Monday, August 1, 2011

#Radioactive Leaf Compost Spreads to Schools

possibly irradiating children as they planted flowers as part of school curriculum.

Ever since the March 11 start of the Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident, unthinking, order-following school teachers and administrators throughout Japan from kindergarten/nursery school on (with a few exceptions) have made small children:

Now the latest: they made them plant flowers using the leaf compost which turned out to be highly radioactive.

As journalist Takashi Hirose said, they are "killing the children".

First, from Shinano Mainichi Shinbun (local paper in Nagano Prefecture, 8/2/2011):

県内で高濃度の放射性物質を含む可能性がある腐葉土の製品が流通していた問題で、北信地方の小中学校計2校が同じ製品40袋余(1袋14リットル入り)を使っていたことが31日分かった。県農政部によると、プランターで花を栽培するのに使ったという。同部は両校に対し児童生徒が近づかない場所に置くよう指導したとしている。

The leaf compost that may contain high concentration of radioactive materials have been sold in the Prefecture. On July 31, it was discovered that one elementary school and one junior high school used the total of 40 bags (14 liters per bag) of the compost. According to the Prefecture's agricultural division, the schools used it in planters to grow flowers. The division says it has instructed the schools to move the planters away from school children.

 両校から県に29日に相談が寄せられ、判明した。県は校名は公表していない。

The schools contacted the Prefecture for advice on July 29. The names of the schools haven't been disclosed.

 製品は、カインズ(群馬県高崎市)がホームセンター「カインズホーム」の長野県内の14店で販売した「バーク入り腐葉土14L」。同部によると、小学校は6月下旬に約10袋を県内店舗で購入し、キクを栽培するプランターに土と混ぜて入れた。中学校は花の栽培に30~40袋を使った。

The compost was sold at at Cainz Home's 14 stores in Nagano Prefecture. According to the agricultural division of the Prefecture, the elementary school purchased 10 bags in late June and mixed it with potting soil to grow chrysanthemums in planters. The junior high school used 30 to 40 bags to grow flowers.

 この製品は鳥取県の調査で、鳥取市内の店舗が販売した製品から1キロ当たり1万4800ベクレルの放射性セシウムが検出された。カインズによると、長野県内では東日本大震災後、販売を自粛した7月27日までに約1万300袋を販売したという。

14,800 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium have been detected from this compost, as tested by Tottori Prefecture. According to Cainz, 13,000 bags of the same compost had been sold in Nagano since the March 11 earthquake until July 27, when the company voluntarily stopped selling.

And from Shikoku Shinbun (local paper in Kagawa Prefecture in Shikoku, 8/1/2011):

 香川県内3小学校で放射性セシウムに汚染された栃木県産の腐葉土が栽培学習に使われていた問題で、児童がプランターで菊を栽培していた綾川町の昭和小学校(中塚正則校長)は31日夜、同校で保護者説明会を開いた。学校側は保護者の意見を踏まえ、腐葉土の廃棄処分を決定。説明会後、教職員が全保護者に対してメールや電話で連絡に当たった。

Concerning the radioactive leaf compost made in Tochigi Prefecture that was used in the schools' cultivation classes at 3 elementary schools in Kagawa Prefecture, one of the schools, Showa Elementary School in Ayagawa-cho (Principal Masanori Nakatsuka) held a meeting with the parents on July 31 night. The school listened to the parents and decided to discard the leaf compost. After the meeting, teachers and school administrators contacted all parents by email and phone calls.

 会には、保護者約35人が出席。中塚校長と杉村和則町教育長らが説明に立った。

35 parents attended the meeting, in which Principal Nakatsuka and Kazunori Sugimura, head of the town's Board of Education explained the situation.

 冒頭、学校と町教委側が「ご心配をおかけしたことを心からおわびしたい」と述べ、「一人でも廃棄処分を求める声があれば、そうしたい」との考えを示した。

They said, "We want to apologize for having caused you much anxiety. If there is one parent who wants to have [the compost] discarded, we will."

 その後、中塚校長が栽培学習の内容や事態把握までの経緯を説明。同日午前中に腐葉土を使ったプランター約400鉢を、立ち入り禁止のロープを張った場所に移したことも報告した。

Then, the principal explained what the school's cultivation class was, and how the school became aware of the problem [of the radioactive compost]. He also reported that 400 planters that used the leaf compost had been moved to a location that morning and the school cordoned off the place.

 質疑応答では、保護者から「健康に問題ないというが、やはり不安」「きちんと処分し、家庭や学校で子どもに説明するのが教育」などの声が上がったため、中塚校長が廃棄処分することをその場で伝えた。

In Q&A session, parents said "We still worry even if you say there is no effect on health", and "It will be educational if we dispose it properly, and explain to our children at home and at school". The principal promised to dispose the leaf compost.

 校長は「一生懸命菊を育ててきた子どもの心のケアに努めるとともに、処分方法については県に相談しながら対応したい」としている。同校では6月上旬、3~6年の児童179人が菊の鉢植え作業を行っていた。

The principle also said, "We will try our best to care for the psychological effect on children who have been growing chrysanthemum with great care. We will consult the prefectural government on the disposal." 179 pupils in 3rd to 6th grades planted chrysanthemums in the planters, using the compost.

Shikoku Shinbun reports that the prefectural government received only 4 inquiries from the residents on July 31.

Well, Mr. Nakatsuka, before you care for the psychological ill-effect, why don't you apologize to the pupils for having exposed them to physical ill-effect - radiation?

7 comments:

akaider said...

bureaucratic insanity, SMH!

Anonymous said...

each teacher, administrator, encouraging the children to do these things, should be given by each children, a real piece of a radioactive rod as a thank you gift for the wonderful lessons they had.

Anonymous said...

the teachers and administrators don't really know what to do. As Ex-skf said - they are unthinking and order-following. And they have probably have been trained to believe and obey external authority figures all their lives.

When we add to that the fact that Japan has in most places had a lifetime employment system, people's reluctance to move starts to make sense.

1. Authority says it's okay outside of 30Km, and under control now.

2. I had expected to stay at this job until I retire. My co-workers are like my family and they are staying. If I leave (abandon) the job, then they will have to work harder to cover for my absence. Besides if I leave, I don't know if I will be able to find work in the new place.

3. My real family and neighbors are here also and they are staying. How could I leave (abandon) my family at a time like this? All of my child's friends are here. How could I just take them away? That would be hard on them. Besides the government says it's safe.

4. I am starting to worry that the government may not have been completely honest with us. But without government support or assistance, what can we do?

The only way the people would move is as a group. And too much of the group doesn't really understand the real danger to their health enough to take action, because the information they have received via main stream media hasn't been good.

Anonymous said...

Those kids are going to be dropping like flies!! :/ I think Japan has such remarkably sweet, lovely, polite, and charming children, which is all the more tragic. But, the bottom line is that ALL kids are cute and DESERVE MUCH BETTER! Promptly!

Anonymous said...

We saw a ressurgence in promoting Japanese racism to combat the Japanese governments own perceptions relating to their limited ability to do anything constructive.

These days they have the the youg and youth playing with nuclear boys poo as children,especially dead ones,don't vote.

Anonymous said...

It's already too late to help all these kids...they will be dying much sooner because of this profit-driven, satanic behavior. "Thanks adults, your children trusted you with their protection and health! "The depths of Hell, would not be enough of a punishment to be repay for your evil and ignorance!"

Here is a punishment that fits this crime, as it is proven that a child has died from cancer or developed a radiation-related sickness, the child's name should be tattooed on the body of each "decision maker" who had a hand in these deaths. That way, it will follow them the rest of their useless lives! Also, could identify people the evil ones that caused this atrocity.

Anonymous said...

The Japanese government did not direct the recovery of radioactive-contaminated mulch at a high level.
Many Japanese are considered a problem only with mulch sold in Akita Prefecture.
But the fact is not. Contaminated mulch is sold in large quantities had been in Tokyo.
Japanese people are not informed of these things at all.
Video Reference
Mulch estimated 50,000 becquerels of radiation dose
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gZdaLOahAA

Post a Comment