac...
Totally agree with your point about phytoplankton though, I think this very valid concern is being utterly missed. I'm rather glad in a way though, at least it means the 'Denver airport' crowd are just as fucked as the rest of us.
dude, stop trying to steal Washington's thunder with non-alarmism. WTF is wrong with you? If it's nuclear, you must be scared. If it's radioactive, it's going to kill you. Fucking deal with it OK. Why can't you just be scared the way George Washington wants you to be? Scared and mad, like him. Then we can all be as one. Fucking clown, with your "science" and lack of panic. All hail the Dear Leader George Washington, our Protector!
It's probably going to equilibrate to 5-10 times pre-accident background levels in the eastern Pacific (i.e. including the atmospheric testing and Chernobyl radiation). Not necessarily anything, but not necessarily nothing either. Depends on your views on linear dose response.
Of course the real question--in Japan as well as elsewhere--is how to assess, map and monitor potential concentration vectors, whether mechanical (currents, fallout drifts in soil etc.) or bioaccumulative.
But then again, we seem to have passed beyond logic and empiricism a few decades back.
I blame corruption, but maybe it's just human nature.
Actually, many parts of Greater Tokyo have radiation that exceeds the legal limit of 40,000 bq/m3. But instead of evacuating Tokto, they plan to bring the planet's strongest and healthiest there for several weeks of the 'irradiation olympics'
You too confuse radiation with radioactivity.
Radioactive material is an acute source of radiation. You can shield yourself from the radiation of the sun. When the source is embedded in your liver the problems you face are a bit more difficult.
ra·di·o·ac·tiv·i·ty(rd--k-tv-t)
n.
1. Spontaneous emission of radiation, either directly from unstable atomic nuclei or as a consequence of a nuclear reaction. 2. The radiation, including alpha particles, nucleons, electrons, and gamma rays, emitted by a radioactive substance.
You're quoting an average concentration over a large area- and George did mention, albeit briefly, the issue of the inefficiency of natural dispersion and dilution. No one likes to talk about the true hit-miss aspect of lethal (or medical condition inducing) exposure that neither an individual nor society can exert any control over.
A soldier can break cover in a firefight and walk nonchalantly through the field of fire and in many cases might emerge completely unscathed, but despite the statistically low lead concentration and the actual odds of coming into contact with a small piece of often randomly directed lead traveling at high velocity don't motivate many to try it.
The key concept is bioaccumulation. You walk into the local pasta shop and eat a mussel that processed 28,000,000 gallons of seawater, retaining every atom of calcium etc. analogues... fatal dose. CBR facts soldiers like Washington know.
'Fukushima Equals 3,000 Billion Lethal Doses'
“Dr Paolo Scampa, a widely know EU Physicist, single handedly popularized the easily understood Lethal Doses concept. “Lethal Doses” is a world wide, well understood idea that strips Physics bare and offers a brilliant, understandable explanation for all the physics gobbledygook Intelligence agencies and their respective governments use to disguise the brutal truths of the Fukushima Daiichi Disaster.""Three thousand billion (3,000,000,000,000) Lethal Doses of Radiation means there are 429 Lethal Doses chasing each and every one of us on the planet, to put it in a nutshell. This is up from about 70 Billion Lethal Doses March 23, 2011. It is getting worse everyday without any intervention by the US and the other nuclear powers….”
"Note that the lethality of radioactive reactor cores goes up the first 250,000 years they are out of the reactor – not down."
http://www.veteranstoday.com/2011/05/28/fukushima-how-many-chernobyls-is...
Do you have a method to clear your and your kids lungs and organs of thousands of tons of aerosolized plutonium and uranium? Please post it for the rest of us.
Don't disturb the trolls with facts... they are paid (or are just plain retarded) to spout this garbage. Do I believe everything George puts out there? No, but he has done a good job in gathering extensive data and persistently reported on it. What do the retard trolls say? "Nuh uh!"
Do you really believe this a trivial event?
Do you really believe those reported levels accurate?
That bananas, cigs and flying are magnitudes worse?
---------<@){{{-<
There is radiation everywhere, but somehow people only get concerned about radiation when it comes from a nuclear power plant.
For example, some shrimp (Gennada valens) concentrate naturally occuring Polonium-210 to the point where they recieve a dose that is twice as high as the human lethal dose. Many other varieties of shrimp also concentrate Po-210 to the point where they are noticeably radioactive (i.e. you can easily detect it with an ordinary geiger counter).
The granite walls of Grand Central Station in New York City emit more radiation than is legally allowed for nuclear power plants:
http://listverse.com/2013/02/06/10-things-you-probably-didnt-know-were-r...
But George Washington never warned you about any of these natural radiation sources because he subscribes to the simplistic 60's theology that (human = bad), (natural = good).
Fake Science Alert: Fukushima Radiation Can’t Be Compared to Bananas or X-Rays
Phoney Journalism Alert:
Your article claims that radioactive cesium cannot be compared to radioactive potassium because potassium is eliminated from the body. So when you eat a banana, the "excess" potassium will be quickly eliminated from your body. But guess what: excess cesium is also eliminated from the body by similar mechanisms. And the equilibrium concentration of cesium is orders of magnitude lower than the equilibrium potassium concentration, implying that cesium removal is much more efficient and that radioactive cesium would be removed much more quickly than radioactive potassium. So excess radioactive potassium would actually be more dangerous than excess radioactive cesium, not less.
Captain Nukem: Do you by any chance have the slightest clue what you are talking about?
Think he needs a vacation ... on Rongelap.
Sorry but that is incorrect (it would be nice if it were so). Potassium is specifically moderated by the homeostasis mechanism. Cesium isn't. Cesium is merely excreted. Thankfully it is excreted fairly quickly, like in a month or so, but there's no upper limit to the actual concentration level. At least not in fish.
Please refer to: http://www.int-res.com/articles/meps/222/m222p227.pdf
First line of the article: Radiocesium is the only trace element apart from Hg that may be potentially biomagnified at the top of the marine planktonic food chain.
Otherwise how did that greenling get to 24,000 Bq/kg, hmmm?
Science....it's a wonderment.
Cesium in the body has a half life of 110 days. Upon consumption, 10% is excreted in 2 days and the balance has a half life of 110 days. If you assume consumption is constant, the radiationlevel bioaccumulated flatlines after 550 days. Continuous consumption of 1bq/day results in millions of disintegrations per year. The odds of cancer and mutations skyrocket under such conditions.
Cesium is a muscle-seeker, so it goes for the heart. Consumption of even small amounts of cesium result in immediate changes to the ECG.That change in the ECG does NOT occur with potassium.
You should try reading peer reviewed research in between those scotches.
TT, are you talking about things like Sudden Cardiac Arrest? Where they just drop where they're standing?
Mentioned a few times on the radiation blogs.
The stuff that is really really scary is tritium. Tritiated water will eat stainless steel. Tritiated water can get into every single organ in the body. Tritium's radioactivity is 9650 curies per gram.[14] (357 TBq/g)
Tritium is essentially radioactive hydrogen. Highly explosive, and released constantly from nuclear operations. Never filtered, released to atmosphere through vents.
A big reason for the cancer clusters around NPP's:
http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/science-updates/nuclear-powered-cancer-...
Actually a pretty good article about the dangers of tritium.
OK, then.
Ignore the Caesium for a moment. What about the strontium?
What happens to that when it is injested?
"Twelve unstable isotopes exist; the most stable of these is the radioactive isotope strontium-90 (half-life 28.1 years), which is the chief immediate hazard in fallout. As a result of atmospheric nuclear tests, strontium-90 is dispersed in varying concentrations throughout the earth's atmosphere and soil. Because of its chemical similarity to calcium, it is readily taken up in the tissues of plants and animals; it may enter the human food supply, mainly in milk. It is particularly dangerous for growing children as it is easily deposited in the bones and is believed to induce bone cancer and leukemia."
http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/strontium.html 'How Cesium And Strontium 90 Kills Children'http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/04/german-how-cesium-and-strontium-9...
Strontium-90 FAQ http://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dph/files/strontiumfaq.pdf Remember, this is continuous ingestion/absorbtion. It is now bioaccumulating in each and every one of us. It 'might' clear only when the contamination is removed/patient is removed. There is nowhere to go that Strontium-90 is not bioavailable. And Strontium-90 and Cesium are the least of our worries.Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, University of, Tromsø, Tromsø, Norway. sgd@fagmed.uit.no
AbstractThe distribution and incorporation of strontium into bone has been examined in rats, monkeys, and humans after oral administration of strontium (either strontium chloride or strontium ranelate). After repeated administration for a sufficient period of time (at least 4 weeks in rats), strontium incorporation into bone reaches a plateau level. This plateau appears to be lower in females than in males due to a difference in the absorption process. Steady-state plasma strontium levels are reached more rapidly than in bones, and within 10 days in the rat. The strontium levels in bone vary according to the anatomical site. However, strontium levels at different skeletal sites are strongly correlated, and the strontium content of the lumbar vertebra may be estimated from iliac crest bone biopsies in monkeys. The strontium levels in bone also vary according to the bone structure and higher amounts of strontium are found in cancellous bone than in cortical bone. Furthermore, at the crystal level, higher concentrations of strontium are observed in newly formed bone than in old bone. After withdrawal of treatment, the bone strontium content rapidly decreases in monkeys. The relatively high clearance rate of strontium from bone can be explained by the mechanisms of its incorporation. Strontium is mainly incorporated by exchange onto the crystal surface. In new bone, only a few strontium atoms may be incorporated into the crystal by ionic substitution of calcium. After treatment withdrawal, strontium exchanged onto the crystal is rapidly eliminated, which leads to a rapid decrease in total bone strontium levels. In summary, incorporation of strontium into bone, mainly by exchange onto the crystal surface, is dependent on the duration of treatment, dose, gender, and skeletal site. Nevertheless, bone strontium content is highly correlated with plasma strontium levels and, in bone, between the different skeletal sites.
Captain Nukem=Fucking dummy!
The research you quote is strontium chloride and strontium ranelate. Which are salts.
Fukushima emitted SR-90 (Strontium 90), a radionuclide.
Totally different!
And some say, "Uranium, clean energy, forward". Beats me.
Nuclear power stations simply wouldn't exist if it weren't for governments allowing them limited liability insurance.
It is an inherently socialist technology, from the economics to the police state needed to guard it.
"The Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act (commonly called the Price-Anderson Act) is a United States federal law, first passed in 1957 and since renewed several times, which governs liability-related issues for all non-military nuclear facilities constructed in the United States before 2026. The main purpose of the Act is to partially indemnify the nuclear industry against liability claims arising from nuclear incidents while still ensuring compensation coverage for the general public. The Act establishes a no fault insurance-type system in which the first approximately $12.6 billion (as of 2011) is industry-funded as described in the Act. Any claims above the $12.6 billion would be covered by a Congressional mandate to retroactively increase nuclear utility liability or would be covered by the federal government. At the time of the Act's passing, it was considered necessary as an incentive for the private production of nuclear power — this was because electric utilities viewed the available liability coverage (only $60 million) as inadequate."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price%E2%80%93Anderson_Nuclear_Industries_...
It's the 'forward' part that helped get us here.
Multiple -isms, same puppetmasters.
Agreed. But even if IN THE PAST bad ideas brought you/us - temporarily - forward, a bad idea is still a bad idea in the long run.
You couldn't pay me to eat shrimp these days. You're either eating corexit, cesium, or SE asian sewage.
True. I'm also a shrimpophobe. If you look at the "shrimp pits" in the Phillipines or Indonesia, that's basically what they're feeding them. I'm even leary of Tilapia from Vietnam for the same reason. I basically eat zero farm grown seafood. Don't trust it.
The pictures show peak radiation around Hawaii after 2.5 years. The disaster was 2.5 years ago. Looks like a bad time to visit Hawaii.
I would like to see the tourism statistics for Hawaii to know the general public's reaction. How much do they know and what importance do they attach to it?
look further. 4-5 years Hawaii is completely engulfed.
.....
Me thinks we just heard from our first West Coast casualty.
which one, dog 1 or dog 2?
.....
All these studies shown above are based on data that assumed the radiation eruption stopped after a few days. Now, we know that Tepco weren't being truthful (surprise!), so the reality is magnitudes worse that assumed in those studies.
correct we are in a continuing disaster and western news media isn't even covering it. 3 nuclear cores are melted, at least some have breached their steel containment vessels and begun to burn through the concrete floor.
These cores are polluting/irradiating groundwater and in turn the ocean. They will continue to do this for tens of thousands of years.
There is no plan for remediation, they don't even know where the cores are or how hot they are. basic metrics are not being done.
This is a disaster ongoing and the media is lying to us and the government is lying to us and Tepco is lying to us and no one is in jail and no one has even been indicted.
BREAKING NEWS:
'Former Leader of Japan: Fukushima disaster is “most severe accident in the history of mankind”"The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant was the most severe accident in the history of mankind. At Unit 1, the fuel rods melted down in about five hours after the earthquake, and molten fuel breached and melted through the reactor pressure vessel. Meltdowns occurred in Units 2 and 3 within one hundred hours of the accident. At around the same time, hydrogen-air blasted in the reactor buildings of Units 1, 3 and 4."
http://enenews.com/former-leader-of-japan-fukushima-disaster-is-most-sev...
Good luck putting that horse back in the barn, Abe.
Ah... now we're getting some traction....