#Radioactive #Fukushima: Fukushima City Residents Want to Eat the Produce They Bring In to Measure Radioactivity, Researchers Oblige

I couldn't tell that was what it was, when I saw the title of an article at one of the local newspapers in Fukushima, but it turned out that was what it was.

Go figure. Let them, at this point. After nearly 2 years, they choose to be there and choose to grow their food and eat it. "Oh we weren't told" doesn't fly any more.

I hope they don't feed it to their children or grandchildren, but hope has been just that, hope.

Fukushima farmers certainly do feed it to the rest of Japan, because they are victims of TEPCO and residents in big cities outside Fukushima owe it to them, in their minds.

From Fukushima Minpo (2/16/2013):

破砕せずに放射性物質測定　福島、機器新たに運用開始へ

Radioactivity measurement without chopping up samples - new equipment will be used in Fukushima

　東北大は１９日から福島市のモニタリングセンターで農作物や食品など切り刻まなくても測定できる放射性物質測定器の運用を始める。「１キロも切り刻むのは面倒」「測定した後、食べたい」など市民の要望に応える。

On February 19, Tohoku University will start using the new equipment to measure radioactivity in farm produce and food items without chopping them up at a monitoring center in Fukushima City. It is to respond to the residents' complaints and requests, such as "it's too tedious to chop up 1 kilogram of sample" and "I want to eat it after it's tested".

　測定器は、市放射線対策アドバイザーで、同大大学院工学研究科量子エネルギー工学専攻生活環境早期復旧技術研究センター長の石井慶造教授が開発した。

The new equipment was developed by Professor Keizo Ishii of Tohoku University Graduate School of Engineering Department of Quantum Science who is also an advisor to Fukushima City on radiation countermeasures.

　通常は、放射性物質を感知するセンサー１本を使用するところ、７本使用し、破砕せずに、少量でも測定できることが特徴。籠に農作物や食品を入れたまま機器に入れ５分で測定できる。検出下限値は２５ベクレル。０・７キロから３キロまで測定できる。

The regular equipment has one sensor that detects radioactivity. Professor Ishii's equipment will use 7 sensors, and will be able to measure radioactivity without chopping up the samples and in small sample amounts. Farm produce and food items can be left in a basket which is then placed in the equipment, and it takes only 5 minutes to measure. The detection limit is 25 becquerels/kg, and the sample sizes can be from 0.7 kilogram to 3 kilograms.

　これまで同大と福島市が協力し、運用開始に向けてデータなどを集めてきた。担当者は「家庭菜園などの少ない農産物も測って持ち帰ることができる。市民の安心につなげたい」と話している。

Tohoku University and Fukushima City have been collaborating on introducing this equipment. The city official in charge says, "Farm produce in small quantities, as from home gardens, can be measured, and people can take them back home. We want to use this equipment for the peace of mind of the city residents."

　１８日から申し込みを受け付け、１９日から測定を開始する。測定は火曜から金曜日。問い合わせは　電話０８０（５７３７）１５０７へ。

Residents can sign up on February 18, and the measurement will start on February 19. The measurement is done from Tuesday to Friday every week. For more details, call 080(5737)1507.

Peace of mind for 25 becquerels/kg detection limit. Some peace.

In case you haven't figured it out, they measure radioactivity in Japan not to understand what's been going on but to feel safe. If measuring radioactivity doesn't result in people feeling safe, they don't bother measuring, which is exactly what happened in the very early days of the nuclear accident.

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#Radioactive Japan: Decontamination Burned Down a House in #Fukushima City

Decon workers dispatched by Fukushima City used a blowtorch to melt snow in order to decontaminate a house. Instead of decontaminating, they managed to burn down the entire house.

Blowtorch?? Yes, decon contractors are free to use any method, including blowtorch, as there is no rule or regulation as to how they are supposed to remove snow in the decon manual.

Why they are doing this decon stuff in the snowy winter is a mystery to me.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (2/10/2013):

除染のためガスバーナーで融雪、空き家を全焼

Workers used blowtorch to melt snow in order to decontaminate, uninhabited house burned down

９日午前１０時４０分頃、福島市浜田町の空き家から出火、木造平屋約１７６平方メートルを全焼した。火は約１時間後に消し止められ、けが人はなかった。

At 10:40AM on February 9, there was a fire from an uninhabited house in Hamada-machi in Fukushima City. The fire burned down the single-story wooden house of about 176 square meters. The fire was extinguished about an hour later, and there was no injury.

同市によると、空き家の庭で行われていた同市の除染作業で、ガスバーナーを使って積もった雪を溶かしていたといい、福島署で関連を慎重に調べている。

According to the city, workers were using a blowtorch to melt the snow in the city-ordered decontamination work in the yard of the house. The Fukushima local police is carefully assessing the situation.

同署などによると、空き家は同市鳥谷野、飲食店経営大沼しづ子さん（６２）の所有。国道４号近くの住宅街にあり、約５０メートル離れた保育園では子どもたち８人を避難させるなど、周囲は一時騒然となった。一方、市では除染作業に伴う除雪については規定を設けておらず、業者に事情を聴いている。

According to the police, the house belongs to Ms. Shizuko Onuma (age 62), a restaurant owner in the city. The house is in a residential area along the Route 4. There is a kindergarten 50 meters from the house, and at one point 8 kindergarteners were evacuated. There is no regulation as to how to remove snow as part of the decontamination work. The city is asking the contractor for details.

(Totally unrelated video, other than the title of the song)

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(Anything Goes Series 4) #Fukushima City's Tap Water "Safe and Delicious", To Be Served at Events in Fukushima to Eradicate Baseless Rumors

A 500-milliliter bottle sells for 100 yen.

This is the latest in the non-stop effort by people in Fukushima since March 11, 2011 to insist it's nothing but baseless rumors, not radioactive materials, and people in Fukushima are hurt by such rumors. To prove it is baseless rumors, they bottle the tap water in Fukushima City and sell it to you.

Nearly 2 years after the accident, that their land has been radioactively contaminated by the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident clearly hasn't sunk in to most of the residents who continue to live in the prefecture. And at this point, it doesn't look like it will ever sink in, even a millimeter.

From Fukushima Minyu, local Fukushima paper (2/1/2013):

「安全でおいしい」　福島市の水道水ペットボトルをＰＲ

"Safe and delicious", bottled tap water in Fukushima City being promoted

福島市水道局は同市の水道水ペットボトル「ふくしまの水」を使い、安全性ＰＲに乗り出している。市内で開く会議やイベントでの利用を各種団体などに呼び掛け、安全な福島の水を多くの人に飲んでもらい、東京電力福島第１原発事故の風評被害払拭（ふっしょく）につなげる。

The municipal water department of Fukushima City has embarked on a PR campaign to appeal safety using "Fukushima no Mizu [Fukushima water]", the city's tap water in plastic bottles. They are asking the organizers planning conferences and events in the city to use the bottled water so that many people can drink safe water in Fukushima. They hope to eradicate the baseless rumors from the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident.

「ふくしまの水」は同市の水道水を詰めたペットボトル。観光ＰＲなどを目的に２００８（平成２０）年に販売を開始、市内の名所花見山をデザインしたラベルも昨年度リニューアルした。放射性物質の検査も行っており、ボトルには放射性物質が検出されていないことを示す「ＮＤ」と書かれたシールを貼り、安全性をアピールしている。

"Fukushima no Mizu" is bottled water filled with the city's tap water. It went on sale in 2008 for tourism promotion. The bottle label was updated last year with the design featuring Hanami-yama, city's popular tourist destination. Radioactive materials are tested, and the bottles have stickers that says "ND", indicating there was no radioactive material detected, to emphasize safety.

震災後、市内では県外からの人が多く集まる会議なども増えた。「多くの人に実際に水を飲んでもらえれば、風評被害が払拭できる」。市水道局はこうした会議やイベントを主催する企業、団体にペットボトル利用の呼び掛けを始めた。評判も上々という。

After the March 11, 2011 disaster, there have been conferences [held in Fukushima City] with many people from outside the prefecture. "If we could have these people drink our water, we would be able to eradicate baseless rumors." The city's water department started to ask corporations and groups that held these conferences and events if they wanted to use the bottles with the city's water. [The water department] says they are getting excellent reviews.

同水道局の阿部利秀技査と菅野孝文副主査は「福島市の水道水は摺上川を原水としたおいしい水。安全性も十分に確保しており、ぜひ利用してほしい」と話している。水道水ペットボトルは１本５００ミリリットル入りを１００円（税込み）で販売している。事前注文が必要。

Officials at the city's water department say, "Tap water in Fukushima City is from Surikamigawa River and it is delicious. Safety is amply secured, so please use it." A 500-milliliter bottle of Fukushima City tap water sells for 100 yen (including sales tax). Pre-order is required.

The detection limit is 1 becquerel/kg in Fukushima City's testing. Before the Fukushima nuclear accident, the Japanese government routinely monitored the radioactive materials in the environment. For tap water, the detection limit ranged from 0.074 to 0.185 millibecquerel/liter in case of Fukushima Prefecture (according to Japan Chemical Analysis Center's database). Note the unit: millibecquerel, one-thousands of a becquerel.

I fondly recall Goshi Hosono's sidekick who drank treated water at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant to demonstrate how safe the water is after the elaborate treatment. Iodine and cesium were ND, but the water was full of tritium.

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#Radioactive Japan: Canada-Japan Women's Soccer Friendly Match to be Held in Fukushima City

Now, young women from Canada under the age of 20 are joining the US high school students and college students doing the cleanup volunteer work in Tohoku including Fukushima and the US decontamination businesses in dispelling the "baseless rumors" and making an appeal to the world that "Fukushima is safe" (as US Ambassador to Japan John Roos said).

NHK Kabun (culture and science division of NHK) tweets:

サッカー女子の２０歳以下のワールドカップが、来月、日本で開催されるのを前に、復興を支援しようと日本とカナダとの親善試合が福島市で開かれることになりました。

Women's World Cup Soccer [or football for European readers] under the age of 20 will be held in Japan next month. To support the recovery, a friendly match is planned between the Japanese team and the Canadian team in Fukushima City.

For reference, here's the radiation levels at parks in Fukushima City as of 7:40AM on July 5, 2012 (from this tweet) "New normal" for Fukushima City's parks nearly 16 months after the nuclear accident seems 1 microsievert/hour air radiation or higher:

The venue for the match must be the Shinobugaoka Athletic Field in central Fukushima City. The radiation level at Shinobuyama Park, about 500 meters west of the athletic field, is shown in the photo above as "1.517 microsievert/hour". The radiation level at the athletic field should be lower, because there are no trees shedding leaves on the athletic field and the city must have done some "decontamination" in November last year (I hope) when the women's Ekiden road race, also under the age of 20 event, was held in the city.

(Hmmm. As of November last year, the entrance to the athletic field was measured at 1.23 microsievert/hour... See my post here.)

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#Radioactive Japan: Cherries from Fukushima City with 61.66 Bq/Kg of Radioactive Cesium

That's not much reduction from last year, particularly when the extensive "decontamination" of fruit trees in Fukushima was carried out last year and earlier this year.

Supermarket chain Ichii, based in Fukushima City, measures radiation in food items that the chain sells to customers. In the result for May 21, 2012, the supermarket chain reports that 61.66 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was detected from cherries grown in Fukushima City.

According to Ichii, the cherries were not for sale but they were from a fruit farmer who wanted them tested prior to the shipment.

Last year, cherries from Fukushima City tested 70 to 96 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium, according to the Fukushima prefectural government webpage for Fukushima produce.

Fukushima Prefecture encouraged fruit farmers in Fukushima to "decontaminate" their fruit trees so that this year's crop would have low cesium (if not no cesium). The methods of decontaminating the fruit trees were:

• Blasting the trees with high-pressure washers

• Scraping off the tree barks with a sickle

In Fukushima City, the latter was the strongly preferred method forced upon the fruit farmers by the local JA, according to Mr. Shuji Akagi, who has been tweeting the scenes from his city with photographs.

Well clearly that didn't prevent cesium from entering the fruit this year. Surprise, surprise.

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#Radioactive Japan: Spring Athletic Event at One Elementary School in Fukushima

News clip from TBS News (5/12/2012).

Of the same event, Sankei Shinbun (5/12/2012) quotes the school official who said they had replaced the soil in the school yard (and that is considered "decontamination") which lowered the air radiation level to 0.13 to 0.18 microsievert/hour. For elementary schools, I believe they measure at 50 centimeters off the ground, but it could be at one meter, looking at those white, cylindrical monitoring devices.

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#Radioactive Japan: All Elementary Schools in Fukushima City Will Have Outdoor Athetic Meets This Year

As if radioactive cesium disappears in one year. It has surely disappeared from the minds of school administrators, teachers, and probably the parents.

The photo is from Chunichi Shinbun (5/11/2012), citing Kyodo News. Kids wearing masks to play "ball-tossing" game to avoid dust.

Japan Times quoting Kyodo News (5/11/2012):

FUKUSHIMA — All 51 municipal elementary schools in the city of Fukushima will hold their sports festivals outside this year, starting Saturday, after two-thirds held them indoors or canceled them last year amid the nuclear crisis triggered by the March earthquake and tsunami, the city's board of education said Thursday.

Each school decided to hold the annual event outside after the amount of radiation measured on school grounds was reduced due to decontamination efforts, according to the board of education.

Last year, only 18 of the schools held their sports events outdoors, while 11 canceled them and 22 held them indoors due to radiation fears due to the triple meltdown crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 plant.

Some of the schools will take measures to avoid possible radiation contamination to the students by shortening the time schedule for the meets or canceling games that could force children to touch the ground, such as tug of war, the board of education said.

Schools typically hold sports festivals in spring or fall outdoors. But many schools in the city of Fukushima postponed the events to last fall and all of the spring festivals were held in indoor facilities.

For more fun school events for kids in the post-Fukushima Japan, see my list.

"Decontamination efforts" for the most part involved replacing the top soil of the school yards sometime in last year, once. In one of the highest radiation areas in Fukushima City, Watari District, the city did the "model decontamination" of the school routes last summer by cleaning gutters and washing the sidewalks. The radiation level dropped about 25% to 1.1 to 1.3 microsievert/hour then.

But those who have remained inside Fukushima this long seem to be doubling down, so to speak. I hear about the citizens's groups holding seminars in major cities like Fukushima City and Koriyama City to "correctly fear the radiation", which seems to mean "trying not to think about it because there's not much they can do about it".

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520 Bq/kg of Cesium in Spinach in Fukushima City, Cesium Is From Polyethylene Covering

News like this may be part of the reason of Professor Hayakawa's hostility toward farmers in Fukushima.

Where did this cesium come from? Water? Air? Soil?

Answer: None of the above. It came from a polyethylene sheet covering to keep the crop warm.

What is wrong with the sheet? It is the same polyethylene sheet that was in use when the reactors blew up in Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant in March last year.

Why did the farmer continue to use the contaminated sheet? No one knows. Probably because no one told him not to use.

The spinach in question has already been sold, and probably consumed.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (4/11/2012):

福島県は１１日、福島市の露地栽培のホウレンソウから、国の食品規制値（１キロ・グラムあたり１００ベクレル）を超える放射性セシウムが検出されたと発表した。

Fukushima Prefecture announced on April 11 that radioactive cesium exceeding the national safety limit (100 becquerels/kg ) was detected from spinach grown in Fukushima City.

　ホウレンソウは福島市内の直売所に出荷されており、県は回収を呼びかけるとともに、福島市に対し、出荷自粛を要請した。

The spinach is sold at the direct sales depots in the city. The prefectural government is recalling it, and has asked Fukushima City to voluntarily halt shipment.

　県によると、福島市の農家で６日に収穫されたホウレンソウから１キロ・グラム当たり５２０ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出された。ホウレンソウは３月２６日～４月６日に、計２１キロ・グラムが農産物販売所に出荷された。

According to the prefectural government, 520 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was detected from spinach harvested on April 6 at a farm in Fukushima City. The total 21 kilograms of the spinach from this farm were shipped to the farm produce sales depots between March 26 to April 6.

　ホウレンソウ栽培で使う保温用ポリフィルムは、昨年３月の原発事故以降同じものが使用されており、１キロ・グラム当たり３１万ベクレルと高濃度の放射性セシウムが検出された。県は保温材から放射性物質が付着した可能性が高いとみている。

Spinach growers use polyethylene sheet to keep the crop warm. The farm had been using the same sheet ever since the nuclear accident in March last year. 310,000 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was detected from the sheet. According to the prefectural government, it is highly likely that radioactive materials on the sheet were transferred to the spinach.

Last year, spinach from Fukushima in March and April regularly tested with thousands of becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium, in addition to radioactive iodine. A quick browse at Fukushima Prefecture's site on agricultural products found 34,000 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium in spinach.

NHK, on the same news, says the prefectural government is doing an emergency check on about 500 farms that produce spinach using the polyethylene sheet.

By now, you know this lack of thinking is not confined to farmers in Fukushima. Remember the subsidiary of Chiba JA (ag producer co-op) "recycling" the dirt attached to the plastic sheet used for greenhouses? The dirt was found with 58,000 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium, but the dirt had been already sold to a tree nursery. I wonder what happened to the dirt.

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In Cities in Fukushima, Abnormal Has Become Normal One Year After the Nuclear Accident

It is well-captured in a Mainichi Shinbun article and an Asahi Shinbun article that I found yesterday.

It may be puzzling to read about these, looking in. But for the residents inside Fukushima, this may be fast becoming the accepted way of life.

First, from the Mainichi article (4/7/2012, local Fukushima version; part) talking about school lunches in Fukushima City and school playground rules in Koriyama City and Minami Soma City:　

福島市は９日から、全７３市立小中学校の給食に含まれる放射性セシウムを毎日調べる「学校給食まるごと検査事業」を始める。検査機器が増設され、１１年度の週１回〜月２回のサンプル調査より検査態勢を強化した。

Fukushima City will test school lunches for the city's 73 public elementary schools and junior high schools for radioactive cesium every day, starting April 9. The city has installed more testing equipments, and is now able to test more frequently than in the fiscal 2011 when the test was done once a week or once in two weeks.

　給食を１食分余分に作り、学校給食センターと支所・学習センターの計２１カ所で検査する。１検体を１１〜３０分測り、検出限界値は１キロ当たり２０ベクレル。「食品の新基準値（同１００ベクレル）以下でも安心が得られない」（市教委）として、１食分で２０ベクレル以上を検出した場合は廃棄し、個別に検査した米などの主食と牛乳だけを提供する。１１年度のサンプル調査では、２０ベクレル以上の検体は無かった。

The school lunch centers will make one extra lunch each day and the lunch will be tested at 21 locations. Testing time will be between 11 to 30 minutes, and the detection limit is 20 becquerels/kg. The city's Board of Education says, "We cannot feel safe even it tests below the new safety limit for food (100 becquerels/kg or less)." If more than 20 becquerels/kg of cesium is detected, the lunch will be discarded, and the students will be served with rice and milk separately tested for safety. In the fiscal 2011, no lunch that was sample tested was found with 20 becquerels/kg of cesium.

　また、郡山市の市立小中学校は６日、昨年５月から続けてきた屋外活動を制限する３時間ルールを解除した。南相馬市も解除した。

Koriyama City lifted the 3-hour restriction for outdoor activities at the city's public elementary schools and junior high schools on April 6. The limit had been in place since May last year. Minami Soma City also lifted its restriction.

　体育などの屋外活動を１日１時間以内、部活動を２時間以内に制限する郡山市の独自基準で、市内の小学校５８校、中学校２８校で実施。市教委は、表土除去などの除染活動が進み、各校の校庭の空間放射線量が児童、生徒の安全を確保できるレベルまで低減したと判断し、解除を決めた。

Koriyama City's own restriction limited the outdoor activities at public schools (58 elementary schools and 28 junior high schools) to 1 hour per day for PE classes and 2-hour per day for extracurricular activities. The city's Board of Education has decided that the decontamination including removing the top soil has effectively lowered the air radiation levels on the school grounds to the levels where the safety of the pupils and students can be secured.

　中学生の子どもを持つ４０代の母親は「昨年度までと同じグラウンドなので、これからは大丈夫と言われても……。子どもには、部活中もマスクを外さないと約束させている」と戸惑い気味に話した。

A mother in her 40s with a child attending a junior high school in the city was puzzled. She said, "It is the same school ground as in the last fiscal year, but now they tell us it will be OK from now on. I've made my child promise to wear the mask during the extracurricular activities."

As of April 1, 2012, food is now "safe" as long as cesium is below 100 Bq/kg, instead of 500 Bq/kg only one day prior. As the new school semesters start, the school grounds are suddenly "safe" and no need to worry about radiation. ("Black dust" in Minami Soma? What black dust?) What a difference a day makes, indeed.

By the way, the detection limit of 20 Bq/kg is high compared to other cities in other prefectures that have been testing the school lunches. In Kamakura City in Kanagawa Prefecture, for example, the detection limit is 3 Bq/kg, and it is set to get lower with the introduction of the germanium semiconductor detector starting April 9.

The Asahi article was written by Shunsuke Kimura, an Asahi Shinbun reporter in Fukushima. On April 7, he participated as "decontamination" volunteer in a volunteer project to "decontaminate" one of the high-radiation hot spots in Watari District in Fukushima City. He says 387 "volunteers" including 82 from all over Japan participated.

Why do I put volunteers in the parenthesis? Well, reading the article I got the feeling that it may not have been so "voluntary" for some participants.

From Asahi Shinbun local Fukushima version (4/8/2012; part):

除染、除染というけれど、除染っていったい何をするの？７日、福島市渡利地区の弁天山（標高１４３メートル）での作業にボランティアとして参加してみました。

Everyone talks about decontamination. But what do we do in "decontamination"? So I participated in the decontamination work as a volunteer to decontaminate Benten-Yama (altitude 143 meters) in Watari District of Fukushima City on April 7 to find out. [The photo shows the reporter stuffing the bag with dead leaves.]

　●落ち葉集め袋詰め　３時間で最大３割減

Stuffing dead leaves in bags, 3 hours, max 30% reduction [of radiation]

　雨がっぱの上下に帽子、マスク、軍手に長靴姿。２０～３０人の班で、区分けされた斜面を担当した。熊手で落ち葉をかき集め、土ごとポリ袋に詰める。記者もポリ袋を手に斜面に入った。

Rain jacket and rain pants, hat, mask, cotton work gloves and rain boots. People were divided into groups of 20 to 30 people, and the groups were assigned segments of the mountain slope. They raked in the dead leaves, and stuffed them, with the dirt, into plastic bags. I went up the slope with a bag in hand.

　普段、運動をしていないせいか、すぐに息が荒くなる。マスクから漏れる息で眼鏡が曇る。視界の悪い中、ひたすら目の前の落ち葉を袋に詰めた。１０分ほどで腰が痛くなってきた。

Soon, I was breathing hard. Lack of regular exercise. My eyeglasses got foggy from the breath escaping from my mask. I kept stuffing the bag with dead leaves in front of me. My back started to hurt after 10 minutes.

　集めても集めても落ち葉はなくならない。休憩に入ると、雪がちらついてきた。汗が冷えて寒い。

No matter how much I collected, there were more dead leaves. During the break, it started to snow. My sweats turned cold.

　毎時１マイクロシーベルト超のため現場での食事はできなかった。近くの県社会福祉協議会にバスで移動して昼食。地元の方が温かいみそ汁を用意してくれていた。

Because the radiation level here exceeded 1 microsievert/hour, we couldn't eat lunch where we worked. We were transported on the bus to a nearby location to have lunch. Local residents greeted us with warm miso-soup that they had prepared.

　近くに座っていた男性と話をした。群馬県の自宅を午前５時に出てきたという下瀬川正幸さん（４６）。「県外の人が多いなぁ。遠くから来ている人はやっぱり福島の子供のためにと思っているはず」と話す。

I talked with a man sitting nearby. Masayuki Shimosegawa (age 46) left his home in Gunma Prefecture at 5 in the morning. He said, "So many people from outside Fukushima. I think people who have come from far-away places are here for the children of Fukushima."

　またバスで戻り、作業再開。だんだんこなれてきたのか、袋詰めが速くなってきた気がする。

Back to the bus to the work. I thought I was able to pack the bag much faster now.

　午後３時ごろに終了。市が予定した１．３ヘクタールを除染しきれなかったが、落ち葉を詰めたポリ袋は約３５００袋に。３１５立方メートル分という。記者の班は高さ１センチの表面線量が毎時１．９５マイクロシーベルトから同１．５２５と２割減。除染効果が最大の班でも３割減だった。

The work was done around 3PM. We couldn't decontaminate the entire 1.3 hectares that the city had planned, but there were 3,500 bags of dead leaves. 315 cubic meters. The area that I worked on had the radiation level at 1 centimeter off the ground dropped from 1.95 microsievert/hour to 1.525 microsievert/hour, 20% reduction. The maximum reduction was at most 30%.

　ボランティアには秋田県から熊本県まで８２人が県外から参加。県内からの参加者や地元住民、県職員、福島市職員を合わせた計３８７人が作業に当たった。

82 people from Akita Prefecture to Kumamoto Prefecture [Kyushu] joined as volunteers. There were also participants from inside Fukushima Prefecture, the local residents, workers from the Fukushima prefectural government and Fukushima City government. In total, 387 people did the decontamination.

　作業は午前と午後で計約３時間。福島市から貸与された線量計では４マイクロシーベルト。会社に戻ると、体が重く感じることに気づいた。日頃の運動不足が身に染みた。

I worked for 3 hours total, in the morning and in the afternoon. The dosimeter that Fukushima City let us use showed 4 microsieverts. I went back to my office. I noticed that my body felt heavy. I really should have done more regular exercise.

4 microsieverts external radiation exposure from 3-hour work. Just smile, radiation is good for you, say many nuclear experts all around the world.

Benten-Yama Park is a known hot spot in the (already high-radiation) Watari District in Fukushima City. The Ministry of Education and Science (MEXT) has the website for real-time measurement of radiation levels in Fukushima, the MEXT page for Benten-Yama Park shows 1.362 microsievert/hour radiation at 50 centimeters off the ground, at 6:50AM on April 9, 2012.

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24,700 Bq/Kg Radioactive Cesium from Tea Leaves in Fukushima City, from Last Year

Move over, Shizuoka tea. Move over, Saitama tea. Here comes Fukushima tea with 24,700 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium.

The tea leaves were picked in Fukushima City in May last year, and they were not commercial tea. A city resident grew in his/her garden and picked for his/her own use.

I hope the tea weren't consumed or given as gifts. At 24,700 becquerels/kg, you cannot even dump it in the garbage, let alone incinerate.

From Mainichi Shinbun local Fukushima version (3/23/2012):

東日本大震災：福島、茶葉から２万４７００ベクレル　市民が測定所に持参　／福島

Fukushima: 24,700 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium from tea leaves, brought by a resident to the testing laboratory

　福島市の放射能測定所に市民が持ち込んだ茶葉から、暫定規制値（１キロ当たり５００ベクレル）を上回る同２万４７００ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出された。２２日の市災害対策本部会議で報告された。

24,700 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was detected from the tea leaves brought by a city resident to the testing laboratory operated by Fukushima City. The news was reported at the meeting of the disaster response headquarters of Fukushima City on March 22.

　市によると、茶葉は市民が自宅の庭先で栽培したものを測定所で測ったところ、高い値が検出されたため、ゲルマニウム半導体検出器で再検査した。昨年５月に摘み取り、保管していたという。

According to the city, the resident grew the tea in his/her garden. When he/she brought the tea leaves to the testing laboratory, the high levels of radioactive cesium were detected. So the tea leaves were tested again using the germanium semiconductor detector. The tea leaves were picked in May last year, and kept at the resident's house.

　市は、測定器を増設し、月内に計２８カ所に測定所を設ける。

The city plans to increase the number of detectors and will set up 28 testing laboratories in the city by the end of this month.

　市環境課は「家庭菜園などで採れた農産物は種類により規制値を超えるものもあり、可能な限り測定所で測ってほしい」としている。

The environment section of the Fukushima city government cautions the residents, "Produce from the home gardens, depending on the types, may exceed the safety limit [for radioactive cesium]. We would like you to bring them to the testing laboratory by all means."

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Professor Yukio Hayakawa Takes a Walk in Fukushima City, 3/16/2012

armed with 4 different radiation survey meters. One of the reasons he went to Fukushima was apparently to test the survey meters and compare the readings. The entire walk took 7 hours yesterday, says Hayakawa in his tweet, nothing compared to mountain climbing. (He's a volcanologist.)

4.164 microsieverts/hour on the "black dust" - roadside sediment of soil and organic materials. (It is not just in Minami Soma City, where the highest radioactive cesium density in the "black dust" so far is 3.43 million becquerels/kg.)

Over 10 microsieverts/hour (all his survey meters went overscale) at the rain gutter.

2.3 microsieverts/hour on the lawn in front of the City Hall, 1.5 microsievert/hour 1 meter off the lawn.

For detailed locations and measurements, see his blog post (in Japanese).

Fukushima City at EveryTrail

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Mysterious Spike in Cesium Fallout in Fukushima on Jan 2, 2012 (Updated with Chiba Information)

The spike happened one day after the pretty big earthquake (seismic intensity scale 4) on January 1, 2012, which caused the water level of the Skimmer Surge Tank of Reactor 4 to fluctuate unexpectedly.

Only the people on the net paid attention to the data and it was not reported by the MSM. The Ministry of Education and Science issued the result of the fallout measurement, without saying anything as to why these dates (12/27/2011 to date) are being singled out.

This person tweeted the pic with three overlapping charts comparing (from the top): (1) amount of snow on the ground and amount of rain, (2) amount of cesium fallout, and (3) wind speed (average speed in black, maximum speed in blue, and maximum instantaneous speed in red), from December 1, 2011 to January 6, 2012:

The huge spike looks a few sigmas away from the norm, even with the wind speed picking up on January 2, 2012.

On Twitter, people in Tokyo were reporting strange white powder floating in the air several days ago, and people in Ibaraki and Chiba Prefectures were reporting elevated air radiation levels.

No news from the media, and these reports are dismissed by some on Twitter as "hysteria".

(UPDATE)

Inage District of Chiba City in Chiba Prefecture also had cesium fallout sometime between 12/26/2011 and 1/4/2012, according to the analysis by the Japan Chemical Analysis Center:

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#Radioactive Rice from Watari District, Fukushima City: 1540 Bq/Kg

News of radioactive cesium rice just keeps coming from Fukushima Prefecture. This time, it is from Watari District again, and the number is the highest found so far.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (12/22/2011):

福島市などで収穫されたコメ（玄米）から国の暫定規制値（１キロ・グラムあたり５００ベクレル）を超える放射性セシウムが検出された問題で、福島県は２２日、同市渡利地区の農家１戸が作ったコメから、新たに１キロ・グラムあたり１５４０ベクレルの放射性セシウムが出たと発表した。

Radioactive cesium exceeding the national provisional safety limit (500 becquerels/kg) has been found in rice harvested in Fukushima City and other cities in Fukushima Prefecture. On December 22, the Fukushima prefectural government announced that 1540 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was found in rice grown by a farmer in Watari District in Fukushima Prefecture.

　これまでコメから検出された値としては最大。自宅に保管しており、市場に流通していない。

It is the highest level of radioactive cesium in rice detected so far. The rice is kept at the farmer's home, and not sold in the market.

Well, it is the "official" highest level, and it is approaching the "unofficial" high (2600 becquerels/kg) measured in rice grown in the soil taken from Iitate-mura by Professor Kazue Tazaki of Kanazawa University. A similar amount of radioactive cesium was detected in rice grown in Iitate-mura (unofficially by an irate farmer who was forced to relocate).

Farm soil in Watari District in Fukushima was never officially tested for radioactive materials. An NPO (FoE Japan) tested soil samples from Watari with the help of Professor Yamauchi of Kobe University, but they are not from rice paddies or fields. The Fukushima prefectural government still doesn't test it. I am very curious to know the radiation levels in the farm soil in Watari and elsewhere where radioactive cesium has been detected in rice exceeding the provisional limit.

As you can imagine, sales of Fukushima rice, which was shipped with great fanfare with the declaration of safety by the governor of Fukushima in early October, has ground to a halt. But I hear that a large food distributor Ion is determined to sell bento (lunch box) and onigiri (rice ball) proudly featuring the "safe" Fukushima rice to help Fukushima farmers, supposedly.

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Yet More #Radioactive Rice from Fukushima, From Watari District of Fukushima City

Watari District of Fukushima City (60 kilometers from Fukushima I Nuke Plant) is one of the most contaminated districts in Fukushima City, even though the city flatly refuses to even temporarily evacuate some of the residents because the city (or volunteers, rather) will "decontaminate".

Following Onami District, Watari District has now been found with rice with radioactive cesium that exceeds the national provisional safety limit of 500 becquerels/kg.

Watari District of Fukushima City is where Professor Tomoya Yamauchi of Kobe University found that "decontamination" didn't decontaminate at all, and in locations it increased the radiation.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (12/3/2011), who tries to tell the readers it may still be OK once the rice is milled:

福島市大波地区や福島県伊達市で収穫された玄米から国の暫定規制値（１キロ・グラムあたり５００ベクレル）を超える放射性セシウムが見つかった問題で、同県は２日、福島市渡利地区の稲作農家３戸が収穫した玄米からも、規制値を超えるセシウムが検出されたと発表した。

Onami District of Fukushima City and Date City in Fukushima Prefecture have been found with rice with radioactive cesium exceeding the national provisional limit (500 becquerels/kg). Now, the prefectural government announced on December 2 that the rice harvested at 3 farms in Watari District of Fukushima City was also found with radioactive cesium exceeding the provisional limit.

　政府は週明けにも、渡利地区などのコメを出荷停止対象とする方針を固めた。

The national government plans to order the rice in Watari District not to be shipped.

　県によると、渡利地区の４７戸の稲作農家のうち、今回、２５戸を調査。その結果、３戸が生産した３袋（９０キロ・グラム）の玄米から、１キロ・グラムあたりそれぞれ５１０ベクレル、５５０ベクレル、５９０ベクレルのセシウムが検出された。農家３戸が生産した６５袋分（約２トン）はいずれも自宅で保管されており、市場に流通していない。玄米は精米すると放射線量が半分から３分の１程度に下がるという。

According to the Fukushima prefectural government, 25 farms out of 47 farms in Watari District were tested. From 3 bags (30 kilograms each, total 90 kilogram) from 3 farms tested 510 becquerels/kg, 550 becquerels/kg, and 590 becquerels/kg respectively. The three farms harvested 65 bags total (about 2 tonnes), which are stored at the farms and not sold in the market. Once milled, radioactive materials in rice are supposed to drop to half or one-third.

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Radioactive Rice: 1270 Bq/kg of Cesium from Rice in Onami District, Fukushima City

630 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium discovered in the same district on November 16 was treated as "exception", with researchers from an august university (Tokyo University) weighing in with their theory on how "exceptional" the topography of that rice paddy was.

So much for that.

Now the maximum radioactive cesium from the rice in the district is 1270 becquerels/kg. From a different rice paddy.

Yomiuri Shinbun (11/26/2011) reports that radioactive cesium exceeding the national provisional limit was found in rice grown and harvested at 5 more farms in Onami District, Fukushima City in Fukushima Prefecture. But rest assured, as we are supposed to believe they haven't been sold in the market.

福島市大波地区で収穫された玄米から国の暫定規制値（１キロ・グラムあたり５００ベクレル）を超える放射性セシウムが検出された問題で、福島県は２５日、同地区の他の５農家の水田でとれた玄米からも規制値を超える玄米が見つかり、最大で１キロ・グラムあたり１２７０ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出されたと発表した。

As radioactive cesium exceeding the national provisional safety limit (500 becquerels/kg) had been detected in the rice harvested in Onami District in Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture announced on November 25 that the rice harvested in 5 additional farms in the same district was found with radioactive cesium exceeding the provisional safety limit. The maximum was 1270 becquerels/kg.

いずれの玄米もＪＡや自宅の倉庫に保管されているか、親戚に配られたりしており、市場には流通していないという。

The rice is either stored in the warehouses at JA or at the farms, or has been given to the farmers' relatives. It is not being sold in the marketplace, according to the prefectural government.

　県は同地区の稲作農家全１５４戸（４７５２袋）の分析を進めており、これまで３４戸分（８６４袋）を終了。うち、最初に見つかった農家を除く５戸（１０３袋）の玄米が新たに規制値を超えた。１２７０ベクレルが検出された農家は、２４袋全てで規制値を超え、最小でも９７０ベクレルと高かった。別の農家の玄米も５４０～１１１０ベクレルだった。

The Fukushima prefectural government has been testing the rice (4752 bags) from all 154 rice farms in the district. So far, 864 bags from 34 farms have been tested. Of those, 103 bags from 5 farms exceeded the provisional safety limit. At the farm that had the rice with 1270 becquerels/kg cesium, all 24 bags were found with cesium exceeding the provisional safety limit, and the minimum was also high at 970 becquerels/kg. At another farm, the rice tested between 540 to 1110 becquerels/kg.

Professor Kosako's "chaos in the harvest season" did not come, simply because the Fukushima prefectural government carefully avoided testing the soil or the rice from what they may have known as high contamination areas. (More in the next post.)

Now the harvest season is over, the new crop of rice from Fukushima is being sold and served all over Japan, and PR campaigns by TV celebrities and politicians are being mounted, again equating "good tasting" as "being safe". School children in Koriyama City in Fukushima Prefecture are being served with the rice harvested in Koriyama City (see my post); part of the city is just as badly contaminated as part of Fukushima City.

Chaos did not come, thanks to the selective measuring; instead, a resignation prevails.

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#Radioactive Rice: 630 Bq/kg Cesium from Rice in Fukushima City

For those of you who wrote to me that Fukushima rice was "safe" because it all "tested" well below the safety limit of 500 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium, sorry. NHK has a piece of bad news for you.

630 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium has been detected from the rice grown and harvested in Onami District of Fukushima City in Fukushima. It was discovered only because one farmer asked the local JA to test his rice.

The video clip accompanying the NHK News says 630 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium from brown rice, and 300 becquerels/kg from white (milled) rice.

The entire Onami District was declared good to ship the rice, after the Fukushima prefectural government tested 2 samples in one location in Onami District.

Onami District of Fukushima City has high radiation contamination, and that's where the volunteers have been sent to "decontaminate", scooping out the sludge in the drain by hand, among other pleasant activities. (If you read Japanese, here's a report by very pro-nuke Nikkei Business on "decontamination" volunteering in Onami: http://t.co/pSgB131c)

NHK News Japanese (11/16/2011):

福島市大波地区の１か所の水田で収穫されたコメから、国の暫定基準値を超える１キログラム当たり６３０ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出されたことが分かりました。福島県は、この水田を含む大波地区について、今年度のコメの出荷を見合わせるよう要請しました。

It has been revealed that 630 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium, exceeding the national provisional safety limit, was detected from the rice harvested in a location in Onami District of Fukushima City [in Fukushima Prefecture]. Fukushima Prefecture has requested the farmers in Onami District to refrain from shipping this year's crop.

福島県によりますと、福島市大波地区の農家が１か所の水田で収穫したコメについて、今月１４日、農協に放射性物質の検査を依頼したところ、簡易検査で国の暫定基準値の１キログラム当たり５００ベクレルを超える放射性セシウムの値が検出されました。

According to Fukushima Prefecture, a farmer in Onami District of Fukushima City asked the local JA (agricultural co-op) to test his rice harvested in one of his rice paddies for radioactive materials. In a simplified test administered by the JA, radioactive cesium exceeding 500 becquerels/kg was detected which exceeded the national provisional safety limit.

このため福島県が改めて検査したところ、玄米から１キログラム当たり６３０ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出されたということです。検出された農家が収穫したコメは、今年度およそ８４０キログラムあるということですが、市場には流通していないということです。検査結果を受けて福島県は、この農家の水田を含む福島市大波地区の今年度のコメの出荷を見合わせるよう要請しました。

Fukushima Prefecture then tested again, and 630 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was detected from the brown rice. The farmer has about 840 kilograms of rice harvested, but it is not being sold in the market. Upon receiving the test result, the Fukushima prefectural government requested all the rice harvested in Onami District of Fukushima City, including that of this farmer, to be not shipped this year.

福島県が先月行った放射性物質の量を調べる「本検査」では、大波地区にあたる旧小国村は、２か所で検査が行われましたが、放射性セシウムは、国の暫定基準値を大幅に下回る１キログラム当たり３３ベクレルと２８ベクレルしか検出されず、県はこの地区のコメの出荷を認めていました。福島県では、この農家を含めた大波地区の農家１５４戸について、さらに詳しい調査を行うとともに原因を調べることにしています。

In the "main survey" that Fukushima Prefecture conducted last month to measure radioactive materials in rice, two locations in the former Oguni-mura in Onami District were tested. Radioactive cesium detected there were vastly below the national provisional safety limit, at 33 becquerels/kg and 28 becquerels/kg, and the prefectural government allowed the shipment from the entire district. The Fukushima prefectural government plans to conduct a detailed survey of [the rice harvested in] all 154 farms in Onami district, and investigate the cause [of high radioactive cesium content].

Well, the cause is Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.

The governor of Fukushima Prefecture, the "world-famous" Yuhei Sato, had declared Fukushima rice to be "safe" and vowed to mount an aggressive PR campaign to promote the rice harvested in Fukushima throughout Japan. Koriyama City in Fukushima Prefecture, also with high radiation contamination, has started to feed school children with locally grown and harvested rice.

Oops.

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#Radioactive Ekiden Road Race: Girls Are Running in Radiation Often Higher Than That in Front of J-Village

J-Village is located just inside the 20 kilometer radius from Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, and is the staging area for the plant work. Ordinary citizens cannot even enter (it is a "no entry" zone).

But the female athletes as young as 13 are running in the Ekiden Road Race in Fukushima City in the radiation often much higher than at J-Village. And the nation is supposed to cheer for the wonderful recovery of Fukushima Prefecture by watching these girls run.

The following are the actual air radiation measurements on the Ekiden course from the blog posts (here and here) of a TV writer who calls himself "Chidai", on November 12. He measured the air radiation levels at 1 meter off the ground on the Ekiden course.

First, he shows the radiation at J-Village, as comparison:

0.91 microsievert/hour, in front of J-Village, right before the roadblock:

Now the Ekiden course in Fukushima City.

1.23 microsievert/hour, in front of the athletic stadium where the event starts:

0.91 microsievert/hour, first left-turn in the 1st segment, 400 meters from the stadium gate:

1.41 microsievert/hour, in front of Fukushima Horse Race Track:

There are many more locations that registered even higher radiation. He also says that when he measured at 5 centimeters off the ground, the radiation levels jumped everywhere.

One irony about the 1.41 microsievert/hour in front of the race track: he wryly and angrily notes that the race track is closed for this year, having canceled all races out of concern for the thoroughbred horses that are worth tens of millions of yen. The race track is doing the decontamination, replacing the turf for the horses. Yet, it is perfectly OK for all concerned to have underage girls run in the radiation.

The writer is sorry that he couldn't have the event canceled. He is asking "What are we doing? Is this the "recovery" we want for Fukushima? Are we human, to allow this to happen? "

Shame on the city. Shame on the athletic association and the corporate sponsors. And shame on the parents of these girls for being so willing to risk their daughters' health for... For what?

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#Radioactive "Ekiden" Road Race: High Radiation Detected in the Stadium, on the Course

Back in September, I wrote a post about the 27th East Japan Women's "Ekiden" Road Race to be held in Fukushima City, featuring underage girls as young as 13.

The race is on, this Sunday, November 13. Since I wrote the post, there has been a slow but now rapidly growing attempt from concerned citizens to stop the event. Short of stopping, at least they want emergency decontamination.

Why? Because the radiation levels in the stadium and on the roads to be used in the race in Fukushima City is very, very high, as they are being measured measured right now by a citizens group HCR+OPCOM.

From their tweets:

Inside the stadium, air radiation: 1.49 microsievert/hr

Inside the stadium, side of the track where runners are practicing: 1.71 microsievert/hr

Inside the stadium, side drain: 13.44 microsieverts/hr

10 meters from the stadium gate, on Ekiden course [on the ground]: 4.67 microsieverts/hr

Walkway along the course, on the ground: 11.80 microsieverts/hr ("Spectators beware!")

Air radiation level on the walkway along the course: over 1 microsievert/hr

1st relay point, on the ground: 13.14 microsieverts/hr

This is only for the 1st segment of the race course, and I assume they are only measuring gamma rays. Judging from the photos they post, they are measuring at the side of the road where the sediment and small debris tend to accumulate.

Still, now we know that the asphalt and concrete cannot be effectively "decontaminated" at this point, maybe there is not much difference.

Fukushima City is where Greenpeace found cobalt-60 in the soil in a park.

Willful ignorance of the coaches of these girls, particularly those school coaches who are also teachers, is staggering. They think it is totally safe, because "if it isn't, they wouldn't have planned it". That's similar to the Mayor of Yokohama, who said the food was safe "if it was sold in the market".

As related in one tweet, one of the coaches/teachers replied to the concern of a parent that there was this thing called "half life", and the radiation level in Fukushima City had already fallen to a safe level. Half life of cesium-137 is 30 years. I guess no one had told that teacher about it. When the parent told him about it and how high the radiation level in Fukushima City was, the coach got really concerned.

Every participating team has girls in high school and junior high school. I believe it is a requirement. It looks more than half of the members in any given are made up of girls under the age of 18. They are not even a voting age or drinking age (age of 20). One quarter of the team members cannot marry even with the consent of their parents (age of 16). But they can be exposed to high radiation.

Does that make sense? I thought intentionally endangering the minor is a crime.

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1.7 Millisievert External Radiation in One Month for 3rd Grader in Fukushima City: "Will Not Affect Health" Says City Official

Japan's new normal in radiation exposure is getting ridiculous almost every day, particularly in Fukushima Prefecture.

Fukushima City announced the result of the readings of the glass badges worn by children and pregnant women in the city for the month of September, and the highest reading was 1.7 millisievert external radiation exposure in one month for a 3rd-grader in an elementary school. Her two brothers were also found with high radiation reading off their badges.

The city says, "That level of radiation does not affect health".

1.7 millisievert per month x 12 months = 20.4 millisieverts per year of EXTRA external radiation on top of the natural (pre-Fukushima) external radiation (Japan average) of 0.59 millisievert per year, and EXTRA internal radiation from inhaling and ingesting Fukushima-origin radioactive materials on top of natural internal radiation exposure of 0.86 millisievert per year.

The current (soon to be revised, supposedly) provisional safety limits for food for various radionuclides are designed to add up to 17 millisieverts per year radiation if one eats food that tests at the maximum upper limit of the provisional safety limits.

Well, by now we know that the Japanese officials truly think that "it does not affect health" as long as one dies of acute radiation poisoning.

From Mainichi Shinbun (11/1/2011):

福島市は１日、妊婦や子供ら３万６９８９人に配布した個人線量計（ガラスバッジ）で９月に測定した被ばく線量を公表した。１カ月の線量は小学３年女児の１．７ミリシーベルトが最大で、女児の兄弟３人も１．４～１．６ミリシーベルトだった。自宅近くに高線量スポットがあり、県外に転居したという。市の担当者は「健康に影響を与える数値ではない」と話している。

On November 1, Fukushima City disclosed the result of the readings for the month of September from the glass badges distributed to 36,989 children and pregnant women in the city. The maximum reading was 1.7 millisievert from a girl in the 3rd grade of an elementary school. Her three brothers also tested between 1.4 and 1.6 millisievert. There is a high radiation "hot spot" near their house, and they have since moved out of Fukushima. The city official says "It is not the level that affects health."

　市は３万６４７８人から個人線量計を回収して分析。他に１ミリシーベルトを超えた人はなく、０．１ミリシーベルト未満１６％▽０．１ミリシーベルト６４％▽０．２ミリシーベルト１７％▽０．３ミリシーベルト２％－－で０．３ミリシーベルト以下が９９％を占めた。０．４ミリシーベルト１０５人 ▽０．５ミリシーベルト２５人▽０．６ミリシーベルト６人▽０．９ミリシーベルト１人－－だった。

The city had the glass badges collected from 36,478 people and had them analyzed. [Aside from the girl and her brothers] there was no one whose radiation exposure exceeded 1 millisievert. The result [excluding the 4 children] was:

Less than 0.1 millisievert: 16%
0.1 millisievert: 64%
0.2 millisievert: 17%
0.3 millisievert: 2%
0.4 millisievert: 105 people [0.29%]
0.5 millisievert: 25 people
0.6 millisievert: 6 people
0.9 millisievert: 1 person

　市は１０～１１月の積算線量も測定中で、今回を含めた３カ月間の結果を基に影響を評価する。

The city continues the monitoring in October and November, and will evaluate the radiation effect after 3 months worth of data are collected.

Why bother "evaluate"? It sure looks like a foregone conclusion that "there is no effect on health", probably up to 100 millisieverts per year...

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110 Volunteers and Residents to "Decon" High Radiation Area in Fukushima City

Everybody knows the decon doesn't work, everybody rolls with their fingers crossed. Everybody knows the war is over, everybody knows the good guys lost. But so it goes, and everybody knows.

Or not. Maybe not these 110 volunteers from all over the country with good intentions, who chose to go to one of the very high radiation area (Onami District) in Fukushima City in Fukushima Prefecture to do the decontamination work.

Part of Onami District was "decontaminated" back in August as the "model" decontamination by the cleaning contractors hired by the city. In most locations, the radiation was hardly reduced, and in some locations the radiation after the "decontamination" went up. (Take a look at the results of the decon in August in my Japanese blog post.)

As you see in the photo by Yomiuri Shinbun, the district is in the mountains. Radioactive materials will continue to come from the mountains, no matter how (and how many times) they "decon" the roads and houses.

But Japanese media reports the effort by the volunteers and the residents of Onami District of Fukushima City trying to decontaminate, as if it's a good thing. This one from Yomiuri Shinbun (10/29/2011):

東京電力福島第一原発事故による放射能汚染を受け、福島市大波地区で２９日、ボランティアや住民が参加した除染作業が始まった。

On October 29, decontamination work started in Onami District in Fukushima Prefecture with volunteers and the residents participating.

　同市は市内全域約１１万世帯の除染を計画しており、大波地区ではトップを切って今月中旬から委託業者が作業している。しかし、「行政だけで進めるのは難しい」としてボランティアの協力も求めることにした。

The city plans to decontaminate the entire 110,000 households in the city. Onami District is the first to be decontaminated, and the contractors hired by the city have been working since mid October. However, the city felt it was difficult to proceed only with the government effort, and decided to call for volunteers.

　この日は、市などが募集したボランティア約１１０人と地区住民が参加。担当するのは線量が比較的低い場所で、手袋、マスク、線量計などを受け取った後、業者がすでに高圧洗浄機で屋根や壁を洗い流した住宅や集会所などで、落ち葉拾いや草むしりをしたり、表土が取り除かれた敷地に新たな土を入れたりした。

Today, 110 volunteers that applied for the work and the area residents participated. They would do the work in the locations with relatively low radiation. After fitted with gloves, masks and personal survey meters, they went to the private residences or public meeting halls whose roofs and walls had been already washed by the contractors with pressure washers. They collected dead leaves, removed weeds, and put in new soil where the surface of the soil had been removed.

　ボランティアは首都圏や北海道や岐阜県、大阪府など各地から集まっており、会社の同僚と参加した埼玉県川口市、会社員小池理恵さん（３６）は「住民は自分たちのせいではないのにつらい状況にある。少しでも手伝いができればと思って来た」と話していた。

Volunteers came from from all over Japan including the Tokyo Metropolitan area, Hokkaido, Gifu Prefecture, and Osaka. Rie Koike (age 36) came from Kawaguchi City in Saitama Prefecture with her colleagues at work. She said, "The residents are in a different situation not of their making. I wanted to help them in any way I could."

From what I see in the photo, this "decon" looks no different from the one I posted on October 26, calling the house and yard cleaning "decontamination". The difference is that there are radioactive materials in the soil, on the stones, on the house, everywhere, which the flimsy masks and work gloves do not block.

But the volunteers can feel good about themselves for their hard work, the residents can feel as if they've reduced the radiation, and the city and the prefecture and the national government save a good chunk of money. Win-win for everyone.

I personally think it is unconscionable for the city to call for volunteers who are in no way trained in any kind of proper decontamination technique (if there is such a thing, that is). And to have a woman in the child-bearing age , like the one Yomiuri interviewed, do the work like this is totally beyond me.

(On the other hand, if she is 36, she should have known better by now.)

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