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Nuclear Experts on Japan: ‘No End In Sight’, ‘Uncharted Territory’, ‘Effort in Danger of Failing’, Reactors ‘Too Hot to Pour Concrete’

04/10/2011 Leave a comment

By Matt Smith, CNN -“… A month into the crisis, the utility acknowledges, there is no end in sight.

The problems are so far ‘beyond the design capacity’ of the plant that the Japanese are working in uncharted territory, said Michael Friedlander, a former senior operator at U.S. nuclear power plants.

‘No nuclear power plant has ever considered the inability to get on long-term core cooling for more than a week, much less three weeks,’ Friedlander said.

Some Japanese experts now say the effort is in danger of failing unless Japan seeks more help from international experts to bring it to an end. Tetsunari Iida, an engineer-turned-industry critic, said the situation is ‘beyond the reach’ of Japan’s closely knit nuclear establishment.”  Read more.

 

EPA: New Radiation Highs in Little Rock Milk, Philadelphia Drinking Water

04/10/2011 Leave a comment

By Jeff McMahon – “Milk from Little Rock and drinking water from Philadelphia contained the highest levels of Iodine-131 from Japan yet detected by the Environmental Protection Agency, according to data released by EPA Saturday.

The Philadelphia sample is below the EPA’s maximum contaminant level (MCL) for iodine-131, but the Little Rock sample is almost three times higher.”  Read more.

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Radiation Detected In Drinking Water In 13 More US Cities, Cesium-137 In Vermont Milk

04/09/2011 Leave a comment

“Radiation from Japan has been detected in drinking water in 13 more American cities, and cesium-137 has been found in American milk—in Montpelier, Vermont—for the first time since the Japan nuclear disaster began, according to data released by the Environmental Protection Agency late Friday.

Milk samples from Phoenix and Los Angeles contained iodine-131 at levels roughly equal to the maximum contaminant level permitted by EPA, the data shows. The Phoenix sample contained 3.2 picoCuries per liter of iodine-131. The Los Angeles sample contained 2.9. The EPA maximum contaminant level is 3.0…” Read more.

 

Categories: Man-Made Disasters

Inside Report From Fukushima Nuclear Reactor Evacuation Zone

04/09/2011 2 comments

“Fukushima, Japan – The Japanese government has issued the evacuation order on March 12 for the residents living within the 20 kilometer radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

Since then, residents have left their homes, and the “no man land” has been out of touch with the rest of the world.

A Japanese journalist, Tetsuo Jimbo, ventured through the evacuation zone last Sunday, and filed the following video report.

He says that, inside the evacuation zone, homes,building, roads and bridges, which were torn down by Tsunami, are left completely untouched, and the herd of cattle and pet dogs, left behind by the owners, wonders around the town while the radiation level remains far beyond legal limits.

Watch the video report.”

Rush to Use Crops as Fuel Raises Food Prices and Hunger Fears

04/09/2011 Leave a comment

By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL – “The starchy cassava root has long been an important ingredient in everything from tapioca pudding and ice cream to paper and animal feed.

But last year, 98 percent of cassava chips exported from Thailand, the world’s largest cassava exporter, went to just one place and almost all for one purpose: to China to make biofuel. Driven by new demand, Thai exports of cassava chips have increased nearly fourfold since 2008, and the price of cassava has roughly doubled.

Each year, an ever larger portion of the world’s crops — cassava and corn, sugar and palm oil — is being diverted for biofuels as developed countries pass laws mandating greater use of nonfossil fuels…” Read more.

 

True Toll of Deepwater Disaster May Be 50 Times Worse Than Thought

04/08/2011 2 comments

By ClickGreen staff – “The recorded impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill on wildlife may have severely underestimated the number of deaths of whales and dolphins, according to a new report.

The Deepwater Horizon disaster of 2010 devastated the Gulf region ecologically and economically. However, a new study published in Conservation Letters reveals that the true impact of the disaster on wildlife may be gravely underestimated. The study argues that fatality figures based on the number of recovered animal carcasses will not give a true death toll, which may be 50 times higher than believed.”  Read more.

 

Scientists Link Oil On Dolphins to BP Spill

04/08/2011 Leave a comment

By Leigh Coleman – “(Reuters) – Scientists confirmed on Thursday that they have discovered oil on dead dolphins found along the U.S. Gulf Coast, raising fresh concerns about the effects of last year’s BP oil spill on sea life.

Fifteen of the 406 dolphins that have washed ashore in the last 14 months had oil on their bodies, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists said during a conference call with reporters.

The oil found on eight of those dolphins has been linked to the April 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, scientists said.”  Read more.

Yesterday’s 7.1 Mag Aftershock Damages Another Japan Nuclear Plant

04/08/2011 Leave a comment

“Waters leaks have been found at another nuclear power plant after a strong aftershock hit Japan on Wednesday but there has been no change in radiation levels outside the plant, according to its operator.

A powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake on Thursday jolted the Miyagi prefecture on the northeast coast, the area devastated by a massive earthquake and tsunami in March.

At least three people were killed and more than 100 injured in the aftershock.”  Read more.

 

‘Disease Clusters’ – Gulf Coast Illnesses One Year after the BP Oil Spill

04/07/2011 Leave a comment

By Gina Solomon – “Last week I was in Washington to testify in front of a Senate committee about disease clusters – when a community is affected with strangely high rates of a certain disease over time. I was there to urge the Federal government not to overlook these communities, and to do the needed investigations to identify potential environmental causes. From doing this work I know that for every disease cluster studied, there are dozens that feel ignored. I fear that is what’s happening in the Gulf Coast, one year after the BP Gulf oil spill.

Local community advocates tell me that their phones are ringing off the hook with calls from people who are sick and looking for help. Ecosystem restoration meetings on the Gulf coast have been overwhelmed by people testifying about health symptoms because it’s the only place they can be heard. Clean-up workers and community members are worried about an increase in unexplained symptoms such as rashes, chronic respiratory problems, fatigue, and headaches.”  Read more.

 

Coverup? California, Northwest, BC Canada Under Radiation as High as Japan

04/07/2011 3 comments

By Alfred Lambremont Webre – “Independent scientist Leuren Moret, MA, PhD (ABT) has stated in exclusive April 4, 2011 interviews with reporter Alfred Lambremont Webre that the effects of the tectonic nuclear war against the populations and breadbaskets of North America (Canada, United States, Hawaii, and Mexico) are being intentionally covered up by the administrations of Barack Obama in the United States and Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Canada.

The radiation effect of this false flag global radiation war intensified this week as radiation maps produced by the Norwegian Institute for Air Research (NILU) now confirm that the Midwest of the United States, all of California, theNorthwest including the states of Oregon and Washington and the western part of Canada are under a radiation threat with radiation levels as high as that in Japan…” Read more.

 

Categories: Man-Made Disasters

Nuclear Evacuation Zone May Be Expanded in Japan

04/07/2011 Leave a comment

“The Government says it may order residents of some areas within 20 to 30 kilometers of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to evacuate.

Residents within 20 kilometers of the plant have been evacuated, while those living between 20 to 30 kilometers have been advised to remain indoors.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told reporters on Thursday that existing evacuation guidelines assume large amounts of radiation being released over a short period of time and are not relevant in considering the impact of long-term exposure.”  Read more.

 

Categories: Man-Made Disasters

Reactor 2 May Have Melted Through Reactor Pressure Vessel, Tons of Radioactive Waste Flowing Into Ocean Hourly

04/06/2011 Leave a comment

By Roberta Rampton and Ayesha Rascoe – “WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A top official from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said on Wednesday it was not clear that Japan’s Fukushima No. 2 nuclear reactor has melted through the reactor pressure vessel.

Earlier, Democratic lawmaker Edward Markey told a House of Representatives hearing on the nuclear disaster that the NRC had told him the core had melted through the vessel.”  Read more.

RT: In Japan officials estimate that seven tons of radioactive waste is flowing into the ocean every hour at the crippled Daiichi nuclear facility.  The source of the leaking waste appears to be reactor 2.  Attempts to clog the leak with cement have failed and new attempts to plug the hole with a junk shot of sawdust, chemicals and shredded newspaper don’t appear to be working either.  Officials have now put a time frame on containing the situation, saying it could be several months for the plant’s cooling systems to come back online and for the radiation to be contained.  Of course, that would be just the first step.  It would then take hundreds of thousands of years for this mess caused by the use of nuclear power to decay to safety.

Categories: Man-Made Disasters