And who did the cleaning? Children.
Now on to one of the favorite topics of this blog: Swimming pools in Japan.
Well they did it again, this time the Board of Education in Joso City in Ibaraki Prefecture. Back in May, as one of the annual, educational events of the schools, public elementary schools and junior high schools in Joso City had their pupils clean out the school swimming pools in preparation for the school swimming classes during summer. The teachers also helped out. Together, they cleaned the pools and scooped out the dirt that had accumulated at the bottom of the pools.
5 schools kept the dirt in a corner of the schoolyards. At one elementary school, a concerned PTA member decided to measure the radiation of the dirt. The result? 17,020 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium.
There are 14 public elementary schools, 5 junior high schools in Joso City. The city's Board of Education runs both elementary schools and junior high schools.
From Mainichi Shinbun (7/5/2011):
常総市の市立小学校が5月にプール清掃を教員と児童で行った際にかき集めた泥土から、1キロ当たり1万7020ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出されたこと が分かった。環境省が放射性物質汚染がれきについて定めた埋め立て許容基準の2倍に当たり、この学校は泥土を隔離。これを受けて市教育委員会が4日、全小 中学校のプール泥土の残存状況を調査したところ、同校の他に4小学校が敷地内に泥土を置いていることが明らかになった。
It was disclosed that 17,020 becquerels per kilogram of radioactive cesium was detected from the dirt that were scooped out from the swimming pool when the teachers and pupils of one public elementary schools in Joso City did the cleaning of the pool in May. The amount is more than twice the safety limit set by the Ministry of the Environment for the radioactive debris that could be buried. The school moved the dirt in a separate area. Upon this news, the city's Board of Education surveyed the situation of the pool dirt in city's elementary schools and junior high schools on July 4, and found out there were 4 other elementary schools who had kept the dirt on the school premises.
同校PTA関係者が敷地にあった泥土を6月11日にバケツ1杯分採取し、うち3キロの試料を専門検査会社に送付。同29日に届いた検査結果によると、セシウム134が7700ベクレル、セシウム137が9320ベクレルだった。
A member of the school's PTA collected a bucketful of this dirt on June 11, and sent 3 kilograms of it to a laboratory specializing in radiation measurement. The result, which was delivered on June 29, showed the sample contained 7,700 becquerels/kg of cesium-134 and 9,320 becquerels/kg of cesium-137.
環境省が先月公表した汚染がれき処理基準では、8000ベクレル以下については埋め立て処理を認めるが、これを超すと放射線遮へい措置が必要となる。文部科学省はプールなどの泥土もこれに準じるとしている。
The safety limit for disposal of radioactive debris, as announced by the Ministry of the Environment last month, is 8,000 becquerels/kg. If it is below that limit, you can bury the debris. If it exceeds, then the measures will be necessary to shield the radiation. The Ministry of Education and Science says the dirt from the pool would be treated in the same manner.
同校の教頭は「愛校作業として5、6年生が掃除に携わった」と話しており、放射性物質汚染の認識はなかったという。市教委は5月25日、プール清掃に際し児童生徒の健康に配慮するよう各校長に指示したが、既に同校を含む4小中学校で児童生徒が清掃に参加していた。
The vice principal of the elementary school said, "As an activity to promote love for the school, 5th and 6th graders participated in the cleaning." The school didn't think of the radiation contamination then. The city's Board of Education instructed the principals of the city's schools on May 25 to pay attention to the health of pupils when cleaning the swimming pools, but by that time 4 schools including this elementary school had already had pupils clean the pools.
市教委は同校のプール泥土を産業廃棄物として業者に処理を委託することを決定。他の4校の泥土については5日に放射線量を測り、校庭よりも高い数値が出た場合は産廃として処理する方針。坂巻幸一教育部長は「プール清掃は学校の指導の一環だが、配慮が足りなかったかもしれない」と述べた。
The city's Board of Education has decided to have a company that specializes in disposal of industrial waste to dispose the pool dirt from the school. As to the dirt at 4 other schools, the radiation will be measured on July 5. If the numbers are higher than those for the schoolyards, the dirt will be disposed as industrial waste. Koichi Sakamaki, manager for education [at the Board of Education] said, "Cleaning the swimming pools is part of the school instruction. But we should have been a bit more careful."
調査したPTA関係者は「子どもが放射性物質に汚染された泥土の処理を行った事実を、将来の健康も考えて記録に残してほしい。市教委はきちんと対策を取り、情報を公開すべきだ」と指摘する。一方、県教委保健体育課は「評価基準はないが、掃除の後きちんと手を洗えばそれほど神経質になることはない」としている。
The member of the school's PTA says, "That the children did the cleanup of radioactive dirt should be recorded as such , for the future health monitoring. The city's Board of Education should provide appropriate countermeasures, and disclose information fully." The Board of Education of Ibaraki Prefecture, on the other hand, says "While it's true there is no standard for evaluating the pool dirt, but there is no need to be nervous as long as you wash your hands after cleaning the pool."
How could the school not think of radiation contamination, when the radioactive plume from Fukushima I Nuke Plant was constantly blowing over Ibaraki Prefecture and the air radiation level remains elevated? (I guess the vice principal didn't have access to the Internet to take a look at those foreign meteorological agencies' simulations...)
No matter. Cleaning is over now anyway, and the rest of the schools didn't even keep the dirt. But the pool water is clean, I'm sure.
But since when the dirt that contains that much radioactive cesium can be disposed as "industrial waste", instead of nuclear waste?
21 comments:
What can I say? Very sad.
Clean, little children, clean! Ooops...
Ultraman,
Since I have been reading your blog, I now am able to 'interpret' your English translation a little better:
"Koichi Sakamaki, manager for education [at the Board of Education] said, "Cleaning the swimming pools is part of the school instruction. But we should have been a bit more careful."
See, before I read your blog, I would have assumed that this person regretted subjecting children to needless exposure. But, having read many of the articles you have posted, I now understand that this person probably regrets not being more careful to get rid of the pool dirt before a member of the PTA had a chance to have some of it tested. I guess now pool dirt will be 'property of the school' and parents will be warned not to 'steal it'.
I wonder what the total radioactivity is for the pool dirt? Where there is Cesium, there is usually Strontium. Perhaps some Uranium as well?
Radiation or not, nothing will get in the way of following long established rules and procedures in Japan
Yet another example of stupidity and ignorance from the Japanese, saving face is more important than radiation.. anyway economically and environmentally Japan is finished.. a nation of sheep indeed
I agree 110%, "anyway economically and environmentally Japan is finished.. a nation of sheep indeed.."
SO TRUE !
Some of these people... you pass them in the street, they seem normal and reasonable, funny and endearing, maybe, even. Yet they should be taken out back and shot like rabid dogs.
"No standard for pool dirt". Seriously? There is a standard for acceptable radiation exposure. Has it been followed, or not?
As for parents in Ibaraki who let their kids go to school... I just don't know what to think.
From my experience, most people in every country are 'sheeple'. They can be manipulated by TPTB very easily. The Anonymous postings here accusing the Japanese of being 'sheeple', what country are you from? I have a pretty good guess. Do you think your country is full of sheeple too? One thing I can say about Japan is they still have their culture, centuries old, unlike most western nations today. Now who are the sheeple?
The Anonymous postings here accusing the Japanese of being 'sheeple', what country are you from?
Er actually I live in Japan and have been here for many years... we know that sheeple are in every country but the point is Japan is head office for sheeple... in any other country people would be expressing their opinion or taking some kind of action, however in Japan its a case of " keep your mouth shut and your opinions to yourself " the status quo here is god, even if people die.
There is something wrong with this silence. The Japanese do have samurai traditions where it is OK to die for a warlord even if the battle cannot be won. In that case it could be a spiritual adventure to throw your life away. I understand that heroism. But exposing schoolkids to radiation merely for the profits of the shareholders of TEPCO is not honorable - it is other people that suffer, not so heroically, and the result is money, not honor. The samurai always shunned money as an incentive. People living in the area should realize that this is not heroism - it is everything traditional Japanese were taught NOT to revere.
"...unlike most western nations today."
1. the "western" culture is the culture of the western nations and it grounds on our history and histories.
2. i live in germany and here we have many regional "cultures" wich are all very "german". and when i look at other european countries i see the same. so what!
when one looks at something from far away, it is hard to see differences.
3. what you call japanese culture is nowadays nothing more than a fashion and holiday amusement. the only reason why japanese culture is so "unique"(different from the global, very western culture) is because japan is an island and it is/has been far away from europe and america. isolation creates uniqueness. that is nice, but nothing astonishing or even something to be proud of. if you like the rest pieces of what is left of "your culture" it's good for you, enjoy it. (and by the way, i like it too) but to call others, or in this case all ppl in the west philistine, is a stupid act!
and at last, we all know that japan was highly influenced be the chinese culture. don't we...
@Regmelocco
I think you have seen The Seven Samurai too many times. This is 2011, there are no "samurai" or "samurai traditions".
The only thing that's left of those times is the feudal style of government (see Matsumoto) and a population that - most of the times - seems to be content with that.
Regarding the reaction of regional or local education and other authorities: I wouldn't be too harsh on them. These small towns and cities are not experts in this. They rely on guidance from the central government. That government has been saying for 3+ months adamantly that there is no "radioactivity problem" outside the 20km zone. In Japan, you don't question the higher authorities or you're out of a job (and society) really quickly. Local people, especially parents, took matters in their own hands and forced the local governments to act. But nobody is an expert, so they apply their own sense and nuclear waste is suddenly just a pile of dirt that needs to be disposed of… somehow!
In the local elementary school near here a big hole was dug, they will dump the top soil in there. In my local child care facility I will join parents tomorrow to remove top soil - more than three months after the event! I have measured the before and after of other places, the difference is negligible. It is too late now, this should have been done a long time ago.
Now there is your history lesson of the "samurai code". It's a mess at the top and crap doesn't smell better when it reaches the mere mortals.
Great blog today. Like this bit of sarcasm,
How could the school not think of radiation contamination, when the radioactive plume from Fukushima I Nuke Plant was constantly blowing over Ibaraki Prefecture and the air radiation level remains elevated? (I guess the vice principal didn't have access to the Internet to take a look at those foreign meteorological agencies' simulations...)
Mmmm...those baseless rumour mills!
Samurai? You must be having a laugh. This once great country has been turned inside out and has been slain. It's soshokudanshi not samurai. Dig the new breed.
Sheeple? It's hard to imagine a more outwardly vacuous, dumbed down bunch of goody goodies. But you can't blame them, the people, for that. That's like blaming kids for eating too many chocolates laid out before them.
On swimming pool cleaning, I also thought that was way out. They get the kids to do all the shitty jobs. Pools should be emptied and covered besides. Still teachers are 'too busy' to consider it, suggest it or act on it. Never mind; their money comes in at the end of the month. WTF do they care? Maybe a good nuking will wake them form their sheeple slumber.
what the hell is the point of japanese culture if you cannot even protect your fucking children.
your country has made a faustian bargain.
job and japan plc is more important than millions of children.
spineless nation and a purveyor of plutonium mox tainted electronics to the world.
What The Hell Is Wrong with Japanese Leadership Over There ??? It would seem as if they are all nuts!
How low can they go? I don't agree with the Anonymous above who said that they should be taken out back and shot. They should be hung in public with mandatory attendance. They are not worth a bullet and you can re-use rope.
Yet in many countries, 'heads' maintain slave in ignorance to maintain their place of 'Chief'. The Japan is not the monopoly of censorship.
Radiation And The Brain
The fact is that the “educational” system allowed the children to risk additional internal and external radioactive contamination. Their little dosimeters do not pick up the internal radiation that will haunt them for the rest of their lives.
The phenomenon of the Petkau Effect basically means that you are ionizing or irradiating yourself continuously from the inside out. This insidious burning at your molecular level will impair your body long before there is a diagnosable disease.
While the PTA member was astute enough to measure the debris after the fact, why wasn't anyone capable of that simple thought process before considering the dangerous clean up?
Could it be because the free radical attacks from the long term, high exposure, to radiation has already affected their brains? The enormous damage from free radicals disrupts the body's chemical processes, including thought processes and the genetic destruction of the brain.
According to Dr Barry Sears "the brain is exceptionally vulnerable to free radical attack. Fifty per cent of the dry weight of the brain is lipid, and about one-third of the lipid is composed of polyunsaturated essential fatty acids making it the most likely target for free radical attack."
Free radicals, or radicals, are atoms, molecules or ions with unpaired electrons. These highly reactive, molecules are unstable and contribute to the weakening of the body by destroying our cellular structure and making us more vulnerable to disease. When molecules in the body oxidize they become free radicals.
Without sufficient antioxidants to combat the extreme low levels of radiation you will suffer from gene mutation, birth defects, infertility and increased risk for immune related disease and cancers.
What I did during Chernobyl, is what I'm doing now.
* Protect the Thyroid
* Detox specifically for heavy metals
* Detox on a regular basis as my body requires
* Support a robust immune system
* Eat Super Foods and Antioxidants daily.
And all of our animals are also be included in this special care See my 20+ top natural remedies.
http://www.natural-health-home-remedies.com/radiation.html
The Orwell Ornot Ministry of Governmental Prudence tasking the offspring with "love" of the school, or else.
"While the PTA member was astute enough to measure the debris after the fact, why wasn't anyone capable of that simple thought process before considering the dangerous clean up?"
They probably did want to measure the water's level before. Might be an indication of the blocking effort they are amongst, where 'experts' assure them the water will distort the true level.
Japanese children 14 years ago are now young adults, and some of them are young teachers at some of these schools. Fourteen years ago most Japanese children were deliberately exposed to the POKEMON CARTOONS, which triggered epileptic attacks in vulnerable youngsters. Pokemon videos, characters, and toys then were distributed throughout the world. This was mind control programming... and we wonder why progress in so many societies is clogged by mindless mobs, either completely complacent, or else senselessly, rabidly violent -- however TPTB want them to behave at the time, you see.
The Associated Press article by Mari Yamaguchi, Dec. 17, 1997, is still available to read online. Here is a quote: "TV Tokyo said about 650 viewers ages 3 to 20 fell ill, including some who saw part of the show on a news program. About 150 remained hospitalized today.
"The show, ``Pokemon,'' -- a Japanese rendering of ``pocket monsters'' -- is based on characters in a game produced by Nintendo Co. The weekly show has been broadcast on 37 TV stations nationwide since April and has the highest ratings in the Tokyo area in its 6:30 p.m. slot.
"It's not the first time kids have been sickened by Japanese animation. Several years ago, a handful of teen-agers suffered seizures while playing video games sold by Nintendo. The company now attaches a warning of epilepsy-like symptoms triggered by the games' optical stimuli."
Optical stimuli (flashes of light, etc.) are now used in almost all TV programming. The HD (high definition) broadcasting systems are a new level of evil. Google: "Sound of Silence" HD television signals. The "Silent Sound Spread Spectrum (SSSS)" technology, in fact, has been fully operational since the early 1990s. The technology utilizes a combinationof HAARP transmitters, GWEN towers, microwave cell phone towers, and now the mandatory HD Digital TV programs. This information has been available on alternative news sites for a few years now. I read regularly the work of Canadian, American, and U.K. independent journalists. I have not had a TV connected in my home for over ten years.
Love EX-SKF. Reading the comments has now become far more entertaining than reading the main articles.
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