#Radiation Exposure of Children to Be Measured in Miyagi to See if Decontamination Work Is Effective

Researchers from Tohoku University are going to monitor the radiation exposure of children in a town in southern Miyagi Prefecture bordering Fukushima Prefecture. It's not that they are particularly worried about the potential negative effect on radiation on the children's health. They want to evaluate how effective the decontamination will be, and they want to use children as indicators (if I may be so cynical).

From NHK News (6/1/2012):

放射性物質の除染が行われる宮城県丸森町で、東北大学大学院の研究グループが、除染が確実に効果を上げているか確かめるため、４年間かけて子どもの被ばく線量を測定することになりました。

A group of researchers in the graduate school of Tohoku University will measure the levels of radiation exposure of children for four years to see if the decontamination work is effective in Marumori-cho in Miyagi Prefecture where the decontamination work is set to start.

福島県との県境にある宮城県丸森町は宮城県内でも比較的放射線量が高く、国が費用を負担して土壌の放射性物質を取り除く除染を行う地域に指定されています。

Marumori-cho in Miyagi Prefecture is situated near the border to Fukushima Prefecture, and has relatively high levels of radiation. It is designated as the area where the national government will pay for the decontamination of soil.

除染の作業はこの夏から３年半かけて行われる予定ですが、丸森町で被ばくの調査を行っている東北大学大学院の吉田浩子講師の研究グループは、除染が確実に効果を上げているか確かめるため、４年間かけて子どもの被ばく線量を測定することになりました。

The decontamination will start this summer and take about 3 and a half years. A research group led by Hiroko Yoshida, lecturer at the Graduate School of Tohoku University, has been conducting the survey of radiation exposure in Marumori-cho. Her group is going to measure the radiation exposure of children for the next 4 years to see if the decontamination work is effective.

対象になるのは、丸森町に住む中学生以下の子どもおよそ１３００人とその保護者で、研究グループは、近く地元向けの説明会を開いて希望者を募ることにしています。
そのうえで、子どもに線量計を渡し、今月下旬から４年間にわたって測定を行いたいとしています。

The subjects will be about 1,300 children up to junior high school ages and their parents who live in Marumori-cho. The group will soon have the meeting for the local residents and ask for volunteers.

吉田講師は「除染は学校など公共の施設を優先して進められるが、子どもは自宅にいる時間が長い。除染によって子どもへの影響をどれだけ抑えられるのかを検証していきたい」と話しています。

Lecturer Yoshida says, "The decontamination work will start with the public buildings like schools, but children tend to be at their homes longer. We would like to study how the decontamination can reduce the effect of radiation on children."

On a separate news, Koriyama City will start lending out personal survey meters to pregnant women so that they can see their cumulative radiation exposure during their pregnancies.

But as the Rinzai monk/author in Miharu-machi in Fukushima says, children are stronger in resisting radiation. Then the unborn children inside the mothers' wombs must be even stronger (if I may be more cynical).

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