ACTIVE
Over 10,000 multi-media radiation tests across America since 2011
There are three RadAlert Inspector Nuclear Radiation Monitors in EnviroReporter.com‘s Santa Monica office on the West Los Angeles border. Elevation 140 feet. The units cost $699.00 as of June 25, 2014 at International Medcom where the service is excellent. It is approximately one meter off of the ground in a wood-floored structure built over crawlspace with soil foundation.
SEE SPECIAL RADIATION STATION TESTING of food, drink, rain, and other media conducted by EnviroReporter.com across Los Angele, the Southwest, West and Midwest United States.
The Inspector picks up ionizing radiation and is measuring in Counts Per Minute or CPM. As noted iun the comments of our earlier post “Radiation Station,” we have been taking ten minute averages to hone in on more accurate readings of the gamma radiation that this detector is picking.
These readings are designed to make sure we have an accurate baseline background radiation measurement so any possible increases in radiation due to the horrific multiple meltdown threats emanating from Japan can be discerned. A list of the 10 minute averages can be found here.
A range of Exterior normal background radiation at Radiation Station has been determined to be between 42 to 46 CPM after half a year’s averaging. The normal range of Interior background detections is 35 to 40 CPM.
These measurements are similar to background measurements taken in this location over a long period of time. These ranges are generally about double of what would be normally found at this elevation and geology which could be a result of longtime radiation contamination in Southern California from places like the Santa Susana Field Laboratory which had America’s worst partial meltdown of a nuclear reactor in 1959 releasing up to hundreds of times more radiation, according to some estimates, than the more infamous Three Mile Island partial meltdown in 1979 in Pennsylvania.
Should radiation measured by the Inspector begin to rise to double background, we will be concerned. If the measurements go to triple background and above for a sustained period of time in the next few days, then the problem is very troublesome. Numerous special radiation tests has shown radioactive contamination in Southern California rain, mist, food and drink.
Our measurements determine how “hot” is it in the Los Angeles Basin. You can find out more why we set up the Radiation Station by checking out our post “Melt Down Wind.”
See our FUKUSHIMA INVESTIGATION for up to the minute news, FAQs, Radiation Station data statistics and radiation readings across the country.
Read RADIATION STATION STATS page which documents extensive radiation readings for the Los Angeles basin based on averages taken from EnviroReporter.com‘s nuclear radiation detector the Inspector in Santa Monica, California.
Hi Mike,
Do you have NaI scintillator in your station? I’ve been looking for places near Santa Monica to measure CS137 and CS134 total fallout since 03.11.2011. There are some reports saying they detected upto ~300 Bq/m2 in LA but it was back in 2011. I personally feel it is too low. Even during 1945-1970, all nuclear tests results in increased radiation by 5,000Bq/m2 on average in the northern hemisphere. Based on what we know about the total radioactivity release, Fukushima released raioactivity closed to 1000 hiroshima bombs (I don’t have much faith in gov released data, which is 168 hiroshima bombs). We know Fukushima is still spewing and lots of radioactive waste water was released in Pacific ocean.
I have a little girl who will go to public school pretty soon, and am wishing to know actual soil contamination levels in her future school and etc. If you don’t own a machine, I would like to know who can give a service to test private samples…
Hi Michael I will send you a photos of my setup from the East Side of Los Angeles soon. What e mail addess do I send photos to???
hector
10 min. average in Oak View, CA, about 10 minutes inland:
47.4
interior of friend’s house: 50.1
roasted seaweed snack from Korea: 66.1
I’ve got pre-Fukushima rain water for the North Phx area. I’ve been collecting sediment samples for all rainfall. I’ve got the raw data in text format and in html format for the reports. I have kept all my sediment samples with dates. I can send the data or mail you samples. Take your choice.
Regards,
JQ
Man, this is more than twice the typical background in NYC. Could it be radon ? When I was looking at homes, I routinely measured 100cpm and more in some basements in northern New Jersey ( across the river ). In scientific terms, this is not as terrible since there are very healthy people living with naturally much higher background levels. Airlines pilots are exposed to roughly 350cpm levels at cruising altitude. If, however, pre-Fukushima levels were half the current ones, this is bad. Nobody wants the fly-by radionuclides from Japan.
@Everyone: This is the LAST COMMENT on EnviroReporter.com’s Radiation Station as the 2,426 comments preceding it have made loading slow to a crawl. So we’ve created a NEW POST, Radiation Conversation, where your posts can continue. Also, to bring you up to speed on our recent Japanese food and drink testing as well as the test results of our four-state swing through three national parks which, like the food and drink we tested, we present results that are most troubling. See you over at Radiation Conversation!
Better link to EPA Radnet Los Angeles monitoring station:
http://www.epa.gov/radnet/radnet-data/radnet-losangeles-bg.html
Re East Coast Honshu, Japan +6 Mag aftershocks on last Thursday and Friday (9/15 and 9/16), note the huge gross beta radiation spikes reported by the EPA Radnet monitoring station in Los Angeles September 18th through September 20th (perhaps about the time it would take for the Japan Fukushima jet stream to reach the Pacific West Coast of the United States):
Location Names: CA: LOS ANGELES,
Query Start Date: 09/18/2011
Query End Date: 09/20/2011
Fixed data selected.
Query Result for monitoring location CA: LOS ANGELES. Total Number of Records: 34
Measurement End Date/Time
Beta Gross Count Rate(CPM)
2011-09-18 21:07:42
295.0000
2011-09-18 22:07:56
330.0000
2011-09-18 23:08:10
346.0000
2011-09-19 00:08:24
243.0000
2011-09-19 01:08:38
146.0000
2011-09-19 02:08:52
88.0000
2011-09-19 03:09:06
81.0000
2011-09-19 04:09:20
89.0000
2011-09-19 05:09:33
79.0000
2011-09-19 06:09:47
79.0000
2011-09-19 07:10:02
92.0000
2011-09-19 08:10:15
94.0000
2011-09-19 09:10:29
119.0000
2011-09-19 10:10:43
154.0000
2011-09-20 02:14:31
209.0000
2011-09-20 03:14:44
163.0000
2011-09-20 04:15:00
161.0000
2011-09-20 05:15:14
178.0000
***
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/queryResult.do
Updated FDA as of Sept 14, 2011
http://www.fda.gov/newsevents/publichealthfocus/ucm247403.htm#sofar
Excerpts from FDA web page:
re: fish/seafood
“1 sample was found to contain detectable levels of Cesium, but was below the established Derived Intervention Level (DIL) and posed no public health concern.”
(Then, the very next sentence states)
“FDA does not anticipate any public health effect on seafood safety.”
re: milk
“At this time, there is no radiation safety risk related to milk produced in the U.S.”
“EPA monitors milk… and has reported extremely low levels of I-131 and Cesium in some milk samples. These results are expected and are far below FDA’s Derived Intervention Levels. Even for a person who drinks a lot of milk….”
“As federal and state agencies test milk samples, low levels of I-131 may be found in different samples, and the levels may vary slightly. However these low levels are not expected to cause adverse health effects, even for the developing fetus, babies, or children.”
re: overall outlook
“At this time, there is no public health threat in the U.S. related to radiation exposure. FDA, together with other agencies, is carefully monitoring any possibility for distribution of radiation to the United States. At this time, theoretical models do not indicate that significant amounts of radiation will reach the U.S.”
___________________
Remember the FDA’s DILs are FAR greater than the EPA’s recommendations.
Words like.. significant, not expected, extremely low, does not anticipate, are all vague and debatable.
Their statements will ‘most likely’ become regrettable in the years to come. (my opinion)
Who do you call to complain about this? When those you speak with simply refer you back to the FDA/EPA.
“The former primer minister accuses the company of wanting to abandon the stricken nuclear plant at the height of the crisis and let its workers walk offsite for the reactors to bubble away.”
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-09-19/kan-reveals-tokyo-evacuation-plans/2905474/?site=melbourne
OMG!
Thousands protest against nuclear power in Japan!
http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_714524.html
Its about time!
Thanks a lot guys….the links are great. I don’t even know if I should be concerned enough to invest $300 plus for a geiger counter. Everybody here is just doing the basic air test…..If Potrblog is telling the truth…..which sure as heck seems like it from all of his uploads…..then common sense that our rain would be pretty high. I sure am curious….you’d think that somebody here with a counter would be checking the rain.
That Alexander Higgins site has always had a zero reading from the EPA…..on Hawaii. That is not true for sure. Last night ….for a long time the radiation network site was higher than normal….today it is back to normal.
Even if the rain is higher I know it wouldn’t affect me at all….but what about all the pregnant women. So there is a dilemma….how much responsibility should I feel to risk a chunk of money to find out if it is harmful enough to publicize to the community. I guess I will write that guy in Kauai and ask him if/why he’s not publicizing rain tests.
The more I learn….the more confusing it gets. Hard to believe the EPA and our government would hide something like this…..but then it is hard to fathom what would happen to our already hurting economy too….I understand it would be harder on everybody’s budget….but safety has to come first.
Mahalo and Aloha
Carmel
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/search/label/RADroadTRIP
Video of our 4000 mile Radioactive Road Trip:
Disney World Wilderness Lodge Rain Storm
Part of our 4000 Mile Radioactive Road Trip fact finding mission to the Southern Most Point in the United States.
Time: 3pm July 26, 2011
Location: Disney World Wilderness Lodge
Observations made:
(1) The further we traveled away from the jet-stream, the lower the radioactivity in the rainfall.
(2) Storms moving East to West from Africa via the hurricane Corridor tended to have ZERO radioactivity
CarmelinHawaii, i found this for you:
http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2011/05/hawaii-radiation-levels.html
“….normal background radiation in Hawaii averages about 5 – 20 CPM (counts per minute). That means normally about 15 radioactive particles hit a sensitive plate on the geiger counter every minute triggering the “click” you hear and registering on the devices meter.”
@CarmalinHawaii; I spoke to someone in Hawaii last week. They had no idea about the fallout there. No idea that dairymen were using boron to remove isotopes from the grass the cows ate, as were farmers. Things were “just fine, no problem.” So, I understand your frustrations. Try going to Greenpeace as they are doing studies on the ocean and you might want to try the googling NOAA and various Oceanography associations. potrblogs site a a great amount of measurments for rain counts in St Louis so naturally you will want to stay out of the rain in Hawaii. Please try to get a geiger counter, they sell them online. Surely someone is counting in Hawaii somewhere!? Stay onboard with Envireporter here because there are a ton of generously minded people with the great info they have. And you will be guided to links. I imagine we will be helping you search for what you need,so stay close with us. Welcome.
@CarmelinHawaii
Regardless of where you are it is difficult at best to get information. It is nearly impossible to get any reliable information with the Nuclear Industry’s virtual news blackout control and while the disinformation/disorientation propaganda programs are in full swing.
Here are a couple of links regarding Hawaii. They may be a bit dated, but it’s a start.
I think this one is the best: -> http://hawaiinewsdaily.com/2011/04/fukushima-radioactivity-detected-in-hilo-milk/
Oahu Radiation -> http://whatreallyhappened.com/WRHARTICLES/oahurad.php
Hawaii dairy farmers fight radiation with Boron. -> http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2011/05/30/dairy-farmers-fight-radiation-with-boron/
This video “Fukushima Syndrome” was aired on Australian ABC show “Foreign Correspondant” The video takes a minute to start and is 25 min long. Its about people that oppose nuclear power.
http://www.abc.net.au/foreign/content/2011/s3317005.htm
So…it seems like a lot of you guys are able to get information. We are completely in the dark here in Hawaii….cept for Radiationetwork…..Kauai has been between 50 and 70 all night. What do you think is going on here? Wish I could send a picture of a sea turtle my friend took a couple of days ago. Wish I knew what back ground was before 311….not worried about air readings so much…..but who is looking at the ocean?? And it rains ALOT here.
The Vegas odds for being hit by falling space debris is currently set at 1/3200. NASA normally likes to keep that down to 1/10000. Why it’s lower this time I am not sure.
There is no risk assessment for falling space debris or asteroids when it comes to Nuclear Plants. Why? Well, because that ‘rarely’ happens, so we’ll pretend it never will. (my opinion) In reality however, the experts are ‘betting’ it never will. We all know what happens when you gamble, sooner or later -> you lose. Except with Nuclear power it can literally become ‘game over’!
I was personal friends with one of the head directors for the Space Shuttle program back in 1983. We were discussing ‘risk management’. He told me how every single nut and bolt that went into the shuttle was tested far beyond it’s maximum safety design. However, it was predicted, or should I say the risk management people said, that it was ‘highly likely’, that they would lose 1 shuttle for every 72 flight missions. In retrospect they were pretty close. Of the 5 active shuttles that flew a total of 135 missions, 2 were lost. (Challenger STS-52 Columbia STS-107)
I wonder WHAT IS the REAL RISK assessment of older Nuclear plants having a catastrophic failure? I would ‘bet’ it’s more than 1 in 72. (we know it’s 1 in something?) Especially if you calculate in tsunamis, earthquakes, power grid malfunctions, tornadoes, faulty designs, poor construction, human error, waste storage, aging infrastructure, greed, space debris, asteroids and terrorists. And/Or any combination or combinations of the above.
roundabout, YIKES!! What if it does hit a nuclear power plant?
@Bar; We will have about 2 hours notice before they can warn earthlings of falling debris, but how do you hide from falling space debris when it would go right through a roof?? Then there are the extra clean up costs to other countries which will raise taxes, and rats!! We can’t even sell the parts we find on ebay!?! Whatever happened to Capitalism? snicker… let’s just hope it dose not plow into the roof of a nuclear power plant.
@Bar; We are also missing a bunch of briefcases with nukes in them… and have been for awhile, (sorry I didn’t keep the link a few years ago)so really, enjoy what you can while you can with good conscience.
The U.S. Is Unable To Account For 36k Pounds Of Weapons Grade Uranium And Plutonium
Read more: http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-09-15/politics/30158991_1_nrc-global-threat-reduction-initiative-grade-uranium-and-plutonium#ixzz1YEaOzqCJ
This is not true, is it? 36 000 pounds thats 15,895 tons of weapons grade uranium and plutonium is missing???
Forget radiation, there is something else coming down!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14952001
@Michael Collins, The long time working theory is that the easy to detect short half life fallout is proportional to the harder to detect longer half life fallout. Its like the canary in the coal mine. This time the “canary” was the 133 times background detection. I have yet not done the analysis to figure out what the short half life (canary) component was in this fallout.
This time I noticed that the reading were staying above previous background readings. It was enough for me to start doing 1 hour total counts. The result a detection of a 2.4 day half life.
I expect that it is a mishmash of goo from other decay chains too, and that they are at levels below what I can detect with my Geiger. If they were further concentrated via food uptake, they might then be detectable.
Its not impossible that something else has been detected, but given what I have been digging up since the detection I’ll have to see some solid data to disregard that it is Np239
@Potrblog: I didn’t realize that all your past detections had readings fall off to zero after several days before this one so perhaps these are dumb questions: This fallout decreased by half over a 2.4 day period but how do you know that it was just one radionuclide and not a mishmash of different isotopes of goo? If these are indeed all short-lived isotopes, would that bode well for radioisotopes not remaining dangerous save for Np-239 decaying to the most feared poison on the planet, Plutonium-239? Also, wouldn’t you expect to have longer-lived radionuclides in the fallout than just a few days?
East Coast of Honshu, Japan once again getting battered by several strong +6 M quakes over the past couple of days, Thursday and Friday (9/15 and 9/16)!
Hm m m m m m!
More radiation to come our way?
Nuclear structures at Fukushima already hideously weak….
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/quakes_big.php
@Roundabout, not el stupido. We are all learning.
Thanks for all your input. We are all learning together!
LAUGH BREAK EVERYBODY!! Take a big breath and laugh!!:
@Annette; Thank you for setting me straight! It was the first time I ever laughed in viewing this page! I was soooo wrong all these months(thinking the dark cloud was fallout when it was windspeed!) The directions were right there the entire time! Right under my nose!! And believe it or not I would check every morning to see if the “dark cloud” was hovering over me, and if so I would limit my time outside!! OMG! LOL! Man, I am sitting here laughing at myself and wondering where else I have gotten myself tied up in knots over this!! Oh boy! Gave me a great laugh tonight! Thank you!! Very well taken! LOL! This was a good spot of humor for me to laugh at myself! Much needed! I still love myself, but this was over the top el stupido!! 🙂
@Annette2-
Just back to work. Really hectic. Will shortly get in touch w/you re getting together for geiger checking. Thanks offer.
Angusmerlin
[MAXIMUM ALERT] Neptunium 239 Potentially Detected In Saint Louis 9/14/11 Radioactive Rainfall
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/maximum-alert-neptunium-239-potentially.html
@roundabout – I may be wrong, but I believe that the map you reference is simply tracking jet stream, not pollutants, and that the dark “clouds” you reference are simply higher wind speeds (see legend at bottom of map).
http://virga.sfsu.edu/gif/jetstream_init_00.gif
This is a very interessting clip from North Anna.
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/news-video/2011/sep/02/2/a-post-earthquake-tour-of-north-anna-nuc-99830-vi-30316/
Another retrospective or perhaps yet another look into the future, I’m not sure which.
This article appeared in Asahi Shinbun on August 11, 2007.
Excerpts from the 2007 article:
[Japan’s Nuclear Plants at Grave Risk From Quake Damage]
Katsuhiko Ishibashi, a professor at the Research Center at Kobe University, warned authorities… He is specialist in seismic research. He invented the word GENPATSU-SHINSAI, meaning a combination of an earthquake and a nuclear meltdown.
” In the 40 years that Japan had been building nuclear plants, seismic activity was, fortunately or unfortunately, relatively quiet. Not a single nuclear facility was struck by a big quake. The government, along with the power industry and the academic community, all developed the habit of ‘underestimating’ the potential risks posed by major quakes. ”
” … (in 2007) the maximum ground motion caused by the quake was stronger than the seismic design criteria for the nuclear power plants. The latest temblor near Kashiwazaki (2007), generated a peak ground acceleration of 993 gal, compared with the design value of 450 gal. ”
” The period of high-level seismic activity will continue for another 40 YEARS or more. Unless radical steps are taken NOW to reduce the vulnerability of nuclear power plants to earthquakes, Japan could experience a true nuclear catastrophe in the near future. ”
” (plant revisions) …are still seriously flawed because they underestimate design basis earthquake ground motion. ”
article link: http://www.japanfocus.org/-Ishibashi-Katsuhiko/2495
@Denise Anne and all commenters: We’re aware that there are 2,395 comments on EnviroReporter.com’s Radiation Station, it has slowed loading of the page to a crawl. We’ve tried speeding things up by automatically approving comments of our regulars but it hasn’t solved the problem. Denise Anne and I will create Hot Talk as soon as possible which should correct that problem. There, of course, you will be able to continue commenting on anything you like per usual.
We regret any inconvenience and look forward to your reactions and comments as we expand our testing and reporting.
[Preliminary Alert] The 9/14/11 Saint Louis Rainfall Shows Indications of Longer Half Life Radionuclides extra precautions advised
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/preliminary-alert-91411-rainfall-shows.html
How To Get MUTATIONS or
RADIATION causing Mutations (1960)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLrMS_zs1kE&list=PL69D1BB4DB0D8F834&index=18
One thing Nuclear Proponents neglect to mention in most of their standard talk back themes is how ‘other’ life forms are affected and how those ‘chains’ of life will ultimately affect everything. (so a bunch of x-rays to us is like what to a kitten or a bee?) Change a microbe or an insect, cause not as many birds and fish to survive and guess what.(?) Everything, including humans, will be be affected.
(test comment)
This is a re-post from an early EnviroReporter.com
commenter named ‘Liz’. Her words were always inspiring to me. Thank you Liz!
* Liz says:
Mar 21 2011,
“Our task to work for the curtailment of nuclear energy is large, indeed. At times, it feels even daunting, although urgently necessary.
But before sallying forth to do battle where battle should be done, it is always wise to begin with a survey of our own tiny, individual contribution to the problem.
No matter how “Green” we all might try to be, how often do we really “unplug” and listen to the still, small voice of a bird in the garden?
No nuclear power plant was ever needed to supply energy to create such a simple, perfect miracle.”
roundabout, here is the video link you requested
http://youtu.be/UxLf8IpJiJE
University of Tokyo and Japan Atomic Energy Agency Support POTRBLOG Analysis On Fukushima Explosion
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/university-of-tokyo-and-japan-atomic.html
OMG! The biggest darkest cloud so far which is coming straight for the west coast from Japan! This thing is huge!
http://virga.sfsu.edu/gif/jetstream_init_00.gif
@NGNP: With potrblogs visual video on his website of all the xenon breaking down into iodine-133, I think I may invest in thyroid medicating companies… It’s horrible! (I can’t even afford a geiger counter yet, ha!) I think we should make sure we are taking enough iodine and the best apparently is Nascent Iodine… Yes, I agree, those with big bucks are following the money on this disaster. What good will it do if you can’t have your health?
@Potrblog; Would you be kind enough to post a link to that video showing black, the highest amount of xenon which turns into iodine-133 when it breaks down? That was one of the most validating videos for the severe crises the western hemisphere is up against.
[ALERT] Saint Louis 5:30pm 133x Greater Than Background Radiation.
The sample was taken from our SUV, after approximately 14 hours of continuous rain. The sample read 1.333 mR/hr.
Video to Follow @ http://www.POTRBLOG.com
Boron Injection Wells Into Fukushima Ground Water and NUCLEAR PLINKO
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/boron-injection-wells-into-fukushima.html
@roundabout
I noticed your post last night regarding Genzyme’s Thyrogen drug. Out of curiosity, I did a little research and found that in Feb 2011, Sanofi Aventis recently purchased Genzyme for $20 billion in cash plus payments contingent on the success of some of Genzyme’s drugs.
I also found that Sanofi Pasteur, a unit of Paris-based pharmaceutical giant Sanofi-Aventis (SNY ), was leading the pack in the race to develop a vaccine to help prevent an avian flu pandemic.
I could go on and on with what I found, but this in itself was an interesting connection. It’s important that we remain very aware as things evolve.
@Tray, he went a bit overboard in that article, but the general thrust is okay. For example, a solar storm is unlikely to take out your car (unless it is a plugged in Hybrid).
In the USA there are about 71 Nuclear Plants that are at direct risk, you can see the map of them here.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/threat-alert-one-solar-storm-71.html
There is some work being done to mitigate the risk, but with general long term infrastructure collapse is a hard thing to work around.
Read this at Natural News about one single solar flare can force every nuke plant to meltdown. http://www.naturalnews.com/033564_solar_flares_nuclear_power_plants.html
Los Angeles Municipal Water District, 2011 quarter testing data, plus additional April testing data, (received today from my local water district, a member agency, of MWD). I hope the margins stay intact when this posts:
SITELOC SAMPLE_DATE ANALYTE RESULT CE +/- UNIT DLR MCL MCL Notes
pCi/l
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Gross Alpha ND 0.93 pCi/l 3 15 excluding
Radon &
Uranium
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Gross Beta ND 1.7 pCi/l 4 50 equiv. to
4mrem/year
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Radium 226 ND 0.15 pCi/l 1 5 combined
MCL for
Ra226 +
Ra228
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Radium 228 ND 0.89 pCi/l 1 5 combined
MCL for Ra226
+ Ra228
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:05 Radon 222 ND 22 pCi/l 100 —
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Strontium 90 ND 0.29 pCi/l 2 8
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Tritium ND 193 pCi/l 1000 20,000
JFPEFF 2/7/11 9:10 Uranium 1.5 — pCi/l 1 20
JFPEFF 4/7/11 9:15 Gross Beta 5 1.9 pCi/l 4
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Gross Alpha ND 0.97 pCi/l 3
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Gross Beta ND 2 pCi/l 4
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Radium 226 ND 0.26 pCi/l 1
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Radium 228 ND 0.56 pCi/l 1
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Radon 222 ND 24 pCi/l 100
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Strontium 90 ND 0.3 pCi/l 2
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Tritium ND 198 pCi/l 1000
JFPEFF 5/2/11 9:00 Uranium 1.3 — pCi/l 1
JFPEFF 8/1/11 8:40 Uranium 1.1 — pCi/l 1
CE – Counting Error
DLR – Detection Level for purposes of Reporting
MCL – Maximum Contaminant Level
pCi/l – picoCuries per liter
This popped up in my inbox today as I subscribe to Thyroid Assoc. papers… looks like global thyroid problems are reaching critical mass six months out of March 11th…
http://thyroid.org/professionals/publications/documents/Thyrogen_SupplyStatement_09_12_2011.pdf
Lets remember how iodine 131 affects thyroids…
Pr. Chris Busby talkes about how low level cesium can cause heart illness in children.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aBW-5atBus&feature=player_detailpage
Hi folks, we received word that our comments may not be functionimg properly – if you have tried to submit a comment that didn’t go through please let us know via contact (at) enviroreporter (dot) com so we can ID the problem – thanks!
North Anna Nuclear Unit2 Had Greater Ground Motion Than Unit 1, but all Earthquake Design Basis calculations were measured from Unit 1 data
more info will follow later at http://www.POTRBLOG.com
Fukushima Nuclear Fission Hit Ground Water on August 11 and the Fallout was Detected in Saint Louis on August 20
http://youtu.be/IgQzBTcIhLU
Flew Threw Washington State the Week After Fukushima? YOU GOT A RADIOACTIVE LUNG FULL!!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/flew-threw-washington-state-week-after.html
The amount of radiation released during the Fukushima nuclear disaster was so great that the level of atmospheric radioactive aerosols in Washington state was 10,000 to 100,000 times greater than normal levels in the week following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that triggered the disaster.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/uota-rou090911.php
And I’ll tell you it was a lot higher if you were flying through that fallout in a Jet Aircraft.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/uota-rou090911.php
@Lenny, i cant answer your question but i know that there is a sweet water lake algae from Klamath Lake, Oregon that should be safe. They have chlorella and spirulina too. Just google for “Klamath Lake Algae” and you should get info on where to get it.
I have just bought some chlorella from Taiwan and a few other items. I was wondering if anyone can tell me if Taiwanese products have been possibly contaminated by the Fukushima radiation. Thank you.
Breaking News: Radiation has started attacking DNA
http://fukushima-diary.com/2011/09/breaking-news-radiation-has-started-attacking-dna/
This site reports the same in japanese and it has pictures from the mutated cicadas.
http://www.freeml.com/bl/8694840/25149/
Scary stuff!
They found Iodine 131 in four different places in Japan between 15th-25th August. Arnie Gunderson was right!
http://fukushima-diary.com/2011/09/breaking-news-fukushima-in-recriticality/
Man Hands, had a lot of people asking questions when I tweeted out your rad report post tonight on sake, veggie juice, and beer on the Bakrad RadiationNews. Directed them here to ask you their questions, hopefully they will.
Sorry haven’t been on chat lately, been busy taking care of stuff. Will try to get on sometime.
https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/09/swiss-roll-green-tea/
https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/09/japanese-beer-3-4-5-6-september-6-2011/
https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/09/sake-september-7-2011/
https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/09/vegetable-juice-september-8-2011/
Keep up the good work, see ya on the Bakrad RadNews network! Say “Hi” to Lady Fingers for us.
– Bakrad
@Chase – My thoughts re: UCB’s theory that the recent high cesium in manure & topsoil results from Sacramento are due primarily to atmospheric testing:
-Argument supporting that theory: The gap between Cs 134 & Cs 137 leads us to believe that much of the amount of Cs137 that exceeds 1.5 times the Cs134 would be from a previous source. Given the half-lives of both isotopes and the Fukushima attributed cesium fallout documented thus far world-wide, the ratio should be much closer for a recent event.
-Argument questioning the theory: See this I131 exposure map due to NV Atmospheric testing: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/causes/I131/state and county exposure
If we use I131 as a marker for other particulate fallout (including cesium) also attributable to the NV testing, it would appear that the Sacramento area was very lightly affected. To confirm this, one would have to compare the Sacramento results directly to the soil/manure contamination with cesium 134:137 ratio from an area known to be more heavily hit with the NV fall-out. This doesn’t rule out contamination from Chernobyl or other atmospheric tests around the world (by US and others).
North Anna NRC Meeting Summary: I Would NOT Want to Live Near North Anna
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/north-anna-nrc-meeting-summary-i-would.html
lucid8f, looks like you are affected too. The situation has gotten worse since I first reported the other day. I’m not sure whether to hope that its incompetence on the NRC’s part or something else
Nuclear power plants in Pennsylvania are preparing for possible flooding
http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedDetailedNews/RSSFeed/ElectricPower/6454882
Could Rancho Seco nuclear power plant have something to do with the high cesium levels in Sac? Atmospheric nuclear weapons testing fallout should be the same in both places shouldnt it?
@potrblog: I am still able to view the report from Sept 1 2011. There isn’t anything new showing up since event 47228. This link works for me. http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/2011/20110901en.html#en47228. Maybe your DNS server isn’t working correctly? I’d hate to think they are blocking your IP specifically. Here’s a list of DNS servers. http://www.whatsmydns.net/dns/usa/
They just had an 5.2 earthquake near Fukushima.
http://quakes.globalincidentmap.com/map_detail.php?id=132660
Hope nothing happend there.
I am now Locked Out of directly viewing the NRC “Current Event Notification Reports”; and only have limited success using anonymous proxies to gain access to the reports.
http://youtu.be/vFS69qgBRVk
Independent Youtube Video
Perhaps this is why Berkeley had to say something about manure?
Bag of Manure purchased in Redlands, CA
Shows 255 cpm from 8/10/2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoW7YQNjI-k&list=PLD33AEE01FE5EBB75&index=10
Good thing he tested it prior to using it in his own vegetable garden. But, how many did not test it and used it, that’s the question? …and you know some, if not many, did. Not to mention ‘corporate’ farming. You think they are going to test the fertilizer? Think again.
@Chase: The Ce-137 will accumulate as the dispersion from the Fukushima plant continues. That number isn’t going down any time soon. It will only go up and up. Unless, it gets absorbed by some growing plant, like grass, and is again eaten by the Cow. And then excreted into the Cow’s milk, and then poured onto someone’s cereal. So gradually, it will disperse into the food chain. We are all becoming unwilling ‘filters’ of radioactive Cesium! Yikes!
So… basically, they (Berkeley Nuke ‘Expert’ Team) are at least admitting that cesium, without a shadow of a doubt, has entered our USA food chain via cow poop. That’s a BIG DEAL!!!
Note: Cesium-137 remains ‘HAZARDOUS’ to life for 300 years!!! That’s a LONG DEAL!!!
Cow poop that was left outside in the ‘rain’. What were those cows thinking? I guess chit happens.
Berkeley Samples Link (see dried manure 8/16)
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2525#soilSacramento
The DATA LEAK that sparked tomorrow’s unscheduled NORTH ANNA Nuclear plant NRC meeting- THE QUAKE EXCEEDED THE DESIGN BY 2X
Fukushima August Re-Criticality: Groundwater, Iodine 131, & Radon 222 = China Syndrome
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/fukushima-august-re-criticality.html
Have you seen these soil samples? Sure don’t look good.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2525#soilSacramento
According to a CNN news report. It appears as though Fukushima is ‘stabilizing’. “What???” – Chase
“I believe restarting the nuclear power plants is necessary to stably supply the energy to our users,” he said. “We must (make every) effort for the restart. It is the MOST IMPORTANT thing for that is TO SHOW the people that Fukushima’s situation is STABILIZED and the issue has come to the end. This is our responsibility.” – Toshio Nishizawa President Tokyo Electric Power Company
He says the word stable or stabilizing at least 5 times in less than 60 seconds of air time.
Japan Nuke Plant Stabilizing
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/09/05/japan.nuclear.interview/index.html?iref=storysearch
A-m-a-z-i-n-g… disinformation if ever I saw it!!!
_____________
I have followed Michael’s advise and setup a youtube channel dedicated to those who struggle for Fukushima truth and justice. I tried to organize it into several ‘playlists’. Click on my user name above to view the Main User called STOPnukesNOW.
or… Click this link for an example of one of the playlists: (includes my brief comments for each video)
“Radiation Realities”
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=69D1BB4DB0D8F834
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) broadcasts public meetings over the Internet as a means of improving communications with the public.
http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/public-meetings/webcast-live.html
http://blogs.fredericksburg.com/waterearthsky/2011/09/07/nrc-meeting-tomorrow-on-north-anna/
Kansas City, Here It Comes: A New Nuclear Weapons Plant!
http://www.laprogressive.com/war-and-peace/nuclear-weapons-protests/
I thought they were working on reducing the nuclear arsenal that already exists. Why do we need more on this planet and why is this weapons plant being build in a place where they have Tornados? Just imagine, if one of those Tornados hits that plant and all that goo get spread for miles and miles.
[ALERT] NRC To Hold September 8 Public Meeting On NORTH ANNA NUCLEAR. DO YOUR UTMOST TO ATTEND!!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/09/alert-nrc-to-hold-september-8-public.html
US Crop Harvest Dates .pdf –
http://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Usual_Planting_and_Harvesting_Dates/uph97.pdf
Here’s a document with maps of US food crops, with their planting/harvest dates. Although it’s very dated (’97), I don’t think the harvest dates would vary by too much today. The maps show the regions where a particular crop (primarily grains) are grown – this will help you to determine if a crop is grown in a higher risk area for potential fall-out (based upon jet stream, rain outs, etc.). Following each crop planting map is a state by state schedule of typical planting and harvest dates. This is some pretty useful information if you’re stocking up on pre-Fuk foods, i.e., you may want to load up and freeze some bread for the near term, and buy a few buckets of wheat or wheat flour to ensure radiation-free homemade bread in the long-term. But, you’ve got to do it sooner rather than later, in order to ensure that you’ve got wheat from last year’s harvest. Who cares about wheat… what about the beer, you say? Yes, this document has barley harvest dates as well (which is some important info, in light of Michael’s recent radiation readings showing the Japanese rice beer as radioactive)… the barley harvest will be coming in soon. Use this map to help determine cut-off dates for when the 2011 harvest will be hitting the shelves (if you’re so inclined).
To your health!
thanks glassgreen for the advice, i will be better prepared for the rain next time
i think that i was registering mostly dust particles but was quite interesting to see the meter fluctuate higher than normal.
@hector Next time it rains, can you collect rain water in a clean bowl or dish and do a reading from that, as well as rain water deposited on a solid surface (like your kids’ wagon)? I’m thinking that some of the contamination could be from dust particles that had settled on the wagon and got wiped off with your rain sample. It’ll help to isolate what’s coming from the rain versus what’s airborne and settling. I’m taking readings here in Wisconsin and will do the same next time it rains. Actually, I guess I could wipe down an outside surface anytime and do a reading, although it’s recently rained here (and the rain was at background), any contamination is probably pretty diluted. It’s going to be dry here for the next 7-10 days, so I’ll wait until the dust settles (literally) and do a reading on an outdoor surface in a week or so.
@Hector; It is the dirtiest air we have had in a long time from Japans jet stream. I should have said stay out of the fog and the rain! http://virga.sfsu.edu/gif/jetstream_init_00.gif
hello folks,i i wiped some rain water from my boys radio flyer which got soaked with rain. the geiger fluctuated between 150-200 counts per minute on the wipe test.clearly way above the normal background level of 48 cpm. will post video on you tube soon
It is now raining in Los Angeles, will take 10 minute readings once it all settles down a bit.
Stay tuned
It was raining on and off all day yesterday in Madison, Wisconsin. I got normal outdoor readings, even in the rain. This is the first time that my rain readings weren’t elevated.
However, I see that the jet stream is going to be taking another steep dive from Canada into the region in the next few days. No rain is in the forecast, but it’ll be interesting to see if I get any elevated outdoor air readings.
Stay tuned.
@chase To your questions: “Why isn’t AGGRESSIVE testing being pursued on all levels, simultaneously, by academic, governmental (local & fed), military, medical, corporate (especially food industries) and organized teams of qualified individuals..”
If there is no testing (or at least test results released to the public), then there is no problem. Nobody has to acknowledge the problem, the nuclear industry doesn’t have to take responsibility for the problem, corporations don’t have to remove products from the market/food chain (and take revenue losses), and so on. It’s the ultimate case of their burying their heads in the sand.
While we like to think that at least the academic world would be all over this, they have a lot of government and corporate partnerships. And many reply heavily on government and corporate funding and grants. So while I think there is resistance to silence on their part, at some point they have to cave in.
I’ve been saying from day one of this incident that I don’t understand why there isn’t a world-wide consortium of scientists and other nuclear industry “experts” involved in this. This incident is impacting the world. I suspect there probably is, but they are keeping everything under wraps.
Stay out of the fog those in central and southern Ca for the next few days… It’s very dirty…
http://virga.sfsu.edu/gif/jetstream_init_00.gif
@Chase:
We are in the midst of a flurry of tests for Fukushima fallout in food and drink here in Southern California. The videos you watched on our YouTube channel, linked to from our Stats page(s), will be inserted into EnviroReporter.com as posts (and on our Radiation Station Video) as soon as I’m finished writing them (over the next day). Those posts may help answer most of your questions (which you rhetorically answered so well here, Chas.). There will be less “silence” over this as we further broaden our coverage and push the pieces through other media.
Regarding your questions: “How dangerous do you think these sources are?” Answer: Ingesting possible fission-related radionuclides in fallout found in foodstuffs is serious business. That may be the reasons for the heightened radiation we’ve found in two brands of Japanese beer, three types of Japanese tea including green tea, Japanese seaweed (with indications of alpha radiation), Japanese yellow tail gill, chocolate stick cookies from Japan and Natto bean dip, popular in Japan.
Your question: “What is the significance of that? Shouldn’t most/all items test normal?” Answer: The significance is self-evident; Fukushima fallout is the most likely reason that foodstuffs are registering higher in radiation. That is serious business too, obviously.
Your last question about “What ‘would or should’ a good old USA made ‘bud like’ beer test out at?” can be answered like this: Our beer should test at background or a teensy-weensy bit above it depending on the soils where the grains, hops and other ingredients are grown. Keep in mind, the jet stream is bringing Fukushima radiation in it and raining down on America and Canada. How much it impacts North American crops (and beer) is still to be seen but you can count on us expanding our testing to look at this dire problem.
Your comment is excellent and I do hope you put it up on our YouTube page too, Chas, along with other observations regarding related videos of testing we’ve posted. The YouTube community would benefit greatly from your insights.
I watched two very interesting videos. (‘food’ testing)
“Japanese Beer RADIATION TEST 8-31-11 PART 2”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9x_Y96KHb0&feature=channel_video_title
AND…
“Japanese Seaweed RADIATION TEST 8-23-11 PART 2”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJD-sdLhDBs&feature=channel_video_title
_________________________
The added commentary is informative. So don’t forget to turn your speakers on like I did the first time.
I estimate I have at least a hundred questions, but I’ll try to keep it down to almost three.
1. This question was actually asked by ‘iam335’ on the “Eat Me” comments page and I’m using it a bit out of context here, but I like the way he worded the question.
“How dangerous do you think these sources are?” – iam335
The ‘short answer’ to myself on that one would be “Some guessing can be done, but don’t really know without aggressive testing.”
So the actual question would be…
“Why isn’t AGGRESSIVE testing being pursued on all levels, simultaneously, by academic, governmental (local & fed), military, medical, corporate (especially food industries) and organized teams of qualified individuals… WHY???”
We see the proof, yet we hear mostly silence.
2. You mentioned in one of the videos, that some other items on the shelf at the store, not from Japan also showed higher than background. I think I heard that correctly. (?)
If I did hear correctly, then…
“What is the significance of that? Shouldn’t most/all items test normal?”
3. Just for comparison…
“What ‘would or should’ a good old USA made ‘bud like’ beer test out at?”
Thank you Chase for the Link. This very informative article explains where the contamination in the Niagra Falls area most likley came from:
http://www.ask.ne.jp/~hankaku/english/niagara_fall.html#0001
The NRC watchmen on the wall are now providing our nation with “a technical feeling” level of how safe our reactors are during an earthquake… http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/09/01/1738697/ap-impact-quakes-pose-greater.html
It appears that NRC is routing certain IP addresses who visit the http://WWW.nrc.gov to a different server; and that something has happened to make that server 1 day behind the other server. The issue does not seem to occur if one leaves the “WWW” off of the NRC’s address.
For example: If your IP address is affected
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/en.html
will take you to the previous day’s events.
Whereas,
http://nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/en.html
will route to the current events.
Earlier this week I went north to Green Bay, Wisconsin. I’m happy to report that the 10-min readings there were similar to, if not slightly lower than, my readings in Madison. (~10-11 CPM indoor and ~12-14 CPM outdoor.) During one outdoor reading it was sprinkling a little and the reading was normal.
10 x Background Road Slag Niagara Falls, NY
Tips to news station spawn probe.
“It’s on the peoples lawns.”
“Radiation (from road slag) of no concern to residents, as it is not the kind you ingest or inhale.” (in other words it’s like an x-ray)- Channel 4 News Video
“Radiation is Radiation!” – road worker
http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/niagara/Concerns-over-Falls-road-fill-radiation
I knew they were going to say that.
@2dogs; The following link; chlorella is grown in stainless steel tanks, but their spirulina is from North China sea. http://www.znaturalfoods.com/Algae-Seaweeds
It is easy enough to get Kelp from the Atlantic with a google search. Back in April a company I googled “Atlantic Ocean Kelp” were out of stock… no surprise there. But I am impressed with the chlorella being grown pretty much hermetically by the above said company. It is not cracked wall, however it is “thin wall”. Cracked is best for bioavailability. Their Bladderrack is North Atlantic.
FYIl Mercola has a 40% off of Solgar Kelp right now, but you would have to call the Solgar co for harvesting areas… And if it is your birthday Mercola.com will send you a ten dollar coupon. I happily found out today! 🙂
@Potrblog
I watched the video. Which also is a good tutorial on ‘how to’ access the NRC events page and ‘how to’ surf with an anonymous IP page by the way.
I will say it looks very odd. I don’t have a clue as to an answer.
It is sad to think that if an emergency were actually happening in your area and you could not access the NRC event board, in order to make your own evaluation of a situation, instead of relying on NRC Press releases, it could cost you your life. (?)
Smart to pull out the camera and show ‘exactly’ what was going on.
@Chase, that NRC link only works for me if I use an anonymous proxy. What ever is going on it looks like it is tied to my IP address, surely it can’t be a case of “Dirty Tricks”. But I decided to document the issue on video, and post it for further input.
Here is the link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFS69qgBRVk
This is the direct link. Worked for me. (?)
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/2011/20110901en.html
The only other ‘event’ of note was somebody in Kentucky ran over a container of cesium with a bulldozer. No reason for concern though.
Note: “source rod not exposed, when the dozer ran over the device…”
@Chase, thanks for the event number. The only way I can get to that event number is using google’s cache; anything else takes me to the NRC August’s page.
NRC Event Report
EMERGENCY DECLARED Event Number: 47228
Notification Date: 09/01/2011
Notification Time: 05:40 [ET]
Event Date: 09/01/2011
Event Time: 05:18 [EDT]
UNUSUAL EVENT DECLARED DUE TO AN AFTERSHOCK EARTHQUAKE
At 0518 EDT, North Anna Power Station declared an Unusual Event due to seismic activity onsite (EAL HU 1.1). Both units are currently shutdown and electrical power is being supplied from offsite. There were no personnel injuries. There was no radiological release. Site structure and system inspections are in progress. No damage has been identified.
Where are the NRC Event Reports for September 1st?
As of 3:15pm on 9/1/11 the NRC has not updated its Nuclear Events Reports webpage? That surely must be a sign that NOTHING IMPORTANT is going on! Lets see if they can stretch it out past Labor day.
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/event/2011/
I am considering adding spirulina and chlorella to my supplement list, but many of the sources note they are hawaiian or china grown- I assume the hawaiian source is getting the cesium dusting, but anyone have confidence in either source?
@Infrared, there is also another possibility and that is that something has recently happened to the old fuel rods. Those rods would be a source for radon. But these will all be things for the historians to determine, no one in the know is going to provide such info real time for an on going un-ending crisis.
@Infrared, that is a chart showing the EPA censoring RadNet data, the annotations point to where the EPA actively censored during a time where I detected a high amount of fallout. see this link for the details
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/radnet-data-censorship-saint-louis-mo.html
In regards to the Fukushima Radon relationship to an on going “China Syndrome”, there are two methods I put forth @13 min & 31 sec into the video, see here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEsKxmJPUmM&t=13m31s
The summary is that it could be that the releases are exacerbated by Fukushima; it could be that Radon or a parent like Astatine 222 are being actively created at Fukushima; or it could be a combination of the two.
In either case the Short Half life radiation fallout makes a great tracker/indicator for the longer half life radiation. The key is that atom for atom, Fukushima Radon is a much easier to detect than the longer half life fallout, and as such it makes the use of Geiger counters a good early warning indicator for locations where more sensitive instruments should be used to track the accumulation of things like radioactive Cesium.
On the down side some will always claim it is a “natural” element and therefore should be ignored see:
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/all-brawm-and-no-brains-university-of.html
and
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/tenorm-smoking-gun-on-hiding-fukushima.html
@ALL: Did anyone manage to sample rain from Hurricane Irene to test for radiation? I was hoping we might get good news ala what POTRblog found in Florida – no additional radiation above background in storm rains originating from the Atlantic/Africa. No news is not good news in this case. Perhaps Arnie Gundersen tested some of this rain since so much of it fell on Vermont where Fairewinds Associates is located.
Check out this French study of Cesium-137 from Fukashima to US with some animated charts.
Seeing high readings in Dawson Creek, BC, Canada
See screen shots August 26th, 27th
(CPM averages above alert levels.)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/65289394@N07/sets/72157627207144177/detail/
August 27 2011 21:32:39 MT
Average 629.30 CPM 12.54 uSv/h Wind: Variable 5 km/h *6 hour recording*
August 26 2011 03:29:16 MT
Average 124.20 CPM 4.03 uSv/h Wind: SW 4 km/h *6 hour recording*
August 25 2011 03:29:08 MT
Average 130.30 CPM 3.17 uSv/h Wind: Variable 11 km/h *6 hour recording*
August 24 2011 03:28:55 MT
Average 177.90 CPM 4.17 uSv/h Wind: SW 30 gust 44 km/h *6 hour recording*
Spikes start increasing from normal around August 18th. With some pretty high reading prior to that too.
Wilma P. “If any country or any organization recognized the need for cleaning depleted uranium, it would automatically mean that they recognized the danger of using DU. If this happened, we could have damage claims in the courts, and nobody is ready to accept this.”
http://www.warchildren.org/hidden_killer.html
@Potrblog
Hi I was watching your video and couldn’t help but notice at 6:16 minutes in you show a CPM graph. On this graph you have arrows pointing to measurements, the arrows have text associated with them, declaring either 62x background radiation, 37x background radiation, or 50x background radiation. These arrows point to areas of the CPM graph that dont seem to logically correlate to the stated x amount of times of background radiation. Example: the 37x is way higher in CPM on the graph than the 62x, directly to the right of it?
Also the CPM graph displays even higher than noted cpm counts(over 5000) which would equal even more than the max declared 62x (over 5000 proportionally based on what you are showing would be 1??x).
Just a note.
Also from my understanding Radon Progeny is from a natural uranium or thorium decay, something that is not happening in Fukushima where there is active Corium undergoing sub-critical fissioning.
Please explain.
Hello Mr Collins: Heard you on Rense last night. Last week I Googled “Japan offers to enrich uranium for Iran” and got 740,000 hits. Feb 2011 Japan made this serious mistake and violla March 11 we all get Fukishima. Let us all relish who is doing this to us as we get bathed in radiation this “nuclear winter”. I guess we can all figure out WHO. Anyway next week I get my inspector + and am very interested in joining citizen efforts in doing what our useless government should. I wonder if sending radioactive material to Mr Gunderson could be construed as terrorism by Big Sis. Thanks for your efforts on Behalf of the people.
@Potrblog – great synthesis of multiple data sources: US government monitoring reports and multiple civilian observations/testing/sampling results with Fuku onsite observations… the first viable theory we’ve seen… thank you.
North American Radon Spikes As Indicators of Fukushima’s “China Syndrome”
The following is a direct link to the relevant portion of my previous blog post video which correlates recent massive short-half-life radiation spikes in North America with recent Fukushima reports as being indicative of “Corium” interacting with ground water in a China Syndrome event.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEsKxmJPUmM&t=13m31s
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=2412
@Chase
Speechless.
@annette2 What a great reply/comment!
@roundabout A women’s intuition is a powerful thing.
“They never thought that someday people would be driving around with Rad Detectors.” – Chase
My guy ‘gut’ feeling is that the those who built the freeways were paid to mix the stuff into the concrete and then paid again to build the freeway. (speculation) They NEVER THOUGHT that someday people would be driving around with Rad Detectors. I am sure, if ‘they’ ever go to trial for crimes against humanity, they will say they were told that it would not really hurt anybody and that it would not be of any concern. They might say something like, “People will be driving and only be exposed for short durations, it won’t hurt them more than an airplane ride.”
The Interstate 40 workers that used DU from St. Louis, MO have paid a high price with their lives and their health. (according to Dr. Rokke a DU cleanup expert)
I’ll bet that these freeway ‘death’ zones all all over the USA. Concrete or asphalt mixed with all sorts of toxic goo. Who is responsible for this? Who will pay the price in the end?
___________________________________
[ Fukushima Is Continually Blasting All Of Us ]
from article:
“This is a nightmare that will be with us for the rest of our lives. Millions are going to get sick and untold numbers of people are going to slowly die.”
“With Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, and now with Fukushima, you can pinpoint the exact day and time they started,” he said, “But they NEVER end.” – Arnie Gunderson
article:
http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/fukushima-is-continually-blasting-all-of-us-with-high-levels-of-cesium-strontium-and-plutonium-and-will-slowly-kill-millions-for-years-to-come
____________________________________
[ On The Beach ]
I watched a clip from a movie made in 1959. It’s called “On The Beach”. Adapted from the book. Starring Fred Astaire, Gregory Peck, Anthony Perkins, Ava Gardner. (Voted one of the saddest movies of all time.) It’s about people facing the end of times because of Nuclear Fallout.
It’s tough being the messenger, but somebody’s got to do it. This is a classic scene about background radiation levels and peoples reaction to it. (seem familiar?) btw – really great acting!
(1 minute, turn up the volume a bit)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kc7y8xs6QXw
This movie was also made into an updated Mini-Series in Australia around 2000. 3 hours long. You can watch it in full for free on youtube. (parts 1 through 20, about 10 minutes each)
Here’s a clip from the Mini-Series which shows the best Radiation Dispersion Map I’ve ever seen. OMG!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzsZTEEkrm0
“Have some FUN today!” – Chase
http://houseoffoust.com/group/?p=2456
@Michael
CRIIRAD is doing it, so are you! Potrblog too.
So how about engaging current NGOs (thinking PSR) to follow your lead and help set up labs for rads in North America to test food, rain, snow, topsoil, milk, tap water…? Your Santa Monica location can be the first, followed by St. Louis, Portland Ore, Oakland, etc., etc. See above.
@portrblog; yes! people should leave the North Anna Nuke plant area: http://www.readthehook.com/100493/tritium-trouble-did-quake-cause-radioactive-leak
@Chase; Feedback on the high SM freeway readings. Women’s intuition; same thing that happened with fluoride in the water; find a way to mix it in with a profitable motive, the uranium is difficult and costly to store; right? So, like fluoride in water, mix it into to roadwork. No one will know the difference. There is just so much of the stuff around now, why not?
Regarding all the “unusual” USA nuke plants; “me thinks” this has been going on for a very long time, and is just now getting exposed due to the floods and quakes and fires… and Fukushima and watchdog groups. Me thinks we should all have rolls of heavy duty plastic, white paint and duct tape just in case. Especially if living within the area of a nuke plant. This is one emergency supply that should be mandatory in your “go kit”. And a car full of gas if you can get out before the others “know”…and without being stuck in traffic. It’s just a part of life for now. Understand that.
@Michael; I logged on too late last night and missed the broadcast, hoping it will be up for a replay…?
@Chase – I can speculate on the reasons… perhaps that section of freeway was constructed with a concrete blend with higher uranium or radioactive waste, or perhaps there was a car/vehicle/mobile source of radioactivity nearby at that moment (reminiscent of Potrblog’s radioactive truck encounter a few months ago). A good way to eliminate/narrow down possibilities would be repeated testing… obviously if the area continued to remain “hot” at various times/conditions, that would indicate a permanent presence of radioactive materials, rather than something transient (air particles, vehicles, etc.).
Another good example is the westernmost end of the 10 Freeway in Santa Monica… it jumps from a 39 on PCH to 139 as it apparently leaves the McClure Tunnel heading east, then sustains that level for a mile or so, before quickly dropping back down into the 40 range… leads one to contemplate all the same variables, including the possibility of a fallout hotspot.
I took a close look at Topanga Canyon Blvd., traveling north to the 118, skirting the old Rocketdyne (meltdown) site. It stays pretty cool & stable (notwithstanding the air temperatures that topped well over 100 degrees in the Valley on that day – ha), heading north pretty much past Roscoe where you’d turn up to the Rocketdyne site, then the radioactivity climbs into the 70’s and maintains through the Santa Susanna Pass as you enter the 118 Freeway heading west – staying as close to Rocketdyne as this map tracks. The measurements then drop back down as you leave the Santa Susanna Pass and drop into Simi Valley. I would guess (in no way conclusive, just my amateur stab at this) that this radioactivity elevation is not indicative of old radioactive fallout, but rather of the outcropping and extremely dense rock formations in the area. Keep in mind that numerous nuclear engineers have cautioned us that geiger counters have great difficulty measuring hot particles. While we know hot particles are present in the soils surrounding Rocketdyne, I believe the elevated readings reflect radioactivity from the extensive rock formations, not the remaining fallout from the Rocketdyne meltdown.
This leads us to the usefulness of these maps. They are certainly extremely useful in Japan, where they have such intense fallout depositions that the background has been increased to a measurable level. I think they are also useful here, to show us that we have not received fallout on the same levels as Japan (trust me, some days last April when the winds were blowing relentlessly our way and Michael’s Inspector was consistently reading hotter than counters in Tokyo, there were several moments when I thought that we’d gotten it all). There is finally sufficient testing to document that, sadly for the Japanese, that that is not the case. Since we know that we did receive some level of fallout nevertheless, I still think this is incredibly useful to search for potential hotspots, that should then be further investigated. Most importantly, I do not think that the low air measurements shown on these maps should cause us to disregard the scanty information that we have received indicated ongoing cesium contamination of our food supply in California. The food supply contamination will not be going away any time soon, and we need to remember that and take whatever precautions we deem necessary to protect our families.
@Bar – I’ll be sure to share whatever testing results I receive on the beach sand.
@Annette2 re: >=105 cpm on Santa Monica Freeway – readings map (Entry Number 193)
I noticed upon ‘ZOOMing’ in to the http://maps.safecast.org/drives Entry #193, that a large stretch of the Santa Monica Freeway reads over 105 cpm. hmmm… I wonder why that is? Cars, DU goo in the concrete?
Seems high to me, considering the surrounding readings looked very normal.
Anybody… any thoughts on this one?
Highest recorded reading in Oahu, HA. As of Aug 18th, 2011. [16 Rem/hr]
http://whatreallyhappened.com/WRHARTICLES/oahurad.php
When a radioactive particle OR ray strikes a cell, one of at least four things can happen:
1. It may pass through the cell without doing any damage;
2. It may damage the cell, but in a way that the cell can recover and repair itself before it divides;
3. It may kill the cell;
4. Or, worst of all, it may damage the cell in such a way that the damage is repeated when the cell divides.
Three of those four circumstances can have health effects.
______________________________
The only thing ‘stable’ about Fukushima is the lack of or difficult to understand data, misleading headlines(if any), the outright disinformation(lies) and the overall ‘apathy’ from most of the citizens of this planet. All of those things seem to be holding fairly steady at this time.
Another source of radioactivity, fireworks! Strontium has a half-life of 28.9 years. I have seen people light up fireworks at the beaches around LA. Wenn you check the sand for radiation can that strontium be detected?
Strontium (red): This soft, silvery-yellow metal turns red when it burns, is extremely reactive with both air and water, and can be radioactive.
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/translating-uncle-sam/stories/are-fireworks-bad-for-the-environment
I’m a member of the Radiation Network. CC_13 is my station in AZ. I was lucky enough to have pre Fukushima rain water. I’ve got a SEI Monitor 4 kit. I took sediment samples from the bottom of my rain barrels and dried them, as per my Nuke Chem Tech associate’s instructions. Here are my results: Pre-Fukushima 18 CPM. My post Fukushima readings have been 17, 18 and 19 CPM. Ambient air pre / post Fukushima has been 20 CPM. The tests were done over a 20 min period.
article from a local san luis obispo area digital paper on upcoming september meeting to form coordinated coalition of groups to oppose cali nuke plant relicense:
http://slocoastjournal.com/docs/fourth_estate/close_plants.html
Hey Michael- I have been traveling a bit and didn’t see the web site the last days but I did catch you on the last hour of rense tonite- great articulate job!
[Update] 178X Saint Louis Background Radiation Source Identified
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEsKxmJPUmM
Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant in Unusual Event mode. Unit One is not functioning. There is an overflow at St. Mary’s dam.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXYtlqlZiq0
St Mary’s County is advising residents to move to higher locations. Residents should also avoid walking in, driving in or touching flood water and wash hands thoroughly after touching it. (WOW!!!) What do they think may be present in the water?
http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-08-28/news/bs-md-st-marys-dam-failure-20110827_1_dam-water-levels-roads
Here is a youtube link to an interview with Paul Gunter (Beyond Nuclear) from last Friday. Talks about pipe and concrete damage at North Anna. Also, info also on dam structures. Fukushima updates too. 9 minutes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OaeB2b8Ggg
http://maps.safecast.org/drives
In addition to its excellent work in Japan and Hawaii, Safecast has posted radiation readings (air) from 3 drives in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara. These measurements were taken on 8/23, 8/24 and 8/28. Click onto the listing of drives (above), and access the so CA data as entries #182, 189 & 193.
@Potrblog
http://blog.alexanderhiggins.com/2011/04/12/realtime-epa-radnet-japan-nuclear-radiation-monitoring-every-us-city-single-page-16511/
Please check out Harrisonburg, VA Gross Beta numbers within link above. These correlate with North Anna?
@Chase
Remarkable animation, great find — thanks for the CEREA Cesium Dispersion Maps. Evacuate the West Coast?
The upcoming winter rainy season with its seasonal shift south of the Jet Stream gives one pause. Not a bad idea to have an updated passport handy to enable travel south.
@POTRblog: We cannot thank you enough for all you have done to educate us about radiation, fallout, nuclear reactions, radiation exposure and possibly impending nuclear meltdowns in our own country. No words of thanks are enough. You are an American treasure. Thank you.
@All: I will be on The Jeff Rense Program tonight, live from 9 to 10pm PDST, and would like to solicit from you Raddies what are the most important specific issues you’d like discussed concerning the ongoing disaster in Fukushima, the new UC Berkeley radiation readings in milk, fallout in the United States, and our government’s failure to fully protect us. Oh yes, I already have plenty to talk about with Jeff, but your input would be most welcome. Send me your suggestions to and make sure to listen in regardless.
MILK TESTS at UCB
These numbers are coming in ‘higher’ than I expected.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2174
Scroll down to see the Cesium-137. Again, confirming what we already know.
Did quake effects exceed North Anna design?
http://blogs.fredericksburg.com/waterearthsky/2011/08/29/more-on-quake-at-north-anna/
It exceeded the design of the non-seismic Turbine Building. Thats for shure.
[ALERT] North Anna Nuclear: Earthquake Design Limits Exceeded, PLANT SAFETY DEGRADED
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/alert-north-anna-nuclear-earthquake.html
@glassgreen
NRC Events/Documents
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/
Then, select ‘Event Notification Report’ either Current or Archive.
8/28/11 6:30pm Light Rain Radioactive at 39X Background
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/82811-630pm-light-rain-radioactive-at.html
Is there a web site that lists nuclear facility “events”? I’m wondering what’s happening on the east coast with all the flooding and power outages.
CEREA Lab from France. Cesium Dispersion Maps. (Scroll down for the animated one.) Disclaimer: The magnitude of activity concentration field is uncertain and could be significantly different from the actual one. (Note: This is as about as close to accurate as it’s going to get in my opinion.)
http://cerea.enpc.fr/fr/fukushima.html
______________________________________
SAND: Side note… As noted in an earlier comment here on EnviroReporter. Mark B. of the BRAWM Team stated he had detected ‘cesium’ in sand from a beach. However, he did not state what the level of detection was nor the location of the beach.
I also thought a ‘core’ sample of sand might show something for comparison. Take a pipe or something and go down a couple of feet. If the deeper sand was not as hot as the upper sand, then maybe there’s more than just quartz. Also, if a dry sand sample were taken a short distance ‘away’ from the beach ‘filtering’ area, then that might also give a clue as to the true nature of the sand’s hotness. (just thinking out loud)
Testing of bikini tops is really great idea too! I so need to own a detector. 😉
The link to the UC Berkeley radiation testing site on Enviroreporter.com is broken. It appears to be missing a slash in the URL address.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/ucbairsampling
Hi Michael – I didn’t know about the quartz in Malibu sand as opposed to other LA beaches – thank you for that info. J & I did assume that the sand would (similar to my arena sand and the rocks in the area) be somewhat radioactive… thanks for confirming that. The sample can still serve as a baseline for comparison against any future ratio increases.
Since Zuma is not on Santa Monica Bay, I took another sample at Surfrider Beach which is on Santa Monica Bay (heavily polluted from multiple sources including the Hyperion Water Treatment plant), and I sent sand, kelp and sand crab shell samples to WPI from both locations for comparison. I thought it may be helpful to identify any local sources of radiological contaminants at the outset, so they would not be mistakenly attributed to Fukushima at some future date.
In any case, as I’m sure Denise can attest, the water sure does feel great right now… I love our southern California beaches (and am sure hoping the toxic slop is minimal)!
Thank you for graciously hosting this site, Michael & Denise. We are the fortunate beneficiaries of your years of experience and hard work.
@Annette2: Beach sand in Malibu has quartz in it and much like your granite/quartz countertop, radiates. That is probably why you got the overage. Last Saturday, I sampled the Pacific in Santa Monica, several miles away from Malibu. I used Denise’s bikini top after she came out of the ocean bagged it for testing at Radiation Station. The bikini didn’t emit additional radiation above background though it sure was hot. That can’t be said for water taken from the Pacific a few weeks ago by Cabrillo Beach that was significantly higher in radiation. That testing is part of an upcoming article.
It might be helpful to take water samples directly bypassing the sand entirely. Try this tip to sample without getting wet or even gooey in some known toxic slop: Attach a sock to a broom with a clip then dip. Sounds kooky but it works every time. We’ll have photos of this kind of advanced sampling protocol in our upcoming coverage but until then, check our new The 2011 Toxies and keep on sampling, Annette!
@Annette2 Way to Go and thanks for the read!
Very interesting on the ‘sand’ reading. The beach sand is the line marker between us and the sea. It only makes sense to me that sand acts as a filter would. You got a baseline or snapshot of the moment to show at least what it is at this time. At least we know something now we didn’t know before.
🙂
Baseline* Malibu beach background:
8/27/2011, 1:50pm, Background = 42.5 CPM, Sand = 65.4 CPM = 1.54 times background
Notes: Wet sand collected on 8/25/11 from Westward Beach (Zuma-adjacent), Malibu, California, at point of rolling surf. Sample allowed to air dry (enclosed location). A 10-minute background count was run on a clean paper plate, and averaged for CPM. The sample was then placed on the plate and a 10-minute count was taken and compared against the background. Note that a portion of this sample was sent to Worcester Polytechnic Institute for radioisotope analysis.
*This sample was taken to serve as a baseline in order to monitor for increased radionuclides from Fukushima. This is, of course, based upon the assumption that radioisotopes from Fukushima have not yet arrived in Malibu waters.
THE HISTORY OF DOMINION-VIRGINIA POWER’s SEISMIC COVER-UP
http://www.bredl.org/pdf3/051008_factsheet_Allegation2005A0014.pdf
Unbelievable! Must read!
A new Gunderson video, giving some vindication to Arnie, in case you didn’t get the memo… http://fairewinds.com/content/newly-released-tepco-data-proves-fairewinds-assertions-significant-fuel-pool-failures-fukush
[ URGENT ] North Anna Nuclear, Hurricane Irene, Personal Evacuation Decision Criteria
http://youtu.be/0GbxV7gOiwA
A detail analysis of the Lake Anna nuclear plant’s dropping lake levels; decay heat steam discharges; earthquake design limits; and the key indicators that one should evacuate the immediate crisis zone before Hurricane Irene arrives.
If you are in the market for N95 dust masks, here is a link listing NIOSH approved N95, N99, N100 and other masks/respirators.
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/topics/respirators/disp_part/default.html
Here is a link to what can be occurring in the oceans. What will happen if our oceans die off?? Well, we know that answer! The first part of the video explains the Rocketdyne problem way back when, but you can forward it to about third to hear the hypothesis. This is going to be very hard for surfers to take… no offence, but they are like Golfers, will do their sport in rain sleet snow, or whatever!! 🙂 The host of the video studies geology, and has a real low key air. He has always been a visionary, before his time kind of guy. Interesting…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKbrp61oeXs&feature=watch_response
8:50am reporting from East Los Angeles,Ca
external background 42 counts per minute
internal 36 cpm- all looking normal
EPA site is back up.
@Potrblog, no kidding.
In case anyone hasn’t seen this, here’s a map of the nuclear power plants in the U.S. You can see all the plants that are in the path of Hurricane Irene. I think they are saying that the storm is 500 miles wide, so even facilities located somewhat inland could be at risk.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:NRC_regions_and_plant_locations_2008.jpg
“Firefighters struggled on Thursday to control a fast-growing 28,000-acre wildfire raging within several miles of spent nuclear fuel stored at a U.S. Energy Department lab in the high desert of eastern Idaho.”
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/26/us-wildfires-idaho-idUSTRE77O8ES20110826
Shure hope they can control that fire.
@glassgreen, between the hurricane and the dropping Lake Anna water levels, I would be getting the heck out of Mineral Virginia if I lived there.
we are being intentionally exterminated, all latest disasters are man made, to depopulate the earth , the bailout money stolen for underground safe havens being built and supplied at super speeds for the despotic elites who are manipulating weather.
http://blog.alexanderhiggins.com/2011/04/12/realtime-epa-radnet-japan-nuclear-radiation-monitoring-every-us-city-single-page-16511/
EAST COAST already has radioactive rain up to 2,000 cpm in massachussetts
The EPA query tool shows error on the page. Makes me wonder if radiation is already being detected on the east coast and the “error” is part of a panic prevention strategy.
The Weather Channel is reporting that 12 nuclear plants are in the projected path of Hurricane Irene and are preparing for damage.
http://www.epa.gov/radnet/radnet-data/
Now, EPA displays only Gross Gamma? No more Beta testing? EPA Query Tool does not function.
Well, isn’t that special…
How about real time soil and rain sampling for all radioisotopes, including deadly alpha emitters — eg., Plutonium-239, Americium-241? See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_particle
Strontium-90? Still no testing of this calcium-mimicking leukemia-causing poison. Once internalized, the body can’t tell the difference and the Sr-90 goo is thereby metabolized as calcium.
Chris Busby helps explain it —
http://www.llrc.org/wings/wingspage.htm
“Strontium-90 is a prime suspect. It decays to Yttrium-90, which then decays further. This second decay event has a high probability of occurring while the cell is repairing damage caused by the first. The second event defeats the cell repair mechanism because the mechanism itself is irreversible and has no means of repairing damage inflicted after it begins.”
[ALERT] For families Downwind and Downstream of the NORTH ANNA Nuclear Plant; It would be wise to INCREASE Preparations for a Radiological Release.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/alert-for-families-downwind-and.html
I installed a Flanders for-lab filter. They’re like normal air filters but these ones were rated for lab use so it’s good on radiation. Hope that protects me for a while.
However there more powerful ones that ya can get if ya wish-listed on here http://flandersfilters.com/products/naturalaire/. I just got the basic 3 pack.. though on the website it says nothing about rad dust, on the package itself, it does indeed say Radioactive containment.
Christine, they have been burning contaminated stuff for weeks. This is from june:
http://blog.alexanderhiggins.com/2011/06/10/nuclear-ash-cloud-radiation-raining-tokyo-burning-radioactive-fukushima-sewage-sludge-25181/
Why is North Anna venting steam?
And why are they using so much water that the waterlevel at the lake is getting so low?
And, speaking of Iodine 131 and Cesium 137, here are some animated charts that make one come to the conclusion that Cesium is already landing on California, even before any burning in Fukushima is carried out, as is apparently being planned. Why do they even bother?
http://www.senes.ca/japan/forecasts.html
Christine,
I cannot answer your question, but perhaps Arnie Gunderson will do so. Scroll down and find his video. It includes Cesium burning. I must admit that sometimes I really don’t want to know, just when this nightmare is supposed to start. But,in this case, ignorance probably isn’t bliss, so I suppose that we really should try to find out the start date.
@ Margery Thanks for that link. You too Annette2. Great comments!
I left several comments all on that same node. (5443)
Burning:
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/5443#comment-17413
Mask:
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/5443#comment-17411
Spreading:
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/5443#comment-17416
___________________
Here’s another interesting video retrospective I saw today.
VOICES from the Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fmmdh8Xlbvg&NR=1
Astoundingly similar to what we hear today.
At 5:29 into the video there is a picture of a bus loaded with kids. I had to pause it and look at their faces. I had to wonder… Where are they today? How are they today? Were THEY ever studied? Do we really know? They would now be 40 something. I can only pray that they led normal healthy lives and still are today.
Voices towards the end state. At about 6:30.
“Conflicting statements. There’s been a severe problem getting information back.”
“Part of it’s a lack of credibility of what we’re being told… the confusion that’s coming forth… it’s inexcusable that we leave a private utility in full command of the situation…”
Sort of eerie I’d say.
When is this burning set to begin that Arnie is talking about? Are we in PNW to expect the aftermath in the coming week or is it weeks?
This link (below) is from the BRAWM team.
But, just what do I tell my son and his family in Washington State to do about this? About any of the Fukushima contamination? Son is an inspector who works outside, no matter what the weather is doing. And what it is doing is raining… A LOT! An open umbrella while climbing up scaffolding? Not even!
The kids don’t come inside until dinner, and then go back outside again until bed time.
Who will tell us how much cesium is in the soil…and how much is TOO MUCH? Do they even know that ANY amount of radiation is too much?
Of course I will talk to everyone about trying to protect themselves. But, will it soon become overwhelming and completely impossible for them to do so?
What kind of cancerous world will we be leaving for our Grandchildren?
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/5443
@roundabout: You got it. You can sleep better at night knowing there is a classified history behind this and then you can only hope that a non-dualistic paradigm is closer to what we now know as ‘good’. I doubt there is any turning back of engineered evolution’s clock. I will provide some links so that we can at least inform ourselves as the isotopes transform our cells and genes unwittingly without consent.
Looks like they have had all kind of problems at North Anna over the years.
Electrical bus problem and emergency generator failure
http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML0037/ML003710927.pdf
Tritium leak
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2010/112010/11022010/585487
Radioactive Effluent and Environmental Reports for North Anna 1 & 2
http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/ops-experience/tritium/plant-specific-reports/na1-2.html
Piping event problem
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=143092452368729
control rod switch failed during oct 2010 restart
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2010/102010/10262010/584102
Oh…this is getting really crazy. “All of the plant’s seismographs were removed in the 1990s due to budget cuts.”
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/8/24/headlines#5
Makes you wonder if there really was no damage from earthquake.
North Anna Power Station
“The licensee identified the following vulnerabilities:
• Portions of the water and gaseous suppression systems and hose stations are not
seismically designed.
• B.5.b fire pump storage area is non-seismic.
• Potential leakage can occur through penetrations following seismic event.
• Seismically designed floodwalls are located in the non-seismic Turbine Building.
• Various isolation valves which would be used to isolate a flood source are located in
potentially flooded areas.”
http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1113/ML111330155.pdf
“not seismically designed” Thats got to be a joke!
Found this article/post on investing in and profiting from the nuclear energy industry. It’s dated post-Fukashima, April 17, 2011.
http://topforeignstocks.com/2011/04/17/how-to-profit-from-the-growth-of-nuclear-power-sector/
It’s authored anonymously, so I don’t know the credibility of the author or the content within. But the author does provide citations for some of the info.
The post highlights countries that are actively constructing new nuclear reactors and how many, and the major companies in the industry, including plant builders, utility companies, and uranium miners.
I found the article by searching the net for “nuclear industry profits,” as part of my on-going effort to understand the love affair with nuclear energy.
[ALERT] North Anna Nuclear Plant, Mineral Virginia: Be Prepared for Radioactive Leakage Into The Atmosphere
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/alert-north-anna-be-prepared-for.html
@ Angus – Yep.
@Frank Snapp So to put it ever mildly, entire US and Canada along the jet stream are f%*#$! ?
@rocket; Dr Reiser has it all there, yes? The hamonics, HAARP, Agenda 21 and the isotopes which are not being hailed as a problem here in USA and Japan! Wow! What a find! Can you post the link to that documentation? Or was it a hard copy?
@Frank; Understood where you are coming from. I just think that the NRC provides tidy death threats to those that cross a line, and Arnie is doing as much as he can in order to keep him and his family safe. I can certainly see that concern in his eyes… and in the measured words he speaks. Nevertheless, it is more than what we have in many ways. Yes, we are a groveling public indeed!
8/23/2011: M 5.8 earthquake strikes Virginia, epicenter within about 20 miles of nuclear power plant.
“EarthQuake – Report.com” updates & video:
http://earthquake-report.com/2011/08/23/very-strong-and-dangerous-earthquake-rattles-virginia/
“Very strong and dangerous earthquake rattles Virginia – 2 Nuclear reactors safely stopped in Virginia”
Last update: August 23, 2011 at 7:44 pm
by By Armand Vervaeck and James Daniell
Louisa earthquake landscape – Panoramio image from BBest – http://www.panoramio.com/photo/3809386
What happend here?
http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/DC-Nuclear-Plant-Near-Epicenter-Shuts-Down-128261808.html
OMG
Hi guys,
Came across this Seres Fukushima rad weather forecasting link at the Berkeley forum. Thought you all might also be interested:
“AIR DISPERSION MODELLING OF JAPAN’S NUCLEAR RELEASES”
10 Day Forecasts
“The graphics presented here are a 10 day forecast of the movement of the plume based on an assumed constant radionuclide release rate of 1012 becquerels/second (Bq/s) for both I-131 and Cs-137. The becquerel (symbol Bq) is the SI (metric) unit of radioactivity.equal to the amount of radioactive material in which one nucleus decays per second. Two different types of graphics are presented as follows:
Animated 10-day Hourly Forecasts of I-131 and Cs-137”
http://www.senes.ca/japan/forecasts.html
*****
@Annette2: Are you the same Annette, who contacted ‘Angus’ at the Berkeley Forum?
thanks to all of you for documenting and measuring. don’t though discount the utilitarian agenda which ends up being the most logical explanation for the why, how and by whom this could have been allowed to occur on our planet. ‘accelerated evolution’
“In 1936, Dr. Reiser, introduced and promoted the concept of “radio-eugenics” in the scientific Journal of Heredity. This entails applications of radiation for evolution. In 1945 Dr. Reiser was impressed by think tank founder Julius Stulman’s article called “Applied Energy to Social Relations.” In the 1965 publication of “Cosmic Humanism” that is highly praised by Stulman’s Institute for Integrative Education, the concept of radio-eugenics is promoted in synthesis with the concept of nondual harmonic resonance. Dr. Reiser states that we learned from Hiroshima and Nagasaki that not only does radiation cause massive destruction but that even those who survive “the baptism by fire” have children with severe birth defects. He then states that unfortunately that is how evolution works and that hopefully with the proper applied harmonic resonance of radiation then a new human society and a new “World Sensorium” will be achieved. The “World Sensorium” of Dr. Reiser is based on utilizing the radiation of the ionosphere, amplifying it with high technology, and applying it globally to cause mutations. The effect is to achieve not only a higher dimensional reality but to harness the zero-point energy.”
The Gundersen comment, I could not help but think and feel the same. He looks disheveled and seems a bit broken. Maybe he is just exhausted from all the research/work he is doing. Or, maybe he is feeling hopeless about his efforts.
The rain is hot in Madison, Wisconsin.
A 10-min outdoor reading in the rain was 32.1 CPM. The normal outdoor reading average is 14.95 CPM, so let’s call it 15 CPM. That means the rain reading was more than double the average outdoor background reading.
I did the reading by putting my counter in a ziplock bag and placing it on my concrete patio directly in the rain. The reading probably would have been higher if the counter hadn’t been in a ziplock bag, since I think just about any material blocks alpha radiation.
I saw that the jet stream was suppose to be taking a steep dive from Canada in this direction.
A video camera is on it’s way to me, so I hope to be posting video soon.
I can’t begin to tell you how sad I am.
Annette2; thanks for the video. Felt very vindicated, and learned even more why to trust instincts as far as information closures. Sadly our EPA was effectively shut down while NRC got the oversight job. Are we living in a fascist state of affairs? Where was our vote on this?
The explanation for msv versus beq’s was great! Thank you!
@Potrblog; Well, we are very fortunate to have you on this board, whether you ever become a celebrity or not, you are highly valued for the extensive work you share with us. Thank you.
@ng: Arnie is upset because he has the calling to overturn the garbage that the NRC puts out or hides the truth altogether, and understands the risks we are in, and the NRC chooses to neglect to correct. What a burden he is under.
@Annette2, thanks for posting the additional info. The thing is, my normal “air” reading is really on the ground. I place my geiger counter on a concrete patio. So I guess the soil and grass hold on better to the contamination?
@All, thanks for posting the Gunderson video. Under the video, someone left a great comment: David Agnew — When cesium contamination has been collected and moved to an incineration site, that amount has been largely isolated from the public environment. To then burn and re-disperse it is stunningly ignorant. Sadly, a government foolish enough to embrace nuclear energy can reasonably be expected to make more bad decisions – and this includes many governments.
I think, in reference to Arnie’s latest release, he’s being rather, perhaps not with bad intent, patronizing with us about what is happening, and parochial. Maybe he’s just trying to keep messages simple. There has been a lot of dumbing down by the CIA in the past 30 years in the U.S., and abroad by this and other agencies, reducing the literacy and critical thinking skills of Americans (U.S.), never very high, to pathetic levels by now in 2011. I don’t appreciate the lack of torque from him about this topic and I’m not addled by starry eyed gratitude of the typical U.S. citizen serf mentality that most of the more provincial suffer from. No one should be holding back any information. I DO, thank you very much, appreciate that he reminds people, as i have often tried to myself, that all the reactor cores melted through, R1-R3–at least and at least at Fukushma Dai ichi. Corium from R1, definitely, and R2 and R3, likely, are experiencing re-prompt criticality (fission, neutron cascades) on a regular and cycling basis (my words, but reflected in the R1 dry well readings). He needs to emphasize the fact that the corium and spent fuel will continue, without containment and there is none, to get MORE radioactive over the coming more than 200K years. I agree with him that the R3 spent fuel pool DID blow up. This is actually MUCH worse, diverging tartly from his disinformation, than if the R3 reactor CORE had also or only blew up because it’s MOX spent fuel (?), which spent fuel is already, literally, 100’s of thousands of times more radioactive than MOX reactor core fuel and has a much higher concentration of Plutonium. I believe that spent fuel rods originally littered much of the FukuDai plant site. Even non-MOX reactor spent fuel starts out being one million times more radioactive than the reactor core fuel initially installed inside the non-MOX reactor. This is due primarily to the presence of PLUTONIUM, due to normal reactor core power generation related fission, which ramps up the release of neutrons, by Plutonium mainly, but also by fission daughter products ever increasing for thousands of years in their abundant diversity, also not addressed by Arnie. Though Arnie is pleasant enough in demeanor, he’s still an insider and is still appearing with fair regularity in the media. I don’t mean, at all, to (I’m not black and white despite the brainwashed herd’s training to address all with a critical eye as being so) He is still a person whose information should be evaluated carefully and with a critical eye. I’ll be grateful only for the parts that are correct and for the appropriate torque.
@glassgreen: In reference to your grass vs. air readings discrepancy question, I saw this physicist’s explanation of the difference between surface & air readings in the comments section of safecast.com. They are discussing readings in prefectures near Fukushima, hence the much higher levels, and in this situation, the surface level was 10 times the air level:
” Hi, First time visitor. but will keep on reading. As a physicist, the following paragraph seemed to necessitate some precisions. You wrote: “Another bit worth noting here in case you haven’t been following along with the work Safecast has been doing so far, surface contamination is much higher than air contamination. There are two main reasons for this – “Fallout” literally means this radioactive crap fell out of the sky and found it’s new home on the ground, and much of contents of said crap are beta emitters. Beta radiation is lower energy than gamma so you need to get close to it to measure it – which in this case is the ground. If you only measure the air you miss the betas all together. Anyway. Surface is higher than air, and around 3000 CPM on the ground in the parking lot here is 10X the air levels.”
There is some confusions in the explanations here. Gamma radiations are made of photons, beta of electrons. Radiation of charged particles is considered to be interacting continuously with matter through the Coulomb force. This leads to a loss of energy through ionizations and excitations across the entire trajectory of the radiation. In contrast to charged particles, photons can travel random and highly variable distances inside matter before undergoing an interaction. Electron-matter interactions consist mainly of collisions between particles having the same mass. The difference of range between gamma and beta is not because of energy, but because of different interaction process. What you also notice when measuring close to the floor is the dose rate dependence on the distance. If you measure a point-source, the dose rate will decrease with the square of the distance when moving away from the source.
Confusion is also coming from using the expression “air contamination”. It is not the contamination of the air that is measured by your Geiger-Mueller counter, but the dose rate of the activity deposited around. In other word the radiation field coming from radionuclide on the ground measured at a certain distance. It is better to use the term dose rate for a value of Sv/h and surface contamination for a value of Bq/cm2. Most of the time dose rates are measured with Geiger Counters and surface contaminations with proportional counters.
It would be interesting to have surface contamination values, because it is what could be used to evaluate the ingested activity the people will suffer. Radioactive intake might then help evaluate the committed effective dose of the population.
Hope I could help a bit.”
Gunderson looks awful, I think there is something he isn’t telling us, his demeanor is exceptionally sad. This is hopeless.
Hello,
Has anyone on this board or Michael and Denise done any radiation testing on Matcha powder from Japan?
http://vimeo.com/28014740
New Gunderson video.
I just watched this and I wanted to share it. I’m still shaken from the images.
“Part 1 – The whole international press have blackout the worst catastrophe in modern history. So this is a humble reminder of what really is going on in Fukushima and beyond today ! There is a crime against humanity happening right under our nose and all we can hear is a deafening silence.
Please spread this video as much as you can … in the name of humanity ! Thanks !”
http://vimeo.com/27982280
Arnie Gundersen says that they are burning contaminated waste and causing even more cesium to go airborne. I cant help but think that they don’t know what they are doing.
Fukushima Japan Radiation Spreads Worldwide by Arnie Gundersen 8/22/11
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrmnfU_5qIQ&feature=player_detailpage
http://www.communitytv.org/programs/online/japanese-nuclear-disaster?gclid=CJ7TuoHR4aoCFRVVgwod3TXE9w
April 20 lecture by Daniel Hirsch of UCSC (formerly of UCLA, instrumental in Santa Susana Lab expose and clean up agreement). Very clear thinking nuclear and public policy expert who presents an adroit assessment of Fukushima and the US response. Did you know that typically the EPA is responsible for handling domestic threats from foreign nuclear accidents, but, in the early days following 3/11 the Obama regime transferred this responsibility/authority to the NRC? This is a huge revelation, and explains the “thousands of times below levels of concern,” comment we saw repeatedly on the EPA sampling data pages. The NRC levels of concern are, coincidentally, set at levels thousands of times greater than the EPA levels.
The lecture is over 1.5 hours, but well worth the time investment.
Potblog video Number 1 MOST VIEWED article on eneNEWS today.
Hundreds of comments and counting, over 2000 youtube views at this time. Not bad for one day.
…and the awareness increases bit by bit, but will it be in time?
“Nuclear Power is one hell of a way to boil water.” – Albert Einstein
@glassgreen – I too have been taking multiple exterior readings with my Inspector Alert over the past couple of months. Yes, the CPM @ groundlevel are always significantly higher than the 3′ levels. I have a clipboard full of 10-minute and longer timed averages. My 3′ levels (table top) are typically in the 30-40cpm range, while the soil levels range from 36 in my raised veggie garden and in my backyard lavender patch… to 49 under a drain spout, to over hot spots exceeding 100 in my horse arena. The arena base is decomposed granite topped with a plaster sand mix. I do not attribute the high CPM to Fukushima fallout, but rather the natural radioactivity (uranium) of the footing.
I do not have any lawn – so no grass readings, sorry.
I have found that my readings on the direct soil are higher than those without having removed the wood chip mulch; the concrete and asphalt readings are significantly higher than the direct soil readings (again, uranium), with the sand/dg arena being the highest.
I did remove a few stepping stones/objects that had been in place since 3/11, in order to take readings of direct soil that would not have received any fallout deposition… those readings were not any lower than the exposed bare soil readings.
I live in the Santa Monica Mountains of southern California.
I also have taken readings (air & surface) and kept a time/location/readings log from throughout Los Angeles and I have noted much higher surface soil readings, almost uniformly. I originally attributed this to commercial fertilizers (phosphaltic rock which contains uranium)… but I’ve also noted higher levels in other natural (no commercial fertilizer) areas of the canyons/mountains. Perhaps those locations have a different/more radioactive substructure… I don’t know.
I’ve been taking outdoor air, rain water, and lawn readings. My lawn readings are consistently 4-5 CPM higher than my air readings.
Has anyone else been doing lawn readings? How do they compare to your air readings?
I’m wondering if the higher lawn readings are due to the accumulation of radionuclides in the grass or soil, if the soil might contain naturally-occurring radiation, or a combination of these two. (The soil here is a silt loam, which contains a lot of rock and mineral deposits. So I’m thinking that they might be contributing to the slightly higher reading.)
As I say, I’d be interested to know if anyone else is doing lawn, garden or soil readings and the kind of results you’re seeing.
@wolfenblaze. I live in Phoenix part-time. When Fukashima first happened I was in Phoenix. I did some queries of historic data on the EPA site to find out what was normal for Phoenix and saved them to Excel. The readings for Phoenix in Nov and Dec 2010 were off the charts. What I think is interesting is that after Dec 31, 2010, there is no data posted for Phoenix until late March, 2011 (post Fukashima). And in late March the readings are significantly lower than the December readings. Here’s a side-by-side of the December 1, 2010 readings and March 25, 2011 readings for the EPA’s Phoenix monitoring station (date/time/Beta Gross Count-CPM):
12/1/2010 0:51 174 3/25/2011 0:07 22
12/1/2010 1:51 175 3/25/2011 1:07 21
12/1/2010 2:51 193 3/25/2011 2:08 23
12/1/2010 3:52 240 3/25/2011 3:08 23
12/1/2010 4:52 301 3/25/2011 4:08 24
12/1/2010 5:52 318 3/25/2011 5:08 29
12/1/2010 6:52 323 3/25/2011 6:08 34
12/1/2010 7:52 334 3/25/2011 7:09 36
12/1/2010 8:53 394 3/25/2011 8:09 41
12/1/2010 9:53 422 3/25/2011 9:09 48
12/1/2010 10:53 443 3/25/2011 12:10 81
12/1/2010 11:53 488 3/25/2011 13:10 91
12/1/2010 12:53 507 3/25/2011 14:10 105
12/1/2010 13:54 517 3/25/2011 15:10 111
12/1/2010 14:54 545 3/25/2011 16:10 111
12/1/2010 15:54 546 3/25/2011 17:10 107
12/1/2010 16:54 457 3/25/2011 18:11 92
12/1/2010 17:54 377 3/25/2011 19:11 93
12/1/2010 18:55 325 3/25/2011 20:11 63
12/1/2010 19:55 297 3/25/2011 21:11 51
12/1/2010 20:55 270 3/25/2011 22:11 46
12/1/2010 21:55 241 3/25/2011 23:12 44
12/1/2010 22:55 225
12/1/2010 23:56 211
The Palo Verde nuclear facility is 50 miles west of Phoenix. In Nov and Dec 2010 were we having a nuclear incident?
All the readings I’ve downloaded show that CPM peaks between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Is it environmental radiation due to the intense sun we get? Or is Palo Verde on an emission schedule were it spews nuclear gunk into the air between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.?
BTW, the historic data available for Phoenix is sparse. I got info for Nov and Dec 2010, and I think data was posted for just a few days in June 2010. The EPA obviously wasn’t on top of the monitoring, or they just didn’t post it.
btw both were beta gross radiation numbers the same thing envrio’s inspectors looking for.
so if these numbers are correct i say it time to blow the damn siren http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_KRf7bqyIY
i rather be turned into werewolf instead of been rad sick
Phoenix detection system
2011-08-21 14:10:03
106.0000 cmp
2011-08-21 15:10:17
118.0000 CMP.
these are very high readings from what i here. though im puzzled. i got these readings from the Rad net Query interface from the EPA offical site https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/query.do this i think the only link that works others are errors
problem is the readings are timed two hours ahead of Mountain which means there clock are off or these are estimates plotted by the epa.
i been looking at both envrios inspector and The minlabs Radation network. the only spike i seen on rad network was 79 CMP
so my question is Why did Radiation network not pick up the radiation that the EPa picked up. are the Epa readings really just estimates or they trying scare us
none of us will really know. but as for me im taking a kelp pill right now.
@Roundabout, I have ZERO desire to be on the news; I don’t even like being on YouTube. If someone had told me 7 months ago I would be on twitter, I would have thought they were crazy.
The data I provide on the fallout is now primarily for historical purposes; no new scientists are going to speak up any time soon.
On the popular front, the awareness is probably at steady state or declining in regards to people who are wise to the risk. The people who don’t wish to be wise, won’t meet Darwin for another 10 to 30 years. Heck, the people in Japan who will meet Darwin much sooner still prefer to be in the dark.
@wolfnblaze; the link was shut down. Which means you most likely had something there!!
@Chase; California looks better than it has in awhile. Even so, Alaska and Canada are getting totally slammed! Do we have any Alaskans or Candadians on the board that can comment? http://www.senes.ca/japan/forecasts.html
@gail; So they have built a ton of underground facilities and have been stocking large amounts of food and supplies. So space isn’t what “they” are looking at, there is a ton of radioactivity in space by the way! These facilities have become less “conspiracy theories” and fact of life. Denver Airport, and one out in the Mojave desert for samples. Just google underground cities, and you’ll find it… but be careful! You are thinking!! I suspect when the power grid goes down, and our nuclear facilities are in trouble, the underground cities will facilitate “them.”
Portrblog; Any chance of getting on the news in St Louis? This reading is crazy wild!
ALERT!!! 178 X Background Radiation in Saint Louis Rain
STAY OUT OF THE RAIN!
This data may be indicative of a RECENT SIGNIFICANT radiological event in Fukushima.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/alert-178-x-background-radiation-in.html
Radiation Plume Maps from via Canada. (Scroll down for the C-137 dispersion.)
Specialists in Energy, Nuclear and Environmental Sciences
http://www.senes.ca/japan/forecasts.html
I am in the ‘green’ zone today. What color zone are you in?
Alaska seems to go into the yellow zone on a regular basis.
Note the difference in dispersion between the surface map and the higher elevation map. I would assume the higher amounts in the upper atmosphere come down with the RAIN at some point.
singing…
“Oh Where, oh where has our EPA gone?
Oh Where, oh where can they be?
With our ears cut short and their tales too long,
Oh Where, oh where can they be?”
2011-08-17 13:15:01
153.0000
Tuscon picked up 153 cmp from beta gross count… jetstream is back.
If the oceans are radioactive, land is radioactive, and air contains hot particles, perhaps for millions of years, where [do] the rich psychopaths, the creators, hide? AND for how long? Off-planet is the only option, again, how long? To return to a lifeless chunk of rocks and mud. My tears for our planet. To add to this, all experts are baffled for a solution.
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/queryResult.do
Am I reading this right or on the 18th was Arizona EXPOSED TO 100 plus CMP?
Here is one of the best vids I have seen as far as explaining what occurred and why at Fukushima. Startling fact that we were nuked over on the west coast long before the actual tsunami and earthquake hit! And the interviewee has been dismissed from his position!
http://www.youtube.com/user/dutchsinse
Interview with Paul Gunter from Beyond Nuclear. Sounds scarey.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sET4fqowKIg&feature=player_detailpage
In this video they interviewed some of the workers at fukushima. Gloom and doom. Where is this all going to end?
http://www.wat.tv/video/japan-fukushima-safety-fears-40z3j_31wod_.html
Here’s another guy with an inspector checking out the rain in OK.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAEEND9Uuw8&feature=related
Video of a Beautiful Baby Girl Picking and Eating FUKUSHIMA Blueberries.
Even in the heart of the darkness people refuse to see the high speed photons.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/beautiful-baby-girl-picking-and-eating.html
60 Minutes TV program from Australia.
Fukushima People or Radiation In All Of Us
(13 minutes, Aug 13th, 2011)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr2PmjdpLqM&feature=player_embedded
__________________________
Some quotes from the clip:
“I’m SERIOUS!” – Michiou Kaku
“In fact the whole world will be exposed from the radiation from Fukushima,” Dr. Kaku told CBS reporter Liz Hayes.
Dr. Kaku asserted about the Japanese people, “These are guinea pigs, absolute human guinea pigs.”
“Do you think you’ll ever be able to take food, water and air you breathe for granted again?” Hayes (CBS reporter) asked Chia Maxamoto. “Ah, knowingly? I don’t think so.”
__________________________
I guess CBS News in Australia is a bit different than in the USA.
can someone link some info regarding equipment used to test , water/milk/ food samples
apparently some private labs are charging $250 per sample to test , yet they tell you they dont certify anything except non drinking water, so why the hell would anyone test with them. Another reason to check everything yourself.
Now that people who got irradiated near Fukushima are starting to get sick and are dying, they wont be able to say that those levels of contamination are harmless anymore.
http://fukushima-diary.com/2011/08/breaking-news-a-volunteer-person-died-of-acute-leukemia-in-fukushima/
4000 mile Radioactive Road Trip: Cool Rain in the Florida Keys!
http://youtu.be/iAqdz3n2k0Y
Sounds like the “Goo” has worked its way thru the floor and touched groundwater.
http://fukushima-diary.com/2011/08/breaking-news-splashing-steam-from-the-cracks-in-the-ground/#.Tkkz9M8fr6Y.twitter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fimRJocH_90
Today in Energy News….. there is an alarming new development on the site of the Fukushima nuclear reactors. We may now be “lurching” even closer to that “precipice”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fimRJocH_90
@Wilma P. Your comment now ranks in my Top Ten favorite EnviroReporter comments of all time. You had me with the first half and clinched it with the JFK quote. 🙂
@Potrblog Really liked the BRAWM parody, although some might label it a tragedy. I do appreciate the scientists diligence, but I thought the Japan Times article was presented in a lopsided manner and without sufficient details which is true with most news articles.
@Weaver Great advise. I fully agree and am aware, as I would hope most are, that many people using detectors are not following standard protocols. Not following protocol creates ‘uncertainty’ and that really doesn’t help anybody.
The point I was trying to make was that there are more and more people getting their detectors and starting too use them. The overall ‘general’ observations are increasing in numbers and appear to say that our rains via the jet stream are ‘hot’ and widespread.
It would be nice if there were training videos for new rad detector owners that gave basic protocol procedures for taking an accurate reliable “rain swipe” sample or whatever. A simple ‘ten steps’ ‘how to’ do a better rad reading guide might be useful? Also, watching Michael’s and Potrblog’s videos should give most people the basics on testing this stuff.
Please pardon any confusion pertaining to the marks
In the previous post, these were meant to signify the need for the reader to replace terms “Chernobyl”, “Ukraine”, “Belarus”, or “Russia” with either “Fukushima” or “Japan”.
FWIW, some timely recommendations can be found towards the end of the paper addressing the current state of affairs we are now facing. Here’s the link again:
http://www.strahlentelex.de/Yablokov%20Chernobyl%20book.pdf
Potentially Crazy High Radioactive Rainfall in Indianapolis
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/potentially-crazy-high-radioactive.html
Here we go again…
Obstacles to Analysis of Fukushima Consequences.
Among the reasons complicating a fullscale estimation of the impact of today’s Japan nuclear catastrophe on health are the following:
1., Official secrecy and unrectifiable falsification of Soviet Union ( replace with “Japan”) medical statistics for the first 3.5 years after the catastrophe.
2., Lack of detailed and clearly reliable medical statistics in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia. <>
3., Difficulties in estimating true individual radioactive doses in view of: (a) reconstruction of doses in the first days, weeks, and months after the catastrophe; (b) uncertainty as to the influence of individual “hot particles”; (c) problems accounting for uneven and spotty contamination; and (d) inability to determine the influence of each of many radionuclides, singly and in combination.
4., Inadequacy of modern knowledge as to: (a) the specific effect of each of the many radionuclides; (b) synergy of interactions of radionuclides among themselves and with other environmental factors; (c) population and individual variations in radiosensitivity; (d) impact of ultralow doses and dose rates; and (e) impact of internally absorbed radiation on various organs and biological systems.
__________
Above adapted from:
http://www.strahlentelex.de/Yablokov%20Chernobyl%20book.pdf
This passage also:
“Organizations Associated with the Nuclear Industry Protect the Industry First —- Not the Public.
1. An important lesson from the Chernobyl experience is that experts and organizations tied to the nuclear industry have dismissed and ignored the consequences of the catastrophe.
2. Within only 8 or 9 years after the catastrophe a universal increase in cataracts was admitted by medical officials. The same occurred with thyroid cancer, leukemia, and organic central nervous system disorders. Foot-dragging in recognizing obvious problems and the resultant delays in preventing exposure and mitigating the effects lies at the door of nuclear power advocates more interested in preserving the status quo than in helping millions of innocent people who are suffering through no fault of their own. It need to change official
agreement between WHO and IAEA (WHO, 1959) providing hiding from public of any information which can be unwanted of nuclear industry.”
And…
“U.S. President John F. Kennedy speaking about the necessity to stop atmospheric nuclear tests said in June 1963:
‘The number of children and grandchildren with cancer in their bones, with leukemia in their blood, or with poison in their lungs might seem statistically small to some, in comparison with natural health hazards, but this is not a natural health hazard —- and it is not a statistical issue. The loss of even one human life or the malformation of even one baby —- who may be born long after we are gone -— should be of concern to us all. Our children and grandchildren are not merely statistics toward which we can be indifferent.’
The Chernobyl <> catastrophe demonstrates that the nuclear industry’s willingness to risk the health of humanity and our environment with nuclear power plants will result, not only theoretically, but practically, in the same level of hazard as nuclear weapons.”
__________
See pages 153, 259, & 288 — Indeed, a picture is worth a thousand words. Please get to know the report above and read to understand.
Radioactive Acid Rain!!!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/radioactive-acid-rain.html
Chase, I advise you to practice caution when watching connectingdots1’s videos. I won’t say that 100% of his material is wrong and I commend his efforts, but he is an amateur and is often careless with what information he chooses to report on – often going for the more sensational.
A few months back I politely tried to correct him on a misquoted data figure in one of his videos and he not only removed my comment but blocked me from his channel. When I attempted to message him about it, he somehow got it in his head that I was “against” his efforts and simply spouted childish insults.
Ironically, a few weeks later he made a video saying how “some people” were getting on his case about correctly quoting data, so he promised to be more careful … go figure.
It’s great that there are people willing to do research and take up the slack from the EPA, but it doesn’t change the fact that some are relatively new to this and do not fully understand what they’re doing.
@Chase, let me contrast how the UC Berkeley BRAWN playbook might have handled a detection of radioactive Sulfur35. I don’t think a paper would have been forth coming from them, instead it would have been something like this parody:
UCB BRAWN Parody:
(1) Sulfur35 in a “NATURAL” radioactive element formed in the Atmosphere
(2) Sulfur35 is present in quantities expected from natural processes
(3) There is NO WAY this could in ANY WAY be related to Fukushima.
I have to give the author’s of the study MUCH credit for giving analytical due diligence more than just lip service; maybe, that’s why there are already getting crap from UCB
According to the latimesblogs: Edward Morse, of UC Berkeley, said ….”They’re not nuclear engineers,” Morse said. “They were a little out of their depth.”
Anyone care to wager if Berkeley has a detection radioactive sulfur marked as “NATURAL” somewhere in their data?
Found some interesting results doing outside readings this morning.
I usually do my outdoor reading on a concrete patio with the geiger counter elevated either on a box or on a plastic container.
This morning I did the normal outdoor reading and got a reading of 13.9 CPM, which is within the normal range. Then, just for fun, I decided to see if I would get a different reading if I did a reading in the grass. So I put the counter directly on the lawn and did a 10-minute timed reading. I got a reading of 18 CPM.
So my reading in the lawn was 30-percent higher than my reading on the patio!
I’m going to work on learning how to post videos to show some of my unusual results
Several things astound me about the article link from Potrblog about radioactive sulfur.
Why, did our own scientists, who had this data in the days immediately following Fukushima, not report this? Why wait to ‘publish’ it? They could have stated that the data being released was preliminary perhaps. Personally, I feel they should have a responsibility to do so. Anything else is negligent.
Nothing is stated as to what this will do to plants and other life forms, much less the ‘real’ human factor. Even a “We don’t really know?” answer would be better than none.
So I did some research and could not find much regarding radioactive sulfur. I did however come across an example of very misleading journalism. We will ‘most likely’ see this same ‘disinformation’ in our news soon. (if we see it at all) They quote one of the authors of the paper regarding the radioactive sulfur discovery.
excerpt:
[ While the amount was higher than normal background levels, it remained small, said Mark Thiemens of the University of California, San Diego.
“The levels we recorded aren’t a concern for human health. In FACT, it took sensitive instruments, measuring radioactive decay for hours after lengthy collection of the particles to precisely measure the amount of radiation,” said Thiemens. ]
from Japan Times full article:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/radiation-from-japan-spiked-on-u-s-west-coast-in-march
I would say the second part of Mr. Thiemens statement is a ‘fact’. It did take sensitive instruments to detect the radiation. However, I would say the first part of the statement is NOT true or factual, but the way the sentences are put together the brain will initially file both important pieces of information as fact.
I base my statement on brain study articles I have read, and you can google for it if you wish, that clearly show via MRI scan that the brain stores information differently when specific key words are presented. One of those key words is the word ‘fact’. The brain actually lights up and stores the information in a separate area. It’s verbal ‘trickery’, some might call it ‘subliminal’.
So… REMEMBER this FACT: BEIR VII REPORT (Your brain is lighting up right now!)
Obviously, the scientific ‘expert’, Mr. Thiemens needs to read up a bit on the affects of radiation to the “chain of life” and the systems of our planet. I’d say, that’s a fact too.
Fukushima’s Radioactive Ocean Contamination Has Already Hit California
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/fukushimas-radioactive-ocean.html
A Radioactive Glass Bottom Boat Tour of John Pennekamp Coral Reef
http://youtu.be/T6eXFNrAzqQ
I guess you can add Massachusetts to the list of hot spots.
This is a comment I spotted while watching a video from youtube user connectingdots1. Seems legit.
“I bought a Ludlum model 3 with a pancake detector new a few months ago. I am in south central massachusetts. Background is between 20 to 40 cpm. Rain water testes has been as high as 1200 cpm. Yesterday rain water was 600 cpm. Our governments are hiding this poisoning from us and this is treason!” ….more
– Liberty4awl a youtube user Aug 10th, 2011
See full comment and video located here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnXrs1Dl2tI&feature=related
I sent the user a youtube message to let them know about EnviroReporter.
It seems to me the ‘evidence’ as to fallout has become overwhelming.
EPA Full Contact Info & form:
http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/contact.htm
Where do we go from here? (over 5 months and counting)
Hello All! I have a question. I have Austin air filters and the hepa filter last up to 5 yrs. I only have to vacuum the outside (pre filter) every few days to clean it. My question is if these filters are taking in all that radioactivity should this be kept in our bedrooms when we are sleeping? I was told not to vacuum the inside of the hepa because thats where all the bad stuff is safely contained.
Anyone from the Glendale/ La Canada area with an inspector? We are 2000 ft above sea level and I am wondering if anyone has taken readings this high up?
HALF of Rice Harvest to be Tested for Cesium
Excerpt from article: August 12, 2011
(In Japan) Authorities will ban shipments from areas where they find rice containing cesium exceeding 500 becquerels per kg, the government’s legal limit for grains. Any contaminated produce will be destroyed.
(Exactly how it’s destroyed I am not sure.)
“Rice may (will) be the next product where contamination will be discovered, as it’s being grown in tainted soil and water,” Yoko Tomiyama, chairwoman of the Consumers Union of Japan, said in an interview. “Higher radiation levels have been detected in prefectures beyond Fukushima.”
(Gee… I sort of figured that.)
FIVE MONTHS into the nuclear disaster, the government is still struggling to build a centralized system to check for contaminated food, leaving local authorities and farmers to conduct voluntary tests.
(One might think a Nuclear disaster preparedness plan would include testing.)
“The government didn’t have guidelines to prepare for possible problems and has only been REACTING to developments, so the farmers were getting worried,” said Masaki Takagi, head of the farmer’s cooperative in the Takomachi district in Katori. “It should’ve confirmed the safety of the soil before we started planting. We had to do the testing ourselves.”
Key words here: Confirm, Cesium, TESTING, Soil,
Alternate Key Words: Should’ve, Would’ve, and Could’ve
Article: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110812n1.html
_______________________________________
“…and government agencies are not going to do it for us at least not effectively. I am pretty sure of that.” – Chase
http://youtu.be/VtiXp7G-fYs
The video is part of our 4000 mile Radioactive Roadtrip fact finding mission down to the Florida Keys and back. This video was taken driving South to North through Atlanta, Ga. During a heavy down pour, the Geiger counter INSIDE the car registered a sustained THREE times background radiation as its MINIMUM reading. Approximately 10 minutes later a sample wipe from the windshield returned a 6x background reading. The highest reading we had in Atlanta was approximately 9x background.
The pattern we noticed is that the radioactivity in the rain decreases the further one gets away from the jet stream, and the radioactivity goes to zero from storms that blow in East to West via the hurricane corridor.
Couple of things.
1. @Annette2 & glassgreen & others. Thank you so much for contributing your findings here. As more and more people start to receive their detectors I hope they continue to come here and share the results. Positive or negative I/we NEED to know. Annette2 I am curious as to what the pencil pens reading actually was.
2. Info: N95 Masks can be purchased at the concessions booth (snacks, books, etc..) at any major airport. (cost $2.99) I did not know this until last week. How convenient. You just have to ask for them as they do not put them on display.
One might also ask, “Why would they have these at the airport?” For your safety, that’s why. Get over the embarrassment factor, or whatever, and go for it next time you or a loved one flies. Draw a smiley face or a Nuke symbol on it for entertainment, just don’t use a pen from Japan. We need a lot more people willing to test the sky. Lots! Again, we NEED to know. …and government agencies are not going to do it for us at least not effectively. I am pretty sure of that.
3. Request: I had an idea. (actually came to me in a dream so I wrote it down) First I asked myself the question, “What would the best things be to test as good indicators of radiation accumulation?”. Obviously, milk as we know, is one because it concentrates. Another good one is the hepa filter. It’s job is to accumulate which indeed gives a ‘picture’ of what is coming at us.
Then it came to me, “What about beach sand?” I base this on something I read from the Berkeley Nuclear forum where Mark of BRAWM stated he had tested “sand from a beach” that was positive for cesium, but he had NOT posted the results nor was it stated as to where the beach was located.
Anyway, I think ‘BEACH SAND’ would be good because the waves pound the beach and most of the ‘dispersed’ radioactivity will again accumulate in the sand. (Like a ‘filter’, that’s my theory.) Also, if a sample were taken and it was wet, you could let it dry in a glass jar and then test it. It also seems to me that with the impending damage to the Pacific ocean coastline maybe a few baseline tests would be a prudent idea at this time too.
Possibly the best reason to test the beach sand is because ‘KIDS’ play there. They will get sand in their mouth, all kids do. So… that’s my request, would someone or multiple someones, please test a little bit of beach sand. Thanks in advance.
They are talking about a cooling tower that collapsed?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDBAF7eXapI&feature=player_detailpage
And I thought everything was ok. Why would they need massive repairs??? Did something happen that nobody knows about?
http://www.kcautv.com/story/15262321/oppd-sends-feds-plan-to-restart-neb-nuke-plant
Annette2, you were right to point out consumer goods. I found this: Contaminated goods in Japanese shipment to Egypt
http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/485146
What’s really hard to check is all the electronic parts and chips and car parts once they are installed. They still export those goods and they only spot-check (!) for contamination.
Hello –
Just returned from a 2.5 week vacation. Being from southern California, we followed with concern the extremely elevated beta readings reported by RADNet for LA for the same period. I noted that a couple of people commented that the Enviroreporter’s daily west LA radiation averages did not jiive with the RadNet readings. From the RadNet map, it appears that the air monitor is in the downtown area, and the beta readings are approaching 100 again today. For what it’s worth (and in all honesty, I am not entirely sure of what it is worth), I thought I’d contribute a 10 minute average taken today in my neck of the woods, using my Inspector Alert. My location is in the Santa Monica Mountains, on the Mulholland corridor (3 miles from Agoura Hills and 5 miles from Point Dume, as the crow (and the radioactive fallout) flies.
11:45am, 10 minute average = 35.2 CPM.
This was taken on a wooden picnic table, approximately 3 feet over a concrete patio in my backyard, and is consistent with, and even slightly lower than, other readings taken throughout the months of June & July.
On another note, I picked up school supplies for my son yesterday. While unpacking them today, I noticed that the mechanical pencil leads and some red pens were from Japan. I ran the Inspector over them and did get somewhat elevated counts on all 3 unopened packages. For safety’s sake, I’m returning them for items manufactured elsewhere. Just a reminder to keep aware of consumer goods in addition to food. Although the scientific community repeats the mantra that “the solution to pollution (in this case radioactive pollution) is dilution,” common decency dictates that sharing this filth is unconscionable, and I’m making all efforts to avoid my family’s allocation.
Hi Everyone, I’ve been following EnviroReporter since the Fukashima disaster. I am in the Madison, Wisconsin area and received a Mazur Instruments PRM-8000 geiger counter this week. I’ve been doing 10-minute indoor and outdoor readings 4x/day like EnviroReporter, and some testing of food and rain water.
My indoor readings have ranged from 10.2 to 13.1 CPM and my outdoor readings have ranged from 14-15.6. These are quite a bit lower than what the EPA has been putting on its site.
Today I found elevated readings in some bulk short grain brown rice I got at the coop. It’s the type of rice that is in large bins on the wall and you flip a lever and fill a plastic bag with however much you want. I weighed the bag before the test on a food scale and it was 3 pounds. I performed the test by putting my geiger counter in a zip lock bag and then putting it in the bag of brown rice and closing the brown rice bag with a twist tie. I then did a 10-minute reading. I got a 14.2 CPM reading. I then took the zip lock bag containing the counter out of the brown rice bag and immediately did a 10-minute indoor reading with the device still in the zip lock. The indoor reading was 10.8. The rice tested 25 percent higher than background.
Then tonight we had a rain shower. So I put a reusable plastic glad bowl out on the patio to collect the rain. A good 1.5 inches or so collected in the bowl. After the rain stopped, I placed another plastic glad bowl next to the one with the rain and placed a cover on it. I put the counter on top of the covered bowl so that the sensor/Geiger-Muller Tube window was over the bowl with the rain water. There was maybe about .5 inches separating the the rain water and the Geiger-Muller tube. I did a 10-minute reading and the average was 19.5. I then immediately moved the the counter to the location where I usually do my outdoor readings (about 4ft from where I had performed the rain water reading) and did a 10-minute outdoor reading. The average was 14.8, within the normal range I have observed since getting the counter. That means the rain was more than 31 percent above normal outdoor background.
The numbers don’t seem high, but when you calculate percentage you take a step back and say, “whoaa”.
@Michael; @Potrblog —
Here’s an excellent site devoted to those east-to-west tropical storms (aka hurricanes) mostly originating from tropical waves of moist air from the Sahara. Dr. Jeff Masters runs a near-daily blog now that we are in the midst of hurricane season.
http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/
Just released video: “Dial “M” for Meltdown-by Brian Rich.
Presented via Fairewinds.com.
August 12th, 2011.
http://fairewinds.com/content/dial-m-meltdown-brian-rich
@ Bonnie: I agree. Those folks feeling foolish about flying ought to consider the findings in our latest series of readings at the new post HEPA Filters – August 11, 2011 which show significant heightened radiation in HEPA filters Radiation Station in sunny Southern California. Not as direly impressive as the readings we’ve seen in Canada, Oklahoma City, North Carolina and St. Louis, but important in this respect vis-a-vis the airplane N95 mask usage: to find this amount of radiation in these HEPA filters in an environment where you wouldn’t expect much if any fallout impaction, what about flying miles above the earth through it? This is such a touchy subject with folks that fly and the people that care about them. Use of these masks need not be mortifying: wear them in your seat, remove them going to the bathroom and eating/drinking. That seem too tough to cut down on your radiation load of Cesium-137 and any number of fission radionuclides? Perhaps not. And who exactly is going to care anyway? If someone’s sense of self is so impaired that wearing an radiation protection mask is unthinkable, I do hope they would at least let their kids wear them.
@POTRblog: Your measurements of benign/non-existent radiation overages on you Florida foray are important in at least three ways: Showing no radiation in those east to west storms off the Atlantic from Africa is invaluable information on how the mechanism of fallout deposition is or isn’t impacting our shores. Demonstrating lower rad values the farther south one is of the jet stream is confirmed by your readings. The last thing I noted in your feast at the Florida joint with the Jimmy Buffet crooner was how normal everything seemed, something none of us Raddies readily associate with each other, not since March 11. It made me yearn for the more innocent days of my youth in Florida, days and years lived before we were thrust into this battle.
Dear Michael:
I wanted to respond to your flying with masks paragraph. There are very few individuals that I personally know that even believe the Fukushima accident is anything to worry about. So it could just be with others that their family members and friends just won’t listen, even when they are provided evidence to the contrary. Personally, I’d rather be caught dead wearing a mask in a plane than just being caught dead from cancer and other syndromes due to breathing in radioactive particles.
Butchering Jimmy Buffett with a Radioactive Baseline
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/butchering-jimmy-buffett-with.html
This is the first in a series of Radioactive baseline readings taken in key locations of interest during the 4000 mile Radioactive Road trip. Hopefully, the data will Never become useful.
“Only YOU can PREVENT Fukushimas” and “Better Active Today Than Radioactive Tomorrow” – Nuclear Watch South
I was walking around at the airport, sort of lost actually, waiting on an incoming flight in San Jose, CA on Monday this week when by chance I starting talking with someone who had been to the MUSE Concert. (Safe Energy) She introduced herself as Glenn Carroll and she was heading back to Georgia where she was the coordinator for a a group called Nuclear Watch South and they had a web site called nonukesyall.org. She then handed me a flyer, a no nukes bumper sticker, and a small origami bird to remind me of Japan.
Maybe it was coincidence or fate or whatever you call it, but it does seem strange to me that out of all the people there that our two paths had crossed. Of course I told her about EnviroReporter and the valuable information contained on this site too.
I checked out their web site and it has lots of good information and video links. They’ve been around a while too, mostly fighting against Nuclear Plants in the Southern US and now Fukushima awareness.
http://www.nonukesyall.org/about.html
First Fukushima Free Non-Radioactive Rain Fall- Tropical Storm Bret
http://youtu.be/NbdYM2PuDgk
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/queryResult.do
i got lucky and manage to get a rad net query from that epa website for Arizona im not sure about the gamma ray levels but beta gross count at most hit 72 cmp. and that was only one time is arizona dodging the bullet or do we have to stay on alert
Hi Michael,
Re getting the EPA links worked out before posting, I double and triple check the EPA links before posting them to make sure that the links work. Then a day or two later, some of these EPA links will no longer connect. Sometimes links will again work later. Frustrating. Very frustrating. Others are reporting the same problem.
(P.S., one time I bracketed a link with , and the link disappeared, when I posted. Don’t know what happened, but I sure won’t do that anymore…)
The Higgins link to EPA data (“Real Time EPA RadNet Japan Nuclear Radiation Monitoring For Every Major City In The Entire US On A Single Page”) has consistently worked: http://blog.alexanderhiggins.com/2011/04/12/realtime-epa-radnet-japan-nuclear-radiation-monitoring-every-us-city-single-page-16511/
EPA gross beta CPM data Higgins has accessed and presented graph style is consistent to the EPA data that I have pulled up via EPA RadNet Query search charts. (A word of caution, sometimes the EPA will go back and pull data entries, or change them(?). Not often, but it happens.)
To view overall trends, the Higgins CPA beta graphs is a nice way to go. To check for hourly CPA gross beta data, the EPA RadNet Search Query approach is useful.
Two currently working EPA RadNet Query data links:
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/monitorView.do
http://www.epa.gov/radnet/radnet-data/
You don’t have to post this. Just wanted you to know what’s been happening. Really, really frustrating. Don’t know if the EPA is having website problems, or other issues are up.
Thanks again for all your wonderful work, Michael!
@ EVERYONE: I am pleased to announce that Raddies in Sonoma County and Beverly Hills just received their Inspector nuclear radiation monitors and are testing food and sending me results. I am hoping these results will be available as soon as they master their testing and have some pertinent readings to report. (Note, as a policy, we don’t report other folks’ normal readings because it isn’t that useful).
I am not pleased to announce that only two Raddies have endeavored to get me N95 face masks worn by folks fighting to not breathe fallout on jet trips this summer. This says to me that either none of you fly and don’t have friends and family who fly that you have taken the time and effort to convince to protect their lungs from floating fissile radionuclides, or that you just haven’t made the time to do it. Look how powerful this one brave soul’s journey to Japan with a mask on worked out to be in this post and ask yourself ‘Why haven’t I made any effort to help people I know who fly to protect themselves and then get their mask(s) to EnviroReporter.com for testing?’
The life you save may be your own. Take the time to do this or don’t complain about flying through fallout that we clearly seeing literally raining down on St. Louis, Oklahoma City, western Canada, North Carolina and Santa Monica (to a much lesser degree).
@ roundabout: Thank you so much for the kind words! You correctly praise Denise whose beauty is only matched by her wisdom and fury to fight for our world. Before I met her, I was the Two Billion Dollar Boy and after, the Six Billion Dollar Man. Now she acts as my bulwark and muse for the most challenging work I’ve ever faced, work being toiled on now for months that will soon come to fruition.
But at least we’ll be enjoying the same (hopefully 100%) rad-free apple and blackberry pies together as we do it, roundabout!
@ biggee: These are terrific measurements, thank you! I invite you to create a rain report section for Canada and the United States that is constantly updated as your idea is excellent. Note that I do not have the time to try to get folks to conform to a system that is defensible factually (such as doing backgrounds consistently and providing as much compressed video as possible) in order for me to feel confident that the work of folks I’ve never met, let alone know the capabilities of, to use on the website other than these kind and energized folks making posts. That said, I would post such an evolving report if you created it.
@ Chase: Your eloquent posts are in a class by themselves. Please keep them coming. You are our Muse.
@ Angusmerlin: I cannot account for the difference between the EPA’s high beta spikes in (presumably) central Los Angeles compared to our relatively normal ambient air readings 13+ miles to west by the coast. It would be helpful if the EPA actually answered questions about its sampling and testing but my feeling is that upcoming coverage you will find on this website just might pry some responses out of them. Your comments are terrific but please try to get those links worked out before posting (and don’t rely on amateur analysis using a shakey “network”) if you want to see them posted unedited. Thank you for your contributions.
@ POTRblog: WELCOME BACK, Raddie! Your expertise and commitment are unparalleled and we are thrilled to have you back home bringing us undeniable facts and superb analysis.
@ SLO: Thank you for your post. Here is a press release related to it I just received:
Statewide coalition forms to shut down California nuclear plants
San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace has put out a media release today:
“Following the August 7 MUSE (Musicians United for Safe Energy) anti-nuclear concert, more than 60 California groups met in San Mateo for the first statewide Anti-Nuclear post-Fukushima Summit. Participants committed to continuing work towards the shut-down of the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant and San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, both of which are immediately adjacent to major earthquake faults. In addition, summit members focused on energy conservation and clean, safe, renewable solutions to establish a nuclear-free California.
Among the groups participating were the following: Abalone Alliance Clearinghouse; Alliance for Survival; Coalition For Responsible Ethical Environmental Decisions (CREED); Ecological Options Network (EON); Friends of the Earth; Green Leap Forward; Greenpeace; Los Angeles Greens; No Nukes Caucus Veterans for Peace; No Nukes on Faults; Peace and Freedom Party; Progressive Democrats of Los Angeles; Redwood Alliance; Residents Organized for a Safe Environment (ROSE); Sacred Sites Peacewalk for a Nuclear Free World; San Clemente Green; San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace; Veterans for Peace Chapter 162 East Bay San Francisco; Women’s Energy Matters.
The MUSE concert was a fund-raiser for the victims of the Fukushima disaster and for clean, safe energy. See Guacamole Fund website and Facebook for more information about the artists and the concert.
Photos of the MUSE concert, featuring Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt and others are available at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mothers-for-Peace/183225733141
and at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Guacamole-Fund/231062476903972.”
For more info., contact Jane Swanson with San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace at Janeslo@me.com, (805) 595-2605, or cell (805) 440-1359.
Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) helped pull the coalition meeting together. Beyond Nuclear’s Kevin Kamps was in attendance.
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/08/literally-covering-up-reactor-1-has.html
“The insider rumor says TEPCO/the government really don’t want those pesky satellites to look down on their broken reactors. They don’t want to see them on Google Earth..”
http://youtu.be/MYZyvfnl6-E
This is the first rainstorm I have been able to test here in Saint Louis since our 4000 mile radioactive road trip to the Florida Keys. The key take away is that rain storms blown in via the Jet Stream are radioactive, where as the only NON RADIOACTIVE rain I have detected since Fukushima was in central Florida and blown in from east to west via tropical storm Bret.
@roundabout:
http://www.nuclearcrimes.org/neweis.php
http://www.nv.doe.gov/outreach/news/Default.aspx
http://nnsa.energy.gov/nepa/nnsssweis
Links above, nukes to be tested ABOVE GROUND and below. The timing for the Public Comments deadline being October 27, 2011… Is this purely coincidental or meant to coincide with the Japanese harvest when the upcoming food panic is forecast, thereby causing most to be distracted away from making meaningful comments to stop the nuclear insanity about to commence some 50 miles north of Las Vegas (not far from the California State Line)?
The kitty drawing before was an attempt at levity, btw, but did not take form like I had hoped.
FWIW, here is a link to a report discussing increased rates of cancer in North Santa Barbara county and South San Luis Obispo county caused by Diablo Canyon reactor emissions:
http://www.h-o-m-e.org/Forum/RPHPrpt.PDF
That California current from SLO flows southward, down the coast, carrying goo from Diablo with it…
Hello All,
Just saw this new study about flaxseed and it’s protective properties against radiation:
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-ancient-crop-effective-21st-century.html
@Wilma; any guesses on what those mean? Where did you get these signals? Can you provide a link?
Okay, Jesus, I am ready to go “home” for sure, take me now I’m ready!! The Japanese government is letting people back within 20 km just days after lethal doses of radiation have been found within the plant, and scientists are only speculating why and where this is happening! But you just have to be there for a few seconds before you die! But the government has got your back folks! Yep! Where’s the beef again? They are going to measure that radiation load for you before you meander back to your place… this is as absurd as the US debt! Please, if you are in Japan and have been evacuated, stay as suspicious as is necessary! http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110810a6.html
In the meantime, we in the Central Coast area of Ca; Grover Beach, Los Osos, Oceano, Pismo Beach and all small towns including San Luis Obispo with a university there, have NO IDEA what the daily radiation levels are as there are no fixed or deployable monitors in our area! This is insane. The Air Quality Control Board gets all their data on this from the EPA, who is nowhere to be found in this area! And with a nuclear plant in its midst! Let me know if you live here and want to send me a nukealert or help me get one so I can at least get some CPM around here, and in the stores. I would be happy to youtube for everyone in the area!! I have the time and commitment to do it!
Please click this link and send a letter to end California’s use of nuclear power if you have not done it yet. The letter wont be available for long.
Thanks everyone!
-SLO
Dear friends,
This weekend at the M.U.S.E.* concert, the Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility and Friends of the Earth collaborated on a electronic letter to state officials and the governor. With one click you can send to your assembly-member, state senator and Gov. Brown. The letter will only be up for a few more days and we really need your support.
Please click http://bit.ly/CAnukes“>http://bit.ly/CAnukes fill in the categories and you have joined our voice for a future that will not include aging reactors on our fragile coast.
Your help is greatly appreciated and if each of you would send to others it would greatly help our fall actions in Sacramento.
In
Peace
Rochelle
*Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Crosby, Stills, Nash, Jason Mraz, Sweet Honey and the Rock….. In Peace
Rochelle Becker, Executive Director
Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility
http://www.a4nr.org“>http://www.a4nr.org
PO 1328
San Luis Obispo, Ca 93406-1328
From website–
http://www.nuclearcrimes.org/neweis.php
“Considering that radioisotopes used in future Source Physics Experiments could easily drift offsite depending on meteorological conditions, it is curious that the U.S. EPA announced on the same day (evening of May 3) as the NNSA experiment (May 3) that it would halt its special monitoring of radiation linked to Japan. NuclearCrimes.org suspects that the EPA and DOE are doing a repeat of the trick they pulled during the Mighty Oak experiment of 1986.”
So, what does this mean? Please fill in the blank…
(\ _____ /)
__ ‘ ‘__
__ __
~
(“) __ (“)
I have to say, looking at the Eat Me receipts, I was pleasantly surprised. I would have never bought a blackberry or any berry pie, but it seems that Claim Jumpers is cool, as in not hot! Maybe from last years batch, but it was encouraging to see how things were measuring better than I thought they would! I have to say, after reading about Japan’s nightmare, although I remain diligent, I am still encouraged here on the West Coast. I can hardly wait till I get a nukealert! There has been a lot of gloom fog in Grover Beach area! The jet stream is also blowing through northern Ca, and straight across our states,into the midwest which is not the norm.
The PCS-730 +/- 1 kV Charging Source is used to charge the CPM-720 to +/- 1,000 volts to measure ionizer decay and material decay. Electrostatic Meter. These three instruments are match calibrated to work together for accurate and efficient auditing.
Prior EPA RadNet Query link I gave you no longer works: .
Now, to access EPA RadNet information (including gross beta data), here are still good links you can use:
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/monitorView.do
Did anybody go to the MUSE concert in San Fran? Musicians unite 4 safer energy. I was there. It was great to be with others who get it.
Tricastin Nuclear Plant Explosion Leaked 8-6-11
http://tinyurl.com/42o25a6
Oklahoma City, RAIN… High Levels Detected… yet again.
This may be from Los Alamos or Fukushima or maybe both?
Independent Radiation Detector as of 8/06/2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPxCLJQ5tj0&feature=youtu.be
Let’s see… If it’s in Canada, Washington state, North Carolina, Berkeley, California; Boise, Idaho; St. Louis, Mo; Philadephia, PA; Oklahoma City, OK just to name a few. That means it’s in our water and it will affect crops at some point. It’s ‘highly likely’ that it has already. To what extent we do not know. The overall accumulation affect can only be estimated at this point. Known FACT: It will accumulate.
_________________
GammaCam Images:
http://www.gammacamnow.com/Images.html
I found this interesting. Mouse over the thumbnails for a description of each photo. Note the pipe on a roof and the 2 ft concrete wall at Oak Ridge.
A 4000 Mile Radioactive Road Trip! Seek LESS Jet Stream and MORE Hurricane
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/08/4000-mile-radioactive-road-trip-seek.html
The executive summary is as follows:
(1) The radioactivity in the rainfall decreases the further one moves away from the jet stream.
(2) The radioactivity in the rainfall goes to ZERO for storms originating from Africa traveling eastward to the USA. (tropical depressions, tropical storms, hurricanes, etc)
http://fukushima-diary.com/2011/08/smoke-and-flash-from-unit14/
“Dr.Takeda Kunihiko ,a former member of Nuclear Energy Council states they release radioactive gas during the night so satellite can’t observe it easily.”
What? At least i know now that what i suspected all along is really happening. If Arnie Gunderson is right and it will take years to stop the contamination from being spewed out, than we might as well start eating contaminated food. Soon we wont have a choice anyways.
Michio Kaku interview CNN. It doesn’t sound good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lDUkKODR4I&feature=player_detailpage
“As Americans struggle to survive amid the economic depression, Obama has allocated 39 billion dollars for the U.S. nuclear power industry, an industry that peace and justice human rights defender Dr. Caldicott has called “nuclear insanity” and the “Destroyer of Worlds.””
http://crisisjones.wordpress.com/2011/08/05/experts-fukushima-off-scale-lethal-radiation-level-infers-100s-of-millions-dying/
Aug 6, 2011 Oklahoma City First Rain Since Drought Started.
High radiation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPxCLJQ5tj0&feature=player_detailpage
Folks; If you haven’t already done so, click Michael and Denise’s picture on this page to read about the caliber of reporters we have the honor of participating with! Denise Anne looks like a celebrity in photo’s and the two make a gorgeous couple together at their awards gala’s!
We have closely followed the Fukushima disaster from its beginning. First time commenter, long-time follower of this website. Thank you to Michael, Denise, and all the constructive contributors to this website — an invaluable resource. We don’t know if anyone has seen the news reports yet on the mysterious orange goo that has recently visited a remote Alaskan village, but we thought we would pass along a link to an article regarding same: http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/news-general/20110806/US.Alaska.Orange.Mystery/. Unfortunately, we are not surprised that the article fails to mention the possibility that the orange goo may be tied to the events of Fukushima. Keep up the good work everyone.
http://www.salemnews.com/region/x541066123/AP-Vt-nuke-plant-had-past-radioactive-releases
“Richard Conatser, a health physicist with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said in an interview Thursday that the sorts of strontium-90 releases reported by Vermont Yankee in the early 2000s were “kind of rare. We don’t see this all the time. We see this every once in a while at generally very low values.”
Kind of rare? Not all the time? Every once in a while?
OMG! I just had to think about what someone else posted here a while ago: “There is nothing to worry about, nothing to see, move along!”
From Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Forum:
Thread Heading: “Are there any results you have NOT shared with us? Positive for radiocesium etc?”
“I looked through our list of samples and found a couple that fell through the cracks. We do have a few samples with levels of cesium in them that have not been reported, but it is one sample of sand from a beach and a few samples of grass from the raw milk pastures. These are not food items per se, which is what your main concern is. I will be posting these soon. We do not hold back results for any reason, nor is there anyone telling us what we can and cannot do.” – Mark BRAWM
Just one sample of SAND! Which Beach? Only a few samples of GRASS! Where Pasture? Those where my thoughts.
see full comment here: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/5146#comment-16188
Berkeley Milk Test Result. C-134 detected, but no C-137. Seems puzzling. …as of 8/01/2011
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/5174#comment-16182
Milk data (scroll down) Why would there be no C-137? A quick scroll look on the other test dates shows they were always almost the same. Where did it go?
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2174
I collected a number of 10 hour segments (not “10 minute segments” as I previously erroneously posted) re the EPA Gross Beta findings for Los Angeles, California.
9:00pm
I forgot to give you Raddie bloggers the EPA source from which I obtained the EPA RadNet Query gross beta postings for Los Angeles, California, 7/28/2011 – 8/4/2011:
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/queryResult.do
***
Since I first reported this link to you on August 2nd, the EPA has changed the manner in which you can access their RadNet Query data. It is a bit more difficult now, though once you go to your selected city, you will actually get a lot more information. Too bad the EPA changed manner of accessing, though. A couple of days ago, all the RadNet reporting station cities for the United States were listed on one page. And, you could click back and forth between cities to see how gross beta radiation CPA levels compared. Now you cannot easily do so (or at least I could not figure out how to easily do so). The amount of information you can now obtain for a given city, however, is far more substantial.
Happy RadNet hunting!
@roundabout (from mask comments area) roundabout said… “I just returned from the foothills in Tulare County. Just for historical purposes, to add to your observations, (from Aug 3rd), a dead bird embryo dropped to my car. Sorry folks, its sad and gross, but it happened. I lived in Tulare County for decades, this never happened. I just returned today, and the embryo which dropped dead happened yesterday.” Also noted was that the Jet Stream went directly over our area yesterday. Good observation roundabout. – ty
So after what I saw yesterday, (see my dead bird comment from yesterday), I decided it was time to do a little bit more than just comment here. It’s hitting close to home now and it may be for you too, sooner than you think. Today I saw SEVERAL different species of dead birds by the side of the road. The multiple species thing I believe is a big clue. These included a red headed woodpecker, several ravens, and sparrows. Probably 6 or 7 in a one mile stretch between my house and the general store. They did not look like they had been hit by a car.
So, I went to a town hall meeting last night regarding the prescribed fires and wild fires currently burning in the Sequoia National Park. (I really wish I had taken my video camera. I won’t forget next time.)
There were Tulare County CA Department of Health officials, Firefighters, and Park Personnel at the meeting. Some of the fires currently are man made as part of the Redwood preservation. They need fire to reproduce. Anyway, my thought is maybe this year we should not be doing this due to fallout from Fukushima. If you get my drift. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for preserving the majestic Redwood Trees, but this year is very different.
At the end of the meeting the speaker asked if there were any questions. All was quiet. I waited… hoping someone else would please speak first. He then said, “are you sure there are no more questions”. I raised my hand and stood up.
I announced who I was and that I was a local resident with a background in science and that I had a concern. I went on to say, “Why??, since we know we have had Fukushima fallout, WHY would we not test the foliage and soil before lighting it on fire?” They had no response.
I continued and pointed out, “they could easily look up the Cal-Poly milk tests as of around June 16th and prior and that cesium could only have come from one place. Fukushima. That it accumulates and we had very high snow pack. Why is no one testing? Does anyone have a detector so we could go see?” They seemed stunned.
I also told them of my attempts to contact the county back in May and how their reply was to say “it’s no more harmful than a plane ride”. I documented that call in the comments section here back on May 25th, 2011.
I informed them, “Ingestion cannot be compared to an x-ray or a plane ride”. I think most people get that once they think about it.
Finally I said, “I am tired of local agencies passing the buck up the line to other agencies like the EPA. …and that the water from these mountains is used for the large cattle ranches and dairy farms not to mention the food grown on the valley floor.” I could have went on, but I figured it was good to keep it short, I had made my point and they GOT the message. I did get some cards from the officials and will be emailing and doing follow-ups with them all very soon.
One lady did approach me and said her organization has done testing of the snow and water, but that they have not yet received the results. (seems like the same runaround as Japan) I have her name and number.
The editor of the local paper was there too. Mr. John Elliot of the Kaweah Commonwealth newspaper. I respect John very much. He said my question was very good. We’ll see if he has the guts to mention my comments in the local paper which comes out tomorrow? (Friday) He’s fed up with the fires that’s for sure.
Those brave firefighters and all of us here I believe are at potentially “high” risk, especially at this moment.
1. If they didn’t know about the fallout, then they should be fired for incompetence.
2. If they did know about fallout, then they are being negligent beyond belief at the possible cost of people lives and suffering. It’s plain and obvious.
3. If they rely 100% on the EPA, then they are either idiots or cowards who can only pass the buck and say someday, “Sorry it’s regrettable, but it’s not my fault.” BS is what I would say to that one!!!
______________________
My advise: Take a camera, go to a town or county meeting, show your heartfelt concern to your local officials now! If 10 of us did that, if 50 or 100, things might start to change. Make it so they MUST open their eyes and at least confront this.
🙂 Thank you all for your time. I know this was a long one.
Current Gross Beta Radiation EPA Query findings for Los Angeles, Calif:
Re CPM Gross Beta EPA monitor readings for dates of 7/28/211 – 8/4/2011,
I collected 10 minute segments of reported EPA Gross Beta findings for
Los Angeles, California. Results are as follows:
EPA RadNet Query Interface data for Los Angeles, California:
7/28/2011 – 8/4/2011
Measurement End Date/Time
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM)
[Over 10 minute periods]
***************************
2011-07-28 17:00:26
48.0000
————
2011-07-28 18:00:40
62.0000
————
2011-07-28 19:00:54
116.0000
————
2011-07-28 20:01:08
233.0000
————
2011-07-28 21:01:22
198.0000
————
2011-07-28 22:01:37
190.0000
————
2011-07-28 23:01:51
163.0000
————
2011-07-29 00:02:05
146.0000
————
2011-07-29 01:02:19
131.000
————
2011-07-29 02:02:33
82.0000
***************************************************************************
2011-07-29 14:05:20
73.0000
————
2011-07-29 19:06:29
67.0000
————
2011-07-29 20:06:43
90.0000
————
2011-07-29 21:06:56
160.0000
————
2011-07-29 22:07:11
146.0000
————
2011-07-29 23:07:24
137.0000
————
2011-07-30 00:07:38
131.0000
————
2011-07-30 01:07:52
98.0000
————
2011-07-30 02:08:07
46.0000
————
2011-07-30 03:08:20
37.0000
***************************************************************************
2011-07-30 09:09:44
224.0000
————
2011-07-30 10:09:57
130.0000
————
2011-07-30 13:10:39
43.0000
————
2011-07-30 14:10:53
49.0000
————
2011-07-30 15:11:07
51.0000
————
2011-07-30 16:11:20
64.0000
————
2011-07-30 17:11:35
64.0000
————
2011-07-30 18:11:49
77.0000
————
2011-07-30 19:12:03
123.0000
————
2011-07-30 20:12:17
142.0000
————
2011-07-30 21:12:31
164.0000
————
2011-07-30 22:12:45
143.0000
————
2011-07-30 23:12:59
126.0000
————
2011-07-31 00:13:13
105.0000
————
2011-07-31 01:13:26
87.0000
————
2011-07-31 02:13:41
79.0000
————
2011-07-31 03:13:54
58.0000
————
2011-07-31 04:14:08
51.0000
————
2011-07-31 05:14:22
45.0000
————
2011-07-31 06:14:36
40.0000
***************************************************************************
2011-07-31 18:17:23
83.0000
————
2011-07-31 19:17:37
126.0000
————
2011-07-31 20:17:51
174.0000
————
2011-07-31 21:18:05
251.0000
————
2011-07-31 22:18:19
233.0000
————
2011-07-31 23:18:33
189.0000
————
2011-08-01 00:18:46
138.0000
————
2011-08-01 01:19:01
118.0000
————
2011-08-01 02:19:15
95.0000
————
2011-08-01 03:19:28
54.0000
————
***************************************************************************
2011-08-01 12:21:34
52.0000
————
2011-08-01 13:21:48
58.0000
————
2011-08-01 13:59:46
62.0000
————
2011-08-01 15:14:33
48.0000
————
2011-08-01 16:14:47
93.0000
————
2011-08-01 17:15:01
117.0000
————
2011-08-01 18:15:15
117.0000
————
2011-08-01 19:15:29
113.0000
————
2011-08-01 20:15:43
118.0000
————
2011-08-01 21:15:57
103.0000
***************************************************************************
2011-08-01 22:16:11
103.0000
————
2011-08-01 23:16:25
101.0000
————
2011-08-02 00:16:38
81.0000
————
2011-08-02 01:16:52
78.0000
————
2011-08-02 02:17:06
74.0000
————
1-08-02 03:17:20
54.0000
————
2011-08-02 04:17:34
49.0000
————
2011-08-02 05:17:48
46.0000
————
2011-08-02 06:18:02
42.0000
————
2011-08-02 07:18:15
44.0000
————
****************************************************************************
2011-08-02 09:17:43
49.0000
————
2011-08-02 10:17:57
54.0000
————
2011-08-02 11:18:11
58.0000
————
2011-08-02 12:18:25
60.0000
————
2011-08-02 13:18:39
67.0000
————
2011-08-02 14:18:53
82.0000
————
2011-08-02 15:19:07
103.0000
————
2011-08-02 16:19:21
128.0000
————
2011-08-02 17:19:35
140.0000
————
2011-08-02 18:19:48
154.0000
****************************************************************************
2011-08-02 19:20:02
142.0000
————
2011-08-02 20:20:16
118.0000
————
2011-08-02 21:20:30
103.0000
————
2011-08-02 22:20:44
116.0000
————
2011-08-02 23:20:58
125.0000
————
2011-08-03 00:21:12
126.0000
————
2011-08-03 01:21:26
104.0000
————
2011-08-03 02:21:40
94.0000
————
2011-08-03 03:21:54
70.0000
————
2011-08-03 04:22:07
***************************************************************************
2011-08-03 11:23:44
57.0000
————
2011-08-03 12:23:57
67.0000
————
2011-08-03 13:24:11
70.0000
————
2011-08-03 14:24:24
82.0000
————
2011-08-03 15:24:39
86.0000
————
2011-08-03 16:24:53
106.0000
————
2011-08-03 17:25:07
106.0000
————
2011-08-03 18:25:21
127.0000
————
2011-08-03 19:25:34
152.0000
————
2011-08-03 20:25:48
143.0000
————
2011-08-03 21:26:02
121.0000
————
2011-08-03 22:26:16
119.0000
————
2011-08-03 23:26:30
103.0000
————
2011-08-04 00:26:44
88.0000
————
2011-08-04 01:26:58
81.0000
————
2011-08-04 02:27:12
76.0000
————
2011-08-04 03:27:26
62.0000
————
2011-08-04 04:27:39
55.0000
————
2011-08-04 05:27:54
54.0000
***************************************************************************
2011-08-04 06:28:08
49.0000
————
2011-08-04 07:28:22
47.0000
————
2011-08-04 08:28:35
44.0000
————
2011-08-04 09:28:49
43.0000
————
2011-08-04 10:29:03
48.0000
————
2011-08-04 11:29:17
59.0000
————
2011-08-04 12:29:31
68.0000
————
2011-08-04 13:29:45
72.0000
————
2011-08-04 14:29:59
87.0000
————
2011-08-04 15:30:13
84.0000
————
2011-08-04 16:30:27
99.0000
————
2011-08-04 17:30:41
112.0000
————
2011-08-04 18:30:55
120.0000
————
2011-08-04 19:31:09
136.0000
————
2011-08-04 20:31:23
119.0000
————
2011-08-04 21:31:37
109.0000
————
2011-08-04 22:31:50
105.0000
————
2011-08-04 23:32:05
98.0000
***************************************************************************
Note: Zero Values for “Beta CPM”, “Gamma CPM”, “Flow Rate”, “Sampling Volume” or “Ambient Pressure” indicate data not available.Combined “Wind Speed” and “Wind Direction” of ‘0’ and ‘359’ indicate data not available.
Graphical Plots for the Past 7 Days
Fixed Monitor Location
CA: LOS ANGELES
Fixed Monitor Data Category
Gross BetaGamma Energy Range
Scale
Normal Logarithmic
Note: Vertical axis of logarithmic plot may not have numeric labels if data range is not large. Negative values will not work with logarithmic plots.
Graph Type
RadNet Data
Monitoring Radiological Incidents
Arnie has offered an interesting theory to explain the sudden astronomically high increase in radiaton at Tempco’s nuclear power plants.
I still wonder, however, if these new skyrocketing levels of radiation may be also connected to all the large quakes continuing to hit the east coast of Honshu, Japan. The nuclear reactors at Fukushima already were in horrendous shape. Now add to this sad state of affairs the fact that both last Saturday and Monday (Japan time date), +6 magnitude shakers again struck Honshu. This is not to mention all the continuing +4 and +5 after shocks off the East Coast of Honshu, Japan. And, indeed, all the after shockes following the Great Japan Quake and Tsunami.
lAfter shocks, after shocks, and more after shocks! Sudden rises in radiation at Fukushima’s power plants?
***
USGS government report for earthquakes re last Saturday and Monday (July 31st and August 2nd, 2011):
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Maps/10/140_35.php
I’m finding the following link to the public Radnet Query tool works.
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/query.do
August 4, 2011
Arnie Gundersen 4/4/2011 video discusses the off the charts high levels of radiation reported at Fukushima’s nuclear Tempco power plant on August the 1st.
“Lethal Levels of Radiation at Fukushima: What Are the Implications?”
http://fairewinds.com/content/lethal-levels-radiation-fukushima-what-are-implications
According to EPA RadNet reporting station in Los Angeles-
3:00pm: 109 CPMs
Here is a video from Dr. Solomon discussing the BP oil spill testing fiasco… NOT testing for heavy metals etc in environment … Remember, the West Coast is going to inherit a lot of fishy fallout from Japans coastal fish, especially Tuna. If they have not already migrated here. The Gulf Coast is relegated to a website for info, or do their own testing… sound familiar? We need to get more Inspectors out there for sure! Here is the video, and most likely what will be coming our way in terms of more of the same: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EQIXztpL6s&feature=relmfu
There is a Dr. Otis on Youtube who has been talking about health related matters being ignored and people dying due to the oil spill, remember, this is the same government that is “protecting” our west coast populations.
Well, it is 12:05pm, Thursday afternoon. The EPA’s gross beta measurement for Los Angeles is now posting at 120 CPMs. Wonder if Michael’s two hot peaches were grown in an area close to where the Los Angeles RadNet monitor is stationed. Unsettling! Very– As I mentioned earlier, I almost wonder if the EPA’s rad monitor is perhaps having problems.
Are any of you in the Burbank/San Fernando Valley area monitoring radiation levels for this area?
The Santa Monica/West Los Angeles area appears to be OK according to the EnviroReporter Rad monitoring station.
OMG, Swede tries to build nuclear reactor in his kitchen!
http://bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14403432
Today I had several personal observations.
I was standing on my porch this morning and I saw a bird fall from above, right out of the sky. It was a small yellow finch or canary like bird. In my over half century on this planet I have never seen that. At the same time there was a cat about 10 feet away from where the tiny bird landed. Even the cat had a bit of a look of shock on it’s face. The feral momma cat then went over curiously and touched the bird. Yep, it was dead. Then, she picked it up and started eating it. The momma cat then went back to breast feed her kitten. (There were only three kittens this year and the two runts didn’t last 3 days.) I couldn’t help but think to myself, “this is an exposure pathway, this is how the chain of life gets destroyed and I may be witnessing it before my very eyes”.
On or around May 12 of this year we were experiencing heavy rainfall on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada mountains in Tulare County, California. We are at about 1000 feet elevation. I observed several lady bugs on a wet metal fence poll on my front porch. The two of them were ‘kissing’ so to speak, and I remember thinking to myself, “if the rain is radioactive then those poor little bugs must be really getting hit”. So today, after I saw the bird hit the ground, I also noticed the lady bugs. Still there. They had become frozen in time on the poll where I initially observed them. They were still ‘kissing’. Their shells have now started to decay. I could be wrong but I don’t think lady bugs die while ‘kissing’.
I remember it was May because I left a comment here regarding some research to determine what the first signs of fallout might be. I came across several articles stating that insects could be one of the first signs.
So none of this is proof of anything. It is only a subjective observation, but I thought it was worth noting for possible future historical purposes. This is what I saw and this is when I first saw it. For whatever it’s worth, I just can’t help but wonder. hmmmm…?
*Correction: To access EPA RadNet Query gross beta data postings, you must use the following EPA link:
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/monitorView.do
From that link, you can scroll down and click on “Los Angeles, Ca” to bring up the gross beta postings for Los Angeles. Or, whatever city you wish to choose.
***
(Sorry for confusion! The second EPA Los Angeles link I earlier posted will not work.)
At Majia’s Blog site I came across this reference to a still posting EPA “RadNet Query Result” link for gross beta CPA findings in cities across the United States:
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/monitorView.do
***
When I went to the EPA “RadNet Query Result” site for Los Angeles for today (world date, 8/3/2011)–
beta gross count posted at: 94.00
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/queryResult.do
***
Does anyone know exactly where in Los Angeles the EPA RadNet monitoring location is located? 94 CPM seems especially high. Other local EPA monitoring stations (Riverside and Anaheim) registered results that appeared normal.
Michael, any clues? Above Los Angeles readings do not seem consistent with your EnviroReporter monitoring station findings from Santa Monica/West Los Angeles. I realize that even a few miles can make a big difference re wind patterns. But, this much difference? Holy smoke! Hope the monitor is broken.
Have been running around the state, unfortunately without a geiger counter… but got away for a day or two. In checking in, I see there are new developments of people waking up to the Fukushima fallout disaster! This one German site reminded me “not to eat my fresh veggies”! Will be sending my car air filter to you soon Michael, (well packaged so no leakage)Here is the green leafy site in Germany: _
http://www.bfs.de/de/ion/imis/prognosen.html
Also Dutchsinse has predicted Santa Barbara to Santa Maria (my area) is going to have a tornadic storm in a day or two. I always wonder about Diablo during these storms. I may just spend a few more days in the central valley, LOL!
This video has englisch subtitles. It really makes you wonder whats going on in Japan. Its not a third world poor country. Why is the japanese government acting like this?
Prof. Kodama Angry about Japanese Gov.’s Gross Negligence
Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dlf4gOvzxYc&feature=player_detailpage
Part2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XefmvjI7Mk4&feature=player_detailpage
———–
Meanwhile the world gets nuked and nobody in power seemes to care.
“Up to around one billion becquerels of radioactive substances are believed to be released every hour from reactors No.1, 2 and 3. It is not known how accurate this
figure is because it was worked out by taking readings of the air on the plant’s premises.”
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/29_13.html
“However, it said the discovery would not slow continuing efforts to bring the plant’s damaged reactors under control.”
How can they continue working with 10 sieverts per hour. Where is that coming from? Something must have happend there.
official
The levels inside are too high to messure:
“People risk death if they are exposed to radiation doses of 10 sieverts per hour, or 10,000 millisieverts. The high levels of radiation mean that a person could be exposed to 250 millisieverts of radiation — the upper limit set by the government for workers engaged in restoration work at the Fukushima plant — within 90 seconds.”
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/news/20110802p2a00m0na018000c.html”
Could it be that this earthquake caused damage at the Fukushima Plant, that we dont know about?
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usc00056nn.php
Here’s a video that everyone in Japan and the world needs to watch!!!
(Warning: this video contains some graphic images)
The Experiment continues…(I did not know this.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR1wo5s3Ua4&feature=player_embedded
________________________
Then, for an opposing view watch this one.
“Bill Gates LOVES Nuclear” April, 2010
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbbq_KdPzjE&feature=related
He says that… Based on “Deaths per megawatt” Nuclear Power is much safer. Obviously, Billy didn’t take into consideration many other factors. He clearly states where his monetary investments are. I for one will never purchase another Microsoft product. EVER! I’m switching to linux a.s.a.p.!
“The new monsters peer over the horizon, good intentions spliced with blind arrogance and numbing greed.” – by unknown (yet well said)
“Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of Japan’s crippled Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant, said it detected the highest radiation to date at the site.”
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/07/31/bloomberg1376-LP8WWK6JTSEJ01-5PIJEFGJ36KM50OK194CMKAJ22.DTL#ixzz1ToHbod97
What are they doing there? Its getting worse not better!
@Chase
Appreciate the info. It does not end, however. To get an idea, open next:
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/07/radiation-in-japan-how-brainwashing-was.html
The article above sheds some light upon why the Japanese farmer was compelled to resort to testing radiation herself as covered in that NYT link you provided. Specifically, the… “conscious decision to project an aura of calm” as remembered, albeit infamously, by:
http://news.yahoo.com/bush-explains-slow-reaction-september-11-attacks-230850794.html
@Wilma P. Thank you. Those are great links. I have heard Dr. Rokke (rocky). It’s easy to tell he speaks from experience, knowledge, and practical facts.
I had asked a question the other day about a cesium spread map. Well, I came across one today as I was reading about a hero in Japan. Kiyoko Okoshi is her name. Yes… another individual with a Rad Detector and the guts to confront officials.
Main article: Japanese Find Radioactivity ON THEIR OWN – Testing Soil
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/01/world/asia/01radiation.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2
I can’t help but wonder what her opinions are and how she feels about ‘acceptable limits’ and ‘acceptable risk’.
The MAP: Cesium Tracking Map
(soil) surrounding Fukushima:
As I looked at this map I thought of the killer bee maps I had seen and how over the years they ‘slowly’ moved north from South America. (yet another foolish little science project gone wild) Anyway… as I looked at this map I realized that radioactive material is not like bees or even viruses. Radiation from “fallouts” WILL CONTINUE to spread in multiple ways. Spreading in ways we should be anticipating with a little more forethought perhaps? It DOES NOT go away, until it’s hazardous lifespan ends. Basically, you can only move it or get away from it. You can cover it, but that is temporary. You can pretend it does not exist, but there are more than several drawbacks to that logic.
(large view – MAP by the US Department of Energy and the Japanese Ministry of Education)
http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2011/08/01/world/asia/01radiation-graphic.html?ref=asia
@Chase
To discover what is next for Fukushima, please read and share this report:
http://www.strahlentelex.de/Yablokov%20Chernobyl%20book.pdf
Then, listen to learn from this:
http://www.podomatic.com/profile/rogercooper99
http://newsworldwide.wordpress.com/2011/05/19/exclusive-roger-cooper-interview-with-doug-rokke-there-is-no-safe-radiation-level/
I heard an interview on the radio yesterday about the Japanese families who come temporarily to Hawaii to stay with guest families. They mentioned that it’s only for three months and after that they have to go BACK to Japan. To me that seems worse than never having left in the first place..so sad.
What Does Radiation Do to Living Things?:
“In every PLANT and ANIMAL species adequately studied, radiation resulted in deleterious mutations.” – Dr. James N. Yamazaki, UCLA Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics
http://www.aasc.ucla.edu/cab/200708230007.html
________________
How Radiation Affects Pregnant Women and Children:
“The incidence of miscarriage, stillbirth and death during infancy was 43 percent…”
Note: This percentage number seems amazingly close to other ‘unofficial’ studies that are current. ie… Philadelphia, PA
http://www.aasc.ucla.edu/cab/200708230012.html
(*Based on studies of Nagasaki done in the early sixties)
LAS, thank you so much for that link! I didnt know they existed. Please, everybody pass that link on and post it wherever you can! Thank you!
Chase, you said “Then it came to me. Those who had the means and/or the ability to leave are long gone. Those left behind, well… they may be like the animals left behind at Chernobyl. It’s almost like they are being treated as though they have a kind of “rad-leprosy”. They aren’t going to be allowed to go anywhere anytime soon is my gut feeling. I think the people of Northern Japan have started to slowly figure that out. What can be done about it? I do not know. I’m not even sure what the options are or if there are any good ones?”
You are so right about what you are thinking. Some of them know whats going on but they are left to fend for themself. Like the People in this Video.
SOS from Fukushima
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zYjYtVrOro&feature=related
@LadyFingers:
October is right around the corner…
http://www.nuclearcrimes.org/
IMPORTANT NEWS: The DOE has just announced the release of the Draft Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement for the continued operation of the DOE/NNSA Nevada National Security Site and off-site locations *only* in the State of Nevada (not for the Rio Blanco and Rulison Sites in CO, nor for former nuclear test sites in NM, AK, etc…).
This document essentially guarantees that for the next 10-15 years the U.S. has immunity from any citizen, tribe or organization appeal or injunction on legal, environmental or other grounds to resume underground nuclear testing at the former Nevada Test Site. Learn more about this EIS and what it means here on NuclearCrimes.
If you care about not becoming a downwinder and not becoming shafted by the U.S. judicial system from your claims that the government lethally poisoned your offspring with fallout, you will want to learn about this SWEIS and learn about how to comment – in writing and in person.
http://www.nuclearcrimes.org/neweis.php
http://www.nv.doe.gov/outreach/news/Default.aspx
http://nnsa.energy.gov/nepa/nnsssweis
BTW, missed the NRC Near-Term Task Force event AND ManHands’ Jeff Rense radio interview. Any links to archives of both events would be received with pleasure. Thank you both for all the Goo-D work.
“The ultimate measure of a man (person) is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
I have watched several movies, such as: Andromeda Strain, The Stand and others where they show the spread of a virus via computer simulation. I wonder if anyone has come up with a Cesium/Radiation contamination spread map? First Air, soil and water. Then consumed via plant or animal uptake at some point. Then, those humans or animals consume things, the accumulation of contamination will then spread via bodily excrement’s. Remember, important things like fish parts and cow poop get used for fertilizer too. These ‘chains’ and ‘loops’ are seemingly endless.
Thinking of this made me ask myself the question. “Are the people of Northern Japan being held hostage in a way?” Is it possible?
The reason I thought this is because of a Chernobyl documentary I watched where special armed forces were sent into the ‘no go’ zone in order to kill, exterminate, all living things possible. Boar, birds, deer and basically anything that moved. The reason for this was to help prevent the escape or ‘spread’ of contamination from the ‘zone’. Not only was the contamination on the animals themselves, but any foods they may have eaten would also spread as excrement. The excrement will then affect the next thing in the chain…. and so on. Even when the animal dies and decomposes, the bones and the spot where it died will ‘most likely’ be contaminated too. With Chernobyl, the humans in the immediate area were at least evacuated fairly early on.
However, Fukushima is different. We now know, that PEOPLE, especially women and children, should have been evacuated immediately, but they/we were all lied to. So now they and their children have been there for going on 5 MONTHS! They have to eat. They have to drink water. They go to the bathroom. They are the living nightmare experiment now. (We all are!)
Then it came to me. Those who had the means and/or the ability to leave are long gone. Those left behind, well… they may be like the animals left behind at Chernobyl. It’s almost like they are being treated as though they have a kind of “rad-leprosy”. They aren’t going to be allowed to go anywhere anytime soon is my gut feeling. I think the people of Northern Japan have started to slowly figure that out. What can be done about it? I do not know. I’m not even sure what the options are or if there are any good ones?
The wow factor is pretty high on this one:
http://www.nippon-sekai.com/main/articles/fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-power-plant-crisis/nhk-special-collaborating-to-create-a-radioactive-fallout-map/
90-minute NHK documentary special about Shinzo Kimura, a scientist specializing in radiation hygiene. He once worked for the National Institute of Radiological Sciences where he was on the research team for the Tokaimura nuclear accident. Kimura later transferred to a research center at the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare where he visited Chernobyl to perform his own research. After the Fukushima accident, Kimura was ORDERED TO REFRAIN FROM ENGAGING IN ANY SORT OF RESEARCH. Kimura left the agency because he felt his hands would be tied from not being able to utilize all that he had learned from researching both Chernobyl and Tokaimura. A network of scientists assist him with his independent research of the Fukushima crisis.
Since the accident, Kimura has been commuting to the area to assess the radiation. He heads into evacuated villages and takes samples of soil and plants. One of the projects being undertaken by Kimura and Masaharu Okano, an expert and pioneer in radiation research, is to create a radioactive fallout contamination map as a way to visualize the amount of radioactivity from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant. This documentary was a result of a two-month long collaboration by scientists. The video is split into seven parts, each a short fifteen minutes or less.
Please share.
Great story on NPR about the fact we have so much nuclear waste and no where to put it. Diablo Canyon being one of the many sites.
http://www.npr.org/2011/07/28/138707937/nuclear-waste-piles-up-as-repository-plan-falters
@Bar
http://www.kachelmannwetter.de/japan/japan.html
On the webpage above, chose from drop-down menu “Select Film” and then chose the ‘Japan Emmission Dispersion’ video clips to see real-time (today) releases of radioisotopes extraordinaire from Fukushima.
The nighttime videos you mention showing constant radioactive steam leaving the plant are real, thank you for the info.
It looks like Erin Brockovich ought to be made aware of those Erionite roads…
Here’s my thoughts after reading an article about a grocery store chain in Japan starting to test their beef for Cesium. At first I thought, “What a great idea”, then it made me wonder. hmmm…??? uh..oh!!!
If you had the choice between Certified Cesium Free Beef (food) or Cesium within ‘acceptable limits’ Beef(food), which would you choose?
What if you had no choice? No way of telling?
What if the Cesium Free Beef(food) costs more?
Which are we actually choosing now? (I am not really sure to be honest.)
Which Beef(food) would the NRC and EPA members choose for their children?
Especially, if the ‘acceptable limit’ had been increased like in Japan to 10 TIMES that of the Ukraine after the Chernobyl accident.
I think the NRC/IAEA ‘whoever’ should crunch the Fukushima numbers for…
“how many lives…?”
“how many species…?”
“how many lifeforms…? will be irreversibly affected!”
“how many ‘chains’ of life will be broken?”
“… and for how many years to come?”
(Note: ‘irreversibly affected’ MAY also include death or extinction.)
“10 times higher, they say…That’s old news, now more than 10 times higher?”
WilmaP. i have to agree with you on that one. As long as the Fukushima plant isnt fixed it will spew out contamination. It has since the accident happend and they havent done anything to keep it from getting into the enviroment. All the steam that keeps coming out of the wrecked reactors is full of radioactivity. They said that the water in the buildings contains extremly high levels of contamination and the steam comming out is from the same water. If you watch the recent videos from the livecam at fukushima you dont see much steam coming out. Thats not because things have gotten better but it is because it is very hot and humid in japan right now so you dont see the steam. But if you look at the videos taken at nightime than you can see that its business as usual. People are used to seeing steam at nuclear powerplants and think thats ok and it might be so if the reactor is working the way it supposed to. But fukushima is not and the steam that comes out there is a nightmare. Its still going on thats why “10 times higher” is not old news. It still applies, unfortunatly.
This Link has nothing to do with radioactivity. But its importend to read because: Erionite deposits are found in at least a dozen US states, particularly in California, Nevada and Oregon.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/NotRocketScience/~3/Cyag_wZf-kA/
http://www.bfs.de/en/ion/imis/spurenmessungen.html
Enlarge by clicking and view Figure #3 CTBTO animation (enable translator in your browser if wish English and not German; Google Chrome has this capability, BTW). Next note Station #70 on the map (Sacramento, California CTBTO site) and notice how Sacramento is the first CONUS location to light up showing the station being hit by Fukushima radiation on 3-16-11. EPA/DOE/BRAWN/DHS/et. al., must have known we were getting hit as well but refused to share. It was the foreign diplomat from the UN that first alerted and reported to the American people through a Sacramento newspaper, and not a U.S. official on U.S. soil. And since then, NRC still continues blocking further CTBTO data to be let out… What are they hiding from?
@Chase
Perhaps one of the more salient points regarding the French CRIIRAD piece previously provided can be gleened by memorizing the following:
“The results made available for the United States seem to show substantially higher contaminant levels (approx. 10 times). It is even more important to avoid the regular consumption of rain water and excessive consumption of
vulnerable foods such as leaf vegetables, fresh milk and ricotta /cream cheese.”
10 times higher, they say…That’s old news, now more than 10 times higher? I add red meat to the list.
Americium-241 (deadly alpha emitter with 432-year half-live & dangerous for 8600+ years) from Fukushima was sampled for and found in the french countryside but not sampled for in the U.S./Canada/Mexico except until just recently at Los Alamos during the forest fire there. Am-241 is not on the BRAWN list or any U.S. university testing protocol for Fukushima. Does not make sense.
Another point brought up was this:
“To this effect, the CRIIRAD received dozens of mails from persons using radiometers and dosimeters who
recorded an increase of the ambient radiant level or who questioned the results of the IRSN marker. Lacking
sufficient time to respond to each individual file, we are suggesting several indications of general scope for
the time being (information notice to the radiometer users’ attention).”
It seems like those citizens who CRIIRAD say reported, are much more equipped with Inspector-type devices than most, if not all, North American citizens are. Indeed, if this is true, then more people need to be looking at our air, dust, food and water supplies and reporting to authorities like they seem to be doing in France, one would reasonably think.
@Margery Brown
I like what Mr. Alvarez had to say:
“Isotopes like iodine-131 are not part of normal background radiation, and have unique properties that background radiation does not, like accumulating in the thyroid gland”
We are now learning the fact that the term ‘background’ is a trick. The term “Artificial Radioactivity” is more descriptive; as is, “Natural Radioactivity” (see CTBTO link above). Cesium-137 is definitely not natural; nor is Strontium-89/90; nor is Plutonium-239; nor is Americium-241; nor are the many, many more radionuclides emitting from the Japan nuclear crisis at the moment. The nuclear industry trys in vain to trick people into believing that artificial radiation is the same as natural non-man-made background? We weren’t born yesterday. Thanks for the link and for Mr. Alvarez in stepping forward in this regard.
Tomorrow, Thursday, July 28, from 10 am – 1pm PDT, the NRC is holding a public meeting to go over the recommendations of the Near-Term Task Force Report on the Fukushima nuclear disaster. The public can participate in-person, by telephone or view online via webcast. In-person and telephone participants can comment or ask questions of the members of the NRC Task Force.
To attend by phone:
888-790-6563
Passcode: 6166981
To attend in person:
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
One White Flint North
Commissioners’ Conf. Room
11555 Rockville Pike
Rockville, MD 20852
To view by webcast: http://video.nrc.gov
The Task Force report begins with a dedication to Fukushima workers and states that their efforts contributed to “no fatalities and the expectation of no significant radiological health impacts” which is of course ludicrous as previously addressed by EnviroReporter. The workers’ efforts are heroic indeed but asserting that there will be no health effects is absurd and an insult to the workers whose health will most certainly be impacted.
From Physicians for Social Responsibility:
“While the Task Force report’s recommendations are a start, they do not include all of the measures that need to be taken immediately as a response to the Fukushima disaster. For example, the report fails to recommend:
At the same time, it is unclear whether any of the Task Force recommendations will be carried out. The nuclear industry opposes any changes and two of the five NRC Commissioners (Magwood and Svinicki) have voted to send these recommendations to NRC staff for further review – meaning that implementation would get delayed indefinitely.
This NRC meeting is an opportunity to demand that the NRC Commissioners vote to make real improvements to nuclear reactor safety immediately.”
So the University of Washington thinks this thing is winding down and is stopping their measurements in a few days, while the BRAWN team will continue as long as there is interest… while the EPA is holding data. So easy and convenient to forget we are witnessing an unprecedented crisis that has not stopped. I thank GOD for this Enviroreporter forum! Potrblog’s contributions as well as all the others!! It’s survival of the informed…
Chase, a few spiderwort plants may be the most objective source for what is happening on the central coast, and cheap enough for us poor folk! Lol. The PBS documentary you and Denise Anne posted was very enlightening indeed! I just wish Sam Blakslee would address the Fukushima fallout on the west coast more… however, we are grateful to have a geologist as a representative given Diablo Canyon… I keep my large plastic role with duct tape in closet, and my gas tank as full as I can due to the chance that those sirens could go off at any time!
Sent hubby to the infrared sauna last night due to my suspicions of him being irradiated by chocolate milk… after 30 minutes, he felt a lot better, no stomach ache this morning! Yeah! Infrared sauna does help detox the rads out from what I read early on…
You guys rock when it comes to the great links! Thanks for all!
On the subject of air quality…
http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_18552391 Massive plastics fire in Fairfield, still happening at the time of this post. A thick smoke plume is heading east, already covering Vacaville, Dixon, Davis and onto Sacramento.
Officials say that “1 mile” is a safe distance from this fire… yeah, right.
Is it just coincidence both of these articles are dates April 5th? (probably)
@Wilma P. (Article date April 5th, 2011)
This document made several great points regarding children and pregnant women. It also makes several points I would question or disagree with. It’s one of those articles that makes some factual/truthful sound bites while trying to throw a “spin” on “trivial” acceptable limits. There was only Iodine data and nothing regarding Cesium. I also see that in a lot of articles. They always forget the Cesium. (1/2 life 30 years, which means it remains hazardous for well over 200 years)
@Margery B. (Article date April 5th, 2011)
I agree fully with Michale’s reply to you. But, I wanted to note that the article itself is ‘old’ news. There are no links to any updated or current information.
___________
My other personal observation is that the ‘feed’ of information regarding pretty much anything nuclear or radioactive, so to speak, has been ‘controlled’, ‘spoon fed’, or deleted altogether over the last 90 days at least.
Now what I am observing in the mainstream media is an increased ‘feed’ of ‘disinformation’. Headlines like, “Fukushima Stabilized”, “TEPCO Workers Meet Deadline”, etc.. This started really picking up about a week ago.
For some reason??? The articles which come up first on searches seem to be ‘older’ ones. That’s how it appears to me anyway. So, I do attempt to ‘sort’ by most recent sometimes, but that doesn’t seem to help much either.
Here a simple example of the “Feed Control”. I read an article in an Asian newspaper about the Norway bomber. It talked about how one of the plans of the radical groups he belonged to was to attack Nuclear plants in the United Kingdom. Yet, no mention of this plan in any American news. Just an observation.
A Mini Timeline: (as per the history of these comments) –
In the beginning it was noted in the EnviroReporter comments section for the first time on March 21, 2011 that people stated they felt the media was being manipulated.
March 20, First report from Berkeley released.
March 21, First Control of media comment seen.
March 22, First comments of data not making sense and possible coverups
March 22, Japan stated there was “no cause for alarm”.
March 22, EPA monitors started going down?
March 22, Bonnie seems to be a “few atoms short of a molecule”
March 23, First Independent Readings on West Coast begin to elevate.
http://www.criirad.org/actualites/dossier2011/japon/risks_in_France_v4.pdf
@Anyone
BRAWM & EPA seem to ignore Fukushima isotope Americium-241 but the French sure want their citizens to know about it (open above). Wonder why that is…
Reminder to California residents – the CEC workshop on nuclear power is tomorrow at 10 am PDT. Public comments will probably begin at 4 p.m. Information on how to watch and participate via WebEx or phone is here http://www.energy.ca.gov/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=1472&year=2011&month=7 .
Written comments must be submitted by 5 pm August 2 – information on how to do that is at the above link.
Documents for tomorrow’s workshop, including some of the presentations and comments submitted to date, are here http://www.energy.ca.gov/2011_energypolicy/documents/index.html#07262011 .
@ Marge: “Correct and complete” rad testing means more than just accurate sampling and lab detection, which U.C. Berkeley’s BRAWM has down adequately. That said, BRAWM’s ability to adhere to scientific methodology is certainly suspect when it attempts to compare internal ingestion of radiating alpha and beta particles to gamma radiation experienced in jet travel which is like comparing apples to orange juice (to lift from the ‘comparing apple to oranges’ analogy). To measure correctly and then to interpret incorrectly with a clear bias is “science” at its worst.
I can’t speak to DOE’s response to the ongoing Fukushima meltdowns but EPA has gone one step further than BRAWM in upsetting scientific methodology: A little over a week before Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex owner TEPCO announced that there had been, in reality, three total meltdowns beginning the first day of the earthquake and tsunami March 11, EPA suspended its Fukushima-related testing saying, in essence, ‘there’s no there there so we aren’t testing anymore.’ Did EPA change its tune after the TEPCO admission? No. Did EPA change its tune and restart its testing after TEPCO announced that the meltdowns had become “melt-throughs” as well? No. Did EPA remove testing data when our friend from St. Louis, POTRblog, called EPA on censored data in his region? Yes.
So I’m going to compare the testing of BRAWM and the EPA and, sure, it’s like comparing apples and oranges but in this case both seem to have the same rotten results.
Michael,
I would appreciate some feedback from you and your bloggers re: this article that I would like to be able to put into context, since so many writers are struggling to supply their families with pre-Fukushima foods and milk.
Are the Universities to be trusted with correct and complete rad testing any more than the EPA or DOE?
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2014693490_nukemonitors06m.html
This was sent to me this morning:
Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility
PO Box 1328
San Luis Obispo, CA 93406
(858) 337-XXXX (805) 704-XXXX http://www.a4nr.org
rochelle@a4nr.org
July 25, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT:
Rochelle Becker (858-337-XXXX) Rochelle@a4nr.org
David Weisman (805-704-XXXX) David@a4nr.org
ALLIANCE FOR NUCLEAR RESPONSIBILITY PUTS RECOMMENDATIONS FOR
SAFGUARDING CALIFORNIA’S ENERGY FUTURE ON THE TABLE
Represents ratepayers at California Energy Commission workshop on nuclear power
Appearing before the California Energy Commission (CEC) workshop on the future of nuclear power in California, The Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility (A4NR) presented the CEC with five recommendations to guide the future of nuclear power in California. “In the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, the economic impacts and loss of grid reliability from nuclear plants located in seismic zones must be scrutinized,” stated A4NR executive director Rochelle Becker, adding, “these are all concerns solely within state jurisdiction, and the CEC is the right agency to hear the public’s questions.” Both the Diablo Canyon reactors of PG&E and the San Onofre (SONGS) facility of Southern California Edison (SCE) will be discussed.
The recommendations include requiring the nuclear utilities to undertake planning to replace their nuclear megawatts in the event of a Fukushima-type outage; asking the federal government to explain how seismically California can afford to host radioactive waste into an undefined future; requiring an examination of the inadequacy of the $12.6 billion liability insurance cap in the event of a radioactive release; evaluating the costs of expanding the evacuation zones around reactors from 20 to 50 miles as the Japanese did; and considering the validity of the current state CPUC permits that allow the two nuclear plants to operate. The full A4NR recommendations can be downloaded from: http://a4nr.org/?p=1543
It was in the CEC nuclear workshop process of 2005 that the impetus to study the costs risks and benefits of relying on nuclear power was first broached. An outcome of that workshop was AB 1632 (Blakeslee, SLO) that mandated the CEC to do the study, and from that came the recommendations for advanced seismic work. The need for seismic studies—championed by geophysicist senator Blakeslee and supported by A4NR—are at the very heart of the nuclear license renewal debate in California.
The CEC began assessing the risks of nuclear power before the 2007 Japanese earthquake idled the Kashiwazaki nuclear plant at a cost of over $12 billion of dollars in repairs and replacement power, and well before Fukushima. PG&E that failed to heed the recommendations of the CEC and applied for Nuclear Regulatory Commission relicensing before completing the studies, drawing a public rebuke from CEC Commissioner James Boyd in 2009. It was only after the tragedy of Fukushima that PG&E has begun the studies in earnest, and the NRC has belatedly admitted they even need to reevaluate seismic and other threats to nuclear power plants. “Our state CEC was asking all the right questions in advance of the disaster, and deserves praise for the their farsightedness,” noted A4NR’s Becker.
A4NR carefully reviewed PG&E and SCE’s responses to data requests made by the CEC and found numerous contradictions, omissions and inadequacies. “In order to make responsible planning decisions, our regulatory agencies need accurate and current data, and we found the utility’s answers flawed,” commented Becker. A4NR’s detailed comments can be read at: http://a4nr.org/?p=1595
Presentations submitted to the 2011 CEC workshop by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are at odds with the assertions of PG&E. With regards to the Shoreline fault, 1800 feet from Diablo Canyon, PG&E’s written response to the CEC states, “Currently our logic tree does not connect the Shoreline to the Hosgri fault, because we believe this is an unrealistic scenario based on two recent studies…” In the USGS presentation, however, the agency concludes that the “Northwest end of Shoreline Fault extends to the mapped trace of the Hosgri Fault, indicating that there is no gap between these faults at seismogenicdepths.”
Ms. Becker adds, “It is hoped that the new 3-D seismic studies will help clarify any uncertainty regarding the ‘unknown’ hazards threatening the Diablo Canyon site. PG&E’s claims and research must be subject to independent peer review by state regulators. It was this lack of objective oversight that led to the devastating seismic cost overruns 30 years ago.” Furthermore, SCE is decades behind PG&E in updating their seismic and tsunami research at the San Onofre reactors, which are of concern because over 7 million people live within 50 miles of SONGS. The unfunded mandate of storing radioactive waste at that geographically constrained location—and the need to plan for revised evacuations—are all potentially costly state burdens. Ms. Becker concludes, “The CEC is taking on the very role they should—safeguarding a reliable and affordable supply of power for California. This isn’t about being for or against nuclear power, it is about responsible planning.”
“Sooner or later in any foolproof system, the fools are going to achieve the proofs.” – Arnie Gunderson
Video 1 of 4 – (7/24/2011)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pvgUO1JFK0
TERROR ALERT – Nuclear Power Plants In United States (7-21-11)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku4m2hCfjQc&feature=player_detailpage
An ‘all natural’ way to detect ionizing radiation. If you cannot afford a Radiation Detector, like a lot of people, then this may be an option. At least it’s something to try and they’re colorful too.
Tradescantia (aka Spiderwort Plant, a weed)
The cells of the stamen hairs of some Tradescantia are colored BLUE, but when exposed to sources of ionizing radiation such as gamma rays, the cells MUTATE and change color to PINK; they are one of the few tissues known to serve as an effective bioassay for ambient radiation levels. – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradescantia
Might be a good idea to place these plants next to doorways or vents perhaps. …or even near your garden plants too.
(caution: possible allergies as with any weed)
____________________
@ Denise Anne
I watched this short PBS documentary via one of the links you provided. Thank you. It gives a true/scary insight into the political aspects of Nuclear Power and how it’s regulated. Nuclear Safety at Diablo Canyon: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/environment/video-double-fault-nuclear-safety-at-diablo-canyon/10457/
There are 442 nuclear power plants on this planet and 65 under construction. If all 442 of them each release a little bit of Radiation on a regular basis. How long will it be before this planet is uninhabitable? Nuclear energy is insanity!
For those of you who live in California, especially if you are near the Diablo Canyon or San Onofre nuclear power plants, please participate in the the CEC’s upcoming workshop on nuclear power this Tuesday, July 26th. The workshop will address relicensing for both plants and issues around seismic safety.
The public can participate and submit comments at the workshop or via WebEx or phone. More information on how to participate is here http://www.energy.ca.gov/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=1472&year=2011&month=7 and here
http://www.energy.ca.gov/2011_energypolicy/notices/2011-07-26_IEPR_Nuclear_Workshop.pdf
The Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility has sample comments you can submit or edit to make your own (preferred) here http://a4nr.org/. This is a very important opportunity to speak out!
Question: Do Nuclear Plants release Radiation?
Answer: YES!
“…Nuclear plants, like Indian Point, can and do release strontium, both during normal operations and as a result of accidents or incidents.” said Lochbaum, (former nuclear plant operator)
The Mother’s Milk Project:
“The so-called Mothers’ Milk Project has detected low levels of both SR-90 and *SR-89 in scores of samples of milk from humans and animals. Burton believes the results are a smoking gun pointing directly at radioactive releases” – (Nancy Burton, an attorney… has been quietly collecting milk samples in the area around Indian Point, from human mothers, as well as cows and goats.)
“Radiation is a cause of thyroid cancer. I can’t point to the plant but if it’s giving off radiation that’s a risk factor. This is more than just getting more CT scans. I am absolutely concerned. Nuclear radiation is a cause of thyroid cancer,” Richer said. (Sara Richer, an otolaryngologist and surgeon at St. Vincent’s Medical Center)
“It’s frustrating,” said Margo Schepart, co-founder of the Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition. “I think these plants are emitting more than they admit.”
Full article – http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/The-nuclear-safety-debate-hits-home-1471908.php
___________
So, once again, it’s up to a single person or small group of individuals to “prove” to the NRC/EPA that they are either pompous ‘experts’ or pretentious liars. (or both)
“Is it just me or is it hot in here?” Maybe it is just me, but when I read the NRC replies it really does make me ‘hot’ under the collar. It certainly goes beyond my comprehension trying to decipher how anyone could be so blatantly foolish. ‘Why’ they make these kinds of statements should be obvious even to a casual observer, but apparently it’s not. Hopefully, that’s changing.
*NOTE: SR-89 has a half-life of 50 days. That means Chernobyl and atmospheric testing cannot credibly be considered sources of SR-89. Strontium ONLY comes from Nuclear Fission.
These streetlight should be everywhere. There is a way out of nuclear power without having to go back to the dark ages. Why isnt this being done?
http://solarpanelspower.net/solar-power/solar-and-wind-powered-street-lights
Have you ever heard of wavepower? Check this out:
http://www.darvill.clara.net/altenerg/wave.htm#intro
Thats clean energy!
Below is the email address for CBS. You can comment, give show ideas, and get in contact with Armen keteyian who wrote the article.
Let’s give encouragements to the ones who can make mass awareness. Post this on other websites, like minded people that feel passionate about the state of the nuclear industry. Ready for truth and accounability. CBS email address is audsvcs@cbs.com
An excellent article on Radiation In Our Food…..courtesy of the jet stream from Fukushima….the gift that apparently will keep on giving for much too long!
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/06/29/radiation-in-our-food/
I posted this on Eat Me after some phone calls to some food companies:
Here’s my contribution to this wonderful site. Lakewood juices (I buy at Whole Foods) have a 2 yr shelf life. The are packed with leafy greens and other great fruits and veggies you should not be eating since March 11th. It’s a way to get all our veggies especially for our kid (who surprisingly loves it) Right now we are drinking fruit garden summer gold and red dragon as well as some others.
On to turkey meat.. I called Jennie O and all their turkeys are in a barn they do not see the light of day. I have been very creative with this turkey meat. Meatballs, tacos, burgers, chili. We need protein and this is a safe way to go.
Cheese: Tillamook makes aged cheese 15 months and 2 years. They don’t shoot the cows up with that milk hormone. So this is a good cheese option.
If anyone has a good bread option please let me know. I need to find one because we love our peanut butter and jelly in this house.
More fruits from Chile: Trader Joes pomegranates, whole foods apples (green and fuji), kiwi, and asian pears. Pineapple too.(not from chile but i needed to expand a bit. Pineapple form costa rica.)
Michael, please let me know of any safe fresh veggies if you find any. Especially carrots and broccoli. Thanks for all of this! I have said this before but my appreciation and respect for you and your wife is huge. Thanks!!!
JT,
I think a “Super Think Tank” to solve Fukushima as best we can is a great idea. I value your line of thinking. Don’t know how to get started, because I am doing all I can now. But I am writing to encourage your thinking and ideas. Facebook, or a letter writing campaign are both excellent ideas. Probably we just have to start. Start something, anything, or like you suggested, join with a group that has started communicating with TEPCO, Japanese Government, and the US government to DO the right thing here.
Hold authorities responsible if they do not accept advice and do their absolute best to protect the world’s health! YES!
-SLO
Check out the Jeff Rense Program last night. Our first interview was April 12, 2011. We covered a lot of ground in half an hour – peaches, policy, Canada, St. Louis, rad free food, air and water plus whether President Obama has the food served his daughters checked for radiation and more.
@ Chase: re: “Well, why didn’t you do anything?”
I’m sure some of us answer “Well, what am I supposed to do?”
That is a question that a 71-year-old great-grandmother named Ann Harris from Tennessee will be able to answer robustly. See this gallant heroine on CBS’ The Early Show this morning and see what can be done when one says “Enough! I’ll take it from here.”
Note the bumper sticker on Harris’ wall… it says “We Are Everywhere.”
Then ask yourself if you are part of that “We” and what you are going to do protect yourself, family, friends, community and nation.
Look at this:
What to Do About Radiation
http://tinyurl.com/3os46g8
Scrambled DNA
(from news article)
“…the biggest scientific survey ever carried out on the veterans’ descendants, provides the most damning evidence yet of the horrific legacy of the tests. (Nuclear bomb tests) It also backs up a an investigation in 2002 which found leukemia rates among grandchildren of test veterans were SIX times the national average and the number with Down’s Syndrome was seven times the norm.”
“…families of soldiers used as guinea pigs in Britain’s first nuclear tests shows they will suffer acute health problems for TWENTY generations.”
Article Oct, 2007 – http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/2007/09/16/500-year-curse-98487-19797285/
_______________________________
Pretending to travel in time:
If time travel were somehow possible and I could jump into the future, say several hundred years from now, I am sure people might ask me. “What the heck were they thinking back then, didn’t they realize what this stuff did to DNA?”
…and my answer would be, “Yes, we did realize. But, most people were not thinking and that’s the problem in a nutshell.”
And if they say, “Well, why didn’t you all do anything?”
I could only reply, “I don’t know? It’s most certainly regrettable because the majority of species did not want this! Perhaps, the news media ‘blackout’ and information control had something to do with it? Sorry, but my time here in the future is up and I must return to the reality of 2011, see ya sooner or later”, I said.
They replied from inside their ‘bubble’ dome covered cave, “Good LucK!!!”
Rad test results for Canadian rain taken over 3 day test period
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 2011-07-19 07:40.
Dear Anonymous re your assertion that Canadian test findings were only the result of naturally occurring radon; and not due to Fukushima radiation fallout:
The Canadian geiger monitor user in the above article is reported to be experienced in using geiger monitors. The geiger counter was calibrated prior to the beginning of the testing period. Three different days at different locations were tested for rad results during the Canadian rain monitoring tour. On all three of the test days, radiation from from the Canadian rain generally was found to be very “hot” relative to background radiation levels. Vancouver was one of the few exceptions, where testing was found to be within normal radiation range.
Were the high rad test results purely radon test artifact? It is doubtful that radon artifact contaminated test results, since the testing occurred over a three day period of rain; and, not just for a single first day of rain.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYTWbcBe_MM&feature=player_embedded#at=69
***
So, it still appears to stand that the Canadian “hot” rainfall is consistent with the two “hot” peaches in Los Angeles.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4973#comment-15130
While you are interviewing, I am downloading this Michael:
“Home » Forums » Berkeley Radiological Air and Water Monitoring Forum
“Two Peaches in Greater Los Angeles found high in radiation”
In Los Angeles, on Friday, July 8th, 2011, two peaches found at a local Santa Monica market were confirmed to have sustained radiation levels of 81 CPMs, or greater. The market’s background radiation was said to be about 39 CPMs. The two peaches, thus, had significantly high radiation contamination equaling over two times site background levels.
https://www.enviroreporter.com/investigations/fukushima/radiation-station-stats/
Another blogger noted that: “What makes this discovery especially significant is that the 2X background radioactivity detected in these peaches was likely significantly attenuated by their water content; when eaten the exposure rate may be significantly higher. Even worse, it is likely that the detected radioactivity is from a longer half life radionuclide; which when eaten, would irradiate a person from the inside out for potential years to come.”
@Potrblog, July 10th, 2011, at 8:05 pm
https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/03/enviroreporter-coms-radiation-station/
Additionally, it appears the Greater Los Angeles Basin is continuing to get intermittent low level elevated radiation readings. That is, radiation levels less than 100 CPMs, but elevated relative to normal background levels for the geiger counter testing station).
https://www.enviroreporter.com/investigations/fukushima/radiation-station-stats/
***
Any other areas in California coming up with similar radiation findings?
***
“Consistent with the “hot” two peaches, “hot” rain in Canada”
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 2011-07-19 02:06.
Not in California, but consistent with the Los Angeles “hot” peach finding:
“CRMT- Kelowna BC receives High Fukushima Fallout Radioactive Rain on 07/16/11″
“Canadian Monitoring Tour has also found the same levels of radiation in the rain which fell at around 12:10 AM on Sunday July 17th 2011″
Uploaded by connectingdots1 on Jul 16, 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYTWbcBe_MM&feature=player_embedded#at=69
»
reply
“Fukushima jet flow patterns”
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 2011-07-19 03:58.
“Re the above “hot” rain in Canada article, you may ask, “What does this have to do with California, especially Southern California? Well, to answer this question, here is a link to a weather forecasting station that frequently updates Japan Jet Stream Air Flow Patterns over Northern America. Handy. Very handy. If you read a report such as the above ‘connectingdots’ report of “hot” rain in Canada (or where ever), you now have access to analyze the Japan jet stream air flow patterns re the reported “hot” rain. You possess at your finger tips on the internet at least some idea as to where that “hot” jet stream from Fukushima is flowing. Yes, definitely handy. Very handy. By the way, when I checked the flow patterns yesterday (July the 17th, 2011), at one point the Japan jet stream was going over Southern California. So, guess what about the radiation flow from Fukushima…
Yes, indeed, this is consistent with two “hot” peaches showing up in Los Angeles.”
http://www.weatherimages.org/data/imag192.html”
Source from Dept. of Nuclear Engineering U.C. Berkeley Public Forum:
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4973#comment-15098
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4973#comment-15108
@ Raddies: I’ll be talking again with Jeff Rense live tonight for half an hour at 9:00 pm PDST at http://www.renseradio.com/listenlive.htm
We will be discussing those hot peaches and other subjects about the nature of the spread of radioactive contamination in America and the challenges in detecting and reporting on it.
Jeff is a real smart cookie and one of the best interviewers I’ve ever had the pleasure of speaking with on-air. Don’t miss it!
@Bar
Melt-down…Melt-through…Now, Melt-OUT.
Fukushima seems to not be a simple-solution Chernobyl tunnelling affair. Plus, the Pacific is a tad bit too close to the water table unlike at Chernobyl where a tunnel was drilled down by mining companies who were able to place a cement shield underneath the corium in order to prevent a worse situation — a Melt-OUT.
Once that Fuku corium goes to groundwater/Pacific seawater, then there will be a real bad mess on our hands as the superheated radioactive steam will go everywhere, in multiple directions, real fast — and for a long time. Not to mention further explosions being a possibility.
Fuku to Cukoo. Prepare the best you can.
“Definitely here!” he says. High levels in the Rain in Chilliwack, B.C. Canada. Independent guy testing. The warning sound does go off at the end of the video.
July 17, 2011 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZZVlGrBp2c
If it’s in the rain, then it will be in the water, then it will be accumulating. Somewhere? No doubt! (Regardless of his technical methods I believe the detector is giving an accurate warning overall.)
JT, the problem is, you cant fix a nuclear meltthrough ASAP. Workers cant get close to the nuclear fuel because the radiation is so high that they will fall over dead after a short while. Robots or machinery fail if radiation is too high, because it will interfere with the electrical
components in them. So, what do you do?
The only smart thing to do is to shut all the nuclear power stations off BEFORE an accident happens.
@JT You’ve started right here.
@Potrblog http://youtu.be/pm2fV0ag6tY
“After some research, a person next to a truck legally shipping radioactive materials could expect a dosage between 10 mR/Hr to 200 mR/Hr.” (law)
“…a pregnant woman should avoid anything greater than 2 mR/Hr…” (medical knowledge)
It’s obvious, something’s not quit right here??? The law does not even come close to protecting a fetus or small child based on our current medical knowledge.
So…. Who’s responsible for the law in the first place?
And… How do we go about getting it corrected/changed?
What about when those transport trucks are on surface streets and sit for 5 minutes at a traffic light? We know that’s happened. No doubt about it. How often does it happen? More than we want to realize most likely.
I have been reading this site for months and appreciate the information and efforts that Michael and everyone else are making to help us get through “Fuke 2011”.
I was lying in bed wondering what to do about helping solve this crisis, given that the radiation could keep coming for years and that the Pacific Ocean is in grave danger which obviously means that we are all in danger. I am very concerned that the Japanese are not doing everything possible to “fix” “Fuke 2011” ASAP.
I know that this sounds simple (and maybe you have already discussed this) but it seems clear that one of the positive things we can all do right now to help fix this mess, is to do everything in our collective power to aid, encourage and pressure TEPCO, the Japanese Government, and the U.S Gov. We need to encourage them to help them get the job done and “fix” this mess as best as can be possibly done. We need to let them know that they will be held accountable for not doing everything possible, We need to let them know that they will be held accountable if they do not accept advice from the best in the world.
In that regard, it seems that we need to get the best minds in the world to come up with the quickest and best solutions. If the Japanese are not doing this, we need to do everything in our power to encourage them to take advice. We also need to encourage our Government to help put together a “Superteam” or something of the best most creative nuclear problem solvers. (If you think about it it would make for a great movie if it all “worked out”).
Maybe our amazing “President of Change” B. Obama is already on this but somehow I think he might be more interested in protecting the Nuclear Industry.
If anyone knows the best place to get started, please tell me. If something is already going I would love to know about it.
Maybe a letter writing campaign to our President, Congressman, etc, would be a place to start. Or a Facebook page
I know this might not help (and might sound crazy) but at least we might make a difference.
Any Thoughts?
Thanks and Peace,
JT
WilmaP., thanks for the links. I just send a Mail to both. I dont know if they can help but at least i did something. If anybody has any ideas please give it a shot. Its worth a try.
@Bar
http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Pages/home.aspx
Maybe Bill Gates can release some funds, please contact him. Long term relocation is the only solution for the victims of Fukushima, we all KNOW this as fact. But there is no ACT.
Also, Warren Buffett; see…
http://www.nti.org/index.php
Onkalo (Finnish for “hiding place”) is under construction in Finnland, it’s a cavernous world of tunnels and corridors, a permanent storage facility for nuclear waste. Its a chilling 7 part video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQnUR7oET60&feature=related
SOS from Fukushima
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zYjYtVrOro&feature=related
@ Chase, Angusmerlin & all you raddies looking for rad free food: Check out my latest blog post “Eat Me” which hopefully helps some folks in their urban food foraging quests. This dynamic list which will continually expand is doubly important since the EPA abandoned crucial Fukushima fallout testing. The agency was joined this week in the Unsound Science Club by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in completely discounting the Fukushima meltdowns as EnviroReporter.com reveals in this new post.
About 3 million packages of radioactive materials are shipped each year in the United States, either by highway, rail, air, or water.
http://www.nrc.gov/materials/transportation.html
Maybe the car manufacturers should add a layer of lead for radiation protection.
Did you know that there is ionizing radiation, usually Americium (Am-241) in some smoke detectors?!
http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov/
Unbelievable!
Radioactive Container Truck Spewing Gamma Rays Into Traffic on I-270
7/15/11 UPDATE:
After some research, a person next to a truck legally shipping radioactive materials could expect a dosage between 10 mR/Hr to 200 mR/Hr.
According to the government, a pregnant woman should avoid anything greater than 2 mR/Hr. At max, if she stayed next to such a truck for more than 15 minutes should would be required to wear a dosimeter for the rest of her pregnancy.
At 30 minutes she would have to avoid all other exposure for the remainder of the pregnancy.
The younger the baby is in the gestational period, the greater the risk of miscarriage. A woman early enough in her pregnancy to not know she is pregnant might actually miscarry from a passing “legal” exposure.
As I initially indicated in the blog post, the lesson learned is to AVOID RADIOACTIVE TRUCKS!
http://youtu.be/pm2fV0ag6tY
I stumbled upon this via Potrblog’s site. I could not believe what I read. Why such a variance in dates? I thought this might be important because people may be buying older pre-fukushima foods. (Especially powdered milk products)
_________
FDA: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/importalert_401.html
MELAMINE: (flame retardant and other uses)
Import Alert # 99-30
Published Date: 03/18/2011
Type: DWPE
Import Alert Name:
“Detention Without Physical Examination of All Milk Products, Milk Derived Ingredients and Finished Food Products Containing Milk from CHINA Due to the Presence of Melamine and/or Melamine Analogs”
Reason for Alert:
“In September, 2008, FDA became aware of thousands of infant illnesses in China…”
(AND the reasons…OMG!)
1. “Melamine is added to the water/milk mixture to increase the nitrogen content in order to inflate the apparent protein content found in the product. Milk is transported from the collection centers to milk processing facilities.”
2. “The problem of melamine contamination in Chinese food products is a recurring one. In 2007, bulk vegetable protein products imported from China were contaminated with melamine and melamine analogs, apparently from deliberate contamination.”
_________
So… moral to this story, avoid ‘stuff’ from China. Especially if you eat it!
* Items may say ‘packaged’ in the USA and the only way to tell the products ‘actual origin’ is via the Bar Code Numbers.
How to read a product bar code:
00 – 09 … USA & CANADA
30 – 37 … FRANCE
40 – 44 … GERMANY
471 … TAIWAN
49 … JAPAN
50 … UK
690-692 … CHiNA <–
Nuclear Fission occurring in that thunderstorm over your head?
Yes, it is possible thanks to the Fukushima disaster.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/07/unresearched-threat-of-fukushima-photo.html
Dear Chase,
Well, if BRAWM had gone after the Peaches to Bananas comparison, then we could have all enjoyed a banana split with peaches. Oh, and don’t forget the chocolate sauce. That might be very interesting. Michael could add this special dessert to his new, “Eat Me” blog.
Now, I am thinking about banana splits with peaches and chocolate sauce…. Great! Do most bananas come from south of the equator?
Thank you for your sweet complements re the Angusmerlin “Two Peaches” post. I really do appreciate that. Thanks, Chase!
@Michael, I believe there is something wrong at BRAWN; “Peach Gate” is a good example of it. For them to make a claim that a pancake surface contamination meter like the Inspector cannot quickly distinguish between background and 2 times background is just troubling; but what was more troubling was the statistics mumbo jumbo they threw out to support their their rationale for avoiding further investigation. For those who understand the math, the BRAWM team was recommending that Micheal use a Markov dependent Poisson based “uncertainty” calculation on data from equipment the produces Non-Markov moving average based data.
The rest of their “rationale” sounded like something from a third grader (or the designer of the Titanic)- “that can’t possibly happen”. Certainly not something I want to hear from people training the engineers who will sign off on the safety of future nuclear projects.
In regards to the milk, further study is required. Its possible the cows are from an environment with a 30% higher background radiation; maybe it is artificially fertilized feed. Or, maybe my decoding of the date code is wrong and it is post-Fukushima milk.
“The PMDA reaffirms the commitment for each country to dispose of no less than 34 metric tons of surplus, weapons-grade plutonium by using it in nuclear power plants
as mixed oxide (MOX) fuel, said a July 13 statement by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).”
http://www.nuclearcounterfeit.com/?p=12350
Well its great that they get rid of the surplus plutonium. But do they have to use it as MOX fuel?
@Angusmerlin
Your comments are ‘excellent’ and well stated. Thank you. Especially, the one I just read over at The Berkeley Forum.
Read Angusmerlin’s FULL comment here:
Some more thoughts on the Two Peaches – http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4973#comment-14748
One of the many points you made which I feel is critical says, “If it is true that portable geiger counters tend to result in false negatives in identifying radiation in food, the fact that Michael Collins’ Inspector Monitor found any radiation at all in two peaches in Los Angeles is pretty significant. Contamination may actually have been worse than the Inspector CPM readings indicated in the two Los Angeles peaches tested.” – Angusmerlin (excerpt)
_____________________
Just for double clarification. I never stated the reply by Mark B. was directed at Michael. I also gave the full link and stated “judge for yourself”. I just gave that paragraph because I felt it’s ‘wording’ was similar to the other seemingly lopsided comments made by Mark that all sound like he talks ‘down’ to others. (Note: My opinion, maybe not others) I am sure he’s a great guy with tons of knowledge, but that don’t make him God or even God’s little buddy. I think he, and the whole BRAWN Team, should try to help or assist in a more productive manner is what I am trying to say. I hope he reads this, I pray he does the ‘right thing’.
btw – potassium chloride: Layperson Translation – salt substitute
I am just glad he didn’t go for the Peaches to Bananas comparison. 🙂
@ Potrblog: Your dry milk finding is most disturbing. I have some pre-Fukushima dry milk that started to taste bad prompting our move to almond “milk” so I will test that ASAP and report back if it’s hot. Your Peach Gate coverage has been superb. It is only matched by the obstinate and unsound science that seems to have become the hallmark of BRAWN. Since when is it sound science to posit certainty that any detection of radiation in the United States, in all the foodstuffs they’ve tested, and my two peaches, that there is no way it is from Fukushima and that there is no way that Fukushima could have affected the U.S. when you have found rain several times hotter than 32 to 62 times background? It’s almost comical except that folks who have respected UC Berkeley’s long-vaunted association with creating and maintaining nuclear weapons still believe this clap-trap. I would drum dunces who do this out of the department if I were dean.
Their blather is not a joke, but this is: Two peaches drop into a market and one says to the other “Is it hot in here or is it me?”
Thank you, thank you, but Lady Fingers (Denise’s chat moniker) came up with that one.
@ angusmerlin: Thank you for your excellent comments and being a link between BRAWN’s babble and Radiation Nation’s natter. Feel free to invite Mark “the Bark” Bandstra to come on over and take his best shot at me and Potrblog because there is no end to this hilarity. Peaches are on me.
And thank you for the kind words about “Eat Me” which will go up
tonightFriday July 15, 2011 as a blog post on EnviroReporter.com where all of your comments are food for the mind and soul. We hope it widens your choices of food to forage in the urban jungle.Dear EnviroReporter bloggers,
Full quote of what was said by Mark Bandstra (BRAWM Team Member) specifically to another blogger (not to Michael), in response to that particular blogger’s comment that the blogger thought that his own personal geiger counter was “junk”:
“Enjoy the cherries
Submitted by bandstra on Thu, 2011-07-14 19:21.
I would agree with Angusmerlin — your monitor is not “junk,” it’s just not useful to detect the trace levels in the environment from Fukushima. I just discussed this in a comment above.
Please by all means test powdered milk or whatever else you want [the blogger had just been talking about testing powdered milk]. Your counter is made to find obvious levels of radiation, and there always could be some natural radiation that happens to be higher in some particular sample (e.g., potassium chloride). You know how to take the data and calculate the uncertainties.
Mark [BRAWM Team Member]”
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4973#comment-14728
***
P.S., This particular blogger, BC, often participates at the Berkeley forum, and not infrequently seeks the BRAWM Team’s comments, often Mark’s. Don’t think Mark Bandstra’s comments were meant in the least to be patronizing to the blogger.
**************************************************
Dear Michael,
Love your idea about listing safe meals under, “Eat Me”.
I live in the Burbank Airport area and hope you guys also include ideas about foods from Trader Joe’s, Henry’s, or Whole Food markets. Thanks so much!
@Potrblog I have been drinking pre-fuk dried milk ‘assuming’ it would be safe. Any guess as to what might be the cause or source? 🙁
The only thing I can think of is that our milk products have been and/or are still be tainted perhaps from another source or sources. We just haven’t been looking closely enough up until now. Nor has the EPA I might add.
RE: UC Berkeley Nuclear Engineering BRAWN Team –>
“……advanced degrees confer no special expertise in either COMMON SENSE or MORALITY. That’s why many laymen are better qualified to judge nuclear power than are the so-called experts.” – Dr. John Gofman MEDICAL Physicist (Nuclear Power Pioneer)
It’s very easy to see the “absolute arrogance” of BRAWN team member ‘Mark’. Here’s some of his reply, you be the judge: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4973#comment-14728
“……your monitor is not ‘junk,’ it’s just NOT USEFUL to detect the TRACE levels in the environment from Fukushima. I just discussed this in a comment above.”
“Please by all means test powdered milk or whatever else you want. Your counter is made to find obvious levels of radiation, and there always could be some natural radiation that happens to be higher in some particular sample (e.g., potassium chloride). You know how to take the data and calculate the uncertainties.” – Mark [BRAWM Team Member]
One would think that BRAWN team member Mark would at least say… “I’d like to see more testing”, but no, instead it’s all about the slam dunk attempt at debunk. No real reasoning, no err on the side of caution.
I would say Michael and Potrblog know how to take data and calculate. As for the ‘uncertainties’?? There will always be some ‘Deniable Credibilty’.
Baseline Radioactive Test of Pre-Fukushima Organic NonFat Dried Milk
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/07/baseline-radioactive-test-of-pre.html
I took two 10 minute readings from a sealed foil package of 12oz Organic NonFat Dry Milk, non-instant Grade A. The date code on the package was 10351BEXP1111, I believe that corresponds to a packaging date of February 4, 2011.
The procedure was as follows
10 minute timed count from the back of the package; 426 total counts.
10 minute timed background count from the table under the package; 329 total counts.
10 minute timed count from the front of the package; 457 total counts.
10 minute timed background count from the table under the package; 351 total counts.
The result is that the PRE-FUKUSHIMA milk radioactivity read 30% above background
The corresponding average reading from the milk container was 0.0126 mR/hr
The corresponding average background reading was 0.0097 mR/hr
I will update, with future readings as I start to use more pre-Fukushima dried milk.
UC Berkeley Nuclear: If Its Not Raining Here, Its Not Raining ANYWHERE? Their case for not testing peaches despite positive detections of radioactive peaches. Read it, you will cringe at their logic. Dare we call it Peach Gate.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/07/uc-berkeley-nuclear-if-its-not-raining.html
@Bar, thanks for the link; it made me wonder why that story is getting coverage now
Of course with approval, I submit an article and story about a company reaching out and helping to heal the Japanese people.
http://www.thesynergycompany.com/news_jp01.html
@Potrblog
I am not a member of the BRAWN team, but if I was, I would certainly speak the absolute truth, even if it hurt. They know, and we know they know, that’s the sad part.
New X-Ray WARNING for Pregnant Women – Feb 13, 2011
“Previous studies of children born between 1940 and 1970 found an increase in childhood cancer, particularly leukemia, in those exposed to x-ray before birth.”
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/165038.html
I find it strange when the “it’s only an x-ray” ploy is used. If people only knew the basic facts, they would know that this ploy is a misdirection. (like a magic trick)
Actually, it can be an excellent way to debunk the “no body died as a result of Three Mile Island” ploy. (my opinion, as I have stated in an earlier comment) Seeing as the surrounding TMI area including Harrisburg, PA received the equivalent dose of 1 x-ray according to ‘official’ US Government media statements at the time.(1979) So, then I ask, “Well, how many pregnant women were in Harrisburg over those days?”. You get the point. (It’s also pretty much accepted at this time that the releases at TMI were much higher than we were told. Go figure?)
It is also my opinion that the truck spewing gamma radiation is “worse” than a terrorist attack and should be met with the harshest of punishments for ALL involved. This is far more insidious. Because it spews randomly at unaware innocent people who “will” become ill and never have a clue and the culprits responsible will never get caught or pay for their wrong doing and they make money at the same time. And most likely the large corporation behind it will be able to dodge any retribution even they if they do get caught. While at the same time paying little to no taxes.
You know, like corporations that build Nuclear Power plants or parts for power plants. Same thing, in the end.
former GE Slogan: “we bring good things to life”
How ironic/moronic is that?
Here is a question to anyone who says gamma radiation spewing from the radioactive transport truck I encountered was safe and/or legal:
“If a pregnant woman is stuck in traffic next to a radioactive container truck operating at its maximum legal limit of radioactivity, how long should the pregnant woman remain stuck in traffic next to that truck before she should flee her vehicle for the safety of her child?”
Maybe the BRAWN team at UC Berkeley will venture forth and answer it.
Here is a link to the video of the truck spewing out Gamma rays:
http://youtu.be/pm2fV0ag6tY
Potrblog, have you seen this video?
http://visionsgreen.com/2011/07/fukushima-high-levels-of-radiation-northwest-us-rainwater-video/
I put up a new blog video detailing the EPA’s Nationwide Blackout of Real Time Radiation Monitoring. The video is pretty short, simple and straight forward; it gives a good indication of why the EPA has decided to engage in an information blackout.
http://youtu.be/2EXAqDWVYyg
Thanks Michael, for the clarification to me on your plan to assist us with the food direction!
Well, peaches or beef, either way, testing needs to be done. If I can get an Inspector or cesium geiger I believe I could open up a great full time business! In the meantime, I will pray over my (now non cage free) eggs…
I believe just like in Japan, the info is going to come out in our food. Where is the beef in the USA about beef? The government (Japan) being shocked about the food supply is only going to mirror the west coast later on. In the meantime, the very real concern and “threat” of our budget crises is demanding out full national attention.
The old EPA Fukushima data, including beta radiation, can be found here: http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-data-map.html
I am finding an interesting pattern in the newer monitoring data. Between 6/27 and 7/4 (and into 7/11) there are either spikes in gamma radiation or missing data. This can be observed in a number of states, but (interestingly) not on the west coast. The anomalies are most apparent in IA, MN, IL, WI, NJ, NC, LA – all in the general direction of the wind/jetstream from Fort Calhoun. Similar radiation spikes were seen on 6/6 (again, MN, SD) – this was roughly when there was an electric fire at Fort Calhoun. Given how difficult it is to find status update on the flood situation at the plant, it makes you wonder…
Report: Peaches in Los Angeles-area found with radiation at more than double site background levels
July 12th, 2011 at 05:43 PM
http://enenews.com/peaches-in-los-angeles-area-found-with-radiation-at-more-than-double-site-background-levels
Links back to EnviroReporter STATS.
Over 1500 views and 78 comments in 5 hours at this point. The number 4 most popular story of the day and climbing on that site alone.
People want to know…NOW! They need to know, yesterday!!!
My meter shows .1mr to .2mr or a little above,consistently,for Enumclaw,WA-about 35 mi.SW of Seattle,WA.Never saw .01 on this old 1960’sLionel meter.
@ Potrblog: You are to be commended!
I wouldn’t hold my breath, though, for the wizards of BRAWM to make any educated guesses about this. Despite the fact that they frequent Radiation Station’s comments every day, this crack team has little to say about those two hot peaches found in Santa Monica let alone something as important as your expert detailing of EPA’s tomfoolery with RadNet data. Perhaps the UC Berkeley team considers engaging with you (and us) to be hazardous, say, as much as the radiation exposure one might get shooting off a bottle rocket (borrowing from their oft-used dismissals of radiation ingestion as being similar to jet flight gamma radiation exposure).
This Link has more details on the contamination in that area. http://www.lvrj.com/news/lightning-sparked-blazes-at-nuclear-test-areas-125260084.html?ref=084
@Weaver, I will take credit for the EPA “suddenly removing” their RadNet data. I blogged a detail analysis of the Data Censoring the EPA is doing on RadNet. Shortly after that they shutdown the Saint Louis data, as you have discovered they are now shutting down all the Beta graphs.
It is interesting how they now admit they “review and approve” the data, and the data “frequently do not pass quality control criteria due to local radiofrequency interference”. I have to laugh out loud at that one; the data censoring chart on my blog site shows a definite pattern to that “radiofrequency interfrence”. That pattern matches the the early Fukushima explosive releases, and it also matches points where I had high detections of fallout in rain water.
I can only conclude that the term “RADIOfrequency interference” is pseudo ethical legalistic technical jargon for RADIOactive materials they don’t want to report. Maybe someone should ask Berkeley’s BRAWM team to speak up on the analysis, LOL once again.
You can find the summary chart of my data censoring analysis here:
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/radnet-data-censorship-saint-louis-mo.html
You can find the videos that go into the detail of the analysis here:
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/07/detail-video-analysis-epa-radnet-data.html
Weaver, could there be a conection to this problem:
http://www.foxreno.com/11at11/28511546/detail.html
I thought this was odd: A few minutes ago I tried checking the EPA Radnet ( http://www.epa.gov/radnet/radnet-data/index.html ) and found that every station listed on the map was linking to an Error (page not found). After a few more minutes everything came back, yet now the real-time Beta monitoring has mysteriously vanished for all stations.
The FAQ has already been updated to reflect this:
“Near real-time beta monitoring results frequently do not pass quality control criteria due to local radiofrequency interference. For this reason, near real-time beta monitoring graphs are not displayed on this site.”
It goes on to say that you can query your own graphs from the data, but be warned that “there may be large gaps in these data.”
Thoughts? It seems fishy to me that they would suddenly remove a feature of their website that has been in use since before March 11.
Jellyfish cause city blackout
Electricity is cut off to the Israeli city of Hadera, after a power station’s cooling system is flooded with jellyfish.
http://media.smh.com.au/news/environment-news/jellyfish-cause-city-blackout-2486029.html
@ jill: The Berkey filter is no longer legal to ship the Berkely filter to California due to passage of AB1953 an anti-lead law in November 2009 (even though Berkey does not have lead, and reduces lead – see http://www.bigberkeywaterfilters.com/wordpress/berkey/berkey-water-filters-cannot-be-shipped-to-california/)
We have a Berkey Light and ordered ours, and extra filters, in the summer of 2009 as part of our general emergency preparedness, prior to the CA shipping law being enacted. This filters the outflow of our reverse osmosis system (advertised on our site – we are affiliates so if you buy a system through this link, you will not only get a great sales price right now, it will help EnviroReporter.com maintain Radiation Station). The reason the Berkey is piggy-backed on our Free Drinking Water Counter Top model on the advice of Potrblog to really remove most if not all of the rads.
One of the benefits of this kind of water purification is that everything we drink tastes unbelievably good and smooth. Same with using Hepa filters – the air is markedly fresher and odor free. Indeed, many of our preparation methods (which, again, we will be sharing comprehensively soon) have made our lives so much better. It can be a time-consuming hassle, sure, but it beats getting Fukushima’d by fallout in our air, water and food.
Yes, I would like to test your hepa filter debris. Send me a message to tell me how to contact you, Jill. Use contact [[at]] enviroreporter.com. Thank you!
@ Angusmerlin: We do not know where those two peaches were grown. An educated guess might be California.
hi micheal, was wondering which berkey machine you got and how you got it shipped to california. Also, i live in santa monica and have a hepa filter that is going to changed out. do you want it?
Just a note to thank you for continuing to list daily averages and further information regarding specific foods/places ratings on the radiation scale. Looking forward to your “eat me” list. Fabulous dedication on this life threatening subject. My family and I are greatly appreciative.
(Re: Peaches) “…which when eaten, would irradiate a person from the inside out for potential years to come.” – Potrblog
So… this raises many questions for me. Some general, some ethical perhaps.
Like…
1. Who ‘exactly’ is in charge of testing our foods and what do they have to say? or What do you think they would/will say? (that’s actually 2 questions in one)
Will they say it’s ‘acceptable risk’ safe in their opinion?
Will they look into the matter and get back to you later?
Will they use “Deniable Credibility”?
If their tests match will they advise the public “Don’t eat that”. (That’s if they even do a test?)
2. Should the store be notified and the peach company?
3. What if some child eats those peaches with milk or with their ice cream? Is it worse? (most likely)
4. What about the worker who picked that and probably ate one or two several weeks back?
5. How exactly did the peaches become 2x contaminated?
Maybe they were sitting on a freeway next to a medical waste transport truck? or Perhaps stored during shipping next to some new cars arriving from Japan? (I do agree however, “most likely” Fukushima.)
6. Why does an independent team like Michael & Denise have to be the ones to walk into the store and do this?
I am very glad they tested it though! Let’s not forget those powdered milk samples either. …or masks, or filters, etc… “Thanks so much!” – Chase
P.S., Michael,
Do you know where the two high rad peaches came from (where grown)?
Thanks!
Here is a new video from Fairwinds with Arnie Gunderson of Fairwinds and David Lochbaum, Union of Concerned Scientists, talking about how FUKUSHIMA CAN HAPPEN HERE. After watching this video, you may not want to eat.
http://fairewinds.com/content/why-fukushima-can-happen-here-what-nrc-and-nuclear-industry-dont-want-you-know?
@ Potrblog: Thank you for the “Alert”!
We also appreciate the response we’ve gotten for our informal Eat Me food shopping receipt-sharing idea. Denise is creating the post/system that will make it possible to access this information that is as simple as reading a food receipt. That will be online and good to go tomorrow.
Right now, we’ve dropped the Radiation Station Chat Room pre-approval requirement meaning that the chat is open for registration and not invite-only. We have new moderators that will help us make sure that the chat will stay free of any of the hanky panky some ingrates tried to plague us with when we first started the chat. Nothing will replace these comments, and food/supplies are an essential part of them, but the chat will really allow for deeper, drill-down discussions designed to deliver delicious delectable dinners that aren’t dangerous*
* – Our tip of the hat to Potrblog’s delightful alliteration.
I put an “Alert” on my blog about the peaches, its short enough to “CC” here.
Fukushima’s First Frightening Fruits: Radioactive Peaches in California
Hat tip to Michael and Denise at ENVIROREPORTER.COM for detecting and reporting the July 8th discovery of Radioactive Peaches in a Santa Monica market.
The Peaches had a sustained radioactivity of two times above local background radiation. What makes this discovery especially significant is that the 2X background radioactivity detected in these peaches was likely significantly attenuated by their water content; when eaten the exposure rate may be significantly higher. Even worse, it is likely that the detected radioactivity is from a longer half life radionuclide; which when eaten, would irradiate a person from the inside out for potential years to come.
Unfortunately it is not surprising that the Fukushima’s first frighting fruits would be peaches. The explosive growth and transformation from peach blossom to green fruit almost exactly coincides with the Fukushima disaster and the associated radioactive fallout in the United States.
@ roundabout: We’re delighted you like the idea but perhaps something got lost in translation here. We couldn’t possibly do what you’re envisioning because we haven’t the resources or time. What we do is 1) look for foods made pre-Fukushima (cans, longer-lasting stuff) using oft-times confusing codes; 2) look for foods produced south of the Equator (not easy but doable) and 3) make ‘educated’ choices in store. Then we buy the food, which generates a receipt, test the #3’s and assuming all is a-okay, we would scan our receipt so you could Eat Me (or more accurately “us”), meaning you would know what we feel safe eating at a particular store at a particular time. Nothing here is guaranteed – we could miss something. But we’re putting our mouths where our money is because we are eating these foods after checking them with the Inspector to make sure they have no radiation. So if you are near the stores we shop at and want to know where the not-hot deals are, then you can sign up on our Eat Me list we’re creating and get the receipts sent to you when we do it. Unless someone like me or Potrblog were to actually accompany you shopping, there is really very few options out there to consume food products with greater safety assurances. It is our way to try to share some expertise that could benefit you and your family. And it will be free. One admonition, though, these fantastic comments could be severely impacted by talk of not-hot hot house tomatoes or Two Buck Upchuck so we would take the Eat Me food talk over to the chat where others who can share modern food foraging discoveries can converse and consume with confidence.
Michael and Denise; I LOVE the idea of food measurement published, and would so appreciate the information. Purchasing an Inspector has just been out of my reach this year. I have stopped eating hormone free Chicken because as much as I trust the hormone free product, with the beef testing so high in Japan, my animal protein diet may be all but gone. Which is unfortunate since I am a protein metabolic type and am apt to gain weight, which is unhealthy. The stores you mentioned are found throughout California so that is great.
May I suggest you focus on the brand name of food, such as “egglands best” or Lucerne Eggs, or particular label noted on the produce rather the store name or at least talk to a lawyer-friend about this so that you and Denise safe legally from multi-billion dollar conglomerations such as Albertsons etc. It would be far less convenient for us to have the store name, but just talk to someone first, okay? It can’t be a moment too soon to get this going, and perhaps you might need someone out in the stores full time to get the requests that will be pouring in as your station has lots of readers!
I wrote yesterday that my observations were that they are printing Fukushima fallout news at the very best on Thursday, mostly on Friday,too late in the week to do a lot of screaming about it during the week, except if you are highly organized till Monday. Forbes blogger validated me… I just love/hate it when that happens!
http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon/2011/07/09/harm-from-fukushima-radiation-a-matter-of-perspective/
Folks, we are smarter than we are given credit, follow your gut!!
Potrblog; I hadn’t known about the water content in food barring some of the reading… very concerning enlightenment, thank you.
@ Potrblog (& roundabout): Thank you for the clarification. It’s ironic that it’s good to know that those peaches were really hot. Your knowledge of radiation science and use of the Inspector is invaluable. Thank you many many times over.
I’ve tried to figure how testing the food we buy (when we can’t get 100%-assured pre-Fukushima or south of the equator) can benefit the rest of the raddies and I think there is a way. Since so much of the major stores are nationwide, and because many raddies are from Southern California, we’ve decided to start posting what we’ve bought, from where and when, and display the receipts so folks who want to know what we got, tested and will eat, is available to them too. Places like Trader Joe’s, Smart & Final, Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons. Then instead of avoiding peaches altogether, for instance, if a raddie knew we bought not-hot peaches at one of these stores, they would at least have an idea if the item they’re looking at in the same store at about the same time is probably not hot. No guarantees but it won’t cost anything for people to see what we’re buying, testing then eating – as rad free as we can make it when buying the unknown product. (Note that we have greatly changed our diets and are growing sprouts, R/O’ing our water along with Berkey-izing it, and buy lots of corn products now, so don’t think we rely only on the Inspector.)
We’re going to call it “Eat Me.” Denise will have it up soon. Do you folks like the idea?
roundabout, thank you so much for that link! I have been reading and shaking my head. Its really incredible what you can find there. This one is a good one:
http://www.orau.org/ptp/Library/accidents/la-13638.pdf
Did i get that right? Nine people died at Los Alamos in a nuke accident? I cant believe they actually put that in the I-net.
Thanks, Michael, for the produce info.
It’s really a sad state of affairs that we have to now worry about where our food comes from. It’s even more troublesome that most people are not aware that there may be a radiation issue one way or the other….
Check your emergency food supply once or twice a year, I checked my parents’ and there were a few old cans of food that were bulging and leaking. It made a sticky mess that took almost an hour to clean and got on some other supplies.
As far as testing N95 dust masks, I think it is worth testing an N95 mask worn while on the ground for a comparison of those worn while in flight. This could indicate whether there is a difference between breathing air while flying versus a more typical everyday scenario.
Or at least test a new, unused mask for a “baseline” comparison.
@Michael, that’s NO ribbing; that’s a REAL WOW!!!
The radioactive rain I have detected is strongly short half life fallout, but I believe it is a strong indicator of the dangerous (but harder to detect) longer half life radiation.
Your Peach, on the other hand, is likely long half life radiation. And on top of that, that water in the peach is actually preventing a large part of the radiation from actually reaching your Geiger counter.
The radioactive Peach you detected is a very strong indication of the SERIOUSNESS of the Fukushima Fallout; I should not be surprised given what I have detected in the rain, but once again I will say WOW!
For all you researchers out there, here is a link that will give you reports on anything you type in. I typed in “radioactivity from Fukushima on the west coast” and got a ton of pdf’s mainly from government reports you won’t find on the net. Here is the link, for those who are compiling http://www.pdf4me.net/pdf-data/2. I got it off the bing server…I know, bing is bing.. or type in pdf4me and see what comes up. It seems to be filed by date, so it makes it interesting…
Rats, Michael! I have to make a fruit salad for a church function today (as requested by them) and its main ingredients are peaches! Since when is changing recipes a moral issue? Times are a changin’! Thanks for all your measurements. Have you measured hens eggs at all?
@Potrblog: Hey, it’s not 32 to 62 times background rain multiple times north of St. Louis or a truck zapping you and the family 32 times background, but it is what it is. I can take the ribbing but if you have an actual point share it. Or at least include a “ha ha ha!”
What you and I need to really test are the N95 masks I’ve asked for where people protect themselves flying through Fukushima fallout and send the masks to me for testing. Surely, you know some folks who fly, eh Potrblog?
It’s a peachy idea.
Regarding Fukushima:
“We are at an exposure level that should not be there!”
“No way to contain it, no way to clean it up… they do NOT realize the extent of the problem.”
“Do we have a world wide problem? YES!”
“Are we prepared? NO!” – Dr. Doug Rokke (pronounced rocky)
DR Rokke is a Depleted Uranium Expert: (specializing in clean ups)
bio: http://newsworldwide.wordpress.com/2011/05/19/exclusive-roger-cooper-interview-with-doug-rokke-there-is-no-safe-radiation-level/
Radio interview at the University of Illinois by Roger Cooper located at this link –
47 minutes: http://www.podomatic.com/profile/rogercooper99
I learned a tremendous amount from this interview. One of the main things I learned here is that we ARE disposing of radioactive waste from Nuke plants. The ways we are disposing and using this stuff will amaze you. It’s in products and building materials etc… Such as airplane ballasts, golf clubs and more… if these things burn in a crash or fire… then uh oh.
Note 1: DU – Depleted Uranium – DEPLETED does not mean depleted is this case. It’s a word that is used specifically to deceive.
Note 2: Interstate 40 near St. Louis, MO has concrete made with DU. The workers who built that freeway are very sick.
“Public awareness is increasing exponentially” – Roger Cooper interviewer
I certainly hope so!
@Michael, 2x background in a Peach? WOW!
@ Angusmerlin: The two peaches found high in radiation emissions were actually in a Santa Monica market as noted, not the Farmer’s Market. I tested the fruit in this small market had because the opportunity presented itself. None of the other fruit present were higher than the background radiation in this store. That said, those peaches were sold in who knows how many places.
Since the March 11 meltdowns began, we have concentrated on buying fruits from South America south of the equator (because the whole continent isn’t south of the Fukushima Line), especially from Chile and Argentina. No need to test that fruit which we have found at Smart and Final in Southern California.
Another 7.0 off Honshu…
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/
Michael,
Just curious re the two high rad peaches at the Farmer’s Market yesterday– How many other fruits and vegs were tested in total? Have you encountered other high rad produce, since the March 11 Japan quake?
I have told many about your Live Monitoring Rad Station, and check at least daily for greater “Los Angeles Weather”.
Thanks so much for all you do!
@ Bar: Since 1998, my reporting on the Santa Susana Field Laboratory has appeared in numerous publications. This facility 35 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles had a partial meltdown in 1959 that released hundreds of times more radiation into the environment than Three Mile Island did 20 years later in Pennsylvania. This site’s pollution has affected neighboring places slated for development including Runkle Canyon and Ahmanson Ranch.
EnviroReporter cut his teeth on these places where I learned the science of radiation and chemical contamination and the art of government and big industry complacency and conspiratorial shenanigans.
These issues involved and involve billions of dollars and the hopes and oft-times dashed hopes of communities. Cleanup at Rocketdyne alone will cost hundreds of millions most of which will be borne by the American taxpayer.
All of this pales in light of the challenges presented by the Fukushima Daiichi meltdowns and melt-throughs but provides excellent insight into the myriad ways that the nuclear industry and government in this country will continue to feed the American people the line that this form of energy generation is safe even as the Missouri River rises even higher at two nuclear plants that teeter on the brink of disaster.
Potrblog’s video was very alarming indeed – thank you to everyone at Potrblog who produced it.
A quick Google search of “Associated Couriers” (the sticker on the back of the truck) revealed this website: http://www.acistl.com/index.htm . They are apparently a “nuclear medicine” carrier company. I then had to look up “nuclear medicine” because the name alone sounds like a complete oxymoron, but it basically relates to products used in radiation therapy. So, unfortunately, I think any calls made to this company will be met with canned responses to the tune of “nothing to see here”, “this is legal”, “the limits are safe”, etc.
The question still stands: how the hell are these trucks safe for the road? Never mind the obvious catastrophic results if the truck got into a crash or caught fire; this vehicle is overflowing with radiation in all directions. It’s essentially a mobile nuclear hot-spot, weaving in and out of unsuspecting drivers and ionizing all of them in the process.
If there is one silver lining to the Fukushima disaster, it would seem that more and more people are becoming aware of the rampant misuse and poor handling of radiation in the U.S. and the world.
“I am here ‘fighting’ for my future, I am here for ALL GENERATIONS to come…”
“In my anger I am NOT blind… and in my fear I am NOT afraid, of telling the world how I feel…”
“You are what you do, not what you say! ….I challenge YOU, please, make your actions reflect your words.” – Sevem Suzuki, a 12 year old girl from Canada, speaking to the United Nations (guessing circa 1992)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQmz6Rbpnu0&feature=related
🙁 Apparently, they were not listening then and they are not listening now either.
Bar; I believe the video link is what Michael is referring to as the Rocketdyne Romperoom. There is a full length video you can stream for free on one of the documentary on-line channels, an most likely from the History Channel.
So the Japanese are getting increasingly upset? As one Japan resident stated “I felt sorry for those in Iitate, I never knew it could happen here.” (sic) So I wonder how Seattle is going to feel about the latest readings this month per our Government? Citizens of Seattle Washington, are not ones to take things sitting down… thumbs up Seattle!
As an aside, from perusing various info sites on the net, I am seeing a trend of intensive concerning news regarding nuclear situations show up just before the weekend… hardly ever on Mon, Tues and Wed, and we are just lucky to get any on Thursday. Makes it more difficult for follow-up unless you are very organized and most people are too busy. Just an observation over time… Since I am unemployed at the present time, I have the luxury of these under the radar observations, (between applying for lots of jobs of course!)
I intuit we will be facing a information overload (west coast collective) in the next few weeks and months regarding these nuclear disasters… women’s intuition. Get stocked up on your personal detox supplies now is my suggestion.
FYI our San Luis advocacy/support group will be meeting soon, and we will be happy to share on this board how we decide to support our community through this. This is going to become increasingly important as info begins to leak out to the public. We should be meeting in about a week.
http://republicbroadcasting.org/?p=15894
You think the government can’t keep secrets? Think again!
“…..the public was not informed sooner because of the low level of danger. The amount of radioactivity was compared to what someone might receive getting an x-ray.”
Thats real bad news for pregnant women!!
Potrblog; Saw your video linked to Dutchsinse on youtube regarding that radioactive truck! What a treat that was… Chase has great follow up on questions regarding this. We are being nuked all over the place. Glad you got the name of the company off the back of the truck and the phone number. Wonder how many calls this company is going to get from the youtube video alone, not to mention all the other links. You are amazing! I am even more convinced now to carry those n85 masks in the car with me at all times. Will be interesting to see where that truck was going. I am wishing for an inspector too! I am so curious about hens eggs!
Here is potrblog’s youtube link: watch?v=pm2fV0ag6tY
Potrblog, i cant believe what i just seen in your video! I guess they figure that people dont go around with geiger counters, so no one will know whats going on and they are right. Imagine somebody with a little Baby driving alongside of that truck for a distance, or even worse gets stuck in a trafficjam beside this truck. I think this truck is so contaminated that it still “glows” when its unloaded. The big question is, what do they do with that contaminated truck when its old and broke and they have to scrap the metal? Its insane. You cant smell it you cant see it and it seems to be everywhere. The drivercabin might have some sort of protective shield in it. At least i hope for his sake that it does.
@Potrblog “Wow! and Dang!”
On youtube also… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm2fV0ag6tY&feature=player_embedded
If they had stayed by the truck it would have gotten even hotter, you could tell.
Lesson learned. I think that truck is a carrying a very large can of worms. In more ways than one.
Perhaps there should be an attempt to contact the driver?
My next set of questions would be…
– Who’s enforcing the “acceptable” radiation levels during transport laws?
– Just what are the acceptable transport levels?
– Who is responsible for this kind of negligence during rush hour on a freeway in a highly populated area?
– Where was that truck headed and who else may have been affected?
@ Potrblog: This is an outstanding capture which will chill the bones of anyone who sees it. Do not miss this, folks. Potrblog and crew show that the problems of radioactive contamination being allowed into the environment in this country with little or no controls are making our roads hot zones. Not to mention the number that [SPOILER ALERT] the driver was sitting on top of at least 32 times background glowing with gamma. What the hell is in that truck? Maybe it was full of utensils or the driveshafts of automobiles.
We got stuck in traffic next to a 18 wheeler with “Radioactive” placards on it. We pulled out the Geiger counter and camera. Lesson learned, AVOID RADIOACTIVE TRUCKS!!!
I posted video of the Gamma ray spewing truck on my blog site:
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/07/radioactive-container-truck-spewing.html
NUCLEAR WITNESSES, INSIDERS SPEAK OUT
“…advanced degrees confer no special expertise in either common sense or morality. That’s why many laymen are better qualitfied to judge nuclear power than are the so-called experts.” – Dr. John Gofman Medical Physicist (Nuclear Power Pioneer)
http://www.nuclearfreeplanet.org/articles/nuclear-witnesses-insiders-speak-out-john-w-gofman-medical-physicist.html#
Also on this site I found an article, “Forest fires around Chernobyl could release radiation, scientists warn” which was written April 28th, 2011. Before the Los Alamos, NM fire. Yet I saw little or no mention of anything like this in our news. Except that the EPA had tested the air and “there was nothing to worry about”. If I lived on the Texas Panhandle, (ie… Amarillo, TX), I would have been or would now be somewhere else.
http://www.nuclearfreeplanet.org/articles/forest-fires-around-chernobyl-could-release-radiation-scientists-warn.html
____________________
Guilty by Omission: (criminal law)
This is indeed criminal, and the ‘experts’ know it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omission_%28criminal_law%29
@ Jon: Yes we would consider testing your used water filter for free if it was in operation from 3/11/11 until now or thereabouts. However we will closely scrutinize anyone who isn’t a regular commenter or who we don’t know because of the inherent risks associated with strangers sending us possibly radioactively-contaminated material. So if you want to start the process to send us this filter, email us at contact [[at]] enviroreporter.com and expect to produce your real name, address, phone number, email address and digital photos of what you want tested. Like we said, we will do this for free but would be grateful if you included a small donation to cover the expense of my time and equipment. Should your filter be exceptionally hot, we will videotape testing it for all you raddies of Radiation Nation to see. This could become an invaluable data base of hot detections across America.
Chase, those solar windows are just perfect. There is no view marred. Im so happy that people are doing research and developing things like these solar windows. Because we do need to get rid of nuclear power. Nuke power IS nasty and its outdated.
“Dr David Brenner, head of Columbia University’s center for radiological research, also found that the body scanners are likely to lead to an increase in a common type of skin cancer called basal cell carcinoma, which affects the head and neck.”
http://www.prisonplanet.com/exclusive-sony-forces-employees-to-submit-to-body-scanners.html
It’s astonishing that high rise buildings use 72% of generated electricity in the USA. I found that hard to believe, but that’s what they said.
Solar Panel Windows can run a whole building: CNN video
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2011/07/07/intv.solar.windows.fink.cnn?iref=allsearch
___________
Solar Panel Powered Trains now in operation in Europe. Eight soccer fields of Solar Panels can run 4000 trains or power 1000 homes.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/bestoftv/2011/07/06/exp.nr.seg.solar.train.cnn?iref=allsearch
___________
We should of done this kind of stuff 40+ years ago. But that’s the “shoulda/woulda/coulda” excuse. We are here now. This can be done.
Renewable energies are able to do this! (my opinion) People just need to quit listening to the rhetoric of pro-nuke ‘experts’ who exclaim that this cannot be done. It’s really NOT whether in can or cannot be done… it MUST be done!
(Nuclear Power is…) “Nasty stuff. Too nasty to entrust to those driven by profits. These clowns have had sufficient generations to play god with their dangerous toys and dreams of ‘saving’ us from something other than themselves.” – George Kamburoff
@Tray, I am drying the radishes to make it easier to detect the radioactivity. I am not aware of much that can be done to remove radioactivity which has been taken up by food products, preventing the radioactivity from entering the foods is the way to go.
Michael, would you consider testing used/expired water filters or would it simply be redundant to already sampled water tests?
Thanks again for the stellar work; looking forward to the upcoming expose(s)
Great graph by Dr. Solar as are the comments and offerings. As always, thanks to Michael, Denise Anne and all the contributors.
This will be the loss of ALL the remaining freedom we have left.
WE MUST FIGHT THIS ALL TOGETHER
From the Natural News Website:
(NaturalNews) In the wake of hundreds of dietary supplements recently being outlawed across the EU, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has quietly unleashed a regulatory scheme that, if fully implemented, could ban virtually all dietary supplements in the USA that were formulated after 1994.
That means nearly all superfoods, multivitamins, detox supplements, and medicinal herbal products we have all come to depend on to prevent disease and boost our immune health could soon be stripped from store shelves and outlawed across the nation. I call it the “End Game” of the FDA’s war against humanity: Phase one was the enforcement of nutritional ignorance by threatening and raiding companies that dared to make truthful health claims on their own websites (http://www.naturalnews.com/021791.html). Phase two involves “nuking” the entire dietary supplements industry by simply denying the use of nearly all the ingredients presently used in supplement products.
On the front lines of health freedom
The discovery of this new End Game strategy by the FDA to outlaw virtually all dietary supplements comes to us from the Alliance for Natural Health, the leading health freedom non-profit group in America, and the group that consistently reports fact-based information on how the FDA and FTC are squashing health freedom in America. Their most recent announcement, entitled FDA’s New Sneak Attack on Supplements (http://www.anh-usa.org/fda-new-snea…) explains how this new assault on your freedom is being engineered by the FDA.
Here’s the brief story of where this comes from and how the FDA is now waging a new war on our vitamins, herbs and supplements:
In 1994, after years of armed raids, oppression and censorship by the FDA, Congress passed a law known as DSHEA. This is the law that essentially forced the FDA to stop regulating dietary supplements out of existence, and groups such as the Life Extension Foundation (www.LEF.org) were instrumental in helping get this law passed in 1994.
But one of the little-known sections of the law required dietary supplement manufacturers to “notify” the FDA any time they used a new ingredient in their formulations. However, the details on how supplement companies were supposed to abide by these notification guidelines (called “NDI” or New Dietary Ingredient rules) were never published by the FDA, and since 1994, this entire section of DSHEA has remained essentially unenforced (or selectively enforced).
Now, suddenly, the FDA has decided it wants to enforce NDI, and its enforcement of this technicality would essentially amount to the FDA denying permission to use nearly all dietary supplement ingredients introduced since 1994. So last Friday, the FDA proposed its new rules on NDI — on the Friday before a long weekend, no less, which is a common tactic government uses when it wants to do something that nobody notices — and these new rules run the risk of being adopted as active regulations, threatening virtually the entire dietary supplement industry with an eventual shutdown.
Why did the FDA wait 17 years to take action on NDI rules? Believe it or not, this was mandated under the new Food Safety Bill (S.510 remember?) that Congress passed into law late last year without even reading the bill (http://www.naturalnews.com/030789_F…). So now, the FDA has been forced into issuing these new guidelines, and it obviously is going to take every opportunity it can to destroy the nutritional supplements industry (and thereby protect the profits of Big Pharma).
FDA goes Fukushima on dietary supplements
Importantly, nearly all vitamin and supplement ingredients could soon be banned under the FDA’s new NDI rules because very few supplement ingredients can be conclusively shown to have been widely used BEFORE 1994. As the ANH points out, the FDA recently banned a common form of vitamin B6 by claiming the vitamin was a “drug” that was never “approved” for use in supplements (http://www.anh-usa.org/when-is-a-vi…).
That story is also covered here on NaturalNews: http://www.naturalnews.com/025606_v…
The upshot of all this is that by issuing new guidelines on the NDI requirements, the FDA can now essentially disallow the use of virtually all supplement ingredients that exist in the market today. As ANH warns:
“We fear that they will use this power to ban any supplement innovation unless the supplement is turned into a drug and brought through the drug approval process. Since nobody can afford to pay for the new drug approval process if the substance is not patented, and supplements generally already exist in nature and cannot therefore be patented, to require full new drug approval is to ensure that there will be no new supplements. This should suit the drug industry very well and, based on past behavior, the FDA as well.”
Supplement companies would need to seek FDA approval for all their formulations
Through this clever trick with NDI rules, the FDA can now position itself as the gatekeeper for all supplement approvals. Far from merely being a requirement to “notify” the FDA of the use of new ingredients, NDI rules essentially subject supplements to approval from the FDA.
As the FDA has proven time and time again, it can simply refuse to approve anything used in natural products. Even today, the FDA refuses to approve walnuts for preventing heart disease, or vitamin C preventing scurvy. The FDA won’t even admit that vitamin D can prevent rickets! Imagine the difficulty of trying to get the FDA to approve cherry extracts, or Chinese medicine herbs, or glucosamine for that matter. Nearly all the top supplements you’ve come to enjoy and value over the last two and a half decades are now threatened with being utterly outlawed and stripped off the shelves.
The FDA, in other words, is now gearing up to gut the natural products industry, bankrupt vitamin retailers and enslave the American people in a system of failed chemical medicine where they now have zero options for natural nutritional therapies. This, of course, would cause chronic disease rates to explode across the nation, greatly enriching the pharmaceutical industry and cancer treatment centers, all of which must be cheering these proposed new rules as a great way to recruit new patients who can then be milked for profits.
But synthetic drugs need no notification approval!
Amazingly (or maybe not, if you know the FDA), the new NDI rules state that synthetic copies of natural molecules are exempted from any new reporting requirements. Thus, drug companies that commit biopiracy and steal molecules from nature then turn them into chemical drugs are exempted from this whole thing. But natural product companies offering safe, effective and full-spectrum nutrients made by Mother Nature are suddenly put out of business.
These rules are selectively applied, in other words, only to natural products, not synthetic chemicals. It is yet another monopolistic betrayal of the American people by the FDA, an agency that has consistently and maliciously taken every opportunity to protect the drug companies while destroying the natural products industry. (http://www.naturalnews.com/021952.html)
“In these proposed rules, the FDA has effectively created a de facto pre-market approval system” for nutritional supplements, says the ANH. And the FDA will, of course, routinely deny virtually all supplement ingredients from ever being approved. Because the FDA is already on the record with its position that there is no such thing as any vitamin, nutrient, herb or food that has any biological effect whatsoever that could prevent, cure or reverse any disease or health condition.
That’s the FDA’s official position! With that kind of distortion, it is impossible for this agency to ever recognize the innate ability of any natural ingredient to actually produce a health benefit.
Take action now
Help us oppose the FDA’s proposed new rules by signing this online petition:
https://secure3.convio.net/aahf/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=833
Once again, your representatives in Washington need to hear from you — pronto! — if you hope to maintain your right to purchase vitamins and supplements in the USA.
Lest you think this is an exaggerated warning, keep in mind that hundreds of dietary supplements have just been banned across the EU (http://www.naturalnews.com/032302_h…). Regulators in the USA are gunning for the same kind of wipeout of the supplements industry as a way to lock in decades of disease profits for Big Pharma and the greed-driven cancer industry (which cares far more about treating cancer than preventing it).
If these new FDA regulations go into effect, your access to dietary supplements could simply disappear before the end of this year, turning vitamin sellers into “criminal dealers” and “smugglers” (much like raw milk retailers today). Armed FDA raids would be conducted on vitamin and supplement companies, and the founders of those companies would be rounded up and sent to prison for their “crimes” of selling unapproved ingredients.
This is the FDA’s end game. Even if the FDA only partially enforces this new rule, it would still place a heavy compliance burden on small nutritional supplement companies. As the ANH says, “The bottom line is that when new and unreasonable burdens are placed on supplement manufacturers, it immediately becomes a financial increase for consumers. And if the pressure becomes too great, the nutritional supplements on which you rely may simply become unavailable.”
That’s exactly what the FDA wants, of course: To put dietary supplement companies out of business, leaving the field open only to those pharma-chemical vitamin companies largely owned by the drug companies themselves. They use synthetic chemicals which are NOT subjected to these new FDA rules. Many of those synthetic vitamins are, in essence, poisons. Isn’t it interesting that the FDA says companies need no approval to use poisons in their formulations, but they need FDA permission to use natural substances that actually prevent disease?
Learn more at the ANH: http://www.anh-usa.org/fda-new-snea…
And please consider supporting this outstanding group with a donation so that it can continue its mission of staying on top of legislative and regulatory issues that impact our health freedoms. NaturalNews is a long-time ANH supporter, and we honor the work this group is doing.
Stay tuned to NaturalNews.com for more reporting on this latest FDA assault on health freedom.
Read the FDA recommended regulations yourself
You can view them at:
http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceCom…
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032912_FDA_dietary_supplements.html#ixzz1RLdG8fym
I watched an interesting/informative video regarding the dangers of EMF Radiation, (ElectroMagnetic Field) that covers many appliances in our homes. Just some good basic information we ‘most likely’ should all be aware of. With each new gadget and electronic device we add to our homes and offices we are also adding to the ‘accumulation’ of our overall exposure. These little teeny tiny bits add up with time. (sound familiar?)
EMF Radiation Protection Tips:
http://www.youtube.com/user/RadiationProtection1#p/u
I then went to the video creators web site and found some additional relevant information regarding CT Scans. (You have to scroll down 3/4 of the page to get to the CT Scan part.)
http://electricsense.com/
_______________
[From Website]
How Much Radiation Do You Really Get From A CT Scan?
The Stats:
A 40-year old woman who has a coronary CT scan has a 1 in 270 chance of getting cancer from that single scan. This statistic doubles for a 20 year old Woman.
That’s massive when you consider that in the US:
– around 19500 CT scans are conducted daily
(over 70 million scans annually)
– between 2000 and 2005 spending for imaging studies more than doubled (follow the money)
– one in five Americans will receive a CT scan in any given year
Some estimates say that CT scans cause 29,000 excess cancers each year in the US alone, mostly in women.
_______________
Ironically, once you get the cancer they will want to do a CT scan to determine how bad it is.
That’s why you sign a form allowing them to perform the CT scan or other scans. Read the ‘fine’ print. So don’t get me wrong. These scans can be life saving fantastic things, but with all we get exposed to people should ask themselves on a regular basis… “Do I REALLY need this?” Our medical professionals should be asking that same question much more often too. Make an informed decision. That’s all I’m saying.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20110605/164453097.html
What sort of missiles are exploding there? Could there be some sort of nuclear warhead or uranium in/on them? Will we get more fallout in a few days?
Portablog,
You said you are cutting up the radishes and drying them out, does this take away any possible radiation. Should we all be doing this with carrots, cucumbers, red peppers? Would love to know because I used to make a big plate of these for my family to nosh on and they miss eating there fresh veggies.
Also the more processed the food or if food is cooked or frozen does this lessen the radiation? Just thinking out loud. I wonder about that. Is ice cream that bad? I really want a no on that one cause it’s summer and my kid (like all kids) LOVE it! Thanks so much for any input.
What if……..an airplane crashes into this cloth tent construction filled with barrels of plutonium waste?
One of the things that has caused me considerable frustration is deciphering the EPA website. Perhaps you folks are ahead of me, but FWIW, here is the link to the gamma energy ranges the EPA uses, and a helpful table which correlates radioisotopes with their energies. Now you too can know what might be meant by that little red or gray line.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/3667
http://www.csupomona.edu/~pbsiegel/bio431/genergies.html
Thank you Chase for the turning point.
I can barely wait for Michael’s and Denise’s and Dr.’s videos! Thank you again for your labor of love…
Potrblog: Someone in the EPA is having a meltdown! Thanks for the unabashed truth in analysis.
Chase: Amazing heart touching story. Thank you.
I ate ice cream yesterday because I forgot about the contamination for a minute. Well, what can I do if there is plutonium in it, will it glow despite a detox program? Wish hubby was on board to keep me on top of these things! Will try again! Will not forget next time! Hope there is a second chance.
Northern Hemisphere harvest season is just around the corner. Has anyone here acquired a Radiation Isotope Identifier? I find The Inspector’s generalist CPMs ineffective in identifying the specific isotopes like Strontium-89 and Strontium-90, or the Cesiums (134 & 137), or Americium-241, or Plutonium (238, 239, 240, 241, & 244), or Cobalt-60, or Tellutium-132, or Uranium (235 & 238), or Thorium, or Iodine-131, or the dozens upon dozens of other man-made isotopes emitted and in our food sources including saved rainwater.
Apparently, USDHS has these devices and are testing but not making the data public?
http://www.fema.gov/good_guidance/download/10260
One way to think of it is if you were a dairy farmer, you’d be testing for this stuff.
Trust but verify. . .
@Potrblog – Agree fully… Thanks! Excellent summation as usual.
In all of our lives there comes a time or times when a moment occurs that is a turning point in our life. It’s not always clear or easy to see while the “turning point” is happening, but it WILL become clear, that is for sure.
I had a turning point on the 4th of July 1998. I was at a company barbeque. I took my dog with me that day. He was a beautiful full blooded Great Dane. He weighed 160 plus pounds and stood 6’2″ on his hind legs. He was well trained and had a heart of gold. Phazer was his name. (like the Star Trek gun)
While having a beer and munching on food one person commented what a ‘huge’ dog I had. (I got that a lot)
I replied, “That’s not a dog, it’s a rat that I found next to Three Mile Island”. Everyone chuckled, except for one of my coworkers who started crying.
I saw her turn and walk away sobbing. I went to her and asked what was wrong. She said she grew up next to Three Mile Island and that both of her brothers had recently passed away from leukemia. (They were approximately 10 years old at the time of the TMI 1979. They did not live to see age 30.) I felt pretty bad about the joke, I explained that I did not intend to cause anyone pain. She said she understood that.
So that day was one of many turning points for me. Now when I hear some arrogant expert claim that nobody died as a result of Three Mile Island it makes me sad and very angry at the same time. I remember the look on her face and the pain in her heart. It’s not always about the number crunching, sometimes it’s about people and doing what is right.
When YOU become the ‘acceptable risk’ it won’t seem fair. As long as it’s not you or your family, then I guess it’s acceptable? hmmm…??? I don’t think so!
So it’s been a while since I have posted but I have been keeping an eye on recent posts.
I had to share something that happened last night:
I was talking to a friend of mine who works in the political arena. (I am refraining from saying what he/she does out of confidentiality.)
We were sitting around the dinner table, talking about food habits and the opportunity presented itself to explain why my son and I are no longer drinking milk and cutting out most dairy.
I waited for the usual mockery or looks of “you have lost your mind” but it never came.
She then proceeded to explain to me that, despite the fact that the topic is not in her area of work expertise, what has been happening in California as a result of Fukushima and the resulting fallout here in the West Coast is not only well known in the legislative world, discussed and researched, but there are actually pieces of legislation being discussed and compiled as a result of what is happening and what could happen.
She personally has not changed her eating habits and she doesn’t think it’s “raving lunatic, the-world-is-ending” bad but the levels seen and the research being discussed regarding the affects of the levels seen would cause her to modify the diets of her children (if she had any) and that she would, in the very least, not allow them to drink milk or eat a lot of cheese or ice cream. She also said she understood my choosing to limit my exposure since I have been breastfeeding my daughter. It was the first time I have talked to someone who understood what bio-accumulation meant!
I wish I could say I was surprised, but I guess I’m really not. But what really upsets me is that they know about it, they are all talking about it, but do you hear ANYTHING about it in the press?!?!?
While it was refreshing to talk to someone to whom I did not have to give explanations to but on the other hand it was really frustrating.
Did someone list an address of a place in Texas that will test hepa filters and compile a list over the country. I have a relative in Florida that has a hepa filter
@Potrblog – Thank you so much for this excellent analysis that Denise and I have just begun. This is the summer blockbuster we’ve been looking forward to and we want all of you to take the time (over half an hour) to see what the Man From Missouri has exposed. It is fascinating and will make your blood boil.
You now see that the Brits have had a hand in covering up the disaster of our times in their fair, but increasingly hot, land. Potrblog shows us how Americans, Americans paid with your taxes, are covering up the radiation literally raining down on us in St. Louis.
Denise, I, Dr. Solar and a number of raddies are tying this all together to show you what has happened here in California, America and beyond and what you can do about it.
The information exchanged here has been invaluable for raddies of the Radiation Nation but don’t think for a millisecond that this is enough. You must act. You will act. We’ll show you the facts and you’ll make decisions that will affect you, your families, friends, community and nations. Or you won’t. But we will.
Our long-awaited expose(s) are coming. We are working round the clock on them because radiation never sleeps and does not magically evaporate with the rain. It is here, contaminating our air, water and food and wrecking unknown havoc with our genes and the genes of the coming generations. We cannot allow this to happen silenced by our own fears and lack of comprehensive knowledge. Or because we’re sick and tired of trying to figure out what’s hot and what’s not and how to avoid it in the grocery store or in the very rain that waters our country.
Potrblog is a resourceful and well-equipped American that is here helping us. As we help ourselves, realize that forces you know and don’t know about are allied against truth because it threatens the economic and social fabric of society and also because they simply don’t know how to stuff the malicious genie of nuclear fallout back in the bottle (and reactor core and cooling ponds).
You are the answer. Potrblog is providing you the information which leads to questions that you will be demanding answers to. It is an appropriate time for all this, it being the birthday of our country. Truth will save America as much as it can from this growing peril.
Here is a link to the Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas, NV. At the bottom is a link to weather stations with gamma radiation detectors in southern Nevada and Utah. These stations are part of a network designed to monitor air readings downwind of the Nevada Test Sites.
http://www.atomictestingmuseum.org/index.asp
http://www.cemp.dri.edu/cemp/recent/
http://www.cemp.dri.edu/cemp/recent/map.html (This map is easier to read, you can select gamma radiation or various weather readings.)
Detail Video Analysis: EPA RadNet Data Censoring Radioactive Fallout in St. Louis. The video is definitely worth your time to watch. I think you will be shocked by the amount of data censoring occurring, and the potential implications.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/07/detail-video-analysis-epa-radnet-data.html
Ft.Calhoun Nuclear Threat Continues To WORSEN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn8kPitCY5M&feature=related
I just watched this video and at min 0:40 he said:”We store radioactive materials in that building. There is some minor water leakage into that building and that water we treat as radioactive waste.”
Did he say the water that gets into that building gets contaminated?? What are they doing, or can they do anything at all, to keep that water from going back out and contaminating the floodwater? What happens to the flooded houses when that contaminated water flows into them?
There you have it!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/jun/30/british-government-plan-play-down-fukushima?CMP=twt_fd
“….Johns Hopkins University study which revealed that radiation zones around body scanners could exceed the General Public Dose Limit…”
http://www.tgdaily.com/hardware-features/56899-tsa-ignored-warnings-on-cancer-cluster
Thank you Carl Willis for your answer. Thats good news. I hope the fire stays away from Bayo Canyon. I was wondering if the people that have houses there above know what lies beneath them?
Hi guys. I read this blog daily but am not much of a poster. Still, found these two articles in the Guardian and wanted to share. The first one is about children in Japan testing positive for internal radiation exposure. The second is about coordinated effort in the UK to play down Fukushima.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/30/fukushima-children-radiation-tests-caesium
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/jun/30/british-government-plan-play-down-fukushima
@ Michael – wonderful, thank you!
@Michael as of now we are still eating mostly pre-Fukushima food, except for when we eat out (which is why I was lamenting about the kids having to drink HFCS Coke). I just did test some unopened whipped butter containers from a restaurant. The initial test was negative, we’ll see what happens when I open it up.
My wife did test some radishes grown in our raised beds in the backyard, and they tested radioactive in a 10minute test. I’ve cut them up and they are drying out, along with some store bought radishes as a control. I am hoping to rig up a lead shielded test enclosure to make the tests more accurate. I also have some pre-Fukushima dried milk that I am also looking for some time to test.
I did test some fresh organic milk back in April, it came back in a range broaching inconclusive to possibly radioactive. But it is difficult to test liquid products because the water in them shields the radioactivity. I believe the Medcom.com site suggests taking a 24 hour count and that an average increase of 1 cpm is indicative of contamination.
The other day I tested a burger from Steak-n-shake in which they were supposed to hold the cheese and did not. I could not detect any radioactivity in the cheese, but again it is one of those products where there could be damaging amounts that are not readily detectable until they were turned to ash and tested.
My strategy has been to eat mostly Pre-Fukushima foods, avoid ALL dairy, and eat more corporate chicken. The company chicken is still eating last year’s corn and doesn’t get to see or feel the sky.
@Bar The Las Conchas Fire is NOT burning in Bayo Canyon. To get there, it would have to cross much of the residential part of Los Alamos and one or more major roads. It’s not clear to me if ANY known legacy contamination is directly threatened by the fire right now, but I do agree it is appropriate to deploy air monitoring stations out of an abundance of caution. As a nuclear engineer, it seems a far stretch to envision any scenario at LANL in which radiological issues get on the short list of major hazards to life and health from this fire.
Just wanted to add my thanks to Michael and Denise for this website. I lurk here every day but don’t comment because I have nothing to add but my dismay for the slow poisoning of America, and for the total dearth on information on the news. Sure, there’s plenty about Kate Middleton’s various dresses, but nothing about how to keep our children from getting cancer from this event. So, your site is an oasis! Thanks again.
The wildfires are burning in bayo canyon, are they not?
http://carlwillis.wordpress.com/2011/03/02/more-radioactive-goodies-from-bayo-canyon/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNcdU0i-qTg
Is the reason for them watching for radioactivity in the air, the contamination mentioned in the video?
@Chase & Annette – We’ve offered to test face masks worn on jets by regular commenters who contact us. Now we will add air conditioning filters and home HEPA filters. Car filters do not give a precise idea of how much fallout radiation there is as much of what they filter is dust from the road which is impacted with radium and uranium already in the soil naturally. Plus, we test with the Inspector which is much more accurate than Geiger counters using the much-older technology of dial system readouts. We will charge nothing from regular commenters and the filters will not be returned. They will, however, be tested on video if the results warrant it.
@Annette2
Regarding the ocean contamination. I would believe it is safe to assume that ALL systems and cycles will be affected and I agree that forward thinking or lateral thinking, depending on how one looks at it, is definitely called for here. I would surmise that the particulate matter would both rise and sink. Depending on many variable factors. It will continue to disperse AND accumulate… somewhere, that is for certain. The amounts and durations are yet to be determined, but again, assume it will be a lot and for a long time to come.
Note taken: We should all be preparing for these ‘additional’ impacts in many ways now! …or at least taking a closer look to better establish ‘in advance’ what we most likely need to know in order to increase our chances of better health and/or survival in the months and years to come.
Tray, when i lived in Mexico the kids always trank ricewater and they loved it. The rice in the stores is all pre fukushima. This years crop isnt harvested yet. Maybe your kids will like it too.
Agua De Arroz (Mexican Rice Water)
http://tinyurl.com/4xaow4n
Hi,
I just wanted to inform you, that our (German) parliament just voted about going nuke-free until 2021 and almost all parties agreed on the chancellor Merkel’s plans! 🙂
I’m very happy and relieved. I’m pretty sure that we can do it and I hope, that our foray encourages other nations to follow us.
FMG
@Jon – The website you’re referring to requires that you buy their products before becoming part of it. If that also means becoming electronically tethered between radiation monitor and computer, where their program resides, that inhibits use of the detector outdoors. Repeatedly, I have questioned what the simplistic whole-number readings because the legend on the map is so poor and does not explain what is being detected or how. I do not rely in the least on this “network” for radiation readings for the country as you may have noted – it is not included on our Resources page.
Strange coincidence? Never had a problem accessing this non government site with nation wide continuous real time cpm’s… till today! http://www.radiationnetwork.com.
http://www.ki4u.com/freeairfiltertest.htm
Along the same lines as Marco Kaltofen’s air filter testing that Arnie Gunderson references, the kind folks at ki4u have offered to test our air filters, if we mail them in to them (feeling pretty concerned for the postal workers, as well as contamination of our mail these days – be sure to seal those filters up good). I contacted the ki4u people and they said they’ve had a really apathetic response so far. This is really a shame, because mapping the detection levels by location using data from a widespread response would give a great chart of the particulate plume from a couple of months back. Since we’ve got such a dearth of information here in California (and elsewhere), this information would be extremely helpful in helping quantify the actual amount of hot particulate matter we all received, and using that info to make ongoing lifestyle decisions (safety of gardening, leaving outer garments at the door or not, etc.).
I’m sending our car filters in… maybe several others out there would be willing to do the same, in the interest of expanding our collective knowledge of, and refining our individual responses to, this event. Thanks!
I have been tossing this thought around in my head for awhile… perhaps someone with a better understanding of physics, specifically the physical properties/behavior of radionuclides in water and earth’s water cycle could shed some light, please. Will the radioactive contamination in the Pacific Ocean become reentrained into the air with the water vapor, which will then have another opportunity to drop as radioactive fallout through rainfall, mist, fog, etc.? I just do not know if the radionuclides/particulate matter will rise with the evaporative ocean water, or if it will stay settled in the sea and ocean floor (and sea life, which obviously presents other grave risks). I hope I phrased this question clearly enough. Thank you.
@Tray – We got un-hot Silk Pure Almond “milk” at Smart and Final. Thank you for planning to wear a fallout-protective mask next month when you’re traveling by jet and then sending it to us. If you folks are planning to fly, do yourselves a favor and wear a good mask and then get rid of it… by getting it to us for testing.
@Potrblog – Your insights on food consumption are excellent. Who knew that oft-times disturbing ways we “grow” our food could make for rad-free food. Since you (and I) are able to detect radioactivity with our Inspectors in different media, do you use it to check your food?
I know its late for this posting, but Coast 2 Coast AM is having its first hour on the latest nuclear plant problems in the USA. There is a recap at 2AM for you night owls. Coast 2 Coast has a website that lists all the host stations. You can retrieve the podcast later for around 6 bucks which will get you to all their archives in case you missed a show. Anyway, it sounds like a good show for tonight… starts at 10:00 and the subject on nuke plants will be for an hour, then recaps at 2AM…
Portablog,
You can get those little boxed milks for the kids at Trader Joes they have a year shelf life. I called 3 times to confirm that. You can buy chocolate or 1 percent regular. I also have been buying Lakewood organic juices at Whole Foods they have a 2 year shelf life and they are loaded with vitamins and leafy veggies we aren’t suppose to ever eat again.
Your family is very fortunate to have your own meat supply. I am now branching out and making Jennie O turkey burgers mostly. How about carrots are they okay to eat now? I ran out of our pre fukishima supply. I’m just doing the best I can and praying for this to be over soon.
EPA RadNet Data Censorship Saint Louis, Mo 3/30/11 – 6/29/11
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/radnet-data-censorship-saint-louis-mo.html
@Tray,
I have to agree with you on the HFCS. PreFukushima the kids would get water, milk, or fruit juices; now they get COKE. It is unfortunate that 100% sugar Mexican Coke is not available as a fountain drink. The HFCS we can reverse the effects of, not so true of ingesting radioactive materials.
Anyone interested in the subject should check out, http://www.fathead-movie.com/index.php/about/
I suggest watching the video clips in the reverse order of what is presented.
I have to admit the food aspect of Fukushima troubles me; we have our own farmer who supplies us with grass fed & grass finished cow, pig, and chicken. We even render our own leaf lard. I REALLY don’t like the thought of switching back to corporate grown food. We consider switching back mostly because the food is eating last year’s corn, and because the company chickens never see the sky.
Wilma P.,
I know it’s crazy! I spend so much money cutting high fructose sugar out of our diets. I think soy lethician (spelled wrong sorry) is the new high fructose corn syrup. I will tell you this, i will take the corn syrup over the radiation. What’s the choice these days? Pray and eat as best u can. Thanks for the link very informative.
http://www.boingboing.net/2011/06/28/nebraska-nuclear-pow.html
In one of the comments Anon says:…”I live in Omaha” and toward the end of it he says:
“The Cooper plant further south has had a close call, but nobody seems to be reporting on that one.”
Anybody know what happend there?
Ft Calhoun, Cooper – Arnie Gundersen on Five O’clock Shadow with Robert Knight, WBAI, June 28, 2011 at 5:00 pm
http://tinyurl.com/3vapnpc
Minot SD Nuke Missile Silos – An Air Force base, overseeing 150 Minuteman III missiles in underground launch silos over 8,500 square miles, is partially under water
http://tinyurl.com/6du6woz
Los Alamos Lab – wildfire in the US state of New Mexico has moved closer to the Los Alamos laboratory and thousands of outdoor drums of plutonium-contaminated waste.
Authorities have stepped up efforts to protect the site where the first atomic bomb was built and monitor the air for radiation.
http://tinyurl.com/5vkl9du
Salem2 in NJ – Salem 2 nuclear plant is under “hot-shutdown” mode and under investigation after a cooling pump failure caused it to close Monday.
http://tinyurl.com/6yrw67z
Its getting to be a bit too much isnt it?
I thought the EPA switched back to quarterly testing. That could mean results coming for end of June.
Tray, i dont think the EPA has stopped testing. I think they stopped going public with the test results.
@Tray
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM
Must see if you care what goes into your body or your kids bodies.
Michael you ROCK! Thanks for answering my questions. The almond milk we are drinking is Whole Foods 365 organic original. Is that the one you are drinking? I forgot to ask about meats. I figure turkey and chicken are okay just not free range or grass fed. Still staying away from cow but if you give the go I am going to In and Out ASAP! Thanks so much for all you and your wife do!!! And everyone on this website you are all brilliant people!
If anyone is traveling please send Michael the mask they wear. I will definitely when I travel next month.
Big R,
I was told by my doc 3 things can contribute to cancer
1. time (how long exposed),
2. exposure(what exposed to)
and 3. resistance level (how much can your particular body handel).
Everyone is made different and diet plays a big factor. Really hard for EPA to put this out and kinda weird considering they stopped testing. I am loyal to enviroreporter because I am trying my hardest to reduce our expose from Japan. Lots of praying too! EPA needs to step up and as far as I am concerned well… my mother always said if i don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all.
@Tray, I can’t tell you with certainty that it is “necessary” to wear a filter mask while flying; but I certainly would say that it is prudent. And after seeing Michael’s test, I would say it was wise to do so. I’ll also share this tidbit with ya’ll, I have at least one hit on my website from someone in Japan searching for information on how to decontaminate an aircraft’s air conditioning system.
In regards to the Dead Sea salts, the Dead Sea is a drainage evaporation pit; eventually as Fukushima drags on for years, it would need further investigation.
On the food front, it might be safer to have almond milk from south of the equator. One thing I would stay away from north of the Equator is Radishes(I’ll probably blog about that after the holidays)
“Radioactive tritium has leaked from three-quarters of U.S. commercial nuclear power sites, often into groundwater…” (over the years)
“Leaks from at least 37 of those facilities contained concentrations exceeding the federal drinking water standard – sometimes at hundreds of times the limit.”
(hmmm… I never heard of any of this for some reason.)
“…reported that regulators and industry have weakened safety standards for decades to keep the nation’s commercial nuclear reactors operating within the rules.”
(I remember playing Monopoly as a kid and making up our own rules as we went along, that was fun and it made ‘winning’ easier too.)
“…the reactors keep getting older – 66 have been approved for 20-year extensions to their original 40-year licenses, with 16 more extensions pending. (Yikes!) And, as the AP has been reporting in its ongoing series, Aging Nukes, regulators and industry have worked in concert to loosen safety standards to keep the plants operating.”
(I cannot find the words to describe how I feel about this. Maybe, “Holy Crap… DANG!”)
From article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/21/radioactive-tritium-leaks-us-nuclear-plants_n_881090.html
Tritium is potentially dangerous if inhaled or ingested. Half Life >12 years.
Link to new and updated EPA Radiogenic Cancer Model and Projections bluebook. http://www.epa.gov/radiation/assessment/blue-book/index.html
@Tray:
1. The almond drink we are drinking reads negative for radiation.
2. We vacuum our HEPA filters’ filters and today I need to also ‘wash’ by hand the pre-filter by Honeywell. When futzing with these filters, do it outside of your home and wear a mask and gloves. Do not wash the actual filters.
3. All these foods are good. If you find a chunk of lava in a pomegranate it means you are lucky. But don’t eat it – use it as a paper weight.
5. Israel is waaaaay faraway from Japan but, as Potrblog and Arnie point out, the deposition patterns of fallout in the Northern Hemisphere are not predictable as we are in uncharted territory. I am sure you can get soaking salts from the Aussies. I’m not big on soaking in salt to detoxify. Getting good exercise and sweating is a good thing too to get out toxins.
Okay a few questions if anyone can shed some light i’d appreciate it.
1. I am giving my family almond milk from Whole Foods. They say they use filtered water. So good i guess. Here’s where i am a little confused. They use almonds which they grow in California. Is this still good to drink?
2. Hepa filters. So I have one in every room and I was wondering if they have radioactive dust on them is it okay to have one in your bedroom or you living quarters for that matter. I vaccum them with a hepa vaccum but is that all i need to do?
3. Buying all my produce from Chile. Apples, pomagrates, frozen berries. Is this still good to do with all the Volcano stuff going on? How about apples from New Zealand?
4. Going to Florida on a trip. Per Portablog wearing our masks. Just want to make sure this is still necessary. (I really think I know this answer!) Any other tips. Anyone fly cross country and give mask to Michael? Saw the video about the trip to Japan. Just curious about trips in the States.
5. I bought some dead sea salts from Israel in Whole Foods. Good to soak in to remove toxins but kinda close to Japan and Europe.
Okay I guess I just need a second brain on these questions. I don’t really have anyone else to ask.
On another note. I just got a whole water filter from Aquasana you can get it for $699.00 even thought the price on the website is higher. It does cost some money to put in but worth it and last for 3 yrs. I use this and keep all my filters on everything still along with it. Big difference in the water.
Also if you haven’t done this per Arnie you should change out your air conditioner filters in your home. Apparently every 3 months. I was not aware of this so passing info along. Also getting the coils cleaned in my air conditioner very dusty.
God Bless and thanks!!!
Here are alot of goodies that will keep you awake at night…
http://www.radiationworks.com/sl1reactor.htm
Here is the link for the Idaho Driggs Geiger Meter that Tim mentioned:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/radiation-detection—driggs-idaho
http://miamiherald.com/2011/06/27/2287888/los-alamos-evacuation-ordered.html#storylink=mirelated
More trouble.
“…. wildfires could stir up and spread radioactive material, experts warned Tuesday….”
This article from greenpeace is from last summer, but it shows that, there is cause for concern here.
http://tinyurl.com/3k96qan
Umm has anyone seen the Idaho Driggs geiger meter remaining steady at 100 plus CPM!!! WTF?!?!? Anyone have any news? Look it up on ustream
Hi Chase: In response to your question about technology – I imagine that there are experts who can and who do what you are asking. But even if they had answers my opinion is there is a media blackout.
[ALERT] Emergency Declared at Kansas Research Reactor- Possible Meltdown
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/alert-emergency-declared-at-kansas.html
If you have time watch these 3 videos. Very informative.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvNgamDp3Kw&feature=player_detailpage
If wonder if anyone has filed a freedom of information act request asking for footage of the “accident” that cause the rubber, water filled, flood berm/dyke to deflate at Fort Calhoun. I picture a Fork Truck from “Sector 7G” popping the dyke like at water-ballon.
“Not enough money to disable old nuclear plants”
Associated Press Interactive Chart showing the decommissioning costs for each plant:
http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/_national/nuclear_decommission/index.html?SITE=AP
Maybe they should have thought about that one a little more in depth before building them? Seems like there’s a lot of things the ‘experts’ should have considered, but they didn’t.
SEE VIDEOS OF THE TESTING WITH COMMENTARY: https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/06/hepa-filters-june-26-2011/
6/26/11
10:00 pm 10-minute INTERIOR average ON AGGREGATE DUST OF LARGE PROGRESSIVE KENMORE HEPA FILTER after 6 months usage in Glendale, CA: 67.6 CPM OR 1.9 TIMES NORMAL BACKGROUND
9:20 pm 10-minute INTERIOR average ON AGGREGATE DUST OF KENMORE PLASMAWAVE HEPA FILTER after 6 weeks usage in Santa Monica, CA: 98.6 OR 2.8 TIMES NORMAL BACKGROUND
8:45 pm 10-minute INTERIOR average ON ONE HOT SPOT OF LARGE PROGRESSIVE KENMORE HEPA FILTER after 6 months usage in Glendale, CA: 55.6 CPM OR 1.6 TIMES NORMAL BACKGROUND
8:20 pm 10-minute INTERIOR average ON ONE HOT SPOT OF KENMORE PLASMAWAVE HEPA FILTER after 6 weeks usage in Santa Monica, CA: 84.2 OR 2.4 TIMES NORMAL BACKGROUND
6:48 pm 10-minute INTERIOR average: 35.4 CPM
1:20 pm 10-minute INTERIOR average ON ONE HOT SPOT OF HONEYWELL HEPA FILTER after 6 weeks usage in Santa Monica, CA: 99.2 CPM or 2.6 TIMES NORMAL BACKGROUND
Another retrospective:
(from March 12th, 2011)
“There was and will NOT be any significant release of radioactivity. By ‘significant’ I mean a level of radiation of more than what you would receive on – say – a long distance flight, or drinking a glass of beer that comes from certain areas with high levels of natural background radiation.” – by Dr Josef Oehmen Phd., a research scientist at MIT, in Boston.
(the ‘absurd’ article this came from)
http://climatesanity.wordpress.com/2011/03/13/why-i-am-not-worried-about-japans-nuclear-reactors-from-mits-dr-josef-oehmen/
I so wish I could look this guy in the eye and see what his response is now. My guess, probably no different. It’s a ‘belief system’, most of these arrogant experts are not going to change any time soon. They will continue to spin and talk “acceptable limits” and make comparisons to bananas and use ‘deniable credibility’ when it comes to deaths, suffering and genetics. They will continue to push their agenda for your own good. It’s not really for your own good, but that’s what they believe. (sort of)
“There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris” – McGeorge Bundy Adviser to J.F.K.
Shouldnt they move fast and put a SECOND ring of bems around cooper nuclear station ??!? Is cooper still running at 100%?
Thanks Jill for the info.
What did he say in this video?
..and today theres been an electrical incident…
http://tinyurl.com/3nlt7nn
Another question is, how are they going to get more dieselfuel into the plant if everything is flooded?
i have a question and thought you might know the answer. I don’t know if you have heard about the berm breaking in nebraska. well, i am trying to inform my friends properly in the midwest. I read an article in the omaha paper and i feel like they are down playing the situation. so, in the article it says the plant is in cold shutdown for refueling… does that make the situation less of a problem. …. don’t they still need to be cooled and if the cooling systems is flooded it will still be the same problem. can you help me.. if you know the answer
Did you know that Spiderwort flowers detect radiation that conventional instruments don’t. http://tinyurl.com/3lpbf8e
It seems to me that if we can take satellites and point them to deep space and take x-ray images, gamma images, etc… and, if we can tell what gases and minerals planets are made of, etc… then, WHY can’t we look at the atmosphere or clouds on our own planet and tell with some sort of precision what the internal makeup of those clouds are at any specific time? (or in real time maybe) How much are those clouds in the jet stream carrying and of what? Can’t we tell? Or… Do the “Experts” have that data and just aren’t saying anything? Just wondering?
Couldn’t we also fly drones or balloons through the clouds and atmosphere to take specific measurements at many locations that would give a truly accurate picture?
We get fairly accurate weather reports now, we get allergy reports also, why not the “What’s your expected Rad Count for the day too…”
🙂 The weather man could/should say something like… “We are getting rain today with rad levels in most areas expected to be below 120 cpm, please wear protection and don’t let children stick their tongues out to catch the rain drops… or, it’s a sunny day today, don’t forget your sun screen.”
!!![BREAKING] TEPCO Document Indicates 0.6 EXA-bequerels Released on Day 2 !!!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/breaking-tepco-document-indicates-06.html
@Jill, a “non-detect” finding from a few random strawberries is worth ZERO reassurance. The radioactive fallout is weather driven and as such the deposition of fallout is variable.
Moreover, individual farming practices would also affect the uptake of radionuclides. Therefore, for a “non-detect” to have any reassurance value, a team doing such testing would have to come up with a statistically valid sampling plan that took into account all the variability. If someone were offering reassurances of food “safety” without that kind sampling plan, first I would have to question their competence; and second, their motives.
@Weaver, the Xenon 133 is extra troubling because it decays into Cesium 133. Cs133 is stable; it won’t decay further; it will linger in the upper atmosphere; and when it gets hit by a high energy solar proton it will spall into a number of radioactive Iodine Isotopes. Here is a link to a video I made about the Xenon 133 / Cesium 133 threat.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/aurora-borealis-new-nuclear-sheen.html
@Tray and Bar
Those maps with plumes of radiation at the maximum detectable amount are showing Xenon-133. It has a half life of about 5 days and unfortunately there is little information about health effects, as up until now there’s been no studies of xenon in massive quantities like this. The only information I’ve been able to find about possible health effects is here: http://chemistrydaily.com/chemistry/Xenon (scroll down to “Precautions”). It only seems to say that it is more dangerous to inhale than helium, but not much else.
Personally, I would be much more concerned if that thick plume was Caesium or Iodine. However, we are all guinea pigs in a worldwide experiment at this point… no one really knows what will happen. Those plume maps are interesting but they are predictions, not actual maps. The actual radiation may be lower or even higher.
Tray, i watched your link and its scary. Have you seen this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGptb94ZoA0&feature=related
This french guy alex lives about 200 km from fukushima. He is really teet off. He talkes about being censored and that they will put him in jail if he keeps posting news about fukushima. The reason he says is they dont want people to know whats going on because they are afraid that people will panic. Viewing your link and then listening to what this french guy says, i dont know, it fits together and its not good.
Hey Guys, after a much needed hiatus I am back.
My husband found this on you tube about a guy who found some sites that were taken down that showed the spread of radiation over the northern hemisphere. Pretty interesting what they are trying to hide from us. These are recent, dated May 11, 2011.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haMePBnkJhY&feature=player_embedded
i heard berkely site said there was non detection of cecium etc in strawberries when the previous test showed it increase. Do you think this is acurrate of they just want to put it to rest. I fing it hard to believe that one week there was an increase and the next time it was non detectable. I would love to make an account to people to donate to and do our own testing. is that possilbe
@Potrblog – You’re right. Not only is the link to the laboratory data not up (has previously always been an active link), but the the “Detection,” column heading has been changed. Previously it simply read, “Results,” and the footnote indicated that samples were tested for a number of listed radionuclides. Now, the column heading reads “Iodine-131 Results,” although the footnote has not been changed. Seems to indicate that the tests were completed for all the radionnuclides, as previously, but the public report has released results specific to only Iodine 131. Hmm.
Big R, if only all the streetlights are powered with solarpanels, imagine how many nukeplants could be shut down and those panels dont look bad or marr the view.
These streetlights/trafficlights work even if we have a blackout. You could combine both electric and solar. Install every other light a solar, then no matter what you always have a lightsource. No more total blackouts.
http://energy-escom.com/en/candelabres_solaires.htm
http://bundes.blog.de/2011/06/23/rachel-maddow-nuclear-power-plant-flooding-fort-calhoun-nebraska-11365618/
Anyone who is interested in an analysis of the Aftershock potential at Fukushima, I made a video explaining the situation and how such an analysis is done. The video is on by blog site at
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/fukushima-tohoku-aftershock-analysis.html
Wow Michael and Denise!!! Sounds encouraging about the plan in place to wake this nation up to the danters! Thank you Thank you Thank you!! Let us know as time goes on, what we can do to help! We so appreciate you both! My prayers will go toward the enviromentalist’s as they prepare and plan this coming week… People are listening. I talk to people every time it is socially appropriate to do so, and it often is, as people truly are interested in the truth.
Big R: Trader J’s up here (AG) didn’t have Boxer, but they had tons of aged cheeses and NONE of their cheeses have hormones, all are Rbest free. Wow… TJ’s sharp chedder had a packing date on it, and was a safe date. If you want Boxer, try Albertsons in the specialty cheeses around the Deli section. It’s white and square with black letters. TJ’s also had a ton of long aged cheeses from Spain and Holland which were extremely before March 11th 2011.
Wow Michael and Denise!!! Sounds encouraging about the plan in place to wake this nation up to the danters! Thank you Thank you Thank you!! Let us know as time goes on, what we can do to help! We so appreciate you both! My prayers will go toward the enviromentalist’s as they prepare and plan this coming week… People are listening. I talk to people every time it is socially appropriate to do so, and it often is, as people truly are interested in the truth.
Hope this link meets with posting approval:
http://georgewashington2.blogspot.com/2011/06/nebraska-nuclear-threat-as-predictable.html
Michael,
I looked for Boxer cheese at Trader Joe’s today and did not find it. I asked two employees and they never heard of it. Can you describe what it looks like? Thanks.
Some people are allergic to Spirulina. I know I am. I really wish I could take it. Think it’s great!
Here is another link about spirulina. There seems to be a lack of research by western universities and institutions on this stuff, except for Russia. It almost seems like pseudo-science but I did buy Soy Protein Powder with Spirulina (and apple pectin ingredient) at Wholefoods in a blue can.
http://www.bioage.com/atgw.pdf
Other links on detox, I don’t detox but maybe I will start:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/334359-foods-that-cleanse-radiation-from-body/
http://herbalroom.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=204&Itemid=507
@Chase The important thing to consider with Chernobyl is it was an open graphite fire that burned for almost two weeks, releasing highly-concentrated radiation up into the atmosphere and across Europe at a very fast rate. While Fukushima is hardly better (potentially has already released 50% of Chernobyl’s total release in three months) it is more controlled and contained than an uncontrolled open fire, in my opinion.
That being said, Fukushima has the very real potential to be WORSE than Chernobyl if recovery continues to drag along at a snail’s pace like this.
Unfortunately, the corporate brainwashing continues to keep most people unaware that the worst industrial catastrophe in human history is happening right now and it affects the entire planet. The general response I see from friends and family is that a disaster that happens on the other side of the globe warrants no concern or interest here at home.
No, we’re far more concerned about Anthony Weiner’s penis. That’s what keeps America up at night.
@Annette2, thanks for the link. I don’t trust those “non-detects”, especially since they have not yet put up the links to the raw data. Picture if you had a rain gauge in the desert that only measured in gallons of water, and all of a sudden every day the rain gauge ended up with a cup of water in it. Well, since your protocol tells you that anything less than a gallon of rain is not 100% conclusive, you must mark it as a non-detect. The question then becomes how many days of “non-detects” before people start drowning in the desert?
What makes the whole issue of “non-detects” down right scientifically criminal is that there is a KNOWN SOURCE spewing radioactivity in our direction; the typical protocols for a non-detect were NOT created with that in mind. The no detection protocols should be modified with the current active source situation in mind.
Interested in renewable energy? Looks like Los Angeles County has a lot of potential for solar or wind and there are talks or debates about developing that potential in the northern areas. Ironically, it looks like environmental interests could be a major opposition with concerns over poppy reserves, bird species and views marred by windmills. If this moves along it would help CA go green and maybe start the rest of the country to get off or reduce nuclear. California was supposed to be a leader in that sort of thing.
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/can-california-renewables-survive-democracy/
Here is a CNN Money link to a map showing nuc plants across the USA. Enter your zip code and it finds the closest reactors with 10 and 50 mile evacuation zones.
http://money.cnn.com/news/specials/nuclear_power_plants_locations/index.html
CA Dept. of Health Air & Milk testing from May & early June up. Air clear. Milk (SLO)- no iodine detected, cesium still detected but decreasing.
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/RHB-RadReport.aspx
Consider this… Chernobyl was “capped” at 15 days. Fukushima… multiple melts and no “cap” in site.
After the radioactive cloud from Chernobyl passed over the U.S. West Coast in the spring of 1986 his research uncovered a severe die-off of young birds. (Dr. Dave DeSante is the founder of the Institute for Bird Population in Point Reyes, California.)
…Later, researchers Gould and Goldman duplicated his results with human mortality data from both the U..S. and Germany. The young, the old, and those with weak immune systems were the main casualties – an estimated over Forty Thousand in all.
Excess deaths in the USA in the 4 months after Chernobyl.
@ 15:00 minutes in he explains how the human deaths were determined. “Astounding!” he says.
“That kind of dishonesty is criminal because people are going to die from it…” – Dr. Dave DeSante (@ 27:30)
“(even) Background Levels have an affect. Raise it above background and you raise the risk.” (@ 28:00) “How much of an affect it will have depends on many factors. Stay out of the rain!… Good Luck!” He also hints at the fact that the EPA will most likely not do proper testing.
This is a 30 minute video, but worth it. Well stated data and his conclusions are very solid in my opinion.
Video Uploaded March 18th, 2011. (still relevant)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hcBGSr9QGk
ALL LIFE is being affected. No Doubt!
Someone was asking about where to buy turmeric and knowing its origin. Mountain Rose Herbs – India – $8.00/lb. You can buy it smaller amounts or larger as well. All of there herbs state the country of origin. I’m including a link… it’s for the ‘T’ page. Turmeric is located at the bottom.
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/bulkherb/t.php#h_tur
Also, know that Technu, everyone’s favorite poison oak scrub was originally created (and used as) a waterless method to remove radioactive particles from skin.
Note:I’m not an advertiser, nor in the retail business. Just a gatherer of what used to be useless knowledge.
Also, one of the only articles from today regarding the two plants in Nebraska – Ft. Calhoun and Cooper plants, currently surrounded, or more, by flood waters.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=25369
@ Potrblog: Yes, it is a sad state of affairs that we have to do this but the “we” includes you and the rest of the Radiation Nation that has come to the fore and stood up for America in this time of crisis with no apparent end, crisis that seems surely to get worse. We all didn’t ask for this fight, but fight we have risen to it.
In the upcoming days and weeks, there will be more revelations as disturbing as this one, and the repeated ones Potrblog has shared us in the St. Louis region showing astronomical amounts of radiation in precipitation there. This information will demolish the walls of apathy, unsound science and national denial about a threat that exceeds any other we have faced in our history. It will take a mighty media push to make this happen.
We are up to the challenge. We have faced this threat. We have prepared (with much more to do in that department). Now we will make other Americans sit up straight and notice, beginning with President Obama. When even more shocking revelations come out on this website, in partnership with our friends in alternative and mainstream media, there will be little doubt that we are in a national emergency.
Do not be discouraged that this monumental task has fallen to us. We will rise to the challenge because we know it is the right thing to do to protect our families, friends, states, country and world. We can and will do this. We have the strength to do this. This crisis crosses class and party lines, ignores race, creed and beliefs and does not give a hoot about the untold numbers of animals and sea creatures it destroys. And it is all our fault.
Radiation does not sleep. We will not rest either. It is YOU who will make the difference. Continue to stand with this newly created ad hoc Radiation Nation as we boldly challenge the darker powers of ignorance and denial.
In the next week, environmentalists will begin the organizing necessary to demand that the EPA not only resume testing, but resume it in a vastly more robust and transparent way. You will play a huge part in this.
We can do it. We shall do it.
@ Potrblog: Yes, it is a sad state of affairs that we have to do this but the “we” includes you and the rest of the Radiation Nation that has come to the fore and stood up for America in this time of crisis with no apparent end, crisis that seems surely to get worse. We all didn’t ask for this fight, but fight we have risen to it.
In the upcoming days and weeks, there will be more revelations as disturbing as this one, and the repeated ones Potrblog has shared us in the St. Louis region showing astronomical amounts of radiation in precipitation there. This information will demolish the walls of apathy, unsound science and national denial about a threat that exceeds any other we have faced in our history. It will take a mighty media push to make this happen.
We are up to the challenge. We have faced this threat. We have prepared (with much more to do in that department). Now we will make other Americans sit up straight and notice, beginning with President Obama. When even more shocking revelations come out on this website, in partnership with our friends in alternative and mainstream media, there will be little doubt that we are in a national emergency.
Do not be discouraged that this monumental task has fallen to us. We will rise to the challenge because we know it is the right thing to do to protect our families, friends, states, country and world. We can and will do this. We have the strength to do this. This crisis crosses class and party lines, ignores race, creed and beliefs and does not give a hoot about the untold numbers of animals and sea creatures it destroys. And it is all our fault.
Radiation does not sleep. We will not rest either. It is YOU who will make the difference.
@Michael, I wager the change in reading you got after opening the plastic bag were from radioactive gasses leaving the bag. But more importantly, it is a sad state of affairs when we have to count on a lone married couple in California to give us an indication of the radioactive Cabin air quality on a transcontinental flight in the midst of 3 Nuclear meltdowns.
Thanks Michael for the Surgical Mask test. Well done!
While listening/watching your latest video I came across several good links. (All from the same site.)
* FREE Test – Air Filter Radiation Testing:
http://www.ki4u.com/freeairfiltertest.htm
It seems to me this would be a great method for determining the dispersion. (Why is our Government not doing this?) My car has not been outside of a 50 mile radius in the last 4 months. I am sure that it may not be 100% accurate, but it would give a relative picture. Not to mention some personal knowledge. I advised my nephew, who is an auto mechanic to use protection when installing filters. He says he already is and has been. Gloves and mask. Seems to me that some sort of warning should be issued to auto mechanics specifically. …and probably everyone who changes out a filter of ANY kind.
* Surviving Radioactive Fallout & Radiation Contamination from Japan or from anywhere for that matter –
http://www.ki4u.com/illwind.htm
“…rain can concentrate the fallout into localized ‘hot spots’ of much more intense radiation with no visible indication.”
There is also a chart about half way down the page that is very interesting. Regarding: “National Cancer Institute Study Estimating Thyroid Doses of I-131 Received by Americans From Nevada Atmospheric Nuclear Bomb Tests”
The NCI’s estimate is that fallout from nuclear weapons testing likely generated from 10,000 to 75,000 cases of thyroid cancer! I grew up in an “orange zone” during the sixties. (St. Louis, MO)
* What to Do if you are Downwind of Fallout: A worst case scenario, but the basics remain the same. –
http://www.ki4u.com/guide.htm
Stay or Go?
What to do First…
Food & Water…
Shelter…
The more you learn about “What to Do” the less you have to fear. That’s my opinion.
Yesterday, I received an N95 mask worn on a flight June 9, 2011 for over 9 hours on a flight from LA International Airport to Narita, Japan, some 38 air miles northeast of the center of Tokyo.
I tested the mask three times and each test confirmed the presence of additional particulate radiation (including beta radiation). The overages were 45.6% above background, 23.3% above background (videotaped) and 28.7% above background (photographed).
It is possible that the initial reading tested the highest as it was monitored by the Inspector immediately after coming out of a sealed plastic bag. Radioactive particulate progeny may have diminished after opening the bag.
This may be the first confirmed evidence that people are flying through detectable fallout when traveling to Japan. This flight flew within 75 miles of the Fukushima Daiichi complex where the meltdowns and melt-throughs are occurring.
These findings with additional information will be the subject of an upcoming article Monday. I thought you ‘raddies’ should check out the results first.
Fukushima reactor #4 now moves front and center as the “worst.” It is loaded with plutonium that is apparently at the boiling point, and has a crack down the side which will cause water to run out. If memory serves, the reactor is also leaning over or “toppling”.
This video by Arnie Gunderson will explain the severe risk much better than I can. It is the most discouraged that Gunderson, a longtime nuclear engineer, has sounded.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbje3ub5Dio
Michael, thanks for the uptick on the Boxer Cheese, I will go and try it with confidence…
I found this link on a Nebraska station, curious about the flooding and the Omaha power plant. A few days ago, I heard on another link that the river only had one and a half more feet to rise before trouble occurred at the Ft. Colhoun (?) plant. This was on the 17th or so. Tonight, more water released, not good news for the power plant. Can’t find anything on their local news about the power plant but did read that Obama is swearing people to media blackout on the nuclear issue due to loyalties. Here’s the link to the local Omaha newscast; http://www.ketv.com/missouri-river-flooding-extended-coverage/28319060/video.html
Milkin’ Lies
So… maybe send this link to friends or relatives who only believe “mainstream” media.
June 21st video CNN Report – Expert Physicist Kaku interview.
http://inthearena.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/21/fukushima-still-a-ticking-time-bomb/
News reporter states: “……we can see it in milk in New York, that’s frightening.”
KAKU: “…Realize Chernobyl was one core’s worth radiation causing a $200 billion accident and it is still on- going. Here we have 20 cores worth of radiation. Three totally melted, one damaged and the [rest in] spent fuel pumps, 20 cores worth of highly radioactive materials. …”
The EPA is not testing? (like they should be) That way they don’t have to lie. They don’t want people to panic or something? (That will be the excuse down the road.) What they should be doing is their job (testing everywhere, every day) and advising people what to do. If it’s okay, then fine. If NOT, advise us. How hard is that? Seems like it ain’t gonna happen any time soon.
Canada Govt, Companies, Universities Refuse To Do Radiation Tests!
I found the link (and his title for it) on Rense.com; here is the direct link to the story.
http://www.ganderbeacon.ca/News/2011-06-21/article-2600444/Health-Canada-says-no-worries/1
@jzhawk, the Federal government believes that its power to control “interstate commerce” allows it to force you to do what ever it wishes; be that forcing you to buy their health insurance; forcing you to eat certain foods; or forcing you to use nuclear power.
@ christine – Thailand is north of the equator so be very careful with this tea (i.e. – test it for radiation before steeping). Argentina is south of the equator and its world-famous Yerba Mate will put hair on your chest – it is that strong a tea.
@ roundabout – Boxer cheese is excellent, cheap and also available at Trader Joe’s.
found green matcha powder in thailand. origin is thailand.
http://www.alibaba.com/product-free/115354697/Japanese_Green_Tea_Very_Fine_Powder.html
1. From high mounatin tea plantations:
Our tea plantations are with an elevation over 1000meters. The tea tree in high mountains grow slower than in low elevation areas because temperature in hign mountains is low.
Nutritions in tea leaves from high mountains are also more than tea leaves from low elevation areas
2. Organically grown:
No chemical fertilizer and agricultural chemicals are used in these organic tea plantations.
These tea plantations have obtained international FDA organic certificates, GMP, HACCP and ISO.
Does anybody know if nuclear power can be shut down/ outlawed state by state…say starting the movement in California
Bonnie; I got my last bottle of tumeric under the New Frontiers label, they were out of the Bluebonnet Tumeric. Not sure where they source their tumeric, I never thought about Japan selling tumeric, so point well taken… Life Extension has highly absorbable cucurmin that I have had in the past, and they are a phone call away so I will call them for sourcing.
Also regarding cheese, there at Albertsons (in Arroyo Grande) maybe others, is Australia’s Boxers Cheese which is aged THREE YEARS! Not sure how good it is, but should be very safe!!
Thanks to all for the great links!
Like my family, many of ya’ll are avoiding dairy and are only buying aged cheeses. Unfortunately, the Cabot Vermont ‘minimum 24 month aged cheddar cheese’ we have been buying at Sam’s Club is stealthy being replaced (and co-mingled) with a Cabot Vermont cheddar cheese that has been ‘hand selected to have a 24 month aged cheese flavor profile’. Of course it’s the same price, what I don’t know is how much of that ’24 month flavor profile’ is Fukushima enhanced. Be careful of what you buy, and always read the label.
An unpublished 1993 report confirmed 1990-91 research, concluding “spirulina decreases radiation dose load received from food contaminated with radionucleides, Cesium-137 and Strontium-90. It is favorable for normalizing the adaptive potential of children’s bodies in conditions of long-lived low dose radiation.”
http://tinyurl.com/6bm2qo6
Children playing a park with 60 times background radiation; a video more terrifying to a parent than any horror movie.
The local is Kashiwa Japan, rougly a 3.5 hour drive away from Fukushima
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOIDFh3wPXY
Even small towns must be difficult to evacuate, but how about Tokyo with 1.5 million people? Where in the world could they all go?
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110621p2a00m0na017000c.html
@Bar, it certainly would be possible to build a giant solar facility out in the desert and pipe in water from hundreds of miles away, the risk is that more energy would be used to build it than would ever be extracted out of it. Along the same lines, more money would be spent to build it than would ever be hoped to made out of it. The environmental impact statement alone might kill it. Of course, the Army doesn’t have to worry about such things because we are the source of their money.
There are places where solar does make sense for the Army, and that’s in places where the fuel has to be trucked in from hundreds of miles away, over routes that are under constant enemy attack. But even in those places, eventually war will bankrupt an economy.
On the other hand nuclear makes money; and it is relatively safe from competition because governmental regulations make it near impossible for competitors to enter the field. The only downside is the occasional nuclear accident, and those costs of failure are socialized out to the public (much like the Wall Street Bailout)
Another aspect is the Energy Density, Toshiba is working on micro nukes that could power and apartment building or a housing block; that would not be possible with solar cells.
http://www.nextenergynews.com/news1/next-energy-news-toshiba-micro-nuclear-12.17b.html
At the moment we are sort of trapped in a “Nuclear Energy, can’t live with it, can’t live without it” zone. The free market can come up with a way out of the mess; but the free market has pretty much been dead since 1913.
http://www.myweathertech.com/2011/06/17/us-orders-news-blackout-over-crippled-nebraska-nuclear-plant/
Is this for real?
Déjà vu
What we knew THEN:
1979 – Walter Cronkite CBS – Three Mile Island
(This video gets taken down every so often, but someone else always puts it back up so you can search it.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16nAYUIKMiQ
What we know NOW:
2009 – “People Died at Three Mile Island” (30 yrs)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/harvey-wasserman/people-died-at-three-mile_b_179588.html
This article makes an indisputable point in my opinion.
Regarding TMI – “Official estimates said a uniform dose to all persons in the region was equivalent to a single chest x-ray. But pregnant women are no longer x-rayed because it has long been known (proven fact) a single dose can do catastrophic damage to an embryo or fetus in utero.”
and…
“Studies by Wing and by Arnie Gundersen, a former nuclear industry official, significantly challenge official pronouncements on both radiation releases and health impacts.” (at TMI)
2011 – Seem familiar?
In 1890 Black Elk was a child and he saw his people butchered at Wounded Knee.
At this point the Nation’s Hoop was shattered.
This new America did not win at the Wounded Knee Massacre
As a nation we set the stage for a slow painful death..
we are now suffocating in our own poisons.
The earth will heal and the sacred hoop will regenerate
This life force is within us
Radiation cant touch it
“I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my old age, I can still see the butchered women and children lying heapen and scattered all along the crooked gulch as plain as when I saw them with eyes still young.And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people dream died there. It was a beautiful dream. . . the nations hoop is broken and scattered. There is no center any longer, and the sacred tree is dead.”
-Black Elk, Lakota
@2dogs
I checked out the comments on SLO Tribune sight. Very interesting!
@Jane Strong
You’re right. That was a really good Geiger Counter video. I learned a lot. – Thanks!
anyone know where to find matcha powder other then Japan?
also, how do we know where our brown rice is coming from when we buy in store? package doesn’t say. i did find a bag of brown rice at Albertsons from Thailand.
Roundabout – where is your tumeric coming from? I found some but I believe it was from Japan. Just not interested in obtaining tumeric from Japan. Please advise.
Potrblog, they have Solar Parks in Deserts already here:
Sun power: Army unveils giant solar project
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10300756-54.html
http://www.solarpowerbuzzmedia.com/2010/12/largest-photovoltaic-power-plant-opens.html
They could plaster all the desertlike regions with solar panels. To get needed water to the solar facility they could build Waterpipelines. That shouldnt be a problem. They`ve got oil pipelines that are thousands of miles long in russia. You could put a Desalination Plant on the coast and use the solar power produced by the solar park for enery. http://www.water-technology.net/projects/adelaide-plant/
It is possible and if an accident happens there the worsed that would happen is that your freezer might thaw and your icecubes melt.
2dogs,
…reactor 4 of the six-reactor plant after it discovered the water level had dropped to about one-third of its capacity…..The drop caused equipment in the pool to be exposed, releasing high levels of radiation, officials said……. An estimated 1.6 billion becquerels of radioactive materials were released, compared with 500 million becquerels when the double doors of the building of reactor 1 were opened in May, the Jiji Press agency reported, citing TEPCO. The operator denied that the releases would have an impact on the environment.
http://tinyurl.com/65qt9ul
It is getting really scary! And no end in sight.
The local San Luis Obispo Tribune is having a series of articles on our own Diablo Canyon site and issues. Here is the first on dry storage. The article presents just the surface of the issues, but the locals responses that follow are the most frightening- fine examples of propping up the aging giants and disbelief of recognized nuke problems and any critical thinking.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/06/18/1648509/nuclear-waste-storage-diablo-canyon.html
The local San Luis Obispo Tribune is having a series of articles on our own Diablo Canyon site and issues. Here is the first on dry storage. The article presents just the surface of the issues, but the locals responses that follow are the most frightening- fine examples of propping up the aging giants and disbelief of recognized nuke problems and any critical thinking.
@Bar, Solar does not do well in the desert because lots of water is required to keep things clean, especially in a dusty place like the desert. It would be possible to avoid the water and dirt aspect by placing solar collectors in space, but then you have to transmit the energy down to the earth. And by any other name, that’s called a death ray. Nuke energy plants came into existence for a reason; making them go away won’t be pretty. Obviously, keeping them ain’t so pretty either.
I can’t shake the feeling that something else is going on with these statistics regarding infant death rates. Why is that only FOX (barf) affliates are reporting it? As the undisputed leader of sensationalism and propoganda… I don’t know, something doesn’t feel right.
On the other hand, the two that put together the study produced another one on a similar topic in 2000. I’m in the middle of reading it now and it is just stunning. It should be thrust into the hands of any elected official, especially ones in Santa Barbara and SLO counties as they are in the process of forming an opinion on the fate of Diablo.
http://www.h-o-m-e.org/Forum/RPHPrpt.PDF
Infant mortality rates drop around five US nuclear power reactors after reactors closed
4 May 2000
http://tinyurl.com/6bwehex
Can’t they build Solar parks in Death Valley and close at least some Nuclear Power Stations down?
🙁 ☢
Another place another SPIKE in the infant mortality rate.
Fox News article Seattle, Washington June 17th (35% increase) The figures were calculated after 10 weeks of Fukushima.
http://www.q13fox.com/news/kcpq-northwest-sees-35-infant-mortality-spike-postfukushima-20110617,0,5968165.story
So… as I read this story I saw a link for the same news station for a video on “Why the Milk is Safe to Drink” dated March 31, 2011. The rhetoric is the same from state to state. Whether it is Texas, Pennsylvania, or Washington the state/local “experts” continue to pass the buck. (in the same identical way, using almost the same exact words) They mention iodine only. No mention of cesium. Maybe they should have advised the public to err on the side of caution until more is known. Why wouldn’t they do that? I just don’t get it. They do however mention that milk is the second largest INCOME producer for the state.
Video Fox News Seattle Mar 31, 2011
http://www.q13fox.com/news/kcpq-trace-radiation-found-in-milk-from-spokane-20110330,0,5203778.story
What I would like to see now is a follow up story where they interview the same “experts” and then show them the current infant mortality data and get their reply or a least the looks on their faces.
What will the headline be in 6 months? 3 years? 10 years and beyond? What will these experts say then? They will probably say, “Well, we did not have all of the data”. One issue I see is that there is no “check and balance” system in place. The ONLY check or balance we have at this time are heroes like EnviroReporter!
My non-psychic prediction would be that the “don’t let the public panic” scenario is going to backfire worse than if they had told the truth. Not to mention the additional suffering to humans and the planet’s lifeforms that could have been averted or a least decreased.
I can only hope that someday, some future historian, will be able to access these documents/comments and realize that some of us were aware that we were being misled and we tried our best to speak up.
“Truth is a powerful thing! So are deceptions and lies except in reverse.” – Chase
Chase thanks for the Fox video. Amazing. I hope this continent begins to wake up. Don’t touch our babies!! When you touch our babies, the women WILL rise up. Both were women reporters. Also great letter!
Jane; Thanks for the video on measurements. WAS the BEST explanation.
Sometimes I get tired of figuring out how to stay safe… but am getting it down. Making sure to take that 600 mg of Alpha Lipoc Acid daily among other things, like tumeric. We just do the best we can… and try to stay stress free. I think we are going to start seeing the USA West Coast disaster stories in the next 5 months. It will be an interesting social phenomena to see the West Coast wake up. And I am 16 blocks from the beach in sunny Ca!
@Rocket, a Keynesian would see the economic, societal value of all the long-term Fukushima induced illness as a way to replace all the baby boomers who are aging out of the governmental-industrial medical complex. In other words, think of the disaster as just another stimulus package / bail out.
This person has the most simplistic explanations and demonstrations of Geiger counter use and radiation I’ve been able to find. I’ve been struggling to understand more so I can protect myself better and I find his you tube videos do the trick. http://youtu.be/afB709We9y8
i will reiterate a previous post before the infant mortality story was exposed. fukishima is an abominable heinous genocide eclipsing the halocaust. intentional and willful negligence, leading to human tragedy, irresponsibility, cover-up and collusion. dead babies and grief stricken parents. the only path to a solution is facing the truth. there is hope.
Maybe we should ask ourselves this question…
“WHAT IF you lived in a time of crisis and no one around you seemed to know?” – Majia
Is this how Christians felt prior to entering the Coliseum in Rome?
Is this how Native Americans felt when walking the “trail of tears”?
Is this how Africans felt before “the boat ride” to America?
Is this how the Jewish people felt prior to WWII in Europe?
What does it feel like to be gagged and tied prior to being executed? I’d say that’s a similar feeling that most of us who are “aware” are likely encountering at this time.
“AWARE” a blog article by Majia
( VERY well stated in my opinion! Thank you Majia )
http://majiasblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/aware.html
“…The plant, a $12 billion project…It’s Japan’s most dangerous reactor…1.4 tons of highly toxic plutonium fuel… “Let’s say they make this fix, which is very complicated,” Mr. Ban said. “The rest of the reactor remains highly dangerous. And an accident at Monju would have catastrophic consequences beyond what we are seeing at Fukushima.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/18/world/asia/18japan.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
Thats insane! Cant somebody stop all of this? What if Monju gets like Fukushima? The US will be literally doomed.
I had to respond to this. Below is the email I sent to the author/journalist that wrote the article cited by Bar earlier.
RE: article
http://www.reviewonline.com/page/content.detail/id/543321/Radiation-levels-in-city-tap-water-detected-but-still-within-safe-limits.html?nav=5008
Headline: “Radiation levels in city tap water detected but still within safe limits”
EMAIL:
Dear Mr. McElwain,
What !!!?
First let me say, there is no such thing as a safe limit when it comes to radiation. That’s a fact!
Secondly, the so called “limits” have no real application when talking about Nuclear Fallout from a nuclear power plant. Radiation accumulates, we’ve been getting pelted for more than 90 days now. The Japanese have admitted about not telling the truth regarding initial high levels that were released and that did make it to the USA via the jet stream.
Thirdly, these people who “pass the buck” off to the feds or the state or someone else should someday be held criminally responsible for their action or inaction as the case may be. Saying years from now that they wish they would have done more testing and “at least” advised pregnant women and children to avoid the drinking water. Isn’t it better to err on the side of caution than to say later “sorry, that was a regrettable decision.” Makes simple sense to me. Unless I owned stock or worked for the water company who relies on selling water.
Fourthly, what if you water your garden and the plants uptake the radiation and then you eat it. And you drink it. And… let’s say the cows eat the grass that’s also tainted and you drink their milk too. etc… etc… The little bits add up. That’s not been calculated into the EPA’s “limit” numbers has it?
That’s what you should be reporting. You should be screaming that you want more testing because children lives and our genetic future is at stake and that you don’t want people passing the buck. Instead saying “well, if the EPA says nothing, then everything must be okay”. How stupid is that?
What I personally see from independent testing is that the EPA is being negligent in their non-action and their lack of testing. That’s what your article should be stating. (Note: a lot of the EPA positions are held by people who have worked for the NRC, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, you know, the ones who issue Nuclear Plant licenses.)
Instead you put the word “safe” into the headline which is misleading and untrue. Get a clue. Do some research.
Ask these people you interviewed, “Why they aren’t doing their own testing?”. This stuff is too important to rely on an agency (EPA) that obviously has “conflicts of interest” when it comes to stating the facts regarding this matter.
Sincerely,
Chase
Citizen USA
p.s. My hope and prayer is that you have read this and will “wake up” and help people by giving them the true facts.
(News Flash: It’s NOT like riding in an airplane or an x-ray.)
http://www.reviewonline.com/page/content.detail/id/543321/Radiation-levels-in-city-tap-water-detected-but-still-within-safe-limits.html?nav=5008
“There’s basically nothing you can do about it anyway,” Disch said. “There’s no way to treat the water, but I don’t really expect it to become an issue anyway.”
Here is another article about presence of iodine-131 in Philadelphia water. Article says they are still trying to determine the source. A couple months ago I came across an article that stated high iodine levels in local tap water were suspected of not coming from Japan, but possibly local medical waste discharge from cancer treatment. High levels were previously detected in 2010 as well. Unfortunately I do not have the link to that article and I do not remember if it was Philadelphia. I will try to find that article this weekend.
http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/local/item/21635
last night i tried to share the fox news report on the babies and facebook would not allow me!!!
Headline: Iodine-131 Killing Babies in Philly. (in the water)
I saw this report on a FOX News station and then it was gone/removed. (?) It can still be seen at these 2 links. It may not stay up long.
(same video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycfhek_0rc8
FOX: Is Iodine-131 Killing Babies In Philly?
The news video/interview has since been removed from the Fox website in Philadelphia.
Here is the original link:
http://www.myfoxphilly.com/dpp/news/local_news/is-iodine-131-killing-babies-in-philly-061611
The news video can still be found on youtube, but I wager it won’t be up long.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycfhek_0rc8
It is interesting that the story appears to have be squashed; The squashing makes the conjecture presented in the interview worthy of further consideration.
Cooper Nuclear Power Station
“…The plant, operated by the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD), is located in southeast Nebraska, near Brownville in Nemaha County.
NRC inspectors said some of the station’s procedures for manually operating valves – which are part of system for releasing coolants under high pressure – wouldn’t work in the event of a fire. The independent emergency cooling system is one means available to provide water to cool the reactor in case of an emergency..”
http://nebraska.statepaper.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2011/06/14/4df6c86c3554e
On June 9, Nebraska’s other plant, Cooper Nuclear Power Station near Brownville, filed a Notice of Unusual Event (NOUE), advising it is unable to discharge sludge into the Missouri River due to flooding, and therefore “overtopped” its sludge pond.
http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/TPV3/Voices.php/2011/06/16/midwest-floods-both-nebraska-nuke-statio
@Bill G says:
June 16, 2011 at 10:23 am
Nebraska Nuclear Plant at Emergency Level 4 due to flood.
From what I have read, there must be at least one related death to have a Level 4 status. Technically, therefore, Nebraska is not yet Level 4. Sure looks close, though.
@Geo – I have a detector and I thought about testing the air filter in my car but the article says they are radioactive and the hot particles could lead to cancer. I don’t plan on messing with that. I live in Oregon and I have made several trips from Portland to Seattle during the month of April in my car. If some one would like my car air filter for testing, I will have the oil change guy put it in a plastic bag and I can mail it out to whomever wants to test it.
I asked yesterday if anyone knew what happened to the University of California Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Department’s enrollment after the Three Mile Island disaster, well I found the answer. It’s not pretty.
UC Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Department MELTSDOWN to ZERO after Meltdown
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/uc-berkeley-nuclear-engineer-department.html
Hi Everyone,
I just emailed President Obama my opinion through Credo Action that he needs to put solar panels on the White House. I did not realize he had previously promised to do this by June 21, 2011. Let’s encourage him, especially in light of the Fukushima disaster and the dangers of nuclear power in general!
-SLO
Subject: Tell President Obama: Put solar on the White House!
Dear Friend,
There hasn’t been much for environmentalists to cheer about when it comes to federal action to combat climate change.
But back in October of 2010, we did win a small, but symbolically important victory. The Obama Administration committed to install solar panels and a solar hot water heater on the White House by spring of 2011.
June 21 is the official end of spring – but there are no solar panels on the White House, yet. It’s time for President Obama to make good on his promise.
I just signed a petition asking Obama to stand by his commitment and put solar panels on the White House! Join me and add your name too:
http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/white_house_solar/?r_by=22632-2181141-ywiGNZx&rc=paste2
Everyone please begin testing car air filters for radiation and post the results for different cities/places
“sources are finding radioactive (automobile) air filters in the greater Seattle area of the US as well” (containing radioactive particles from the Japanese Fukushima Reactors still in full meltdown). (english.aljazeera.net)
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/06/201161664828302638.html?r=45678
Fukushima: It’s much worse than you think
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/06/201161664828302638.html
could not agree more chase.
Today is the Second Annual Toxies Red Carpet Awards for Bad Actor Chemicals at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood at 4 pm starring our very own Denise as Perchlorate.
You can come to this free event or watch it streaming at http://www.toxies.com.
Check out Perchlorate in our Featured Gallery on our index/home page.
I write about this toxic silver siren in Toxies Take Tinseltown which I invite you to comment on.
“if people had the real data they might KNOW something…”
@Wilma P.
Yes, I have thought the same thing. Someone had asked the other day why Amarillo TX was always so “hot” regarding rad levels. My thought there was, it is 300 miles due east of Los Alamos, NM. What if one day some testing happened and a rain cloud dumped on Amarillo. (just speculating) It could be hot for years to come.
Almost every area of the mid-west and eastern USA have tornado warning systems. So… why doesn’t every city/county own and operate a Rad Detector for public safety and awareness? Seems like common sense to me. They buy expensive cameras to monitor traffic lights to supposedly make the public safer. These rad detectors could be linked together by the tens of thousands across the country. This would give us a “true” analysis and an early warning system. (or warn as fast as possible system) This could be done at the local levels and no need for federal oversight.
Now I think I know what you may be thinking. That is a GREAT IDEA! But, it will never happen. Why? Because if people had the real data they might know something.
hmmm…?
Because if people REALLY knew where and how bad the cancer hot spots are, and how unbelievably corrupt our political system is, and has been for a long time, especially regarding the proliferation of their nuclear agendas and the subsequent cover ups that in many ways go far beyond other historically criminal mass genocides. Except this is on a much larger scale and in a more sinister way, because the people being perpetrated upon are supposedly friends, not enemies. We are also the ones who pay the taxes to fund our own suffering. Wow!
Maybe people will turn off their TV’s, wake up, and begin to think for themselves one day. Maybe they will realize that clean air, water and food are more important to life than electricity. Maybe? I hope and I pray for that day soon!
“if people had the real data they might DO something with it…”
Nebraska Nuclear Plant at Emergency Level 4 due to flood.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSvvmrB7qEg
Very informative report.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/US/06/01/nuclear.plant.regulation/index.html?iref=obinsite
“A leak of radioactive tritium from a nuclear plant in New Jersey drew no federal sanctions”
“The groundwater is processed through the Oyster Creek plant’s cooling system, where it is diluted. Then it pours into the Oyster Creek. So there are small concentrations of tritium in the creek where Alfonse Esposito fishes. But both state and federal regulators say those levels are far below what the Environmental Protection Agency would consider unsafe.”
Everything is fine. No need to worry….
Japan-Complete nuclear shutdown next summer?
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20110614dy02.htm
Wouldnt that be great? Japan nuke free. 🙂
Wilma P. thanks for the link. Thats really unbelievable.
Japan is starting to go into the right direction. Fukushima wants to quit nuke power. Lets hope the whole country follows.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110616a8.html
@ potrblog:
You are right about the numbers. But you forgot that no one wants to shut down the plants immediately! We still have ten years in order to improve our energy supply… And our government already decided to invest billions in new windfarms etc. (most of them offshore) and of course new power grids since the majority of the “green” electricity will be produced near the shores and the biggest part of the economy is situated in the south.
@Potrblog
Some clue bird on my shoulder suggested this interesting read:
http://www.idealist.ws/mightyoak.php
Has anyone here thought of the possibility of local releases disguised as Fukushima fallout? An interesting research idea might include mapping all 103/104 U.S. reactors, the Canadian reactors, and ongoing nuke testing underground to see if there are any spikes in the local neighborhoods. By way of an example, in Hanford, Wash., (EPA Richland monitoring station) pre-EPA takedown, there were extraordinary amounts graphed for all to see from March 11th and well into April 2011.
The piece above spells things out quite nicely, in my humble opinion.
Anyone know how much UC Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Department’s student enrollments dropped after 3 Mile Island?
Anyone care to guess what is going to happen to new student enrollments post Fukushima?
Debbie; EPAs site shows wide cpm fluctuations in Nebraska this week. On the 11th Omaha hit 134cpms then stopped recording till the 13th.
Quick question-is the morning mist (daily june gloom here in South OC) as bad as (fallout) rain? I was hoping that those low clouds actually act like a shield and protect us from radiation…?
Thank you,
Claudia
I wholeheartedly agree with Potrblog about staying out of the rain and if caught in the mists, wear a simple surgical mask to cut down on the droplets you inhale.
You won’t need masks tomorrow at the Second Annual Toxies Red Carpet Awards for Bad Actor Chemicals at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood at 4 pm. I write about it in Toxies Take Tinseltown which might give you a wizened grin or two.
Hi all: I have been reading your postings for some time now but I haven’t had a lot to contribute. I do have a question though: Has anyone heard anything about Ft. Calhoun, Nebraska? I’m spotting several articles about it being in trouble from flooding. There is also a ‘No-Fly’ zone around it.Any info from your end?
As a Canuck,my attention was caught by an article I almost missed regarding Canada’s decision to accept all food imports from Japan…so if there are any other Canucks browsing this site as I am…be aware.
As many of you regular posters have noted, accurate information is minimal or non-existant. The closest CPM radiation reading I can get is from a station on the south shore of Upper New York, through the Radiation Network. Since I am on the north side of Lake Ontario, I figure it isn’t too far off from what is falling out around here. Needless to say, I also note what the numbers are in SoCal.
And while I am at it, I did read a posting or two concerning what others are doing to mitigate the danger so I will add my two cents by what I am doing as follows:
I take liquid Bentonite Clay in water every morning on an empty stomach. I take Spirulina in divided doses, three tabs A.M. and three in the P.M. I take a Kelp capsule every day as well as my usual regimen of Vitamin D 3000-5000units/day depending on the sun/cloud forecast and Co-Q-10. I’d like to add Zeolite but I haven’t found it so far.
I am very glad to have found this sight way back in March and I’m comforted by the thoughtfulness and insights all of you have provided. Blessings to all of you… especially to Man Hands and Lady Fingers! I am grateful for all of your work on this issue.
Sincerely, Debbie
@Michael, I would love to be wrong about the following; and I keep hoping someone would/will reference a study that the clearly indicates that all is well. But, it has not happened.
As a result, I have spent TOO much time reading studies on radioactive rain. The short of what I have come up with is that anything over 2x is likely from a man-made cause. There is one pre-Fukushima report of 4x background using our method of rain sampling, so that should be the floor level to consider as possibly indicating Fukushima.
The fallout I have measured has had a composite 46 minute half life, natural radon daughters would have a 36 minute half life. But for the sake of argument, lets assume it is Radon, just so happens Radon(etc) is found in fuel rods.
Radon is also transported across continents. Most Radon washes out of the clouds and not the air. Local Radon washes out in the first part of the storm and dilutes the heavier the rain is. The fallout I have measured is strongest at the end of storms, long after local radon would have fallen out.
But it gets even more interesting, “lucidf8” pointed out a report showing strong high energy (potentially deadly) gamma rays in Lightning strikes. So what potentially happens when high energy gamma rays hit high atomic weight fallout? Its call photofission.
So as a result of Fukushima, fission might be occurring in that thunderstorm over your head. If its not from the lightning, it might be from Solar products. What ever is going on it is a witches brew that no single person has researched or completely understands. But what is understandable is that there is Fallout source up wind of us, and people who should know better are not erring on the side of caution when they tell us things are safe.
Given the limited tools we have, the only thing I can say for certain is -Stay Out Of The Rain.
@Michael, I would love to be wrong about the following; and I keep hoping someone would reference a study that the clearly indicates that all is well. But, it has not happened.
As a result, I have spent TOO much time reading studies on radioactive rain. The short of what I have come up with is that anything over 2x is likely from a man-made cause. There is one pre-Fukushima report of 4x background using our method of rain sampling, so that should be the floor level to consider as possibly indicating Fukushima.
The fallout I have measured has had a composite 46 minute half life, natural radon daughters would have a 36 minute half life. But for the sake of argument, lets say it is Radon, just so happens Radon(etc) is found i
@FMG1991, thanks for speaking up, and making me look at the data. On average Germany does export more electricity than it imports. Here is a cool chart that shows the data
http://rwecom.online-report.eu/factbook/en/marketdata/electricity/grid/germanyimportandexportofelectricity.html
The short of it is Germany imported 33 Twh and exported 45 Twh. What that means is that sometimes Germany is still short of electricity (maybe a function of cost or capacity). Germany’s total nuclear generation capacity is 141 Twh. When those nuke plants shutdown there will be times when Germany will need to import 33+141=174 Twh. Throw in the unreliable Russian natural gas sources, and the peak electrical demand could be much higher.
If I were a Chinese nuke exporter, I would be looking for generating sites is Slovkai, Poland, and Czech, + some Mediterranean countries
@ Big R
The vehicle was just washed. I make sure to have the windshield clean when thick fog or the occasional rains come. This was the so-called June Gloom and a collection plate with clean paper wouldn’t capture the mist that is inhaled by thousands of people, pets and wildlife on the west side of LA. The vehicle was outside – the mist doesn’t seem to penetrate parking structures, open or not, as far as I can tell. Your admonitions to high standards in operating procedures are well taken. Thanks.
@Michael Collins
It still bothers me to see rain or moisture samples to be taken from leaf and windscreen surfaces as was done in recent rain sampling. I think that sampling method has potential for false readings due to accumulation from previous rainfall or fallout. samples should be taken from “clean” surfaces. Perhaps a cleaned jar, plate or sheet of plastic or wax paper left out to collect moisture or rain. For example when was the last time the windscreen was cleaned, is the car parked outside or garaged?
MFG1991, good for Germany! Lets hope other countries will follow. We do need to get away from nuclear power. We do need change. You´re right @Chase
The media news virtual blackout regarding Fukushima still seems overwhelmingly blatant. It has been for weeks now and it appears to be continuing unabated. I should also note that in the initial weeks of supposed reporting mostly what we received was disinformation, lack of information, or outright lies.
I am not sure which is better. No information or disinformation? Actually, what would be best is truth and accountability, but I doubt we will see much of that any time soon.
Sometimes a picture can make a powerful statement. Like the photo of the Vietnam Execution (1968)or the photo of a jet as it strikes one of the Twin Towers. These moments get frozen in time and they can instigate “change”.
There is a photo of the mother and child in Japan which had the same affect on me. The title of the photo is “Time for Change”. You don’t “see” a gun or an explosion but the danger is real and it’s upon them. Perhaps you will feel the emotion of this photo as I do. The innocence in the child’s eyes. The determination of a mother to protect her child. OMG! (The little strawberries on her face mask are so cute. Strange to think she may never get to eat one.) In my opinion this photo should be on the front page of every newspaper/web blog in the world.
Article: (scroll down to see the photo)
http://www.cnngo.com/tokyo/life/tell-me-about-it/richard-smart-why-i-march-tokyos-nuclear-protests-788602
It IS time for change. Whether it’s one person or one neighborhood or one country at a time.
I am from Germany. I don’t think that we will need to outsource. After the Fukushima disaster our government decided to shut down 7 old power plants until the government decides what to do with them. Two weeks ago, another 7 power plants where shut down for three days because of regular security-controls etc. (14 of 17 reactors where shut down at the same time, by coincidence). The companies predicted power cuts but nothing happened. Apparently germany produces enough energy to sustain our households and economy even if the vast majority of nuclear power plants are shut down. The companies just sell a lot of electricity to other countries…
No need to worry after all 🙂
In Germany there has always been a broad anti-nuclear-power-movement (even before Chernobyl or Harrisburg) and nowadays it is as strong as never before. I live in Berlin and I watched the protests 25.000 people, sometimes even more, in front of the “Reichstag”. I think the politicians really mean it this time. At least i hope! Normally I don’t trust politicians, but in an election in “Baden Würtenberg” (very conservative region), the environmental party won for the first time ever! And this happened in the most conservative region in the entire country. The other parties who used to be pro nuclear power lost a lot of votes…. So most political parties agree on changing the constitution about going nuke-free within 10 years. Lets hope everything everything will be fine even if they just do it in order to keep their votes.
Radiated workers may be drop in Fukushima bucket
Six more Tepco staff exposed beyond limit
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110614a1.html
While this in no way compares to the amount of high levels of Fukushima goo in Potrblog’s expert sampling, this is quite remarkable for the Los Angeles Basin which has been bereft of rain. This is on our Radiation Station Stats page:
10:00 pm 10-minute EXTERIOR average of WIPE SAMPLE FROM MIST ON WINDSHIELD IN SANTA MONICA: 100.9 CPM which is 217% above the subsequent EXTERIOR average of 46.5 CPM. Sheet of paper test indicates strong beta presence.
Perhaps the UC Berkeley team would chock this off as “radon progeny” but according to Potrblog, at most rain* will read is between 1 to 1.5 backgrounds at most still leaving this sample inexplicably high unless it came from the most obvious source: three full meltdowns and multiple melt-throughs at the Fukushima Daiichi complex in Japan.
Denise and I photographed all as we tested which will be part of an upcoming package.
* (I’m not sure about this seasonal “June Gloom” mist versus rain and its effect on fallout adhering to either medium. Both are forms of water, obviously.)
The Best Chernobyl documentary. The video in this link is 1.5 hours long and it has details and interviews with some of the top leaders and scientists responding to the catastrophe. I call this video a MUST WATCH because it is a veritable playbook for how the Fukushima crisis is being handled.
The things I learned from the video are that
(1) Iodine 131 causes the metallic taste in people’s mouths
(2) The greatest risk from Chernobyl was a 2nd NUCLEAR explosion the Commies had calculated would be in the 3-5 MEGATON range!
(3) Preventing Public Panic was job #1.
http://www.prisonplanet.com/further-proof-of-ongoing-nuclear-chain-reactions-at-fukushima-metallic-taste-in-the-mouth.html
@Bar & @Stefanie, there is a “positive” side to the European countries out sourcing nuclear; all the old tech nuke plants will shut down, and the new nuke plants will all be the latest next generation Chinese technology (on the downside, another US export bites the dust). There is a Monty Python skit/song in there somewhere.
“California, Arizona, Hawaii, Florida were hardest hit. Areas in California and Arizona were 10x,15x, up to 53x background.
Beta Radiation in the United States Following the Fukushima Disaster freepdfhosting.comA statistical study.
Highlights:Beta radiation was 5x background in the US overall in the second half of March.Increases in beta radiation were statistically significant in March, April, and May.” http://freepdfhosting.com/e9ba1877d6.pdf
[Michael Collins note: The sourced document here is only identified as being written by a “Bobby1” and therefore the data and conclusions of this document are impossible to verify.]
“California, Arizona, Hawaii, Florida were hardest hit. Areas in California and Arizona were 10x,15x, up to 53x background.
Beta Radiation in the United States Following the Fukushima Disaster freepdfhosting.comA statistical study.
Highlights:Beta radiation was 5x background in the US overall in the second half of March.Increases in beta radiation were statistically significant in March, April, and May.” http://freepdfhosting.com/e9ba1877d6.pdf
Hi Cizenoftheplanet. I thought that boron is only used for preventing criticality. If they are using this how would it apply. Does someone know the answer to this one? Thanks.
@ Stefanie:
i am from germany. i don’t think that we will need to outsource. after the fukushima disaster our government decided to shut down 7 old power plants until the government decides what to do with them. two weeks ago, another 7 power plants where shut down for three days because of regular security-controls etc. (14 of 17 reactors where shut down at the same time, by coincidence) the companies predicted power cuts but nothing happened. apparently germany produces enough energy to sustain our households and economy even if the vast majority of nuclear power plants are shut down. the companies just sell a lot of electricity to other countries…
no need to worry 😉
in germany there has always been a broad anti-nuclear-power-movement (even before chernobyl or harrisburg) and nowadays it is as strong as never before. i live in berlin and i watched the protests 😉 25000 people, somedays even more, infront of the “reichstag”. i think the politicians really mean it this time. at least i hope 🙂 normally i dont trust politicians, but in an election in “baden würtenberg” (very conservative region), the environmental party won! the other parties who used to be pro nuclear power lost a lot of votes…. so most political parties agree on changing the constitution about going nuke-free within 10 years. lets hope everything everything will be fine…
Something strange happened at Fukushima Tuesday night. This article is German but look at the video. After minute 2:00. There is weird smoke or steam coming from somewhere and it lights up like a fog. You got to see this.
http://www.google.de/url?url=http://t.co/zF2gshE&rct=j&sa=X&tbm=mbl&ei=s8T3TaSKFYqe-wbN87W2Dg&ved=0CCYQsQcwAA&q=Fukushima&usg=AFQjCNGR5CCluVA_bE8vxE8q0ZT-xqp4ww&cad=rja
http://www.twitmunin.com/v/280278/20110614-00:00-01:00–%E7%A6%8F%E5%B3%B6%E5%8E%9F%E7%99%BA%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%83%96%E3%82%AB%E3%83%A1%E3%83%A9-%28Live-Fukushima-Nuclear-Plant-Cam%29/
There is smoke or steam rising again or still?
EPA’s site shows Los Angeles 2011-06-14 @176cpms.
Hawaiian Organic Dairy farmers using Boron :
http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2011/05/30/dairy-farmers-fight-radiation-with-boron/
The sad thing about outsourcing Nuclear especially in Germany is that they have a near spotless record and are extremely careful and precise. If they outsource it, it will go to a country that isn’t as spotless, precise or careful, never mind careful about environmental laws. Ironically but handing this off to someone else they might precipitate the nuclear disaster they fear so much.
Potrblog, I hope you’re wrong.
Need another source of radiation to worry about? How about gamma rays generated by lightning storms. Check out this article about the added dangers to air travelers. http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/12/gammarays/
@Bar, no one in Europe is going “nuke free”; it just can’t happen at the current rates of demand. What they MAY be doing is going “nuke outsourced”, which means the nuke plants will be built in other countries and the electricity will be piped in. It will end up being the functional equivalent of a Nuclear OPEC.
http://www.powergenworldwide.com/index/display/articledisplay/7630391535/articles/powergenworldwide/nuclear/reactors/2011/06/berlusconi-waves_goodbye.html
Another country goes nuke free! 🙂
Not sure how accurate this article is from healthfreedom.org
but it made me feel better so have a read and feel free to comment:
The Fallacy of US Radiation Readings From Japan’s Fallout
Submitted by Lois Rain on June 9, 2011 – 11:14 pmOne Comment.46
ShareEven though Japan earthquake and nuclear damage media coverage has slowed, there is still much radiation concern here in the States.
While some of the products for radiation protection wouldn’t be bad to have, some companies intend to keep profiting from panic stricken Americans. A guest writer brings more insight into how radiation is measured and why it is very unlikely that Japan’s radiation has made too much of an impact here.
~Health Freedoms
The fallacy of radiation readings circulating here in the US
(written March 2011)
There has been a lot of spreading of alarming numbers of radiation readings coming from all over the media and internet since the nuclear power plant problems in Japan. With this article I hope to shut them all down.
First, I sell radiological survey meters, geiger counters, and dosimeters at gun shows around the country. So I would have an ulterior motive to panic you further to sell more equipment, but in actuality I am more interested in the truth getting out there instead of all this panic, hype and lies being spread suggesting the problem is much worse than it is. I have made guest appearances on many talk shows in the last week to try to get the truth out about what is going on.
Invariably someone who owns a piece of radiation detection equipment, usually a surplus Civil Defense radiological survey meter, will go on the internet with their “report” of what they are reading in their local area. Civil Defense models such as the CD V-710, CD V-715, CD V-717, and the CD V-720 are for detecting high level gamma radiation (although they will also detect X-rays). Let’s examine gamma radiation for a moment. Gamma radiation emits as rays from a source and travels in straight lines and penetrates objects much like X-rays do. Mass is the best protector from Gamma radiation, that’s why our Fallout Shelters from the 50′s and 60′s were underground; you only need mass between you and the gamma source to protect yourself.
Because of the curvature of the earth and the nature of gamma radiation, it is not possible to measure gamma radiation from Japan here in the US with the above listed equipment. If you are measuring anything on one of these devices you either:
1.don’t know how to use the equipment
2.your equipment is not calibrated properly or faulty
3.you are lying
4.there is something else going on locally that they are blaming on Japan
Here’s a way to confirm this at home; take a reading as you were before outside, then without changing anything on the instrument, take it in an underground location such as a basement and you will see the reading persists on your instrument. If you really had been reading gamma radiation, the needle would have dropped to zero when you took it underground.
Beta radiation acts differently and must attach to a particle such as dirt or dust, then travel via the prevailing winds to be measured away from the site of trouble. This is called fallout, and in the event of a nuclear weapon detonation, the beta particles will be blown high into the atmosphere by the blast as seen with the large mushroom cloud. In this event the beta particles could go into the jet stream and travel for some distance before finally falling back to earth where we could measure them.
Now in the case of Japan, there has been no mushroom cloud, only much smaller hydrogen explosions which even if there was any radiation present at the time of those explosions they certainly wouldn’t have gone high into the atmosphere. Any beta radiation will travel with surface winds and wouldn’t get very far before falling into the Pacific Ocean or whichever way the winds might take it. The only surplus Civil Defense models that could measure beta radiation would be the model CD V-720 (high level only), and the CD V-700 which can measure low level beta and low level gamma. Remember, this is the ONLY type of radiation that could POSSIBLY get here from Japan, and this is extremely unlikely unless there is some sort massive explosion that could get the beta particles airborne high enough to reach the jet stream.
Another device which is more important but much less known because of the movies is the CD V-750 dosimeter charger and dosimeters. Dosimeters are small devices that you wear that measure your accumulated gamma radiation level (expressed in roentgens or “r”) over time. The dosimeters from Civil Defense have different scales on them and will be the models CD V-138 (0-.2r), CD V-730 (0-20r), CD V-740 (0-100r), and the most common CD V-742 (0-200r). If you were be exposed up to 50r you would not have any visible effects.
If you were exposed from around 50-200r you would get radiation sickness depending on your immune resistance and bio-terrain. Between 200-500r some will die from these exposures. If you were exposed all the way up to 600r you would die within two weeks. These higher numbers are what people are falsely claiming to have been exposed to already here in the US, but I haven’t heard any reports of people passing from radiation here, or even Japan for that matter.
For up to date information on real radiation numbers as updated every 15 minutes here in the U.S. go to http://www.blackcatsystems.com/RadMap/map.html
The bottom line is, I need not worry what happens in Japan if I am living in the United States, even if all of the cores completely melt down. I would worry if I was in Japan, but not here. Now that’s not to say that I need not worry; that earth quake could as just as easily happen off the coast of California, or even on the New Madrid fault in Missouri. Then there could be a concern for my safety here in the US.
Remember, we already fought World War III many times over. We bombed ourselves, the Soviet Union bombed themselves, the Chinese, etc. with all the nuclear wepons testing done over several decades all over the world. Did you panic then? That was a much greater danger than what we are seeing in Japan today.
Craig http://www.ForbiddenKnowledge.info
HOT PARTICLES in California, No it is NOT like Flying on a Plane
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/hot-particles-in-california.html
The long time readers on Enviroreporter will recognize the decay particle and Lung cancer calculations shown in the link above; what I have done is point out how that math in those calculations relates to Arnie Gundersen’s statements on detection of “hot particles” in Seattle. The fact is that pretty much all of the detection data given by the EPA in Bq/m3 or pCi/m3 are much more easily understood by people if given in terms number of hot particles inhaled.
Arnie Gundersen is owed a debt of gratitude for breaking through the malfeasance of describing inhaling and ingesting radioactive fallout as being akin to cosmic radiation exposure from flying in an airplane. My hat’s also off to Michael and Denise of Enviroreporter for being good enough reporters to not allow themselves (and us) to be sold a ‘load of poles’ by “experts” who should know better.
Here is a new video by Arnie Gunderson of Fairwinds.co, in which he discusses th
hot particles being received in Seattle, and in addition, the meaning of a metallic taste in one’s mouth.
“Fairewinds Update”
@Weaver, the individual asking the question in that link detected 4x background radiation, and it concerned him enough to ask that question. The response from the “expert” was basically that anything over 1x higher than background was the result of man made activities. What was really interesting about the individual’s question was that he was using the exact same Geiger counter that Michael and I use. He was also using the exact same paper towel method I use to check my car.
Using that method, I have detected over 60times background radiation. There are other sources that also indicate that the maximum increase to be expected from strong storms is 2x background. In the article that BAR linked to, their alarms went off at 1.3X background.
If you want more details read this post on my blog.
Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials:The Smoking Gun on Hiding Fukushima Nuclear Fallout
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/tenorm-smoking-gun-on-hiding-fukushima.html
Weaver,
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/portal/utils/pageresolver.fcgi?log$=activity&recordid=1307961826194441&absref=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
“The increases in background were associated with low atmospheric pressure.”
(Nov.1999)
I dont know much about it either, but it looks like the higher data is from the radon and has nothing to do with Fukushima. Please correct me if my assumtion is wrong.
There is an interesting article I picked up from a comment made on http://www.facebook.com/Tokyo.Radiation.Levels (a Facebook page I recommend everyone check out)…
It’s a question/answer about radon accumulation on cars after rainfall, posted in October 2001. It seems to say that short-lived “radon daughters” are responsible for exposure rates in recently-fallen rainwater to skyrocket for a few hours, and that they have little to no bearing on background radiation levels.
However, I am to also understand that these same “radon daughters” have a tendency to attach to dust particles and enter the body.
My question is: Are the high readings in rainwater, such as the ones Potrblog have been finding, indicative of serious radiation levels, or are they simply being amplified by these short-lived “radon daughters” that decay within hours? I would appreciate any educated feedback people have about this, as I know very little about it.
The article: http://hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q1241.html (Like everything found on the internet, please take it with a grain of salt.) Thank you all in advance.
Chase, outstanding art project link! thanks for sharing
@Jon, Amarillo seems to be always 150cpm higher on Beta than any where else in the country. Amarillo is also pretty much the western boundary of “Tornado Alley”. The photo in this link I think does a good job showing why the Radioactive levels in the ground air might be higher in Amarillo, and why it would be higher in the rain in Missouri.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Tornado_Alley_Diagram.svg/512px-Tornado_Alley_Diagram.svg.png
also here is a webpage that puts up all the EPA Radnet graphs in one easy to view spot.
http://blog.alexanderhiggins.com/2011/04/12/realtime-epa-radnet-japan-nuclear-radiation-monitoring-every-us-city-single-page-16511/
Potrblog; thank you for the info you provide here and on your site. Check out Beta hot spot AMARILLO TEXAS. Since April average around 300cpm. Last weeks range 153cpm to 477cpm.
Good news for us!
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110612a9.html
Heavy rain pelts much of Japan
Here is an interesting gadget. Good to have in the emergencybag.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110611b1.html
Boiling water charges cellphones
@jon,
Who would have ever though that drinking rain water in Hawaii would be a bad thing? If she can, she should get a Watts Premier wp-4v drinking water filter; if her water supply is limited she should add a Zero Waste Retrofit Kit.
Here is a link to what Jon alerted us to
http://radiationnetwork.com/Message.htm
Big R; http://www.radiationnetwork.com/ then click Message. My sister is there and her water source is the rain.
Jon,
Which of the Hawaiian islands had these measurements? I looked at the EPA’s RadNet site and didn’t see any high spikes on the real time air monitor at Honolulu, although gross beta counts are offline, but the gross gamma air monitor is online and looks normal. Deployable monitors at Oahu and Kauai appear “normal” for gamma too.
christine wilkes, when i lived in Long Beach, Ca. years ago everybody was talking about the big earthquake coming and got me all scared. So i moved to Portland Ore. thinking i would be save there and guess what Mt.St. Helens erupted and i ended up in a 5.6 earthquake and ash.
I wouldnt move if i were you. Arnie Gundersen is very smart but he cant look into the future. He dosent know exactly what will happen next. Even if unit#4 blows, you will have to check to see wich direction the wind is blowing. Right now they have their typhoon season (from June until Dec). The wind swirls around in a big circle and it rains like crazy. That washes the radioactivity out of the air and you wont get much of it. Here is a link for the local weather in Fukushima http://www.jma.go.jp/en/yoho/ You have to go to Prefecture Fukushima. They have rain in the forecast the next few days so that will reduce the amount of fallout alot.
I think the reason why we dont hear much about the fallout in the news is because they are worried that people get scared and panic. It is scarey. We shouldnt run. We should fight against nukelear power. Its an old, dirty and illmaking dangerous technology. This is 2011. Water wind and solarpower ist the new clean healthy and safe powersource.
Update: 6/11/11, 8:00 A.M. – Hawaii station detects Fukushima Radiation?
Early yesterday morning, at about 3:00 A.M. local time, one of our new Monitoring Stations in Hawaii broadcast a Radiation Alert over the network, reaching a sustained level of over 100 CPM (Counts per Minute) for a period of about 15 minutes, peaking as high as 141 CPM at one point. The readings then subsided to normal background levels of about 37 CPM for that station, but within less than 2 hours, trended quickly up again to over 100 CPM for another 5 minutes or so link; RadiationNetwork.com
(The recent CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report indicates that eight cities in the northwest U.S. (Boise ID, Seattle WA, Portland OR, plus the northern California cities of Santa Cruz, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Jose, and Berkeley) reported the following data on deaths among those younger than one year of age:
4 weeks ending March 19, 2011 – 37 deaths (avg. 9.25 per week)
10 weeks ending May 28, 2011 – 125 deaths (avg.12.50 per week)
This amounts to an increase of 35% (the total for the entire U.S. rose about 2.3%), and is statistically significant. Of further significance is that those dates include the four weeks before and the ten weeks after the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant disaster. In 2001 the infant mortality was 6.834 per 1000 live births, increasing to 6.845 in 2007. All years from 2002 to 2007 were higher than the 2001 rate.) By JANETTE D. SHERMAN, MD
and JOSEPH MANGANO
This video is an art project, but it is truly much more.
“1945 – 1998” Multimedia – artist: Isao HASHIMOTO
‘2053’ <- This is the number of nuclear explosions conducted in various parts of the globe between 1945 and 1998. It's time lapsed so a month equals a second in time. The end does a recap by country of the areas of the planet that are now damaged.
http://www.ctbto.org/specials/1945-1998-by-isao-hashimoto/
At times there are so many going off so quickly that the sound effect is like popcorn!
This should be page one in our history books as an example of what NOT to do to one's own planet. It could now be updated to show Chernobyl, Fukushima, Simi Valley, and the rest of a long unfortunate "regrettable" list of nuclear/toxic fiascoes world wide.
I offer my humble and continued appreciation and thanks for all who contribute their opinions, link references and endless commitment to help one another through Radiation Nation/EnviroReporter and this comment forum. Truly, an Oasis of Useable Valued Information in the vast Sea of Uncertainty and Misinformation.
If you are interested in knowing where seafood comes from (especially in relation to distances from Japan) here is a map. Scroll to the bottom of the webpage and hover the mouse cursor over the fish icons. Note Chunk Light Tuna is made of skipjack and yellowfin tuna (http://chickenofthesea.com/product_line_list.aspx?FID=11)
Map link – http://chickenofthesea.com/go_fish.aspx
I bought some frozen shrimp a couple of weeks ago, I noticed a lot of seafood is farm raised and will state country of origin even if it is at the super market deli. Maybe I am “chancing” it but the frozen shrimp came from Thailand & was farm raised and I believe the package date was in 2010.
@christine wilkes
Just picture the people who left Nazi Germany and relocated to Paris. There is nowhere safe, there is always some sort of threat. The key is to measure the threats, rate them, and mitigate them. (I find thoughtful prayer to be the best mitigation).
All that said, If you are strongly inclined; this will give you a start in things to consider.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig11/black-s21.1.html
http://www.lewrockwell.com/spl2/become-an-expat.html
@Chase – Thank you for that radio interview. I plan to sit my husband down tonight and share this with him. While he does not share my level of concern, he has said to me many times these past few months,,,,you make the decision if, when and where….then, I will follow. So, I believe Gunderson is trying to warn us on the West Coast. My husband and I have both grown up in Seattle. It’s our home, it’s where we met, fell in love and had two children. It’s where we hoped to raise our children. Fukushima has changed that. This may be extreme or this may not, I don’t know but I have this strong feeling we need to relocate. I just can’t get traction because I don’t know where to go.
Anyone else on this board from the West Coast that has also thought about leaving and if so, where?
Anyone on the board have ideas about a “safer” as I know there is no “safe” place but some place safer then the West Coast right now.
I just worry about Arnie’s warning on Unit #4.
I have even thought about Australia. Anyone know about Maine? I know it’s North but at least it’s East!
Florida scares me with all the hurricanes.
Arnie Gundersen (Nuclear Plant Expert)
– Robert Knight RADIO Interview
Re: Ft. Calhoun Nuke Plant in Omaha and Fukushima.
It’s a 40 minute interview, but well worth the listen.
At around 29:00 to 30:00 into the talk he mentions again the “hot” particles from Fukushima we are breathing in on the west coast of the USA. He also states when asked directly about the EPA that we must rely on independent scientists for true readings.
http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/52367&72878
Have young children? Save those baby teeth!
During the 1950-60’s Scientists in Saint Louis collected over 325,000 baby teeth to measure fallout from above ground nuclear tests; 40 years later 80,000+ baby unused baby teeth were found and used to related radioactive fallout exposure to cancer deaths in their 40 year old donors. The result: “the average Sr-90 concentration in teeth of persons who died of cancer was 122% greater, or more than twice the level for healthy persons the same age. The 122% excess was statistically significant at p<.04."
see
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/325000-radioactive-fallout-baby-teeth.html
http://www.bellona.org/articles/articles_2011/swiss_parliament_votes
“Lawmakers in Switzerland’s lower house of parliament Wednesday cemented in a landslide vote plans by the government to phase out use of all five of the country’s nuclear reactors by 2034, making it Europe’s second country to abandon nuclear power in favor of renewable energy in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi crisis.”
Germany and Switzerland are going nukefree and Italy is voting June 12 and 13 to continue or end nuclear in their country.
17X Background radiation from rain in Lansing Michigan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffKSEfMSXfE
I am so touched by all your comments I can’t even tell you! Thanks so much for all your words of encouragement I really appreciate all of you and your kind words. I guess I was trying so hard to do it all perfect this threw me for a loop. I have been thru quite a bit for my young age and will do anything to protect my family. This has become an obsession for me and I need to magnify my God not these issues. I know what to do to protect us now I need to move on. You all don’t even know me and the very thought of you all taking the time to help me thru such a weak moment I can put it into words how much that means to me.
Michael and Denise, this is a true testament of amazing this website is! Thank you ALL!!!
Tray,
The article said that it could take thousands of years for the ground water to reach Death Valley.
“The Energy Department has said the contaminated water is moving very slowly downhill toward Death Valley National Park, but it could take thousands of years to reach any affected community.”
Annette2 – Your post is very interesting to me at this time. My son started with a dry cough at night time about 2-3 weeks past. He is not sick, no other signs of illness, no cold nothing. Just a dry coughing attack for 30-45 min at night. And, sometimes during the day but mostly it’s at night when he is sleeping. It’s not bad enough to wake him up but I can hear it through out the night. He is and always has been a healthy boy. He is 3yrs turning four. So, I started to think about what has changed in our environment. Well, a lot really with this radiation scare. I also thought about the HEPA filter. We got the Austin Air with a military grade filter. It’s rated as one of the top 10. I also have been running it at full speed. There is one side that blows out air. My son thought it was fun to stand in front of it and let the air hit his face. He played in front of it quite a bit fascinated with putting things in front of the air vents to see how the forced air would blow different weighted items up into the air or shooting them out this way and that. Anyway, not sure if I’m describing this correctly but nonetheless he was having fun so I let it go on. He naturally was breathing this forced air into his lungs. I don’t know for sure if this is what is causing these coughing fits but as a mother we have these instincts and this is mine. Now even more so after reading your post.
Tray – I’m with you 100%. I understand exactly how you are feeling. I did leave this site for a while because I became so scared I was having anxiety and panic attacks. My husband interjected and said enough! All the hours I spent in front of the computer were for a greater good but nonetheless I wasted precious time and moments with my family. My daughter turned one and had a lot of first moments during these past three months and it was hard for me to really enjoy much of them. When I start to feel like all this is too much and I’m going to fall to my knees and burst into tears, I shut off the computer for 2 days and just lay on the floor and play with my children. There are days when I say aaah f*** it and let all the rules go just to keep my sanity and the family happy. We took the kids to Cannon Beach last weekend and they played in the sand (some of it was swallowed i’m sure). I will always be haunted “what if” that was the day I destroyed the future of their health. But for that day, I let it all go and we had a wonderful time together. My son was allowed to have a donut and he enjoyed an icecream cone with his Dad. I do my best every day with some days allowing an exception or two. It’s a scary time and many of us don’t know what we are to be doing. We are learning and trying new things. Our instinct to protect and care for our children is a natural response during a time like this and with that comes worry and doubt. This is all so overwhelming for a parent, especially to young children, babies and expecting parents. There have been many days where I just throw my hands up and fall back on my faith in God. The more I pray, the more peace I get. It’s the days I don’t pray that my anxiety, fear and doubt take over. Also, I do feel God is willing me to continue with my quest for information and due dilegence in protecting our children. So I push on with Gods help.
Tray,
You will calm down because you are a Loving Mom and realize that your child will learn to thrive in any challenging environment with an introjection of calmness, coolness and collectness that he learned from you. What a great opportunity you now have to teach your son cool problem solving. You can now be developing in your son the path to life long problem solving without fear or panic. You will continue to rise to this challenge. You are the first mentor, example and teacher he has on how he will perceive his future challenges. Will he panic, or thrive?
So try an epsom salt bath for the family members with good old baking soda tossed in and know it will all work out in the end. Please stay on this site and be the proactive and informed parent you are. And take some time to play as a family and get your joy and peace back. And if I may suggest that prayer works, it does. There is nothing wrong with detoxing radiation out of a child so that his immunity can sustain itself. Trust it will be okay so that you and your son can enjoy today, Today is all we have. Enjoy the moment and enjoy the fact you can trust if you choose. I hope this helps. I pray you are surrounded by love and peace and calm.
Dear Tray –
I totally feel for you. We find ourselves in uncharted territory here – and we’re all just floundering along the best we can, trying to advance along the ginormous learning curve as quickly and thoroughly as we can as we try to protect our loved ones.
Re: the Death Valley clay – I am not familiar with that clay – we’ve been using another brand. Regardless of the brand, from what I understand, once the clay (bentonite) binds the radioactive substances it does not release them, so even if the clay had been exposed to some radioactive particles before it was packaged (who knows???), according to what I’ve read those radioactive particles would not be released in the bath.
We live in Agoura (so CA), and have a strong, healthy, athletic 15-year old son who came down with walking pneumonia 2 weeks ago. His fever freaked me out – 104, chills, wracking cough… just debilitating. After his diagnosis I started thinking about what could have aggravated his lungs – what had changed in our environment beyond the probable exposure to some sick kid in school? This was late May – and no rains or known major Fuk-onsite releases of late, so probably not the potential exposure to particulates that we would have had in late March/early April. Anyway, I zeroed on on those SIX hepa air filters I had blasting away throughout our home nonstop since late March. I did further research on each one of them, and turns out that 4 of them had ionizers and “plasmawaves” that emitted ozone, which would irritate the lungs. I have no clue what actual combination of factors added up to my son becoming so ill – but I do know that all those hepa air filters – while performing a potentially life saving action of cleaning our indoor air of incredibly dangerous radioactive particulates, could at the same time have aggravated his lungs & bronchials enough to predispose him to this illness. I returned the polluters & replaced them with safer (and more expensive) models.
I was so upset at first, but I came to realize that we are all just doing the best we can, and every give has a potential take as well. Did I make my son sick by plugging all those beasts in? Maybe. They also may have added some years to his life by intercepting some carcinogen before it reached his precious lungs.
We’re playing mouse to a big old cat, and it is no fun. Being on the defensive is tough – it’s hard to gain any perspective when you’re bobbing & weaving all the time.
Zeolites, bentonite & montmorillonite clay, turmeric, apple pectin, epsom salt/baking soda baths with calcium lactate chasers, no dairy (except aged cheese), limited fresh fruit & vegetables, sprouting, buying up cases of “old” water from the dollar store, sleeping in wind tunnels from the air filters, wearing face masks when we groom our horses while the neighbor kids watch, mouths agape, stripping down at the door & showering every time we come in from outside – these past 3 months have been freaking nuts! We have made HUGE changes to our internal & external environments & are praying that we’ve made the correct choices. Let’s talk about the teenage boy when he can’t eat pizza – forget it!!! Poor kid looks like a freak at pool parties eating pizza crusts with marinara (cheese peeled off) & carrot sticks – … whatever. Alpha contaminants in the pool water? Can’t even go there… kid’s gotta live. We are doing the best we can with the limited data we’ve got… I pray we’ve made the right choices.
Access to the hard data that we know exists would be helpful, that means you, EPA! Yes, releasing testing results, rather us poor schmucks speculating & patching together milk & produce & water & soil & air data from northern California & hoping it’s somehow relevant to my family 400 miles away, when we know darned well that the government is sitting on actual data from my neck of the woods but is not releasing it … come on! Yes, we can do harm by changing the environment (external & internal) so Tray, you are spot on for being uber-concerned about not harming your son. These certainly are hazardous times & I admire your courage for acknowledging the dangers & facing them square on. We’ve got our precious families to protect & thanks to Michael & Denise, we’ve got each other for support. Blessings on you & your family.
Also, if your on Facebook the is a group called 500 million friends: beyond nukes. Try to join it. That way more people become aware there is a problem. (And even realize there is one.
Tray, I don’t think you should be worried. I am not sure if you are worried because the clay was from Nevada. It’s detoxifying. I have two kids. One 4.5 and one 1.5. My older one takes the Zeolite once a week or so. Also giving him more probiotics. The younger one I have not been able to give it to her. She has opinions…not been so easy. I have given them baths in it too. Trust me….I have had my moments of stressing about all this, but I feel right now I want to do what I can…detoxing, taking supps, watching my food.
Big R,
I just gave my son a bath with some freakin clay from Death Valley in Nevada called Aztec Secret. I am really freakin out, shaking after I read what you posted. I only put a little in his bath a few times. 3 times to be exact.
I need to know if this is okay. I am really freaking out and need confirmation. I will say this is the first time I really decided I may have to exit this site and just relax and live my life. Anyone who may be able to calm my nerves please write.
Bonnie, Tray – I started 1tsp ZeoForce last night and no problems. Are you both taking this daily or every couple days?
Bonnie I got my ZeoForce at Wholefoods. They are pretty well stocked on this should you need more.
What chat line is tray referring to and can anybody tell me about the mist situation
LA Times article about Nevada nuclear test site ground water contamination and compensation. Estimates are 1.6 trillion gallons of ground water is contaminated after hundreds of underground nuke tests. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-0610-radioactive-water-20110610,0,1208277.story
chad whitworth,
With this solar storm probably the best place for detections would be in Canada. The real concern is as Fukushima keeps pumping out Xe133 for the next months and years. Assuming the situation is not the maximum worst case, you wont hear about it until years later when the geologists and chemists start noticing that they are getting strange readings trying to date the age of rocks. The other indication will be when ObamaCare stops covering Thyroids.
In regards to iodine, what I do is paint a 2×2 inch patch of iodine on my arm or chest. How fast the patch disappears gives me an indication of how rapidly my thyroid is scavenging Iodine.
It will be intersting to see if this solar storm creates a witches brew of fall out…if so we should see some kind of spike on Michael’s readings.
Is anyone else out there taking kelp?
I only take 4 tablets a day (225mcg of iodine per tablet)
however due to a surfboard going through my head i have a wired skull and hyper-thyroid
I am skeptible to take more with this thyroid deal.
Curious what others kelp levels are (especially those with abnormal thyroid function)..however anyone’s kelp input would be appreciated
I think I would need to take 20 or 30 tablets a day instead of 4 to get the iodine benefit others are receiving.
Michael,
Was there any high reads in the preciptation this morning? My son had field day and was running around with the rest of the school in the mist this morning. I thought since we didnt detect any in the last rain fall we should be okay but I just checked in on the chat line and noticed you wrote something about staying out of the mist today. Arrrgh I am going to throw the kid in the shower and rinse him off. My kid is going to think I have gone crazy throwing him in the shower in the middle of the day! I guesss thats the kinda Mom I am.
Thanks Bonnie. I will research more. I nursed my son for 13 months so I think that provided lots of immunities till he was one. I would probably be more incline give him zeolite now that he is older with more research. I guess I just wonder if you should detox a kids body. How will they build a resistance? These are things I will research more. Thanks for your email.
Tray: Although I never personally heard of anyone becoming dependent on Zeolite (it is a mineral), I know I didn’t. Because we are/may have radiation coming on our heads daily now/soon, this is new territory. I guess I am going to experiment. At this time I was planning to take it forever because I believe the radiation is here forever. Zeolite detoxes heavy metals. There are many ways that you can detox anyone’s body without doing something drastic. My suggestion would be to really research. My son is now 27, but if he were small I would really look into all the different ways to detox, for instance Q-Spa foot baths – as long as water is not contaminated of course. Infrared Sauna check into size and weight — older adults are not recommended for Infrared Sauna. Infrared Sauna is FDA approved for detoxing. There is a HEPA filter out there that has Zeolite in it. I have a HEPA for allergies from 2005 – I am purchasing the HEPA filter with Zeolite soon. Look into supplements that support the liver. Zeolite is given to children in Chernobyl. This is why I would give it to mine if he were small in a heartbeat. I heard somewhere that children should not take until they are at least one. Bathing children in bentonite clay is something I’ve heard is really good.
Building immune system. There are many ways to detox out there and I suggest you really research and study. None of my information is a suggestion or medical advise – it is just what worked for me, others I saw and suggestions that may help in these very different and very dangerous times. The consensus is detox daily now. Hope this eases some of those thoughts. When I couldn’t find zeolite again several years back – well, after Fukushima, I searched hours and hours to find it. That’s how much it meant to me and to others that I saw taking it. Just make sure that you purchase a zeolite that you are sure is pure. Animals can use it too. (Did not spell check anything – in a hurry at my lunch hour.) Hope this helps.
http://www.propublica.org/article/electrical-fire-knocks-out-spent-fuel-cooling-at-nebraska-nuke-plant
[Editor: Electrical fire threatens fuel cooling pool in Nebraska nuke plant on Missouri River.]
roundabout, look at this:
http://openchannel.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/04/11/6452465-three-workers-exposed-to-radiation-at-nebraska-nuclear-plant
Thats not too far from Wyoming. Who knows what else might have happend there. It sounds like the workers are trained by Homer Simpson.
Our friends in Nebraska and the Heartland of America probably already know this – The Missouri River is flooding one of Nebraska’s reactors, with another five feet of water expected over the next week.
This re-emphasizes what we’ve been saying all along: If you think the Fukushima Daiichi meltdowns/melt-throughs are bad, it can get even worse and now it is, right here in the middle of the United States, the breadbasket of our country.
Roundabout,
Go to aboutclay.com and hit clay info at the top. That explains a lot and also go to living clay and give them a call they explained everything to me. I got this referral on this website for living clay so I just found out about this all yesterday.
Bar,
This whole catastrophe is going to give me a heart attack if I don’t chill. My little joke to myself.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091022202710.htm
How Low Doses Of Radiation Can Cause Heart Disease And Stroke
The Aurora Borealis’ New Nuclear Sheen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxLf8IpJiJE
This is an interesting read
“10 Tipping Points Which Could Potentially Plunge the World Into a Horrific Economic Nightmare”
http://lewrockwell.com/rep2/10-tipping-points.html
#5 on the list is Fukushima. And If it were not for #3 on the list, Fukushima would have significantly dropped oil prices for the short to medium term.
I was wondering regarding the clay. I have liquid clay, so now I know I can use it to wash produce. Thanks for the link. However, I heard that it isn’t the best to use internally, and that the powder is the best for internal use… is that correct? Anyone?
Dutchsines on youtube got an amazingly high reading west of cheyenne Wy. He is headed out west measuring as he goes… I stroll to the end of the segment just to get the final readings. Here is the link below. The reading was way over 700. To my most recent knowledge Wy does not have nuclear power plants at all. However, they do house nuclear warheads underground, somewhere in Wy. Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/user/dutchsinse#p/u/0/-o1YYdYKkSM
I hear you. I will give wheat grass and spirullna. I am a walking contradiction myself. I guess I just have to go with my gut.
Let me know how it goes for you.
OK, thank you for the Zeolite responses. I’m going to take my first tsp tonight before bed.
Tray – I’m with you. It’s foreign and scary for me also to give the children this. Which I don’t completely understand my mental block because I give them hemp powder in their hemp milk, I give them each rooibus tea and probiotics.
Maybe after I take it for a month, I will start small with my son who is almost 4.
I’m nursing my daughter so she may get a lil bit anyway.
Bonnie,
I wonder can your body become dependent on Zeolite? That’s what concerns me when giving it to children. Also detoxing a childs body? I wonder if they need some of the good and some the the not so good stuff. (not the radiation of course) Builds immunity? I am not going against what you are saying works for you and for that matter lots of people. Just thoughts in my head.
Christine, I’ve been taking zeolite off and on since 2003. I used it as a colon detox reommended by an alternative health practitioner. Sometimes I take 1 tsp per day. Other days I take up to 3. I got caught in huge rain storm in late March and had interesting symptoms until I began taking the zeolite. It does seem to settle my digestion. Whether you ever purchase from this site or not, it has good information about zeolite and dosage. etszeolite.com. Not my site, although I have one. My understanding is that children can begin using zeolite at the age of 1. Two weeks ago I added some to my blueberry pancakes. YOu can bake with it, I put it in my coffee, etc. Pets can take it too. So far I have not had any negative reactions, nor have I heard that anyone has. Everyone is different though.
No I will not give anything orally to my kid other than Yummy Greens and a multi vitamin. I will however bath my child in the clay, baking soda and bath salts. I just have mental block with giving any internal stuff to my child. Don’t know if this makes sense or is right or wrong but it is what I feel good about.
Zeolite, those of you taking it…how much did you start with? 1 or 2 tsp?
I just got the HealthForce ZeoForce powder.
Tray, are you taking this or have you given to kids?
Anyone have negative reaction?
Tray – This is GREAT! Thank you. Excerpt…..
To remove radiation from your produce, Perry A~ Arledge, author of Living Clay, Nature’s Own Miracle Cure, recommends starting with liquid clay. This is Calcium Bentonite Clay mixed with water at a ratio of 1 part clay to 8 parts water. In a large non-metallic bowl, mix ¼ cup of liquid clay with 1 quart of water. Toss your fruits or vegetables in this clay water making sure they’re completely covered and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Rinse and dry them, and store them as you normally would.
I REALLY miss my carrots. I let my guard down yesterday and purchased carrots but I also got the liquid betonite.
Hope it really works. My kids love carrots and I want to feed them carrots again.
Max,
Just bought some living clay. I like the fact I can wash my fruits and veggies in it and it will help detoxify them from radiation and pesticides. For all of you who miss a nice crunchy carrot or apple from the good ole US here’s a good way to enjoy them again. Because eventually we are going to run out of our food stash.
http://www.aboutclay.com/info/Articles/removing_radiation_from_produce.htm
Hi everyone,
You guys may have already found this, but I wanted to share the transcript of an interview with Arnie Gundersen which occurred on June 3 on Chris Martenson’s radio program. The links are below.
http://www.chrismartenson.com/page/transcript-exclusive-arnie-gundersen-interview-dangers-fukushima-are-worse-and-longer-lived-we-
http://www.chrismartenson.com/martensonreport/part-2-arnie-gundersen-interview-protecting-yourself-if-situation-worsens
Here are some notable highlights:
1) “… so let’s imagine, Arnie, there you are, you are living in Tokyo now or closer, how would you be behaving over there right now?”
Arnie Gundersen: Yea, and actually we should extend this to the West Coast, because the same particles there too. To answer your question about Tokyo; what I’m advising people in Tokyo who are there now, is take your shoes off at the door, wet dust. Don’t dry dust. We are actually finding that contamination inside houses is higher now than contamination outside because it has been trucked in over the last two months and it hasn’t left. And if you dry dust you throw all of that radioactive material up into the air. I am also advising friends there to buy these little HEPA filters, high efficiency particulate filters that look like a little round device that sits on the floor, and change the filters frequently. Also advising people to remove the filters in their air conditioners and the air conditioner in their car, and replace them. Because they pick up particles over the last couple of months and it is a good time to replace them as well. Also telling people don’t do any demolition work. The last thing you want to do right now is tear a wing off your house because you will stir up that dust, not knowing exactly what’s in it, you run a risk of contamination.
The other things I am telling friends in Tokyo is keep your eye on Unit Four. If there is an earthquake and Unit Four topples don’t believe the authorities you are well beyond where science has ever imagined and it is time to get on a flight and get out of there.
[If you live on the West Coast]- “If Unit Four were to topple, I would close my windows, turn the air conditioner on, replace the filters frequently, damp mop, put a HEPA filter in the house and try to avoid as much of the hot particles as possible. You are not going to walk out with a Geiger counter and be in a plume that is going to tell you the meter. The issue will be on the West Coast, hot particles. And the solution there is HEPA filters and avoiding them.”
2) So I’m still telling friends until the middle of June stay away from milk and dairy products. Clearly washing the vegetables is critical.
3) “… the tuna haven’t migrated across the Pacific. But I am thinking by 2013 we might see contamination of the water and of the top of the food chain fishes on the West Coast.”
4) Well, I am in touch with some scientists now who have been monitoring the air on the West Coast and in Seattle for instance, in April, the average person in Seattle breathed in 10 hot particles a day
Jill – We have had this whole house water filtration system in our home since 2002.
http://www.aquasana.com/category.php?category_id=4
Bummer, that we moved to Oregon and rented our home for the next year. Good for their family of 6 though. They have 4 small children, so I’m happy they are all drinking clean water.
It was rated and reviewed as #1 when we purchased, perhaps it still maybe.
There is an additional $400 – $500 cost to professionally install.
Replace the filters every 3 years on average. We noticed a huge difference in our drinking water when we moved out of our house.
Jill: I have several ideas for you regarding your water. You need to make sure that you know what kind of water exactly helps you. There are several choices out there. All of them that I know of except one are pretty expensive (and the one I know of may not help with radiation protection). I guess you could try to get in touch with me through this site. I am not going to leave my email address here. I don’t know the rules but maybe we can connect through this site?
Red Cross declines blood from Fukushima
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110608a8.html
I havent thought of that! Donated blood can be contaminated!
perry a. is reconised as an expert in the clay world.
http://www.livingclayco.com
search adam abraham-talk for food
her latest interview is up in the archives
@ christine: We have thought about building a forum to address many of the different topics that have been so well discussed in these comments. Two issues with that: These comments allow everyone to see everything giving them a holistic understanding of what everyone is going through and what the challenges are. Changing the format might lose some of that inclusiveness. Also, a forum takes a lot more time to maintain which further cuts into my investigative work which you will see the fruits of soon enough.
So here’s a solution and it’s already really successful with many really smart women and moms talking about the issues that concern you most. It’s the Radiation Station Chat. This exclusive chat has been a treasure trove of information, just the kind you are looking for, and the people chatting, like the folks here, have become friends and provide crucial support and guidance.
Christine, I took off your email address on your comment to protect you from spam. But I will leave ours because if you, Tray and/or anyone else hear making these outstanding comments want to join the Radiation Station Chat, drop me or Denise a line at contact [[at]] enviroreporter.com and we will hook you up!
But also know, christine, that your concerns as a parent facing this crisis are welcome here in these comments. The outstanding group of individuals that have contributed so much to these myriad discussions are enriched by your contributions and questions. And so are Denise and I.
Tray – I have been following your posts for some time now. I have been impressed by your diligence to protect your children. I too have been doing everything in my power and under what knowledge I have to keep my children healthy and safe from radiation. I wish this site had a separate area for parents to share and chat with each other. Perhaps we could email off line. I would like to be connected with some one who share the same thoughts and discipline with this whole radiation mess and how it’s affecting our children. I have no one to talk to about all this from a parenting standpoint…..as everyone around me in my every day life has absolutely no clue and no concern.
“Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper says this “melt-through” is far worse than a core meltdown, and is the worst possibility in a nuclear accident.
This is the first official admission that a “melt-through” may have occurred.”
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110607005367.htm
This is scary!
For the first time, Japanese authorities have suggested the situation at the Fukushima nuclear plant may have gone beyond a meltdown.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/06/08/3238720.htm?section=world
For the first time, Japanese authorities have suggested the situation at the Fukushima nuclear plant may have gone beyond a meltdown.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/06/08/3238720.htm?section=world
WOW! Maybe the EPA should take note of this and get back on that monitoring thing!
does anybody know approx. how much a water filter cost for the entire house. the one that filters it before it comes to the faucts… 500…1000 …2000.
just wondering want to approach my landlord for the apt complex
I’m sure this will come as little surprise to most people here, but Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency “has dramatically increased its estimate of the total radiation released to 770,000 terabecquerels of iodine-131 equivalent, up from 370,000 terabecquerels under its previous estimate.”
Basically, we are now at roughly 15% of total Chernobyl release. The article doesn’t say what the current rate of emission is, but I suspect it too is much larger than previously announced.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/japan-nuke-crisis-twice-as-bad/story-e6frg6so-1226071255034
This pattern of “oops, the numbers are actually bigger” has been persistent ever since the disaster struck…
FUKUSHIMA: bunny born without ears…..
This has been all over in the European NEWS-not a word here in the US…..of course!
http://info24u.blogspot.com/2011/06/rabbit-born-without-ears-in-fukushima.html
Christine, For some reason it freaks me out to give my son the clay orally. I was told to put my kid in a 1/2 cup of baking soda and 1/2 cup of dead sea salt in his bath and that would do the trick. Also if you shop at whole foods I give him yummy greens in the vitamin aisle. The magnesium in it is a natural radiation protector. Hope this helps. My feeling is the very fact you are on this website tells me you are doing all that you can. And that is all we can do as parents. The best that we can. Pray and eat right has always been my motto.
Nanenmate – Could we talk over email: christine5wilkes@yahoo.com
I’m wanting to try the clay and give to my kids but never having done this and feeling it’s a bit foreign to me, I’m naturally nervous about it. I took a betonite clay and sea salt bath last night along with my kids and I went to bed with a headache and feeling very weak. Still have a headache this morning. The container says it’s for external use only. It’s a green powder. Perhaps I have the wrong kind for drinking?
Sign letter urging your representative to attend Renewable Energy Expo….
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5502/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=7112
For future reference here is info on responding to nuclear, radiological, chemical threats, etc. Good old civil defense.
http://www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/index.html
Shelter in place instructions:
http://www.ready.gov/america/makeaplan/stayingput.html
to christine re: bentonite clay
I am drinking the b. clay occasionally and have given it to my kids in hot chocolate, they never noticed! Just now I had some mixed into my TJ’s coffee ice cream- quite yummy. I have not been good about taking it regularly but here and there. I have the Zionhealth Kanwa Energy Detox powder and have another brand to take baths in but haven’t used it yet.
For Radiation Detox Soup Recipe and Radiation Supplement Program: http://www.healthy.net/Health/Article/Nutritional_Program_for_Environmental_Pollution_and_Radiation/1276/1
Best Radiation Detox Manual: http://meditationexpert.com/RadiationDetoxDraft.pdf
Is there anyone on this board actually drinking betonite clay as part of their radiation detox?
Top Ten Richest Counties in the USA
9 out of 10 of the richest counties are just outside of Washington DC.
Number 6 however, is LOS ALAMOS, New Mexico. Gee, I would not have guessed that one in a million plutonium half-life’s.
“Most of the richest counties in America are in the East. The richest county in the Western United States is Los Alamos, N.M., where decades of government money spent on nuclear weapons has resulted in median annual household income of $100,423. Most of the 18,000 residents of this county, which is New Mexico’s smallest, live in Los Alamos or White Rock and the biggest employer is the Los Alamos National Laboratory.”
From a yahoo/forbes real estate article:
http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/meet-americas-richest-counties.html
Thank you. Just ordered from internet grocer. The importer does not sell by can. I want to try a can first before I order in larger quantity. Thank you for your reply! 🙂
@christine
Did you try the primary importer listed on my site?
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/source-for-red-feather-canned-butter.html
I am NOT affiliated with them in ANY way. I have not even ordered from them, but I did talk with them and they seemed very helpful. They might be able to point you to one of the other importers (if they don’t have any in stock themselves).
You might also try
http://www.internet-grocer.net/butter.htm
sometimes they have it when others don’t, but they are more expensive.
@Michael Collins,
Be happy to answer the questions, the key to remember is that the original answers reflect a “3 minute minute analysis”, and reflect the actions I would take if I lived in LA.
Q1: Just averaging the averages listed would have yielded 3 pCi/L. If one assumes all the listed averages were measured at the exact same time “3” would be the better answer, “4” represent my safety factor based on the ranges listed and the assumption not all the testing occurred simultaneously.
Q2: The ranges listed represent the max value, based on the “southern wells” higher range its obvious it has broached over 100 pCi/l. What makes it even trickier is that they are combined readings, meaning one well could be higher than the others but its effect is averaged down.
Q3: The answer can be detailed, it would require a knowledge of steam tables and Radon solution rates. The effect is difficult to measure because the lung dose would be a function of aerosolized Radon laden water and Radon vapor. The size of a shower, and the amount of water used during a shower is the basis of my answer. A good Radon mitigation company would have the equipment to instantly measure the vapor portion of the Radon level, but not the aerosolized portion.
Q4: The Radon reading in my house is 1.7 pCi/L (AIR). I don’t measure in the bathroom because of the humidity. My local water quality report indicates no Uranium detected. The Gross Apha particle reading from my water quality report is also “no detection”. If I had LA’s water, I would be taking the precautions I listed. At minimum, I would vent the bathroom.
Q5: Now that’s a trick question; the correct answer is that tap water should not be a government forced monopoly. But if one is stuck with that monopoly, I would think a researcher could develop enough local human data on uranium kidney toxicity. My view is the cost efficient mitigation is advisable, but that is a measurement made by individuals not governments.
Q6: My fire place may raise the temperature inside my house by 1 degree, but that is not much reassurance that I won’t get burned if I jump in the fireplace.
Final note, the cheap Radon kits won’t accurately measure the levels in the shower. An instant test would be required, and that would under estimate the exposure because it won’t accurately detected the aerosolized radon water aspect.
Anyone find a site to order New Zealand butter that is not back ordered?
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/06/fukushima-nuke-accident-wspeedi-shows.htmlhttp://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/06/fukushima-nuke-accident-wspeedi-shows.html
According to Wiki, krypton-85 is primarily released from spent fuel rods.The half life is 10+ years, and it seems to be more carcinogenic when it is in the form of a gas cloud.
@ Tray: We got almost negligible sprinkles but were prepared to test anything that would make our outdoor sampler wet but nothing registered. We didn’t test anything because there wasn’t enough precipitation.
Michael,
Did you detect any fallout in the rain last night? Curious.
While I have not yet become involved in replacing any food items,I have been absolutely fascinated with the gradually revealed status of the Fukushima nuclear reactors.
It would appear that the truth does come out…..eventually.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/06/06/japan.nuclear.meltdown/index.html?iref=NS1
‘DEATH WINDS’ WARNING From the book ‘Healing Chemtrail Sickness’, by M. Elspeth: Crazy Horse (Tashunca-Uitco) saw a great darkness fall upon the people,followed by visions of great machines moving across the land and flyingin the air to produce what some North American Plains Indians refer to as the Death Winds. Is it possible that the Death Winds and the Chemtrails are one and thesame? Prophecy of dire things is a warning to be stopped – not fulfilled.
@ Potrblog: You are suggesting that LA-area folks are getting gassed by Radon at high amounts which they very well may be. Looking at a few Radon facts and figures has me wondering where you are getting your numbers.
Could you clarify a few details for us?
1. Table 1 says Uranium is averaging from 1.8 to 3 pCi/L but you say it is “averaging roughly 4 pico Curies per liter of water.” How did you come to this higher number?
2. Could you explain how Table 3’s “Southern Combined Wells” range of radon, which says in the table “<100 - 150" means that it is "at least 100 pCi/l of Radon in it"? Could the table mean that the actual number is less than 100 pCi/L?
3. Could you detail, and source if you can, this? “During a steamy shower, or a fine misting shower, the Radon level in the bathroom air may shoot sky high. Likely much higher than the EPA levels.”
Are you aware of an accepted and tested equation that converts Radon as pCi/L of water to pCi/ of air? It is unclear from your statement if the Radon in water converts completely to gas. Does it? Is whatever amount of Radon that converts to gas dependent on the temperature of the water? If so, is there any kind of research you can refer to that analyzes what this percentage is based on water temperature?
4. Page 6 of this 9-page report says “If you are concerned about radon in your home, test the air in your home. Testing is inexpensive and easy. Fix your home if the level of radon in your air is 4 picoCuries per liter of air (pCi/L) or higher.”
Potrblog, have you tested the Radon gas coming off of your tap water in the shower? If so, what were the results?
5. Page 8/37 of the State of California’s PUBLIC HEALTH GOALS FOR CHEMICALS IN DRINKING WATER URANIUM
August 2001, states that “The State of California has an MCL for uranium of 20 pCi/L based on earlier studies of toxicity to the kidney in rabbits.”
The amount you refer to is 4 pCi/L. Is California’s Uranium PHG too low?
6. According to the October 2, 2006 “Maximum Exposure Guideline for Radon in Drinking Water” by the Environmental & Occupational Health Program, Division of Environmental Health, Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention, Maine Department of Health & Human Services:
“The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) recommended using a transfer coefficient of 1E-4, midway between the estimates from measurements and modeling. This is equivalent to a water:air ratio of 10,000:1 (10,000 pCi/l in water will result in 1 pCi/l in air). This ratio is used to estimate the lung cancer risks of radon escaping to air from water (NAS 1999b). According to this ratio, the average Maine well water concentration of 10,000 pCi/l will add 1 pCi to each liter of air in the home. This would be in addition to radon entering the home from the surrounding soil.”
Would that mean that the amount of Radon gas derived from the So Cal water of “<100-150 pCi/L" in water equate to 0.001 - 0.0015 pCi/L of Radon in air using this equation? If so, then wouldn't these numbers be much lower than the EPA's limit of 4 pCi/L of air by a factor of 2,667 to 4,000 times?
Regardless, Potrblog brings up a very important angle to the radiation exposure rate. Of course, now many of us will want to test the radon gas in our steamy showers and that is cheap and easy to do. The California Department of Public Health has these radon testing kits for $7.
Potrblog’s amazing contributions to these comments and his stellar monitoring of the radiation from Fukushima fallout in the St. Louis, Missouri area on his superb website cannot be commended too much. When he says ‘it’s hot,’ we listen. In this case, because of the huge implications of his conclusions, it will be helpful to know how he came to his various results.
Tons of info on this B.C. Canada site w/daily jet stream.
http://www.endtimesreport.com/jet.html
speaking of carbon filters, be aware that wet activated carbon will remove oxygen. And while that may be okay for a shower head filter, its probably not so good if a carbon filter face mask gets soaked in a rain storm.
I just read this on “My safe food” list Berkley website. and thought it was informative about the food situation.
I figure iodine is the biggest danger for storage inside the body, because of the thyroid, so since it seems to be out of the water (4 tests now) I plan to switch soon from pre-Fukushima bottled water back to reverse-osmosis water from my sink and even occasional tap water (drinking fountains, restaurants). I have also read that the body does not store cesium as persistently as it does iodine.
I am also concerned about two things, both of which encourage me to go back to eating good foods as soon as I feel ready:
1. The meltdown situation is looking bad, and if anything blows up we’ll be right back in it again. The difference will be there won’t be any pre-whatever foods to stock up on, so I’d like to save some of my stock, especially the bottled water and packaged milk (at least through the September expiration dates).
2. Fresh, organic food is good for you, and the nutrition it provides fortifies the body against all kinds of toxins, so I wouldn’t want to stay on non-fresh food longer than I have to. Eating out of my garden, which should be at this point iodine-free, would be good. I have already cut all herbs and leafy greens back to nubbins (trying not to kill the plant), removing all leaves, and have removed all strawberries that were forming during the worst plume time (third week of March to second week of April) – I intend to let the very tiny strawberries grow now and eat them.
I have read (I’m sorry, I didn’t bookmark all the sources) about phytoremediation, and will be growing sunflowers among the veggies for a long time. I have read that certain veggies pick up and hold more radionuclides (berries, leaf crops, etc) and that others aren’t as big a concern (carrots, beets, potatoes) and that tree fruit and tomatoes are not much of a concern either. I will plant and eat these, plus beans. As soon as the kale in these studies seem clear of iodine and low in cesium, I’ll plant kale from seed. I have been flushing the growing garlic (planted in October) with tap water, and will decide whether to eat those and the onions based on the topsoil readings.
I have also read a couple of studies indicating that the more a food is processed, the more radiation it loses, so that flour and rice and foods where they remove the outer husks and process the heck out of it lose a lot of their contamination. For this reason, my concern about grain is less. (However, I am making my own bread and tortillas an naan because of the water, and because at my market they freeze the bread.) It’s ironic that raditation crisis make the non-fresh, more-processed foods more desirable.
Next, I will be going through my list and, if there are no more explosions at Fukushima, calculating out 81 days (days till iodine is gone) past when the plume was here (using the first good water date of April 26) and trying to make sure I don’t buy things produced between March 13 and July 16.
»
Could I hear some opinions on taking kids to the Pacific Coast Beaches? Playing in the sand?
@Michael Collins,
Thanks to “Big R”s comment on LA water quality, I found this 2010 LA water quality report
http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp014333.pdf
Table 1 of that report shows Uranium in the LA tap water averaging roughly 4 pico Curies per liter of water. That is a strong indication that there is a lot of Radon in the tap water. Sure enough, Table 3 of the same report shows that there is less than 100 pico Curies of Radon per litter of water. The most telling is the source listed as “Southern Combined Wells”; they list Radon as less than 100 to 150 pCi/L. That means the tap water has had at least 100 pCi/l of Radon in it.
Radon is a dissolved gas in the tap water. The EPA level for Radon in the AIR is 4 pCi/l before action should be taken in your home. The Radon in the LA tap water is going to off-gas and become airborne in the shower. During a steamy shower, or a fine misting shower, the Radon level in the bathroom air may shoot sky high. Likely much higher than the EPA levels. A good test would be to get a Radon mitigation expert with the right electronic equipment to get an INSTANT reading of the bathroom Radon levels during and after a steamy/misty shower.
The cheapest mitigation strategy is to make sure that the bathroom is very well vented to the outside. A carbon block shower head filter will help absorb some of the Radon. A better solution would be a whole house carbon block filter. Adding a GE branded (NSF rated) water softener to the house would help remove the Uranium from the household water supply, but probably would not help with the Radon.
Just spoke with a guy at Aquasana and asked him if warm water messes with the filter capabilities. He said that it takes down the percentage of removal of contaminants when warm water flows thru the shower filter. For example run cold water only you get 99 percent removal. Run the warm water your removal is 91 percent. Still really good in my opinion. Much better than none at all. He also told me no shower filter is taking away radiation.
God Bless you all and thanks for all your amazing info. I really can’t thank all of you enough for all your amazing advice and comments. Again you are making my world a little more sane in an insane world.
POTR: Thanks for that excellent Gunderson/Martenson interview—-it’s one of the best overviews of the situation I’ve read. Everyone here should read it (or listen to it) in its entirety.
It just stuns me that major media reporters who normally do pretty important investigative/exposee journalism (like Anderson Cooper) never touch this story (and its implications for the U.S.) with a ten foot pole.
Fukushima is a story completely forgotten by the mainstream media…..so few realize that this is an ongoing situation with possible/likely criticality concerns still looming on the horizon, as Gunderson explains so well.
Thanks POTR for this and for all of your other articles, your research and your dramatic video demonstrations.
“…full meltdown at three reactors…”
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/06/06/japan.nuclear.meltdown/index.html?iref=NS1
Reactor 3 had Mox fuel rods. Thats bad news.
@ Potrblog: Could you source that because this message is more mysterious than it is clear. Where did you read this? In the 2010 report? 2011? What exactly do you mean?
Stay vigilant with your food. We still have 10x more hassle that Europe.
http://redgreenandblue.org/2011/06/01/fukushima-radiation-found-in-california-milk-fruit-vegetables/3/
Shower filter; Mercola and Aquasauna and Jon filters seem to be the best and have more than just the carbon filter. Mercola is extremely meticulous by nature with products but Aquasauna and Jon are also beefed up to take out some radioactive fallout. If you have to choose between water filtration at the sink or the shower might choose shower. Your body absorbs water per skin and lung. More difficult to control in the shower the exposure. You can still purchase distilled for drinking. Just a thought. And you can drink your shower water…
Two Hundred and Thirty Nine Aftershocks Facing Fukushima by Sept. 9th, 2015
Read the details and be prepared
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/two-hundred-and-thirty-nine-aftershocks.html
Does anybody have an opinion between the aquasana or the raidiat shower heads?
Does anybody in santa monica or los angeles want to split a case of the new zealand butter?
Time for foreward thinking inventors and companies to help us reduce our intake of radionuclides.
Don’t forget our skin is the largest living breathing absorbing organ of our body.
I have no clue if this filter will reduce the isotopes from the municipal water supplies, and until such a device is invented and for sale, this one is better than using nothing at all.
http://www.ionlifeionizers.com/products/radiant-wash-shower-filter
To Bar, Thanks for your reply to question #1 and the links. Very informative video by Gundersen and Busby. Let’s hope there is time to apply long term cooling with neutron absorbers. If there is no time to allow for cooling, because of a resumption of nuclear reactions, I believe the only option would be to use dispersal (this would would have monumental consequences if done badly, and very serious consequences even if done correctly). Breaking up a near criticality with high energy kinetics or explosives would be the solution of last resort. But, at least the chain reaction would end, and gradual cooling and entombment might then be an option.
http://www.euronews.net/2011/05/26/swiss-call-time-on-nuclear-power/
🙂 !
You can submit your questions and comments to LADWP at https://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/comment/EmailComments.ladwp?act=show&contentId=LADWP000353
I just submitted the following comment to DWP:
“I read the LADWP statement of May 20, 2011 regarding radiation concerns for the water supply. It states that the most recent routine water quality data is available for 2010. Do you plan to publish the more recent data for the expanded radiation monitoring taking place since March 11, 2011? Last month (May) I requested if daily routine testing results were available online but was informed that they were not. I believe that this information should be freely available and done so in a more timely manner, it is not acceptable that we might have to wait until next year to get the 2011 water quality data in light of recent events. I just now (June 2011) received the 2010 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report.
The statement of May 20, 2011 is too vague, any claims should be backed by publishing specific data on these measurements. The LADWP should have specific information available to the public or at minimum instructions for acquiring that information, including any relevant Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) protocols.”
Potrblog,
There are carbon filters for showers, but I have read that carbon filters don’t do well with hot water as they end up releasing the chemicals that they absorb. Pur and Brita filters warn against running hot water thru their sink faucet mounted filters too. The only way I think you can effectively filter shower water is with a whole-house filter system. Or get a carbon and KDF 55 based shower filter and run it with cold water only!
One brand someone previously posted on this site was Aquasana, I believe it has both KDF 55 and a carbon filter. I have a Sprite Showers filter but it has only KDF 55 & something called Chlorgon & makes claims for chlorine reduction only. I always take short 5 minute showers. I have a link for shower filter ratings but it is on my other computer, I will look for it later.
KDF media is used in other industrial and municipal water filtration applications for removal of chlorine and heavy metals like lead, mercury, chromium, etc. but in shower heads the water flow rate is too high to effectively remove these metals. http://kdfft.com/
Portblog, I use a shower filter from Aquasana they have a carbon filter. Also once a week I will the tub with 1/2 cup of baking soda, 1/2 cup of salt and I through in so natural calcium bentonite clay. I soak my kid in it for like 20 mins.
Also with summer coming, I am purchasing a water filter for my hose so my boy can play on his water slide. We went RVing this past week and my brother showed my the awesome water filter (with carbon block) they use on their RV from camping world.
I also was reading in natural news how magnesium is a great radiation protection. http://www.naturalnews.com/032596_magnesium_radiation.html
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/06/radioactive-tea-shizuoka-governor-now.html
Contaminated tea shipped to US.
lucidf8, in this video, prof. Christopher Busby, from the “Europeen Comittee on Radiation Risks”, said the same thing that Arnie Gundersen did. They have to build a containment around the damaged plant to keep the radiation and the particles from escaping into the enviroment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Vz4I5rb3_BM
For question 1, i think cooling the nuklear fuel with water and using additives like boric acid to stave off fission reactions could stop the meltdown. The problem is the huge amount of contaminated water. It has to get decontaminated and re-used somehow. Because this cooling has to continue for a long time.
@Chase. Nice interpretations regarding Los Angeles Department of Water and Power water quality. Have you seen Michael’s write-ups pertaining to the shuttered LADWP Chatsworth Lake-Reservoir? This is the location of your country’s worst nuclear meltdown to date at a place called Rocketdyne (BTW, now called Santa Susana Field Laboratory today) found just up the drainage on the mountain above that infamous Chatsworth catch basin (aka Lake-Reservoir). LADWP served up water to millions before finally draining this poisoned basin in the early 1970s as water there was found replete with radioactive isotopes. 1970 is the year when the Federal EPA came into existence. Draw your own conclusions. . . Now the LADWP recently went for a sly name change calling that hot basin the Chatsworth Nature Preserve, a place surrounded by razor wire and 12-foot chain link fencing. FOIA LADWP? Good luck.
(( My responses are in Parenthesis ))
(( In case you didn’t read it. ))
From LA-DWP
Their Notice to the Public:
Under Water Quality Update
Radiation
May 20, 2011
The March 11, 2011, earthquake in Japan and the related nuclear reactor incident focused renewed attention on radiation. (( True )) The good news is that the level of radioactive fallout from events in Japan has proven to be extremely low. (( low may be debatable, but duration is not, these so called ‘low’ levels accumulate with time. We are going on 90 days. ))
In fact, based on results of air and other monitoring conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency – EPA, no additional monitoring was required by state or local governments.
(( So we can pass the buck and say it was not required. It’s time local agencies step forward and protect themselves and their local residents, saying years from now that “our decision was regrettable” will not help. Saying, “we did all we could because we wanted to protect people and err on the side of caution”, sounds much better to me. ))
Although the LADWP has a routine monitoring plan, which includes testing for radiological constituents, the decision was made to expand monitoring for radiation in response to these events.
(( Oh WOW! This is great news. I love this kind of forward thinking!!! Just how often will this be done? ))
Source waters were analyzed for several radioactive contaminants including Iodine-131, uranium, and alpha and beta particles, among others. (( no mention of Cesium? or it’s ’30 year half life’ )) The results of this additional monitoring support the EPA conclusion; no increased levels of radiation have been observed. (( That’s good! )) LADWP provides water that consistently meets or exceeds all state and federal standards for radiological and other contaminants in drinking water. (( Are these the new standards or the old ones ? )) Results from our special radiological monitoring show no change from historical background levels. (( Okay, so let’s see the results. ‘no change’ is a pretty solid statement. )) The most recent routine water quality data can be found in the 2010 Drinking Water Quality Report available at this website.
(( 2010 would not be the most recent. Where’s a 2011? Where’s the SPECIAL RESULTS you were just looking at? ))
(( Now here’s the reassuring part. ‘reality explained’ ))
The reality is that radiation is all around us, all the time; it is part of our environment. Most radiation is naturally occurring. It is usually found in the ground or in the air and, to a much lesser extent, in the water.
(( I am so tired of this type of 2nd grade style explanation of radiation. I am sure most people are. I will again briefly mention the equation ‘dose + duration’. Really how hard is that? ))
(( And I really like the ‘to a much lesser extent in water’ remark. That is so heart felt an reassuring. Thank you whoever wrote this for DWP.))
The term “radiation” refers to the products of the decay of radioactive material. When an atom of a radioactive material decays, it emits “particles”. These particles carry energy, and this energy may be imparted to any substance which the particle comes in contact with, thus the concern for alteration of living tissue. For more information on radiation please visit the EPA website on radiation…
(( They at least mentioned ‘particles’. Maybe it’s just me, but I think they could have explained the ‘particles’ part in a little more detail. ))
(( There is no mention of the word “ongoing” fallout, because there’s nothing in their play book for that. There is no mention of genetic mutations, I guess they assume everybody knows that one or that 2nd graders don’t really understand genetics. There is no mention of any current increase in testing or schedule. There is no mention of PLAN for ‘what to do’ should it become worse. Even though a large number of experts tend to agree that the possibility is ‘highly likely’. …and why isn’t someone testing the snow, water run off and/or other sources for levels that would forecast, to a certain degree, what may be to come? Makes total sense to me. Whether it’s required by the EPA or not. ))
Regarding Question #1 again: How do we stop the China Syndrome once it has begun? The special case of this question is how do you stop it once a meltdown has entered the water table in sufficient amount to begin a catastrophic radioactive geyser potentially blasting thousands of feet into the air? Assume the worst, all plant staff are evacuated or perish if they remain. No one can approach the site any longer. Options are very limited under this scenario. Who would act during such a catastrophe, and what would they propose doing about it. This situation would be very close to doomsday, is there a solution?
Big R; Thanks for the info on the milk. I am not a milk drinker, but if I need chocolate… i might go get the prefukushima boxed chocolate milk!! (you know a chocolate emergency…)
Potrblog; always great information from you, thank you. It sounds like we may be wearing masks if number 4 blows. I have a box of N95’s saved for such a disaster. Bought them last month along with my vapor free plastic sheeting to cover windows and doors in case of having to shelter in.
Bar; When the gov. has to prepare an evacuation zone at an airport, and it hits the main news…(link on this chat) and the winds are blowing south with a possible collapse of a power plant… time to definitely rethink living on the coast in California. Interesting that the there in a “larger Chinese presence”…in the area there. very curious.
Last night I couldn’t sleep due to a generalized feeling of something is not right… I know I will keep praying for our brothers and sisters in Japan. They need a way out. It would take a lot for the government to finally admit they don’t have what they need to fix this.
Arnie G. mentioned zeolite. That may be a good purchase for detoxing. I bought bentonite clay, then found out it couldn’t be the liquid form. Anyone know about this?
@Big R ,
Those LA Water and Power numbers for Uranium in the tap water are high enough that I would buy a GE brand water softener (NSF rated). With levels that high, the Radon levels are going to be sky high in the shower. I don’t know if anyone makes carbon filters for shower heads, but I would be looking for one.
Map for retail locations for Hershey Shelf Stable Milk products. Click on your state for list of stores that carry this line of products.
http://www.hersheysshelfstablemilk.com/hersheys/hersheys_ra_us.htm
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110605a3.html
Its not getting better. Its getting worse.
A Los Angeles Dept of Water & Power link to info on water quality is below. Note that there is an update in response to concern for the water supply due to the 3/11/11 earthquake and nuclear incident in Japan. Also look at the Annual water quality reports for 2010 and earlier as they show presence of uranium in the tap water “due to erosion of natural deposits”. LA DWP water sources include wells with measurable amounts of uranium. I have a hard copy of the 2009 report and saw this info before and since someone recently posted a preference for well water as a food ingredient it came to mind. The levels appear to be within state or federal health standards, but you should know what is in the water. You should check your local water utilities for this info.
http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp000505.jsp
I don’t want to inspire additional fear but I have been thinking about vacuum cleaners. In particular the bagless variety. I recently replaced a bagless as I was tired of getting dust all over when I emptied the canister, plus the vacuum’s air filter was a pain to clean and also released dust during cleaning. If home air filters are testing positive for radioactivity then vacuum lint and dust may as well. Bagged vacuums are easier to clean and release less dust when replacing bags, they could be better for allergy sufferers too.
Gossner milk date codes:
I found the Gossner milk at Dollar Tree too and I got the date decode info from Gossner.
For example,
A3450F1
A = machine filler code (ignore)
3 = first digit in julian date
4 = second digit in julian date
5 = third digit in julian date
0 = last digit of year (2010)
F = processor code (ignore)
1 = (ignore)
Translation A3450F1 = package date is 345th day of 2010.
The code appears to be just below the stamped Best Used By date. Best to try to find julian date 0701 (70th day of 2011) or earlier; a few days later should be OK though.
The 1 quart boxes are approximately 6.5 x 4 x 2.5 inches. Blue boxes are low fat, red boxes are whole milk. You may find them in the refrigerated section or on the regular store shelves at Dollar Tree. If you do find them you may have to sift through the boxes to weed out the newer stock. Cost $1 each. May not be at all stores.
I also saw a similar boxed milk at some Big Lots stores under the Hershey label. It is appears to actually be Gossner re-labeled as Hershey. Cost $1.80 each. According to Hershey they package their milk 13 months before expiration date. May not be at all Big Lots stores.
For contact info:
http://www.gossner.com/
http://www.hersheysshelfstablemilk.com/
Shelf life is several months to one year, no refrigeration required.
@Chase
I usually wear a dust mask while mowing (even before Fukushima); I have been detecting radioactive spots on my mask after mowing. I put up video of it on my blogspot a few days ago. The N95 mask I was using won’t stop radioactive gasses, but it will filter radioactive particles. Recently, I have laid in a stock of N95 masks with carbon filters.
@Kim,
I did some analysis on that a while back. In the USA we would could readily face 71 Fukushimas from a Carrington sized event. Check the blog to see which reactors in the USA face the greatest risk.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/threat-alert-one-solar-storm-71.html
@jzhawk
This link to my Risk Mitigation posts will give you the info on where to get New Zealand canned butter. You will also find lots of info about water filters and stuff. Just scroll through the info to find the data you need.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/search/label/Risk%20Mitigation
Good Gosh Golly Gundersen Gives Great Guidance
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/good-gosh-golly-gundersen-gives-great.html
make the time to listen to these pod casts, especially part 2
http://burningissuesforum.com/2011/05/31/carrington-2/
400 Fukushimas?
Vapor Event Fukushima Daiichi TEPCO TBS Livecam Simulcast 6-3-2011 9-40-20 AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASfkIciSip4
—————————
lucidf8, look at this:
http://www.chrismartenson.com/page/transcript-exclusive-arnie-gundersen-interview-dangers-fukushima-are-worse-and-longer-lived-we-
“…..Arnie Gundersen: I think they will be forced to build a building around the building and then, because you need heavy lifting cranes – cranes that lift a hundred and fifty tons, which are massive cranes, to put the nuclear fuel into canisters, which then can get removed. That is sort of what happened at TMI, but all of the fuel at TMI was still at the bottom of the vessel. But it was a three-year process to get the molten fuel out of Three Mile Island – four years actually. So the problem here is that all of the cranes that do that have been destroyed, at least on units 1, 3, and 4. And you can’t do it in the air. It has to be done under water. So my guess is that they will have to build a building around the building to provide enough shielding and water, so that they can then go in and put this fuel into a heavy lift canister…..”
Millions Fewer Girls Born Due to Nuclear Radiation?
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/06/110602-millions-fewer-girls-nuclear-radiation-births-science/
Excerpt Part II: Arnie Gundersen Interview: Protecting Yourself IF The Situation Worsens
Arnie Gundersen: Well, I am in touch with some scientists now who have been monitoring the air on the West Coast and in Seattle for instance, in April, the average person in Seattle breathed in 10 hot particles a day.
Chris Martenson: What? I did not know that.
______________________________________
Regarding the West Coast of USA ie.. Seattle
Here’s what Arnie is saying for protection: IF Unit 4 topples.
“….what I am advising at that point is keep your windows closed. I would definitely wear some sort of a filter if I was outside. I certainly wouldn’t run and exercise until I was sure the plume had dissipated. This isn’t now. This is, as you were saying, this is worst case. If Unit Four were to topple, I would close my windows, turn the air conditioner on, replace the filters frequently, damp mop, put a HEPA filter in the house and try to avoid as much of the hot particles as possible. The issue will be on the West Coast, hot particles. And the solution there is HEPA filters and avoiding them.”
PART II the article: from June 3, 2011
http://www.chrismartenson.com/martensonreport/part-2-arnie-gundersen-interview-protecting-yourself-if-situation-worsens
________________________________________
This answers one of my questions. When to wear a filter outside? I think the we should have already been wearing them and be prepared to wear them more is what I really get from this.
Getting Americans to accept this fact should be interesting, but it should be done. Somehow?
Maybe a public service announcement by our political leaders or from the EPA regarding this might be helpful.
(Yes, I am a dreamer.)
Of course right now they would have to say something like: “oops, sorry we should have told you that 2 months ago, but we didn’t have all of the data in and we felt it was ‘highly unlikely’ and we wanted to avoid panic, therefore we said virtually nothing.” Which is most likely why they will continue to say nothing of significance in the near future.
I live in Santa Monica. Does anybody want to split a case of the new Zealand butter. And does anybody remember where to order that from. Also, water…..is the reverse osmosis from the co.op in Santa Monica ok. And should I get a carbon filtration picture?
How often you all doing Zeolited, how much and are you giving to kids
On the topic of Question #2: How to remove radioactive debris from the top of the spent fuel pools safely. My idea would be to use a floating robotic platform, perhaps a helium airship tethered to the nearby cooling towers. Two additional towers to the seaward side could be floated in on barges to provide additional tethering points. The airship could host sensors, cameras, and hydraulically controlled shearing and cutting tools. If the airship could survive the heat and steam coming off the reactors, it could snip away at the debris, dump it over the side of the buildings where remotely controlled hydraulic cutters and grapplers could carry away the debris for burial or transport by barge to nuclear waste dumps. I envision the tethering system for the robotic airship to be somewhat like those remote controlled flying cameras in NFL stadiums, allowing fine control of postion. The airship would have to be fully robotic and capable of moving away in very high wind conditions. The lifting capacity of current helium airships (the largest) would be about one ton. That may be enough for relatively light debris removal. Those fuel assemblies would probably require a larger heavy lift crane, however. They could be hoisted down into temporary cooling pools or storage casks for transport to safer areas. Remote controls may be necessary for this piece of equipment also.
Tray,
Live Gourmet at new frontiers and I believe Ralphs or Albertsons carries greenhouse butter lettuce and water cress
I called them in Carpinteria and he said they use well water.
So I have been eating alot of these salads.
Ezekial breads were still made before mar. 11th as of 2 weeks ago.
I believe next time I check Ezekial it will be post 3-11?!
So im starting to stress about our next bread source.
I’m hoping to first of all find a co. that uses well water.
Ingrediants wise i have talked to a few food co.s and we will not see 2011 crops in foods for 2 to 3 more months.
And maybe levels have dropped in municipal water supplies but good luck finding truthful info anywhere on the water topic….considering water is a main ingrediant in most foods it is really one to figure out.
Will there be elevated levels in the next rains dropping into the water ?!
Maybe we could make a game show out of it to raise awareness!
And the survey sais:……Water and spinach safe! Straberries off limits.
“Often, you could tell what’s going on by looking at the information that is withheld.” This line opens Ex-SKF’s blog re: reading between the lines of TEPCO’s press conferences, in this instance the recent prevailing silence re: the water levels in the trenches precipitated today’s announcement that the highly radioactive water may overflow soon (with upcoming rain).
I think this seemingly universal truth we can usefully applyto the California Dept. of Health’s Rad Report that was posted yesterday, dated May 27.
What is typically present and is missing (withheld perchance?), in this report? http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/RHB-RadReport.aspx
…. milk testing results (prior 2 reports showed same Iodine 131, Cesium 134 & 137 results twice) – and were significantly increased as no detection was reported in prior reports. Yesterday’s posted data includes no milk testing data.
I’m doubling up on zeolites today because I was weak yesterday and partook of the cream at the Huntington Tea Room. My mistake.
Be careful out there.
For all the moms who have kids begging for chocolate milk, at Trader Joes I found chocolate milk little milk cartons that were packed Jan of this year. The expiration on these little milk cartons is Oct 6, 2011. I thought I found gold. My kid is beside himself.
The number I called to check when things were packed is (626) 599-3817
Yes, 170 sq meters, is large, for the Core-Catcher. Placing that behind the building might be possible, but under it seems like it would take too long?
http://www.siempelkamp.de/Core-Catcher-Cooling-Structures.797.0.html
Good idea, Bar. I think sizing would have to be right. The drill or tunneling machines have to be big enough to insure a probable capture, not so large as to be difficult to field. The Core Catcher itself would have to be pretty large wouldn’t it? That molten core can melt through just about anything. I thought a quick core eject would get it out of there into an easily prepared larger and deeper core capture area for a longer term cool down.
Okay… I may be going out on a limb here.
They keep saying the ecoli outbreak in Germany is a mutated strain. Could it be that one of our biggest threats will come from these genetic mutations on a microscopic scale? Thanks to low dose long term radiation levels. I wonder?
I am sure that “deniable credibility” will far out weigh my simple speculations. But still, somebody’s got to ask the question.
lucidf8,
tunneling is possible if you use tunnel boring machines, similar like the ones they used for the Eurotunnel under the English Channel. Waterproof pipes would have to be used to keep the groundwater out. If you put CoreCatchers in the “Pipeline” under the reactor, the goo could later be moved out.
Ok, here is my first idea for dealing with Question #1. Solving the meltdown China Syndrome scenario.
If the water table is very high and no tunneling is possible: Get a large diameter drill like the ones used to rescue the Chilean miners recently. Drill from the landward side of the reactor #1 building. The drill has to be able to be tilted sharply, creating a straight bore hole going directly under the foundation of the basement. Drill to a location where the molten fuel will be when it burns through the foundation. Line the hole with a stainless steel tube to prevent cave-ins. Retract the drill, place a small explosive charge at the bottom of the bore hole, with a heat or radiation sensor that will detonate the charge when the molten fuel drops through into the tube. Fire the small charge which is just big enough to eject the molten fuel out of the bore pipe into a previously prepared target area behind reactor #1. This area would be like the cooling slab used at Chernobyl and would contain neutron absorbing materials.
Concerned mom,
I have been buying watermelons from Mexico at Ralphs and Trader Joes. I am too a concerned mom and I am running out of options on the food thing.
If anyone has any information on what is safe fruit and veggie wise please let us know. I really would appreciate the info as well. I don’t know ANY safe fresh veggies to buy. Are carrots okay? How about cucumbers from Mexico? Thanks for any info.
Thanks Bar for your reply to question #1 Solving the meltdown China Syndrome scenario.
Yes, the efforts at Chernobyl to dig under the reactor did prevent the burn through to the water table. However, in the case of Fukushima, the water table is probably so high that it may not allow any tunneling under the basement foundation. How does one deal with that complication? I will submit one possible solution shortly. Anyone have an idea on how to access the hot magma-like goo under those conditions?
lucidf8,
#1. Solving the meltdown China Syndrome scenario. If the melted fuel burns down through the dry well, into the basement, through the foundation, into the ground and water table, it will create a radioactive steam geyser perhaps thousands of feet high. How can we prevent that or stop that once it starts happening?
———————————————-
At Chernobyl hundreds of coalminers dug a long tunnel and build a cooling slab unterneath the reactor to prevent the hot nuclear fuel to burn thru the base.
Dollar Store Special!! LOL. Okay, regarding milk. If you go to a dollar store, sometimes they have that milk in a box that does not need refrigeration. It lasts for several if unopened. For a buck, and a call to the company you may find a cheap answer to the milk problem. I would inquire today as time is marching on since March. The stuff I bought was not “organic” but it also states on the box it does not use hormones! I opened the one carton I bought for guests, and then froze the rest, (not being a milk drinker). The company is Gossner foods, its a 2% milk product. Its also great to use for your emergency food kit. And its the right price!
@ lucidf8: You have come up with some very concrete and provocative ideas for preventing the melted reactor goo from going out of control. We need this kind of thinking and we need it now and this is just the place for it. Japan seems frozen by inaction and our government has wished it away. This is the radiological crisis of our times but, as lucidf8 knows, it could get worse.
This is a welcome addition to the ongoing discussions we are having. Thank you lucidf8.
@ Concerned Mom, Annette2, Marina: Low on rad-free powdered milk, I purchased a hefty bag of it today in a large market and brought it home to test hoping we could use it. See Radiation Station Stats for the numbers but in a nutshell: two different tests of the same bag of non-fat powdered milk showed it radiating 70.2% above background. And unlike the background in our abode which is primarily gamma, this probably was a beta emitter. The bag itself prevented any possible alpha radiation from being detected because I wasn’t going to open the package, test it and then take it back to the store (which I did later for a refund on the unopened package, no questions asked). Nor would I have kept the powdered milk for any kind of evidence because if the beta emitter is Iodine 131, it would have a half life of a little over 8 days which would diminish the quickly changing the sample’s reading.
Radiation from Fukushima in Los Angeles-area milk products should be no surprise. The California Department of Public Health’s May 16 report shows the following:
(San Luis Obispo) Cal-Poly Dairy Farm 5/2/2011 detection of:
Iodine-131 @ 4.14 pCi/liter
Cesium-134 @ 4.55 pCi/liter
Cesium-137 @ 5.11 pCi/liter
The EPA drinking water standard is 3.0 pCi/liter.
Though I’m not divulging the name of the product or store it was bought in yet for a number of reasons, I will note that Concerned Mom mentioned Organic Valley which says it has “the ability to detect the presence of radiation in milk,” and “these monitoring efforts will allow us to take appropriate action.”
As a reporter who also is a milk consumer, I have repeatedly called and emailed Organic Valley for EnviroReporter.com coverage of this ongoing crisis to ask ‘how do you test your milk products for radiation.’ I have not gotten a response yet.
I’ve emailed Michael a few ideas about how to deal with the problems at Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plants #s 1-4. He suggested I use the comments section to start a discussion about those ideas and to encourage others to submit their own ideas. We can ask engineers to vette the suggestions and submit them for consideration to the authorities dealing with the crisis in Japan.
Problems or Potential Problems Needing a Solution:
#1. Solving the meltdown China Syndrome scenario. If the melted fuel burns down through the dry well, into the basement, through the foundation, into the ground and water table, it will create a radioactive steam geyser perhaps thousands of feet high. How can we prevent that or stop that once it starts happening?
#2. How do we quickly remove the debris from the top of the spent fuel pools and hoist the fuel assemblies (damaged or not) out of the pools and place them safely into storage containers for relocation? Ideally, we accomplish this without exposing workers to dangerous levels of radiation.
Hello Everyone,
Summer is coming and I am having a tough time with all the fresh fruits I see in the stores. I’ve only been purchasing fruit from the Southern Hemisphere (pineapples, mango, papayas, bananas, and pears) and organic frozen berries, but I know my children are yearning for watermelon, grapefruit, oranges, avocados, etc. (all California grown). Definitely, we will be staying away from the peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, strawberries, and blueberries, because of their soft, skin thins, but I am wondering about fruits with thick peels.
I must be missing reading some posts on these and other blogs – I can’t find information on the safety of eating fruits with thick peels. Is it safe to eat them, if they are first washed very well? If anyone can direct me to any research on this, I would be most grateful.
Thank you,
Concerned Mom
Hello Michael and Denise,
I am very concerned about the radiation you found in powdered milk and would like more information on the milk you purchased. I am not sure if you can tell us the brand of milk you purchased, but can you give us the date that the item was packaged? I hope that the powdered milk you tested was packaged after March 11, 2011, otherwise this finding would be very troubling.
Just an FYI: I have called two companies regarding their packaging dates, and this is what I have found:
1. Bob’s Red Mill, Non Fat Dry Milk Powder (Country of Origin: USA) = Code is by Julian date and appears above the sell by date. My package reads as follows:
1033 1068G01 06:25
1033 = Milk was received on on the 33rd day of 2011
1068 = Milk was processed on the 68th day of 2011
2. Organic Valley Non Fat Dry Milk (Country of Origin: USA) = Milk is packaged one year prior to expiration date.
Thank you.
Is Your Lawn Radioactive Too? N95 Dust Mask Test
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/is-your-lawn-radioactive-too-n95-dust.html
Annette, it is right here on this site. Either Michael or Denise Anne purchased powdered milk and tested it in the bag it came in. Look on the page with the daily averages.
What I want to know is the date on the milk and where the milk was from. Perhaps later that will be provided. I assume the kind couple running this site also have other facets to their lives that require attention!
Chase: Wow just wow! My son just asked me when he can eat blueberries again and I thought sometime next year after Jan. But I am feeling maybe not. When can we eat normal again? This video just pretty much told me our world is destroyed by this and we shouldn’t eat any produce or anything anymore. What do we do? What do we do? I just pray there is an end to this soon and I pray to God for supernatural protection for us all.
“Take notice of what Dr. Helen Caldicott is saying about the dire consequences for ‘all of us’ over the next few decades from the near-destruction of the Fukushima Daichi PLUTONIUM-enriched Nuclear power plant.”
Excerpt recorded at the press conference “The Dangers Of Nuclear War” in Montreal, Canada, in March 18th, 2011
(she called it correctly too)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-4dJK9sG3o&feature=related
@sky……. would you provide the link to the radioactive powdered milk in la? Have searched and cannot find any reference to this. Thank you.
OK, WHAT now about the powdered milk? That’s what I’ve been feeding my family. I check the “best by” dates and assume a shelf life of one year, hence milk with a “best by” date prior to March 2012 should be OK, or so I thought. And this was locally powdered? Can’t have been sold off the shelf of a regular grocery store in a bag.
Wow! on so many of these posts especially the milk today. Is it okay to be drinking almond milk and for that matter what about cantaloupe and watermelon from Guatemala or Mexico? Thanks my trusted friends.
Does anyone know about the safety of baby foods and/or baby formula? I was pretty alarmed to read that powdered milk in LA has been found to be radioactive.
-Sky
Bay Area Concerned Mom
http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/06/02/cancer-risk-higher-in-lynas-vicinity/
“He said that a tonne of rare earth generates about 8.5kg of fluorine and 13kg of dust; up to 12,000 cubic metres of waste gas containing dust concentrate, hydrofluoric acid, sulfur dioxide, and sulfuric acid; about 75 cubic metres of acidic waste water and about one tonne of radioactive waste residue.”
“Where are we going to dump or store all this waste?…”
http://metalsplace.com/news/articles/33535/molycorp-to-restart-rare-earth-mining-in-california/
“….Smith said Molycorp is on track to produce 20,000 tons of rare earths annually by mid-2012.”
NRC will put hold on Diablo Canyon nuke plant operation extension;
SLO locals, politicians, Mothers for Peace still concerned:
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/06/01/1625225/diablo-canyon-granted-delay-to.html
Chase,
I attempted to comment, “OK, many people here thinks it’s so WISE to use nuclear power then I suggest you offer your town to have one built there.” To get a comment posted I had to fill out a survey of how much I made, what my “title” was, etc. Unbelievable. I hope everyone here votes on this page because it’s the principle of the matter. Wall Street Journal has its own connotations & it really irks me that the WSJ readers are so “uninformed” on nuclear radiation.
Chase,
“I was then astounded when I read some of the comments. I really could not believe one comment where the guy says that if only people were “more educated” they would know how good Nuclear power is.”
The guy that made that comment dosent know that Chancellor Dr.rer.nat. Angela Merkel is a trained pysicist who got her doctorate for her thesis on quantum chemistry and that she also worked as a researcher at the Central Institute for Physical Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences in Berlin-Adlershof from 1978 to 1990.
EPA data says 67% Chance of Plutonium in Riverside California; Review says 98%+
After seeing what looked to me liked possible disinformation, I thought people should know what the actual math says about the subject of Fukushima Plutonium in California.
Read the details on my blog.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/06/epa-says-67-chance-of-plutonium-in.html
Great compilation article from our local San Luis Obispo regional monthly e-paper:
http://slocoastjournal.com/docs/fourth_estate/nuclear_wakeup684.html
Another article outlining whistle blowing on safety at our local Diablo Canyon nuke plant:
http://slocoastjournal.com/docs/fourth_estate/whistleblower396.html
and CA Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office sent this after my sending a note to them concerning continued public subsidy of nuke plants:
I believe the earthquake and tsunami which struck Japan on March 11, 2011, and caused systemic failure at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station has demonstrated the risks of nuclear power. I recently visited both of California’s nuclear power plants in order to learn more about their emergency preparedness. I believe we have an obligation to learn lessons from the disaster in Japan in order to ensure that our plants are as safe as possible.
As you may know, the President’s fiscal year 2012 budget proposal requests $36 billion in loan guarantee authority for the domestic nuclear industry and research and development of advanced nuclear technologies. I appreciate knowing your opposition to this funding. You may be pleased to know that I recently voted for a fiscal year 2011 Continuing Resolution that provided no additional authority for loans to nuclear facilities.
Chase,
It is almost always different if they want to build a reactor next door. Attitudes can change real fast. Maybe that should be one of the questions on that WSJ survey page. “Do you want a nuclear reactor built in your neighborhood?” How many will say yes?
@Annette (I voted)
Question: “Germany is shutting down its nuclear program. Do you agree with the decision?”
I was amazed that 43% voted yes and 56% voted no. (at the time I voted) Of course it is the WSJ, Wall street Journal, but still, I was amazed.
I was then astounded when I read some of the comments. I really could not believe one comment where the guy says that if only people were “more educated” they would know how good Nuclear power is. In this case I think “more educated” means more misleading Media Spin. (propaganda)
I do agree that education and facts are key to understanding the severity of the threats we all face.
We are ALL affected by this uncalled for contamination.
How about letting the entire world vote. Every single planetary inhabitant! I bet the results would be very different.
Please vote here & let the German people & the world know that what they are doing to turn away from nuclear power is so profound & brave…….
http://online.wsj.com/community/groups/question-day-229/topics/germany-shutting-down-its-nuclear
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/31/japan-nuclear-plant-explosion?CMP=twt_fd
“The Voices joining are becoming louder and more prominent.”
Radiation and Cell phones. What you might want to know. Doctors vs. The Experts.
CNN video Dr. Gupta Reports “It is a cumulative problem” “A sea of radiation” (You’ll get the picture in the first 5 minutes)
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/podcasts/gupta/site/2011/05/23/sgmd.cell.phone.safe.cnn?iref=allsearch
We are poorly served by saying “everything is okay”. Again… more testing needed. Sound familiar?
Here is an important article by Dr. Helen Caldicott.
http://www.helencaldicott.com/2011/05/unsafe-at-any-dose/#more-285
Fukushima: Weather today, spread of radioactivity
Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Russia and China are getting their share of additional fallout today as rain and winds from the storm move westward at this time.
May 30th, 2011 – Plume Map(in German)
http://www.zamg.ac.at/wetter/fukushima/
Thank you Michael and Densie! The SLO group assembled together this last Saturday for a very successful upstart group in SLO county. We are all very excited! It was great to be with people who would actually listen and not deny the Fukushima problem existed. We hope to contribute to problem solving and information. It all started here at Enviroreporter!!
@ Kim Downs – We were averaging which totals counts over a ten-minute period. This is explained on our Radiation Station Stats page.
Was watching this site yesterday when CPM shot up in minutes to over 300. Then hand comes in shot, removes detector for a few seconds and when it is returned it reads about 5. What’s with that guys?
TENORM: The Smoking Gun on Hiding Fukushima Nuclear Fallout
If you want to understand what is happening with the radioactive fallout, please read this blog post. It certainly will raise your eyebrows as to what UC Berkeley Unclear Engineering Department has been trying to pull on this site.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/tenorm-smoking-gun-on-hiding-fukushima.html
An interesting article by a Pysiscist in Sarasota, Florida.
http://data.4noguilt.com/fukushimaV2.html
Interesting piece by NRC spokesperson/spokesmodel in local San Luis Obispo digital rag. He notes NRC public meeting in San Luis June 15, 6pm at Embassy Suites in SLO about safety at our Diablo Canyon nuke plant.
One has to note the tone of the tome, including: ‘more progress needs to be made in addressing issues involving problem identification and resolution.’
http://calcoastnews.com/2011/05/nrc-inspects-diablo-canyon-nuclear-plant/
RE: Cesium in milk samples from the Cal Poly (from 2dogs)
Two things jumped out at me about this report.
1. They do mention the half life of iodine being ONLY 8 days, yet there is no mention of the half life of Cesium which is 30 YEARS. No mention of accumulation either. (?)
2. “Information to date indicates that the duration of the exposure should not exceed a few weeks” <– Who's making this statement? Based on what information? Define few?
I would rather number 2 say something like "Information to date indicates we really don't have a clue, therefore we feel it is is prudent and in the public's best interest to do more testing." – Now that's what I would like to hear. That's what we should be hearing.
Cesium in milk samples from the Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo Dairy Farm, but ‘1000 times’ less than the federal standard.
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Documents/CDPH-RHB-RadReport-2011-05-20.pdf
Thank you Michael and Denise for all your help. I just emailed the list you sent and will be using that for the meeting times. And we will let you know our plans and what transpires after the meeting tomorrow. You are the reason for our inspiration, and you should be proud to see what you have started! 🙂
We may soon be getting another lesson in Nuke Plant vs Severe Weather in Fukushima, Japan come Sunday the 29th of May.
…as heavy rain, dust, and other materials mix together into a radioactive soup along with high velocity wind from Tropical Storm Songda which is projected to reach Category 5 and will reach the Fukushima coastline. Then head east.
http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/tracking/wp201104_5day.html?MR=1
I would think that it is “highly likely” to see increases of radiation levels over the coming days and weeks.
____________________________
Why is there not increased testing of our air, water and food? Why, why… WHY???
What IS the plan for long term daily dose radiation exposure? (where “long term” and “daily dose” are both fluctuating variables)
I am tired of riding on this plane, I want to land soon and exit safely.
@ SLO: We sent you folks an email with all your emails. Do not post email addresses here because this is a public comment and anyone can read them. This is for you security. Didn’t you get that email, SLO?
What you are planning to do is very important. Please finalize your plans by email.
My suggestion is that we meet at New Frontiers tomorrow, Saturday, May 28, 2011 at 4:30 p.m. I truly hope Chad can make it. Since we have not heard from Chad but Michael has asked we use email to communicate, perhaps one of the guys would feel comfortable posting his email address here. At this point I do not.
I am hoping since Chad mentioned rescheduling for sat at the “same time” as it was supposed to be today, he is free…
I will be there tomorrow at 4:30. Let’s meet with who can show up so far: roundabout, Nancy (pending childcare), me, and 2 dogs (plus little dog activist?). That is my best idea, since we need to stop using the comments section to plan and reschedule, and have not yet heard from the whole group.
Chad, I hope this is okay for you… just seems we need to know what is going on at least a day in advance. If we need to reschedule, I am open to it, but please someone post your email so that we have a “point person” who can collect everyone’s votes and email us back by using “CC” (old carbon copy reference).
Thanks Micheal Collins and Denise Anne for your site, support, and patience. We will report back on the meeting outcome!
-SLO
@SLO folks – It is very encouraging that you folks have hooked up like this! Please communicate about meeting times from now on through e-mails and not these comments unless absolutely necessary. Please report back to us on what happened.
AP Exclusive: Fukushima tsunami plan a single page
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hnjifVSi-UcoxLNiB8sFVyUAnGEg?docId=31c43c68bceb4aef999cc206d3a32731
I really am so freakin mad I don’t know what to do with myself. Dumb!
SLO, roundabout, Chad, Nanemat [did I forget others?]-
I am good for saturday at 4:30
SLO, 2dogs, Chad et al;, I can be at New Frontiers Saturday at 4:30 no problem. Thank you. I will check back in to make sure that indeed, the meeting has been changed to that time. Otherwise, I am on. Thank you so much for your consideration.
Arnie Gundersen addressing the NRC:
http://www.fairewinds.com/updates
I can try to make it to the Saturday meeting depending on childcare issues, but definitely cannot go on Friday as I work the PM shift. Hope to see you there if the meeting is held on Saturday.
Nancy
Hi, I have been meaning to write with questions/comments for a while but usually am reading this very late at night… I am “spotty” on my radiation knowledge but am worried about the poisoning of our world. I live in SLO county and will try to make it to the New Frontiers meeting.
TO: SLO FOLKS, Roundabout, Chad, 2dogs,
I am good Saturday after 4pm as well. I can also still do 6:30pm Friday (tomorrow) at New Frontiers. I have no problem rescheduling so roundabout is included. My mom can’t be there sat, but she will be ok with that. I will be checking on here tomorrow until 1pm for our latest decision, then I am out of the house with no access to the Internet.
Since I feel chad has a good point that we all need to be there, I propose we meet Saturday at New Frontiers at 4:30, if that fits with everyone’s schedule.
Please VOTE by posting your comments here by 1pm tomorrow (FRIDAY MAY 27) for keeping the meeting as planned [6:30 FRI]
OR
Rescheduling for SAT. 5/28 at around 4:30pm.
Thanks for everyone’s input and patience. We are doing a good thing here!
-SLO/femmgrrl
SLO folks-
I am flexible-I am good for saturday after 4 if that works.
also good for Friday 6:30 as previously planned.
can’t do sunday or monday.
Here’s another great article.
Interesting reading in retrospect. Even the comments.
MELT DOWN WIND
by Michael Collins
March 15th, 2011
“U.S. may be ill-prepared to track ground fallout from Japanese meltdowns…”
https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/03/melt-down-wind/
See this article. While I understand most of it, I’m not an expert in any of it. Can any of you guys share what you think.
http://www.jimstonefreelance.com/fukushima.html
In short, it claims reactor 4 cannot have exploded because it was already shut down and open for maintenance which is confirmed by the pictures.
PS: I wonder if Greenpeace gives grants for expanding local environmental awareness, or some other foundation. That would be cool. Michael, have you thought about a getting a grant to help keep this site up? I so need to learn about grant writing… Any ideas folks?
@Weaver, good eye on noticing the difference between the sheet metal readings and the truck readings. The primary difference is the sheet metal is small and located under a gutter downspout, so in heavy rain there is ALOT of water that washes over it and tends to clean it off more. It tends to understate the fallout from heavy rains. My plan early on was to use it only when there were very small amounts of rain. (I need to revisit that)
I prefer using the vehicles to sample radioactive fallout because most people will be exposed to the weather while driving. Moreover, the vehicles don’t generate radioactivity. The vehicle grime on the towel does not consistently correlate to higher readings, sometimes areas with less grime have higher readings. At least one test also showed little fallout contamination difference between a vehicle that was driven through the rain vs one that sat in our driveway.
Chad; Thank you for being thoughtful about my situation of not being able to be there. It is ironic for me. I think that because this meeting was submitted well in advance, ethically, everyone should not have to meet at another time. If and only if, it wouldn’t make a difference to everyone, and I mean each person, to have it on Sat, then lets do it. If not, I will still read your letter even if it means meeting up with you at another time. I have to be in S.M. by 6:15, but I would love to read your letter.
I also think that this will not be the one and only meeting we have. I am sure, positive in fact, that the group will be meeting again. And perhaps, we can also get a free space that the local groups you mentioned, can converge with us and have even more of a consensus on what should be done in the SLO area.
In the meantime, unless I get a cancellation which by the nature of the appt, I don’t think it will, I am hoping that someone will keep me in the loop. I am willing to meet anyone anywhere in the county to let me know what is going on… I know this is a talented group, and even having a youtube channel might be a good idea… to alert SLO county. The New Times might even give us a bit of space to advertise the channel so we can talk freely about it for free.
@Ana, their response is humorous. They must not have bothered to watched the video, the sample was taken after 2 hours of heavy rain from Tornadic thunderstorms. There should be no natural “washout” left. Check out my other link from to day to see how many “natural” radionuclides are in 10 year old fuel rods.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/all-brawm-and-no-brains-university-of.html
I feel very lucky to have discovered the below mentioned link here, on Enviroreporter, and find it to be really inclusive and on target with respect to all of the current Japanese contamination issues.
There is a lot of current information on every possible aspect of the Fukushima nuclear meltdowns, and up to date articles regarding contamination in the USA, as well.
This web site has now become the very first one I pull up, after checking in first with Enviroreporter.
While I have not yet personally gotten around to stocking up on any pre-Fukushima food or water supplies, I do greatly appreciate the information on the subject that you are all detailing every day, and I have been passing it along to others.
The above mentioned web site is:
http://www.endtimesreport.com/jet.html
Michael, Portblog : just posted Portblog’s recent video on BRAWM forum and this is how they responded:
Submitted by bandstra on Thu, 2011-05-26 18:44.
The spikes in gamma and beta count rates can be caused by natural radioactivities in the air (radon decay chain) or instrumental effects (gain drift from temperature changes or electrical interference).
As for the first cause (radon daughters): the concentration of radon gas and its decay products depends greatly on temperature and weather patterns. When the air is cooler, or when there is an inversion layer “holding down” air near the ground, there can be a higher concentration of radon gas and its decay products — especially Lead-214 and Bismuth-214, which are strong gamma and beta emitters and are quite radioactive. Other weather conditions can cause large variations as well, especially rain. Rain washes the radon progeny out of the air. So when it rains, there should generally be a short spike in the gamma and beta counts followed by a period of lower counts.
Weather and temperature cycles generally repeat over the course of 24 hours. If you look at any of the EPA RadNet air data, there are always up and down patterns that have a frequency of 1 day. Any other spikes above and below would be due primarily to rain or other conditions, and electrical interference (which the EPA notes on its RadNet website).
These spikes happen all the time, and that is why the EPA is not increasing their monitoring. If this weren’t natural, then they would know, and we here in BRAWM certainly would know, too.
Mark [BRAWM Team Member]
I am no radiation or mechanical expert by any means, but I have heard “through the grapevine” that the engine block and electrical wiring in a recently-used car will emit radiation (I can’t find any articles to back this up, though). Potrblog wiping the grime off his truck right after it was driven seems to consistently show higher numbers than his other sources (like the sheet metal test a few days ago), and while I have no doubt that fallout is being concentrated in the rain, I have not seen any independent rad monitoring come close to the numbers he produces… which really grabs my attention.
Potrblog, thank you for all your hard work. Regardless of my (uneducated) hypothesis of cars producing ionizing radiation, I encourage you to please continue collecting samples and readings AWAY from your truck in order to rule it out as a source of high readings. I do not have a rad monitor so all I can do is make suggestions… what I wouldn’t give for an EPA that actually did the work they are supposed to do.
Roundabout,
considering there is such a small number of us maybe we should reschedule for when you can make it (Sat. or Sun. same time?)
Im sick of small nuclear rallies (in Mar.)that come and go with no affect.
I dont just want to have a cup of tea with everyone and back to status quo.
We need everyone together looking at my letter to the media
we must demand air readings, we need to make ALL parents in this county aware of the truth.
If adults want to eat, roll in or work with radiation that is their choice but children do not have a choice so it is our responsibility to protect them (or at least arm parents with statistics and the truth)
That is my angle… where are Mothers For Peace? Where is our local chapters of Greenpeace and Surfrider we need to get them on board and unite .
Even if it just means writing to the papers every week and posting uc berkeley’s food results.We just need to do something.
Maybe Michael will let us print the rain results to show our community that this is happening TODAY not in March.
So what does everyone think about meeting when Roundabout can also come? Every person is soo valuable we cannot be divided on this issue we need to all meet together and get serious… my letter is ready i just need input.
There is no gray area on this issue even though it does feel like there are no answers sometimes.
Let me know (all SLO people meeting at New Frontiers)
what you guys think about linking up when we can all be there.
ps- in the end I’m sure every parent will agree : They want to avoid as much as possible their children injesting radioactive particulates.
Nuclear Plant Radiation ACCUMULATING
“…radioactive hazards are not decreasing through dilution or dispersion of materials, but the radioactivity is instead accumulating… – from CNN article May 26th
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/05/26/greenpeace-japan-nuclear-plant-radiation-accumulating-in-marine-life/?iref=allsearch
“Fallout Accumulation” from multiple meltdown reactors IS now a clear matter of fact. I would also say that it is SAFER to assume and that it is “highly likely” for this situation to continue for an extended period of time.
potrblog; I suspect someone at Berkeley has their financial arm tied behind their back, since it is almost impossible to get into Berkley without an amazing SAT score in the first place… which would compare to at least an IQ of about 125 or over. It’s criminal to go to a University of this esteem to learn how to cook the books,(my opinion). Wish you could be on national news Potrblog… but the explanation here is just too simple. Maybe international news would be even better.
Several people have asked about Berkeley’s Nuclear BRAWM team reports. I have finally gotten around to blogging about some of their charts showing “natural” fallout.
The post is titled-
ALL BRAWM and NO BRAINS: The University of California, Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Department.
here is a link to it.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/all-brawm-and-no-brains-university-of.html
More direct link to video. Check it out. http://newzjuice.blogspot.com/2011/05/fukushima-planned-disaster-proof.html
@ Potrblog: Folks, look at this incredibly shocking video if you look at nothing else on our website. This should be front page news across the nation: St. Louis showered with rain 62 times normal radiation the headline should say. This is the heartland of America, gateway to the West, and fellow Americans are getting drenched in this stuff that does not evaporate like the rain it came in.
Potrblog points out that the “radon progeny” in the rain he tested should have already washed out in the two hours of tornadic storm that proceeded sample collection, and that it was, at most, 0.012 mR/hr. Even if it were present, it would account for just one of the extra backgrounds, not 62 of them.
UC Berkeley has suggested that radon progeny accounted for the 42.4% radiation overage in Los Angeles Basin (west) rain, an attack that I responded to. But judging from Potrblog’s excellent sampling and testing techniques, I realize that the LA rain was hotter than I detected.
But nothing like the rain in St. Louis, Missouri today where countless thousands of people were exposed to rain so hot, it practically branded Fukushima on their raincoats. If they were wearing them that is.
It is impossible to ignore this extreme radioactivity raining down on America. You have any Doubting Thomas’s in your life, show them rain at 62 times background radiation and they will doubt no more.
This rain is the same rain coming down on the people of Joplin, Missouri, adding the indignity of getting nuked after surviving a monstrous tornado. Will these people get any relief? Any help even if just straight-forward information like we are seeing on Potrblog?
No. The EPA quit specially testing for Fukushima fallout ten days before Tepco admitted to three meltdowns. Have they reconsidered? Have they seen Potrblog’s discoveries? Does the government of the United States realize that its people, animals, crops and land are under radioactive attack?
We do. And we’re going to do something about it.
I recall that someone was concerned about running an air conditioner in the home and bringing in outside air. AC units do not draw outside air to the interior, for example it would be very energy inefficient to cool 90 degree outside air to 70 degrees F. Recirculating air is more efficient. Below is a link to an article confirming this.
http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5571332_do-air-conditioners-outside-air.html
I noticed my AC has an intake vent near the floor under the AC unit and the cool air comes out the vents near the ceiling. You can test the intake vent by putting a sheet of paper on the vent when the AC is on, it will be sucked against the grill when on and should fall off when AC is off.
You should change the filters regularly. I was looking at old (2009 or 2010) Consumer Reports article on air purifiers and it had a section on filters for AC units. The top ranking filter for AC units was 3M Filtrete Elite Allergen 2200 MPR. I don’t know if this one had an electrostatic charge but that is what made top of their list.
Sorry Chad, meant to address you also about me not being able to make it this Friday for the meeting. I am sick about this… Maybe client will cancel. Can anyone meet with me for an update like on Saturday so I can be in the loop?
Chase, I had friends visit over the weekend from Tulare County, and they didn’t even know that Fukushima even had a meltdown… so not sure what is going on in the Central Valley… I am not surprised by the response that you got from the Epidemiologist. This is so common. I am sure she benefited in the long run from your call. You were her wake up call… good job!
Jon; Loved the video link with English subtitles talking about proof the Fukushima meltdown was anticipated. Amazing.
People I think will slowly start sharing more information and creating safety networks within the communities. The media blackout and lack of urgency has become a smaller obstacle with the increasing knowledge and care of the inhabitants of this country. We are survivors and not to be underestimated.
Incredible radioactive tornadic storm fallout Geiger counter readings here in Saint Louis, Missouri.
See the video of the readings here.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/alert-62-times-background-radiation.html
@Annette
Mr. John Disney of BC, Canada is a hero. (I’m pretty sure that Band Manager means Tribal Leader) His concern is for the well being of his people first. (as it should be for everyone!) He was asked by the Canadian Government to stop testing the rain water and advising pregnant women and children not to drink it. He refused. Thank God! Why they asked him to stop is beyond me. (?)
One conclusion I believe I have come to, (and that Annette has sort of pointed out), is that “one way” to start gaining control of our Water and Food is at the local level. Neighbor, City, County, State, Federal. In that order. The local person has more at stake is my thought and less potential for conflict of interest. Hopefully, their interest is for “their” own safety and genetic future.
So… I contacted my local Department of Health and Human Services for Tulare County, California. I spoke with Sharon Minnick, Epidemiologist in charge of data collection and management. (I thought that might be a good place to start.) First she asked me if I was a news reporter. I told her “no, just a regular citizen”. She said she had just returned from vacation and was unaware of any new cesium readings as a result of Fukushima. I pointed her to the UC Berkeley site. She then stated that if it was like before that there was an “unlikely health risk” at levels she had seen and that it was “comparable to taking a plane ride.”
Okay… I took a silent but deep breath and in a calm voice I informed her that radiation on a plane is a wave for a specific duration. Particle radiation that can be ingested is different and does not make for a decent comparison. (no comparison at all in my opinion, but I did not want to sound too harsh on her or go into details) She replied that she did not know that. (So, how did she get an epidemiology degree was what I was thinking.)
Anyway… I also explained to her that duration + dose is how your chances (risk) are calculated. I told her that what I’ve seen is that we’ve been being showered with fallout that has some higher than normal levels of radiation on a regular basis for over 2 months now and that current reports say it will continue for a long time. (she said she did not know that either)
I told her my primary concern was with the current radiation readings in the snow pack from the mountains and with the water that will be the run off that feeds the cities and valley below us. I was interested to know if anyone there had a radiation detector or was going to be doing any testing. She then gave me the number of the people in charge of water testing. I now have the contact info of the Administrators and I will compose a dated email outlining my concerns prior to making my next phone call.
I will also be contacting my local newspaper. The owners of the newspaper, who I know personally, live here on the main fork of the river. We’ll see what happens with that too.
SLO, 2Dogs, Chase and those who are coming to New Frontiers this Friday at 6:30, I suddenly had a client have to schedule at that time. Due to the sensitive nature of what I do, I have to take them. Is there anyway one of you can contact me and let me know what happened at the meeting? If there is another meeting scheduled after this one, which I hope there will be, will you let me know?
http://newzjuice.blogspot.com/p/tbs-jnn-live-feed-from-fukushima.html
It looks like details of the US involvement will start coming out.
http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201105200150.html
I don’t know if this makes me feel better or worse…that we have been this involved, yet still no progress. Guess only so much can be done to influence a foreign country.
http://www.qciobserver.com/Article.aspx?Id=4908
Here is the link I referenced in my prior post… John Disney, Old Massett “band manager,” (I think that’s the equivalent of mayor), in B.C., Canada.
Another inspiring person, standing up & doing what is RIGHT, not necessarily what is expedient.
Thank you, Mr. Disney.
http://hawaiihealthguide.com/healthtalk/display.htm?id=915&hhsid=9ea42c3eb9d93ab4faf7ca3cd98ee6d8
Check out this link above. I am so impressed with these Kona dairy farmers. They deserve our undying gratitude for their courageous and virtuous actions. Their moral compass with a true north setting overrode any desire for financial gain they would have gotten by denying the radiation issue and riding out the “normal train” for as long as possible. Rather, they chose to take the initiative and wrote a beautiful and informative article about the confirmed radiation fallout on their livestock and crops and acknowledged the true risks that it poses to the land, the animals, their customers and to themselves. They then explained actions they are taking to in their best efforts to counteract these contaminants. Their courage to do what is right in the interests of public health and well-being overrode the obvious economic incentive that hushing this up in order to ride the “everything is normal” train for as long as possible would have served. These farmers have my undying gratitude.
Britton and Shekinah give me hope. I have been so discouraged by the relentless selfishness and complacency displayed by countless individuals, the company named TEPCO (ugh), governments, bureaucrats, farmers, topped by yesterday’s hideous story of Ibakari educators requiring their 10-year old students to pick tea leaves in the rain, pose for photo and then eat the tea leaves, all for publicity’s sake (http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/05/bando-city-in-ibaraki-had-3rd-graders.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter). All these charades and deceptions in the face of this nuclear disaster are not benign. Inaction, denial, complacency, and selfishness injure others, even if that injury occurs years down the road. Let us hope that these wonderful Kona dairy farmers’ actions are a wake up call for all of us.
There was another great article last week about a local official in B.C. who was taking personal action to ensure that his local municipal drinking water was safe, in the face of Canadian national government inaction and lack of monitoring. I’ll find that and post it as well.
We could all use some hope and a change of direction in our collective human reaction to this tragedy right now.
A small, but very significant paragraph from the NIRS:
“Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution says that the impact on the world’s oceans by Fukushima exceeds the impact of Chernobyl—in fact, the impact is 10 times higher. Woods Hole has received an emergency grant from the National Science Foundation to set baseline radionuclide levels in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and to monitor the impact of Fukushima fallout.” (verbatim from NIRS web-site).
There is simply something so fundamentally wrong with this, that this could even happen. And not one mention of it in the mainstream media (who were all over BP).
My sense is that no one wants to touch this with a 10 foot pole, in part because it is really the “move-ahead” agenda of our current government, and fossil fuel is much more “unpopular.”
Many people who otherwise care about the environment believe that Nuclear Energy is “clean.” If they saw the information from the NIRS or the UCS, they’d be shocked.
Cal Berkeley shows no cease to cesium in SF Bay area raw milk:
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/4227
Wow, Chase—
This is a perfect example of how governments and Utilities/Industries hide and lie about risks to public safety—-
I was surprised to see the EPA being the “good guy” in this scenario—because often they (and the FDA) have minimized safety risks (as they have been doing with Fukushima) in order to protect the Industry/Utility, in order to favor the strong Lobby element in Washington, or in order to save time, trouble and money (as opposed to saving people).
On a broader scale, this is what happened in Japan—the government knew what was going on at TEPCO’s plants, and largely turned a blind eye to it (after a few desultory investigations wherein TEPCO got slapped on the wrist).
Same thing goes on here. I’d imagine what happened in Texas is widespread with respect to water, the food industry, nuclear plants, chemical plants and medical drugs.
Thanks for posting this. It doesn’t take much for us to extrapolate from this to a whole range of risks here that are covered up routinely.
Radon in drinking water must be a widespread problem in many states. What i don’t understand is why nothing is done about it. There are filter systems available that are very effective in removing radon. Its expensive for the water companies to install. But it can be done.
http://www.wholly-water.com/Water.Contaminates/radon.in.water.htm
Chase, after viewing your link, an article came to mind that I have read some time ago. It was about the metals that went missing in the contaminated Chernobyl-region. They had melted these metals down and made bed frames out of them. Unfortunately these frames were almost all sold and couldn’t be traced to the buyers. I sure hope that the scrapyard workers in Texas are honest and don’t throw small contaminated parts into the pile of metal here and there, just keeping the radiation under the legal limit.
Radiation Found in TEXAS Drinking Water. Cover up of true levels revealed.
This is the one of the best “main stream” media presentations I have ever seen. This is beyond criminal! Just what is the punishment for genocide? Why is this not a national headline?
If you live or have family or friends that live in Texas you really should watch this video.
At the end of the interview…
The news reporter asks the former chairman of the TCEQ, Texas Commission On Environmental Quality, the following:
Question: “What IF you were wrong and the EPA was right about there being a danger?” (meaning… what if your decisions to lower the numbers by as much as 50% in order to avoid EPA fines has made people sick?)
Answer: “That would be regrettable.”
This is a prime example of the ineptitude of those who are in control of many critical aspects of our lives. You know… things like water and food.
(Be patient it takes a few moments for the video to load.)
KHOU Channel 11 News Houston TX – Credit Mark Greenblatt
* http://www.khou.com/home/-Texas-politicians-knew-agency-hid-the-amount-of-radiation-in-drinking-water-122205439.html
Margery—thanks for this reminder. This, by the way, is part of the Obama agenda. The reason that tax-payer funds are needed to back up Nuke loans is b/c insurance companies and Surety companies will no longer do so……due to the risks and safety concerns they’ve calculated regarding the Nuclear Industry.
The idea tha we, the tax-payers should fund sources of danger to ourselves is incomprehensible.
Unfortunately, the Industry is huge and represents a very powerful influence in Washington. Thanks for sending the info for people who don’t already know.
Headline: Nuclear plant workers suffer internal radiation exposure after visiting Fukushima
“…measured workers’ internal exposure to radiation with ‘whole-body counters’ and recorded levels of 1,500 counts per minute (cpm) or higher. In 1,193 cases, workers had internal exposure to radiation of more than 10,000 cpm.”
“The government has discovered thousands of cases of workers at nuclear power plants outside Fukushima Prefecture suffering from internal exposure to radiation after they visited the prefecture, the head of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said.” (note: thousands=4,956 at this time)
“Most of the workers who had internal exposure to radiation visited Fukushima after the nuclear crisis broke out and apparently inhaled radioactive substances scattered by hydrogen explosions at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant”
full article – http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110521p2a00m0na021000c.html
…and this is just the beginning.
NEVER FORGET! – “it’s highly unlikely” & “there is no immediate danger”
Hiroshima resets ‘peace clock’ after U.S. plutonium tests
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110524p2g00m0dm071000c.html
http://www.nnsa.energy.gov/mediaroom/pressreleases/zshottest51111
Press Release
Second Z Plutonium ‘Shot’ Safely Tests Materials for NNSA
From Energy News:
MakeADifference
May 23, 2011 at 2:09 pm · Reply
Don’t forget about this:
The House Appropriat ions subcommittee on Energy will soon be voting on billions of taxpayer dollars going for loan-guara ntees for NEW nuclear power constructi on.
Here’s how to voice your objection.
Remember, there’s strength in numbers!
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5502/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=1163952
TEPCO now admits “likely” meltdown of Fukushima reactors 1,2 and 3.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/25/world/asia/25nuclear.html?emc=eta1
To Michael:
I just now got to read your exceptional “Five Year” article–between too much work and a low grade flu, I’ve been off the site for the last 5 days—
The piece is beautifully written and allows us a glimpse into the dedication and the passions that drive the work that you do.
The article also reveals the level of elegance and integrity that influences your work; your acknowledgement of the delicate grace displayed by the Queen in Ireland is very moving.
It is truly a gift when, through a marriage like yours and Denise Anne’s two people can use their talents and abilities to become even more than one can do alone.
You have done so much in your lives, and now have provided a portal through which many voices can speak, and from which even more can learn.
These are unprecedented times; we are all in uncharted waters.
Thankfully, you and Denise Anne have a compass that points to the places we should go, the paths we should explore.
May God continue to bless your work for many more years!
Bar; Thanks for the articles. The canary certainly winds up in the coal mine! And it will be interesting to keep up with the cancer increases in the Northern Hemisphere within the next decade.
Please everyone, continue to take your supplements to detox etc… don’t get discouraged with your regimens. I am glad those articles came out in 2007, National Geo and Scientific American had the liberty to tell the truth. Who would have thought four years almost to the day it would be relevant in USA?
* Bar – Great links… thanks!
Affect the chain of life and it will soon affect you. Whether it’s birds, insects, fish, or microbes. That’s the what I got from it.
* roundabout – Preposterous is how I see it too.
The crazy/sad part is that some people will read that and believe it and just accept it based on the guys credentials. They have never heard of or understand the following equation.
“The more you get paid by the nuclear power industry, the more likely you are to avoid expanding your knowledge of the subject beyond the nuclear power industries ‘talking point’ manual.” – by anonymous (probably a former Nuclear Industry Employee… I’m just guessing.)
* Oops – Excellent point and I agree.
I feel it is a belief system that has been forced upon people, (all lifeforms actually), without their clear knowledge or understanding or control of the overall consequences.
___________________________________
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has announced that all 17 Nuclear Power plants be decommissioned. She did a complete reversal.
Way to go!!! She listened to the people/voters not the lobbies/money. Maybe she was able to look past the ‘talking point’ manual and reason for herself. I would like to think so.
Please read this article. It directly contradicts the theory the IAEA and WHO reported.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/04/070418-chernobyl-birds.html
And here is more proof:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070530080956.htm
“The conclusion is that there is scientific support for a connection between the radioactive fallout and the increase in the number of cancer cases.”
Chase;
I can not believe that in the end of the article suggested that real, observed problems with Chernobyl are made to be some kind of delusional paranoia brought on by stress over real diseases, mental retardation, still births and outright death. Really? This is delusional? Are the nut cases in charge of the insane asylum? This entire cover up is getting more preposterous as time goes on!
@Ana I’ve wondered this question myself. I tend to think it’s not so much of pure intentional deceit, but belief system. Like the doctor that tells you that vitamins and supplements are bad for you – very often that doctor believes it. I think to work in the nuclear industry, that actively promotes its use and supports its proliferation, the mind often starts believing these inane explanations. Otherwise, they have to face the facts of what they are doing to the environment and the global population as a whole.
Hi Ana,
I will be more than happy to give you my opinion.
The moment so called Nuclear experts make comparisons of fallout to an x-ray or riding on a plane they are assuming you’re a below average Joe. They talk to average citizens like we are 4th graders. It’s almost like their answers come from a “canned” playbook for children. I think the book is called “Nuclear Engineering Answers To Give To Dummies”. I would not be surprised if that sort of book actually exists and was paid for by some Nuclear Federal Agency at our expense. They seem to always use words that are open ended. Phrases like “almost none”, “very little”, “highly unlikely”, “no reason to panic” or my favorite “no immediate danger”. (sort of like a built in legal disclaimers)
And then we get to the “acceptable limits” and what it’s true meaning is. (acceptable suffering and death) Acceptable to them, not me. Then, when the limits are exceeded, they just raise them. So again “the experts” can say, has not exceeded acceptable limits. It’s like a broken record or should I say a CD with a skip in it.
Anyway…
Yes, most of the experts have a conflict of interest that’s pretty easy to determine. And the politicians too. In my May 21st Comment I give a link to a BBC Documentary Movie called “A is for Atom”. (check it out) It clearly explains the link between scientists, corporations and politics and how the populous of the 50’s and 60’s were considered not smart enough to know what was best for them by the elite. So the nuclear agenda was set. They would offer us limitless tasty candy and of course we would take it. The interviews with some of the original scientists gives the true picture. The scientists had good intentions initially, but then power and greed took over. The sad looks on their faces knowing what they had done and how it got out of control says it all. They “literally” knew these days were coming.
Right Now! What we really need is more testing, more monitors and more plans for what to do. Best case and worst case scenarios would be nice at this point too. Expecting our elected leaders to “do the right thing” seems a viable option.
However, that’s probably not going to happen any time soon. I base this on the outright lies and deceptions from the past, regarding anything Nuclear, I would say that trusting most Industry Experts and the corporations or agencies that employ them, Politicians or the Mainstream Media is not going to work like it should.
I have to wonder, in a year, 5 or 10 years from now, if the folks from Berkeley or other Nuclear Experts will feel sad, bad, or embarrassed about the statements they’ve made. I wonder if the look on their faces will be the same an Mr. Oppenheimer’s from the movie. It would certainly be a Kodak moment worth preserving that’s for sure.
Here’s a Kodak moment to remember from March 22nd, 2011.
Headline: U.S. Safe From Japan Radiation, Berkeley Lab Expert Says
http://newscenter.lbl.gov/feature-stories/2011/03/22/mckone-q-a/
_____________________________
“When the Power of Love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.” – Jimi Hendrix
Chase; You are correct that people are unaware of the problem mainly due to media blackouts. I am amazed at the amount of people who are actually totally unaware that there has been even one nuclear meltdown in Japan! These are adults… Because we live around a nuclear power plant, those in my area are somewhat more aware, though not taking precautions with Fukushima smog. But Central Valley people and even all the way around Sacramento area seem to be really in the dark. Life is going on as usual. It is during these times that one must keep ones own resolve to watch the jet stream, use air and water filter and not eat certain vulnerable foods. I find myself trying to talk myself out of it on some days, because it is inconvenient to walk with Truth. But then I come on this board, and it encourages me to keep up the good work! Thanks Chase for the article.
Hey folks … I had asked a question the other day as to whether any of you thought that the BRAWN team (Berkeley) was downplaying the significance of their findings and if they were intentionally telling forum members not to panic, due to their inherent interest in keeping nuclear energy alive, since it is what they’re studying, afterall. No one here responded yet so I figured I’d bump the question up once again. The bottom line is that part of me wants to believe the BRAWN team when they attest to the fact that they have not made any dietary or lifestyle changes since the onset of Fukushima, due to the negligible amounts of radioactive isotopes discovered in air, food, water and soil samples. The other part of me wonders whether they’re all in on the cover-up. Does anyone else here feel the same way??
DEADLY SILENCE on Fukushima
article written 5/09/2011 – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vivian-norris-de-montaigu/deadly-silence-on-fukushi_b_859241.html
from article:
“Why is this not on the front page of every single newspaper in the world? Why are official agencies not measuring from many places around the world and reporting on what is going on in terms of contamination every single day since this disaster happened? Radioactivity has been being released now for almost two full months! (Over 2 and will continue many more) Even small amounts when released continuously, and in fact especially continuous exposure to small amounts of radioactivity, can cause all kinds of increases in cancers.” (plus a lot of other stuff)
“People need answers, data and honest information to help them deal with what is going on. Media blackouts, propaganda and greedy self-interested industries, of any kind, who allow human beings'(or any life forms’) health to be affected, and deaths to occur, must be stopped now”
___________________________
So… I guess I’m not the only one seeing this pattern. Most news articles seem to have virtually stopped or repeat from around the 13th to the 19th of May.(?) That’s just my personal observation at this time. (May 22nd)
It has NOT gone away, it is NOT getting better any time soon. It’s obvious, even to a casual observer, that this crisis has massive potential to become far worse. It’s just not being reported or is way under reported. Unfortunately, the vast majority of people are still fed their news and if it’s not being reported… then it’s out of sight, out of mind and therefore everything must be okay. This is not sound reasoning in my opinion.
Checking in: Hi All! Roundabout, Chad, 2 dogs, looking forward to seeing you Friday, May 27, 2011, at 6 p.m. I graduated successfully from Cuesta yesterday! I am 41 and mom is 71 and I am usually all bundled up hat, scarf, coat. Mom and I are a pair you wont miss.
See you all at New Frontiers!
-SLO/ femmgrrl in Enviro’s chatroom
left wing paranoid conspiracy rag forbes magazine notes spent nuke inspectors may not be adequately trained…and my not show up at alll…
http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon/2011/05/21/spent-nuclear-fuel-inspectors-inspections-inconsistent-auditor/
Hey
Ive heard of some people talking about growing their food in greenhouses or using hydroponics, but cant that radiation still go through the glass or plastic?
Greetings: Here’s a suggestive piece asserting that
rock-dust-grown plants showed no trace of fallout.
SEE:
http://remineralize.org/site/blog/magazine/from-chernobyl-to-japan-treating-radiation-sickness-with-rock-dust
Cheaper & simpler than rock dust is use of one of the “ormus” mineral concentrates. One such is “Sea-Crop” (http://sea-crop.com)… or learn to make your own (see http://ormusbook.com).
Best wishes,
mgw
A Is For ATOM – A Documentary
This is the full 56 minute documentary. I guess an edited version was shown on the History Channel and PBS at one time.
(note: The edited parts were sort of important, if you know what I mean.)
The film tells the story of the rise of nuclear power in America, Britain and the Soviet Union. It shows how the way the technologies were developed was shaped by the political and business forces of the time.
Go to this blog page first, then scroll down and click “A IS FOR ATOM”. Otherwise the direct link does not show the video/movie for some reason.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis/
There are many OMG! moments in this film. The most chilling one comes at approximately 42:30 into the film when you get to hear an accidental Dictaphone recording of the engineers at Three Mile Island when they realize what’s just happened.
Thanks Anette
Do you think the ingrediants and water of ezekial are safe?
Wondering if they sprout indoors?
I have heard mixed reviews regarding RO filtering radiation.
Thatwoud be nice considering ezekial is everywhere.
Whoops…..uncaught typo. Make that—- son can see the top of Mt.St.Helen from his front yard….about 15 miles away as the crow flies. That mountain has periodic explosions, so now I am wondering what else might be in the dust besides just ordinary dust. i.e..if radiation lands on top of that mountain etc.etc.
WilmaP: This site also has archival photos of power plant. http://www.woweather.com/weather/news/fukushima?LANG=us&VAR=webcam&SA…
@Chad – RO = water filtered by reverse osmosis.
Another few drops of rain in Saint Louis give crazy hot readings. By volume, this has to be the most radioactive rain I have measured to date.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/stay-out-of-rain-few-drops-0223-mrhr.html
Food ideas:
Breakfast: I have been making a shake with almond milk, frozen berries and whey protein and I also found some raw freeze dried kale powder made from eclectic institute before the tsunami.
Lunch: pasta with frozen veggies, olive oil and cheese. (tillamook and aged cheese)
Dinner: frozen chicken, frozen turkey patties, Ian’s chicken nuggets for my kid (good for a year anything before March 11, 2012 is good.)
Also stocked up on some Barilla Plus pasta high in protein, DeCecco spinach pasta, sweet potato french fries.
I give my child Yummy Greens and a multi everyday as well as ourselves. I have to say it is getting harder day by day but we are doing best we can.
Buying melons from mexico ( I think that’s okay) Buying a bread maker and using Hodgson mill bread mix pre fukushima. Peanut butter and jelly has been a staple in our home.
I am not perfect at all this in fact I had some pizza with my husband today and it was really freakin good. I figure my one pizza to the millions of people doing nothing shouldnt really hurt us. Just praying continually for this to end.
Very hard to take my kid to parties and baseball celebrations. I just pray he doesnt like what they are serving.
Thank God for all this great info. It keeps me a little (and I stress little) more sane.
On that note go see the movie “Bridesmaids” and have a good laugh and escape for an hour.
To WilmaP:
One idea bouncing through my skull is growing my own leafy vegetables, strawberries, etc. indoors with hydroponics. I live in a condo and have only a balcony and my living room so I don’t have much space for a traditional garden. I have also seen greenhouses (full-size and miniature) at hardware stores and online.
As for an evacuation plan, I do not have one. I would likely shelter in place and live off whatever food is in my home unless danger was imminent. One person I recently heard on Coast to Coast AM (640 AM in LA) was suggesting people go to the southern hemisphere in anticipation of a global disaster, he sounded like a conspiracy nut, but some of his ideas do make sense if a major tragedy like nuke warfare or other calamity occurs. It does not have to be war involving the USA; for example India and Pakistan have about 200 A-bombs between them and do not like each other much. Then there is the rivalry between India and China, the two largest countries in the world.
Best advice I heard was that it is hard to be over-prepared.
http://www.coasttocoastam.com/show/2011/05/15
Happy ER five years Mr Hands & Mrs Fingers.
Has anyone thought of having a Radiation Chef on here? Some are talking about purchasing their own bread machines to go with New Zealand butter and others are growing all different kinds of sprouts yet some mention alternatives to animal milk products and avoiding red meat. How about talking about what actually one had for breakfast, lunch, and dinner during these bathed by Xenon-133, Strontium-89/90, Cesium-134/137 (and now Plutonium-239/240 from the failed MOX Reactor 3) times us downwinders are all now experiencing?
Michael, maybe you can touch upon the menu of the last week and next week? Recipes?
Any thoughts on exercising? Indoors only? Gotta stay fit, a living heart demands it.
Also, where can one find live visual feeds and news updates such as the mentioning of a new visible reactor fire today? You tube? Facebook? Twitter? Please enlighten. What television news is good? PBS has NHK, BBC, & Al Jeezera news, anything else?
If one was to plot an evacuation route, would that answer only be SOUTH?
I agree with Chase in regards to this excerpt from his post, “I noticed a comment on POTRblog’s youtube video of St. Louis Rain warning and the comment stated that he should have shown the paper plate and the towel’s levels prior to using them. Just a suggestion. I know this sounds simple, but anything to eliminate doubt, whenever possible, might be a good thing.”
If a towel is used to soak up a sample of rain water then the towel or cotton swab should be scanned prior to soaking to establish a baseline. I have been thinking about this since the May 9th measurements, especially in regard to wiping rain drops off of leaves. The leaves may have had residual contamination from previous rainfall/fallout. A better option would be to leave a clean plastic cup or glass jar out to catch rain, then soak the cloth or swab in the jar just before testing. This is the only way I can think of to eliminate residue from previous rainfall-out. Even wiping water from a puddle on the ground could pickup previous residual fallout or naturally occurring radionuclides.
I have not read the previous posts regarding some sort of dispute with UC Berkeley Engineering Dept so I do not know what their point of contention is, I just don’t have the time to read all the old posts.
Annette2
What is RO water?
I assume municipal.
Does anyone know of a safe bread supply?
A co. that uses well water might be the first step.
I am now off my healthy sprouted bread diet and am eating a fresh baked local San Luis Obispo co. ingrediants is just organic wheat flour, yeast , honey etc. — no water. It aint cheap at $5-$6 a loaf.
However I dont think flour is healthy.
Also this flour may be tainted in weeks or months not really sure?
If there is no safe bread supply – does anyone know how to make sprouted bread.
Do we have to buy a bread maker?
After buying an air filter (Austin Air) Im finding it financially impossible to buy extras such as a bread maker.
But I used to eat 8-10 slices a day of sprouted bread with meals.
Sooo bread was and is important!
I would really appreciate if someone could lend some advice in the bread area or lead me and others in the right direction for continued research.
Once I find any info I will share it with everyone!
Believe it or not I’m actually losing sleep and stressing over the bread situation.
Thanks!
Chad
Thanks for the detailed response, Michael. Here’s another thing I’m curious about … is the nuclear engineering lab at Berkeley essentially lying when they post their weekly food, air and rainwater results while constantly repeating to forum members that they have little to worry about when interpreting the results? are they ‘in on the plan’ in order to keep people from panicking and disrupting industry sales? essentially, keep people from thinking about the hazards of nuclear energy and demanding change? berekley is quick to dismiss NILU plume forcasts as being worst case scenario images. moreover, many of the BRAWN scientists attest to not changing their diets nor their lifestyle since the onset of Fukushima. it’s somewhat tough to swallow the idea that the university lab is in on the conspiracy to protect the nuclear industry and basically lies to the forum members while everyone’s health is as stake… ‘tough, but not impossible,’ i should say.
Thanks for the detailed response, Michael. Here’s another thing I’m curious about … is the nuclear engineering lab at Berkeley essentially lying when they post their weekly food, air and rainwater results while constantly repeating to forum members that they have little to worry about when interpreting the results? are they ‘in on the plan’ in order to keep people from panicking and disrupting industry sales? essentially, keep people from thinking about the hazards of nuclear energy and demanding change? berekley is quick to dismiss NILU plume forcasts as being worst case scenario images. moreover, many of the BRAWN scientists attest to not changing their diets nor their lifestyle since the onset of Fukushima. it’s somewhat tough to swallow that the university lab is in on the conspiracy to protect the nuclear industry and basically lies to the forum members while everyone’s health is as stake… ‘tough, but not impossible,’ i should say.
My son, his wife and 5 children live in Ariel, Washington, about 25 miles north of Vancouver,(WA), and can see the top of Mt. Hood from their front yard. My son is an inspector who has to be outside in all kinds of weather, including rain,in order to do his job. He will now be carrying an umbrella. (up on scaffolding?)
I have now explained to my son the necessity to leave his boots, coats etc outside, and head immediately for the washing machine with the rest of his clothing, and into the shower with himself…STAT!
I have filled son in on the whole Japanese situation, especially since it rains constantly in Washington State. The kids tend to get cabin fever and play outside in the rain. No longer! And, they probably should not be drinking the milk.
The reports and animated graphs seem to show that the contamination clouds really love the N.W. coast of the USA, even more than California. I have e-mailed my son and his family all of the web sites that I have, including, of course, this one. However, the food issue remains unsolved at the present,so I am attempting to introduce this issue, although not knowing what or where food resources would be located up in the mountains,many miles from any kind of grocery store.
Why isn’t the EPA doing it’s job…and why are not TV news programs and the newspapers doing a little research, and warning their readers? Why does Grandma have to tackle this whole disaster subject long distance?
I thank all of you for all of your food ideas that I will pass along…also to other family in S.W. Colorado. I am very grateful for all of your discussion of what to do, which also instructs me too.
Congratulations to Michael and Denise for your web site anniversary….it, and both of you, have been the best of the best, and a great service to our whole environmental community. It has also been terrific to have had a chance to hear from so many new and knowledgeable people in this comment section. Again…Happy anniversary!
@ Chase – In late July 2005, the prestigious National Academy of Sciences came out with a milestone report that confirmed this. “The scientific research base shows that there is no threshold of exposure below which low levels of ionized radiation can be demonstrated to be harmless or beneficial,” said Richard R. Monson, the panel chairman and a professor of epidemiology at Harvard’s School of Public Health.
The LOW DOSE Debate continues…
Quote:
“Others argue that tiny doses of radiation are not harmful. Some scientists even claim that low doses, by stimulating DNA repair, make you healthier—an effect known as hormesis.”
from article in Science Magazine
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/332/6032/908.full
________________________________
photo Taking measurements in Fukushima
(with chart in microsieverts, now steady at 1.6)
– Note: 50 cpm = .5 microsieverts –
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/332/6032/908/F1.expansion.html
What are the appropriate guidelines for taking Radiation Detector measurements? In the photo they appear to be doing it at the same exact spot and at the same times each day. Are their other things that could be done in order make a more “scientific” observation.
I noticed a comment on POTRblog’s youtube video of St. Louis Rain warning and the comment stated that he should have shown the paper plate and the towel’s levels prior to using them. Just a suggestion. I know this sounds simple, but anything to eliminate doubt, whenever possible, might be a good thing.
The experts say the “debate” over low dose continues. There should be no debate in my opinion.
However, if it’s indeed a fact that not enough is known, then airing on the side of caution would seem to be the prudent thing to do. We might also want to start with more data and testing.
Instead we basically get “Oh well, let’s go ahead and see what happens.”. Then, scientists and experts can always dispute the data later. …and don’t forget “the experts” can always play the hormesis card too.
I personally would rely more on the “guy next door” for my Rad Detection than the current governmental agencies. Their conflicts of interest are just too great.
@ Ana – I understand that presumption because of the spatial distance but if you look through the comments here (especially from Potrblog) and at the Radiation Station Stats, you’ll see that the jet stream has taken most of the fallout north of us as it wends its way across the United States and beyond. Radiation fallout from Fukushima doesn’t move in one homogeneous mass across the Pacific and North America.
We certainly haven’t been immune to the fallout here in Southern California, as RadNet’s Anaheim and Riverside, CA numbers bear out, but Radiation Station is 1,845 miles from Gateway Arch in St. Louis (close to Potrblog’s residence) so the numbers are going to be different.
The Inspectors that Potrblog and Radiation Station are using do not lie. However, interpretations of the data do. The Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency subscribe to the ‘2 times background is significant; 3 times background demands investigation’ rough radiation guidelines.
Yet Potrblog has just detected 37 (THIRTY-SEVEN) times background! And he has detected rain in St. Louis at 62 (SIXTY-TWO) times background, hot enough to boil eggs in (figuratively).
Denise and I watched that front last night on the Weather Channel and it stretched through the heartland of America.
Yet the EPA has shut down emergency Fukushima monitoring even as one of the reactors is in the throes of a full-on meltdown, with two others proceeding along the same lines. The government either has no clue what is happening or simply does not want to tell the American people because, without any emergency plans (like distributing KI pills and/or knowing what to tell the public what to do to protect themselves, their food, water and air), the news that America is getting nuked right now (better than bin Laden could ever have dreamed to do before his thankful demise) would cause economic chaos which would cause the powers that be to lose money. Can’t have that, can we?
Is this criminal? Is this malfeance? Is this treason?
Is Potrblog to be commended for his heroic and extraordinary efforts?
I think, Ana, you will find the answer to all these questions to be the same.
Radiation never sleeps. America is asleep, lulled into complacency by a dulled mainstream media that doesn’t understand the impact the radiation is having now and will have on this year’s crops that will be consumed by Americans.
We aren’t asleep at Radiation Station. Neither is Potrblog. It is pretty depressing that we are in the front lines of ringing the alarm bells for this continuing, rolling disaster, but somebody has to do it.
As Jerry Garcia, RIP, said, “Somebody has to do something, and it’s just incredibly pathetic that it has to be us.”
And do something we have and will.
Jill, The New Zealand butter is my favorite butter, bar none. Here is a link to my blog with some more info, and probably the best price you will find on it.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/source-for-red-feather-canned-butter.html
curious how potrblog measured rainfall radiation on the 19th yet micheal collins didn’t register anything on our rainfall the 16th? you’d think that the rainfall hitting california would have higher concentrations before it gets to the midwest….
This is unbelievably serious: our friend from POTR blog has shown us beyond a shadow of a doubt that St. Louis is once again getting hammered by radioactivity in the rain. He should be featured nightly on the local news with this on a live feed with commentary as the implications for the health of the people in the region and the amount of radioactivity that could contaminate food stuffs from there, make this an urgent public matter.
But nothing will happen. Yet.
Thank you, POTR for showing us this and sharing your wealth of knowledge and common sense as we face this crisis increasingly alone even as the fire from one of the meltdowns becomes visible.
Another bad fallout day in Saint Louis, 37x background radiation in a very small amount of drizzle.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/stay-out-of-rain-radioactive-drizzle-at.html
annette, thank you for addressing levels.
on the EGG topic. i have been buying new zealand eggs at the co-op on broadway and 16th. its crazy expensive, but i figure if i were to go out breakfast its would be more. they are 5.89 for half dozen. also, i saw in a forum that you can buy a case of new zealeand butter. i will try to find info … i want to get some. they are stored in cans …i think. l
Genetic Heritage Threatened
In the early days of nuclear power, WHO, (World Health Organization), issued forthright statements on radiation risks, such as;
… its 1956 WARNING!:
”Genetic heritage is the most precious property for human beings. It determines the lives of our progeny, health and harmonious development of future generations. As experts, we affirm that the health of future generations is threatened by increasing development of the atomic industry and sources of radiation.”
After 1959, the organization made no more statements on health and radioactivity.
Why…? http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/nuclear-apologists-play-shoot-the-messenger-on-radiation-20110425-1du2w.html
____________________________
To all Nuclear Experts,
STOP distorting evidence of the dangers of exposure. We are not all idiots. We may have been a little too apathetic in the past, but I think that’s about to change. It’s got to change!
Re: Ezekiel Breads – the product information lady on the phone told me that they use RO water in both the recipe and for sprouting the grains.
Tray – I buy organic wheat in 35 lb. buckets on-line from Handy Pantry / Living Whole Foods, Inc. Great source for sprouting seeds, grains, etc.
Roundabout
I was just speaking to an old Diablo worker in MB on Sunday and I casually asked him if the Diablo readings (for air) are publicly accessible – he said probably yes.
I believe its very important that we figure this one out!
Can we view Diablo’s daily readings on their high tech equipment?
Maybe you can get this info from current (friends) Diablo workers.
I called Diablo … answering machine – no humans.
PS – I totally agree with you on proper approach ; Diablo workers are very pro-nuclear.
It seems if Diablo is not “insulted” or “blamed” they will have no problem displaying Fukushima spikes and variations.
Annette you’ve gotta laugh with this James Thomas character.
I told him i work in clothing and he said i should make shirts that read “I survived the rhetoric of Fukushima”
He told me that hes on the Atkins and eats meat and dairy daily.
And the topper: he was sick as a dog , sputtering, sneezing, coughing, wheezing.
I seriously felt ill talking to the old sick bugger.
Wonder why he’s sick?!
Tray,
Great idea regarding the bread maker. Understand that the wheat in the Silos will last a few more months prefukushima. Ezekial Sprout bread recipe, anyone have it?
Does anyone know of an egg measurement for isotopes? About a month ago, I googled it, and came up with an Ostrich Egg that was 55, so decided not to eat eggs, but have found no current readings. The Ostrich Egg reading was done way before Fukushima, so not sure where it came from… Any help on this?
I feel a little better after listening to a program which said one can remove heavy metal and radioactive toxins by ingesting a teaspoon of French Green Clay dissolved in water three times a day. I am going to pick some up at the health food store. Knowledge is power. I suppose I should check the science but as long as it is at least non toxic I see no reason why one shouldn’t give it a try.
I read an account by a guy who was downwind of Chernobyl and he has managed to remain healthy using such methods.
Thanks for the encouragement. I really appreciate it.
Alan,
The less expensive route is to buy an “odor control” air filter for you HVAC system and/or get one with a higher MERV number. An “electrostatic” filter is helpful too.
My guess is that right now, rain and dairy/food products are the bigger risk. Closing the windows and running the HVAC when it rains is not a bad idea.
If I lived in Japan, the best air risk protection would come from a system that filtered the air and kept the air pressure inside the house higher than the air pressure outside the house.
SCIENCE DAILY – Flying and Radiation Risk:
What you might want to know especially if you work in the airline industry.
“People who work in the nuclear power industry on an average basis are getting 1.6. There are people who fly in airplanes who are getting 2 or 3 or 4 milliSieverts per year. So they are truly radiation workers.” (note: workers=test subjects)
“Aircrew members, by-and-large, are unaware of this issue.”
http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2005/0907-flying_and_radiation_risk.htm
The Study:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081210205048.htm
…authors conclude that their results suggest that highly experienced flight pilots may be exposed to “biologically significant doses of ionizing radiation.”
So… that’s not good either.
Alan and others; The Enviroreporter stated he uses Kenmore air filters, and I bought a Holmes at Walmart for 35 dollars, but I live in a cracker box. However, if you own your home, sure, a whole house air and water filter would help you sleep at night. But just do what you can now. Don’t look back. Someone up a map of the bomb testing from 1947 through I think ’62. The Nevada and eastern California were slammed and we weren’t informed! But we did live! So try to reduce your anxiety and do what you can and leave the rest up to the Creator!(my opinion) It took me a good long while to find incorporating faith and prudent measures into my emotional narrative! But was going crazy trying to fix things that were intolerable. Much like being in a war…
I also am reminded that as an adult, I am a model as to how to deal with stressors to the younger generation so that they will be able to use their intelligence while incorporating a calm and collect emotional state. This reminder helps when I get uptight or nervous.
I do not eat fish,milk,eggs that are postfukushima. Canned meat prefukushima is acceptable for me. Sprouts deliver a one-two punch that I make myself with pure water. There are ways around the diet changes. It takes some adjusting because for most of us, it is a severe change and is disruptive both individually and socially. Very much socially. I just don’t state that I am not eating the shrimp, I just don’t, or tell people I don’t do this or that, I just don’t. Unless they are open, it will not be helpful for you to hear them weaken your own resolve. Others will want to hear it, but be discerning. We must live according to our conscience, and trust ourselves while loving and appreciating others styles of dealing with this. As more info comes out, people will wake up. And they will come to you. Oh, and I know a bunch of people that work at Diablo, and I NEVER talk to them about it! They have me certifiably insane… I used to forget where my friends worked… yikes!!
Look at the jet stream daily, and wear a mask or not, but the mask needs to be at least an N95 from what I hear. Got my 3M mask at Home Depot. Do I wear it outside? Not yet. Stay indoors mostly or not, depending on the jet stream. Don’t isolate yourself or you might experience psychological stress that may be worse than taking a walk. Enjoy your life. This day has been created for you! Do your best and trust for the rest!
Here is a map for the jet stream;
http://www.endtimesreport.com/jet.html
Just click on the map at the top of the page. It does not show all the muck flowing over in color, so is better for limiting drama! LOL!
Thanks for referencing the California readings, Annette. The milk readings still aren’t good – about 14 picos/liter. It’s funny to watch how the authorities minimize the readings, stating that iodine has a half life of 8 days. They are silent on the half life of cesium, which constituted the majority of the contamination.
The FDA “safe” standard of 4645 picos/liter is absolutely outrageous.
Alan,
Just saw a hepa filter at Target for $38.00 Holmes HEPA-Type Air Purifier – Small (HAP242-UC) cleans 170 square feet.
Never to late to have one of those. Plus you are doing so much already with the food and everything. Much more than a lot of others. You are way ahead just in making those few changes already.
Ahhh, feels like just yesterday when I moved out of my old apartment to get away from cell phone towers and checked out every preschool I put my son in with my gauss meter as well as the new home we moved into which had old wiring. I can’t even fathom the thought of what is going on now.
I am going to buy a bread maker today because most of the bread companies I called out there do not filter there water. I look forward to the day my home doesn’t look like a aisle 9 at the grocery store and I never want to look at another due date again.
God help us to do the right thing, tell the truth and please stop those reactors from polluting our world. In Jesus Name Amen! Thank You God for doing it.
@jz – Yes, the exterior readings do seem to be elevated for the past week. That’s the easy part, the interpretation is the hard part. Without being able to test for specific isotopes (as the EPA used to do), it is very difficult to know what is going on. Something is obviously releasing ionizing radiation in the vicinity of Michael’s Santa Monica detector – what it is – who knows? I would imagine some sort of beta or alpha emitters since his interior readings would probably reflect somewhat higher readings as well from something that was emitting gamma (his late March/early April readings maintained a more consistent and smaller spread between the exterior/interior readings, but of late have shown a much larger gap in the readings). I’m guessing more xenon floating around – but that is purely an uninformed guess. Anyone – please feel free to correct me on this.
Saw a post from a Japanese man in the comments section on another blog site – he was really concerned about the Japanese “Monju” Reactor – a “fast breeder reactor,” that is currently running. It’s fueled by MOX and is designed to produce weapons grade plutonium (read: real purpose not really electricity production). The Monju had major safety issues including a sodium leak and was shut down for a lengthy period, then restarted in May, 2010. Apparently (hard to find specfic dates on the entries), in December of 2010 the plant workers inadvertently dropped a large piece of equipment into the reactor itself and have had a heck of a time extracting it. Seems like they eventually got the equipment out of the reactor, but am unsure of the reactor’s current operating status (apparently on-line but not producing electricity??).
Many questions here: Why do the Japanese want to run such a dangerous reactor? The cost of building/maintaining it FAR exceed the cost of simply purchasing fuel grade uranium to power all of their plants for almost 200 years. The US, Russia and other countries gave up their fast breeder reactor projects because they were too dangerous. This ill-conceived, mismanaged, exceedingly dangerous project has warning signs all over it.
Not that we all don’t have enough worries going on with the Fukushima multiple melt-downs, corporate/multi-government/media collusion & cover-up, and the concerns/stresses associated with caring for our families with limited testing data….. but…. this information hit me in the gut and with all the focus on the Fukushima disaster, I think we would do well to watch what “the other hand” is doing. Monju needs a huge spotlight shone on it at this time when Japan is purportedly scaling back its nuclear power aspirations in the wake of Fukushima… how Monju is handled will be extremely revealing as to the Japanese government’s true intentions.
Take a few minutes and google “Monju Fast Breeder Reactor.”
Does it seem to be a trend for the last week with the numbers elevated…are these numbers seem to be elevated…can anybody address this for me
New testing results up at the CA Dept of Health site:
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/RHB-RadReport.aspx
All air levels significantly down, except for the gross beta… hmm.
Check out the milk testing – not good! Interesting that James Thomas, the scientist who runs this site just insisted to me last week that cesium levels would not be increasing, as they did in Chernobyl (he said the consistently elevating cesium results in the food chain from Chernobyl were due to faulty testing procedures).
Also – this site has now also cut back their testing from every 2 days to once per week, which is their typical non-crisis schedule.
Well I think I made an effort to control the food myself and my family are eating, I have controlled our water but I sure as hell have not controlled the air we are breathing. I don’t have a hepa filter in my house. I don’t know if I can afford to buy a air unit right now but I guess I better just charge it on the card because it seems to be important. Should I just forget it because we have already been breathing this stuff for a few months? Should I buy the unit and then try to cleanse what we have already breathed through vitamins and ant-ioxidents?
Can a hepa type filter be installed in the existing HVAC system? The existing HVAC system is pretty good about funneling the air in the house through a filter. I imagine the typical filter for this system that one purchases at home depot is not adequate.
To survive this it seems like one had to jump on everything right away with no learning curve. What should be the policy when one is outside? Should one wear a mask if you go for a run or should we just not go for a run?
It is difficult to develop a coherent strategy. Most people think you are a paranoid nut when you bring this stuff up but you have to bring it up. I caught all kinds of flack for not eating the fish and squid at a Chinese restaurant the other night.
Tonight Wed. May 18 on CNBC at 10 pm Nuclear Meltdown. It is about Fukushima.
EnviroReporter.com looks at past and present miracles as it faces faces the future looking for another one in “Five Years” which marks our Five Year Anniversary!
The sign says: TOXIC America
A CNN Video Report on Toxics in baby products with Dr. Sanjay Gupta. “Surrounded by chemicals” “We don’t know the truth” Why shoes off, explained.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/health/2011/05/18/am.gupta.toxic.chemicals.cnn?iref=allsearch
Risk vs. Benefits ?
My thought is… the risks cannot be measured, and should not even have to be considered.
The at home method of testing your body’s iodine “thirst”
http://lewrockwell.com/durst/durst-m30.1.html
NO RADIATION FALLOUT DETECTED IN TODAY’S LOS ANGELES RAIN!
5/18/11
9:00 am 10-minute EXTERIOR average of RAIN SAMPLE: 46.3 CPM
8:40 am 10-minute INTERIOR average: 38.1 CPM
8:30 am 10-minute EXTERIOR average: 47.6 CPM
A MUST READ! Radiation Map analysis.
http://globalcooperative.wordpress.com/2011/05/18/radiation-map-analysis-europe-australasia/
TEPCO finally admitted that all three reactors had a full meltdown and that the containment vessels were likely breached. I’m attaching a link to an interview with Nuclear Engineer Akira Tokuhiro on May 17 which everyone should find interesting.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vivian-norris-de-montaigu/interview-with-akira-toku_b_863297.html
There was also an interesting quote from a Swedish-Russian nuclear physicist, who said:
“The most terrifying fact is that the Japanese power plants are using ‘dirty’ fuel, which most countries have rejected and banned. Needless to say that the Americans built them. Since the Earth is moving Counterclockwise most of the fall-out will drop on U.S., unless very strong winds take it somewhere else.”
Here are some verbatim highlights from Tokuhiro found in the article:
“There is a cultural element in this. The Japanese do not want to be embarrassed”. He added that TEPCO is a large entity which only has to answer to the Prime Minister. He added that it is a bit of the “… Only small people pay taxes mentality”. The mass media in Japan is only given the information TEPCO and the government want to give them. Labor practices in Japan, he says, are quite brutal and when you get to the bottom of the labor force, those at the top of society do not really care about them.”
“The “official” six to nine month cleanup is virtually impossible, no matter how much they do accomplish… all of this is what has being kept off the front pages of the mass media.
“They need to tell people it will take at least 10, maybe 20 years, at least 10 if not 20, or even $30 billion and at least 10,000 people working on this, ” he repeated, “This is the most important thing they must tell people. They must be honest with the evacuees.”
Can anyone put the 53.1 reading in perspective for me and for my kids
Thank you prtrblog!
Videos of the May 9 rain sampling that was 42.4% above background and the May 14 Hepa filters sampling that detected radiation-impacted dust at 44.2% above normal are available at Radiation Station Videos.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/18/world/asia/18japan.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
Seriously?!
roundabout, some work has been done to try and develop faster ways to rebuild the required transformers; and a properly designed smart grid could help reduce some of the vulnerabilities (a badly designed one would make it worse).
The scenario they chose to model, the May 1921 Solar Storm, is not even the worst case. There was a solar storm in 1859 that caused the Northern Lights to be seen in Central America. I would be surprised if any nuclear plant has a contingency plan to provide long term backup fuel cooling under a scenario where the electrical grid might be down for years.
If Fukushima causes something to be done to mitigate those vulnerabilities and thereby prevent a massive failure of multitudes of Nuke reactors from that kind of solar storm, the current situation in Fukushima might have just been a blessing in disguise.
Re the Japan article (Chase), it does seem highly suspicious that people would be taken to hospitals due to hygiene. A shower and clean clothes are not hospital qualifiers… unless the evacuation centers weren’t moved out far enough from radiation, which now we know was the case! Radiation poisoning will cause fatigue to where “spit baths” are impossible to perform. Having been an avid hiker, you can give yourself a sponge bath for three months and still be very clean! And I hate being unclean.. so this is possible! Dying prematurely would also be considered stressful along with losing all of ones hopes, dreams and possessions. Very interesting article. Our thoughts and prayers are with these brothers and sisters of ours.
Portrblog; WOW! No wonder I can’t sleep at night! 71 Fukushima’s possible in our own backyard. This makes chemtrails look like childs play! Well, the saying “enjoy life now, it can always get worse…” comes to mind. Have a super day while we can! Maybe a miracle can occur and the owners of these plants can order parts that take time to replace beforehand… like commission it today…that would be an act of kindness to humanity…way too simple.
@ Ned: Actually that’s not what rain does at all nor what I did this morning. Rain is an effective way to transport radioactive fallout, and “radon progeny,” to the ground. I collected an ample rainwater sample, tested it over ten minutes outdoors where I take exterior readings and the result was less than the exterior reading taken less than an hour before in the exact same place under the exact same conditions.
This was not the case in our May 9, 2011 rain water testing which came in 42.4% above background. That testing, available now in Radiation Station Stats, will be shown in our Videos section later today along with my further analysis of UC Berkeley’s criticism of my testing as well as video of my Hepa filters testing.
Ned Clark,
If you want to know how 1 solar storm can cause 71 Fukushimas here in the USA, you will need to follow the link.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/threat-alert-one-solar-storm-71.html
Michael-
Hi. Thanks so much for the note about no fallout detected in Los Angeles basin based on the rain reading. And including the date is very helpful. I am dedicated to your and Denise Anne’s site and grateful. You may want to change the note to read: May 17, 2011, if you mean today!
Your friend,
-SLO
Re; “NO FALLOUT IN THIS MORNING’S LOS ANGELES BASIN (west) RAIN!”
That just means the airborne radioactive particles are simply being knocked out of the air by raindrops before they can reach your counter.
Do us a favor, and take it outside & point it to a puddle – I’d like to see what readings you get from accumulated rainwater.
You’re making a provably (knowingly?) false equivalence, “Potrblog””
“ONE Solar Storm = 71 American Fukushimas”
Any particular `beam’ of solar radiation hits us only once – which makes mutation-creating DNA damage relatively unlikely. It is quite another thing when any particular particle of ingested radioactive fall-out becomes lodged in our lungs or intestines – because it proceeds to irradiate the same adjacent cells continuously for as long as it remains radioactive. This astronomically increasing the chances of that one particle causing DNA damage, and turning normal cell division into uncontrolled cancerous growth.
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/05/asahi-shinbun-core-meltdown-in-reactors.html
ONE Solar Storm = 71 American Fukushimas
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/threat-alert-one-solar-storm-71.html
JAPAN TODAY: Nearly 3,000 taken to hospitals by ambulances from quake shelters
“…at least 2,816 evacuees suffering from stress and poor hygienic conditions”
Personally, I would read “between” the lines on this one. I am not a Medical Professional, but this is about the right amount of time for radiation sickness to begin. At least that’s my understanding. Maybe they cannot eat properly or take care of their hygiene because they’re just too sick was my first thought. (?) I guess stress can cause hair to fall out too.
But once again, it would be nice to actually know more facts. I am fed up with hearing the “sorry we don’t have that data” excuse. It’s just another lame misdirection towards establishing “Deniable Credibility” that makes it harder to break through the “Corporate Barrier Wall” of deception and evasion.
Regardless, they are still affected and suffering and for that my heart truly weeps.
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/nearly-3000-taken-to-hospitals-by-ambulances-from-quake-shelters
THANK YOU GOD!!!
Margery—Thanks for the Fairewinds video—I thought it was very good, and very balanced. Cautious, serious, but not hysterical. I found it helpful and informative.
Michael!!!! NO rain Fallout???? GREAT NEWS!!! Our prayers were answered for today! My poor neighbor…. I took a shower at 1:30 AM to clean the rain off as I had to go outside in the rain so rinsed the “fallout” off and you can hear right through the walls, hope she slept through it! LOL. Well, I do not understand the sudden drop, except in our own ways we have been asking for this to occur. My opinion is prayers are working! Thank you for the news! Soooo uplifted! And still praying… Amazing, just amazing!
NO FALLOUT IN THIS MORNING’S LOS ANGELES BASIN (west) RAIN!
5/17/11
8:50 am 10-minute EXTERIOR average of RAIN SAMPLE: 43.6 CPM NORMAL
8:15 am 10-minute INTERIOR average: 36.2 CPM
8:00 am 10-minute EXTERIOR average: 45.5 CPM NORMAL
To Michael—Thanks for your kind words of gratitude about our enthusiasm for and support of this site—
But truly, the gratitude goes to you and Denise for the work you have done—intrepid environmental reporters that you are—for so many years, long before any of us gave this much thought or before Fukushima spilled its deadly poison throughout the world.
You two had this site here long before this disaster emerged, and so it was a perfect place for so many of us to seek refuge, to find honest information.
It is you two who have done the essential work—-we’ve just joined in, albeit with passionate (and sometimes contentious) voices. Many of us still have much to learn.
Michael and Denise Anne–Keep talking, keep writing, keep investigating, and keep protesting!!!
I think that you should hijack Anderson Cooper’s clarion call: “Keeping them Honest.”
Surely, that’s one of the many things you are so successfully accomplishing.
And we who have found a “home” here where the issues can be frankly debated, honestly discussed, scientifically researched and sometimes passionately argued, remain most grateful for the education we are receiving.
Here is an interesting video from Fairwinds about what we can expect will happen with all of the radiation from Japan.
Being a rank amateur at anything to do with radiation, I found that this video explained a lot, in a way that I could understand it.
http://fairewinds.com/content/where-all-fukushima-radiation-going-and-why-does-it-matter
I hope that the video will work when I click on “submit”.
Oh sorry Nancy I forgot to post the link. lol oops…
Here you go:
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/
Nancy, he’s not a friend just a guys website I came across. I’ve seen people on this site link to his website.
Today reading of 53….. how do I interpret that number. Is that concerning
How should I interpret the exterior reading of 53….. is this a concerning reading
Verbatim From NIRS:
“UPDATE, 12:30 pm, Monday, May 16, 2011. On March 27, we reported on a press conference by a Japanese nuclear engineer who believed that the meltdown at Unit 1 was caused by a loss-of-coolant accident initiated by the earthquake itself, which was exacerbated by the ensuing tsunami and loss of power. It now appears that assessment was correct. Tepco said today that radiation levels inside Unit 1 were measured at 300 MilliSieverts/hour within hours of the earthquake—meaning that fuel melting already had begun. For melting to have begun that early, coolant must have been lost almost immediately. It’s now believed that fuel melted and dropped to the bottom of the containment—melting a hole into it, within 16 hours. Most likely, a major pipe carrying cooling water to the core was damaged by the earthquake, which should lead to a new evaluation of the ability of key reactor components to withstand seismic events.
Tepco also said today that an Olympic pool sized pond of highly radioactive water—some 3,000 tons of water–was discovered in the basement of Unit 1 over the weekend. This at least answers some of the question about where all the water that has been pumped into the Unit has been going…
Meanwhile, a robot placed on the second floor of Unit 1 measured radiation levels up to 2,000 MilliSieverts/hour—or 200 rems/hour—far too high for people to work in. And Tepco now acknowledges that the containments of Units 2 and 3 also almost certainly have been breached by molten fuel, which indicates a similar scenario to Unit 1—thousands of tons of water that have been pumped in to keep the reactors cool has become highly radioactive water leaking back out. There is likely far less water in the pressure vessels than Tepco previously believed.”
* * * * *
Thoughts: This news does bolster our anti-nuke arguments about seismic issues in general, but I have already heard (ad nauseam) the “company” “lines” about how seismic risks are well accounted for and thus are “not a problem.” (Of course, this is not at all accurate, to say the least, especially in locations such as the Midwest where earthquake risks were not even acknowledged or understood until recent decades and where plants reflect a complete lack of seismic planning).
At the same time, I think we need to keep reminding people that nuclear plants are dangerous simply because they exist; it does not take an earthquake, Tsunami or terrorist attack to cause a catastrophic accident.
It takes one nano-second of human error compounded by equippment failure, compounded by further human error. It’s that alarmingly simple. It’s that alarmingly complex.
Second–All of this truly does raise profoundly unsettling moral concerns. Clearly, neither the Japanese government nor the Utility it apparently supports (TEPCO) have been even remotely honest with the Japanese public.
Obviously, self-interest has clearly prevailed over public safety, and has unilaterally trumped any concern for ethics and integrity.
Of course, knowing this, our next thought is of our own government, our own Utilities. General research (from the reliable sources) into the entire history of the nuclear industry here will (as we have all read, here) reveal multiple levels of safety violations “covered up” by the Industry and to which the government “regulatory” agencies turn a willfully blind eye.
It was just about 6 weeks ago that the Union of Concerned Scientists through an FOIA Petition, caught the NRC in an outright contradiction (telling the public one thing and privately saying another) about potential safety risks involving U.S. plants/reactors in the light of the Fukushima failure.
The implications that the Federal agencies established to protect us are instead protecting the industry is truly disturbing.
The present White House is very “pro-nuke.” It is thus no wonder that we are not seeing these very real concerns about Fukushima and nuclear energy in general reported in a broadly disemminated manner.
The only voices raised are those within the agencies like Physicians for Social Responsibility, NIRS, UCS, Fairewinds, etc., (and our own beloved Enviro-Reporter) who put enormous effort (and funds) into educating a public lulled into obvlivion by the lack of truth about the monstrous mega-threats sitting within miles of their homes….the damage from which can travel far further to impact the entire world.
It’s not a matter if “if.” It’s a matter of “when” the next Fukushima, the next Chernobyl will occur.
I wish we could paste a picture of the “ghost-town” streets of Fukushima Prefecture (maybe with the sad stray, abandoned dogs included) onto huge billboards with a statement that reads simply, “Coming Soon To Your Neighborhood.) That might speak louder to the general population than any scientific evidence we might want to show them.
jzhawk,
Austin air filters are the best. I got them along time ago when we lived next to a freeway. They really helped a few years ago when we had the fires up here. Very low maintenance. Also, Aquasana makes an awesome shower water filter. Just FYI. Takes out more then just chlorine.
Michael,
I would love to test our air filters we are on top of a mountain in La Canada and live in a old home. Lots of air flow in here. Thank God I have my air filters before this all began too. Also I have one for the car. Not a bad idea for commuters.
Now I must go detox after a long weekend away with my family who thinks I am a second away from being placed in a straightjacket.
Some are asking about Hepa air filter……I got this one delivered in two days. Austin Air Allergy Machine (HEGA) HEPA Air Purifier. This one has great reviews and has a Military Grade Carbon Cloth. There are 4 separate filters in this. I have had it for about 2 months now. I’m waiting for Michaels post tomorrow on how he did the filter test so that I can copy his procedure and do the same with mine.
Looks like Reactor 1 fully melted down 16 hours after the Tsunami. Here’s the link:
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110516p2a00m0na028000c.html
Also, what is the radiation standard supposed to be for air? UC Berkeley states that air sampling shows that cesium levels went down, but from their data, it looks like Cesium 137 actually went up alot. I’m not sure I’m reading their data correctly. Can anyone explain?
Finally, does anyone know if fish on the West Coast, or any where in the US has been tested for radiation?
By the way, Todd, do you remember the readings your friend in MO was getting for rain water?
Thanks everyone!
Nancy
@jzhawk: Yes there is a difference in the Hepa filters but not so much as to make us recommend one over the other – they are both excellent. The contrast in the values they picked up may be explained by each being in a different room. We got them at Sears because we didn’t want to wait. Thank goodness we did considering what we found in the dust: 44.2% over the background radiation.
@ Todd: Check out the links on our Resources page to see if you can find something in your area like we did here.
@ rocket: You got the math right – these very high readings are way over the Maximum Contaminant Level yet you still are hearing from the UC Berkeley nuclear scientists/doctors/shills that there is nothing to worry about. If this kind of phony and plainly false logic works for radiation, why shouldn’t it work for all kinds of potentially dangerous scenarios like, say, car safety (where that logic would dictate that we could get rid of those pesky seat belts and airbags and let me talk on my cell phone with both hands while juggling my bottle of Jagermeister and joint)?
Now what I suggested sounds just plain stupid, doesn’t it? Does suggesting that these repeated and extremely high levels of radiation found in our air, water, soil and food are A-okay sound any smarter? Does the government, like the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which says there is 0% (ZERO percent) chance of the meltdowns’ fallout affecting us, sound any more intelligent? Are these false proclamations more hazardous to the American people than enemies of our country outside our borders?
@ roundabout & Liz: Your kind words, and unfailing devotion to this new nuclear family forming here in response the multiple Fukushima meltdowns and our government’s abhorrent abdication of responsibility to protect its citizens, are so heartening. Thank you so much from Denise and I!
@ UC Berkeley Radiological Air and Water Monitoring
(BRAWM) Team: Are you folks afraid of bringing your stellar observations to the Comments of EnviroReporter.com? Our estimations are that it would be no more hazardous than flying a plane from Los Angeles to Timbuktu with no pilot’s license.
Hey, I live in Greenville SC and I was wondering if anyone had an Inspector or knows of someone that has been monitoring this area. It really bothers me that the media isnt talking about this. I was on a website yesterday with this guy down in MO who had an inspector and was taking samples during the rain. The radiation he was showing was very scary. Anyone know of anyone doing any monitoring around here?
I typed wrong. Is there a difference in hepa filters. Is one better than another
Radiation Fears Unfounded, campus expert says…
UC Berkeley News Center, Media Relations
|Dated March 17, 2011
Question: “What is the danger to people on the West Coast?”
Answer: “The short answer is essentially none.”
http://bnrc.berkeley.edu/latest/radiation-fears-unfounded-campus-expert-says
This is their “spin” from the beginning, it is their answer now, and it will not change even when their hair and teeth start FALLing OUT.
I would be horribly embarrassed if that were my photo on the page. Ludicrous, yet not really funny. This guys statement is so far out of line, that this should be PROOF to anyone that the “spin” mode is effect and will remain in effect indefinitely.
Chase says: <>
Well said, Chase!
To Michael:
Wow, I just got on the site after all day yesterday away–and am thrilled to find that your efforts have wound up on the UC Berkeley site.
I can’t believe that they essentially claim that you are measuring “radon progeny.” I agree that in terms of affiliations they do have some conflict of interest. While I initially viewed them as independent, for quite awhile I have come to see that they fall into the same general category as the EPA.
Shame on them for comparing Fukushima radiation fallout to the kind of exposure one would receive from an airplane ride or a medical x-ray. As (I believe it was) Potr pointed out, (and as the USC and NIRS have repeatedly explained) that is comparing apples and oranges for two reasons: It doesn’t address the MANNER of exposure (ingestion or inhalation) and it doesn’t address the REPITITION of exposure (i.e. a dental xray being a one time occurence, as opposed to receiving the equivalant of an x-ray over and over again throughout the days/weeks/months.
Your HEPA filter readings are truly alarming. I’m glad that an increasingly wider audience is learning of your work and of our site.
Claudia—I can’t make the meeting tomorrow, but am right on board—- My only comment is that perhaps it would be strategically better NOT to focus so much on seismic concerns—b/c they come back with an answer about seismic safety. A nuclear plant does NOT need a seismic event to have a full-scale disaster. Neither Chernobyl nor TMI were the result of any kind of seismic event. The focus should be on the safety issues in general. Using seismic concerns makes it too easy for them to say “it couldn’t happen here.” Let us know what happens at the meeting.
Is there s difference in grow filter….is one better than another? Also, would it be better to live in Florida during these times than so. cal
not to be redundant, but below is my april 18th post questioning berkeley’s spin. there was no mention that the rainwater contained normal scrubbed radon progeny on april 12th.
i am willing to share up to one fourth of the cost of a high end community food inspector. are they even available? what is the wait time? Are there three others in so-cal that will go in on it with me? we can set it up and begin to post results with michaels assistance and really ramp this thing up.
April 18, 2011 at 10:11 pm
not a math genius, but the advantage goes to those with educations and proficiencies in physics and math that far exceed anything close to joe the plumber thats why there is so little worry about being held accountible, “we” would never understand or figure it out. those who have the credentials work in the industry and have their agendas to further the technology in the same reckless trial and error way it has for decades. case in point berkeley. nothing but revisions to their numbers miscalculations and blatant minimizing. rainwater from 4-12-11 i took it upon myself to calculate from becquerels to picocuries (what the epa uses) a link to the conversion calculator follows.
I-131 .27 Bq/l = 7.29 pCi
Cs-134 .145Bq/l = 3.91 pCi
Cs-137 .124Bq/l = 3.35 pCi
T-132 was at 3.86 pCi on 3-28
all of these from 4-12 are STILL above the EPA’s maximum contamination level of 3 pCi for drinking water, unless I am wrong, the math changed, they invented more units of measurement, raised the limits or its just absolutely nothing to worry about.
http://www.unitconversion.org/unit_converter/radiation-activity.html
In reading the most recent posts regarding UCB and rockets dialogue, amongst others, this country is going to have a lot of right to pursue law suits (even if it means changing policy). Early on, someone noted to save rainwater, soil samples, for a later date. Just be sure to send it to a third party lab for dating and analysis. A lot of good info from those participating on the board. David Desante’s youtube on Chernobyl’s bird study was a great contribution for those who caught the link earlier. Google will get you there. The link regarding the geiger counter was a good link earlier as well. SLO et al, we need to think about whether the geiger counter or a more accurate measure would be good…
Michael and Denise, you are deserving of the Nobel Peace prize in my opinion! And thank God the HEPA filter suggestion was found on this board… my apt sized filter has been going non-stop for a month now. It was 35 dollars at Wal-Mart. I think I will pick up another one as well! Thanks everyone who posts! And thanks again Michael and Denise for the voice of reason…
For starters comparing FALLOUT to riding on a plane is intentional disinformation which in my opinion is criminal and immoral!
Collateral damage and allowable deaths because of our thirst for electrical power is NOT acceptable to me and to most if they only knew. Agencies which set the “acceptable standards”, (sounds good), for this stuff are actually saying that some deaths or suffering is okay and to be expected and then they turn it into a numbers game.
“The nuclear industry’s most common argument is that there is no significant health consequences associated with low doses of radiation. However, it is the consensus of the medical and scientific community, [not Berkeley apparently], summarized in the National Research Council’s BEIR VII report, that there is no safe level of radiation. Any exposure, including exposure to naturally occurring background radiation, creates an increased risk of cancer. The BEIR report concluded that every thousand man rems of radiation exposure will cause one cancer.” – Ira Helfand, MD, a member of the Board of Physicians for Social Responsibility. (a great website)
AND…
It’s not just cancers. It’s a lot of other stuff too. If you really want to know based on “the data at hand” then read this.
Health Effects of Chernobyl 25 years later (note: .pdf file)
Compiled by the German affiliate of International Physicians for the Prevention Of Nuclear War
http://www.nirs.org/reactorwatch/accidents/chernob_report2011webippnw.pdf
_______________________________
Dear God,
Give us the Truth,
We search for Hope,
Sincerely and forever yours,
Chase
p.s. Please give Michael and all who seek the truth the courage and strength to persevere. – ty
Check out our testing of two Hepa filters’ dust on Friday May 13, 2011 at Radiation Station Stats. Video of the testing will be posted tomorrow.
6:00 – 7:45 pm Exterior HEPA FILTER DUST checks at two months. Honeywell Hepa filter: 6:00 pm – Two sustained spikes on two separate filter locations >121 CPM or 121/43.2 = 2.8 times over background; Exterior background at 6:30 pm: 43.2 CPM; Honeywell Hepa filter dust accumulation average at 7:15 pm: 60.5 CPM; Kenmore Hepa filter dust accumulation average at 7:25 pm: 57.3 CPM; Total Hepa filter dust accumulation at 7:40 pm: 62.3 CPM. 62.3 – 43.2 = 19.1 CPM over background which equals 19.1/43.2 = 44.2% over background.
If we had not bought these Hepa filters soon after the multiple meltdowns began, Denise and I would have been breathing this airborne goo.
the picture of the spent fuel pond in reactor 4 building looks phony. reactor 4 blew up the day after the quake, there was “fire” and steam, coming out of the building and the pond was leaking. now we see a pristine scene almost like a photo taken long before any crisis.
Not sure,if the article about “SONGS” can be opened,but here it is!
Latest SC Green Column in SC Times
May 11, 2011 – 5:12pm — admin
A Time for Hymns not SONGS (unusually “religious” for me, but the spirit moved
me and I just went with it!)
Dear God,
I pray for clarity of purpose and the ability to see the truth so that as a humble messenger I might be listened to by my brothers and sisters with whom I share this incredible world. My heart aches, just thinking of the gravity of the message that I reluctantly must convey from a position of relative comfort and safety, when it is the extreme opposite that awaits us all. Please help me to find the words that will turn this illusion of security into an accurate expression of reality, and evoke meaningfulness from the suffering and severe losses in Japan and from the story in the eyes of the disfigured children of Chernobyl. Help me to replace fear in the hearts of parents wondering if it is even safe to give their children milk, with hope for a future worth striving for while it is still within our reach. Let us tap into the best qualities of human nature so that we might prevent a looming disaster before it ever takes place on our shores. Thank you God, for the opportunity to do so. May those who read these words be grateful for your mercy and act accordingly.
The Truth:
A huge earthquake is long overdue and expected at any time now. We live next to a nuclear power plant that is rated to be the second most dangerous of the 104 currently being operated in the United States. It was retrofitted in 1981 as best as it could be, to withstand a magnitude 7.0 on the Richter scale, yet recent scientific evidence indicates that fault lines just off shore are capable of something between a 7.5 and 8.0 which is five to ten times greater. We live in a tsunami zone. Industry experts reassure us that they have taken conservative precautions, but we have seen how grossly they have underestimated the forces of nature in Japan. They risk all that we cherish as they persist with plans to extend their license to operate until 2042, a period that is certain to experience an earthquake like nothing we’ve ever seen in our lives. All the while, the most dangerous stockpile of radioactive waste accumulates in storage facilities that were never intended to be permanent. Perhaps most insidious of all is the prospect of evacuating 7.4 million people within a 50 mile radius, leaving their homes behind in what could only be called a dead zone for hundreds of years to come, uninsured and uninhabitable. Need I say more?
The Hope:
We are only getting 15% of our energy in California from two nuclear power plants, or just 7.5 % locally. We can decide to decommission San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station as quickly and safely as possible, demand that the Federal Government keep its promise to provide storage facilities for all nuclear waste, and redirect billions of dollars intended to prop up the nuclear industry to instead stimulate the green and safe technologies that exist now, but also hold the promise for many new discoveries. Meanwhile, we can conserve some of the energy that is so readily being wasted to get through this transition and come out on the other side with solutions that no longer depend upon fossil fuels or contribute to climate change. On May 17th, at the special presentation being heard at the San Clemente City Council meeting, we need to show up and be counted as we exercise our freedom of expression and request our elected officials to represent our concerns all the way up the chain of command. The children are counting on us.
Amen.
This is for the people who live in OC_there is a meeting in San Clemente,this coming tuesday at 6pm.
Also ,please everyone sign the petition to SHUT DOWN SAN ONOFRE!!!!!!!!
Claudia
Reminder – Please come to the City Council Meeting to hear why we believe that
Decommissioning SONGS and removing the spent fuel is so important to do before the
largest earthquake of our times unleashes its power.
The meeting will be at 6:00 PM, City Hall on Tuesday, May 17th. Our
special presentation begins very early, even before the regular agenda items
will be heard. We are asking people to wear something RED to show
solidarity.
Here is a link to our most recent article in the SC Times on this topic.
There is more detailed information on our website .
Here is a petition you can sign at this link,
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/help-save-so-cal/
You can also help by going to a couple of facebook pages and check “like” or “friend” to extend our reach.
Decommission San Onofre and Residents Organized for a Safe Environment
Michael,
I took a quick look at the UC Berkley threads; I think they suffer from a scientific inability to question the supposed familiar. For example, UCB marks several of the radionuclides in the rain water test as “natural”. Given the unprecedented on going fallout frappe from Fukushima, marking any large atomic weight fallout like Thallium 206 as “natural” is at best poor form; namely, because it presumes to preclude Fukushima Daiichi as a source.
I would ask UC Berekely to give some definitive proof that the Tl206 detected is not a Fukushima resultant “Daughter”. Here is a link that shows the nuclear orgy that can produce TL 206, its a huge image so scroll left and right across the screen to see all of it, ask the good Doctor to prove their TL 206 detection as “natural” (and not from Fukushima).
http://periodictable.com/Isotopes/081.206/index2.full.dm.prod.html
In addition here is a good pre Fukushima report that shows the kinds of spikes to be expected from natural radon washout. Note that while the spike is visually large on the chart, it is actually small since it is measured in nano-Sieverts.
http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309062977&page=53
There is a LOT more that can be said, but the above is enough to see if the good PHD from UC Berkeley will step up to the plate.
UC Berkeley comments on EnviroReporter.com rain results
***************************************
MICHAEL COLLINS RESPONDS
Where to start? Should we just assume these folks from the UC Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Department know more about radiation than I do? I would hope so.
Are these folks correctly interpreting the results of our rain analysis? No. They are not looking at the specific assertions herein and also one must take into account their previous interpretations of high radiation in the United States are any measure. We will address these fundamental mistakes later in this response of mine after I address some specific assertions here.
In the first thread the Berkeley doctor cites, the doctor himself says:
“If they are using that detector to test rain (or air filters for that matter), there will always be an increase in their counts. Rain scrubs all sorts of things out of the atmosphere, not the least of which are radon progeny, which you can read about in a few recent threads, like this one. This is natural background.”
Yes, the rain does scrub all sorts of stuff out of the atmosphere, but the assumption here is that it couldn’t be Fukushima fallout. These assumption makes the doctor’s hypothesis fallacious yet he states it as fact and that the 42.4% rise in radiation I tested in LA rainwater is “natural background.”
Further analysis shows just how wrong the doc is. Just today, we tested more rain water in an external environment (See Radiation Station Stats), and the overage was between 10-11%. If this was radon progeny, why isn’t it the same amount as tested on 5/9? Why does the doctor assume it’s natural background? Where is the good science in assumptions leading to dubious conclusions?
Perhaps “radon progeny” explains how our friend Thomas of POTR blog detecting rain water with his identical Inspector nuclear radiation monitor coming in at 62 times background. I doubt this is from radon.
Anticipating the doc’s response; he might say that the rain from the 5/9 showers in LA might have ‘washed’ the radon progeny out of the air making today’s numbers lower. That too would be nonsense as that rain event was six days ago making any washing mute.
There are a number of remarkable assertions on these UC Berkeley threads that deserve response and we’ll respond here when warranted.
It will be interesting to see how the UC Berkeley folks respond when we release the results of our dual Hepa filter dust tests which showed a 44.2% increase over background, on average, with two sustained spikes of 121 counts per minute or three times the background of when we took them. (These test results, videotaped outside where we took them, will be published tomorrow).
It appears these UC Berkeley scientists may be doing what I long ago predicted folks like this, and people in the government like the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, would do when encountering high radiation readings in the United States: misinterpret the results either deliberately or because of a basic misunderstanding of radiation science.
[We have removed links and added our emphasis to the above quotations to facilitate our points. Original links are available at the link that begins the above section.]
However, the above comparisons to aircraft travel are highly misleading. First, according to the National Academy of Sciences in 2005, there is no safe level of radiation. Further, and more importantly, according to many experts on radiation and health, there is a big difference between external and internal radiation.
Berkeley says it has addressed this issue, while missing the point entirely – to the point of being willful ignorance. The nuclear team at the university does not seem to realize that the effects of external radiation on a human, say through plane trips and X-Rays, cannot be compared directly. They are two different animals, so to speak.
You simply cannot compare external to internal this way, so says Dr. Ira Helfand, MD, of Physicians for Social Responsibility, a Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization that has fought nuclear weapons proliferation for decades:
In Unsafe at Any Exposure, Helfand says:
“To understand the danger of low levels of radiation exposure, consider several factors.
“First, the total dose is the most important factor, not the dose per hour. When you get an X-ray, you’re exposed to a one-time burst of radiation. If you work for 10 hours in a spot where the radiation level is 1 millisievert per hour, your dose is 10 millisieverts, and the dose goes up the longer you stand there.
“Second, there’s a big difference between external and internal radiation. If you’re standing in a spot where you’re exposed to external radiation, that exposure ends as soon as you move away. But if you ingest or inhale a radioactive particle, it continues to irradiate your body as long as it remains radioactive and stays in your body.
“Further, if you ingest radioactive particles, the dose isn’t spread evenly over your entire body. It concentrates where the particles lodge. The average total body dose may be relatively low, but the dose at the site may be large enough to damage that tissue and cause cancer.”
***********************************
I do not know why such an august group of scientists would make such incorrect conclusions repeatedly.
However, it is worth noting that they are a major part of this nation’s nuclear military industrial complex. UC Berkeley has managed the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) for the last 55 years. LLNL has been the premier lab in charge of designing nuclear weapons, as noted at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Livermore_National_Laboratory which shows LLNL designing the W27 (Regulus cruise missile; 1955; joint with Los Alamos), W38 (Atlas/Titan ICBM; 1959), B41 (B52 bomb; 1957), W45 (Little John/Terrier missiles; 1956), W47 (Polaris SLBM; 1957), W48 (155-mm howitzer; 1957), W55 (submarine rocket; 1959), W56 (Minuteman ICBM; 1960), W58 (Polaris SLBM; 1960), W62 (Minuteman ICBM; 1964), W68 (Poseidon SLBM; 1966), W70 (Lance missile; 1969), W71 (Spartan missile; 1968), W79 (8-in. artillery gun; 1975), W82 (155-mm howitzer; 1978), B83 (modern strategic bomb; 1979), W87 (Peacekeeper/MX ICBM; 1982), and W89 (Tomahawk GLCM; 1978).
So perhaps then it would not be surprising to see efforts by the academia of the nuclear industrial complex of this country to try to discount any notion that the continuing meltdown of four reactors could possibly affect our country.
Need more proof of dangerous rhetoric? How about this gem from the Chair of the Department of Nuclear Engineering at UC Berkeley, Professor Per Peterson, on April 14, 2011 before the California State Senate Energy Committee Hearing on Nuclear Power Plant Safety:
“[W]e need to learn the positive lessons about why the primary containments in the Fukushima reactors were quite effective in scrubbing out and preventing the release of most of the aerosol fission products, particularly iodine and cesium, and in particular during the early phases of the accident when public evacuations were being conducted.
[snip]
We know from data collected by Japanese health authorities, for example measurements of the uptake of iodine 131 in children living near Fukushima, that while we could expect some health effects from the Fukushima accident, the numbers will be sufficiently small as to be statistically undetectable. The overall public health impacts from the nuclear accident will be substantially smaller than the direct loss of life caused by the earthquake and tsunami.
[snip]
[I]t is fortunate that the majority of the radioactive iodine and cesium that was released from damaged fuel inside the Fukushima reactors was scrubbed into water inside the primary containments and was not released…”
These boldly incorrect statements by the Chair of this department show just how the misinterpretation of data can be utilized at just about any point in deciphering the enormity of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor meltdowns.
Don’t be fooled by this nonsense. We aren’t.
Hi Michael,
Submitted your Los Angeles Rad Rain results findings to the Berkeley BRAWM forum for public awareness. Here are some of the comments I got back. It’s fine if you do not wish to post these comments. But, I thought you would be interested, and I was curious about your thoughts to the comments below. Thanks so much!
“Home » Forums » Berkeley Radiological Air and Water Monitoring Forum
Los Angeles Rad Rain results found to be 42.4% above normal
Hi BRAWM team,
I suspect that your air in the Berkeley/San Francisco area is a lot, lot ‘cleaner’ than in Los Angeles. You mention that you now barely find any radioactive concentrations in your air samples. I know the following is comparing apples to oranges, but the live EnrivReporter.com in the Los Angeles basin area on May 9th, 2011 reported:
New Los Angeles Rad Rain results found to be 42.4% above normal radiation level readings.”
»
Submitted by bandstra on Sun, 2011-05-15 06:22.
“I’m not sure that I found the right data on that website — just a mention in a comment on their Radiation Station page. Is this what you are referring to?
Their detector records counts per minute, giving no spectral information. If they are using that detector to test rain (or air filters for that matter), there will always be an increase in their counts. Rain scrubs all sorts of things out of the atmosphere, not the least of which are radon progeny, which you can read about in a few recent threads, like this one. This is natural background.
If the count rate for the rain sample is recorded over the course of a few hours, the count rate should go back to normal background levels. This is due to the ~20 minute half-lives of the gamma-emitting radon progeny. This is a test they should do, since that is a clear sign that it is radon progeny and not isotopes from Japan.
Also, if you look at the raw spectral data for our rain samples, such as this one from 4/12-13, you can see just how the radioisotopes from Japan (the three tiny lines labeled in a different color) compare to the natural background (all the other lines, as well as the big blue continuum they are poking out from). Without fine spectral resolution, like our germanium detectors have, it is virtually impossible to find these needles in the haystack of natural background.
Sample 17 Spectrum
Mark [BRAWM Team Member]”
»
reply
Submitted by bandstra on Sun, 2011-05-15 06:48.
“Okay, I found the link here, under their 5/9/2011 data.
They only measured it over 10 minutes. As I said above, if they were to measure it at regular intervals over the course of a few hours, the activity should go back to background as the radon daughters decay away.
Mark [BRAWM Team Member]”
reply
“Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 2011-05-15 07:17.
If I remember correctly, Mark, I believe that the EnviroReporter originally posted that the rain water they tested was collected over a 6 week period on a towel they had put on top of some outside plants. That seems quite awhile to test. Seems like the half lives should have faded over that time period for the short lived radioactivity.
In view of this, does what you said above, Mark, still apply?”
»
reply
“Submitted by bandstra on Sun, 2011-05-15 07:31.
You’re right, that would make a huge difference in the interpretation of their data.
Could you link to that info? I cannot find any description of their measurement except this:
10:00 pm 10-minute RAIN PRECIPITATE SAMPLE measured inside average: 54.4 CPM. 54.4 – background of 38.2 CPM = 16.2 CPM over background. 16.2/38.2 = 0.424 or 42.4% above background
Mark [BRAWM Team Member]”
»
reply
“L.A. Radiation Rain Quote, Michael Collins of EnviroReporter
Submitted by angusmerlin (not verified) on Sun, 2011-05-15 08:26.
Michael Collins [of EnviroReporter.com Radiation Station]
May 9, 2011 at 11:51 pm
“….we just tested the precipitation we’ve had at Radiation Station in about 6 weeks and it has come in at 42.2% above normal background. And by the nature of the drop off in ionization picked up by the Inspector pulling away from the wet towel we used to collect the rain drops (off of plant leaves in our garden), it appears to be of alpha and/or beta origin.
Fallout needs a mechanism to come down to earth. It has one now in Southern California and we’re picking it up. It isn’t as dramatic as Potr in St. Louis who used his Inspector to show rain coming in at a whopping 62 times background, but it is clearly not from a natural source.
This is also not the first time Fukushima meltdowns fallout has impacted Southern California. And it won’t be the last. Yet EPA has stopped its special testing. We haven’t.””
»
reply
“Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 2011-05-15 16:18.
“And by the nature of the drop off in ionization picked up by the Inspector pulling away from the wet towel we used to collect the rain drops (off of plant leaves in our garden), it appears to be of alpha and/or beta origin.”
This is a totally invalid assumption as well. The way you discriminate alpha, beta and gamma is to keep the detector at a fixed distance from the sample and place material to block the alpha or beta radiation in between.
These detectors have small openings for the GM tube and must be at a constant distance for results to be comparable.”
»
reply
“I’m curious if the first sentence was a typo
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 2011-05-15 08:35.
Did they mean “we just tested the *first* precipitation we’ve had at Radiation Station in about 6 weeks”?
In any case, I believe they still need to measure it over the course
of a few hours as Mark mentioned.”
——————————–
——————————–
Michael, thank you so much for all the hard work that you do, and for all of your updates. You provide a very important public service. Like many others, I also check in daily for CPM readings for EnviroReporter.
Thanks again!
@Bonnie Well said! “The hypnotism of the US boggles my mind.”
@jzhawk Great question! My understanding from a video I just watched, (see link below), is that the standard Radiation Detectors are no good for testing food and water. (unless they are extremely radiated). The cost of one that will test the small amounts in food and water runs about 5000 dollars is my understanding. ER,(Michael), might be able to verify this better than I. I am not an expert.
The kid that put this video together is very smart. He’s from Germany and suffers from thyroid issues. Unfortunately he may be representative of our future and most certainly Japan’s. His videos seem to be the most real and informed that I have seen. He also discusses iodine tablets. I found his link via FaireWinds website.
“People Buying Geiger Counters” Here’s the link –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Silk2g8fS8Y&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_709563
My questions are… When do we need to wear masks? How concerned should I be on a scale of 1 to 10 about the food and water? 10 being high.
Just a little innocent press release today from Tepco May 15, 2011. The second paragraph is perhaps the biggest lie ever perpetrated on human kind, eclipsing the holocaust in my opinion.
“As a result, we estimate that ¡Èregarding the Unit 1, nuclear fuel pellets have melted, falling to the bottom of the reactor pressure vessel at a relatively early stage after the tsunami reached the station.
Meanwhile, regarding the reactor core status of Unit 1, because the fuel has been cooled stably by water injection, we believe that there would not be likely the further situation transition, e.g. to the situation where we need to release a large amount of radioactive materials.
Because the current analyses are not always able to utilize every necessary information, which means that the analyses result are provisional, we will make effort to have more accurate status of thereactor core through further investigation.”
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/betu11_e/images/110515e10.pdf
Has anyone thought that perhaps a bit of sensationalism is something needed to awaken apathetic people? My 27 year old son would not take any radiation information seriously until I personally showed him that I have food stockpiled, many ice cubes from months ago of alkaline water, that I refused to walk out in the rsin, or until he saw me put a teaspoon of zeolite in my water. The clencher was the live feed from Japan showing him the four reactors, especially the one that “appears to be missing” in the live feed. As a mother I would do anything “sensational” to get the point across to him – to suggest he do more research – to make educated choices. I know a lot of individuals do not think critically. But apathy has to stop in order to instigate any change whatsoever. Yes, 2 inch high bolded black headlined letters are needed as well as other mediums to attract anyone to learn the facts – to make live-altering decisions. The real clencher? As a journalism major, he understands how MSM operates. The hypnotism of the US boggles my mind. I am a person who never watched the news. If it was important enough, someone would tell me. So is this a case of what you do not know cannot hurt you? And in a nutshell? This site here is the one I go to everyday for the news that can change my life. I am very grateful for it.
Does anybody know how much it cost to test food to see the levels of radiation in food?. Can a large group of interested people all donate to a fund and we can get an idea where levels in some of our staples…eg. eggs…
Is it possible to test the ocean water now….so there is a baseline before the water makes it to west coastline in a couple of years?
From a Japan news agency today 05-14-2011
Readings around unit 1 – 2000 mSv ph = meltdown
This fellow http://www.youtube.com/user/leakspinner
tracks the Japanese press and TV and has the latest news.
Here are some pictures/drawings of a study of insects near contaminated sites. Bugs, will be one of the first signs. Genetic mutations. These mutations can then be passed on to subsequent generations.
http://www.wissenskunst.ch/en/usa.htm
* credit Cornelia Hesse-Honegger
Under the current project category it says she works pro bono. (2 thumbs up for Cornelia!)
Since the events at Fukushima I have monitored from time and been grateful for the informative posts at the site: http://www.idealist.ws/index.php. The site’s tag line is: Watch-dogging Radiation Dangers and Cover-ups. There is a wealth of info on this sight….compiled long before the tragic earthquake in Japan.
On May 5th the following post was published:
“U.S. Conducts First in a Series of Nuclear Simulation Experiments That Will Involve the Release of Radioactive Isotopes on the Same Day EPA Halts Special Monitoring in Early May” I think it’s worth a read. In general while the site is passionate, I do not find it to be sensationalist. On May 7th, oddly, the founder of the site announced that the site, while still available online, would no longer be an actively updated website.
If there is any truth, to these Department of Energy Tests conducted on May 3rd and slated to continue…we should be very concerned as this coupled along with the Fukushima fallout increases the radioactive load we are already burdened with.
Curious about your thoughts on this information….
SLO+
I also hope to be there at the NF gathering. also in morro bay. I will probably have a t-shirt on featuring morro bay power plant stacks. may have young dog/activist with me if we can fit another at the table. mrs. dog will remain at port.
sore throat for a month+. but then I also have allergies and a banner year for our regional winter rains; hoping it’s the latter. I vividly remember that first storm here a week or so after the accident. I had seen the plume projections. I hope I did enough protectives.
I take the maps for what they are- a projection based on simulation data based on historical pattern- I wouldn’t take them for dead-on accuracy, but as a general principle, they are correct- we are getting periodic whip-lash from the effluent from the plants. I suspect the government knows this, but since they don’t have the faintest idea what to do about it, except keep us on a diet of straw men, puppies and unicorns.
the obvious local lesson to learn is we don’t know how to measure mutha nature relative to our aging materials and technologies and haven’t figured out how to deal with the stockpile of waste. educated guesses that are really just better-than-vegas odds, they become objectified and we deceive ourselves with a false ability to adequately describe the situation now and in the future. I’m not anti-science, but it has become in some cases too big for its britches- a new inerrant religion. the only safe choice is to decommission diablo and our other fukushimas-in-wait. my friends at the plant deride this with ‘it can’t happen here’. not unlikely- can’t. but they will admit they even don’t get the info they would like on fukushima. collateral damage affects other aspects of our lives-we also need to maintain our ability to legally purchase over-the-counter supplements to detox and protect ourselves [currently under attack by big pharma], and we should require sourcing information on our manufactured food content [has never been allowed to be established by big food]. best to be vigilant and educated.
this site, fairwinds and a few others are real assets. thanks to all who post.
Nancy and Bonnie–I don’t doubt that there is sometimes accurate and truthful information on the Jones/Higgins sites—and I completely agree that at the other end of the spectrum, the journalists who remain silent are (also) irresponsible—perhaps in a worse way.
My complaint about Jones/Higgins is that they use information/present information in such a way as to alarm people. It’s sensationalist journalism.
And while certainly, our government agencies often minimize, cover up and misrepresent (like what the FDA and EPA did recently that was exposed by the Union of Concerned Scientists), I do not subscribe to some of the sensationalist conspiracy theories promoted on the Jones/Higgins types of sites.
I do not believe that the U.S. Government is like the “Evil Empire” trying to exercise “mind control” with “Haarp.” Those kinds of representations are simply beyond the pale.
I wouldn’t want to see the credibility of the legitimate anti-nuke movement associated with, and thus undermined by those types of representations.
Chad; Re Arnie Gunderson… I figured many might have been squelched! Had not heard much since late April and if you look, where is Michio Kaku and many others? Since late April the uploads have practically stopped. It seems like around the 26th of April. Even Lauren Moret does not have uploads in May that I know of. Just an observation.
I started losing my hair after being caught in the rain in the Bay Area on March 18th or so. Hair is barely coming back.
People are getting hyper over me being prudent about staying indoors when projections and jet stream are bad. Am being looked at like a kook, even though I don’t announce this people are catching on. We really need to get a gieger counter for the central coast area so we have real time data up here, Maybe the NRC or GE will donate one!
Chase: Used to live in central valley, and yes if you are west of sierras the buck stops there. Use a Hepa air filter.
youtube David DeSante who studied bird deaths after Chernobyle. He talks about this.
Internet in 1986 was not available to the masses which makes a difference in group conscousness. And it was entombed in 15 days.
Chad – ty. I am 120 mi NE of you near Morro Rock. Sequoia Nat’l Park. We are in a Canyon that acts like a funnel for everything blowing from the west.
“Contaminate your bed and you will one night suffocate in your own waste….” – Chief Seattle Speech, Dec 1854
christine: http://modernsurvivalblog.com/
Chase I can give you a first hand account of my symptoms
I live on a boat in Morro Bay Harbor on the wknds..
I flew in from Chicago on March 20 or 21st, I really cant remember the exact dates but it was raining cats and dogs and I had to paddle a row boat in the rain and pump my bilge.
I was exposed to lots of rain and also closer than anyone to the plume coming in. I stayed on the boat for days getting blasted.
Although I dont eat meat or dairy and also consume heaps of garlic, ginger, spirulina I had a weird sore swollen neck days later, it wasnt a sore throat more of a weird red swollen feeling. And my nose (corners – inside corners-nostril) was so sore I couldn’t touch it.
When you feel this in the nose its a classic sign the body is trying to detox somethng serious.
Because Spirulina is proven to detox and chelate cesium and other heavy metals I was detoxing this poison (I think)
So acute symptoms are nose, neck, sinuses etc.
Arnie Gunderson released a video today but its hard to find
–if everyone goes to modernsurvivalblog.com and scrolls down to may 13th you’ll get an accurate Fuku. update
-its still very serious
-unit one is considered meltdown
-temps hotter than ever
-another huge hydrogen explosion possible
we are not out of the woods yet
ps-I called Arnie and spoke personally to him.
He told me that they have faced law suits and must be careful.
2 months ago he was a rock star on CNN/Fox/NBC – now I think the good ol’ boys are keeping him tucked deep and far away from the media (I hope I’m wrong!)
Interesting pages 61,62, Other Illnesses following Chernobyl.
The charts speak for themselves.
http://www.nirs.org/reactorwatch/accidents/chernob_report2011webippnw.pdf
On a note about NILU’s or any other forecasts, these are based on computer models and as such they have built in assumptions & therefore are imperfect. Models are only as good as the data and assumptions that go into them. If you do not believe that just look at your local weather forecasts and note how many times they are off. Meteorological science has been around for decades and they are still figuring it out. Computer models cannot replace or be a substitute for actual observations and measurements such as EPA’s RADNet, UC Berkeley’s Nuclear Engineering Dept., or this Radiation Station and similar sites.
People tend to believe anything placed on a map as if it is the gospel truth without understanding the information that goes into them. My own mom was looking at these projections and was thinking it was all dire. It is not the end of the world, if it were then events like Chernobyl would have been the end 25 years ago. Not to mention our nuclear history of numerous other accidents, leaks and hundreds of atmospheric nuclear tests & associated fallout. As bad as Fukushima is, it is just another drop in the bucket in my opinion. We have already been eating, drinking & breathing this crap since 1945. Since then Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been rebuilt from the atomic ashes and life goes on no matter how hard or painful. I don’t like the current situation but the sky is not yet falling.
I was in highschool when Chernobyl happened in 1986 and no one I knew took any precautions here in Los Angeles, no one seemed worried. No one I know in my age group or immediate family has gotten cancer in that 25 years, knock on wood.
Take precautions if you want, it is probably prudent, but try not to live in fear.
Prepare for the worst, hope for the best – Russian proverb?
FYI – My husband called the EPA to ask two questions: What is considered background CPMs for Los Angeles and what is the Gross Beta Count right now: 5pm PDT, Friday, May 13, 2013. Normal CPM for LA is 40 and the Gross Beta Count currently is 28. The NILU maps are only supposed to be projections and the UC Berkeley BRAWM team has posted today explaining this. I don’t have the website on hand, but you can google UC Berkeley Air Monitoring and click on forums and find the info.
Chase; Do not doubt the obvious signs of peoples independent reports. Remember as a nation, we have never been through any of this. This is all new territory. Even as an entire world this is new to humankind. What you heard you can certainly validate, particularly since no one was informed by the other, eliminating influence. A vibration of a gland would not mean allergies most likely.
Chad; It will be interesting to hear what you have to say about this issue given your training. I am a therapist, and can bring some validity about psycho-social responses to dangers that people feel they have no influence over, as I research these.
SLO and the others, am looking forward to this fascinating time.
Remember that once before the NILU Fukushima reports (the general public’s version) were stopped. But, NILU restarted posting their forecasts, when they realized that there was a demand. So, everybody, email NILU at nilu@nilu.no, and once again let them know that ‘yes’, we do want them to continue their weather forecasts for Fukushima radiation plumes.
nilu@nilu.no
Potrblog – Thanks! Sent the link to my family in St. Louis.
Chad – Sitting Bull and Chief Seattle were the kind of leaders we need today.
A couple of questions that someone might have an answer to.
What will be the first affects or signs of illness in people and/or “other” life forms that will be noticeable as a result of Fukushima? I understand the long term affects such as cancers, but what are we going to see first and how long if not already will it be? What are doctors currently seeing from those who have entered the no go zone?
I asked this because over the last week I have had 3 people, who know little to nothing about what’s going on make a statement that seemed down right odd to me. It really seemed strange because a couple of days prior to the first person’s statement I felt the same thing, but I “sluffed” it off as allergies or psychological. (or both)
Each of these people, independently, and at separate times said “Wow, it feels like my thyroid is vibrating!”. They were almost word for word. I did not say anything because I am not a Medical Professional and I would not want anyone to panic or give someone false information. My reply was, it’s probably just allergies. But, I have to admit it, I was silently thinking, this is VERY weird. Especially since I’ve never heard anyone say that before in my life and then, 3 times in one week. hmmm… I thought? So I came here to ask.
I know this sounds a bit silly, but I would like to know.
@JON – The TRUE radiation map has NorCal/Oregon in RED
OK Jon, you got my attention!!! I live in Oregon with my two babies. Please post links!
I also disagree with Liz. I don’t agree with everything that Higgens, and Jones say all the time; but the fact is, I would not get any information if I was not reading their news. That’s where I find EPA readings, food readings, etc. MSM – guess they really don’t do investigative reporting anymore. I also get information from a physics blog. I found them through the Higgins and/or Jones blogs.
EPA RadNet indicates Fukushima radioactive fallout dumped on Saint Louis. The post will give you some idea of what to look for in the RadNet charts(while they still release them)
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/05/alert-avoid-produce-and-dairy-epa-shows.html
here is link http://modernsurvivalblog.com/
More deception! Norways NILU had dual plume tracking maps. This link below will explain NILU’s site and show both May 13ths maps. The TRUE radiation map has NorCal/Oregon in RED! San Diego cpms are rapidly climbing today (am 15cpms pm 113cpms.
NHK headline today
(No.1 reactor: An official of Japan’s nuclear safety agency has suggested that a nuclear fuel meltdown at one of the damaged Fukushima reactors means that filling the reactor’s container with water may be meaningless.)
Full Story | Video
Hi SLO (and everyone)
I will be there.
I make Native American shirts so I will be wearing a Sitting Bull T Shirt the quote reads “Only after the last tree has been cut down , only after the last river has been poisoned, only after the last (radioactive!) fish has been caught..only then will you find that money cannot be eaten.”
I have drafted a nice little truthful awareness letter for all the papers – parents- children-college community and I want everyone to look it over and give me their input before submission–we need to discuss community awareness;
there are a lot of bright intelligent parents and college kids that will jump on board.. they just need that initial awareness and we need to start now.
One thing I’ve noticed about America after being gone in Australia for 6 years…we have very short memories.
Peter Garrett of Midnight Oil has a song titled “Short Memories” in which he sings about the “silence of Hiroshima”
He has been fighting for years the uranium mining and poisoning of Aboriginal sacred lands.
I was lucky to receive a scholarship over there and gain a Masters of Indigenous Health in which I used to fight for Indigenous causes – it is important that we use our intellect and credentials to fire up the community otherwise the “officials” will try and downplay us as quacks or cospiracy theorists.
The fact that we live a few miles from Diablo means this problem will never go away.
Everyone bring their fact to the table (especially concerning the current Fukushima status). 98% of our residents believe Fukushima has been contained and is a done deal ?! Is this a local case of “Short Memory” syndrome?
If anyone has trouble reading the scientific notation on the UC Berkeley Nuclear Engineering Dept. (http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling) readings for milk, air, water, etc. here is a simple way to decode the notation.
For example: 1.3e+04
1.3e+04 is equivalent to 1.3 x 10 to the 4th power, in other words
1.3 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 10 = 13,000 (essentially just moving the decimal point 4 spaces to the right.)
A good website for decoding stuff like this is http://www.wolframalpha.com/
SLO; Thanks. I am on. How will we identify each other?
Hey Liz,
I completely disagree with your assessment that Alexander Higgins and Alex Jones represent the heights of “irresponsible journalism.” In fact, the full meltdown was reported on Alex Jones’ website sometime back, based on some expert opinion. Turns out he was right. The irresponsible journalists are the ones that continue to remain silent about this issue, or to simply parrot the press releases about the Fukushima situation.
While I don’t always agree with Jones and Higgins’ sensationalists intepretations of what is going on, I do appreciate the links to various news sources that are providing solid facts about the issues. At least I have something to sift through, minus the hype. If I depended on mainline journalism, I would not have a clue of what is going on.
Nancy
Hi Everyone!
Roundabout, Chad, everyone interested in San Luis Obispo County: We are still on for a meeting to brainstorm about this issue on Friday, May 27, 2011, from 6pm to 8pm at New Frontiers in the Costco shopping center on Los Osos Valley Road. My mom and I will be there…
Let’s do a head count. Who else is coming?
-SLO (In Chat I am femmgrrl) But I am not in chat until after finals and graduation!
P.S. I skimmed all the great posts here since I visited. Thanks so much everyone for continuing the vital information. I love the idea of getting Michael and Denise Anne’s site Enviroreporter to go viral. Great thinking!
Thank you Chad and Weaver for the apt description of Alexander Higgens et. al. (Alex Jones and the whole lot of them). That is the height of irresponsible journalism.
Ana—thanks for the info about Fukushima. I’ve had my head buried in work for the last few days and haven’t been checking the news and the sites.
It does not surprise me in the least that there actually was a full meltdown,. NIRS has been suggesting that the types and quantities of certain isotopes found almost certainly indicated that.
Nor am I surprised that the Japanese gov’t and the Nuclear industry minimized what was happening and/or outright lied about it.
What’s scary is that this “Bowlderizing” of the true facts has been going on HERE, also—-historically, with respect to plant safety issues here in the U.S. and currently, with respect to fallout from Fukushima here.
What excellent posts there are for the last day or so. This site is such an outstanding resource for the truth.
Michael—we’ll all be eager to see your numbers and new report. It’s really scary that your HEPA air filter is showing “hot.” I knew that all along—-that it would seep or drift into our homes via air conditioning systems and other vulnerable access points. Obviously a good filter (which I also have) would catch much of it, but likely not all of it.
Unfortunately, this will be going on for an unimaginably long time.
@ Bill G: I entirely agree. We think our rain sample 5/9, that was 42.4% over BG, was from the Xenon-133. And same with the External and Internal differences that you note.
I do take random external readings in other places but don’t put them into the data set as they don’t mean as much as readings where we have the exact same int and ext conditions to more accurately determine overages.
But as for radioactive particle accumulation, I just tested one of our Hepa filters (0.01 micron filter) and it is reading hotter than background. Denise and I will test it thoroughly tonight and film/photograph all. Definitely zinging the Inspector after 2 months of filtering. This ought to be cool (er, hot) to take tests of and document.
All will be coming out in an upcoming report but we’ll tell you folks about it first here.
@Chad
Given that EPA has decided to not do lab tests for 3 months, I would keep a close eye on UC Berkeley’s independent lab tests: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling
Also I second the notion to avoid Alexander Higgins’ blog. He is more concerned about shock value than real news and seems somewhat obsessed about it. Rarely does he check his sources and he often misinterprets the data in order to produce frightening doomsday headlines. I would stay away from that blog altogether.
With regard to a Higgins forecasted increase in Xenon radiation for LA, it appears that there is an increase in EXTERNAL vs INTERNAL readings of about 10 CPM over the last few days. That may indicate a recent increase in Xenon radiation.
I, too, have questions about the radioactive particle accumulation. Perhaps random readings should be taken at different outdoor places. I wish I had a geiger counter….
I don’t think that their 6-9 month projections are on target given this interesting press release today:
“The administration of President Barack Obama “has made it clear from the very beginning that this is a multidimensional problem” that will go on for “years and even decades,” Roos said in an interview this week.”
http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110512D12JFA03.htm
Close to two weeks ago, Michio Ishikawa of the Japan Nuclear Technology Institute talked about the situation at Fukushima I Nuke Plant, when he appeared on Asahi TV on April 29. What he said is slowly becoming truth as more media starts reporting it. My Japanese friend watched 5 video clips (the latter episodes discuss politics and distrust amongst residents – a bit off-topic). Here’s the video of the show, for those of you who can understand Japanese …http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO0flpwmjJI&feature=player_embedded
Here are the main takeaways:
· Ishikawa and several other specialists on the round table believe that 75-85% of the cores have melted, if not all, as opposed to the 55, 35, 30% figures released by the Japanese government for reactors 1, 2, 3, respectively.
· The figures released by the Japanese government are essentially bogus because nobody or no robot has entered the reactors and witness what is exactly going on. They are releasing percentages based on wishful calculations.
· Their primary objective should be to enter the reactor and assess the real damage. This would include removing concrete debris from the plant exterior and clearing space for heavy machinery to be installed. That way a human in a heavily-fortified capsule could propelled into the core. Many of the initiatives being planned and executed to channel radioactive water to outside tanks should be of secondary concern.
· Since the gas seeping into the atmosphere as a result of radioactive matter being cooled, radiation levels outside the plant are not as high as Chernobyl, where gas a result of a full nuclear meltdown seeped into the atmosphere.
· As the plant is water-cooled, uranium-235, plutonium, cobalt-60 continues to accumulate in the water tanks and subsequently released into the ocean. Approx. 1,000 to 10,000 times the safe dosage of cobalt-60 are being released from the reactors – it is uncertain what percentage of this is directly being pumped out to sea.
Hi Bar,
Checked out your link regarding the high levels of radiation coming our way.
I noticed your link ties into a guy named Alexander Higgins
I believe Higgins is whipping up the doom and gloom scenario and is not truly interested in reporting factual info (be careful of sites that are displaying prediction models)
However, although no one else answered this question earlier I am also not down playing the fact that radiation is still headed our way. As stated in my earlier question: Isnt it inevitable that air water and food radiation will increase in the next couple days/weeks/months if the plant is currently stll releasing large amounts into the atmosphere?
I think others are having trouble answering this question
because we currently have lower levels than seen many weeks back.
Because of bio accumulation shouldnt readings be rising?!
Someone help me out here it just does not make sense.
http://www.npolicy.org/
Nonproliferation Policy Education Center (NPEC) – DC based think tank. Their website offers a treasure trove of information. Particularly interesting is an April 11 statement/power point presentation considering nuclear energy prospects (from safety & economic perspective) post-Fukushima (indicate future in natural gas, solar, wind, etc.).
Definitely worth taking some time to research NPEC’s site – including taking some political action to effect our government’s nuclear policy based upon what is presented.
They also have written Congress requesting the President’s proposed $36b in nuclear power plant construction loan guarantees be REMOVED from the 2012 budget. The President’s current position is to include nuclear in the basket of “green energy,” that he is promoting to wean US from fossil fuels: solar, wind, nuclear,… (one of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn’t belong… she sings)…
Also… statement from Feinstein on Joe Cirincione’s Twitter page saying “I took this job so I could help ensure a nuclear-free future for my grandchildren and my grandchildren’s children.” Clearly, Sen. Feinstein could be a strong ally in defunding federal subsidies for nuclear power plant construction. Please act on this precious opportunity to plead with your federal representatives to AT LEAST work against federal subsidies for nuclear power.
The news today is reporting that a meltdown did occur at Fukushima 1, with all of the fuel rods exposed, and that a molten pool formed at the bottom of the containment vessel, possibly burning a hole through it into the ground. This would explain why the water is both highly radioactive and leaking, even contaminating the ground water. TEPCO admits that this may make it take longer than 9 months to get the reactors under control.
Here’s the link: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8509502/Nuclear-meltdown-at-Fukushima-plant.html
I write this because all of the government “experts” are surprised. The only ones not surprised seem to be the independent scientists. No one should be surprised, and this is one more reason the media should not be downplaying the situation nor should the EPA stop their radiation monitoring.
It’s very frustrating when our government, media and industry “experts” seem determined to keep their heads in the sand when people need to be informed so that they can take measures to protect their health and families.
Thanks for letting me vent. I’m just tired of hearing how people who should not be surprised are surprised. Yes, sometimes I feel like I am on the Titanic, and while I’m looking for a lifeboat, the rest are commenting on how lovely the music is.
Nancy
http://www.myweathertech.com/2011/05/11/massive-cloud-of-radiation-heading-for-the-us/
Has anyone else seen this?
Reactor 1 fuel rods exposed and reactor 4 building is “leaning” and in grave danger of collapsing.
http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/05/12/50171757.html
Thanks everyone! I bounce here at least once a day.
I agree with Micheal, don’ forget to check out the chat area. A lot of good stuff comes up in there. Unfortunately, good ideas or comments may scroll away at some point. So, my suggestion is if something seems worth it, then jump back here and please leave a comment or send Michael an email.
Anyway, I’ve been thinking. Just how can this web site go viral? It really should. What trigger would make it a “must see” site. I don’t have a good answer, but maybe someone does?
Brainstorming:
1. Call all the News Magazine shows. such as Frontline, 60 minutes etc… Get someone to do some real TV coverage. If that’s possible.
2. Somehow make a TV commercial, since the only thing people think is real has to be seen on TV. I know commercials cost money. Maybe donations or get a sponsor to make a TV commercial and mention this site as a public service.
3. Find a political candidate to endorse the site and talk about it. (okay I’m really dreaming on that one)
4. Have Rebecca Black make a song about it.
5. Contact celebrities and have them make 30 second youtube spots about this great site. That way when people look up a celeb, some will click on their endorsement.
6. Make a reality show that’s about the struggle to get clean food and water that’s not contaminated and how to take precautions, grow food, and make homemade Geiger counters or whatever. It could be called The Future of Reality Show.
I used a bit humor in my list, but I am serious.
I am sending this link to everyone I know who has a facebook account and asking them to post it on their wall.
🙂
@ Claudia – I didn’t approve it only in that you quoted a website in English that was solely in German. I couldn’t make heads or tails of it. We don’t censor moods, but your kind words are certainly appreciated.
So appreciated in fact that we would like to extend an offer to you and our regular commenters: JOIN OUR LIVE TIME CHAT!
It really rocks and is by invitation (to keep out the mean-spirited troublemakers that plague open chats) and you can shoot the breeze with us live time! Or just sit back and enjoy the show.
Of course nothing will replace these amazing comments but it does add a lot of spice.
Interested? Shoot us an e-mail and say you want to join and you regular commenters get in immediately (after Denise, aka Lady Fingers, sets you up): contact [at] enviroreporter.com
Michael and Denise,
I am glad you didn’t post my mail from about a week ago.
Reading it again,I guess it might have offended some people and that was absolutely not my intention.
I had one of those “down days” where I needed some” positive” news about Fukushima but how could that be possible……
Thank you for providing a forum for all of us-it’s really sad that most people around don’t even want to listen,are not interested and when you start explaining they just give you “that smile”……
Claudia
NILU FLEXPART Forecast system is no longer running – per statement on their site.
thank you Michael and Weaver for the replies
Iam currently calling direct to Diablo to see if i can view their daily readings -so far no response
Also how is it that we are now receiving somewhat normal air readings when the plant is (aparently) still releasing very high levels into the atmosphere and will (apparently) cont. to do so for many more months.
Doesnt this mean that we will continually or eventually start seeing higher air/land/water readings in the next few days /weeks due to the building accumulation…anotherwards if what the epa sais is true (which i do see some concrete evidence of), that milk soil and air samples are on the decline then how could this be possible if the plant is still emitting very high levels.
The only thing I can personally think of is that maybe we only receive solid spikes after major explosions?
Rain will be the worry…then back to higher levels in the milk etc.
CORRECTION: The Tokyo geiger counter Facebook page is here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tokyo-Radiation-Levels/196845207013685 I hope this link works instead of the first one I did. My apologies.
@ Weaver – That Facebook page doesn’t seem to exist right now. Also, numerous maps show extensive soil and water contamination inland from Fukushima so while anything is “possible,” it surely isn’t probable in this case. Simplistic maps showing radiation readings across the U.S. which don’t have legends, dates or anything other than whole numbers and are based on paying customers’ input, however good intentioned they may be, don’t seem to be solid sources of information.
@Chad I’ve been following Tokyo geiger counter readings on http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tokyo-Radiation-Levels/ and they do not seem to show rising levels, for the most part. This is possibly because of wind blowing the radiation out to sea. So the Blackcat map may be fairly accurate.
Also, I do not see any readings near Fukushima for several miles… the closest one is Tsukuba (101.6 miles away) which is an 18 at the moment, and Kamagaya further south is a 27.
@ chad whitworth – I cannot speak for companies that take your money before you contribute to a supposed system that seems neither accurate or even explainable and relies on people who may not know what they are doing. It doesn’t take a radiation scientist to figure out that any system showing radiation readings in California being higher than close to Fukushima is probably several eletrons short of an atom.
Ana,
You are amazing! Thanks so much for that info. I really love the people on this site!
Healthnut,
Ironically, there is radiation in cigarettes! Great idea to have some ads up regarding this whole situation.
I am going to visit my family this weekend and let me tell you how exhausting it is going to be. I just talked to my sister the other day and told her some safe foods to eat and she said “Why? This whole thing is still going on? I looked and can’t find anything on the internet!” Of course she can’t! Oh a commercial regarding this would be sooooooooo nice. I won’t look so nutty!
Hi everyone/
Michael,
There is a site called Blackcat that shows a radiation map it usually shows California higher than stations that are reporting near Fukushima.
For example California right now shows 15 (around SF) and its a 12 right near Fukushima.
Do others think this is correct info?
We are higher than areas that look very close to Fukushima?
Also I read in a natural news article yesterday that plutonium is in America from this.. just wanted to know if others believe this is a factual article.
here it is -part of the article “radioactive mountaintops” by Mark Sircus
The Plutonium Angel of Death
Plutonium represents certain death; it is death, concentrated in nuclear form. Riders of death come swooping down from the upper air currents on plutonium steeds and just one tiny particle of it has a deadly effect if it touches down anywhere inside of human or beast. But don’t worry about this and do what your governments want you to do. They want you to proceed with your life as if everything is normal. And while you do, they want you to spend and borrow and do anything you can to keep the deteriorating economy and financial system from collapsing altogether. The last thing they want you to know is that an alien race of nuclear super particles called plutonium are gathering and scattering around the world like Hun Hordes. We have this going on already with mercury and other heavy metals and chemicals; now the toxic soup on our planet is going nuclear in a big way and it will continue that way into an increasingly toxic and frightening future. We have just had another disaster on day 11 and it has already changed the world in a very dirty and nuclear direction.
I really hope I am coming in loud and clear. Geiger counters measure decays but they do not tell you what kinds of particles are decaying. It is confusing, it is invisible and not even our Geiger counters tell us the whole story of increasing dangers that surround us. Anyone who thinks life is going to be the same on our planet with multiple open nuclear sores ripping apart the soft skin of our ecology and physiology is mistaken.
Nuclear harm happens in ultra slow motion. Yes it can happen in days, weeks and months to a few but the harm to the many happens in the years and decades that follow. We don’t look down and see that we are now sterile until we cannot participate in a conception. Cancer does not start between one day and the next. But these days tornadoes do.
Tray – two people at the Berkeley forums had good answers about the bread issue. I’ve cut and pasted what they wrote:
“We eat a lot of dave’s organic killer breads…when i contacted them, i was told that they harvest wheat from spring to fall, at which point their stores are siloed and withdrawn throught that year. my assumption would be, then, that the next batch of fukushima-era grain will start showing up on shelves sometime in september/early fall.
i would imagine other granaries are following similar procedures.”
“Try Food for Life Ezekiel Bread. It is a sprouted whole grain bread. The product code is on the plastic band that seals the package.Code will begin with a K or L. K means bread was packaged in 2010 and L means it was packaged in 2011.If a code reads: K3265, take the last number (5) and add it to the first three numbers (326+5). This will give you 331, which is a julian date code. So, the product with a code of K3265 was packaged on the 331st day of 2010 = November 26, 2010. A lot of markets still carry items packaged in 2010. They freeze them and stock the shelves when needed. The breads, tortillas, and english muffins can all be frozen.
Hope this helps.”
To share some random thoughts here:
1) Who is it that sponsors those state “Stop Smoking” commercials?
2) Wouldn’t that sponsor also be interested in knowing how to promote public health and reduced cancer from Radiation?
3)How can we tell the officials, stop wringing your hands, yes there is something we can do to minimize the damage — this is what it is (aggressive anti-oxident supplement regimen, etc.) and EDUCATE THE PUBLIC.
4) Why? Because it will save the state $$$$$ in the long run from cancer and other related illnesses. !! There’s no difference between the health impact of smoking and radiation. They are both toxins and they both result in cancer. We just have less choice in the radiation exposure.
5) If anyone knows that contact, let us know so we can write them.
Michael,
I don’t have the changes saved. I was watching the levels every day, multiple times a day, and noticed, on two different occasions, that the levels, esp for Beta, were changed right after a monitor came back on line from what it had been at before it had been taken down. It was because of these changes that I started saving the Sacramento levels. Sorry if this caused any confusion. If you still want what I have: I don’t currently have a zip program but I will take the time this week to find a way of getting it to you.
– Jen
What a safe bread to eat?
Thanks!
Pertinent to Chase’s comment:
I emailed Senator Feinstein a few days back re: defunding nuclear power loan guarantees, and I just received a response from her office – I’ll include the pertinent excerpt below. Bottom line – it’s obscene that taxpayers finance polluting, dangerous, non-profitable, non-sustainable nuclear power plants. If they were a viable energy alternative – they wouldn’t need subsidies. If you agree, it’s critical that you take a moment at this sensitive juncture and email your federal senators & congressmen that you want these subsidies/loan guarantees removed from the 2012 budget.
Here’s the excerpt: “As you may know, the President’s fiscal year 2012 budget proposal requests $36 billion in loan guarantee authority for the domestic nuclear industry and research and development of advanced nuclear technologies. I appreciate knowing your opposition to this funding. You may be pleased to know that I recently voted for a fiscal year 2011 Continuing Resolution that provided no additional authority for loans to nuclear facilities. As Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, I will be sure to keep your thoughts in mind as the Committee considers fiscal year 2011 and 2012 funding levels. “
Chase, unfortunately our “leaders” merely serve to block solutions that compete with the existing power-base. The easiest way to prove that is to try to start your own competing generating facility.
said Tuesday: (from yahoo article – “Japan to scrap plan to boost nuke energy”)
Naoto Kan, the prime minister, said Japan needs to “start from scratch” on its long-term energy policy after the Fukushima”. Making Wind, Solar, and Biomass the next pillars of energy.” Conservation will also be a key.
They will no longer set the goal of Nuclear power to be 50% of their energy by 2030. (it’s 30% now)
Also starting a temporary shutdown of reactors on the coast at the Hamaoka plant as a precaution.
___
My opinion is that they are at least making some forward thinking decisions. It’s a start. Maybe too little too late, but it’s something. Too bad they, and the world, will suffer from this crazy lesson.
If only our country’s leaders would just… do the right thing?
@ JMS – We took no offense at what you wrote, none in the least. We so appreciate your excellent comments. But you can do us one better – you say you have screen captures of the Sacramento RadNet and that you “HAVE noticed time in the past when they changed/”updated” information for other cities on the site to their favor. This is the reason I started saving screen captures from Sac on a regular basis.”
Could you e-mail us those screen captures, JMS? How about also including screen captures of the new readings on RadNet that seem to “update” the first measurements? This would be extremely helpful in our upcoming coverage. Send them in a zip-file to contact [[at]] enviroreporter.com.
Thank you, JMS, for your excellent comments and thanks to everybody here in this impromptu Radiation Nation for their cogent comments. Keep them coming.
Why is it that right when I think I have a handle on understanding the Data and the Info it becomes really confusing again?
The link that WEAVER posted at the Radnet site for archived readings in and around the area you live in actually show readings HIGHER than a lot of the readings after the tragedy. Now how can this be? Or am I just not reading it right? I check Sacramento, and Los Angeles. The readings either seem to be just as high before the tragedy or even lower in some cases afterwards. I just check in BETA CPM’s.
Am I going crazy?
Chase–I love the Titanic analogy—it does nicely capture the different responses reflected.
There’s one category missing, however—which would include those who don’t even know that the ship hit an iceberg!!
I suppose I’m in the group of those who play music and go down with the ship—-I can’t say the word “calmly” applies, but while I do exercise some precautions (trying to avoid the rain, etc.), I am not avoiding so many of the types of foods as others are.
I made a conscious decision not to stop cooking with fresh vegetables. However, I’m from an older generation, my son is grown and I don’t have to worry about small children.
But at least that’s a conscious decision on my part.
My concern is all of those who have no choice because they simply do not know; given the dearth of truthful information–or any information—on mainstream medie, so many are simply blissfully unaware. If they knew, they might change their course to adapt. But they don’t know.
Which is exactly how the nuclear industry prefers.
Unfortunately, the “voice” of agencies like UCS, PSR, Fairewinds, etc. is not “loud” enough to reach the general public; people have to know about them to even begin to look for the information since the major media are not reporting it.
There are, of course, those who are in denial. But I believe that the majority of those simply just don’t know.
Let’s face it. The industry isn’t going to go out of its way to tell them.
Call me paranoid, but I wanted to make sure of something (since this will really bother me if I don’t clear things up. Even if there wasn’t something wrong.)I think there may have been a miscommunication at some point. My attitude of frustration was not, in the least, directed at you or anyone here.
I have been on your site and have been following the UCB site now since the very beginning. So I have been watching the ups and downs regarding this whole mess and the trends regarding rain fall and such. I religiously check enviroreporter.com and the UCB site, every single day, if not multiple times a day. My family has been taking measures to reduce risk since the incident. (I have posted, numerous times in the past, regarding what kind of measure we are taking. I even made my husband buy two boxes of powdered milk on the 15th because I had a weird feeling we would need it, not knowing at the time how bad things were going to get.)
So, unfortunately, any amount that we DO see doesn’t surprise me anymore. But it does sicken me that the EPA is taking such a laissez-faire type attitude to this whole mess.
Please accept my sincerest apologized if it came across, in any way, that I was being sarcastic or negative towards you. In quoting, I was agreeing with what you were saying and expressing the general reaction I have been having to this whole situation, which has been to either laugh in frustration or cry in anger. I appreciate everything you and Denise are doing and pray sincerely that you guys can continue this great work. You have my utmost thanks and support.
P.S. I check RadNet every day, mostly out of morbid curiosity, but I don’t trust them. I have saved previous screen captures from Sacramento, and though they have yet to show a data change, I HAVE noticed time in the past when they changed/”updated” information for other cities on the site to their favor. This is the reason I started saving screen captures from Sac on a regular basis. I do honestly think something screwy is going on in Sac. Spikes lasting for a few days at a time have shown to not be uncommon here, but you cannot convince me that the timing of the Sac Beta monitor going haywire NOW isn’t, somehow, suspicious, in the very least.
P.P.S. If you were just commenting on my comment and I am being sensitive, I’m sorry. I just do not want you to think that any of what I said was an attack on you or what you are doing here.
UPDATED: INSERT OF THE WORD “FIRST”
@ JMS Low and behold we just tested the *first* precipitation we’ve had at Radiation Station in about 6 weeks and it has come in at 42.2% above normal background. And by the nature of the drop off in ionization picked up by the Inspector pulling away from the wet towel we used to collect the rain drops (off of plant leaves in our garden), it appears to be of alpha and/or beta origin.
Fallout needs a mechanism to come down to earth. It has one now in Southern California and we’re picking it up. It isn’t as dramatic as Potr in St. Louis who used his Inspector to show rain coming in at a whopping 62 times background, but it is clearly not from a natural source.
This is also not the first time Fukushima meltdowns fallout has impacted Southern California. And it won’t be the last. Yet EPA has stopped its special testing. We haven’t.
Hey, now, they have ALWAYS made things easy to find. They would NEVER make things on their site difficult. :oP
*said with INTENSE sarcasm*
The only reason I found it was because I went looking for it to make sure I wasn’t talking nonsense. 🙂
“EPA would have you believe, there in no chance the United States will be impacted by the radioactive fallout from multiple meltdowns upwind of us.” < The truth in this statement makes me want to laugh in frustration and cry at the same time.
Sorry, Michael, if that came across as a correction. Apparently I posted it the same time you were posting your comment.
The new map is only now leading you to the http://www.epa.gov/radiation/rert/radnet-sacramento-bg.html info page. The old map with the blue pins and instant readings are gone.
I wonder why everyone else seems to be having issues with the page. I have been on multiple times today with no problems.
Still seeing no end to the random Beta readings in Sac though. Argh.
@ JMS – That would be new then which is great. Indeed, much of their expanded Fukushima radiation monitoring was because of people like you coming here and caring about what the heck is going on. But that was then and this is now so other than their semi-live air readings, water, milk and the rain will have to wait until August because, as EPA would have you believe, there in no chance the United States will be impacted by the radioactive fallout from multiple meltdowns upwind of us.
This is actually a quote from the RadNet site:
“All times shown are Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is the international reference time formerly known as Greenwich Mean Time.”
https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/enhelpnavradnet.do#publicmap
@ Weaver – I cannot seem to get the page to work for Sacramento right now but let me address the spikes issue. The LA RadNet readings for LA show a couple of spikes. EPA says this about spikes: “Electrical interference can cause spikes, shown on graphs as one point significantly higher than the rest of the data.” The operative words here are “one point significantly higher.” The two spikes don’t look like the other high readings on the graph that appear like ascending and descending ‘mountains’ for lack of a better word. I think those are legitimate readings and here in LA, we’ve been over four times background.
Don’t expect EPA to tell you anything because this is now a non-issue. Which brings us to your second question. The readings appear to be taken in the future, as if EPA just made up the stuff, when actually they are using Universal Time (Greenwich Mean Time) but didn’t bother to tell you with a simple notation.
@Weaver:
It’s my understanding that they go off GMT time, same as the Berkeley people. It’s off-putting when you are trying to match up current times with us. :o)
Typo sorry: take the wet clothes off them and throw them in the washer and then give you kids a shower.
Ana,
I have put my kid in school when it is raining only in the morning. I pull him out during recess and take him home because you are right they do allow them to play in the drizzle. I have heard though that as long as you take the wet clothes off and throw them in the shower within 24 hours they should be fine.
I encourage everyone that is still following the EPA data to look at the archived data at https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/query.do The only selected parameters I’ve used are Measurement End Date/Time and Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM). Make sure you select the monitor location (I used Sacramento for mine) and the Start/End date. It is interesting to see some of the spikes that have happened pre-Fukushima in various locations. Of course, we will never know if the spikes are the results of electrical interference, instrument failure or actual radiation – it’s all up to the EPA to tell us.
One thing that is not clear to me: I ran Sacramento’s data for today and it’s displaying CPM with timestamps in the future. It’s currently 8:12 pm (20:12:00) as I write this sentence, and the data shows measurements taken at 20:50:20 (124 CPM) and 21:50:35 (159 CPM). How does this work, exactly?
“Fukushima Groundwater Contamination Worst in Nuclear History” – from Fairewinds.com
Why this kind of information is not on 60 minutes or some other main media is beyond me. It’s straight forward. They are industry professionals who are asking the right questions and giving “mostly” easy to understand answers.
I agree with those who say we shouldn’t have to think about these kinds of things. On the other hand… If we don’t take the time to understand and think, then we put ourselves and our loved ones at grave risk. The situation should now be very clear. Yet, most are still in denial or putting their heads in the sand.
My late friend stated it very well. He said it’s like we are all on the Titanic. Some people will panic and jump, others will stay below to try and keep the engines running, some will calmly play music and go down with the ship, while others will attempt to find a life boat. That’s really kind of how it is. Personally, I am in the life boat group.
Healthnut: It was Radnet Map Interface. The site is for academia but I had access since March. But after posting here my access is now denied.
Here’s how cabin air circulation works: http://www.boeing.com/commercial/cabinair/
And although this recent article does NOT pertain to any radiation study, it made me think twice about those kinds of contaminants also being on an airplane, post Fukushima.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/4610474/Toxic-cabin-air-found-in-new-plane-study.html
It’s also supposed to rain next week, on and off, in Los Angeles starting Sunday. Personally, I am considering keeping my child from going to school on rainy days since I know they let them out to play when it’s a light drizzle.
THERE WAS A RELEASE OF 500 MILLION BECQUERELS SUNDAY
The latest move came after Tepco opened the doors linking the reactor building to its adjacent turbine building Sunday, and confirmed the resultant release of radioactive materials into the air had not raised radiation levels on the premises and nearby areas as of 5 a.m. Monday, according to the firm.
By opening the double-entry doors, air containing about 500 million becquerels of radioactive substances is believed to have been released into the atmosphere from the upper part of the No. 1 reactor building, which was damaged in a hydrogen explosion that occurred in the early days of the nuclear crisis.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110509x2.html
@Jon
Where are the CPM readings you’re posting coming from? Sorry, not finding the link if you posted it.
@Tray – The domestically grown apples should still be pre-Fuk, since they’re a fall harvest. We’re still eating apples, in fact we’re buying up lots of organic apples to last us as long as possible.
Chad: the plumes come in at different elevation levels (NOAA/UMD)sometimes bypassing Ca.
TEPCO and the government on the 1st May. “If the current situation continues, high density radiation will be released on the 8th May.”
Tray, It will be safe to fly again when the TSA stops molesting my wife and kids as a prelude to getting on the plane. In regards to flying and Fukushima fallout, the risk is greater the closer one get to Japan. If I had to fly now, I would wear one of the carbon filter N95 masks I listed on potrblog.com. I would look at the flight track and try to get RADNET Gamma and Beta counts for cities along the route. I would also look for plume models of Xenon and Iodine, as the radioactive gasses are probably a greater risk on aircraft (hence the need for the carbon filter mask). Whether or not flying is safe or unsafe really depends on the fallout dispersion; it is unlikely anyone in industry is going to dare to do a worthwhile test to actually quantify those risks.
In regards to swimming pools, I have not done any analysis. But I would expect the pool water to dilute the risk. However if it was raining for several days, it might be another matter. The bigger risk is ground water runoff and sewage treatment. In Florida, I would avoid the beach water after any period of protracted down pours. I would also avoid any places with sewage runoff; apparently cesium concentrates in treated sewage sludge. My guess is that any beach with a Enterococcus or Fecal Coliform warning has a greater risk of fallout contamination from storm water runoff.
Has anyone heard anymore about the alleged fires that broke out at Fukushima on May 8? Does anyone know if this correlates with the higher than expected radiation levels found at the plant this weekend? It worries me because I wonder if we can expect higher radiation levels in the USA in the next week from this recent spike at Fukushima.
I don’t know if anyone keeps up with Fairewinds.com, but the nuclear expert Arnie Gunderson thinks we ought to complain to the EPA about their decision to only test for radiation once every three months, when the situation at Fukushima is far from stable.
Here’s a link to an interesting Huffington Post blog entry, with info about how the media is being censored in Japan, along with links to the Gunderson video announcement on Fairewinds.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vivian-norris-de-montaigu/deadly-silence-on-fukushi_b_859241.html
Two questions,
Does anyone know of a safe bread company?
I was eating Ezekial but there is a water question and they wont tell me where they get their ingrediants.
Also, how is Jon showing high readings everywhere and others are claiming we are getting wave after wave of radiation when this site and everything im looking at for Ca. is normal readings.
Does anyone know the answer to this question:
Are we today getting normal air readings in Ca. are we getting slightly higher levels of particulates or are we getting levels of concern (especially considering this could be long term)
It seems that we had higher levels (many weeks back)and the air is safe as of today. Is that correct?
I’m still having trouble reading all the different sites and i really dont know if we are still receiving even slightly higher levels of radioactive particulates.
No one is addressing whether Fukushima is still emitting radiation high enough in the atmosphere to affect us here.
From my understanding our higher spikes were due to the explosions that sent vaporized material high into the atmosphere.
Now I may be un informed but I believe there havenot been explosions recently so we are not getting it in the air at the moment?
Anyone want to put in their ideas on this?
Chad
My mistake. After posting here Radnets high 10 min avg.cpms, I am now denied access to the info.
Big R,
Okay so I checked my water on your list and it was an F! I usually drink only Fiji but a few weeks ago thought maybe Eternally Pure would be better because it is from New Zealand. I do have reverse osmosis from Culligan. I have the top one with all the filters. I usually cook and make coffee with it. I am actually going to call see if they are ans and nsf 53 and 58 certified as per Potrblog.
Here’s my question. I had the PH level checked on my reverse osmosis and it was like a 5.9 which is really acidic. I know water should at least be a ph of 7.0. They say it is okay to drink acidic water as long as you have a diet strong in fruits and veggies. Here’s the dilema: my family lived on fruits and veggies. In fact, I really miss slicing an apple and peeling a carrot for my kid. I now do frozen shakes for him and us in the morning with frozen fruits. And frozen veggies but not nearly as much as our diets are used to getting. I just don’t know what to do regarding a water filter.
Thanks for any info anyone can give regarding this. And Happy Mother’s Day to all those Incredible Mother’s and Father’s fighting to keep our kids safe everyday in such a topsy turvy world.
Jon, thank you very much for the link!
Potrblog,
Thanks for the info on flying! I was actually going to fly to Florida for a month just to take a break from LA and get out of one of the most affected areas from the fallout. Now I think I will stay put especially considering my child. I thought going to Florida would be a safer option for him and our family. When will it be safe to fly again? Do you have any info on swimming pools after it rains. Are they safe to go into? If so how many days after? You are a wealth of info and Thanks! You must be a parent.
Fixed Monitor Location: AR: FT SMITH
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/09/2011 12:32:49 PM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/09/2011 01:32:57 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 110
Fixed Monitor Location: TX: LUBBOCK
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/09/2011 12:30:44 PM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/09/2011 01:30:54 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 170
Dr. Wotawa’s dispersion plume tracking has been shown to be 95% accurate. You can follow the plumes drifting east by the spikes along the way.
Fixed Monitor Location: NE: KEARNEY
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/09/2011 12:03:41 PM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/09/2011 01:03:49 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 143
Fixed Monitor Location: NE: OMAHA
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/09/2011 12:21:47 PM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/09/2011 01:21:54 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 159
http://transport.nilu.no/products/fukushima
Jon, I was not able to find Dr.Wotawa’s current dispersion map on Norway’s NILUs site and would appreciate it if you would please post the link that “shows wave after wave of radiation coming to the west coast”.
Thank you all.
chad whitworth, I wager there are people in Japan who feel the exact same way you do. Unfortunately there is no protection in the herd mentality. While the herd is going the other way is the time to prepare for when and if the herd swings back the other way.
No one in authority is going to tell the public pursue limited resources IN THE MIDST of a crisis. In regards to the EPA, Iodine 131 is the canary singing that an uncontrolled fission reaction is on going; but they are only reporting to us a limited number of radionuclides. Is it the end of the world? Unlikely, humans are tough. But, the appropriate level of caution, might protect one’s children from cancer. The question is what is appropriate level caution?
Our path forward has been to pull forward some purchases we have been mulling, especially items that will be in short supply when the herd gets a hint things have gone south. If the risks end up not impacting us; We are have avoided inflation on those items we pulled ahead. If things do go further south, we have mitigated the potential of our kids getting cancer. The link will give you some insights into how we have mitigated our risks.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/search/label/Risk%20Mitigation
We apologize for any confusion – the Stand By sign was in front of the Inspector as it was doing an Interior 10-minute average taking a total count and dividing it by 10 to get more accurate readings on Exterior and Interior radiation monitoring.
Did I see 300+ rads at 1pm or so or was it a different setting? The screen said Stand By, whats going on?
thank you concerned mom
if the readings are right than we have “normal” readings as of a few days ago.
That is reassuring considering there have been some posts of people concerned about high readings in the last few days.
I really do not know who to trust on the internet these are the only truthful local readings we can rely on.
I am also confused how people were reporting that the EPA was going back to once every 3 month testing…it looks as if that may be false if the last readings were 4-26 and the current tests were on 5-5?
One last question for Michael and others who want the truth:
If you go back and read all the readings since this thing happned it looks as if iodine 131 was our big concern it jumped up lke 20x to 1.55 many weeks back.
Well if that has a half life of 8 days then those particulates are not a concern in our food any more.
Therefore it doesnt look like we had nearly as high of readings for the Cesium 137
How bad is the Cesium (and other particulates) really going to be in our food supply in the next few months?!
99.9% of people in SLO county are eating “normal” even educated conscious people I know?
Am I and others buying into fear and hype by calling bread companies and produce co.’s etc?
Will we ever know if the Cesium is of health concern for us and especially the children or is it all hype like james Thomas told me (he is the radiological ‘expert’ running the show for the EPA in Sacramento) I spoke to him for an hour on the phone his number is 916-445-3566
You guys should call him he is extremely intelligent and will answer any technical question
He left me confused I truly dont know the extent of radiation in the Ca. food supply (he said very minute! Look at the data! ) maybe others could help here because sometimes I feel I’m buying into false fear and panic with my “only greenhouse” vegetables!
Thank you,
Chad
California Dept of Public Health has just posted its updated report for air and milk monitoring for California. New report is dated May 5, 2011, with reporting period of April 8, 2011 thru April 21, 2011:
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/RHB-RadReport.aspx
Hello EnviroReporter-! Thanks for being the lighthouse in this invisible storm-! I’ve been following this site and blog since mid-March, it’s been a Godsend, I was completly in the dark about this crisis, alone in my concern, and wondering what to do, it’s a great community here. There seems to be a problem with the webpage for the Inspector.
When I go on it it’s almost impossible to scroll up or down, it’s some kind of virus possibly, but only on this site and only on the Inspector pages. I can hardly type this in because it effects that too. I’ve still been checking in to get info, but it’s really hard this way and I get the virus everytime and have to run the anti-virus program to get it out, but it still effects the pages when I am on them. Can anything be done? I don’t think it’s my computer, otherwise it’s fine on all other sites.
Thank you both so much for all your work, integrity, info, and the community you have built… you guys are awesome-! Anna
Got it, Jon, thank you. Yes, I know what UTC, so now the time-frames made sense. I was scratching my head trying to figure that one out, since the results showed a time of day that we hadn’t reached yet. Who’s doing this monitoring and what kind of instrument is he/she using?
Thanks. These are really high counts coming in. And they’re way above “background” by anyone’s estimation.
Here are links to to bottled water quality. You can check your favorite brands:
http://shine.yahoo.com/event/green/best-and-worst-bottled-water-brands-2436818/
http://www.ewg.org/bottled-water-2011-search (Click the square blue tabs for more info)
http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/bw/bwinx.asp (from 1999, look at appendix A for a tabular comparison)
Personally, I buy whatever bottle that states it was filtered with reverse osmosis on the label. If it does not say reverse osmosis or distilled water I won’t buy it. I stopped buying Crystal Geyser Natural Alpine Spring Water based on info in these links. CG appears to have had water quality issues dating back to 1999 and still in 2011 based on these links.
Radiation levels trending upward in L.A. and elsewhere yet we are told the opposite? Norway’s NILUs Dr.Wotawa current dispersion maps show wave after wave of radiation coming to the west coast.
FWIW here is 5/3 report from EPA. FDA, NOAA — which claims:
“U.S. Seafood Safe and Unaffected by Radiation Contamination from Japanese
Nuclear Power Plant Incident; U.S. Monitoring Control Strategy Explained”
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/mediacenter/docs/2011/may/seafoodsafetyfactsheet_03may2011.pdf
Fixed Monitor Location: SD: PIERRE
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/07/2011 11:32:46 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/07/2011 12:32:54 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 132
Fixed Monitor Location: CA: RIVERSIDE
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/07/2011 11:10:35 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/07/2011 12:10:43 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 92
Fixed Monitor Location: AZ: PHOENIX
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/07/2011 11:38:28 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/07/2011 12:38:37 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 122
Fixed Monitor Location: AZ: TUCSON
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/07/2011 11:03:34 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/07/2011 12:03:43 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CP : 122
After high cpms Colorado Springs EPA site goes down. A pattern I’ve seen for weeks.
Fixed Monitor Location: CO: DENVER
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/07/2011 11:49:11 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/07/2011 12:49:18 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 146
Liz: my response was not posted yesterday? Info from EPAs site. High cpm 100+ for days this week in Reno,ID,AZS.D and the I.E..
[All times shown are Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is the international reference time formerly known as Greenwich Mean Time. Local time can be found from UTC time by subtracting the appropriate “UTC time zone offset.”)
Thanks, Tracy, for the heads up on the radiation or chemical leak at Pierce College, located in Woodland Hills, California I googled it tonight and it looks like the containers housing low-level radioactive materials did not become unsealed or unbroken. The containers were housed in an underground vault that was part of the old chemistry building at the college, and it looks like the vault was disturbed during a renovation/ construction project currently taking place at Pierce College.
Here is the link for those interested:
http://www.therounduponline.net/news/hazmat-team-confirms-no-danger-to-campus-1.2560577
Jon, (with respect to your latest Colorado post), I’m asking again for further information about your measurements. The time-frames on the Riverside measurement (which seemed so high) don’t compute—-the times you noted were later than when I wrote my response to you and I live in that general Inland Empire corridor in SoCal. So something didn’t make sense. Can you please clarify?
Margery—
LOL, don’t worry about typos here…we all make those mistakes. We all know what you meant to say. Heavens, some of us may be older, but we’re not THAT old, (from the 1500s) LOL….
Thanks again for posting.
With the EPA stopping an adequate monitoring system, thank God for Michael and Denise, and this board!! The tendency to get complacent for me runs higher at times than others. Entertaining and socializing around foodstuffs is quite difficult when one is attempting to avoid isotopes in the food. I cringe when others tell me about how their diet incorporates milk products. Its a crapshoot whether someone wants to listen or not. Socially, there comes a time when I can not even bring it up or the controversy flies.
Fixed Monitor Location: CO: COLORADO SPRINGS
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/06/2011 09:02:32 PM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/06/2011 10:02:40 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 135
Ana – Thanks for the info on Fresno Nuclear Plant. I had no idea and was appalled and astounded. OMG
I did some research and what I know is this:
(from article)
http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/03/15/2311653/madera-co-oks-nuclear-support.html
[ Since 1976, California law has forbidden development of new nuclear power plants until the U.S. government approves a way to dispose of or reprocess spent nuclear fuel.
In December, Hutson (CEO of Fresno Nuclear Energy Group)and the group said they had found a way around the moratorium. The reactors would be characterized as parts of a water-treatment system instead of power plants. ]
So… Basically they have found a way to exploit a “loop hole” in the law and they’re going to go for it.
Almost all articles pertaining to this subject were “pro” nuclear. All board members for the Madera County Supervisors voted “for” the proposal just last month. Surrounding counties, such as Fresno and Kings counties, also appear likely to vote in favor of these plans.
Wake up and speak up people of Fresno/Madera.
What part of, “It can NEVER be 100% safe”, do people not understand? Answer to myself –> “Follow the money!”
There is a radiation or chemical leak going on right now in Woodland Hills at Pierce College. They are still trying to fix it. I called and asked why it wasn’t on the news yet they said it will probably be on later tonight. Great! How about when we can do something to protect ourselves and our kids while it’s going on.
I just noticed an typo in the post that I did on the Partial Nuclear meltdown on the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. For heaven’s sake, it wasn’t in 1559….it happened in 1959.
Jon–
Where did you get this measurement? The times noted for 5/6 (3:08-4:08 p.m.) are later than right now (3:12 p.m.) when I am writing this. Did you mean 5/5? Are you using EDT instead of PDT?
What kind of instrument and where did the information come from? Thanks.
Looks like the EPA has some new lab data posted a couple days ago: http://www.epa.gov/radiation/rert/radnet-sampling-data.html Seems to show decreasing levels in precipitation. While they’re showing non-detect for i-131 in drinking water across the board, they’re still testing for the other isotopes. Keep your fingers crossed.
Here’s all the EPA lab data to date: http://opendata.socrata.com/Government/Precipitation-RadNet-Laboratory-Analysis/e2xy-undq Click the column for Date Posted or Date Collected to better organize it.
Also, here is the UCB data: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling Seems to show decreasing levels as well.
A thought: it has been very hot and windy this last week. Could the wind be sweeping more particles past the monitor and causing higher readings? It seems like readings are still somewhat high all over the west coast… and Sacramento is still, unfortunately, down.
“The lesson, as summarized by one scientist, is this: If you are working with a radioactive substance, don’t let it escape. If you let it escape into the atmosphere, it may come back to you.”
Source: The Bay Citizen (http://s.tt/129dg)
http://www.baycitizen.org/blogs/citizen/fukushima-diablo-welcome-great-nuclear-1/
In case some of you didn’t know … new plans for Fresno nuclear reactor : http://www.baycitizen.org/energy/story/fresno-nuclear-plan-moves-despite-crisis/
El Diablo nuclear reactor’s status is business as usual, despite PG&E making a bogus public announcement that they would delay permits in light of Fukushima disaster : http://www.baycitizen.org/pge/story/pge-seeking-permission-extend-diablo/
John Upton, a writer for the S.F. BayCitizen, has consistently published many articles regarding the impact of the Fukushima disaster. Here are a few links to his articles:
http://www.baycitizen.org/japan-disaster/story/real-dangers-radiation-japan-difficult/
http://www.baycitizen.org/japan-disaster/story/feds-abandon-radiation-monitoring-milk/
http://www.baycitizen.org/environment/story/richmond-radiological-lab-takes-lead/
http://www.baycitizen.org/japan-disaster/story/radioactive-rain-falling-us/
xed Monitor Location: CA: RIVERSIDE
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/06/2011 03:08:00 PM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/06/2011 04:08:08 PM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 167
To Margery—
I”m glad you decided to post in our community. Scientific knowledge is not a pre-requisite! There are plenty of people here who do have that background and they are enormously helpful about explaining things to the rest of us.
What I love is your bringing Santa Susana into the equation—-while some are watching our local “rad” levels, some of us need to keep a focus on historical and current issues with respect to plant failures.
There are innumerable safety issues which are NOT being properly (or honestly) addressed by the industry or by the gov’t regulatory commissions.
It is only a matter of time before some minor “glitch” evolves into a full-blown catastrophe at a plant (aging or new) here in the U.S.
Thanks for adding your voice to this wonderful group!
I was gone all day today, so am trying to catch up on posts and wanting to watch the rest of the PSR vid posted by Ann, yesterday…..
But I’ll keep my focus squarely on the broader issues….and will continue to be grateful to those who are monitoring the more regional ones for all of us.
Fukushima resulted in one unexpected blessing—-an entire group of people from diverse backgrounds and with diverse skills and knowledge, coming together to address the global and regional implications of the incident, itself, and others like it over the years.
Nothing but good can emerge from all of that!
@Jeremy and Annette2,
Reading the Radnet graph data at http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-data-map.html , I’ve noticed several “bumps” in radiation graph data over the last week in several stations near the west coast. Riverside, San Diego, LA, and Reno NV show considerably-high spikes all in the same time range. Sacramento has gone completely haywire and continues to stay that way.
Curiously, other nearby stations like Anaheim and San Francisco show normal readings.
I’ve been trying to research this on my own, but does anyone know if there were any radiation spikes announced at Fukushima lately?
Here is a link to the historical radiation records http://oaspub.epa.gov/enviro/erams_query.simple_query. I think it goes back to 1978. I was just looking up milk readings for iodine 131 to compare post Chernobyl records in Los Angeles in 1986. Curious thing was there were relatively high readings before and well after Chernobyl. Does not make sense for an isotope with a short 8 day half life. And what was the source before that event?
@Annette2
Thank you Annette. I totally agree that if we knew what the readings were before we would have a good idea how bad off everything is. I will do my research as well and post any new finds.
Thanks again Annette
@Jeremy –
It is concerning about this week’s ongoing high peaks in beta readings. I’ve been watching those too. I have been watching the Los Angeles monitor in particular, which now is over 100 again, and decided that I needed a little perspective. I tried to access pre-Fukushima RadNet readings for the same location, but cannot find anything beyond the few days that are shown on the current graphs. These few days pre- 3/11 and up to 3/16 (before the radiation should have arrived) do show 5 peaks that approached/reached 100 beta counts/minute. If this is accurate, then clearly LA has some ongoing/non-Fukushima related beta release, or some sort of ongoing electrical interference that is creating those peaks.
Anyway, no answers, just more questions. It did provide me a bit of background though. I tried but could not figure out how to access the archived air monitoring data. Come to speak of it, the archived drinking water & milk testing data would be fascinating as well. I remember someone explaining on this site how they accessed old (1970’s) data a couple of weeks ago when the plutonium detection discussion was ongoing. Viewing that old data nationwide, relative to what is happening today would be extremely helpful.
I would think that checking out the historical data for all of these locations that you reference, Jeremy, would be a very helpful reference point in attempting to explain this erratic & apparently extreme beta activity.
I’ll continue to try to figure out how to access the historical numbers & will post if I’m successful.
Can anyone help me answer my questions a lil earlier? Thanks peoples :0)
What got lost was my statement that the Santa Susana Field Laboratory partial meltdown is considered to be 250 times larger than Three mile island. It was a sodium reactor with no containment domes, and when 13 of the rods melted down, radioactive substances were vented all over the San Fernando Valley, and Simi Valley for several weeks.
Although I have not previously commented, I have been reading all of your comments 2-3 times a day, though a lack of scientific ability usually stops me from adding any personal observations or suggestions for dietary prevention measures.
In spite of the above, I have been serving as an environmental activist for the last 5 years to learn more about and participate with the community to assure the cleanup of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory clean up of a partial meltdown in 1559 as well as toxic chemicals such as 50,000 gallons of TCE dumped into the soil to clean up over 30,000 Government contract rocket motor and fuel tests.
It is amazing to me that this partial meltdown is never mentioned by the press…only Japan and the Three mile island nuclear meltdowns. Yet, it is considered to be on this 2850 acre site in Simi Valley, on the border of L.A. county.
This partial meltdown should serve as a cautionary tale that it takes a very long time to clean up a nuclear disaster. So far, it has been 51 years.
Right now, I am keeping my eye on all of the readings from Japan and am especially concerned about the milk that my grandchildren are drinking in LA, San Diego,S.W.Colorado and Washington State.
I agree with Michael that it is truly alarming and appalling that EPA has stopped it’s testing, and is apparently assuming that nothing more that is harmful will be blowing our way.
WRONG!
The correct response to “there is NO SAFE level of radiation exposure” is “there is NO SAFE level of germ exposure”.
It is also likely that having no exposure to radiation is just as dangerous as having no exposure to germs. Just like our bodies were designed to operate in a germ filled environment, our bodies were designed to operate in a naturally radioactive environment. Take either of those away, and you’re asking for trouble. The key is the source and the dose, the more unnatural either of those become the greater the risk grows. But never forget, fully grown humans are designed to be hard to kill, it is the growing ones that are most at risk.
Tray,
The act of producing milk is the act of trying to concentrate minerals and such so they can be passed on to the offspring; that is why milk is the highest.
But radioactive materials do also accumulate in other parts of the body, usually they are directed where they are needed-like calcium to the bones. Growing animals would tend to accumulate more than adult animals.
This link to my blog has some additional links that will give you a breakout of radioactive uptakes by animals (various organs) and by plants.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/bikinis-coconuts-bread-fruit-and.html
@ Weaver – You are right on the money. The I-131 in the milk rises in Los Angeles and the EPA says it will go back to the quarterly measuring of it after supplying only two results for the product which is a mainstay of children diets. Outrageous abrogation of responsibilities combined with a ‘the radiation will never get here’ attitude when it clearly has, are two shameful hallmarks of EPA’s actions (or lack thereof).
There is something else to consider: things could get worse (just like they continue to at the site of the Fukushima meltdowns). Note that most of Radiation Station’s ambient air readings for gamma, alpha and beta contamination, along with our repeated in situ testing of outside surfaces for alpha and beta radiation, show a fairly normal baseline (even though EPA’s own monitoring of So Cal has worrisome spikes in beta). That could be mostly from the fact that we’ve had almost no precipitation for over a month.
But precipitation has come down across the state of California, much of it incredibly hot as U.C. Berkeley’s readings bear out. That water goes into the Sacramento Delta and has landed in the form of snow in the Sierra Nevada’s. That water will make it’s way to Southern California where millions will drink it for months before the EPA tests it again.
Radiation does not disappear just because the government says so either through incompetence or wishful thinking. The amount of radiation escaping Fukushima is astonishing with no end in site. Yet we are unwilling guinea pigs consuming our water, milk and food because the EPA says so.
Radiation never sleeps. We better not either. We will soon complete our Radiation Nation Preparation post/article that will include many of the excellent suggestions to reduce radiation intake loads posted here in comments or chatted about in our chat. It is incredibly unfortunate that we have to be forced to control our water, air, food and selves with no straight-up and competent help from the government. But we will because we have no choice and we will do it together.
@ Tray – You don’t say which foothills you live in but, regardless, I would watch both measurements.
@ Nancy – Oh yes, that 33 picocuries per liter for milk on the U.C. Berkeley website is really worrisome. But, according to the FDA, it’s not much at all even though it is over ten times the Maximum Contaminant Level for drinking water.
Add to that the fact that milk’s most recent number in Los Angeles was 4.0 pCi/l, or 25% over the water MCL; it is really troubling up and down the state. The government explains away this by referring to the overly-high FDA number for I-131 in milk which is way too high (and considers factors like lifetime consumption of milk).
Tell that to the kids in this state who practically live on milk.
A colleague of Denise and mine, Dan Hirsch of the Committee to Bridge the Gap, puts it best in a comment to a recent Forbes article:
http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon/2011/04/14/why-does-fda-tolerate-more-radiation-than-epa/#comment-194
@ Everyone who wished us a happy anniversary – We can’t thank you all enough for the kind words expressed here. Though we wish we had (‘virtually’) met under different circumstances, we are so blessed to be able to count you as our new friends!
Hello everyone,
I know this conversation has been brought up before, so I apologize if it is redundant. But I couldn’t find an answer…
I’m a little concerned about what the EPA RAD NET MAP SITE is saying about some of the readings for this entire past week. The readings today for Reno NV, (which is the closest for Northern Ca) is at 145, Riverside 117, Anaheim 90, San Bernardino 81. And these are all of the BETA CPM’S that there site has been calculating. THey have been ranging from low 40’s to over 200 this last week pretty consistently.
So I guess my question is… are these correct? Is the limit for emergency levels still at 126? Or has EPA raised the levels for human health above who knows what… ? Should we not be concerned with these type of levels or am I correct in assuming we are getting some serious clouds of Radiation floating in?
Thanks everyone… and especially Michael and your Wife and Site 🙂
Cheers…
Jeremy
So far the information that I have been able to discern by reading some of the comments here and by listening to information from Fairwinds (Arnie Gunderson) is that according to a Geiger counter, the levels of radiation in Southern California have remained somewhat normal. We have, however, problems on an undetermined level, with radioactive particles that have become part of the atmosphere and that due to fallout from rainfall we have an undetermined amount of contamination in the tap water and that our milk and other dairy products may have contamination. We need to avoid leafy vegetables and concentrate on underground vegetables. I suppose that by doing a lot more searching I could find out more conclusively what is going on but I don’t really have time. I guess that since this could actually be a life and death matter I should make time but it is rather difficult given the demands for economic survival that have been placed upon most US Citizens.
While we know there is some level of danger, it seems that even with the internet,, it is very diffult to figure out how bad it really is. The presentation from Fairwinds the past few days which suggested that we need to be absolutely fastidious about coming into contact with any sort of dust is very scary. I really want to know what the concentrations of radioactive particles in the southern California atmosphere are so that I can make some sort of risk assessment to determine exactly how diligent I need to be and what instructions to give my children. Should I not allow them to ride horses, who tend to kick up dust? Should I allow them to swim in the pool this summer? At a certain point it becomes difficult to even engage in a normal life because we are going to become aliens in our own environment.
There really is a need for some kind of meeting where all this information can be pulled together and synthesized into some sort of guidelines since we certainly can’t rely on the mainstream media. Most of what purports to be legitimate media is about the same level as pro wrestling these days. They have lost all credibility and it is probably better not to even watch or listen to it.
Just imagine the situation we’d be in if one of the 104 reactors in our country has a catastrophe like the one in Fukushima. Think of the risk that’s involved for just 20% of America’s power! Is worth it?
Back in the 60’s we used to march and create change. Have we suddenly lost our voices? Liz is right .. this is huge worldwide problem that could wipe us all off the map. Rolling Stone Magazine discusses topic : http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/america-s-nuclear-nightmare-20110427
To Ann–
THANK YOU for this excellent presentation from Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR). I can’t watch all of it tonight (long work day today and tomorrow), but I am most grateful that you posted it.
I truly understand why so many here are concerned about regional/local food items, water, etc. I truly “get” why those with younger children, especially, are posting and posting about items that are “safe” v. those that are “contaminated.”
At the same time, my own concern is with a broader focus about the actual or potential impact of nuclear disasters worldwide, not just locally.
While there is some concern here in the U.S. (and Potrblod posted a great article from Science Daily, this morning about Plutonium found in the soil in Sweden so many years after Chernobyl–such that we may well ponder what will be found in the soil, here, years hence—)—-
I still maintain that the ultimate issue is so much broader–a focus, if you will on the more global implications that such disasters can cause, have caused.
PSR is a superb organization, and the video you posted seems to be addressing the global implications of nuclear safety (or lack thereof).
I will have time to watch the entire video (nearly an hour long) tomorrow night, but in the meantime, thank you so very much for posting it.
I continue to assert that while regional/local concerns are not without importance, the broader implications across time, and for so many people, are the issues on which we need to focus.
Chernobyl seems to have deposited excessive amounts (above “background”) of Plutonium in Sweden,m per the recent study posted by Potr.
Fukushima no doubt has caused the same effect here in the U.S.
But what will be the next “event” somewhere in the world–whether here or on some other continent?
And what damage will be done to people and the environment.
While “worried” about regional issues, we need always to remember that this problem extends far beyond the circumference of our own small neighborhood.
Ann; Thanks for the info! I got the Nestle’s pure water info from the bottle wioch stated it came from a protected underground well… that could be another name for sewer now that I think about it…!
I cannot believe how many people do not even know about the “failed” nuclear plants in California.
1. Rancho Seco – so many problems it could never become profitable. Not to mention the radioactive releases that were tainting the milk in the Sacramento area.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rancho_Seco
2. Humboldt Bay Nuclear Reactor – could never become profitable once they figured out they built it in a fault zone not to mention a tsunami zone. (soon to be dismantled)
btw – In 2004 they spent over a million dollars trying to find some spent fuel rods. They never found them!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humboldt_Bay_Nuclear_Power_Plant
They have really nice picnic benches set up next to the giant cooling towers in Rancho Seco though, so at least it’s good for something. 🙂
So… now you know.
Possibly the most important press conference you will hear about Fukushima Disaster Impact, to date.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkYCWTpUuLU&feature=player_embedded
On Tuesday April 26, 2011, Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) held a joint press conference with Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Massachusetts) and the Institute for Policy Studies’ Robert Alvarez on the ongoing impact of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster to public health 25 years after the accident, the continuing nuclear catastrophe in Fukushima, Japan, and the lessons from both for U.S. public health and safety. It is the most COMPELLING press conference I’ve ever seen on the subject and asks poses some difficult scenarios to consider should a Fukushima disaster occur on our homeland.
The speakers are:
Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass), Ranking Member, Natural Resources Committe
PSR Immediate Past President Jeff Patterson, DO
Robert Alvarez, Senior Scholar, Institute for Policy Studies
PSR President-Elect Andrew S. Kanter, MD, MPH
PSR Member of the Board Ira Helfand, MD
Remember, there are no safe levels of radiation.
I normally get Arrowhead spring water. I called them and they told me they were testing for radiation once a month now as opposed to once a year. They were NOT testing for their drinking water which is derived from an LA municipal source because they said that the EPA is responsible for checking levels on municipal water. They claimed that any contamination would be removed because their drinking water is treated with carbon filtration in addition to Reverse Osmosis. Their Spring Water, on the other hand, was their own responsibility in terms of testing. Apparently those test results came in at the end of April, none of which they are releasing. Moreover, they said that they have continued to bottle their spring water without any interruption because their test results conformed with the newly raised EPA and FDA guidelines. They would not release any numbers nor would they tell me what water seemed cleaner/had lower numbers. And by the way, they claimed that they were only testing West Coast Spring Water, not East Coast because ‘there wasn’t a problem on the East Coast’. Funny stuff, these corporations!
Roundabout – I’m not sure where you got the information about Nestle’s Pure Water derived from a protected underground well. I just hung up with them and they said that their water can come from wells or from local municipal water. Regardless, it’s treated with Reverse Osmosis. You can go on their website and see what their levels for radiologicals are since Dec:2010. I wonder what they are now…
NESTLÉ® PURE LIFE®
PURIFIED WATER
ENHANCED WITH MINERALS
FOR TASTE
Testing Period: 1st – 3rd Quarter 2010
SUBSTANCE MRL* MCL** LEVEL FOUND
Radiologicals
Gross alpha particle activity (pCi/L) 3.00 15.00
Gross beta (pCi/L) 4.00 50.00†
Radium 226 + Radium 228 (sum) (pCi/L) 1.00 5.00
Uranium 0.001 0.030
All Radiological results
are in full compliance with
all FDA and EPA standards
for bottled and drinking water.
I would like a call to consider action on the following two items.
1) I am perturbed about the truncation of milk testing by the EPA (next measurement in 3 months) when some large populations had milk that was DETECTABLE on the last measurements. Many of us wanted to see where trends were leading in some of the localities so as to adjust our food intakes. I would advise YOU to contact your congressman, senators, members of the press, Dairy council, store chains purporting to have the healthiest foods, and any other pressure points to get transparency restored. Our food supply and food industry and tourism isn’t helped by NOT TESTING when we have the public uncertainty regarding TEPCO and their infinite appearing schedule.
2) I did a quick check and there appear to be businesses that supply radiological testing equipment. Perhaps they could assist private public groups who want more measurement – provided that they are not suppliers to the nuclear industry with conflicts of interest. I urge you to organize and seek them out. It is too bad that we have to maybe clone services that aren’t publically provided for emergencies like this, but one puts a structure in place one step at a time. Of course Greenpeace is doing testing but they are in Japan. Maybe they could advise.
With the looming shortage of health care resources, it is important to understand our food supply – chemotherapy and gamma knives for tumors are very expensive and an unattractive events on an individual’s timeline.
Chad – Re: Ezekiel Bread. Go on their website. They give you codes to determine when their products were packaged. Products that were packaged at the end of 2010 and early 2011 are still on the shelves. Basically, the code starts a K (for 2010) and L (for 2011) and then you you have to add the last number to the first three numbers to get the julian date. I’ve been stocking up on their breads, tortillas and english muffins and freezing them. Hope this helps.
SLO: I love the idea of your Mom coming on the 27th. I am most likely around her age. New Frontiers is great. We can muscle test the supplements that are best for each of us. I concur, we need to get a geiger. I am SHOCKED that EPA stopped monitoring… sounds like the BP oil spill fiasco… Lets go for the 27th on Friday at New Frontiers! Six oclock sounds great. Can everyone chime in if you can make it in SLO? Its on my planner unless canceled. But we should get a show of hands as well for planning purposes.
Chad; I had no luck with Sam Blakslee. Not going to get my vote… sorry Sam. Crystal Gyser is not the best. Earlier post on this site from someone, Gerber and Nestle’s Pure water are both from the underground protected well, and were highly rated. Someone else also posted Kirland water from Costco. I bought both and am hoping for a Berkey Water filter at some point to use in conjunction with the purified water to hopefully take out the BPA from the plastic bottles. Please let us know about the Ezekiel Bread, and maybe you can sprout your own and create it yourself…
Kim: We will keep you posted via this site (and other interested parties) on our meeting at New Frontiers.
Alan; Give this some time, you’ll have water companies begging to use your water in the future most likely. I hope you get rich!! Lol! In the meantime, enjoy every drop yourself in good conscience!
I am sprouting, and bought some liquid green clay from New Frontiers, just in case I ingest something. My prefukushima eggs will eventually run out. But I am enjoying these cesium free eggs while I can. What an indulgence! Remember with Tillamook cheese, they age it 60 days. We have another week to buy it…
Thank you EVERYONE! Have a good day tomorrow! Peace.
Our family owns two “water tunnels”, excavated in 1885, which penetrate into the San Gabriel Mountains. There is at least 24,000 gallons of water produced in a 24 hour period from these underground sources most of which we do not use. A small percentage is used to provide water to part of our property and of course my family uses it for drinking water as repeated tests have shown that it has no pollutants and we do not treat it with chlorine or other chemicals. After 3/11, I was concerned about radiation getting into the water but was somewhat reassured after reading that water from underground sources was safer than water that had been stored in reservoirs or had otherwise been subject to direct rainfall. The source of the water is a vein which runs deep underground and at no time is the water exposed to the surface until it runs out of the tap. I had previously approached several water companies about purchasing water from us but was told they were not interested. After 3/11 I again approached a drinking water company about potentially using our water, emphasizing that it was from an underground source and less subject to contamination by airborne radiation, but was again rebuffed. Does anyone out there think that this water might be useful now that we seem to have this problem with the tap water? I would like to generate some income with this important resource and it could be helpful to others during this terrible crisis.
I would like to add that I am most grateful for this site which is providing some information. It is bad enough that we are subjected to this crisis but to be sold out by our media and our government is very distressing.
Richard,
While it may sound serious, I don’t think the EPA’s announcement really changes much. They will not update their “daily summary” page as regularly, which wasn’t very useful to begin with – just reiterations of their “everything is OK, nothing to see here” mantra. As I understand it, they will continue to post air monitoring results though they may pull back a few of the additional deployable monitor stations.
What mostly concerns me is that lab data is returning to a quater-based report… so we won’t see new data for another 3 months. They’ve barely taken more than 2 samples per location as it is, so it’s not a major change… yet still very unfortunate. For example, LA milk rose 1.1 pCi/L in I-131 between samples but they say levels are dropping… really? Do they think their audience is incredibly stupid, or what?
This also comes at a time when UC Berkeley is still finding (potentially) high readings of Cs-137 in milk: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2174 I’d say that radiation in milk and food is a case far from closed.
So all in all nothing has really changed that dramatically. Yes, levels are considerably low here in the states but we deserve to see the data results nonetheless. I have little confidence that the EPA would ever casually post data that would incite panic or alarm; any abnormal reading is already being passed off as a “spike” or “instrument failure” (which do occur; my point is only the EPA knows for sure).
It goes without saying that this Radiation Station is like a light at the end of a tunnel. I am very grateful for this incredible resource of information.
In regards to the other question I believe by Nancy – I have read meat is just as bad as dairy regarding radioactivity.
Take pectin and get it out of you! Everyone.
Hi SLO and everyone,
I emailed and called Sam Blakesele yesterday regarding the lack of interest and or action regarding this ongoing situation.
So far no response.
I believe letters to the papers from all of us might have an impact.
However I wanted to get responses from local officials first so I can quote them, that way it will be more fun.
First lesson for the community: ingesting radioactive particles is 1000s of times more dangerous than backround radiation…especially for a year!
We can work on getting a local monitor, all we need is 10 or 20 people to throw in 10 or 20 bucks….because this situation is not over.
We cant rely on local gov.
Whatever date and location works for everyone – i will be there.
The only good that might come out of this is less meat and dairy consumption!
PS- what’s everyone doing for water? I’m drinking Crystal Geyser.
Great green house butter lettuce at New Frontiers
Pears and cucumbers also!
I was thinking of calling Ezekial bread co. and inquiring about their sprouts – considering the bread is all sprouts.
It would feel great to have clean fresh healthy bread.
Anyone else figuring out good food ideas?
(or know of co.’s that are taking measures–like testing before shipping out?)
Chad
Portblog, You said mammals concentrate fallout in there milk. Does that go for their meat? I feel like that may be a stupid question but my mind is not as it used to be.
Hi Friends,
I won’t be able to join you for a Diablo Canyon meeting, although I will be there in spirit. I am 2 hours away, not really a feasible drive for a mom of a young one on a given evening.
However, I am very interested in writing letters, making calls, sending emails, etc. I also want to know what is found out about radiation levels coming from DC. Please keep me on the list and count on me for support from a distance.
Kim
Hi Roundabout, 2dogs, Chad, Kim, & everyone in SLO County,
I may be able to meet somewhere that serves health food at 6:00 p.m., Friday, May 27, 2011. My mom will be visiting and wants to come too. I wont be on here as much until that date because I am stressed with finals so I can’t organize details.
Steve at New Frontiers said that 5 of us meeting once in the cafe (for free) was fine, but if there were 10 we would need to talk about the $75.00 room (or eating/ordering that much food). I thought meeting somewhere from 6pm to 8pm, eating and talking about Fukushima, radiation contamination here locally, what we can do about it (life changes/supplements), and getting monitoring of Diablo or a meter locally sounds good. I will try to be there, wherever you guys come up with in SLO and bring my mom! There is a place called Sustenance, but they might be pricey.
-SLO
Criminality confirmed.
EPA will no longer conduct radiation monitoring related to Fukushima — Results have not been updated for almost a week
May 3rd, 2011 at 04:59 PM
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/data-updates.html
Lotus and all– Hard to believe, but if true, astounding and disturbing that with all that’s transpiring, EPA says they’re returning to monthly – quarterly testing– when they should be doing DAILY testing across the country!
I suggest all check out Latest Discussion from Fairewinds
“Where is all that Fukushima radiation going, and why does it matter?” posted today.
http://www.fairewinds.com/home
There have been some questions here about hot spots, here is an example of such a hot spot from Chernobyl which might give some insight.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081001130000.htm
Nancy,
My family stopped eating / drinking ALL post-Fukushima Dairy Products. Mammals concentrate the fallout in their milk, and there is just no telling where the fallout will fall. There still is time to stock up on aged cheeses and such. Here is a source for canned butter from New Zealand.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/source-for-red-feather-canned-butter.html
It appears that the EPA has returned to a routine testing schedule:
Quote from their page.
In accordance with normal RadNet protocol, EPA will be analyzing milk and drinking water samples on a quarterly basis and precipitation samples as part of a monthly composite. The next round of milk and drinking water sampling will take place in approximately three months.
I will try to find out from Arizona Public health if they are continuing to test milk. 3 more months to wait before we can trust local dairy here? It seems like some of their samples at particular sites had NOT gone down to NON DETECT!
I just checked the UC Berkeley website, and it shows a total of 1.25 bq/liter for regular pasteurized milk (which translates to 33 picocuries per liter) that had a best-by date of 5/2/11. The EPA is showing no readings for milk, at least in Los Angeles, farther south.
Should I be concerned about drinking this milk? I thought the standard for drinking water was 3 picocuries/liter. I think the standard is higher for milk (not sure what it is) but 33 picocuries/liter seems really high.
Thanks,
Nancy
Denise and Michael,
I sure hope you had a great anniversary. I agree with Liz, you both need some R@R at some time. You both look so happy in your picture! Happy Anniversary! May there be many more to come!
manhands/ladyfingers- happy 90 more west coast minutes for your first!
chad, SLO, rounda- keep me in the loop thisa way for a slofolks event. I’ll get on the superchat at some point. I drive from morro bay, so slo is fine. spikes has a nice room in the back [!] and a lot of radiation free pints up front…
I continue to see nada on diablo or slo except for the ever trailing state site [last reports 4.26.11]:
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/RHB-RadReport.aspx
I’ve just sprouted 200 kale, beet, leek and spinich plants and am turning my west facing living room into our indoor farm. I still let the 2 dogs out in the sun but I am jammin’ milkthistle, NAK, beta glucan, garlic, Q-10 and curcumin. lots of dulce and bragg sea kelp mix. stopped milk, and getting used to almond, rice and hemp milk. thinking about getting chickens…
I think mothers for peace has some ‘decommission diablo!’ bumper stickers. they draw attention from both camps…so far have not drawn stones or slashed tires.
Happy First Anniversary, Michael and Denise!
Dear Michael & Denise Ann – Warmest anniversary wishes to you both!
For the group at large…. I’ve run across this fascinating letter on the PSR website that debunks the French nuclear program panacea that we’ve all been sold, i.e., “our US reactors are aging, if only we were to upgrade to the French technology & protocol all would be safe, clean, green.” If the data cited in this 2009 letter are at all accurate, the French nuclear program is dangerous, has not resolved the waste storage issue and widely spreads toxic pollutants and to top it off… the French are still heavily reliant upon carbon-emitting energy sources and the nuclear industry is non-profitable (subsidized by the French public and as it is almost 90% owned by the government, the economics are not reported clearly.
Critical information when nuclear plant relicensing, public subsidizing and private investment choices are being personally deliberated and publicly debated as never before.
http://action.psr.org/site/DocServer/091509_Marignac_news_release_FINAL1.pdf
Happy anniversary Michael and Denise!
@Weaver:
I’ve wondered the same thing. I know that each area can be different and that “hotspots” can be created by various contributing factors, but to have such a HUGE difference between areas that, realistically, are not THAT far apart, seems very strange. Call it wishful thinking, but I too am hoping it’s either “normal” or instrument malfunction.
And I’ll add to the congrats to the Mr. and Mrs. You guys are greatly appreciated. Hope you can go out and do something fun. :o)
– Jen
Michael, unfortunately I am unaware of Sacramento’s usual background radiation level; I’ve looked around but found no reliable sources. I’m hoping, like JMS pointed out, that this is just an instrument malfunction or an odd spiking that will subside soon… it seems strange that a plume of Fukushima radiation would sneak in-between all the other stations and hit Sacramento so hard, yet leave other nearby stations fairly normal.
Also, Happy Anniversary!! Here’s to many many more.
For your information perusal…
Recently viewed this : http://www.naturalnews.com/images/radiation-detail-1000ms-2.jpg ( radiation exposure chart) from this link : http://www.naturalnews.com/032136_radiation_exposure_chart.html
My husband found this website http://www.radiationnetwork.com/
My husband found this website http://www.radiationnetwork.com/
It seems the numbers are low for LA but the EPA says otherwise. I am high in the foothills about 15 miles from Downtown LA. I don’t know what CPMs we should be watching West LA or Downtown LA? Michael you said 15 miles can make a big difference.
HAPPY FIRST WEDDING ANNIVERSARY TO MICHAEL AND DENISE ANNE!!!!
You two have been so busy running this wonderful site that has become such a haven for us and such a rich, dynamic community, that you probably haven’t had much time to enjoy some R and R.
So, Michael, you’d better take Denise Anne to a beautiful restaurant with great food and great wine. LOL, just don’t eat any spinach, leafy greens, cheese etc., etc………
You two are such a blessing, not just for us, but for the broader community at large. We wish you both many, many wonderful years!!!
Oh and if you are referring to the CPM for Gamma (I was preivously referring to Beta), it seems to stay around 39 to 45. The highest I have personally seen since the “event” was around 50.
– Jen
Michael,
I’ve been on it (the Sac readings) since back in March because I live 30 minutes outside Sac. It been fluctuating but recently, within the last five days or so, it’s gone haywire. Either there have been some MASSIVE spikes or something is wrong with their station OR this is common. The spikes they are showing are erratic, there are spaces between dates and they don’t look anything like recent data. And I have saved previous dates, so I have older data to compare it to. In fact, I was just looking at a previous save and older data from back in February 07 – March 04, there was a sustained amount of spikes, the highest of which was around 225. Earlier back on February 1st, there was one above 250.
It makes me wonder if this is something “normal” for this area or if something else is going on.
– Jen
@Weaver – This is very disconcerting and the way the count in Los Angeles is heading, it could be over three times background soon. Certainly way above normal. I haven’t followed Sacramento’s BG… have you? What is it?
If it wasn’t for being a broken record, we all wouldn’t know this. Today is Denise and my first wedding anniversary and I wasn’t checking the data like I should have.
Thank you, Weaver!
Thank you SLO great advice
Iam avail. to meet on the 20th or whenever its set in stone.
People should realize this could happen at Diablo any day…..so we are also preparing and learning alot for the future (if we dont shut them down). I believe we need to discuss if Diablo is indeed allowed to legally vent radiation. I want facts not hearsay (like everyone)
I do agree best line of defense is internal; pectin, blue green algae, good water, ginger, garlic, green tea and the basics: A, C, E and also vit. D !
We need to unite through mothers for peace and create a large local protest against Diablo…we need to get students on board ; put all that beer drinking/party energy into serious local issues!
Chad
I hate to sound like a broken record but sure enough Sacramento’s CPM readings are very high once again today, according to the EPA radnet station: http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sacramento-bg.html and https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/showMap.do . Currently showing a CPM of 125, and yet San Francisco and several other stations along the west coast have CPMs in the 10s-20s. Other than instrument malfunction or data coverup, how could this be possible?
It looks like Reno, NV has spiked also, up to almost 150: http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-reno-bg.html And levels in LA are climbing as well, apparently: http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-losangeles-bg.html Was there some kind of major radiation leak in the last few days? I know that spikes are not unheard of but this is starting to look like increased sustained levels… again not trying to fearmonger, just wanting to make some sense of this. I live near Sacramento and find it’s high ratings strange considering no other station seems to be showing similar results…
Hi Michael,
Sorry to respond so late regarding my post about high Gross Beta Count levels up and down the West Coast – back on 4/28/11. Just to let you know, I am not psychic (I wish I were, though:)). I just got very lucky, logging in at just the right time to see the EPA data, before it went offline.
Thanks for all the important work you and Denise Anne do. It is very much appreciated!
Chad: Yes, we are going to have a meetup. The info for limiting contanmination can be overwhelming. Maybe intuitively choose some options, and have muscle testing for the specific vits, and herbs. That can save you time and money… and its easy to do. The meetup might accommodate this? And a Hepa air filter is great at this time. I have my little one from a local store going constantly. Next will be my shower filter as I can afford it. It only seems that people on our coastline are oblivious. Many are scared that others will think they are “crazy”. But I find like-minded people at Trader Joes in A.G. and New Frontiers. We are not alone… I’m from the AG area.
SLO: That Friday sounds great for the meetup.. What time,and would Panera Bread in SLO be a good location? New Frontiers has space but you either have to buy 75 dollars worth of eats collectively, or pay the dough up front. May be the Library in SLO? Perhaps we can book a meeting room there…? Cuesta College may donate a room or we could use their library…?
Michael: I am stumped as to how to get to the chat room with the extensive features… I have clicked on chat, but wind up here…what am I missing? And thanks so much to you and Denise for all your untiring support… We owe you so much…Will donate as soon as I am able… Your untiring efforts are truly a demonstration of love for humanity. What an example! Peace.
Local Central Coast organization joins with others to call for Nuclear Regulatory Commission to suspend all licensing.
http://mothersforpeace.org/data/2011/mothers-for-peace-joins-45-groups-in-petition-to-nrc-suspend-all-licensing
“A total of 45 groups and individuals are formally asking the NRC to immediately suspend all licensing and other activities until a thorough post-Fukushima reactor crisis examination is completed.”
Still researching…
-SLO
The Los Angeles +150 CPM EPA radnet figure was for April 29th. Sorry, I forgot to give the date in the post below.
@Weaver: “Recent Sacramento EPA radnet data: http://www.epa.gov/radiation/rert/radnet-sacramento-bg.html Seems concerning. Pieces of the data are missing so I’m assuming some kind of instrument error (hopefully), but the sustained almost-200cpm levels have me a bit worried…”
Los Angeles was same deal w/breaks in graph, but on the down trending side, but after first reporting peak of +150 CPMs. Today EPA radnet for L.A. down.
Riverside also has been up over the past two days at about the 80-100 CPM range.
On the positive side, San Francisco still appears to remain within its average reporting range.
I am very carefully now watching these trends!
@Annette Thank you for pointing out the blue radnet data. I checked it just now and also noticed the timestamps all several hours in the future… kind of odd. It’s the same for all the west coast monitors and a fell further back east.
Unfortunately, at the time that I checked it the CPM was back up to 144. In contrast, San Francisco seems perfectly normal. I’m not gonna rule out the possibility of instrument failure just yet, but it’s already been 4 days of wacky readings… praying it won’t be much longer.
Here’s a direct copy/paste of data from https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/showMap.do at the time of this post:
Fixed Monitor Location: CA: SACRAMENTO
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/02/2011 02:09:34 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/02/2011 03:09:42 AM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 144
Gamma Energy Range 2 Gross(CPM): 1088
Gamma Energy Range 3 Gross(CPM): 601
Gamma Energy Range 4 Gross(CPM): 178
Gamma Energy Range 5 Gross(CPM): 95
Gamma Energy Range 6 Gross(CPM): 57
Gamma Energy Range 7 Gross(CPM): 65
Gamma Energy Range 8 Gross(CPM): 47
Gamma Energy Range 9 Gross(CPM): 24
Gamma Energy Range 10 Gross(CPM): 40
Annette, Chad & Weaver,
-Just re-checked directly with the EPA radnet link, and it is listing just shy of 180 CPMs for Sacramento. Has been showing at that level all day for “May 1st” for gross beta count rate. Link:
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sacramento-bg.html
-Los Angeles is still down.
http://doctorapsley.com/RadiationTherapy.aspx
safe foods list
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/3361
Hi Chad,
Great questions. I hope others will chime in and add to my feedback.
I am still hunting for Diablo’s current readings, hoping they have some for the Los Osos/San Luis Obispo County area. The best lead so far is Mothers for Peace, a local long-term anti-nuclear organization. As far as a SLO meet up, I am waiting to hear back from “Roundabout” who posts here for a good meeting day. How would a Friday night after May 20, 2011 work for you?
As far as the difference between black cat, radiation network and Enviro’s readings (and the EPA, but I don’t follow those yet), different Geiger counters measure differently depending on how they are built and how big their “sniffer” is. For more info. on this go to radiation network and read on their site as if you were going to purchase a Geiger counter. For an accurate sense of the “extra radiation” levels above “normal” background compare one site to itself, day by day.
Just a note on my background, I have been following the Fukushima accident from the beginning and have needed to care for my health in the safest way I could devise. I have learned most of this in the past six weeks.
As far as what levels are safe for children there is a huge variation in opinions. I have also noticed SLO County seems oblivious. I am sure if I keep looking I will find those who are concerned and aware. Many folks on Enviroreporter’s site are very concerned about food and water.
Steps you can take/I am taking:
1. Leave shoes and coats at the door.
2. Shower with soap and water (some are bathing with calcium bentonite green clay) after you have been outside.
3. Stay out of the rain. Rain concentrates contamination.
4. Buy frozen vegetables/canned food. See the U.C. Berkeley link I posted above.
5. Call food companies for Julian date or production/packaging date.
6. See the Dr. Apsley link I posted above for vitamin supplements/foods that are radioprotective.
7. The U.C. Berkeley site is also good if you have a baby or children you need to protect. In the forums they discuss this topic. Be sure to look at topics in the forum dated from when this started–March 11, 2011.
Also, I highly recommend reading back through all the comments on Enviro and Denise Anne’s site (this one) because there are many posts dealing with safe food, water, and shower filters.
8. I am drinking water that has gone through a reverse osmosis filter and then carbon filtration as well. New Frontiers near Costco in SLO sells it for .49 cents per gallon.
Everyone is assessing their risk as best we can knowing our information is incomplete. The radiation and contamination levels may not affect our health as bad as I fear, but authorities have downplayed these type of health risks in the past. Everybody’s system is different. The most important thing is to avoid the contamination when you can by educating yourself, and detox from your body any that gets in despite your best efforts. Try to learn about external radiation versus internal emitters. I hope this helps.
-SLO
Chad & Weaver –
I am guessing/hoping that there is some sort of reporting/mechanical failure on the RadNet Sacramento. I just checked the old RadNet blue map (can access through EnviroReporter’s Resource page), and the Sacramento data is significantly less (Beta Gross Count fate: 68), than is indicated on the graph. I’m hoping the data is correct & the graph is not. It doesn’t give one much comfort though, since the date given on this data report is 5/2, and it’s 5/1. Anyway, thought I’d share. I’m keeping a close eye on Sacto also, I have most of my family there.
Here’s the cut/paste from a couple of minutes ago:
Monitor Information:
Fixed Monitor Location: CA: SACRAMENTO
Measurement Start Date/Time: 05/02/2011 01:09:19 AM
Measurement End Date/Time: 05/02/2011 02:09:28 AM
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM): 68
Gamma Energy Range 2 Gross(CPM): 1059
Gamma Energy Range 3 Gross(CPM): 593
Gamma Energy Range 4 Gross(CPM): 175
Gamma Energy Range 5 Gross(CPM): 98
Gamma Energy Range 6 Gross(CPM): 56
Gamma Energy Range 7 Gross(CPM): 67
Gamma Energy Range 8 Gross(CPM): 49
Gamma Energy Range 9 Gross(CPM): 25
Gamma Energy Range 10 Gross(CPM): 39
EPA radnet station down in Los Angeles– Again. It frequently seems to go down on days its monitor station finds high gross beta concentrations. Then, a day later the findings are reported. A lot of good that does. Also seems suspicious.
Hi everyone,
maybe Michael or someone can alleviate my confusion
the blackcat website shows readings around Sacramento around 11 the radiation network shows readings in the same area around 30 and the EPA shows readings around 180 in Sac.!
and Michael’s site shows normal in LA!?
I am in Los Osos what is the truth? Where are accurate readings for our area that really let us know safe levels for children … what really is safe levels?
I do know that Japan levels out of the plant were the highest ever 3 days ago hence our situation today.
Is it better to cover our face? How come this is not mentioned once on the weather?
Is any one else concerned about water and vegetables?
Thanks for any answers because 99% of the people here and in SLO believe there is nothing going on and the situation ended.However it looks like the highst levels ever in Sac.
Can anyone help me find the actual place to read Diablo’s current readings?
This is very confusing!
I want to join SLO’s group and know the facts we need to unite and learn the facts!
Thank you
Chad
FYI – this is from the Embassy Page in Tokyo dated April 14. It discusses the experts helping Japan for the nuclear emergency from NRC,DOE,FDA,CDC,and US Cancer Institute.
U.S.-Japan Cooperation at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant April 14 – Numerous U.S. Government agencies are working closely with Japan to support its response to the ongoing emergency at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/p/tp-20110414-01.html
Weaver: I (and others) who have been following The EPA Radnet site since the Fukushima incident have noticed that their data is altered, revised and missing,so as to make them untrustworthy. There was a site that actually showed a comparison of “before and after” pages of the same data that did not match. As most people, we don’t copy and paste each day in a save file for comparison since we take it for granted that the EPA would be truthful, but knowing their machinations in all other spheres, it’s hard to trust them.
Recent Sacramento EPA radnet data: http://www.epa.gov/radiation/rert/radnet-sacramento-bg.html Seems concerning. Pieces of the data are missing so I’m assuming some kind of instrument error (hopefully), but the sustained almost-200cpm levels have me a bit worried…
I am re-posting this from the UCB forums. The people of Japan also have no accurate information about their safety or radiation levels, hence the reason their top radiation advisor resigned.
Message from Japan
A Japanese activist Shiro Yabu has sent us a request for foreign comrades:
Now what we are in desperate need in Tokyo is concrete data of radioactive contamination. We will have to measure and publicize the radiation of the soil at every park and public spaces where children play. The emission of radiation is uneven and there are supposed to be high spots that are affected more than others. Neither the state nor the Tokyo municipal government are responsible enough to measure and detect them. They offer only one monitoring spot in Tokyo and do not measure contamination in soil at all. The real issue is especially the radiation of sandboxes in parks. So we must acquire data by ourselves and press local governments to take necessary measures.
What we want at the moment is a possible method to measure radiation and necessary equipment. In Japan a Geiger Counter can be purchased for approx. 50,000 yen, but they are mostly sold out. It is said that they won’t be back in market before the late May. If any of you have technique and equipment that you can share, please send them to us in the form of information and goods.
@SLO – You all were invited into the Radiation Nation Chat Room today – join up. You could really communicate in there and exchange all sorts of info including personal emails. Plus, the chat has some really great people and information flies back and forth, like here in comments but in a different form.
@Robert Tomlinson – Thank you – we fixed it!
Roundabout, Kim, 2dogs, SLO County,
Meeting Thurs., Fri., or Sat., night is fine for me as long as it is after May 20, 2011. Before that date I would just have to see. Because there are no local air monitors reporting for SLO County, I think organizing to get a Geiger counter is my main interest.
If we have at least three people who want to meet then let’s plan it. If there are only two of us, what do you think about just exchanging email addresses for now?
Rochelle from Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility explained that their focus is political and economic. They hope to use issues that CA has jurisdiction over to eventually phase out nuclear power. They are not monitoring radiation. I think working with them or Mothers for Peace are great ideas.
Enviroreporter or Denise Anne: are there rules about posting personal email addresses in this comments section? If so, we could arrange a date and time to meet in the chat room on this site!
Thank you to the whole community for being here.
-SLO
The Radiation counter on screen , is turned at an angle , that makes it a bit harder to read ,, no light on it ,,, FYI
SLO: Friday nights generally work well for me. If Thursday nights work better, let me know as I am tentatively planning an in home meeting on Thursdays, but will wait off until we can nail down an evening to meet. M,Tu,We amd Sunday are out of my schedule.
Can you test the tap water for Bakersfield?
>>>I was just waiting. I KNEW using the Fukushima event to call for the shut-down of American nuke plants was the agenda of a lot of the people posting here! <<<
I am here 99% for the monitoring of my family's air, water and food. ER is an invaluable resource for me, helping me to keep tabs on our semi-local area, and to read the comments of what others are doing to protect themselves and prepare for a potential worsening of the situation.
That said, heck yes, if people are going to start discussing the politics of shutting down a plant in my back yard, I am all for it. You can always skim over posts you don't care for, no matter what their nature or subject matter.
You know, I never thought much about nuclear energy before this event. Now, as I look at my son, my precious son, I have literally thought that I would give up my share of the 20% of energy provided by nuclear power, to keep him a bit safer.
I emailed Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility to see if they know of any local air meter readings. If I get an informative response, I will post it here.
http://a4nr.org/
A San Luis Obispo County meet up sounds great…I am more free after May 20, 2011. Kim, roundabout, 2dogs, others in the county, what are good days, times, locations for you all?
Thanks–Enviroreporter & Denise Anne, for this site and thanks, Michael, for the great links to Mothers for Peace and Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility!
-SLO
There is little that has been said from the nuclear industry about how improvements were to be made with the new generation. I have never heard of pebble beds, so thank you, john lee. I am sorry that you feel that some are ungrateful for the positive things we receive from the nuclear industry. There are some, however, that would like to reduce radioactivity and are learning to survive well off of the grid. Having society doing this as a whole would be impossible for the present infrastructure. At this point, there is a disaster to deal with on a personal and community level, and I think that may be what this forum is about. I have heard very little here about bashing the nuclear industry. We are currently concerned about our health collectively, due to the recent disaster. (nuclear disaster). Some people may feel (I am not speaking for anyone on this forum), that nuclear power plants have already posed a risk to humans on earth due to many cancers directly linked to fallout. However, you make a GREAT point. We have many blessings from being able to plug things in and make them work. Thank you.
John Lee,
Fukushima certainly has not passed the cost/benefit trade by any measure. My guess is that most people are here for health and safety reasons. I wager that if you can provide some data showing how many years a Fukushima style nuclear plant would have to safely run before its benefits would have out weighed the costs of this disaster, people will give your data a good measure.
But nuclear power or no, governments are looking at rationing energy via smart grids and centralized planning. There are people who might look at that as the start of an environmental utopia; but, the reality is that authoritarianism / totalitarianism always has been bad for the environment and always will be.
I was just waiting. I KNEW using the Fukushima event to call for the shut-down of American nuke plants was the agenda of a lot of the people posting here! (Did it ever occur to anyone that if the anti-nuclear lobby hadn’t been so successful, we’d have gone forward with the latest generation nuclear reactors [Pebble Bed] and events like Fukushima would be all but impossible?)
Now some want to take away over 20% of our national power generating capacity. (Do you think nuclear power is posing a risk to your health and longevity? Try living without refrigeration, pasteurized foods or adequate lighting…for starters.)
This is precisely why the radical environmentalists push that ridiculous “Earth Hour” nonsense: get you used to sitting in the dark, wondering why solar and wind aren’t providing your power needs.
Senator Blakslee’s office seems to pride themselves on actions regarding Diablo. How about calling or emailing them? I would contact the 2 organizations Michael posted earlier today. In the meantime, we need an Inspector close by. Local food measurements as well. Any ideas? BTW Dutchsinse on youube, should be on the west coast as well. Hopefully he can come to SLO area. But how about a meetup in slo county for those interested? We need to have a viable link for on hand resources here locally,yes?
I will be getting a Jonathon shower filter. Just a tad bit better than Aquasauna, but not by much. May be the extra bit better is worth it.
What are some plans for protecting the water table when the goo comes? I suspect the food will all be unedible… On Michaels word of encouragement I am getting outside a bit today. Thank you!
I am about 100 miles from Diablo Canyon and am also interested in helping to SHUT THIS SUCKER DOWN. If anyone comes across any info, please post here, as will I.
I just want to watch The Royal Wedding and be mindless. Unfortunately, that is what my government is counting on.
You all make my day a little easier thanks for all the great comments. I no longer fear reading them. I feel so empowered having this knowledge. Thank God for a great group of concerned people.
2dogs, slo and slo county residents;
Would you be interested in doing some internet submissions like Michael is doing in our county? Do you think we could get a task force going to secure an “Inspector”? Our area is very ill informed about what is going on. If it weren’t for our Enviroreporter, who, along with his lovely bride, has become my hero, where would we be now as far as info? What do you think?
Michael,
Those spikes are exactly what why I need my own gieger counter around here, especially with Diablo looming just above me, five miles away. I carry K with me in my purse. And try to keep my gas tank full. I didn’t know they could legally release radioactivity without telling us! Diablo does need to be shut down… that is why I didn’t want to move back. I used to be panicked about it all the time years ago. People just laughed. Now they are not laughing so much. People that work there defend it to the core (no pun intended). This area is economically challenged, and the community supports it for the revenue. Even community members look at the buck. Humbolt is also economically challenged, but the activist energy is much higher up there as a whole. This is an extremely conservative area. So its not just the big wigs we are facing. The goo implications on the water table, can you expound?
Thank you very much Michael.
SLO – You will find more SLO folks concerned about Diablo Canyon, folks who are really doing something about it, at Mothers For Peace and Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility. If there ever was a time to tackle this issue, it is now. One thing to remember about the ongoing and worsening Fukushima meltdowns disaster – it could always get much much worse if something like that happens at Diablo Canyon and/or San Onofre which can only withstand an earthquake just 1% of the power that flattened Fukushima.
I saw this on the U.C. Berkeley site tonight. “If you are curious you can read the effluent concentration limits that nuclear facilities are allowed to release in 10 CFR 20 appendix B…” (cbates, 3/24/2011).
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/cfr/part020/part020-appb.html
I think it is important to know what the nuclear plants in our own neighborhoods are legally allowed to release. I am in San Luis Obispo County too. Let’s get to organizing to stop Diablo’s license renewal!
Glad to see some fellow “SLO” folks! : )
-SLO
Hi Michael –
Thanks for your comments regarding last night’s spike. I have also been trying to put together the pieces to get together a good guess as to what would have caused it, because we also live in LA County, but unlike you and LadyFingers, my family was outside until 1am while our goat give birth – nice timing, Juliet!! (Mama Juliet and Baby Benvolio are both doing great). I guess epsom salt/baking soda baths are in order this evening.
It was also interesting to note on the RadNet monitor that there also seemed to be increases in the gamma emitters of all ranges that apparently correspond chronologically with the larger beta increase. Does this behavior indicate any particular isotopes to anyone out there?
Also, Michael I would love to hear your theory (you referenced in your 4/28 post to Anonymous), re: the greater than typical spread between your interior & exterior readings on 4/27 & 4/28, at the same time that the exterior readings were increasing & the interior readings were decreasing. Hmm.
Thank you Michael for this great service, and everyone for your contributions here.
LA Water – Those readings were curious to us as well. We did indeed open our windows wide open to let the air circulate but that INTERIOR/EXTERIOR spread, seen here in Radiation Station Stats on 4/22/11, went away. Higher EXTERIOR than INTERIOR readings returned soon thereafter with some curiously high spreads 4/27 and 4/28/11 of around 10 counts per minute difference. We made sure our windows were closed and we cranked up the HEPA filter air cleaners (which can be had at Sears right now off the shelf).
Now I’m not sure where you are located but note that even a distance of 13 miles can make a difference. Look at the 4/29/11 EPA RadNet readings in Los Angeles, which we assume were taken downtown, and you will see an alarming gross beta spike of over four times background. Unlike two previous spikes on this graph that appear to be anomalies, this seemed to be the real thing. Rule of thumb for the EPA and Department of Energy is ‘two times background, pay attention, three times background, something is going on that demands investigation.’ This spike occurred in the middle of the night when we had our windows and doors shut, and the HEPAs cranking.
Did the EPA say anything about this? Nope. So keep your eye on this site, the Rad Stats page, and know that you must be as observant as you obviously have been. Take appropriate action upon seeing such data.
One more point – IF that large 4/29 spike was caused by I-131, we still would not start taking our anti-radiation KI pills that block I-131. Why? Because it still wouldn’t be high enough and sustained enough to warrant it and we would want to hear from the proper government officials and/or a qualified organization before taking such a drastic step.
What if there was no word from the government? We have decided that if and when we ever see something ten times background or over, and we use our Inspector to determine (through process of elimination vis-a-vis alpha and beta radiation) that it probably is I-131, then we would begin using I-131 and would seal our abode up until the danger passed. That is not a recommendation but what Denise (aka Lady Fingers) and I (Man Hands) would do.
roundabout-
I live in northern coast from slo. it is a difficult time with diablo license up for renewal when known now to be on two faults.
the state is releasing radiation readings a bit after the fact from slo and diablo:
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/pages/radiologichealthbranch.aspx
of course they say there are no significant readings…[wink]
Your data shows INTERIOR is worse than EXTERIOR. Does that mean I should leave all the windows wide open to let the air circulate?
Hi:
on 4/26 I saw very unusual cobalt blue clouds over my house. Take a look at each picture carefully, as the photos weakened the cobalt blue color. Those clouds looked very unnatural, I cannot emphasize enough that the color does not come through as intense as they were when I saw it in real time.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/62220533@N07/?saved=1
kind of interesting that the RADNET monitor has been showing a significan spike since Monday in Sacramento. I am located in Oakley, CA, 60 miles west from Sacramento. I would be curous to hear your comments and again, you need to look carefully at thouse pictures, especially the 2 last ones.
Thanks Potrblog! I am actually going to purchase that radon detector. Also just got the powdered milk from Organic Valley. Great info. Many thanks to you and everyone on this very helpful site.
BTW, a useful tool for everyone for converting mR, uSV and mSV
‘http://online.unitconverterpro.com/conversion-tables/convert-group/factors.php?cat=radiation—dose-equivalent
Tray,
A reverse osmosis system by itself wont reduce all the potential radioactive contaminants; a VOC filter is also required. Depending on what kind of RO system you have you might have or be able to get the right filters. If your RO system does not have a VOC filter, you could do as Michael and put the RO water through a Berkey too.
See my blog post for more details.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/radioactive-fallout-risk-mitigation.html
roundabout – There really is no need to stay indoors when possible if the EPA RadNet and our air measurements are any indicator. It could get much worse should those molten radioactive globs of goo hit the water table under Fukushima so I would take advantage of the normal clean air as much as possible if I were you. And thank you for the kind words!
We are not using a water filter for the shower. IF our water gets hot enough, radiation-wise, we would abstain from using the shower and utilize so-called spit-baths using purified RO water in bottles and a wash cloth. Likewise, we wash our dishes with unfiltered tap water because the readings haven’t been high enough to quarantine the liquid. That said, we would not drink the water without RO and then a Berkey filtering.
Anonymous – once again, you are correct. Our food and water comes to us mostly from the north and east where radioactive fallout has been notable. Be thankful for the dry weather, though, because it has helped keep the radiation high in the atmosphere… that is until a 6-8 hour period for downtown LA last night as you so ably pointed out.
Thank you for being more specific however if you meant this Gross Beta Air Monitoring Data for Los Angeles, it began to spike starting when you made your comment and then continued up to over four times background for Los Angeles, the HIGHEST gross beta count since the meltdowns began. This was not a spike.
WOW!!!!
The EPA’s and Department of Energy’s rule of thumb is when double background is reached, pay attention; when it is triple, uh oh… so four times background is truly significant.
Perhaps you are psychic Anonymous/Concerned Mom! Nice catch! Not so nice for LA (where we presume the EPA RadNet monitor is about 13 miles to the east of us where our readings did not spike).
Thank you.
During these times, we do get tired of working so hard on eating correctly and staying indoors when possible. This site has been a Godsend. Thank you! I have been following it since it started. I am in the San Luis Obispo area, and have had no readings or anyone who is posting readings. We are three hours away in all directions from radnet locations. My senator has ignored me as well in addressing concerns. I go out very little, and am eating extremely cautiously. It is amazing how many people in San Luis County are not aware of the problems. This site supports me. Thank you! And Liz, stay true to your diet. Perhaps someday you can go back to gourmet cooking as you know it. But your life is important.
Michael, you said you are using a water filter. I have reverse osmosis for the kitchen but do you have a particular water filter for your shower? I have an aquasana right now on the shower head but I think I remember you writing about a particular one you are using. Thanks!!!
Hi Michael,
I wanted to make a comment about the radioisotopes found in the Los Angeles water and milk, by the EPA. I am not sure where L.A. water comes from, but I live in the Thousand Oaks area. I called Cal American Water (my water company) when the Japan crisis first began. They told me that my water is sourced from the Metropolitan Water District. The water originates from the Sacramento Delta. Then, the water goes to the California Aqueduct, Central Valley, Grapevine, Pyramid Lake, Piru, Castaic Lake, and gets filtered at the Jensen Filtration Plant, pipelines through Simi Valley, and then to Calleguas. Also, a lot of the milk sold in Southern California stores could also be from Northern California. So, I am not sure if air readings for Los Angeles would correspond with L.A. tap water and milk sample readings.
Hi Michael,
I am sorry. I did not mean to be cryptic. I looked at the Beta Gross Count Rate graphs on the epa.gov/japan2011/ website and saw highs close to 100 for Los Angeles, Anaheim and Riverside and a 150CPM reading for Sacramento. It looks like these readings were for today. Hopefully, I was wrong.
An update from the news (source citation below):
Within the last 48 hours, 2 nuclear plants went into shut-down.
One (in Georgia, I think) suddenly and unpredictably shut down for an unidentified reason which is being “investigated.”
The other, in Alabama, one of the country’s largest, BTW, was scrammed because of the Tornado/severe weather and the related power outage.
These news items can be found on the Washington Post and other “mainstream” media sites.
This information ought to give us pause. It most certainly should motivate us to renew our efforts to deal with the nuclear problem here.
NIRS has some good commentary about TEPCO’s covered-up safety violations. Fairewinds has some good video of Gunderson (which I think others have posted in the last few days).
All of us need to remain aware of the problems with nuclear plants here in the U.S.
The NRC is “monitoring” the situations at the two plants.
Somehow, that does not provide much comfort, given what was exposed about that agency by PSR, NIRS, UCS, Fairewinds, etc.
We all need to keep up a level of objective and close srutiny. The next Chernobyl, TMI, or Fukushima could well occur here.
And even beyond our own focus on “here,” we need to recall that there are nuclear plants all over the world (many of which are extremely unsafe and poorly managed) that could endanger hundreds of thousands of innocent people and decimate the surrounding environment.
None of this should be about “here.”
We don’t need a Tsunami to wind up with a plant “blackout” or “scrammed” reactors. TMI had no geologic or meteorologic event associated with it.
Just simply computer malfunction compounded by human error.
We need to keep up efforts to address the wider problem.
There is so very much at stake.
Considering that there are no readings from EPA’s RadNet from “up and down the West Coast since yesterday,” we would ask Anonymous to please provide us links to where the commenter is making a reference. Also, which medium is Anonymous referring to? Air? Water? Soil? Food? Milk?
That said, we have found three significant “spreads” in our measurements over the last two days with the Exterior readings being above normal while the Interior readings significantly less. We have our theories about why there is this spread but those theories don’t answer Anonymous’ cryptic comment.
In general, our readings of ambient air (and in-situ alpha and beta readings of outside materials and rain a month ago) in the Los Angeles Basin (west) are continuing to be fairly normal. We attribute that to the fact that the high-flying fallout needs precipitation to make it to the ground (where we will be waiting for it to test).
That does not mean that Los Angeles’ mild weather is a be all end all: high readings of Iodine-131 have been found in our milk exceeding the EPA’s Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for water. The energetic and extremely dangerous radionuclide has also been found in our drinking water, one reading about 1/8th the amount of the MCL.
There have been a lot of spikes up and down the West Coast since yesterday on EPA’s Rad/Net, and readings on this site read pretty normal. I wonder where there is such a discrepancy.
Plutonium itself is poisonous – 1mg of it kills a human.
A few atoms won’t.
As for radiation, a single alpha radiation has a chance for cancer – don’t know what the chance is but it is very low and not 100%
Here’s my understanding of the process how radiation may cause cancer. (I am a software programmer – not a doctor).
Each cell is like a small machine executing code from its DNA. Just like computers do.
However, 98% of the code is junk – like used in the past but not used anymore.
From the DNA in use, most of it is used in the very early development in the fetus – how to make organ tissues and so on.
Once all organs are developed, the initial code is not used and the cells continue executing only a small loop of the DNA – how to do their day job.
That means, from the 2% in use only 10% (a guess) are used in an adult. Or 0.2% of the total DNA.
When alpha/beta particle or gamma ray hits a cell, it may hit a membrane, a water molecule, DNA, or something else.
There’s a chance it will hit the DNA, but not 100%.
Finally, even if the DNA is hit and it’s hit in the 0.2% important portion, the change in DNA may just cause the cell to die.
Or it may cause it to function incorrectly, and at some point the immune system will kill it and remove it.
Only in some case it will damage it in such a way that the cell will start multiplying uncontrollably – faster than the immune system can clean it up – this is cancer.
So when u multiply all the chances, you get pretty low chance of getting cancer from a single event (single particle hit).
Now when the radiation is high, you just gamble a lot more often and the chance of cancer becomes higher.
For example, 1 Bq means 1 disintegration per second. So if you swallow 1 Bq of I-131, it will gamble once per second (86400/day) for the next few weeks while decreasing in activity.
Now, while winning the lottery jackpot is less probable than getting hit by a lightening strike, having a few million tickets helps a lot.
I’ve been following Enviro since day zero of Fukushima. Great site and an invaluable service to people everywhere. Thank You all!
I live in the mountains near the Sequoia National Park. I am on disability and have to rely frequently on the local food bank. Yesterday, they handed out large quantities fresh milk and cheese to everyone. They usually have powdered milk if they have it at all. Just seems strange to me.
Anyway… My question is this. What is the best way to determine if your food and water are safe? The general consensus seems to be the EPA/media are not giving the full impact or truths. Do you have to own an expensive detector that measures all sorts of radiation? Is this the way of the future?
And… it seems to me that grocery stores should put a Radiation Detector next to the scale in the produce section. Going on “blind luck” and hoping that the cheese or lettuce you just bought is not the contaminated one seems crazy to me. But, it seems like the only choice I have.
http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon/2011/04/28/nuclear-power-radioactive-fallout-and-the-issue-of-informed-consent/ New editorial: Nuclear Power and the Issue of Informed Consent.
Thank you, Shine the Light!
And Potr—I know that you meant well, mean well, and are trying your very best to provide accurate informaton. You are doing a terrific job of it!
If we could all move to the Southern Hemisphere (to places like Australia), I’m sure we’d be much better off in terms of radiation “doses.”
But God planted us here, and here (unless we have the financial latitude of a Howard Hughes), we must remain.
Let us do some good, therefore, wherever we are planted.
Worrying exclusively about ourselves is not necessarily the most auspicious way to do that.
I’m humbly grateful to all of you, including to those with whom I disagree sometimes, for contributing to this burgeoning community.
We are all struggling to make sense of this.
We always have to ask not “where can we go, what can we do to be safe” but “what can we do to keep others safe?”
We will never go wrong if we make the effort to extend our concern beyond the small, protected border of our own lives.
Liz- Well said. Thank you.
Liz,
That’s good feedback. I intended to brainstorm, and to derive my own risk calculus. Along the way, I also figured the analysis was a good way to restate the math in a way that people could wrap their heads around.
The result of my Analysis is that over that 4 day period in San Fran, out of the entire population, 482 equivalent people might have had one Plutonium atom dump an Alpha particle in their collective lungs. That is a miniscule number of such atom events. So, it all comes down to how dangerous is Plutonium. There are claims that just one alpha particle from Plutonium in the lung will cause cancer. Is that valid? If it is, nothing short of a self contained breathing system will protect you from that. If its not valid, the risk of cancer would be greatly over stated.
What I have also learned from looking at EPA’s data is that some of the data does not make much engineering sense. That doesn’t mean they are trying to mislead, but it does mean that the data is not as useful as it could be.
But you are right; its not wise to live like Howard Hughes. Moreover, most of us can’t even afford to live like Howard Hughes even if we wanted to. While others blissfully go on there way, there is a new post-Fukushima normal for those that are aware. My family has cut out all dairy, but its not easy. Given unlimited funds, I think my family would be looking to open a new Disney park in Alice Springs Australia 🙂
Correction: typo—“unclear energy” should read “nuclear energy.”
I’m wondering whether, if past a certain point of accurate reportage about numbers and values, food contamination levels, and air contamination values, some of this becomes unproductive.
Obviously, it is important for all of us to stay informed regarding the “numbers” as far as radioisotopes here is concerned, and to adhere to reasonable protective measures, such as avoiding for a time, milk, large leafy vegetables, etc.
It seems that the primary “theme” here for the last two weeks has been so intensely focused on these numbers and the dire implications of them for us here.
I do not minimize that in any way, and have caught myself “worrying” all of the real-life and health-related implications of this. Certainly, people with young children would be concerned about all of these local/regional “impact” issues.
Beyond a certain point, however, unless we want to engage in a Howard Hughes-type existence, we have to continue on with life. Once one starts avoiding foodstuffs, it can be carried to an extreme and unreasonable degree… if you follow the “logic,” you would eventually wind up eating and drinking…….nothing that wasn’t made or packaged prior to Fukushima.
I am a devoted gourmet cook, and while I have been sensible about leafy vegetables, I cannot obsess about everything I eat or cook with. Ditto for walking around outside. Besides, being inside, unless I could make my home into a plastic, impenetrable “bubble” would not serve much useful purpose.
Although Potr has done some wonderful research, I do not think it’s productive to extrapolate data from air-borne levels and predict that x number of people will get cancer in a particular area. People have enough worries these days; and carcinogens (not just nuclear ones) are everywhere in the environment, so when cancer emerges, unless some are clearly and demonstrably radiation-related types, it will be difficult to sort through the variables.
Obviously a “spike” in cancer some years hence will clearly be linked to something, and quite possibly WILL be linked to, or be the result of Fukushima fallout.
But in the meantime, there’s not much we can do if we inadvertently inhaled substantial amounts of Plutonium on 4/15 (since the EPA did not see fit to warn us of possible exposure).
Which brings me to my main point: Somehow, in the last few weeks, we have lost the focus on the broader issue of the lack of safety within the nuclear industry; we have moved away from caring about the truly awful impact on the people of Japan, and the degree to which TEPCO and the “usual corporate suspects” have decieved the people there.
These are the longer-term issues which we must not forget.
If we lose sight of the broader implications of unsafe unclear energy for human life and for the environment by focusing only on our own concerns, we do no good at all, and place ourselves at risk of one day inhaling massive amounts of Plutonium spewed out by a plant or toxic dump within miles of our homes.
Please, let’s keep our focus on the important and essential concerns related to nuclear energy in general, and the global impact of Fukushima (Chernobyl and TMI) in general.
Without that, we have no voice that anyone will want to listen to, and become identified only as parochial complainers instead of concerned activists.
Micheal,
I only check the blog emails a few times a day; sorry for the delay. Your email didn’t ask about the EPA’s uncertainty with their Plutonium detection. But, I can answer that relatively quickly. If it was a “non-detect’ the EPA could have marked it as such on RADNET; they did NOT.
To sum it up, The EPA had a detection of Plutonium; it was greater than background by the value they listed. But, they also are uncertain of their measurement. There could have been MORE or LESS Plutonium than they detected (but not zero). The Plutonium count might have been as high as 0.0000239 pCi/m^3, it might also have been 0.0000109 pCi/m^3 below background (but not zero). The EPA just does not give enough information to resolve all ambiguity.
Had I used the max value, the population cancer value would have jumped to 1,773 people. That value doesn’t included cancers caused by normal background Plutonium in the area. The min value would not be zero, but I can’t give an exact number because EPA doesn’t list the background value. One thing that is interesting is that if you look at the EPA detections back to 2000 those San Fran results are year long samples, these came back from just days long samples.
Here is a link to NIST about “combined uncertainty”, the real question is the “uncertainty” a TYPE A calculation or a Type B guess?. It would be nice if the EPA gave better info. Until they do, the best one can do is take their data at face value and question the unknown.
http://physics.nist.gov/Pubs/guidelines/sec5.html
Again, there appears to be a problem with this question, which was properly posed as a question by Potrblog. The EPA result for Plutonium-239 in the San Francisco sample was .0000065 pCi/M3 (picocuries per cubic meter of air). But the Combined Standard Uncertainty (CSU) was slightly lower at .0000058 pCi/M3. According to the EPA, “A data point is considered a non-detect when it is less than or equal to twice the combined standard uncertainty.”
Twice the CSU in this case was 2 x .0000058 = 0.0000116 pCi/M3 which was larger than the result in the sample.
It was a non-detect.
Last night, I asked Potrblog to please explain his ‘equation’ that resulted in his 482 lung cancers in his ‘one day in San Francisco’ question. I also asked him to please tell me his background so I could discern his expertise in coming to such highly charged conclusions. I have received no answer yet even though he has posted in this comments section since I asked.
Bottom line, and to answer Potrblog’s rhetorical question: NO, there were not 482 lung cancers in one day in San Francisco, California.
There appears to be a problem with this question, which was properly posed as a question by Potrblog. The EPA result for Plutonium-238 in the Riverside sample was 0.0000013 pCi/M3 (picocuries per cubic meter of air). But the Combined Standard Uncertainty (CSU) was higher at 0.000003 pCi/M3. According to the EPA, “A data point is considered a non-detect when it is less than or equal to twice the combined standard uncertainty” which makes this measurement mute because the CSU was larger than the result in the sample.
It was a non-detect.
The Plutonium-239 had the same sample result and had the same CSU making it also a non-detect.
Last night, I asked Potrblog to please explain his ‘equation’ that resulted in his 73 lung cancers in his ‘one day in Riverside’ question. I also asked him to please tell me his background so I could discern his expertise in coming to such highly charged conclusions. I have received no answer yet even though he has posted in this comments section since I asked.
Bottom line, and to answer Potrblog’s rhetorical question: NO, there were not 73 lung cancers in one day in Riverside California.
Concerned Mom,
Thanks for the link. Gundersen makes a few points that disagree with what he was hypothesizing. But,Plutonium and Uranium are in the air; so, it doesn’t really matter what the true source of the “explosion” is from that perspective. However, establishing the cause of the “explosion” is important for future design/engineering reasons.
From a quick look at the damage and plume, my SWAG is that it was a large hydrogen deflagration. It is possible to tell the difference by looking at the damage. Explosions leave lots of small pieces and the damage is more uniformly distributed. Deflagrations leave larger pieces and the damage is not uniform; more damage on the exterior walls and less on the interior walls. The plume is what I would expect from a large hydrogen deflagration; hydrogen is lighter than air and shoots upwards when burned. Watch this video of the Hindenburg and you will see an example of such a plume. The base of the plume is in the first 3 seconds of the video in the upper right (ignore the flames, they are from the Hindenberg’s fabric covering) Notice how it shoots straight up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7Fc8kIyMCo&feature=related
New data point is out about milk from UC Berkeley. The date is referenced to bottling date. Has anyone seen ANY additional recent milk testing done/published by the State of California or the State of Arizona? Does anyone know of any brands of yogurt that might not be locally produced?
Here’s a link to Arnie Gundersen’s latest video on April 26, 2011:
http://www.fairewinds.com/content/gundersen-postulates-unit-3-explosion-may-have-been-prompt-criticality-fuel-pool?
Just thinking out loud, but what does “background” radiation really mean when there were hundreds of atmospheric nuclear bomb tests from 1945-1980 and numerous civilian and military accidents on top of that?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_nuclear_tests
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_nuclear_disasters_and_radioactive_incidents
Link to Chernobyl radiation maps for the Ukraine region. Click the map link then the tab for “Map List” to select from various maps. Compare the maps for 1986 with 2006 and the Total Effective Dose maps (1986-2006, and projections for 1986-2055). I thought these were interesting.
http://chernobyl.info/Default.aspx?tabid=127
To Tray–
and to Potr—
Tray, I respond with compassion and understanding to your wish to avoid hearing about the risks, the radiation levels, the reality, the suffering in Japan and the long-term effects (smaller but not without significance) here.
This entire event is so depressing; it has such an evil impact on human life and on the environment, yet the company/companies that caused it continue, like BP, uncaring about the impact on the world.
When I first saw Potr’s news about the Plutonium, I realized that most likely, given that I live near that corridor, those of us in the area had been exposed to it. It was disheartening to hear that. I wondered how many particles of Plutonium I had inhaled.
At the same time, Potr is right. About prayer. Not one of us knows when we will die, or from what. Only (within my Christian belief, which I know that not all here share and which I am not trying to “impose” on anyone) God does.
Certainly, it is healthy and good to be aware of risk and safety issues (like putting our seatbelts on when we drive), and to protect the life that God has given us.
Ultimately, however, we are not in charge. That can be scary for some, a relief for others, like me, since it is my faith in Christ that eclipses all earthly travails and events.
I commend you, Tray for even wanting to deal with any of this.
I thank you, Potr, for reminding us about the power of prayer.
And I encourage you, Tray, to face the truth about this environmental tragedy in whatever small doses you can manage (and it is difficult for all of us, so be gentle with yourself) and to remember that we (human beings) are not in charge (no matter how much we think we are).
Tray,
I believe the best risk mitigation is prayer; and it sure seems like there is a LOT to pray about these days. Fortunately, it is also the best source of comfort too.
Potrblog,
Thanks and I have read your blog. I guess I have a different perspective being that I have been though what most of you fear and won. Thank God! If I really thought about all I have been exposed to in my life and then tried to calculate when I will die I think I would have to be put in a straight jacket. I just can’t think about the facts because there is nothing I can do about them after the fact. A lot of things factor into people coming down with a disease. Lung cancer can happen to anyone at anytime. You will probably go quicker if you smoke or have been around smoke or radon in your own home or if your immune system is compromised. If you live a clean life your odds are better but it certainly doesn’t exclude you. My motto is eat right and pray.
I really can appreciate what you are doing and you seem incredibly smart. I can not look at past and what the future holds I can only live in the moment and trust God.
That being said, this morning they were testing the food where can I look for those results?
Tray,
Obviously you appreciate the information on what precautions to take against the Fukushima Fallout. But, consider that it is not possible to take wise precautions without understanding the risks. It is the process of understanding the risks that allows one to develop mitigation plans they can afford.
I understand that you did not “enjoy” the cancer analysis; and I also wager that your relatives did not enjoy any discussion of radioactive milk and salad while they were having their picnic.
May I suggest that you reread my analysis, but don’t read it from the perspective of “we’re going to all die”. I’m sure there are people who read through that analysis and thought, “heck, there is nothing to worry about here”. Read the assumptions and groundrules, and draw your own risk conclusions. Whether you use the analysis to cower or empower is up to you; approach it with the right frame of mind and the latter will win out.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/four-hundred-eighty-two-lung-cancers.html
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/seventy-three-lung-cancers-from-one-day.html
I have had the opportunity to share Easter weekend with my oblivious family who know what is going on but don’t care. They drank there milk and ate there salads and you know what they were happy. I had an amazing time not worrying along side of them. I didn’t partake in the milk drinking or salad eating. I must say it was nice not worrying.
That being said, I have been following this site since this has all happened. I too LOVE the info Michael and his wife are providing for us. That is why I will make a donation today. I don’t mind paying for the truth. More then what the government is giving me with my tax dollars. Anyway my point is I enjoy the comments that tell me about what I can do to protect myself and my family. I do not enjoy the comments that tell me how cancers are popping up around town, or how a city last week had the most radiation. These comments do not help me. In fact I believe the stress from worrying about a week ago events that I can not change will get me before the radiation. I suggest we do positive, proactive commenting. Not how bad we got fried last week but how to protect our families during this horrible time. I love this site and you people are so informative and I want to thank you all.
I have to tell you for me, I can do so much here and trust me I am a mom and I am doing it ALL but I know there is so much we can do and while doing it TRUST GOD!!! I do. I pray over my kid everyday and I believe we all should.
Oh and to the guy with the metallic taste in his mouth. Your diet is probably not the same and when you have a change in diet you get that taste in your mouth. You will not see the effects of this whole radiation thing for years. It is years of exposure to something that weakens your cells.
Trust God, take the positive notes from people, breath and live your life. We are all going to be great and live long happy lives. God Bless you all.
Hi, everyone—I’ve been kind of “missing in action” for the Easter weekend, but have been following the posts.
Potr—
This Plutonium report is of great concern. I did some research and it seems the entire Anaheim, Corona, Riverside, San Bernardino corridor was likely affected.
To all—
I am getting so increasingly frustrated with all of this—so many serious and deadly contamination events are occurring (worse, by far, in Japan than here, but not without important health consequences here as well)—-and yet for the media and the gov’t agencies, it seems like business as usual, when, in fact, it is anything but that.
Someone tonight (Weaver) wrote about the upward revision by authorities in the measurement of emission levels. Indeed, (as he noted) we ARE getting closer to Chernobyl in terms of what is being reported.
I suspect that Fukushima has been closer in emissions to that drastic event for a long time, and that we have simply never been told.
I suppose that Potr’s glum warning from a couple of weeks ago will apply…… The import of this event will be recognized when there is a statistically significant uptick in radiation-related types of cancers sometime in the next 10 years.
And by then, it will be too late.
@Richard & Rocket – the impression I took away from the Wing/Gunderson interview was that the radiation release will cause the same number of cancers, whether heavily concentrated in a small population or more thinly distributed over a larger area/population, depending upon how the fall-out distributes. Regardless, the carcinogenic potential is not diminished as the fall out is distributed/diluted over a larger area, it is simply also distributed/diluted (not weakened).
Also, ditto re: the metallic taste & cold sensation in the roof of our mouths, our lips & our eyes… for both my husband & I. We’ve had this ongoing for about a month now. Also swollen neck & armpit lymph nodes for the duration… yay.
Lastly, has anyone else noticed that EPA RadNet has not updated for Los Angeles since midday 4/23?
@weaver I doubt youre a hypochondriac. almost everyone i have asked “have you noticed a funny or different taste in your mouth?” have answered yes. most say it tastes like copper or they slept with a penny in their nouth, other s have said it feels like “one of my amalgam fillings are leaking”. I have a titanium dental implant that feels tingly in my jaw. Scratchy throat yes, lungs feel like having been out around second hand smoke all night. Yes this is purely anecdotal, but I believe the cesium is the culprit as it falls out. lots of hepa purifiers in my house now.
Don’t wish to cause any unnecessary alarm, but apparently – according to this one article I found – the estimated radiation leak from Fukushima has been officially reevaluated… instead of 0.69 terabecquerels (trillion becquerels) per hour, it is actually 6.4. So that’s 154 terabecquerels being released every day. A surprisingly large error coming straight from the nuclear specialists handling the problem. [[NOTE: the half-life of the individual emitters is NOT factored in; these figures are based on I-131; the rate of others like C-137 is much lower]]
We’ve still got a little ways to go before we hit the 5.2 million terabecquerel mark that is Chernobyl, but not long… especially not if there’s another earthquake/tremor.
I encourage everyone to do their own fact-checking… these reports are via bloggers as well as articles translated from Japanese. I’m in a bit of a rush so I can’t thoroughly fact-check all of this right now but maybe some of you can.
On a side note, all this radiation news has turned me into a hypochondriac… I normally get pollen allergies this time of year but now am freaking out that the scratchy throat, aching lungs and light-headedness are signs of something much worse. I’ve also gotten a metallic taste in my mouth that comes and goes. Can’t believe how carefree I was a month ago…
Rocket,
Some of those values are in attoCuries which is 1 millionth of a picoCurie. In regards to the source, the Chinese did atmospheric nuclear tests until around 1980. There may be other sources too. It is surprising how high some of the values got in drinking water and milk.
the more people who contact the smc pool director and request them to empty and refill the pool the better. we can cite the epa release of data that showed uranium was found in trace amounts. this is an alpha emitter and trace particles in the pool could be circulating.
@potrblog thanks for the stat calculations regarding plutonium and cancer. we REALLY need more mainstream awareness and experts to reiterate the dangers of particle vs. background radiation. question: using the epa’s tricky archival search system where you got the data on P238 from 3-15, I noticed EXTREMELY HIGH P238 levels in Los Angeles from 1978 to 1980. How many cancers did that cause? and where did THAT Plutonium come from?
Richard,
I saw the interview the other day. The key take away is that the Epidemiologist is NOT looking at any individual’s health, he is looking at societal / population level health; his knowledge and recommendations come from that view point.
The best analogy I can give is in regards to the spay/neuter of pet dogs & cats. Vets encourage early spay and neuter of pets because they believe that is the best choice for the overall public health. However, for any individual pet dog or cat the published research clearly shows a much greater reduction of cancers, diseases and other issues if the spay/neuter is postponed until after the dog has reached sexual maturity.
In regards to my own health choices, I prefer to act on the individual level because it is best for me and society (ie Liberty and Freedom work). In fact you might say I am a member of the world’s smallest minority- the individual.
Four Hundred & Eighty Two Lung Cancers from FOUR days in San Francisco !?!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/four-hundred-eighty-two-lung-cancers.html
Seventy Three Lung Cancers from ONE day in Riverside California !?!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/seventy-three-lung-cancers-from-one-day.html
Perhaps I missed it– but was there any discussion here of the video dated 4/21/11 in which Epidemiologist, Dr. Steven Wing discourses on Global Radiation Exposures and Consequences with Arnie Gundersen?
Video is at: http://www.fairewinds.com/
Thanks.
I have been trying to figure out which isotopes are reflected in the EPA’s RadNet gamma monitoring data that is publicly available. See RadNet Location map at http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-data-map.html
I used the video below to figure out what the regions of interest are (keV or meV?) but don’t know which actual isotopes the regions include. Can anyone solve the mystery? EPA has not been forthcoming with the info (surprise). Start looking at time 1:30-1:10 on the video. Share the link in case anyone else can figure this out and we can get isotopes matched to the ROI’s, confirmed and published online. It would be nice to have a sense of what is and isn’t spiking at any one time.
http://www.kgw.com/thesquare/Look-inside-Oregons-radiation-detectors-118626349.html
Thank you Big R for the info. Much appreciated.
On this most humbling Easter day it gives me comfort knowing that God is in control & weeps with us all.
Live in Riverside California? You inhaled 25.7 Million Atoms of Plutonium on 3/15/11
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/live-in-riverside-california-you.html
Annette and Ann,
Here is link I found on Potrblog’s website (see his post below on 4/22). Page 6 of the PDF refers to soil remediation measures/countermeasures evaluated for the Bikini Atolls after nuclear testing resulted in fallout. According to the report, the two most effective or easiest measures to implement included soil removal of 30-40 cm depth (12-16 inches) and treating soil with potassium rich fertilizer to counter cesium-137. Soil removal may not be practical if you have a large garden and 12 inches seems drastic to me. I did not read the entire study but I did not see mention of countermeasures for other radio-isotopes, but it seems soil removal would be just as effective for any other isotopes of concern. You could just wait out iodine 131 for a period of 10-20 half-lives (80-160 days). After 10 half-lives the remaining fraction of isotope is 1/1024, after 20 half-lives it is about 1/1,000,000; this assumes no additional iodine-131 is produced and released from Fukushima.
http://www.hss.energy.gov/healthsafety/env_docs/223519.pdf
Other options are to grow indoors or use hydroponics, and/or build a greenhouse. Just some ideas.
Hi, Potr–
I’m glad you’re ok and that your house is ok. I’ve seen that “green” sky more times than I care to count. You always know what’s coming, or possibly coming, when you see a sky like that. It sounds like the really bad part of the storm was not all that far away from you all. I could hear the thunder and what sounded possibly like hail starting up, or really heavy rain.
Your readings in the latest vid are interesting—it does definitely seem that there was more variation this time, indicating “hot spots” in the water, but not consistently in all locations of the SUV.
Thanks for sharing all of this with us, Potr.
The news says that you guys in St. Louis may have another round tomorrow. Stay safe. (LOL, and p.s., I’m glad you’re using gloves this time, LOL).
re; Santa Monica College outdoor swimming pools: per my swimmer wife’s conversation with Asst Manager Michael: “The pool is always covered at night but not during the day and not during the recent rains. For them to take special precautions they would have to be issued an official advisory– and they haven’t yet received any special instructions. I’m the first person who has asked about it.”
She will have a follow-up conversation with the manager on monday.
Liz,
all is well at the house; in my latest video you can hear the worst of the Storm skirting the homestead. Twenty minutes before the video, we had been out and about when the dusk turned an eerie green color and the clouds started dropping down. We rushed home, it only skirted us by a few miles.
Here is a link to the video.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/radioactive-storms-in-saint-louis.html
To Potrblog:
I just woke up the news about St. Louis. We know you’re from there. I hope you, your family and your home are ok. Let us know!
Hi Ann,
I have started everything indoors. I bought some broccoli plants & am growing them indoors as well, for now. As for the soil, I am concerned about the levels of toxicity. I have been trying to locate info on the web about putting in certain minerals into the ground to absorb radiation. I could have sworn I read that somewhere!! Or, was it just a wonderful dream?? I am not confident about putting anything into the ground that I want to eat, yet. I am anxiously awaiting my detector & will decide then what to do.
At 5:12 this morn there was a 6.0 earthquake near the coast of Honshu again… then another one with a 4.6 mag. I don’t think have seen the end of the radiation spew, unfortunately.
Just thought I would pass this long… it’s a very informative pdf talking about what exactly a picocurie is. It’s helpful to know while reading the EPA lab findings on milk and water.
http://www.lrb.usace.army.mil/fusrap/docs/fusrap-fs-picocurie.pdf
Question–
I everybody—I’ve been following all the informative posts, but just for yesterday, today and through the weekend, am trying to limit my Internet time in concession to Holy week/weekend.
But a friend of mine wants to know if/where he can get his pool water and a few other things tested.
It seems like Ann, or somebody a few days ago did mention a testing place where stuff can be sent?
And thanks for all the food info and the sites like the Low Level Radiation site.
Another Question:
Does anybody know what kind of effect radioactive fallout has on metal?
Because there a metal part on my car (a custom part) that is not chrome, but that suddenly, for about the last 3-4 weeks looks completely changed: It is almost white and has a rainbow of colors (like the way soap or oil does, but it has no soap or oil on it).
It NEVER looked like that until the last month.
I’m not sure what kind of metal it is (although I could find out), but it’s not chrome—it’s a decorative cover for the base of my antenna.
My car sat out in the rain during the worst days of the “plume” (such an innocuous word for something so dangerous and tragic).
Radiation Monitor readings throughout Japan. http://www.rdtn.org/home
Some are current, some aren’t.
if you have radioactive gardening questions read this
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/bikinis-coconuts-bread-fruit-and.html
Thanks Michael Collins for posting the “safe” food list.
Earlier someone else mentioned shopping at the 99 Cents Only Store for older stock; there are other discount stores, particularly local mom & pop Dollar-type stores that may have slightly older stock on their shelves. Although not all stuff at discount stores is older stock.
Below are some links for deciphering production date codes on packaged/canned foods. Some of the info may be dated but it is what I’ve found so far. Very few products (examples – some canned fish/sardines, fruit in jars) have production dates labeled in clear english. There should be “plain english” laws or regulation for food labels & date codes.
http://www.y2kkitchen.com/html/can_code_decoder.html
http://consumerist.com/2008/12/cheat-sheet-for-sketchy-food-expiration-codes.html
http://www.foodreference.com/html/tcannedfoodshelflife.html
Annette, do you feel if we turn our soil over now and start with new crops that the worst exposure is over now, unless there is another explosion over there, and that growing greens outside going forward is ok? It sounds like you are feeling that the major exposure period is past us.
I have really been wondering this about the greens and produce. I mean, if we just wait three months for the greens that were grown in March to sort of cycle through, the next group should have less toxicity.
those explosions that happened, that is what shot the junk up high enough into the air to get into the jet stream. now, if there are not any more, maybe the junk is not getting into the jet stream now. we can’t be sure but I keep hoping this is true…
comments, thoughts, contradictory or otherwise, wanted.
this is a good primer on reading manufacture dates. interesting to note how the dates work. You can easily locate a Julian calendar for 2011 and 2010 via search engines.
http://consumerist.com/2006/10/howto-decipher-food-manufacturer-codes.html
to the person inquiring about the SMC college pool, can you stop by there and talk to the manager personally, ask them what they have done since the several rainstorms after March 11th, to clean the pool water? has it been emptied and re-filled since then? are they at all concerned? how they answer you will tell you a lot. If they think you are a nutcase, probably they have done nothing to address the situation. If they treat you with consideration, perhaps they have realized this is in fact an issue worth addressing. if you take this on, please report back to us?
I read the safe foods article that Michael shared a link to. I have also found that if you know how to read the manufacture date, the julian date, you can buy a lot of foods still that are pre-fukashima. you can stock up now. However, we don’t know how long this will go on, so it’s a raw deal. At what point are we out of pre-fukashima food choices?
I think sprouting at home and possibly growing some hydroponic greens at home are actions worth considering.
I think it’s important to understand which foods readily suck up nuclear contaminants and which ones do not. For instance, we know wide open leafy greens are a problem, but what about other vegetables, nuts and seeds? are there some that are more resistant naturally for some reason? who is really studying and testing the food supply in California, who will say the facts of what is going on? so much food is grown here, this seems to me to be a national consideration.
A good way to monitor the jet stream flow coming in from the Pacific.
http://www.weather.com/maps/geography/pacific/index_large.html
Ann,
I have on order (due to ship mid-May) a DX-2 Handheld Radiation Monitor (0-100 MR/HR). It is not digital but it instantly indicates levels of beta, gamma, & x-ray radiation with audible clicks & the price was reasonable. I am hoping it’s good enough to measure the produce/veggies at my grocery store. It also has the ability to be recalibrated via a backside adj. screw. In the meantime, I have planted from seed some heirloom lettuces, beans, peas, etc. as I had some of last year’s organic soil left. I have really missed my salads.
Check out the commenter who contributed to the University of California Berkeley’s Department of Nuclear Engineering Forum a “safe” food list!
EnviroReporter.com is currently preparing an extensive “Preparedness” page that will be coming online soon.
Please consider making a Donation to EnviroReporter.com and our “Radiation Station” so that we may continue to bring our comprehensive coverage of the issues that the Radiation Nation cares about most. Hit the “Donate” button on this page or link here to our donations page.
Ann,
The medcom inspector, is probably the best bet. The key things to look for a sensor with a large surface area that is capable of detecting Apha, Beta, and Gamma radiation.
http://www.medcom.com/inspect.htm
or
http://www.medcom.com/exp.htm
I’m sure the info is buried on this bb somewhere, but can I ask again, what are the options for a scanner or handheld device to test the radiation levels of food prior to purchase? Did anyone research that and share what any options are? kindly, could you repost your thoughts, links, etc?
Lucystoner,
This link will give you some idea why nuclear is not dead. But, one could say we have been forced down the wrong path to support weapons programs. Had the free market not had its throat cut, more palatable capabilities would have been put in use a long time ago.
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?singlepost=2491667
I too would love to know about swimming pools and ocean water on the west coast.
Summer is coming… will our kids be safe in the water??
Thanks for any info.
Richard- I have exchanged emails and pursued the standing water question on pools and can’t identify any level of government doing any official sampling (CDC,FDA,O County,etc). I would like it if someone at least would look at one community,one resort, and one residential pool to assess if there is isotope buildup. Let me know what you do find out. Is testing being done and we aren’t being told? I have made the pool situation the one item I am trying to track down (I don’t even use a pool) and have gotten NOWHERE.
A must read.
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/news/Blogs/makingwaves/chernobyl-distorted-reality-and-unanswered-qu/blog/34331
How anyone can say that nuclear energy should still have a future I will never know.
Please tell the president that we will not support nuclear energy and it’s harm to humanity.
https://secure3.convio.net/gpeace/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=801&s_src=openspace
More petitions here: http://www.nirs.org/
Btw NATO and the US are also shelling Libya with depleted uranium. Liberating another country to a legacy of heart break.
http://www.bandepleteduranium.org/en/a/396.html
http://my.telegraph.co.uk/clothcap/clothcap/16313346/libyagate-du-weapons-cruise-missiles-versus-cluster-bomblets/
Anyone have any info re rad levels of water in open air swimming pools at Santa Monica College? Thanks.
Catch the interview of an epidemiologist on http://www.fairewinds.com for an opinion…. “If you focus too much on fukushijma, you ignore other contaminants and other sources of radiation”.
He describes dosages and whether behavior changes work to lower individual dose as the contamination is spread out into the world.
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/RHB-RadReport.aspx
Our State of California infrastructure has been supportive. (Remember this when you vote). You can obtain individual reports of air. I did see some milk testing on later dates. It’s clear. They sometimes give the dairy.
Action item:
If someone would like to arrange metrics in a table to see trends over time, that might be useful. Pick a geography near us. This gives us additional data to the UCB studies.
http://elib.uni-stuttgart.de/opus/volltexte/2010/5308/pdf/ren28.pdf
This document about Chernobyl response by governments is provided in English. Some points about aggravating factors:
* lack of capability for food monitoring
* control of public responses (compliance with public recommendations,but avoidance of overreactions
* confusion heightened by inconsistent use of measurements
* politiczation of issue by special interest groups
* overlapping responsibilities.
Remedies: restriction of outdoor activities such as swimming pools and playgrounds and outdoor events, limitation of open grazing to limit ingestive pathways.
quote:
ON the West German side of Lake Constance, dairy cattle were kept off pastures and iodine milk levels peaked at 100 Bg. On the Swiss side, cattle grazed on fresh fallout and iodine milk levels peaked at around 1000 Bq/L….
Potr—
You can get on NOAA and determine that there was nothing exceptional about the weather, today, here in the L.A. Basin, Orange County/Inland Empire regions of Southern California.
It was mostly/partly cloudy, not a huge amount of moisture (perhaps more near the coast), no precipitation except perhaps a bit of drizzle (again near the coast). That’s all.
Normally, static charges are built up during very dry conditions, such as Santa Ana winds, or during stormy conditions (lightning, etc.). There was nothing like that, today.
Nevertheless, I do see the logic of what BigR and Denise Anne were saying–to wit, that there was only one single spike on each occasion (today and on a previous date) which appeared to have immediately been followed by a return to the “normal” levels.
As both suggested, a true rise in radiation beta levels would likely have been reflected in a sustained rise on the instruments, or at least in repeated spikes. Instead, there was only one single spike, surrounded on both sides by relatively normal readings.
I’m not a scientist, but normally, something is considered significant if a “pattern” emerges. Anything else can well be simply an anomaly or an anachronism, derived from some other, unrelated phenemenon not necessarily connected to the issue of concern.
Not to mention that the EPA instruments are, by now, known in legendary ways as described by reliable scientists, to be notoriously suspect in terms of their functioning. Thus an instrument anomaly cannot be ruled out either.
In the absence of a pattern, I think that a “wait-see” approach is perhaps reasonable…
….Although I fully understand that it is difficult under these “new normal” circumstances, these uncharted waters related to Fukushima exposure to adopt that stance.
If that spike in EPA’s RADNET is from interference, it would have to originate from very close to the sensor. It would be nice to know what the weather was like at that station when that spike hit.
Here is a link to a very detail analysis of RADNET, the little bit of info I have verified from the linked article seemed correct.
http://www.idealist.ws/gamma.php
To Denise Anne–
I LOVE this article. It brings up ALL of the concerns, risks, compromises in transparency and potential conflicts of interest in a truly professional and factual manner.
I truly, truly believe that when articles, blogs or editorials reflect this level of sound and sane writing, the main points are HEARD more readily because the credibility level is so much higher.
I loved the last paragraph–I quote it here:
“”Hirsch compares the current radiation scare to last year’s BP oil spill. At first, the public was told that there was not much leakage from the rig, when in reality, millions of gallons were pouring into the Gulf of Mexico.
Hirsch said the radiation is “more harmful” to human beings, and called the crisis “nuclear BP cubed.”
He supports legal action in order to address what he says are problems with the EPA’s radiation monitoring system.
“I think there needs to be a Congressional investigation of the failure of the EPA monitoring system,” he said.””
I love the fact that Hirsch calls attention to the apparent contradiction between the EPA’s continued statements that radiation levels are “miniscule” and “far below harmful levels” while their own position at the same time indicates that even small levels of radiation can be harmful.
I also love that Hirsch expresses concern about the NRC getting into the picture; NIRS, PSR and UCS have a great deal of recent information which indicates that NRC speaks out of both sides of its collective mouth (i.e. public v. private).
Lastly, I love that he raises the issue of Obama’s support of the nuclear industry. Given that, I think that any government agency doing “monitoring” on this crisis or any other would be suspect.
I love Hirsch’s metaphor that Fukushima is BP cubed. That just about says it all. And BTW, there’s still tons of OIL there below the surface and (horrificly) in marshlands—-but the subject has pretty much died to all but concerned environmentalists (until CNN brought it up again last night).
How quickly we forget.
This is not to say of course that we find the overall EPA monitoring system, especially for food and water, to be sufficient. I’ve posted this before, it’s an older article but the expert interviewed is tops http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=14343830
Thanks BigR and Denise Anne–
Ok, then an electrical “interference” regarding the odd spike does makes sense (thanks for explanation, BigR)–I didn’t see how that could be, but now it makes sense.
That’s why we need the scientific types around here!!
After reviewing the data we agree this spike could well be due to electrical interference as EPA notes can happen. It is a single spike, not sustained, and our own readings with the Inspector were much lower.
Alamo,
Your concerns about flying made me update my blog with some info about mitigating the flying risk. I list some disposable masks for flying and driving. It also has a link to where I give some detail about the risk of jet travel into fallout.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/disposable-respirators-for-travel-risk.html
I just checked the EPA’s rad monitoring map at http://www.epa.gov/radiation and it shows big beta spikes in San Francisco and Portland BEFORE the March 11, 2011 quake in Japan. I just wanted to point out because a single spike today in LA does not mean it’s the end of life as we know it. Of course you can still take precautions if you want to.
@AJ The story you linked is highly suspect, in my opinion. I followed the link to the EPA website and, while uranium is indeed being detected in those locations, it’s on the order of 0.00003 pCi/m3 in Riverside (to cite one example). Mariana Islands is about 0.00019 pCi/m3. The highest one I see is Guam, at 0.00030. Are these not incredibly-low findings? I don’t know how the author rearranged the data to show nBq/cu in such high quantities. This data has also been posted for two weeks as well, so why are we hearing about it now?
Uranium in the air is concerning but I’m not about to go hide in a steel-lined bunker over this one article posted on a questionable website. I encourage everyone to fact-check everything including, what I just wrote.
I have a theory that could explain the beta spike in LA today. It could be a discharge of static electricity on or near the rad sensor. Beta particles are emitted electrons. Electric current involves the flow of electrons. So I think the EPA’s claim is plausible. It would be suspicious if the elevated numbers were sustained and not just a momentary spike or if there were multiple spikes.
OK AJ
This shows what we have feared, uranium has been among us since March 15 and on…. so it was, in fact, back at that time that we should have begun wearing masks, leaving coats and shoes outside, etc. and now we are finally hearing about it a month later.
I can only hope this was a result of the explosions, so some particulates did come over via the air stream, and I can hope that since there have not been further explosions, that perhaps more particulates of this nature have not gotten high enough up to the gulf stream to arrive since then.
If someone wants to correct me, please do.
Why doesn’t the EPA give us some results faster? It’s pathetic. I want this information daily! At least weekly!
Alamo—
A little gallows humor, here, sort of. Think of your trip to L.A. like this—in terms of fallout, better L.A. in the sunshine than Boston in the rain!
Radioactive fallout is much worse in the rain and has caused “hot spots” all the way to the East Coast (Pennsylvania, N.J. and Mass., specifically) and beyond—to Europe.
Rain is your greatest concern. For L.A. this week, there is no rain forcast, ergo, you’re probably better off here than in Boston where a line of t-storms will be active for the next couple of days all up and down the eastern seaboard.
Hope your trip here is pleasant, regardless.
AJ–
thanks for the Uranium info—-this is truly alarming information, even for us here, and most certainly for the people of Japan.
I saw that there was quite a spike on a couple of days for the O.C/I.E. (orange county/inland empire)—-my general area where I live. And who knew??? On those days I was out and about, completely unaware.
Why isn’t there more public outrage over the dearth of information, the lack of transparency etc. emanating from the EPA? Or about their “dirty tricks” ops (LOL) of hiding stuff in obscure sections of the site or downplaying what anyone with common sense can see is a concern.
I’m getting sick of this. I was so mad last night (see my post from then about the CNN special on BP) listening to the complete lack of concern (to this day, a year later) on the part of BP.
TEPCO’s the same way, and we’ve all seen (without having to succumb to freaky conspiracy theories) that the gov’t agencies responsible for public protection seem more interested in protecting the “bottom line” than in protecting the public or giving us realistic and honest information.
Thanks Michael for all you and your wife do! I had to pull my kid out of school today because they had them playing outside in the rain.
I found a great website that explains exactly what is happening with the reactors in Japan. http://www.fairewinds.com/
We have the hepa filters going, showering off from outside and throwing the clothes in the washer. Thanks for all the comments and help from all of you. We are trying to take this all with a grain of salt. What I mean by that is I am doing everything I can possibly do. As always I put my full trust in God!!!
Question:
I just got on and saw all the talk about the EPA spike for today. Their “explanation” (below the graph) says that “electrical interference” can cause spikes that are “significantly higher than the rest of the data.”
Michael or anyone else with expertise—-Is that true???
I know that electrical interference can cause spikes in data for electro-magnetic research (such as that out of Stanford U and JPL who are running an experimental project to determine whether electro-magnetic activity is a precursor of earthquakes)…….
But radiation??? Can “electrical interference” create a spike in Beta waves? If so, how?
Or is that just some “EPA-speak” to distract people?
URANIUM FOUND IN CALIFORNIA
I just received this in an email. You can check out their website http://www.llrc.org.
LLRC has been noting the lack of information on Uranium from Fukushima. Spent fuel ponds have suffered unknown amounts of damage and the precautionary approach would suggest assuming it is in the environment. Now (thanks to correspondent JM) we have evidence that this is the case. High Volume Air Sampling filters operated by the US Environmental Protection Agency in California, Washington, Hawaii, Guam and Saipan (half-way between Japan and northern Australia) show an increasing trend with proximity to Fukushima. The inevitable suspicion has to be that Japan is more heavily contaminated, as we feared. It is extremely likely that Plutonium is also present although EPA reports it has not been detected. It is of gravest concern that the Japanese public are not being warned of the hazard to health posed by inhalation of Uranium and Plutonium.
Data and reports on http://www.llrc.org top story
Kim, our readings showed a slight up Exterior-wise this morning. Radiation does not land like an even blanket and the EPA’s LA monitor is probably somewhere downtown 13.5 miles east of us. The EPA has an array of detectors that can pick up and decipher beta better than us so when they show a spike, take notice!
We have discussed what to do in case of this and will again. However, I need to take some appropriate actions around Radiation Station, and for now advise you to read/scan through the numerous comments here to figure some things you can do.
As for us, we ARE NOT taking KI pills or sheeting our windows in plastic. HOWEVER, Denise and I wore our breathing masks to commute to her work right now.
That is on top of the Hepa air cleaners we have in our home, Radiation Station and her office. We also have an extensive water cleaning system online now and have radically changed our food acquisition. All this will be discussed, again, later, but for now please look at other sources of information and comment to each other here.
I’d also like to know what precautions M & DA and others recommend for a big spike like this. And now that the spike has apparently subsided, how long should we remain vigilant?
I’m also wondering what others plan to do with their animals in bad weather or a big spike? Any ideas for handling dogs who want to go out? We’ve thought about setting up an exercise pen with pee pads on the covered front porch, but I don’t know if that will work or not…
Thanks.
Also, wow… the monitor has been hovering in the 50s-60s for a little while but it just hit the mid-70s. First time I’ve ever seen it go that high while casually watching it. Very interested to see what the average will be….
When the EPA says “take necessary precautions”, what do they mean exactly?
Michael and All,
I see the spike on the EPA monitoring site is down again.
Okay, I’ll admit that there is something that really puzzles me. How is it that the EPA shows a big spike, but ER and Radiation Nation don’t show much? I am sorry to be so dense when it comes to the most basic workings of the various particles and monitors, but I don’t understand how the Inspector doesn’t pick up something so major that another monitor does. Any information on the way that works would be much appreciated.
Ugh, the stress is getting to me!
Thank you, Michael and Denise Ann.
Very alarming about LA. I hope this is just a temporary spike.
What do you guys make of the San Jose air monitoring data? http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sanjose-bg.html Seems to have weird dips/spikes around the 17th. Or the gross beta for Fresno? http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-fresno-bg.html What’s with those huge spikes BEFORE the earthquake? Just trying to make sense of this data and warn the appropriate people…
Anyone notice the latest data from the Berkeley website? Milk and raw milk data is bad. To meet the upward max EPA standard for drinking water, the levels shouldn’t be above 3 picos/liter (or .11 Bq/liter) for all sources of radiation combined. All of the milk is testing about 13 picos/liter for radioactive iodine alone, and the raw milk is at 78 picos/liter. If you include the cesium levels, milk is at 33 picos/liter and raw milk at 100 picos/liter. I wish they had more recent tap water figures. The last day they tested drinking water was on March 31.
I know the FDA has set higher limits as “safe,” but frankly with their history, I think they are flat wrong.
Very worrisome.
Nancy
That spike is troublesome!
>>>>Iodine-131 is a beta and gamma emitter and may be responsible for it. The gross beta is coming in at four times background which is certainly cause for concern.<<<
Michael, any ideas on why we'd have a spike so high? Any recommendations for dealing with it? (ie staying indoors, etc) Thanks from a worried mom. 🙁
Dr Helen Caldicott,the long time anti nuclear activist gave an interview on March 18th in Montreal about Fukushima. It’s 9 minutes.
http://youtu.be/TMXvpWoHzeE
Kim, this is a shocking spike in gross beta. Iodine-131 is a beta and gamma emitter and may be responsible for it. The gross beta is coming in at four times background which is certainly cause for concern.
JMS–
P.S., LOL, I know what you mean about your husband being on the verge of disconnecting the Internet, LOL.
I’m not normally much of an Internet person, but ever since our little Radiation Station took off, I’ve been logging in more hours here and on sites like NIRS, etc., in the last month than probably in the entire last year, 🙂
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-losangeles-bg.html
Check out the air monitoring data for today, the 20th. Quite a spike! Thoughts?
Hi all. I’m flying from Boston to LAX tomorrow. Am I seriously endangering myself?
JMS–
Just saw your post about the “ministry” inherent in all of this effort.
While that was being posted, I was busy replying to your other powerful statement about what this group has come to mean to so many of us (see my previous post).
I do view my own efforts as ministry—not just in the religious sense (although certainly, I am always mindful of that, since my faith is so central to my life), but in the broader, universal sense of believing that all of us who are concerned about the environmental, human and moral issues embedded in Fukushima (and other disasters like it) have a sense of direction we follow in terms of reaching out in some way to enlighten others about this.
Thanks to the encouragement and latitude that EnviroReporter has offered us, thanks to the generosity of Michael and Denise Anne, we have, indeed, become a ministry to each other and to those outside of our community who are not yet aware of the global implications of this disaster.
This disaster located in a corner of an island country thousands and thousands of miles away……and yet so very close to our own backyards.
JMS—
Bravo, again, for capturing so beautifully what all of us here have become for each other–a “grounding point,” as you so perfectly express it.
… A locus of understanding, a compass of concern and compassion and a beacon of education and information.
As you say, there is SO much to absorb, to understand, to make sense of. And it is frustrating that so many people simply continue on as if life is the same, when (whether you look at it from an environmental issue, a moral issue, a risk issue or a political/social issue, or ALL of the above), life is most certainly NOT the same, post-Fukushima.
We’re all bumbling (and sometimes thrashing) around, trying to understand all of this within whatever context we are most familiar with, be that science, history, Faith, literature, music (or all of the above….).
Like you, I am a person of Christian faith and prayer. I know that not all here share my particular perspective on that.
But as I’ve said previously, sometimes, when all of this is so overwhelming, I can only and simply take it to the Cross and leave it there.
I echo your thanks to Michael and Denise Anne–and to the myriad of people here who have jumped into this ongoing and complex conversation, this uneasy fellowship, to add their experience, their knowledge, their resources….and most of all, their passion about what is wrong, and what can possibly be done to right it.
@ Liz,
Somehow I missed your previous response to one of my earlier messages. Again, thank you for the encouragement and you are totally right! It is like a ministry. Maybe not one you would typically think of in regards to Christian work, but if your purpose is to inform, uplift and support, isn’t that exactly what a ministry is in it’s very essence? :o)
Thanks, Liz. It truly means a lot to me, coming from one of the people I respect the most here.
I did have to laugh though. I am calm now but you should have seen me March 19th. My husband was seriously considering disconnecting the internet. I was driving him crazy. ;o)
This whole situation has really caused the phrase “knowledge is power” to ring true for me in a way it NEVER previous has or would have. I think everyone goes through that initial (excuse my language) “WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!?” moment when they see all the information, good, bad and everything in between that has been thrown at us for the last month. It’s hard not to have an initial panic attach when you don’t understand what all the numbers mean and have no idea what anyone is talking about.
Maybe that’s why I think it’s so important to read up on things, to stay alert, up-to-date and informed. I really am convinced, at some point, that some of my friends and family will eventually start questioning what is really going on and they are going to want answers. I KNOW it would have helped me if there had been someone out there who could have pointed me to the research and information I needed to come to some sort of educated opinion. I don’t want anyone else to feel so lost or confused, especially since it can be easily avoided. So maybe I can be that guide for them. It’s up them to come to their own conclusions but at least they won’t be alone.
Though many of us may not completely agree on every issue, in some small way, you all are like my grounding point in this whole issue. You guys don’t think I am insane and we can discuss how we feel, what we can do and what we ARE doing to be prepared. And for that, I am truly grateful.
I have said it plenty of times, but again, thank you, Michael and Denise, for everything you guys have done here.
This is a rare, more angry post from me.
I got home not long ago from a long day, anxious to watch the CNN special on the BP Oil Spill: A year later.
Halfway through, it leaves me only with this conclusion (I can’t watch the rest of the show):
TEPCO is a “nuclear” version of BP.
The company could care less about the cost to human life and livelihood.
The company could care less about the egregious harm done to innocent animals in the environment, or to the environment in general.
The company could care less about the dangers and risks to people all over the world from nuclear fallout or disasterous fossil fuel contamination.
The company could care less about the risk to life and limb of the employees they send in there to clean up or ameliorate the mess.
The company could care less about honesty or transparency to a devasted, worried public.
The company could care less about paying adequate compensation for all the harm perpetrated upon families, businesses, tourism.
The company could care less. Period.
The company has no remorse, no regret, except for the loss of a source of income.
When the next disaster involving a “bottom line” multi-national company strikes, the same pattern will repeat itself.
Like the proverbial murderer, the company is not sorry for what it did or does.
It is only sorry it got “caught.”
To JMS:
I just read your longer post and it is beautifully said—you really capture the sense of balance about all of this—concerned, doing research, asking probing questions, but not panicking—and also looking at the broader implications of all of this.
I say, BRAVO!! You really set a tone of concern, deep concern, without hitting the panic button, and you’re also trying to have some faith in some of the agencies like U.C. Berkeley without failing to ask probing questions.
Healthy skepticism balanced by healthy inquiry about everything, balanced by some concern and some hope, some despair and some sense of proactive effort to address all of this. Great post.
@ Rocket:
Sounds like we are in a VERY similar boat. I also have a 5 month old daughter. I said to my husband early on that if it were just the two of us, aside from trying to change things, when it came to diet and such, it would be pretty much a “well, we were going to die anyway and I already have a higher chance of cancer from my family….” But having children dramatically changes ones perspective.
You have pointed out one of my chief frustrations, btw. The complete lack of agreement on the Chernobyl issue. There is just too many grey areas and things left unexplained or even unexplored. Each “expert” has their own take and they rarely seem to agree.
@JMS not at all, your comments have been helpful and I have enjoyed reading them, take them seriously and appreciate your perspectives and opinions that may differ from mine. I absolutely agree that its very easy to draw conclusions erroneously. But it seems that perhaps, idiosyncratic to nuclear energy there never really is a conclusion, Chernobyl case in point, half-lifes rule.
http://allthingsnuclear.org/tagged/Japan_nuclear
Go to the April 14th Post and download the powerpoint side show “Anatomy of a Tragedy: Fukushima Dai-Ichi” which is extremely informative and slide 28 suggests rather convincingly that the releass are greater than previous releases combined. Today Gunderson more than alludes to the same in his vimeo at:
http://www.fairewinds.com/content/gundersen-discusses-current-condition-reactors-tepco-claim-no-fission-fuel-pool-and-lack-rad
honestly i would probably have adopted the what doesnt kill you makes you stronger approach to this in keeping with the collective denial, but i have a five month old baby at home and know she is being exposed to harmful contaminants perhaps yet unidentifiable and at dangerous levels on the cellular level.
Rocket:
First off, please do not think that my response to you was an attack. I applaude anyone who is choosing to do their own research regarding this disaster, specifically because the general public IS woefully uninformed and unprepared. I posted the information that I did because I have noticed (over the past few weeks) an alarming number of people posting the rainwater levels, screaming panic because they did not understand that there IS a difference between the two, especially with the time/dillution aspect invovled. If you read past notes, you will find that I too am doing a tremendous amount of research on my own because I take a serious “fore-warned is fore-armed” approach. I simpy stated that I believe, based on their previous statements, that “I would imagine that they (Berkeley) are taking a calm approach, assuming the current levels will slowly diminish.” I do believe they are looking at this in a ‘best case scenario’ type way. I, personally, am not. This is why I also said that, though I am not choosing to become alarmed, (yet), it is definitely something to keep an eye on. It seems like with every positive step taken, there seems to be two steps back. But I personally do not believe that the BRAWN team is purposely attempting to missinform the public. Again, my personal opinion.
In regard to decreasing rain water levels: Talk about a Pandora’s box. And I hate to do this, but honestly, I don’t want to get into a debate over what I feel is actually happening over there. I understand that I don’t know everything, that I am not privy to their information, however, I also understand that so far, there seems to be no unified conclusion from the scientific community over how bad this situation actually is or how bad it could be. There seems to have a huge array of scientists/specialists/phycisists and even lay people, all taking the limited information we have been given by those in power and arriving at all kinds of different conclusions, between “everything is fine, you’re over reacting” to “the world is going to end!!!!” and everything in between. Even the most well respected scientists are having to arrive at conlusions and they admit that (unless they are there an actually stating their own observed findings, which seems to be far and few between). Therefore it is difficult to arrive at specific conclusions without being wildly speculative. It all comes down to doing your own research and arriving at your conclusion based on the information you have and who you choose to listen to as an “expert”. Even then, I take everything with a grain of salt, understanding that mistakes will be made and even plain information can be scewed and missinterpreted by the media, in all it’s various forms.
Best case scenario: Despite TEPCO’s continued problems, there will be a diminishing level of released contaminants getting into the atmosphere and thus being carried to us through the Jet Stream. (Thank God, for us, that we are 5,000 miles away. It does help.) If that is the case, you will see dropping levels of contamination. This doesn’t change the situation for the people in Japan and I pray continuously for the families and people over there, having to deal with such a difficult situation.
Worst case scenario…….. *shudder* That’s all I have to say.
In the meantime, I will continue to watch, pray and further my informational arcenal. If there is one positive out of this whole disaster, it is that people ARE choosing to be self aware, the number of people becoming aware ARE growing, and we are choosing to do our research instead of touting the party line. Hopefully the end result would be a unified body of people who could change how we look at these kinds of situations going forward; working to change our goverment and leadership into being more responsible and more accountable. Again, best case scenario, but who knows?
@rocket Could you please post a link to the Concerned Scientists talking about cumulative radiation levels? That’s the first I’ve heard about Fukushima already producing more radiation than every accident combined. The number I keep seeing tossed around is 10% of Chernobyl has already been released (which is still a considerably large amount). http://davidappell.blogspot.com/2011/03/japan-10-of-chernobyl.html
Instead of eating Salads you could try making your own Sprouts. Here you can find all the Information you need:
http://www.google.de/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CEIQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSprouting&ei=47atTZXpEIPHswbQ2vnhDA&usg=AFQjCNHpZFyjAeTzz7vy3sX2Kvm7Mm63ig
3/27/11 rain fall Boise Idaho. Data reported 4/8/11
Iodine 131: 8day half life, 390 pCi/L of rainwater
Cesium 134: 2year half life, 42 pCi/L of rainwater
Cesium 137: 30year half life, 36 pCi/L of rainwater
From EPA RADNET
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sampling-data.html#precipitation
If you go through the RADNET data site you will notice they only test for a few contaminants; not testing for Strontium.
You will also notice the delays in reporting, and lack of data analysis tying together rainfalls, water quality, air data, and milk contamination
They EPA dosen’t even appear to have much if any capability (or willingness) to rapidly test for fallout with a half life of less than a day. My own tests in Saint Louis show a very short half life fallout contamination. http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/breaking-indications-of-fukushima.html
A strange and difficult to analytically explain witches’ brew of fallout is coming down across the country, and no taxpayer funded organization is doing much of anything to publicly clarify the situation; even the academics are afraid to enter the fray with conjecture. More data is needed, but few if any are willing to step forward and provide it; they probably have a good reason.
to jms
thankfully most of the folks posting on this site want the truth and are prepared to handle the numbers, the analyses and all of the short and long term implications in a responsible way. the public at large however will never be fully informed. our own research is mandatory. there is no reason to believe that rainwater levels will be decreasing anytime soon. the disaster wasnt categorized from a 5 to a 7 because the releases were declining. what are your thoughts about the assertion by the union of concerned scientists that fukishima has now surpassed release levels eclipsing all nuclear accident releases combined? what about the admission finally by tepco that uranium pellets have melted onto the containment vessel floor and uncontrolled fission is occurring there and equally as uncontrolled in the spent fuel pools? have you been advised of tepco’s specific “road map” of exactly what actions they are undertaking to stop the errant fission? I have not. All I have seen are images of an inept robot doing nothing in a horrendous explosion aftermath, a measly concrete pump with one firehouse presumably pouring water on the reactor and some men with hoses spraying resin on the ground to seal dust particulate. If I have missed something, please fill me in. thanks to everyone for asking the questions.
Rocket,
A few things to keep in mind:
1. The referenced measurements are for RAINWATER, which does get into our drinking water table but there is natural dilution involved that will significantly lower the amount of traceable radionuclides. The federal standards are for DRINKING water, which is highly regulated.
2. “EPA’s drinking water MCL for the radionuclide iodine-131 is 3 picocuries per liter. It is important to note that this drinking water MCL was calculated based on LONG-TERM CHRONIC EXPOSURES over the course of a lifetime 70 years.”
-http://www.epa.gov/radiation/japan-faqs.html#precip-dw-milk
I will not presume to say that the Berkeley people are perfect, nor are they going to be right about everything, but given the fact that these levels are not expected to continue for year and years, I would imagine that they are taking a calm approach, assuming the current levels will slowly diminish. To say the rainwater is at 7.29 pCi is definitely something to keep an eye on (even though most people don’t drink straight rain water and it’s actually been advised against in this state due to air born pollutants pre-Fukushima), but it’s a completely different issue if they start finding those levels in the DRINKING water, even if it is over the short term.
With that said, I personally do not find those levels calming in the least and my family will continue cutting out dairy and other products until certain particles are belows levels of detection. But I also understand that the federals levels are set for worst-case scenario and you would have to drink a CONSIDERABLE amount of drinking water to even scratch at numbers that are cause for major concern. For now.
To Jen–
I agree that anchoring ourselves in History, particularly the questionable history of nuclear energy is a healthy and productive thing to do.
It’s always good to have a longer-term perspecive. How ironic, isn’t it, that Mme. Curie and before, her, Becquerel had only an innocent pursuit of science in mind….
I also agree with your concern about the proverbial “calm before the storm” that you speak of.
The disturbing news from NIRS early this morning about spiked Iodine levels at the Fukushima plant certainly raises the question about whether, in fact, there is continued leakage from a Core problem.
Not that we would be told. This has evolved very much into a process of deductive reasoning for those of us who want to be armed with accurate information. Evem the UCS and NIRS have so indicated.
It shouldn’t be like that.
I am not so much in a panic about what is affecting us here (I’m much more concerned about the people living close by, in Japan), but I am very concerned about several things:
The world-wide implications for human health and the environment of this present disaster; the lack of truthfulness from industry officials/government officials; the potential, here, for a disaster of similar scale (heightened by the news, today, from Surrey, Va., about how this weekend’s tornados threatened, albeit briefly, the functioning of a plant there); and the general lack of concern about the long-term effects of even low-level amounts of radiaation.
These are all enough to keep me thinking and researching.
Unlike you, I have not had any “high-five” moments, but I keep working at this “ministry” anyway.
And I do consider it a ministry. Being a Christian with a great love of God’s creation, and being a citizen who is learning more and more on a daily basis about the effects of all of this…….
I feel that I have some duty to speak out, no matter how “small” my voice may be.
It is a collective voice that has power in a situation like this…
And I’m awfully glad that yours, and others’ on this site is one of those.
not a math genius, but the advantage goes to those with educations and proficiencies in physics and math that far exceed anything close to joe the plumber thats why there is so little worry about being held accountible, “we” would never understand or figure it out. those who have the credentials work in the industry and have their agendas to further the technology in the same reckless trial and error way it has for decades. case in point berkeley. nothing but revisions to their numbers miscalculations and blatant minimizing. rainwater from 4-12-11 i took it upon myself to calculate from becquerels to picocuries (what the epa uses) a link to the conversion calculator follows.
I-131 .27 Bq/l = 7.29 pCi
Cs-134 .145Bq/l = 3.91 pCi
Cs-137 .124Bq/l = 3.35 pCi
T-132 was at 3.86 pCi on 3-28
all of these from 4-12 are STILL above the EPA’s maximum contamination level of 3 pCi for drinking water, unless I am wrong, the math changed, they invented more units of measurement, raised the limits or its just absolutely nothing to worry about.
http://www.unitconversion.org/unit_converter/radiation-activity.html
Hence my hesitance to give out where I live. Even though, thus far, I have been a “tame” poster. ;o)
Liz, thanks for the articles. I am a bit of a history buff myself. In short, whenever I don’t understand something, I start reading and research things to better understand so that I can go into any situation, at least somewhat, prepared. This has been my driving force behind looking up the information I have been able to thus far about our diets, vitamin consumptions, radioactive material, nuclear systems and the list goes on and on. I am a firm believer than we learn from our past and any further information on previous examples and scenarios is fascinating and illuminating.
I too have noticed a drop on many of the forums during this quiet period. But to be perfectly honest, this has me uneasy. I am not typically a Negative Nelly, but in the past few weeks, every time there seems to be a break in the “unrest”, it seems to be the calm before the storm and a fresh batch of “all hell” breaks loose. So I am hoping it stays this way, but I am not getting my hopes up. At this point, my nerves are frayed enough to find lulls disturbing.
Btw, I thought I would note that I had my first “your NOT insane” moment today. My husband and I were at a local store, speaking to the sales manager behind the counter about our purchases. I made an off handed comment about stocking up on supplies and he mentioned the phrase “civil unrest”. I asked him to elaborate and turns out, he IS aware of what is going on, has been taking actions himself and completely understood where I was coming from in regards to safeguarding my children’s health. I nearly high-fived a complete stranger!! It’s strange to find it refreshing to NOT be treated like a freak for wanting to protect my children to the best of my ability. And this from someone who is a complete stranger!
Our numbers are growing. ;o)
My goodness, Potr—that’s scary. The Internet makes me very nervous; there are some truly scary people out there.
Regardless of whether “Anonymous” agreed with your findings or not, his/her angry ranting and threats are exactly what deters so many of us from having much contact with the Internet.
Thanks for sharing your observations and videos with us, here.
Michael and Denise Anne don’t seem to let too much get by them, but I imagine that there are some “lurkers” out there who are similar to the person who posted on your site.
I think we all have to be careful about identifying ourselves such that someone of that ilk could actually find us!
Even though the licensing of Geiger counters story is old, it does frame the authoritarian mindset. Confiscation of Geiger counters “for the greater good of course” is not beyond the pale either. These are all things that I weighed the risks of when I released my first report/video; it did not take long for an “anonymous” commenter on my blog to threaten my family with all manners of governmental action. Based on that threat I disallowed anonymous comments on my blog, but I did leave the comment up for all to see.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/video-radioactive-rain-and.html?showComment=1302177120310#c6148611796249274738
A More Chilling Aspect of History: Radium Girls
See my last post about the history of the discovery of radiation and the atom, atom splitting, etc., (that started out innocently enough) which I posted because I thought it was an interesting context to help explain the origins of all of this vast mess.
In doing my research on Mme. Curie, I stumbled up this fascinating article, the subject of which I heretofore knew nothing about.
It shows that early, early on in the use of scientific progress in the study of the atom and radiation, circa 1924, that there were dangerous exposures to radiation that were covered up by the (at the time, Radium-based) industry and, to an extent by government officials (because Radium was also starting to be used in the military).
This article is fascinating and chilling. It seems that to this very day, we are still not told the entire truth by industries making a profit out of Curie, et. al.’s discoveries. Karen Silkwood would probably be considered a latter-day “radium girl.”
Most definitely the darker side of what Becquerel and Curie and Rutherford started.
Here is the link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radium_Girls
A Little History:
It seems that (for the time being) the urgency of the Fukushima crisis (at least here) has dropped a few decibels; there seems to be a corresponding drop in the number of posts to this site, and in scientific articles or Press releases produced by major anti-nuke sites (NIRS, Fairwinds, etc.).
SO, I don’t know if anyone here shares my interest in history, but I thought it would be worthwhile to research the history scientific study of radiation/discovery of the atom, etc., that got us “into this mess” in the first place.
Of course, most of us are familiar with the “big” names–Becquerel, Curie, but I didn’t recall the details from my childhood readings on the subject and thought it would be fun to read about it.
I found this article, which seems to reflect a nice balance between layperson-friendly and sophisticated science.
I have no idea if any of the rest of you are interested in this sort of historical information, but it’s always interesting (if not always reassuring) to know how a certain social or human condition came to be.
It’s actually quite fascinating.
Here is the link:
http://galileo.phys.virginia.edu/classes/252/rays_and_particles.html
Thanks, Michael—I did the same thing you did–“ran” the story and found only articles from 2008 on the usual conspiracy sites and one article in the Village Voice.
The issue was more in the context of terrorism and was addressing many false reports from private citizens of radiation and dangerous chemicals that were costing fire deptartment and police a lot to respond to.
I think it was a city council proposal and there was a lot of (legitimate, IMO) strong opposition to it from scientists, environmentalists and concerned citizens’ groups, so I don’t think it ever went anywhere.
But yes, this is an example of why it is so very important for all of us posting here to check sources and information with care…..lest the credibility of this site be compromised.
Beware the repetition of rumors on dubious websites, Lotus, because many are intent of frightening people based on nothing. For instance this nugget you posted: it appears to be soley from a three-year-old story.
Because you are a ‘regular’ and posted no link, we ran with this comment anyway. However note that over 1.2 million people have looked to Radiation Station and EnviroReporter.com in the last month to get information they can trust and that isn’t generated by a need to provoke, antagonize and/or frighten. So, we all need to be extra careful and check sources.
I know not to eat or drink anything from a cow. But what about turkey or chicken? I figure they are in pens and should be safe but I’m not sure. Can anyone shed some light on this?
From the NIRS:
UPDATE, 1:30 pm, Monday, April 18, 2011. High radiation readings were again measured in seawater near Fukushima over the weekend. Of particular concern were high readings of Iodine-131. With its eight-day half-life, new spikes in Iodine-131 should not be found. This strongly suggests that melting of fuel and new radiation releases continue to occur.
DODGING THE BULLET:
This little tidbit is from ABC Radio–it’s also on CNN. It’s one more example of how vulnerable U.S. plants are.
“”(SURRY, Va.) — Electricity was lost at a Virginia nuclear power plant that was brushed by an apparent tornado, but officials say the situation is safe.
The twister hit the Surry Nuclear Plant’s switchyard connecting it to off-site power, but the plant’s two reactors were untouched.
“No one really knows what would happen if a very powerful tornado hit a nuclear power plant directly,” said nuclear policy expert and ABC News consultant Joe Cirincione, and that’s because it has never happened before.
Dominion Virginia Power says underground backup generators kicked in, ensuring a constant flow of coolant, and a safe shutdown.
“Unlike the reactors at Fukushima, many of the backup power systems at U.S. reactors are shielded in one way or another,” Cirincione said, but he warns that even the strongest plant couldn’t withstand a direct hit.””
Individuals and companies have increasingly expressed interest in buying detectors to warn them in case of a biological, chemical or radiological attack. But now a City Council committee is considering a proposal that would require New Yorkers to get a permit from the Police Department to buy or use such detectors.
Y Times….
[EDITOR’S NOTE: No link was provided to source this comment]
http://www.llrc.org/
The nutritional remedies I have researched to protect against or heal from radiation exposure are as follows:
1) MG doses of iodine, but much less than the emergency pack dosages which are appropriate only if you are in the immediate area of contamination. I have confirmed, intermediate doses of iodine is very safe for most people unless they have hashimotos disease, and there may be some issues for people with hypo/hyper thyroidism. dr. david brownsteins blog is the best source of info for this. most adults could be taking 35mg of iodine each day, and this would help protect uptake of harmful iodine into the thyroid. doses are explained also for children in the blog. another person who talks about this is pharmacist ben fuchs, who is a nutritional pharmacist. you can call his radio show if you want verification or if you have a personal concern about this due to the condition of your thyroid. I have found it is easiest to get this level of dosages with Iodoral or Lugols solution, though my doctor treated me like a jerk for asking for the prescription. you can get it on the internet now, I believe supplies are available again.
2) whey protein, contains all the pre-cursurs for glutathione production. most people should take at least half their body weight in grams per day,or more! even if you are not a body builder, to get this powerful antioxidant flowing through their system. this will help you to reduce sugar cravings.
3) to enhance glutathione production you can also supplement with extra l-glutamine and N.A.C. which are two of the three precursurs to glutathione. this would be IN ADDITION to the whey protein. they are already in the whey but you can add more.
4) vit C, powdered 2-5 grams per day, divided doses, stir into a glass of water with a few tablespoons of juice to cut the taste
5) lots of water. your body weight divided in half in ounces each day
6) bentonite or caolin clay. this is an edible clay that pulls toxins out of your system. the dosage is on the bottle.
7) there are a few homeopathic remedies. I have not used them. If you want info on those, call Santa Monica Homeopathic Pharmacy. they have both of the two main ones. I haven’t tried those yet as the above has me plenty busy.
8) probiotics are always a good idea for digestive health, for both men and women.
All. I’ve had a few creative thoughts that I may employ…. thought I would share with you, for those who are trying to avoid dairy and greens post march 11th. You know, in my town there is a fantastic whole foods and right next to it a 99 cent store. while I would normally go straight into the whole foods and buy around the aisle there, choosing local produce and fresh foods, I’m thinking at this time, it might actually be better to go into the 99 cent store that has a lot of foodstuff, and buy some products there. because… the reason those products are at the 99 cent store is because most all of them have a soon to be expired shelf life. so cans of condensed milk, beans, maybe even blocks of cheeses, maybe frozen vegetables… are all likely pre march 11th….
just another thought, that the healthiest food right now might be canned, older foods, until this thing is over. go to costco and dig to the bottom of the freezer and find the foods, bags of spinach, fish, whatever, that have been there over a month?
I am also considering culturing my own yogurt from said cans of milk since yoghurt is a breakfast staple for my husband and I can’t change his ways so quickly.
I am attempting to post a comment but am being told that I am attempting a duplicate post. This is strange as I cannot recall posting on this site b4.
In case no one is aware, it should be understood that the Catholic Church tried desperately to stop Einstien and his satanic anti-christ atomist research. BTW– this satanic atomist physical theory is the real reason Galileo was censored by the Church.
http://firstjesuits.wordpress.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQa0LJaI1JA&feature=related
“Fukushima Daiichi – They Are Lying To Us About The Severity Of The Situation 07.04.11 “
from: http://www.llrc.org Go to website for full post and lots of solid info from this European group of whom Chris Busby is a member:
Iodine 131 and a classic magicians’ distraction technique.
This post is about radio-Iodine but we have doubts about going with it. If the authorities can get us all thinking about Iodine and then reassure us that actually it’s not a problem except for people in Japan (which is broadly true) then we might not realise that the really dangerous isotopes – Plutonium, Uranium, Strontium, Tritium in particular – are not even being reported. This is a massive failure of Governments’ duty of care.
However, with that caveat, we’ll fall into the Iodine trap because we have received many requests for advice since the Fukushima emergency began.
Our early advice on taking stable Iodine is unchanged. It is here.
The European Committee on Radiation Risk has published a method for calculating doses from drinking water or milk contaminated with Iodine 131. ECRR’s main message is reassuring about the risks, so far as USA and Europe are concerned. They are not much different from what you hear from official sources.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuwzF6ZvZ8w&feature=related
Breaking News “SMOKE” detected at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear complex 16.04.11
Ann-
I appreciate your thinking and research. I have been thinking along the same lines. I am wondering where to find information about proof positive or proof negative if Americum, Plutonium, or Uranium have been detected on the West Coast. Or anywhere in the U.S., for that matter.
There are two levels of protection that you are describing. I am confining my jackets and shoes to be on the safe side. The only person I know of who is mentioning that Plutonium is on the way to the Northern Hemisphere is Dr. Helen Caldicott. I don’t have any links to actual reported measurements, however. Here is the link to the interview dated: April 11, 2011. It is very informative, and some of it is review, but she mentions what I believe are alpha emitters. It is from You Tube and can be searched for under “Japan Nuclear Crisis The Dangers of Radiation Global Research TV.” I believe she is in Canada, giving the interview. Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Vz3VkNZszQ
I hope this helps. Please continue your research and your posts. I have not taped my windows, but if I thought or knew Plutonium was arriving, I probably would.
-SLO
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/tepco-announces-it-will-take-6-9-months-to-end-nuclear-crisis
———
TEPCO announcement looks like it will take this long for the achieving stability phase. Does this mean “DISPERSING” across the ocean for another 9 months? They warn of even possible more delays on this schedule if there are setbacks.
Does anyone know of any official planning advise regarding outdoor swimming pool water in our neighborhoods as this doesn’t “DISPERSE”.
Seems like the clock is running out on nuclear power the longer it takes the world to contain this hazard….
Sounds like we are having another japanese Nuklear Power Plant in trouble. The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa in the Prefecture Niigata is sending smoke in the skies.
To Ann–
Thanks for your warm and gracious sense of humor—and your interest in doing the research that you do.
You seem to have a sense of humorous and sensible perspective on all of the tension that sometimes affects this community, and that is something that during this time of world-wide disaster and strife serves a very important purpose.
Carry on!!! 🙂
hmmm. no need for too many grand statements. I’m ok, you’re ok! no harm, no foul! carry on! ; )
To Christine–
I think you express so very well how ALL of us feel: That this is such a remarkably complicated situation and that just when we think we have arrived at some understanding of it, the complexities befuddle us all over again!
We’re all bumbling around, researching complex information, dealing with such a new situation—something most of us have never encountered before.
Not to mention that while we’re all grappling with the issues, people entre into this site and try to distract us by attacking our concern about nuclear energy in general or about Fukushima in particular.
That adds to the tension, to the complexity of it all, and to the difficulty of coping with the myriad of implications–here and worldwide–of this entire event.
To Ann–
Your research is so extensive—It is clear that you are becoming an expert in the types of isotopes and radiation types (alpha, beta, gamma). I so respect you for that because frankly, I find it overwhelming and difficult to sort out or understand and if you can gather all of that information, we are all grateful for it.
To everyone—
I imagine that Michael and Denise Anne must be beyond exhaustion. They have put their lives on hold (I deduce, since they are pretty much operating this site 24/7) in order to ensure that this site is here for people with concerns, questions, opinions (both pro and con) and observations.
They have to review every single post before they allow it on the site, they have to monitor the chat-room, average the Rad Monitor….maintain the web-site and deal with the advertisers….all the while carrying on their regular investigative journalism work dealing with environmental issues far beyond just nuclear energy and Fukushima.
This is an unsettling time for all of us. It seems, sometimes, like that entire world is careening off a cliff.
For me, when it all gets too overwhelming, I recall that God is in charge, not I. I know that not everyone here shares my particular faith, but that is what sustains me.
A little while ago I was watching a documentary about the Hubble telescope with stunning photos of the galaxy and beyond.
It made me realize how terribly insignificant we really are, even though we with our human, frail hearts, are daily caught up in the worries and fears of this world.
I guess I’m a peacemaker. Let’s all take a deep breath and simply be grateful for this still, yet uneasy and new fellowship.
I feel the need to comment here that I too am not happy Michael about your comment to Ann on the “research”. I too have done exhausting research (among caring for two babies) and more often then not my posted questions/inquiries get no answer or dialogue.
We can not all be as articulate as our much appreciated Liz but nonetheless our comments/questions/concerns are just as valid.
Also keep in mind, many posts get buried quickly.
Sure we may have an “asked and answered” scenario but keeping in the spirit of supporting each other, I think we should show more patience and consideration for different levels of knowledge and research.
This is a very complicated situation and quite frankly some days I feel I’m finally getting a handle on it all and then the next day it’s all jumbled and I have to start over.
With that said, I do appreciate and value this site immensely.
Carry on good citizens ..I so appreciate all of you and all that you share ..thanks to Michael and team !
Thanks, Michael. I don’t want to be at odds with you in any way, and I appreciate your response.
In my thinking, in my way of working out how to respond appropriately to this situation, of being on the west coast and receiving the fallout wind, I have seen the need for two tiers in our behavior/nutritional protocols. “Tier one” is what do to about gama/beta, what we are all deciding to do or not do now. if we get to the point of knowing the alpha emitters are very prevelant too, there may be a further level of precautions I would start to take, “tier two”. for instance, leaving shoes and jacket outside of a home prior to coming inside. wearing a covering over the nose and mouth when exercising outdoors, taping plastic around windows, sealing doors, etc, etc. some people may already be doing these things now, and I could not exactly fault them for that, but for me I will resort to these behaviors the minute I am told that in fact we have alpha particles in our midst floating around us. I am unsettled not knowing still how bad that problem is.
So while I have been working with “tier one” precautions, learning about how to deal with the gamma/beta, and that is a trick in itself when you have a husband who insists on drinking milk and eating yogurt… and you have a garden of greens you suddenly cannot eat, I am wary and watchful of the time when even further precautions might be required.
Incidentally, heard an interview a week or so ago that I thought said that unless there is another major explosion in Japan, that Alpha emitters likely will not arrive in the continental US. It might have been Christopher busby, clearing up some points he made earlier about being wary of alpha emitters. I heard that and felt appeased for a few days, a temporary break from my more grim concerns, but then I continued on to ask here and other places, because you have to check a lot of sources to figure out what is going on. no one person seems to have all the info.
Again, if you are doing daily, weekly inspections for alpha emitters, and you have any information at all, your updates, either proof positive or proof negative, would be appreciated. I don’t have any equipment to test such things so I’m afraid I’m left to burden you with this continued request.
“CRIIRAD Reiterates its call for mobilization worldwide to make available to the public all the analysis results of the CTBTO. These states that are opposed to this must be identified. It is, for instance, the case of France. Each citizen must know the identity of those who are blocking the vital information on the radioactive level of the air we are breathing.”
“The CRIIRAD has launched on March 23rd an international call in order to have the analyze results on the radioactivity of the air made available to the public. This call concerned most specifically the data from the international network set within the scope of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization network (TICE or CTBT).”
More here: http://www.criirad.org/actualites/dossier2011/japon/en_anglais/English_volet_n2.pdf
Here is the site that the animated map of radiation detectors from international monitoring stations comes from:
http://www.bfs.de/de/ion/imis/spurenmessungen.html
That page translated into English:
http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bfs.de%2Fde%2Fion%2Fimis%2Fspurenmessungen.html
Indications of Fukushima Iodine 134 Contamination in Saint Louis
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/breaking-indications-of-fukushima.html
Kim,
I thought you might like to take a look at the one we got:
http://www.whirlpoolairpurifiers.com/apr45230l.php
They list it at $399.00 (holy crap!) but like I said, we got it at Costco for $189.00. Makes me feel a lot better about getting it when and where we did.
– Jen
Trader Joe’s imports some fruit from Chile. You can always read the country of origin on produce. I’ve been doing that for years in order to reduce my carbon footprint, but alas, in this post Fukushima world, my carbon footprint is going to get larger.
Meanwhile, I have been living as if I have already been contaminated. I got stuck in the rain after the first plume arrived and had wierd red marks on my hands which sort of burned. I have a slight burning sensation in my upper left chest as well, and my skin has been very itchy. Being extremely holistic, I never get sick, so these mild “ills” are some cause for my conern.
I have taken to incorporating things to eliminate heavy metals from my body and load it with antioxidants. Studying the survival rates from Nagasaki and Hiroshima helped me find some items needed. I am also an aromatherapist and manufacture a line of organic skincare which helps protect my outside and I make my own colloidal silver. I am watchful of incidents in Japan and follow the jet stream, limiting my time outside when it flows south after an incident.
Paranoid I am not, but cautious and prepared I am. As I have said before, I am most grateful for this forum and all of the good info that is posted by this wonderful community. My friends and family think I am a nut job, going on and on about how to protect themselves from radiation, but I know better and I will continue to inform them in order to quite possibly save their childrens lives. And if they choose not to listen, well, c`est la vie. You can lead a horse to water . . .
Ann, my comment was based on what you asked. If you go through the comments for this article, you will see that we answer all that. Your research is impressive! We didn’t know about it. All we can judge by is your comment which did not indicate such efforts. Bravo to you!
Do note that alpha is dangerous but so is beta and gamma. Sure, we have so-called “background” radiation but the point is to keep one’s radiation ‘load’ “As Low As Reasonably Achievable” or ALARA. That is what we are all trying to figure out how to do in so many ways.
And, no, we really don’t need you to call the grocery stores. We know that they are not equipped to check all their produce, dairy and meat. IF the big chains institute these kind of rigorous inspections, I am reasonably confident that they would find ready customers in the Radiation Nation and Denise Anne and I would be the first ones along with you.
I have been consistantly asking about the alpha particals since the incident occured. the answer was negative each time I asked before, and now I see the answer is now positive.
incidentally a became aware of the danger of the alpha particals in particular by hearing the very frightning yet unqualified statements that bob bowman made days after the event occured, explaining that just one partical of alpha particulate lodged in your body can cause all kinds of trouble. so understanding that, is the impetus behind my concern. there is an entirely different set of behaviors required if we have proof positive evidence of the arrival of alpha particals.
A week or so in to this crisis, I made a list of the contaminants that have been reported as detected in the USA and looked up their nature, and it seemed from what I could find that they were all gama and gama/beta emitters. so it made me wonder, what else is not being reported. I have needed to keep asking, are the more harmful alpha particals making it here or not?
I apologize if you do not think my research is adequate. I have spent hours researching health remedies, talking to health practitioners, listening to interviews by nuclear experts, and doing web searches and I have spot read this site for weeks. so I guess that whatever I am doing is not providing yet enough of an education to your liking, nor mine actually, however I have dillegently asked for the same info, asked the same question, and come up now with a very different answer.
I don’t see any post on your resources pages that says anything clearly reated to your studies of alpha emitters. there is a list to many other sites. but I don’t see anythign with your daily inspections of plants or whatnot that denise ann had said that you do. that is all I have asked for, and I have asked several times. maybe this is annoying you becuase you are already doing so much. or maybe the issue is resolved in your mind and understanding much differently than it has in mine. apologies. I do not intend to be ungrateful for your work nor annoying. I am asking you guys because I know you have the methods and understanding and tools that i don’t have.
you have asked me to call the grocery stores? I can ask around as I run errands this week but the reason I posted the question here is that I thought someone might hsve already figured this out. I had a kitchen full of pre-cloud arrival produce, incidentally because I was well researched enough to understand to do that, but now that is run out, so I have to think about it Now. no need to criticize my timing or lack of research on that.
Ann, alpha particulates have definitely arrived at the West Coast. Go see our Resources page. In the one rain event we’ve had in the last three weeks, we did not detect alpha in the rain water. You are make assumptions and not doing much research, as reflected by your statements. Assumptions are just that: assumptions. Doing a little research, which takes a little work, would answer some of your questions. Could you call up the major grocery chains stocking food and see if they have produce from South America and report back to us?
PROOF POSITIVE: NRC PLANS TO KEEP U.S. INSPECTION RESULTS FROM THE PUBLIC:
The following is a quote from Congressman Ed Markey’s site wherein he complains that plans for an NRC inspection involve an intent to keep the information from the public. The last short paragraph really drives the point home.
“These limitations, if true, severely undermine my confidence in the Commission’s interests in conducting a full and transparent assessment of the ability of U.S. nuclear power plants to be kept safe in the event of an incident that exceeds the current design basis assumptions regarding earthquakes or electricity outages — such as the ones that occurred in Japan,” wrote Rep. Markey, who is the top Democrat on the Natural Resources Committee and a senior member of the Energy and Commerce Committee. “This also seems entirely at odds with the Commission-approved direction to study the implications of the Fukushima meltdown on U.S. facilities and report publicly on the findings of the study. We should stand prepared to learn from the catastrophe in Japan and plan ahead to address what was unforeseen but occurred anyway, rather than attempting to hide our vulnerabilities from public view and, potentially, use the fact that the information will be kept secret to avoid taking all necessary regulatory action.”
“The fact that they plan to keep the most serious vulnerabilities secret raises questions about whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is more interested in public relations than public safety,” said Rep. Markey in additional comments.
Michael- can you confirm that your inspections have not yet shown that alpha particulates have arrived at the west coast? I wonder about this daily and I don’t see any regular updates. It seems like the presense of alpha particulates would signal a much worse situation so I hope you can see why I keep asking. I don’t see anywhere on this site where this kind of information is logged. I see only the gamma averages.
All, is anyone in the los angeles area having any luck finding produce from south america? the mantra has been “buy local” for so long, I see only produce from california and mexico at my local stores. are the major grocery chains stocking food from south america?
http://www.galcit.caltech.edu/~jeshep/fukushima/ShepherdFukushima9April2011.pdf
This is a 155 page presentation with page 123 discussing the health effects. There are also comparisons with Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. Many photographs and summary charts in a thorough presentation.
A good reference. Many diagrams of reactor internals.
Thanks, Michael!!
Well said!!
I think that the indepenent testing of radioactivity in air, food, water, etc. is of the utmost importance.
We’re certainly not getting the information from utility or government sources.
NIRS has an interesting article about “levels” from yesterday. I wlll post it tomorrow.
And most certainly, Potrblog is providing an essential warning service for all of us.
I’ve been thinking about buying an “Inspector” myself, but they are back-ordered, not to mention the price has risen to match demand. I also wonder about establishing a scientific baseline in the midst of so much contamination.
But, I guess that if the rad level goes really high, a “baseline” is irrelevant.
Lotus… Did you ask yourself why there is this article at this time? Could it be that the sources quoted, and the media itself, don’t want Americans turning those Geiger Counters on their food and finding that it’s hot? Let me point out a two key words in this article (noted by my italics and bold): First the headline – “Geiger Counters Unlikely to Detect Radiation in Food, Water.”
Then the first line: “Geiger counters are probably ineffective for consumers in detecting hazardous levels of radiation in food and water at home, scientists, professors and …”
The oddness of this article appearing at this time, just when all those now sold out Geiger Counters and nuclear radiation monitors are arriving at the homes of people eager to test their food, water and air. Then note those highlighted conditional words used in the headline and article and you might come to the same conclusion we did: HOOEY.
Of course Geiger Counters can pick up gamma in anymedium or material. Our Inspector picks up that gamma and alpha and beta radiation in any medium or material. You’re sure as shootin’ that we can pick it up in food and, through a process of scientific elimination, make an educated *guess* as to what radionuclide might be predominant in the material (including food). Sure, you need a laboratory to find out exactly how much of what is in something but make no mistake; we can certainly detect radiation in food.
And what does the article suggest? Wait for the government to tell you what the results are. We certainly do that but the spin the government has put on the fallout in America has been unsound science at best (that’s being charitable).
But we’ll rely on our own readings when it comes to judging what to put in our mouths. And as for relying on the government, remember the EPA has zero working nuclear radiation monitors working between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Trust that?
Want to see the Inspector in action? Want to see a citizen expert in St. Louis, our friend Thomas, test the rainwater off his car that came in 62 times normal yesterday? Sure you do. But when you watch this, know that Thomas will probably be testing vegetables from his and/or his neighbors gardens, veggies watered by hot radioactive rain and what do you think will happen? Nothing? Think again… and have a skeptical eye when reading such hogwash.
And since most of us don’t have any kind of radiation detector, pay attention to those government averages when making decisions about foodstuffs most impacted by radiation: milk, cheese and leafy greens and use common sense when deciding whether to consume them or not.
Geiger Counters Unlikely to Detect Radiation in Food, Water
Geiger counters are probably ineffective for consumers in detecting hazardous levels of radiation in food and water at home, scientists, professors and …
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-12/geiger-counters-to...
——————————–
New business opportunity to provide a testing service by investing in scintillation counting equipment?
Hi, Chauncey–
This is quite graphic in a disturbing way.
Ironically the “beeps” sound like a Las Vegas slot machine. It’s strange to listen to the innocuous sound while realizing how prolific the nuclear tests were for so long.
I think that this is a dramatic reminder about the extent of nuclear detonations in the last half of the last century; quite compelling. Thanks.
Fukushima Uni. to check high-altitude radiation
Fukushima University will check radiation levels high in the atmosphere to get a better grasp of the extent of contamination from the troubled…
The university says it will release a large balloon on Friday carrying a weather observation device called a “radiosonde” as well as radiation measurement equipment into the skies above Fukushima City.
It plans to gauge radiation levels and collect other data up to 30 kilometers above ground. Readings will be taken at intervals of 10 meters over a period of 20 days.
The university has so far been measuring radiation closer to the ground. It has checked more than 300 locations in Fukushima Prefecture.
But it deems the current method insufficient to make a correct assessment of the diffusion of radioactive materials.
The university says the balloon survey will help make predictions about how toxic particles will spread across the globe.
University vice president Akira Watanabe, who is also a member of the research team, says the findings will be disclosed to the world along with projected radiation levels.
Friday, April 15, 2011 09:57 +0900 (JST)
—
I don’t know why we can’t have a military ship at sea launch some balloons to quickly get some of this data! It seems like we could get high atmosphere metrics without being on top of the reactors ….
Here is something interesting, a link about our world and nuclear detonation. It is a timeline from 1945 to 1998. What do you think?
You Tube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9lquok4Pdk
Kim,
Our old HEPA-TYPE filter was small, box like thing. I put in a new filter and in less than a week, the front pre-filter was already grey with dust (living in the Central Valley, the dust here is BAD). The new one is far larger (bigger than my 3 year old), so it’s not showing too much signs of getting clogged so quickly. But it also came with 4 extra pre-filters too, which was nice. I’ll let you know if I find anything I don’t like about it.
– Jen
Powerful Song:
Since Potr is sending songs (great Danny Kaye, Potr), I’ll post some music, too, about the rain.
If there are any ‘Boomers here, you will most certainly remember this.
It kind of goes with Potr’s video about the radioactive rain, and, in fact, that’s what the song was about (or polluted rain in general as well).
It’s very beautiful. Hope the link works. Enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhbjrPrBGe4
To Kim—
I read the other day that sometime in the upcoming months, possibly as long as a year, that debris from the tsunami will reach the West Coast and that it will be likely to have some (unknown) degree of radioactivity….
So, enjoy the water, now!!
Video link of the 62 TIMES background radiation fallout contamination sample taken from the nose/grill of my truck
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/video-update-alert-62-times-background.html
!!!ALERT!!! 62 TIMES background radiation, Saint Louis Mo 4/15/11
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/alert-62-times-background-radiation.html
Hi Michael,
Thank you so much to you and your wife for taking this on. I look at your site several times and on a daily basis. I wanted to ask you about the radiation monitoring. Sometimes, there will be times when the 10 minute average CPM is within the background level range (40-46CPM for your area), but it isn’t tagged as NORMAL. One instance of this is yesterday, April 14th. The 10 minute average for Interior CPM was 40.5. Does this mean anything or was it not tagged NORMAL by mistake? Thanks ahead of time for your reply.
The importer for New Zealand’s Red Feather canned butter, and Bega canned cheese found me.If you are interested in ordering directly from them, please see the details on my blog.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/source-for-red-feather-canned-butter.html
a note of brevity, i dont see any sexy russians! (smile)
Soothing comfort music for Tax Day Radioactive Rainfalls.
http://www.ocpp.org/blue/Danny_Kaye_-_I_Paid_My_Income_Tax_Today.mp3
>>>it is absolutely safe to wade in the water<<<
Thanks, Michael. I heard something about I-131 being found in seaweed in Puget Sound a few days ago, and the scientists there were pretty surprised by that. My husband was saying that he heard something about a current that basically runs from Japan, up to Alaska, and then down the west coast (something like that… I'm paraphrasing). Any other verifiable info?
I think you and Denise Anne need to take a trip to the beach this weekend for some R&R– and take the Inspector! lol.
Thank you.
Hi Kim; it is absolutely safe to wade in the water… just be careful like we know you will be!
Hi,
Does anyone know anything about ocean water? I’m on the west coast and would like to know if anyone has heard anything about sea water here being tested or anything? Is it safe to wade in the water?
Thx.
>>>We just bought a Whirlpool HEPA 300 CADR .3 Micron air purifier at Costco for $189.00<<<
Hi Jen,
Thanks for the info. I just realized last night that the filters I saw at Target are the "hepa-TYPE", not sure if those are worth it? Any thoughts?
BTW, Jen, I didn't mean to be creepy when I asked you where you were from, ha ha. Sounds like you're a bit north of me. From one mom of young ones to another, hang in there!
Kim
Tax Day Radioactive Rain 9X background in Saint Louis Missouri. Follow the link below to see the video.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/tax-day-radioactive-rain-9x-background.html
http://network.greenchange.org/blogs/29833-campaign-starts-for-emergency-containment-of-fukushima-emissions
Link discusses campaign/technology suggestions to fix the emissions – and who to contact
Thank you, Ray. We will try to find a way to get rid of those offensive ads. We thought they had gone away but apparently they haven’t. We appreciate you bringing it to our attention and we will contact Google about the matter. Thank you, again.
Thank you for being concerned about the public’s health and creating this web site. It is very helpful. I advertise this web site by sending e-mails out to 500 and more people on my data base. There are children who also go to your web site. I am very concerned about them. I would like to ask you to take the sexy Russians out. Our children are already bombarded by all the sexual films and sit coms we don’t need another one on this site.
Thank you
Kim,
We just bought a Whirlpool HEPA 300 CADR .3 Micron air purifier at Costco for $189.00. Since it’s less than a week old, I can’t give a long term rating but it seems to work ok. It’s at least a lot better than the tiny Hepa-LIKE (using their own definition) filter someone gave us a year ago.
To SLO–
Thank you so very much; your post is an encouragement to me. LOL, I’m certain that I “opine” excessively, such that people’s eyes glaze over when they see my name…
…But I am passionate about certain things and God does seem to have blessed me with an ability to articulate what many people are feeling.
If my posts have expressed the sentiments and concerns of others, then they have accomplished a purpose, at least.
Thank you so much for your kindness and encouragement.
“John” and I do not agree, but we are both blessed to live in a society (and to be on a site) wherein we can freely and openly debate issues of concern.
That, in itself is a blessing.
It is very much a credit to Michael and Denise Anne that they do NOT try to limit the postings of those who do not necessarily agree with so many of us.
It bespeaks their intellectual honesty and their commitment to providing a real community—welcoming in those who do not hold the “majority” opinion.
In this “post Fukushima” world, perhaps we are all coming to see that we are ALL affected, no matter what our political affiliations.
If I have expressed the concerns on your heart, SLO, then my efforts are worthwhile. Thank you so very much.
John–
First, about my reference to the “China Syndrome.” Perhaps I did not express my point adequately.
What I was saying is that I have a very close friend who was and IS in the position that the inspector in the movie was in, and who has been pressured to “produce” the same results that the movie “fictionally” represented.
I have had many conversations with him about this, and I have seen the actual test results and reports in question.
This friend is one of the most respected ASNT (American Society of Non-Destructive Testing) Level III inspectors in the U.S.
He has worked on nuclear plants, electrical power plants, bridges, airplanes, building structures, railroad facilities.
I have known him for years and I know him to be a reliable reporter about what goes on in the industry.
If you do not believe that he has been pressured to “fudge” tests results and reports, including for the major Utilities, there is nothing I can do about that.
I referenced the movie in order to illustrate that, in fact, what was portrayed in that movie was NOT necessarily fiction.
But my point is that I referenced the fictional representation to underscore the reality of the situation from someone whom I know and respect.
I am not a fan of Jane Fonda and I do not (unlike you seem to) have a political agenda. I am very much a centrist; I am very “liberal” on some issues and quite “conservative” on others.
I do not decry “capitalist” activities; why would I? I have a retirement portfolio and I would be a hypocrite if I decried such things and secretly relied on a “portfolio” for retirement, wouldn’t I?
What I do decry, vigorously and vociferously is profit that compromises public safety, human “best interests” or the environment.
I decry corporate interests that elevate personal and company profit as a far greater priority than safety and ethics.
I do cherish God’s earth. As a devout (and conservative, BTW) Christian, I am called to good stewardship over all of God’s creation. I believe that God’s creation is holy and beautiful and that fallen humankind has desecrated it.
To me, nuclear or chemical waste dumps, chemical pollution of rivers and streams, poisoning of human beings and wildlife is something that we are ALL responsible for and that we ALL must work to eradicate—-even if complete resolution of such problems is not likely or pragmatic.
I do not entirely blame “corporate giants.” If you read some of my previous, earlier posts, you will see that I hold myself and all of us accountable….
…for surely such runaway abuse of the environment and of human life could not exist if there were not a “market” for it.
All of us are the “market.” All of us have to ask ourselves what we are willing to give up in order to pitch in and help.
Obviously you and I do not agree. I could research the facts to prove to a preponderance of the evidence that the problems I enumerated in my last post are very real.
But ultimately, if you would use sarcasm to parry a point I was trying to make about what goes on in reality (vs. a movie), there is probably not much I could say that would be effective.
Nevertheless, I thank you for having the courage to express a point of view that is different from the majority of those on this site.
For that, alone, I respect you, even as I also strongly disagree with you.
Liz-
Thank you so much for your posts. I have been reading as many posts from all posters since the beginning. You are articulating my thoughts, and I wanted you to know I appreciate you taking on the recent arguments. I feel so frustrated and dumbfounded, but somehow, you are finding the words!
Thank you. I am in your corner–the corner of those of us who want to live, know accurately what is really coming out of Fukushima, what is landing in the U.S.A., and who want to mitigate radiation contamination damages as best we can.
Gratefully,
-SLO
Hi,
Can anyone recommend a reasonably priced HEPA filter? I’d love to get one or two, but can’t spend an arm and a leg. It seems like they all have very similar ratings on amazon, so I thought I’d see if anyone is happy with theirs, of if you have any pros or cons to share, knowing what we’re hoping it will help clean. 🙁
Thanks.
To John Lee-
Wow. Yes I see your point. There is very dangerous talk here about detoxing and eating cancer killing foods. Maybe I should just go to your “MD” friend and get some Zanax to make it all better. I mean heaven forbid we empower one another. In fact, I am going to go right now and eat some organic aged miso soup, organic new zealand cheese, drink my new zealand spring water, take a bath in ebson salts, and drink my bentonite clay to pull out toxins. VERY risky behavior. Get real!
Liz,
A few points. First, the UCS absolutely cherry picks data and lies with statistics. You don’t have to believe me, but I know this for a fact. That they say they are neutral is laughable. They are as neutral on nuclear issues as Green Peace is neutral on whaling. Any communications they publish are very suspect to me, and since I know people directly involved, and since they believe in the “ends justify the means” I do not put stock in anything they put forth.
Next, the idea that you’d even cite the China Syndrome to make a point doesn’t help your credibility. That movie put nuclear safety back 25 years, and I can tell you the safety/redundancy in American nuclear plants (esp. since TMI) is to the limit of what is possible. (Do they still need to be safer? YES, by updating them to newer designs that use less fuel, safer fuel, better cooling systems and pose FAR FAR fewer risks.) There are no “short cuts” in welding inspections or pay-offs to overlook dangerous shoddy workmanship. China Syndrome was a MOVIE, not real life. It starred Jane Fonda. ‘Nuff said.
Third, when I said “non-event” I was referring to any radiological danger here in the U.S., not in Northern Japan. I’m not happy or comfortable with this situation at all, but I just feel that people who are running in fear are doing so due to lack of understanding. (As an aside, if it’s as bad as the real doom-sayers think it is, what is the point of panic? If it’s at toxic levels in the food, water, milk, atmosphere, ocean do you really think you are going to be able to somehow avoid contamination? How, with Brita water filters? Are you going to wear a respirator 24/7? Eat only food grown in lead-lined caves in Antarctica?)
I’m sorry, but I do see an anti-capitalist “corporations are always lying and killing us” theme here (to be fair, not just from you, but from many posters).
I’m still glad and appreciate that you have your radiation monitor up (which confirms that there is almost zero change in measurable atmospheric radiation since the event).
Why Does FDA Tolerate More Radiation Than EPA?
This article is a must read.
http://blogs.forbes.com/jeffmcmahon/2011/04/14/why-does-fda-tolerate-more-radiation-than-epa/
To John–
Obviously, you raise the question as to whether people with disparate views interpret data based on their particular perspective or viewpoint. Sometimes, this does occur.
However, the sites you referenced (in response to my referencing them) are not skewing data or interpretations of data in order to pursue an agenda.
While some of the sites I mentined (NIRS, PSR) do support an anti-nuke agenda (which I also do), the UCS makes very clear its position that it is neither pro nor con on the nuclear power issue, but rather an independent watchdog group to ensure that the Utilities and the Regulatory Agencies are truly adhering to standards, that they are, in fact setting reasonably “safe” standards, and that they are reporting safety risks and issues honestly and accurately.
Most of the leading scientists at UCS are, in fact, from the nuclear industry.
However, I must address a broader point that relates to this entire discussion. There IS a credibilty gap involving some of our Regulatory groups; the EPA is one. The FDA is another.
I do not like the terms “cover up” or “conspiracy” because they have been hijacked by some of the more “wing-nut” alarmist/conspiracy theory groups—which do, from any reasonable person’s point of view, reflect miserably poor ethics in their reporting.
However, I believe that historical evidence does point to tendencies of those Agencies to minimize, under-report and obfuscate facts in relation to risks, incidents, accidents and safety problems found within the Utilities.
Certainly, the Utilities, themselves are driven largely by a “bottom line” and less by a concern for the public.
Let’s look at the one small example from outside the nuclear industry of the Southwest Airline plane that split open in mid-flight last week. It provides a nice analogy to what goes in in the nuclear industry.
The truth has emerged that the airline was well aware of frame-related and metal-fatigue related problems in the general fleet and in that particular aircraft.
However, the Airline did nothing about it, instead trying to “pack in” as many miles as possible for maximal profit before bringing the plane offline to repair the problem.
This is how the public is sometimes endangered as a result of financial interests taking precedence over safety.
Now, returning to my point–the Utilities who own/operate the nuclear plants do the same thing. There is a trove of responsibly and extensively documented information about safety problems and risks in the nuclear power industry.
Those Utilities do have an extraordinarily powerful “lobby” in Washington and with State governments. They always have.
Enter the EPA and the FDA. Are they evil, wicked, conspiratorial groups surreptitiously planning our doom while accepting covert slush-funds from the Utilities?
Of course not.
They are behemoth, sometimes bumbling, heavily beaurocratic, overloaded agencies where half the time one side does not even know what the other is doing,…
…and where sometimes leadership and “policy” are driven by what might most accurately be called a “conflict of interest.”
There is a scene in the “China Syndrome” wherein the inspector who “passed” the welds on the reactor equippment clearly lied and fudged his report.
That, in turn, was motivated by someone on top, who, in turn was motivated by financial interests…like with Southwest airlines.
I can guarantee you that this cinematic fiction is NOT fiction. An old friend was just such an inspector and he was more often than not asked to “pass” structures (including in nuclear power plants, bridges, airplanes and railroad equippment) that his tests clearly showed were not safe. He has been asked numerous times to re-take x-rays or ultrasound tests that demonstrate that the equippment was safe, or to put in his report that the concerns he saw in the test results did not really indicate an “in vivo” possible safety risk.
He consistently refused to pass anything that did not meet set standards. But the pressure was there and sometimes, it involved higher levels within the industry or even within government agencies, like Cal Trans, for example, or Southern California Edison, for another example. There were several times when he walked away from lucrative contracts rather than fudge test results.
The fact is that there are serious safety issues with nuclear power that have, unfortunately, severe sequelae for so many people.
Perhaps, “statistically” an accident is not likely to happen. But if it does happen in THIS particular industry, it harbors dangerous consequences for hundreds of thousands of people. So far, in recent memory, we have TMI, Chernobyl and Fukushima. Ok, what is that? Every 20-30 years? Not statistically significant.
Except for the people who have to evacuate, who develop radiation-related cancer or the children born with birth defects even as far as 25 years away from the event.
Let’s try telling them that they are just a stastical anomaly and that this really wasn’t supposed to happen.
Can you honestly say that you completely trust the EPA, the FDA? How many drugs has the FDA passed which turned out, in short order to be dangerous, and had to be “pulled?”
The EPA admitted last month that a large percentage of their “sniffers” weren’t working. But would we (or they) have found out about that if Fukushima hadn’t happened?
And the NRC—an FOIA petition request revealed last week that while publically, the NRC is saying that everything’s “fine” with the industry, privately, the scientists and experts there were communicating IN WRITING with each other that their public stance was not, in fact, truthful.
You can read the material on the UCS website.
Would you trust an agency charged with public protection, yet caught essentially telling the public one thing and privately saying the opposite trustworthy?
I would not. I am not a radical left-wing tree hugger. I am not a “wing-nut” conspiracy theorist. I am not a right-wing anti-government anarchist.
I review facts carefully and ethically. I examine all sides and sometimes do not agree with things declared by even those whose agendas I support.
But I have no doubt that there are wide-spread and legitimate safety concerns about nuclear energy, that there is a real risk of contamination from nuclear fallout world-wide from these types of catastrophic accidents, and that the “Regulatory” agencies are not, for a host of reasons, competently or honestly looking out for the best interests of the American public.
Just answer this: Is TEPCO dedicated to the welfare of the Japanese people? Have the Japanese people “benefitted” from all of that wonderful nuclear power?
And this: Do you think that GE, SoCal Edison, et. al. would be any different?
And this: If this is a “non-event” what would you consider an event? If a plant near you goes south, would you simply go about life as normal and not worry about any unfavorable consequences from such an accident.
For your sake, I hope not.
Holly Crap! Thanks for the info Michael. I live in Encino so I’m not too far away! I’m going to look into this more.
@ Simone
Possibly it is dust from your ceiling? California has been experiencing earthquake activity and particles from your acoustic (?) ceiling may be coming down.
That was all that came to mind.
I cannot speak for why radiation network’s numbers are the way they are, Jeremy. You must buy their products to be part of their system (which I see finally has sort of a legend that still doesn’t explain the measurements): http://www.geigercounters.com/NetworkVersion.htm. The numbers representing measurements seem static but perhaps they change; I don’t know because I don’t check this graphic often. I can’t speak to the Japanese background levels because I haven’t studied them.
A good question is why are the background levels in Los Angeles seem so high compared to the rest of California? It could be a function of geologic content of the soils here. It could do with the fact that there were at least three partial meltdowns at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory, aka Rocketdyne, thirty five miles northwest of downtown LA. The partial meltdown of the Sodium Reactor Experiment there in 1959 released hundreds of times more radiation from the uncontained structure than did the Three Mile Island disaster twenty years later. Or it could be we are just hot.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Keep up your great work guys!
People who have commented here please educate yourselves as to the difference between radiation and contamination. Radiation and contamination are not the same thing.
The deliberate use of the word ‘radiation’ to describe ‘contamination’ by our corporate state media is an attempt to lull and deceive the public. Comparing the cosmic background radiation one gets from flying or the x-ray radiation one gets from from an x-ray with radioactive contamination are perfect examples of this deceptive tactic. There is no such thing as safe levels of contamination that is why they stay away from this word. When radioactive isotopes enter into the air, water, crops, cattle, milk and our bodies that is called ‘radioactive contamination’ not ‘radiation’.
Also if a bear is coming at you in the woods is it fear mongering to be scared and say “run”? No, it is a survival instinct. Should you just stand there and say “don’t be scared, just love the bear and think good thoughts”? No, you do whatever you can to get out of harms way and survive. It is because the fallout is invisible that our survival instincts haven’t kicked in and said, “enough is enough, time to get organized here”.
Maybe if we did all get scared it would wake us up out of our slumber and complacency, make us all realize what is important, what is worth fighting for and what is not.
An empowered public with their survival instincts kicked in would not serve corporate interests or ensure continued power to the people running banking institutions/politicians. Maybe that is why the mantras constantly being repeated are “don’t panic”, “nothing to worry about”, “don’t fear monger”. Or maybe it is just pure denial that causes people not to be able to accept the gravity of this situation. We are dealing with cumulative radioactive contamination from ongoing fallout and there is no plan or even idea of how to get these reactors under control. You do the math.
The power of pen and tongue can save the people of this once great nation.
Remember, the power of pen and tongue brought down a president (Nixon) and that was before the internet!
The quality of a democracy can be measured by the quality of it’s journalism. That is why the press is the only business protected by the Bill of Rights (in the 1st Amendment).
The time for waiting is over. It’s time to draw the line, stand up and be heard.
SILENCE = DEATH
and I’ll add to that…
COMPLACENCY = DEATH
Liz, thanks for your reply. The problem is that all the people you cite are anti-nuke and have an agenda.
There is nothing wrong, I grant you, with being careful. But these blogs and anti-nuke sites (like UCS) that are warning of harmful levels of radiation are not reliable. They are using this situation for political ends and to promote a point of view. Of THAT I am 100% certain. I know people involved, and this is a case of “not letting a good crisis go to waste”. I find that appalling, by the way.
Again, it’s true ingesting ANY amount of radiation isn’t a great idea, but we do it all the time. There is no avoiding it. I have seen nothing to suggest that the tiny amounts being found are any more that insignificant.
This brings up the biggest problem: trust. If the feeling is there is ZERO credibility with the EPA data, and that the entire thing is a cover-up, then we’re in bigger trouble from THAT than any radiation.
Much as I’m not a fan of the EPA, I cannot say “Oh, it’s a cover up so that we won’t realize 100 million people have just been dangerously irradiated.”
As to these non-offical sites that seem to find dire amounts of radiation in food, milk, rain water, etc…let’s just say I’m skeptical, esp. when they are something like “Eco-Environmentalists For Social Justice”.
Lastly, I agree Liz. It’s NOT ridiculous to be concerned or cautious. But please, realize this (for us and so far) is almost a non-event.
From a Hawaiian Health Dept. spokesman, in response to the mis-interpreted date:
McMahon states, and EPA officials confirmed, that the EPA’s “maximum contaminant level” for iodine-131 is 3 picocuries per liter. McMahon noted that a Little Rock, Ark., milk sample was three time higher at 8.9 picocuries and that the Hilo sample was higher yet at 18 picocuries.
What McMahon reported is “technically correct,” Nakasone said.
“The limits for water as derived by the EPA are totally different from how it’s derived through the FDA,” Nakasone said. “The EPA is saying (their limit) is over a 70-year period, whereas FDA is more of a short-term duration.”
Using McMahon’s premise, “it’s like drinking two liters of water for 70 years to get their (the EPA’s) limit. So if you extrapolated to milk, you’d have to drink two liters of milk for 70 years to get that limit.”
Hello and this comment can be for anyone… I know that every place has different background radiation levels, but why is Japan’s CPM’s so low compared to lets say California? If you look at the Radiation Network site. http://radiationnetwork.com/
Is it that Japan’s CPM’s are really that low, or is it just that their background “normal” readings are really low?
Does anyone know the answer to this? Thx 🙂
Great! I can’t wait to see the new info coming and yes I will continue to look at the threads on Water and Food now.
Thanks again.
Yes, Jeremy, I do test tap water and food to see what I can pick up. These materials should NOT register above normal IF they are not contaminated. More on water and food contamination in So Cal is coming… and, by the way, common sense should dictate what to do about these materials even moreso than the Inspector, such as making your water radiation-free and not eating foods that are likely to have radiation contamination. More on that too coming soon, but there is already a ton of information on that in these comments, so take the time to check them out.
Thank you Michael.
I do understand that they are on backorder, but I’m going to keep looking! 🙂
Also, do you do testing on TAP WATER, and FOOD where you are located?
Lastly, how do you find out what the NORMAL radiation samples should be on Water, and Food?
Thanks again Michael.
John Lee,
It is all about cost effective risk mitigation; if it is done properly, it is basically positive natural selection.
The world is full of people who are blissfully unaware that they are ALWAYS only 3 or 4 days away from having to live in a Super Dome evacuation center with 20,000 of their closest friends.
There is a smaller subset of people who are willing to take cost effective risk mitigation measure to make sure that they are not among those 20,000 people in the Superdome. And then, there are those who try to raise the number to 20,001 by convincing others that wise risk mitigation is dangerous rhetoric. In the light, would you please point out exactly what the “dangerous rhetoric” is on this site?
Thanks
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/
Hi Jeremy, yes, the Inspector can measure all those things but note that it can’t do what “swipes” and a lab can do. BUT you can pick up heightened radiation in any medium with the Inspector, though I hear the wait for one is four months.
Hello Michael… I had a couple of questions I would love to hear back from you with.
I’m looking into buying a radiation detector myself for my own home use and to try to get not only a read on the air in my area, but also my tap water, and shower water, maybe also food. I feel it is really important to obtain this type of information for I know there isn’t a lot of people out there that will do it for you.
1. Is it realistic to be able to test my TAP WATER with the detector?
2. Is it realistic to be able to test soil samples from outside?
3. What about food… produce, fruits and vegetables?
If this is realistic and possible where would I find or how could I find what the normal TAP WATER and FOOD levels should be after testing?
I’m looking to buy the same inspector radiation monitor as the one on this site… would this be a good bet to measure these types of things?
Thank You and I look forward to your reply, and thanks for all your info on this site! 🙂
Jeremy
To John Lee–
I partially agree and partially disagree with your statement.
I do agree that radical, drastic and/or obsessive alterations to diet are unwarranted at this point, and as you point out, can also cause health problems of their own.
At the same time, it is not “completely riduclous” that people would be concerned and worried, although I agree that crossing the line into complete panic and obsession is not necessary here in the U.S.
Keep in mind that this is something that people (including me) are inherently afraid of–in part because of its reputation, in part because it is invisible, and in part because people both here and in Japan know that gov’t regulatory agencies are not being fully forthcoming with information.
So, we are left with a creepy, uneasy feeling—wondering about specks of dust, about rain water, about food. This is all new and strange to so many of us.
Even the non-alarmist, scientific and highly credible independent agencies like the Nuclear Information Resource Services or Physicians for Social Responsibility have advised that EPA resprsentations are somewhat misleading about radiation effects here, because the issue is NOT just about quantity, but rather, the manner of exposure (i.e. inhalation or ingestion).
Thus, my belief is that common sense must prevail.
The NIRS has suggested some sensible guidelines; Michael Collins here has also suggested some sensible guidelines.
Common sense measures might be avoiding excessive contact with the rain; avoiding as much as possible certain types of foodstuffs, being mindful about ventilation issues at times when more intense “plumes” are occurring, etc. I certinaly wouldn’t let my dog drink out of a fresh rain puddle!
It does appear that even the French government (last week) issued an official warning that radiation fall-out levels there could be harmful to small children or pregnant women or other susceptible people and that some common-sense precautions were probably appropriate.
John, please get on to the NIRS or the UCS (Union of Concerned Scientists) or PSR (Physicians for Social Responsibility) web-sites and read that it is not completely “ridiculous” for people to be concerned and to take some sensible, reasonable precautions.
I completely trust that should the situation worsen, those reliable and independent agencies will warn us. In the meantime, if they are saying, “Don’t panic” I trust that.
Part of the problem with obsessing is that radiation fall-out is something that cannot be avoided. You can drive yourself nuts trying to avoid something that is everywhere and which thus is not fully avoidable no matter what you do.
Again, concern is reasonable. Frustration with this “new normal” situation is reasonable. Sensible precautions are reasonable. Complete panic and obsession is not reasonable and is likely to cause its own kind of problems.
I think we are wise to focus on the broader, long-term issues—to focus on what the issue of nuclear power MEANS for us and for the environment. There can (and will) come a time when Fukushima could be in our backyard. THEN, panic WILL prevail, legitimately, and it will be too late to do anything about it.
.
John Lee,
You may be right about the dangers of self medication, but not on the current level of radiation on the west coast.
Milk in Hawaii (from EPA site) contained 19 pCi/l Cs-137, 18 pCi/l I-131, and 24 pCi/l Cs-134 while FDA “safe” limit is 3pCi for I-131.
No idea what it is for Cs-137 & Cs-134 which have half life of 30 years & 2 years.
In other words, a shot-glass of milk (50ml) is more than enough to deliver the 10mSv limit per year. 50ml per year!
French said to europeans to avoid milk and leafy greens & that radiation on the west coast in US is 8-10 times higher than in Europe. And no media says nothing.
nothing less than thorium reactors will suffice.
The rhetoric I see here is getting dangerous. Yes, there are microscopic amounts of radiation making their way from Fukushima to the U.S., but the idea that the amounts are in any way enough to warrant the kind of grave concern expressed here are ridiculous.
Any realistic heath risk would come from eating food or drinking water from near the disaster. The trace amounts of radioactive materials seen here so far have a statistically zero chance of harming you.
Taken to it’s extreme, yes…one unstable atom in your system which releases a high-energy particle COULD strike a cell in your body and damage it, leading to a mutation or cancer. So could a stray cosmic ray. It happens, but what are the odds.
Far more dangerous would be radically changing your diet, esp. that of small kids. Worse would be self-medicating to “purge” your body of supposed contamination. This can have serious and real health consequences.
I have a good friend who is an M.D. and he assures me that you are in a far greater risk of being hit with gamma rays standing in line at the market. If the person next to you has had radiation treatment (the kind you ingest) and hasn’t stayed isolated like they’re supposed to, you’re getting exposed to tens of thousands of times more radiation than you are from Fukushima.
This site has value, and yes there is a real long term risk to some parts of the world. I mean, I probably won’t be eating any sushi from Japan for a few decades, but PLEASE let’s keep things in perspective.
Definitely send $ to the Red Cross, be prepared with some survival supplies for ANY disaster and push for modernization of nuclear power plants. The latest designs would have rendered this disaster impossible.
http://www.google.de/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=15&ved=0CIIBEBYwDg&url=http%3A%2F%2Femergency.cdc.gov%2Fradiation%2Fprussianblue.asp&ei=rSKnTbD1PMTJswbKqLmcCA&usg=AFQjCNHS9sWWXdUQlkuEvsjdHfoxMKQopw
Prussian blue
Facts About Prussian blue
Prussian blue can remove certain radioactive materials from people’s bodies, but must be taken under the guidance of a doctor.
People may become internally contaminated (inside their bodies) with radioactive materials by accidentally ingesting (eating or drinking) or inhaling (breathing) them, or through direct contact (open wounds). The sooner these materials are removed from the body, the fewer and less severe the health effects of the contamination will be. Prussian blue is a substance that can help remove certain radioactive materials from people’s bodies. However, small amounts of contamination may not require treatment. Doctors can prescribe Prussian blue if they determine that a person who is internally contaminated would benefit from treatment.
What Prussian blue is
Prussian blue was first produced as a blue dye in 1704 and has been used by artists and manufacturers ever since. It got its name from its use as a dye for Prussian military uniforms. Prussian blue dye and paint are still available today from art supply stores.
People SHOULD NOT take Prussian blue artist’s dye in an attempt to treat themselves. This type of Prussian blue is not designed to treat radioactive contamination and is not made for that purpose. People who are concerned about the possibility of being contaminated with radioactive materials should go to their doctors for advice and treatment.
Use of Prussian blue to treat radioactive contamination
Since the 1960s, Prussian blue has been used to treat people who have been internally contaminated with radioactive cesium (mainly Cs-137) and nonradioactive thallium (once an ingredient in rat poisons). Doctors can prescribe Prussian blue at any point after they have determined that a person who is internally contaminated would benefit from treatment. Prussian blue will help speed up the removal of cesium and thallium from the body.
How Prussian blue works
Prussian blue traps radioactive cesium and thallium (mainly Tl-201) in the intestines and keeps them from being re-absorbed by the body. The radioactive materials then move through the intestines and are excreted (passed) in bowel movements. Prussian blue reduces the biological half-life1 of cesium from about 110 days to about 30 days. Prussian blue reduces the biological half-life of thallium from about 8 days to about 3 days. Because Prussian blue reduces the time that radioactive cesium and thallium stay in the body, it helps limit the amount of time the body is exposed to radiation.
Who can take Prussian blue
The drug is safe for most adults, including pregnant women, and children (2 ─12 years). Dosing for infants (ages 0 ─2 years) has not been determined yet. Women who are breast feeding their babies should stop breast feeding if they think they are contaminated with radioactive materials and consult with their doctors. People who have had constipation, blockages in the intestines, or certain stomach problems should be sure to tell their doctors before taking Prussian blue. Before taking Prussian blue, people also should be sure to tell their doctors about any other medicine they are taking.
How Prussian blue is given
Prussian blue is given in 500-milligram capsules that can be swallowed whole. People who cannot swallow pills can take Prussian blue by breaking the capsules and mixing the contents in food or liquid. Breaking open the capsules will cause people’s mouths and teeth to be blue during the time of treatment.
The dose of Prussian blue depends on the person’s age and the amount of contamination in the body. Prussian blue usually is given 3 times a day for a minimum of 30 days, depending on the extent of the contamination.
Side effects of Prussian blue
The most common side effects of Prussian blue are upset stomach and constipation. These side effects can easily be treated with other medications. People may have blue feces (stool) during the time that they are taking Prussian blue.
Where you can get Prussian blue
Prussian blue is available only by prescription. The CDC has included Prussian blue in the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), a special collection of drugs and medical supplies that CDC keeps to treat people in an emergency.
Where you can get more information
More detailed information on Prussian blue can be found at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Web site.
You may also call the CDC Public Response line at 1-800-311-3435 or visit http://www.cdc.gov/netinfo.htm to request more information.
1Biological half-life is the time that it takes a substance in the body to be reduced by ½.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) protects people’s health and safety by preventing and controlling diseases and injuries; enhances health decisions by providing credible information on critical health issues; and promotes healthy living through strong partnerships with local, national, and international organizations.
What do you guys think of tea? I read some time ago that tea leaves in general absorb a lot of pollutants. I drink a cup of green tea every morning for its antioxidant properties, but now I’m thinking maybe I should stop drinking tea altogether.
Liz,
Thanks for your reply. These are excellent sources indeed.
Ladan
Endless thanks to all who donate no matter which “currency”, be it the dollar, foreign or paper-electronic thoughts and contributions. The growing number of curious, misinformed, and wanting-to-know-more citizens on this planet who visit EnviroReporter.com will enter an oasis of compassionate supporters and information to educate. Please give till it hurts, then give some more.
Please dont forget that many many people in Japan have died in the tsunami and some of the dogs, if not most of them there roaming the streets might have been theirs. Japanese do love their pets as much as we do. Look at this link.
http://www.google.de/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=5&ved=0CEoQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.vancouversun.com%2Fnews%2FPhotos%2BPets%2BJapanese%2Bearthquake%2Bvictims%2F4458221%2Fstory.html&ei=27emTeSNN8jCtAa8spmYCA&usg=AFQjCNG03Mv_vUerXUDvAlaWa2T13u1pmw
Food chain
Spinach, salads, cabbage and other vegetables with large surface areas are among those food products that are particularly sensitive to iodine-131 contamination, if they are cultivated outside and exposed to rainwater. Washing vegetables does not help, as iodine-131 is quickly metabolised by the plants, CRIIRAD notes.
Fresh milk and creamy cheeses, as well as meat from cattle that have been outside eating grass, are categorised as foods that may have been indirectly contaminated and must also be monitored. Contamination of milk and cheese from goats and sheep may be of a greater magnitude than that of produce from cows.
http://news.google.de/news/url?sa=t&ct2=de%2F0_0_s_2_0_t&ct3=MAA4AEgCUABgAWoCZGU&usg=AFQjCNH2jHkxQ-U-ndQWZ5VNHgKj9h3rjg&did=5700c2a20b24b055&cid=17593883172032&ei=JbWmTfjSAYHgsgbhveieAw&rt=SEARCH&vm=STANDARD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.euractiv.com%2Fen%2Fhealth%2Fradiation-risks-fukushima-longer-negligible-news-503947
Lucy–
What a perfect quotation to end the evening with–
–that “everyone knows when Three Mile Island and Chernobyl (and now, Fukushima) happened…”
“But who knows when they will end?”
THAT is the thought you have left us with tonight..
… and it is the MOST PERFECT one with which to conclude today’s discussions here.
white particles on my furniture/desk/laptop
I had a question about how I can get white dust particles tested for their origin/radioactivity. I first noticed white very small particles on 3/20/11 that covered my bathroom vanity. It was interesting because for days/weeks, the soap that I was using was leaving a brownish residue on that surface. On 3/20/11 I noticed that this brownish soap residue was sprinkled with tiny white particles, almost like powder, but a lot of them.
I was kind of shocked, wondering whether this could be radioactive fallout because it literally happened overnight.
I cleaned it and forgot about it. Until today when I packed out my laptop and I see this white tiny particles again on my keypad. The unique thing with my laptop is that I never removed the protective transparent sheet from the factory and now these white particles stand out. It does not look like dust, because they are so white.
It would be of course, very scary to think that this white particle dust I have been noticing in my bathroom and now on the laptop could be radioactive fallout, cesium or who knows what?
Anyway, I would like to get this tested. Does anyone know how to get this tested/ which lab?
Anybody noticed a simliar white dust? I am located in Oakley, California, 60 miles east of San Francisco.
thanks.
Liz-
Well wow. Your assertation of those articles is profound. Once again I must thank you for your eloquent insights. No one here needs reminding about the devastation of nuclear energy. My fear is how quickly the rest of the world forgets. Which I can somewhat understand when governments across the world systematically attempt to cover up the truth (not just about nuclear energy but for the purpose of this forum I will leave it at nuclear energy). Everyone references Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and now Fukushima. Those have left indelible scars on humanity and the persona of nuclear energy. But there have been countless other major atrocities and subsequent cover-ups committed in the name of nuclear energy, in the name of “not wanting to incite panic”, in the name of greed, in the name of complete disregard for life.
The tradition of these atrocities continues with Fukushima as we are witnessing. Where thousands of people have been left within a radius deemed “safe” by their government. An area, which in fact, is heavily contaminated with radiation that these people have been exposed to for the past month. We see it in our own government downplaying the fallout risk. Countless atrocities continue to be committed by the nuclear industry and by governing bodies who should be protecting their people. For every nuclear foul-up there has been an equally foul cover-up. Wherein the government sounded the “all clear” instead of telling those in imminent danger to take precautions. They did this with TMI and EVERY incident mentioned in that long list of nuclear bungles (only SOME of which were even mentioned in that Spiegel article, there have been others). They continue to do this with Fukushima. They continue to do this in Hanford, WA and all across our country and the world.
The nuclear industry is a threat to all of us and it doesn’t end when or if they stop Fukushima from spewing their vile filth across the planet.
I found Arnie Gundersen’s closing remark in his most recent video update to be exceptionally poignant… “Everybody knows the moment that Three Mile Island and the moment that Chernobyl happened. But who knows when they end?”….
Michael and Denise-
Thank you for helping to lead a much needed charge on the issues of nuclear travesties as well other horrific environmental (which also = humanitarian) issues. We need forums like this, constructive forums to inspire discussion and ACTION. We need media like this. To keep the government and its industries honest.
To Michael–
And to everybody who is now part of this community–
The work that Michael and Denise Anne do is truly exceptional.
For years, many of us have been relatively (and comfortably) unaware of the true degree of danger from nuclear waste, failing safety records at nuclear plants and other toxic and dangerous sources of contamination (chemical waste, poorly stored military munitions, toxic dump sites)….
But, all of this time, Michael and Denise Anne have been working, with their sleeves rolled up, in that very world, in various capacities as investigative journalists, agency directors and vigorously devoted “watchdogs.”
They have watched while most of us have been sleeping.
They have tromped through toxic wastelands right here in our own Southern California backyard while most of us were lingering in or driving through those same neighborhoods, blissfully unaware.
Our interpid two soldiers have now had the vision and energy to offer us this site and to invite us into this strange new fellowship—one which prior to March 11th, most of us would never have easily entered into.
This is a fellowship of disparate political affiliations, diverse backgrounds, religious beliefs and differing world views. Strange and sometimes uncomfortable bedfellows, at times, indeed.
Yet, all of us are united here in a deepening sense of understanding and concern about the global and backyard implications of Fukushima.
Michael and Denise Anne have invited us into their “home” so to speak–almost literally, since their “Radiation Station” instrument to which we all anxiously clung during the critical days of this crisis is located there– the beacon and sentry that started this whole thing in the first place.
I do exhort you to help the people of Japan and the miserable, suffering “Fukushima Dogs” abandoned within the exclusion zone.
But I also encourage all here who have learned, strugled and grown through the efforts of EnviroReporter, to support that effort in any way you can…financially, if possible.
For it is through efforts like this that the real impetus to effect any hope of change derives.
If we don’t help, eventually we will hear the terrible sound of “nuclear accident” sirens blaring not far from our own homes.
And beyond the natural selfishness of concern about our own neighborhoods…
…If we don’t help, countless others will suffer illness and death for no reason other than that a corporate entity such as TEPCO seeks profit over safety.
So, let’s give back what we have been given, here.
Thank you for asking, Christine. A number of folks here in comments have been very generous like Liz and a number of other kind folks who have donated to us through PayPal. We also generate small amounts of revenue through our Google ads (emphasis on ‘small’).
But make no mistake, we are not rolling in dough from the donations and ad revenue, however, they fuel EnviroReporter.com and Radiation Station.
We use these funds to support my ongoing investigative journalism and, now, maintaining Radiation Station which is quite an endeavor since it requires daily/nightly monitoring and averaging, comment and chat room moderation and, of course, our articles and posts related to the ongoing meltdowns and fallout all over the United States.
Judging from the comments here, and on other related articles (over 1,100+ in just one month coming Friday), we have done a pretty good job. We are extremely gratified that our long experience in environmental investigative journalism is helping inform over a million people who have visited Radiation Station since March 15.
Your donations help us continue our ongoing investigations which have resulted in billions worth of positive change and/or the prevention of land being developed that we have shown has contamination issues.
EnviroReporter.com was created by me (aka “Man Hands” in the chat room for the occasional glimpses of my hands using the Inspector nuclear radiation monitor) and Denise Anne (“Lady Fingers”) in May 2006. We are approaching our five year anniversary.
I’m the investigative reporter part of this duo and Denise Anne is the designer, editor, multi-media producer and innovations director for EnviroReporter.com.
Beginning in 1998, and since 2004 with Denise Anne, I have produced investigative environmental journalism that has helped stop over $6 billion worth of development on polluted land at Ahmanson Ranch in Ventura County and at the West Los Angeles Veterans Administration.
Coverage of toxins issues also helped lead to a $46 million cleanup of the former Aerojet facility in Chino Hills as well as causing a $1 million exploration of the biomedical nuclear and chemical dump in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood.
My work investigating and writing about the contamination problems at Boeing’s Santa Susana Field Laboratory (Rocketdyne) helped contribute to the historic early 2008 clean up agreement between the company and the State of California. This coverage, begun in Los Angeles magazine in June 1998, is ongoing as Boeing is continuing to fight the State-mandated cleanup, which will cost hundreds of millions, in the courts and in the arena of public opinion. Our coverage helps keep a clear and comprehensive focus on the issues regarding Rocketdyne.
We are also in the midst of a huge battle involving a 461-home development that KB Home is planning to build in Runkle Canyon which is adjacent Rocketdyne’s former nuclear experimentation area in which no less than three partial meltdowns occurred including the worst partial meltdown in the history of the country at the Sodium Reactor Experiment in 1959 which released hundreds of times more radiation than the Three Mile Island disaster did twenty years later.
The Fukushima meltdowns interrupted our production of an 11-part series on Runkle Canyon being okayed by the government for development despite high Strontium-90 and heavy metals contamination detected at the site.
We broke this story in 2005 and we aim to set the record abundantly straight with this upcoming series entitled “Runkle Roulette.”
Should this development be built, over 112 tons of Strontium-90 and heavy metal-infused dust will be made aloft, much of which will land on the San Fernando Valley and the city of Los Angeles.
In the process of the reporting on Runkle Canyon, a citizens group was formed in 2006 called the Radiation Rangers. The Rangers have a website called StopRunkledyne.com which is a must for you Rad Riders of the Radiation Nation.
This brave band of Americans has helped stop developer KB Home in its tracks and, with the coming Runkle Roulette series, will continue to inform the public and heedless government officials about the serious problems with this place.
This, Christine, is what your donations support. We do not get grants or are supported by any entity (though I do get paid, of course, for the work I do in print publications like the LA Weekly, etc.).
We rely on you to support our investigations of the environmental issues that many Americans care about most.
We will continue this work, which has garnered many awards, as long as we can. But we can’t do it without your support. Please donate to EnviroReporter.com so we can continue Radiation Station (which desperately needs a second Inspector) and help Southern Californians have access to what the government has not provided: live-time streaming of the radiation levels in the Los Angeles Basin (west) which is in the midst of, and upwind of, millions of Southern Californians.
One last thing: most of us in the media are severely underpaid due to reasons you are probably already well aware of. We do this work because we love journalism and we love exposing the issues that threaten the health and well being of the public and the environment. We are paid handsomely by the gratitude of people like you, Christine, and Liz and so many other kind folks here.
But we can’t do it forever without your donations. So please donate to EnviroReporter.com today and we guarantee you we will continue delivering award-winning journalism you can trust.
Thank you for your support. We will endeavor to respond in increasingly robust ways to help Americans, and people throughout the world, as we together face the effects of the ongoing meltdowns in Japan. That’s because, as our motto says, we will bring you “Hot News. Real Hot News.”
After my post last night about the heart-rending story regarding what I call the “Fukushima Dogs,”–the animals unintentionally abandoned by families evacuated from the “Exclusion Zone” who were told that they would only have to “leave” the area for a day or a few days—
The plight of these household pets has gnawed at my heart incessantly. In my spare time, I volunteer for an animal rescue agency in my own community, so it is an issue to which I am deeply sensitive and reactive.
The animals’ suffering as depicted in the last 24 hours on CNN is nearly intolerable to watch. But it is also possible to imagine the agony that their human owners must endure.
I learn from my new Japanese friend at work, and from other Japanese people I have known over the years that people in Japan are utterly devoted to their pets, just as many of us here in the U.S. are. It is a culture that lavishes great care and affection upon household pets, and that regards them as “family.”
People under evacuation instructions from TEPCO and the Japanese government left hurriedly under the (false) impression that they would soon return. They thus left their beloved animal companions at home, tied up, or loose in yards, with insufficient food and water to last for over a month.
Many of the animals are starving or have already died (some, no doubt from radiation poisoning, if not starvation).
Thankfully, I returned home, tonight, to learn of a rescue group (Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and support)–a few brave, self-sacrificing people who are now “suiting up” (or not) and actually going into the Exclusion Zone to extract the animals from the area and unite them with their anguished owners.
These people are risking their lives to do this. While I sit comfortably in my own (relatively) safe home, I must ponder the question: how far would I be willing to go to help those in need?
Here is the site: Please support them in any way you can:
http://jears.org/
Ladan–
To answer your question, here are some suggested web-sites. I’m too tired, tonight to find, copy and paste the actual links (although I will be able to do so, tomorrow if need be), but here are the names of the truly reliable sites. If you use these titles to google them up, they’ll be the first to pop up in your browser:
1. Union of Concerned Scientists
2. Physicians for Social Responsibility
3. Nuclear Information and Resource Services
4. Greenpeace
5. All Things Nuclear (an off-shoot of the Union of Concerned Scientists).
6. And “ER” stands for our own EnviroReporter.
There are other excellent sites as well. Many people here have posted links to those. Use this as a start.
To Lucy–
Thank you for posting the link to the Spiegel article. In a grim economy of words and pictures, the article so very well captures the global destruction resulting from atomic energy. This is truly excellent, and I highly recommend it.
I see here tonight in our community many instructive and informative posts about our diet. This is, of course, a very central issue, especially for those who have young children, are pregnant or who want to have children. (My son is already into the “downhill” side of his 30s and is serving our country in Iraq, doing classified work for the U.S. Government, and where the least risk to him is from nuclear fallout).
But Lucy’s “link” serves another purpose. While all of us are rightly concerned and protective about the demonstrable health effects here in the U.S., which our own “regulatory” agencies have most certainly minimized and mispresented, we must all also keep our focus on the greater harm that befalls those who really live in the “high risk” zone.
Right now (before tomorrow’s nuclear disaster strikes) that location is Fukushima.
Last week, last month, last year, many years ago, there were other locations. Places now uninhabitable. Places where hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands have been sickened or have died.
With few words and darkly stark photos, Lucy’s Spiegel article recalls us to the broader–and most crucial–effort for our community.
After ensuring our own safety here at home from Fukushima fallout or rain-out, we must remember that we are also gathered here to serve a broader purpose–protecting others from the lethal and largely invisible stench arising from nuclear waste and nuclear accidents worldwide.
Hi, all, finally home aftr a long, long day. Wow!! The site is bursting with new posts!!
Michael, thanks for your touching and generous words. I’m just so devoted to ER—THAT’s the treasure!!
And most important is what you say about America’s wealth being the people. Sadly, our government tends to collectively forget that (and I refer to both sides of the spectrum, both sides of the aisle).
I can’t wait to see your new article!! I know how carefully you and Denise Anne collect evidence and conduct research, so I’ll wait patiently, knowing that you are refining it to render it just right.
Now, I’ve got a lot of catching up to do with the many posts that were written while I was gone for 12 hours…
Each and every one of us here is a treasure. We seem to be using our diverse talents and special areas of expertise to support each other, educate each other, console each other, galvanize each other and inspire each other—-thanks to Michael and Denise Anne who were creative and passionate enough to bring us all together!
Toni Reita – powerful comment!
Annette – Could not agree more. One day my family & beloved friends will wake up and I will have this website to give them along with 100+ documents it provides to help them.
It never occured to me, DONATE! We all should do that.
Michael, perhaps you can tell us a little about how the donation $$ are used?
Good point Lotus Landry, I read at least a week ago that they had given up on saving the reactors and were going to, I believe, bury them in concrete. I don’t think that they can save the reactors, after spraying down with salt water, so why do they claim that they are trying to fix the cooling systems. I am unaware of any progress whatsoever.
I decided to buy a “relatively” cheap monitor: DX-2 Handheld Radiation Monitor (0-100 mR/hr) (delivery due in May). It doesn’t have the frills on it but all I want to do is go to the grocery store & test the veggies that I want to buy. I have tried so hard to “enlighten” my friends & family & honestly, most of them don’t want to hear about it (yet). I talked with the flight attendants on my AA flight from LA back to IL a few days ago & stressed to them the importance of, bare minimum, taking spirulina, fulvic minerals… (told them about this website) & they agreed, “yes, we should do something.” OMG, they are at 30k feet in the muck regularly, right?!I will be sending a donation to this website because it has truly been a lifeline for me these last 3 weeks. I have morphed into a really discerning advocate on all of this & I hope when people in my life start to “get it” I will have done the leg work for them & be able to give them sound advise & send them to reliable sites on what to buy & not to buy. Maybe this is our lot in life, we ones who are walking this relatively isolated walk (for now), some of us knowing thru education/experience, some of us “feeling” with intuition, the immense long-term devastation to our Mother Earth. I really feel blessed to have found this website.
I can google this and it time for officials to explain the countermeasures. All I see TEPCO doing is moving water about! Who does the countermeasures?
According to the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Level 7 poses widespread health and environmental effects requiring implementation of planned and extended countermeasures.
Here are some interesting and disturbing articles, just the tip of iceberg of course.
The nuclear industry just continues its tradition of horrific atrocities, incompetence and deceit.
“A Survey of the World’s Radioactive No-Go Zones”
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,756369-2,00.html
Most contaminated site in the Western Hemisphere- Hanford, WA.
Contaminating ground water and polluting the Columbia river. Also happens to be located in a county known for it’s agriculture.
http://www.hoanw.org/more/index.cfm?Fuseaction=more_47323
More on Hanford and typical government lies.
http://www.djc.com/special/enviro98/10043971.htm
Greenpeace petition to stop tax payer subsidies of new nuclear plants.
https://secure3.convio.net/gpeace/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=801&s_src=topnav
TO ALL THOSE PRO-NUKE PEOPLE OUT THERE, I THINK YOU CAN BE THE SOLUTION TO NUCLEAR WASTE, AND I KNOW RIGHT WHERE YOU CAN SHOVE IT.
When you hear the news or some Nuclear or Health Official telling you that “only extremely low levels of radiation have been detected and therefore there is no need to be concerned, there is no health threat to the American public.”
Do not be comforted by this false sense of security. The first part of the statement is true, but the remainder is false.
It’s not the loud noise that break glass molecules, it’s the frequency.
It’s not the strong microwave levels that cause cellular damage, it’s the frequency
It’s not the strong wireless signal that causes cellular damage, it’s the vibrational frequency.
It’s not just high levels of radiation that cause damage, extreme low levels of radiation do too.
These extreme low levels of biologically significant radiation hit North America Mid March 2011
Once you ingest or inhale even very low levels of radioactive particles the Petkau Effect immediately starts potentially lethal tissue ionization.
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.
As the jet stream continues around the world some radioactive particles will fall with rain, snow or as dust particles, before it continues it’s deadly circle.
The number of radioactive particles may diminish but the STRENGTH of each particle does not diminish. The media et al is lying by omission.
I was in Germany during Chernobyl.
What I did then, 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.
There is much that can be done, every day, to detox, protect thyroid & support antioxidant levels. I know my future health depends on it.
Toni
yestersday I saw the ustream detector rise through 50 to 60 and even 70 several times just before you took a ten minute average.
yet your averages did not reflect that.
http://radiationnetwork.com/ also showed high rises in southern california when the expect highest concentration came through as predicted yesterday by
http://transport.nilu.no/browser/fpv_fuku?fpp=conc_Xe-133_0_;region=NH
also can you please take a reading on some road dust or loose soil surface dirt in the area?
We have now had over 30 days of drifting particulates from Fukushima arriving at Southenr California including one very rainy weekend. we must be getting fallout accumulation in the surface dust.
Re soy milk and carageenen: West Soy organic, unsweetened soy milk is made with soybeans and water. Trader Joes own brand of organic soy milk has the same two ingredients.
Thanks a million Michael for this fantastic resource, and all of you who have posted on this site for the amazing information you have been sharing.
As a new-comer to this community, I’d like to ask if you could point me to the other sources that some people have been alluding to, e.g., E-R and NISR (?). Can you please give me their web addresses?
For dairy products from Europe, you may want to also try the grocery store on Main Street in Santa Monica.
Prepare to be blown away. Essentially, everything you ate before March 11 was already contaminated with radiation. Without your knowledge, the FDA has allowed the irradiation of meat and everything else. Here is a link:
http://theintelhub.com/2011/03/23/codex-alimentarius-and-food-irradiation-in-the-u-s/
Christine,
I make most of my baked goods, so milk and eggs are not a problem, but I personally wouldn’t consume them from Whole Foods. Yeast breads don’t usually have milk or eggs, so perhaps it would be best to stick with yeast breads.
Nancy
oxhammer,
here is the data you are looking for on the uptake of radioactive materials into Coconuts and lots of other “island” plant and animal life. Any one interested in gardening or protecting their garden should follow the link to my blog post too.
“Bikinis, Coconuts, Bread fruit and keeping your garden safe from radioactive Fallout”
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/bikinis-coconuts-bread-fruit-and.html
I have a question for those that have given up dairy….are you also refraining from baked goods with dairy/milk?
I’ve been really good the past month but last night I treated myself and my 3 yr old son to a couple desserts at Whole Foods that had eggs and milk.
Whole Foods does have some great vegan chocolate cookies and we had one of those also, but it’s hard to completely go dairy/egg free when it’s baked/prepared into foods.
I’m cringing at the thought of how long this will go on.
If the Milk is contaminated, it is not safe to eat the Meat. In Europe they warn about cattle and sheep that is kept outside eating gras.
Giai – Who are you using to buy your NZ cheese?
I tried a couple different sites last night and they are “back ordered”.
I couldn’t find any available on amazon either?
Also, to the person who freezes their cheese….I didn’t think you could freeze cheese and have it still taste right after thaw.
Sandra and Portrblog – You can stock up on “canned” coconut milk. Most of this in the grocery or even on amazon was canned prior to March 2011.
Last night I made a post about apples but for some reason my comments were not getting posted.
My understanding is that apples in the store are OK because they were picked in the fall of 2010 and have been in Controlled Atmospheric Storage, so no exposure to radiation.
Most the apples you see in the store are from Washington. Chile exports apples but you won’t see them in the grocery until mid-summer.
If someone disagrees or knows otherwise on my apple comment, please let us know?
As many other people have noted in the past few weeks, this whole ordeal has caused a lot of us to take a closer look at what we consume on a daily basis. Be it the cow’s milk we took for granted and now has to be replaced, or the cheese in our sandwich or even the tuna we liked to have for lunch, a serious consideration of the food we consume has been warranted.
Since the first time I sat down to research the effects of radionuclide on the body (site note: am I the only one here who NEVER thought I would EVER be discussing this issue, much less spend weeks researching these kinds of topics?), I have discovered how many little things were wrong with my family’s diet. We were sorely lacking in basic vitamins, we consumed little-to-no antioxidants on a regular basis and we rely far too much on processed dairy products, sugar and processed foods in general. (Ironically, this whole issue has come after a recent diet change that was put into affect for the whole family around my husband desperate need to loose weight for health reasons.)
But one thing I heard early on that bothered me was this:
Refined sugars can leach away calcium from your bones.
I have read that Strontium can attached itself to the human bones through calcium deficiency (please correct me if I am wrong) and therefore people who have been exposed to radiation should up their intake of calcium in order to keep the bones richer in natural calcium to help prevent the intake of the Strontium (similar to the Potassium Iodine over I-131). This caused me to reevaluate the amount of calcium our family is getting in our diets but it also made me wonder, how much IS my family’s bone health negatively being affected by the food that we eat? I honestly meant to sit down and do some more research beyond relying on increased calcium intake but sickness in our house had prevented this.
Then I found this article this morning while poking around the NY Times.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17Sugar-t.html?_r=1&hp
Is it just me or does this seem like something that is a “Holy Crap, this makes total sense and why is no one else seeing this?!?!?” kind of scenario?
The writer could be wrong. His sources could be wrong. But when we are already being told that refined sugars can leach calcium from our bones (which is obviously already a bad thing) and even the American Cancer Society advises cutting consumption of refined (processed) grains and sugars http://www.ccrcal.org/pdf/Reports/ACS_2011.pdf (pg. 10) ((There is research out there being done supporting the theory that refined grains MAY be contributing to the sudden upswing of cases of Celiac’s disease)); it makes one wonder how much IS processed (refined) sugar actually contributing to the decay of our health?
Some of you may find this completely uninteresting, but since a lot of us are now taking a closer look at what we consume and what we are now feeding our families (and, quite honestly, I felt what he was saying was compelling enough to read the entire article), I felt it was worth sharing. And it made me extremely grateful that, from the moment he was old enough to eat solid foods, my husband and I have been far pickier about my son’s diet than even our own. He actually gets made fun of by other little kids because he thinks water tastes good and it is his drink of choice. Juice of any kind is a treat and soda is so rare, he think it is the COOLEST treat ever. Now if only I could get my husband to give up his Coke Cola. :o)
Sorry if this was too long. I just thought I would share.
– Jen
so you measure 131 w/ a half life 8 days, but what about the others that have half lives of 30-200,000 years? any readings on those?
AJ,
Thanks for the post about the French advising Europeans to avoid milk, cheese and leafy vegetables. They are doing this while our government remains silent although our radiation levels are 6-10 higher than those recorded in France. It’s absolutely criminal that our government would not take protective measures all in the name of money, when the population faces real cancer risks, especially since this Fukushima situation will mostly likely be long term.
Fortunately, I started to store food (about 3 months worth) prior to the Fukushima disaster, but obtaining milk, eggs, meat, fruit and veggies will be a bit challenging. I also stocked up on sardines, canned salmon and tuna prior to and right when the disaster happened, but I honestly don’t think anyone will be able to consume seafood for some time.
I live in Texas, and so far, I’ve been unable to confirm any radiation detected in Texas or in the food. If anyone has info about radiation in Texas, please let me know.
I consume mostly organic foods, and most of these came from the West coast. I will greatly miss them.
Nancy
Potrblog, can you provide any proof of this please? I eat/drink coconut like crazy, and my son likes the coconut milk non-dairy milks substitute as well.
[quote]Potrblog says:
April 13, 2011 at 10:52 am
Sandra Hucher,
Unfortunately I am going to have to warn you off the Coconut products unless they are Pre Fukushima or from south of the equator. Coconut trees and bread fruit suck up and concentrate radioactive Cesium.[/quote]
AJ – Thank you for the Storable Organics website.
Gaia – I’m stumped on the eggs also. My 3 yr old son does not eat meat so we rely heavily on free range eggs for his protein.
Anyone have ideas/thoughts on eggs?
To the moms out there, Hemp – Almond – Oat – Coconut Milks all much healthier for your children then cows milk. (In my “holistic researched” opinion) Hemp and Oat have the most protein. Coconut is good for fats. Rice milk is just sugar water.
Sandra Hucher,
Unfortunately I am going to have to warn you off the Coconut products unless they are Pre Fukushima or from south of the equator. Coconut trees and bread fruit suck up and concentrate radioactive Cesium.
I’ve been checking these levels that the very helpful Michael Collins (thank you so much) has put up for us every week or so, but have not blogged. I am house sitting in Sequim, WA and am also concerned about the drifting of radioactive materials. For those of you worried about milk, try using coconut milks and creamers – they are so healthy for you. Coconut water contains lauric acid (same as mother’s milk) and has been used intravenously. Coconut oil is a saturated fat, but one that is not absorbed by the body. It can be used for high heat cooking/frying and is one of the healthiest fats to consume. Also, drinking miso is helpful to guard against radiation poisoning, as are all sea foods. Unfortunately, most of it comes from Japan so you’ll have to source them elsewhere. Hatcho miso (made in Japan) is one of the best and is aged for at least three years so should be safe to order – google it. It specifically helps against radiation poisoning. I have ordered some over the internet and drink it just like a cup of tea or coffee daily – also delicious to add a tablespoon to other home made soups. Always add it to liquid that is not boiling though…just hot.
Here’s another link for storable food that’s organic.
For those still looking to acquire and store non-radioactive healthy foods, check out http://www.StorableOrganics.com where you can find organic foods and superfoods sealed in steel cans for long-term emergency preparedness. The entire inventory there is “Pre-Fukushima,” by the way.
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032050_radioactive_food_nuclear_radiation.html#ixzz1JQGm20u
Here’s an article that the French are being told not to drink the milk or eat certain vegetables. Here’s the link:
http://www.euractiv.com/en/health/radiation-risks-fukushima-longer-negligible-news-503947
Also, http://www.Naturalnews.com has an article.
Thanks all for keeping the info flowing.
on a personal note:
thanks michael and denise anne-the site is fantastic and part of my daily routine now as well as for my cali-diaspora family. amidst the brownout of real info, it’s quite a change from the first frantic time a month ago I accessed the real time site and scatalogical chat! I am still selectively eating things, but I have really upped my supplements, especially coenzyme Q-10, NAK, and sprulina. if some gets in me, I want to try and help the cell health.
on a corporate note:
if anyone feels comfy in the open air this saturday, the central coast group ‘mothers for peace’, the local sierra club chapter, northern chumash tribal council and others will be hosting a rally on the avila pier in the town of avila beach near the gates of diablo canyon, the central coasts’s favorite reactor located on not one, but now two faults. san luis obispo [3 hrs from la or sf] is lovely, even in the plume, and nearby avila beach is just south of san luis on hwy 101, and rebuilt over the last ten years from -20 feet up after a unical oil tank farm ‘accident’ [darned technology], and at least for now an oceanfront/creekside beauty. you can’t see the plant from the town- well into the coastal mountain folds. ‘mothers for peace’ was formed in the 1970’s to protest the then ‘science’ behind the original site selection. here is some info:
http://www.mothersforpeace.org/.
diablo is in the process of extending their license into mid century, and the japan situation, our own tsunami issues, and a newly discovered second fault affecting the reactor and local spent fuel storage have called the whole [microwaved] enchilada into question. the local county board of supervisors has sent a letter asking relicensing of diablo be halted until the nature of the second fault is determined. PG&E has agreed to ‘halt’ the process, while the new geologics are done, but much is left to discuss.
Thank you Liz for you excellent comments – you are one of Radiation Nation’s treasures. Our new articles will be coming soon but not today – we are in the process of receiving new information that will delay us a little bit.
Denise Anne and I are amazed at the excellent sharing of information here. You folks have really risen to the challenge of figuring out how to help each other help themselves and ourselves. While we can’t approve every comment (such as the contemptible ones usually sent by the same people attempting to conceal their identifications) the over-1,000 comments on EnviroReporter.com’s Radiation Station show that America’s greatest wealth are its people and their ingenuous ideas.
For those of you just recently asking about alternative milk sources, INCLUDING alternatives to soy, how about almond milk? It is all I drink, and I prefer it to regular milk anyway. I wanted to speak up at last; I have been silently reading this blog since Day 1 and sharing it with others, I live in SoCal, am about to give birth to our first child, and will be breastfeeding, so many of these items are much higher on my radar than others, in addition to the fact that I never blindly trust the government or the media and always seek out alternative information sources, do my own research, educate myself. I greatly appreciate the sensible advice being shared here without the need for panic, and hope I doing the most I can for the health of my child. I have swicthed to bottled distilled water, and since I never drink milk anyway, I recently replaced all of my organic yogurt and cottage cheese made in CA with Lifeway Organic Kefir with probiotics (all made in IL), after writing to their company early on to verify that all of their farms were located in the heartland. Now, however, I am starting to question if even Illinois dairy products are safe from radiation, and I do not think their company is testing. Sigh. I will continue to source organic cheese from NZ, South America, other areas, but I must say – I am stumped on the issue of EGGS – how safe are they as a dairy product? Mainly in my diet, they are sourced from local, vegetarian-fed free-range chickens, I usually eat eggs daily for protein and many other health benefits. Is free-range actually NOT a better choice now? I can’t believe how many small things there are to consider. Thank you.
To Jen—
Thanks—it means a lot to me that someone finds my posts helpful. LOL, one of the nice things about a “forum” community like this, is that if someone doesn’t want to read my long musings (LOL, or “ramblings”) they don’t have to. There is such a great variety of post-ers here, many with different areas of expertise or varying types of concerns.
That’s one of the things that makes for such a rich and interesting community!
I’ll be eager to see Michael’s article later today.
BTW, I also agree with your reticence about the Internet—it is a haven for all sorts of creepy and dangerous people, so I’m always very cautious about it.
Keri- You can try Alpine Village in Torrance. At Schreiner’s, Alpine Village market or Old World Village market. They should have it. (koffiemelk)
@Kim: I’m not comfortable saying to the world EXACTLY where I live, not that I don’t trust you, per say, but it’s the internet, you know. “Strangers lurk around every corner…..” Ok, maybe that’s a bit dramatic, but hopefully you know what I mean. ;o) Let’s just say around the Sacramento County area. You?
@Liz: I totally get what you mean. I have been trying to keep up with everyone’s posts for the past few days (it’s been crazy with sickness and all in our house) but I seem to keep gravitating towards your posts the most. We seem to see things similarly, I think. Keep up with the good work.
Want to go on a tour of Chernobyl, only costs $140.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_travel/20110412/ap_tr_ge/eu_travel_trip_visiting_chernobyl_5
I still can’t figure out what to use for cream in my coffee. A lot of you are saying that you are doing soy or rice milk but all of them have carrageenan which has been linked to it’s own cancers. Does anybody know how to buy dutch cream in a can here in L.A?
It’s down to the soccer Mom’s. the pseudo professors are back to porn. Ah, life in America. Interactive tv, that’s all this is. The status quo is still not ready for any real change, or even the thought of it. It’s just, protect me and mine. later dudes.
I’m so worried, i’ve been in mexico’s pacific coast (in rosarito beach) for the last week and the media is not saying anything.
Yesterday I found out of the official level of disaster in Fukushima. What can I do to prevent any further “contamination”?
I know that the media is not saying the true and I really need to take action. I knew that something like this would happen so I have some supplies from before the whole insident and I only drink soy milk since I’m a vegetarian.
Any comment would be nice. Thanks.
To Jen—
Thank you for your kind words. I only “call ’em like I see ’em.”
I always hope that my writing puts into words what others are thinking and feeling.
I saw a report on CNN awhile ago about the dogs left behind in the (now-called) “Exclusion Zone.”
I call them the Fukushima Dogs.
The story broke my heart.
As a Christian, I could only pray for them and ask God to peform a miracle to rescue them.
The Japanese people love their dogs as we do.
I could only pet my own little dog and tell her that I am so incredibly grateful that she is not a Fukushima dog.
I cannot imagine what that must be like, for the dogs and for the owners who love them.
Their hearts must be breaking much more than ours are.
Whatever we have to worry about here, we must be ever mindful of the suffering this disaster has caused, whether for the Japanese people….or the Fukushima Dogs.
This is an absolute must read. Complete with everything we need to know to detox from this radiation. I have done a lot of research these past three weeks and this by far has armed me with what I think, we all need to know to start our radiation detox and boost our immune system.
http://meditationexpert.com/RadiationDetoxDraft.pdf
HOW TO HELP SUPPORT THE BODY’S HEALING AFTER INTENSE RADIOACTIVE OR RADIATION EXPOSURE
The Medical, Naturopathic, Nutritional, Herbal, Commonsense External and Internal Approaches
Here is the Table of Contest – Really GREAT Info here folks!
The Effects of Radiation Exposure on Human Health Potassium Iodide
The Radiation Detox Bath
Spirulina, Chlorella, and Seaweed
Bathable and Edible Clays for Radiation Detox
Homeopathics for Radiation Injury
Eat A “Nucleotide Rich” Diet to Maximize Cellular Repair
Foods, Herbs and Supplements That Are Radioprotective
Revici and Fatty Acids
Prussian Blue, DTPA and Neupogen
Summary
Appendix 1: Emergency Procedures for Isotope Exposure
Appendix 2: Tasty Sea Vegetable Recipes
Hi Jen,
Thanks for your comment. It sounds like we are doing very similar things to you, although we have not purchased Hepa filters yet. I would like to, as soon as $ allows.
We are being perhaps more aggressive in our supplementation, doing Lugol’s solution, spirulina, NAC, herbal blends to support liver and kidneys, and citrus pectin.
I have a 3 year old son too, so I totally relate to everything you say. I cannot keep my child inside for the next year, but I am doing my best to be smart about it. Still, I worry…
Sounds like we’re practically neighbors, too. Where are you located?
Take care,
Kim
Kim,
I know a lot of us are doing different things, but to recap previous posts, here is what our family is doing:
1. My son and I are off dairy completely (or at least as much as humanly possible.) We are still trying to go outside for vitamin D and we drink soy milk. We bought a whole bunch of blocks of cheese to freeze right after the first “incident” and any that we are using up are being replaced but frozen until past 80 days. On March 15th, (just because I had this funny feeling, seriously) we went to our local Costco and bought two boxes of the powdered milk. We have enough in the house to make 20 gallons of milk, should we need it, but we have found that there are very few things we actually NEED it for now, so it should last a while. I am breastfeeding, so I am just as concerned about what I consume as my son since my daughter gets her nourishment from me.
2. We bought a large air purifier for our room with a true HEPA filter. Ours is only a 300 CADR with a .3 micron filtration since that’s all we could afford.
3. We are drinking and cooking with reverse osmosis and active charcoal filtered water.
4. We are eating mostly fruits gotten from S. America and some limited vegetables but are completely off leafy greens, spinach and mushrooms, (unless they are verified grown indoors).
5. We are all making sure we are getting AT LEAST our daily recommended amounts of vitamins A-E and extra calcium and we are taking 150 mcg of iodine. I know other people have recommended more, but until I get a direct answer on what is ok for my children from their pediatrician, I won’t give them more. Taking too much can seriously screw up their thyroids, so we are being cautious.
6. We are still going outside on nice days (I have a three year old and we have already been couped up with a bronchial sickness that knocked us all out for the past three weeks. We NEEDED out.) But we are staying out of the rain. (I am in Central Cali, btw, so rain isn’t as MUCH of a concern but it still rains off and on.
7. We are keeping shoes and coats near the front door (since we don’t have a coat closet or entry) in order to limit exposure to the rest of the house.
There is more, but these are the basics so far. Looking forward to ER’s new page.
Btw, Liz, thanks for continuing to post. I like the way you look at things. :o)
– Jen
Ann,
here are two links that do a good job explain how and why radioactive elements give off alpha, beta, and gamma radiation.
http://www.ndt-ed.org/EducationResources/CommunityCollege/Radiography/Physics/gamma.htm
http://www2.slac.stanford.edu/vvc/theory/nuclearstability.html
Here is an article worth reading.
Guerrilla Hoarding
http://mises.org/daily/5200/Guerrilla-Hoarding
Question: What about our household air-conditioners? I’m running mine right now (out here in the hinterlands of the Inland Empire, my house is a warm 83 degrees)….. I’m sitting in here wondering if my air conditioning aparatus outside is laden with Fukushima dust….just one stray Plutonium particle wafting in through my duct system honing in on my cellular structure like an errant missle….
Then, I was going to blow off my patio this morning before starting work (don’t worry, I use a non-polluting electric blower)–but thought better of it, since NILU was predicting a Cesium-loaded heavy plume to arrive today….why stir up all that dust?
I’m not excessively alarmed….but am exercising the minimal and sensible precautionary measures that ER, the NIRS and other level-headed respected scientific sites are recommending (avoid excessive exposure to rain, choose food-stuffs sensibly and being mindful that certain types of food are more susceptible to radiation exposure, drink bottled water)
But there’s a small amount of Inland Empire Alluvial dust in my window frame tracks from a recent Santa Ana wind……
And I’m wondering if carrots are safe because I always put them in the home-made Bolognese sauce I like to make….
And suddenly, I find myself living in a very strange new world where remarkably, shockingly, everything is suspect.
Innocuous, daily actions, like dusting or sweeping or turning on the air conditioner or cooking suddenly become sources of potential concern.
Obviously we live in a “dangerous” world, anyway, and have for years—BPA, lead, PVC, fossil fuel pollution, BP-type oil spills, radiation “releases” from nearby plants….not to mention criminals, financial collapse and Congress (LOL).
But suddenly, all of us, as Potrblog so aptly wrote, now find ourselves in a world governed and driven by a “Post Fukushima New Normal.”
It is thus so very odd, now, to wonder as I go about my daily activities if an errant particle of Plutonium or Cesium-137 has strayed into my comfortable and safe home refuge from something as innocent as running my air conditioner.
William Wordsworth once wrote: “The world is too much with us, late and soon.”
Little did he know, enjoying the pastoral 19th century beauty of the pristine English countryside, how prophetic and how tragic his words would be.
.
Christine—thank you! I’m so glad that you have found the safety we all feel in this little “haven” we have found.
Bar—See the link I posted to Dr. Lyman’s (Union of Concerned Scientists) statement to the U.S. Senate.
Part of his point is that we don’t need a “Japan” type seismological event to sustain an equally disasterous nuclear accident.
So many American plants have only 4 hours of battery back-up (this, in the event of a “grid” power failure for whatever reason that knocks out cooling power, and which if it lasts long enough results in generator-backed up pumps also eventually failing).
The math is simple. If there is a massive, prolonged power failure, reactors are “scrammed” and deisel generators run out of juice to cool them…….and the batteries only have 4 hours worth of energy (if they are not old and out-dated, which many are that are not tested at appropriate intervals)………
……then you have a potential Fukushima without any earthquake, Tsunami or other natural catastrophe.
TMI (Three Mile Island) was related to no natural “disaster” at all. Just a mechanical failure which if human error had not compounded that, “control” systems might have mechanically “righted” things. But people mis-read the information, made wrong decisions and thus made the disaster even worse until it became a runaway freight train with a flustered and uncertain engineer at the controls.
Of course, those of us in seismic areas (which are located in more areas than most Americans know or suspect) have even more to worry about.
But as Michael so brilliantly explained in an article written shortly after 9/11 on the ER site, a terrorist attack, ( or a system failure, a massive grid failure or any other interference–even a small computer “glitch”) can create a disaster as massive as Fukushima or Chernobyl…or worse.
Especially since we use the same Mark I reactors here, designed by….GE…..which has alarmingly strong political clout in Washington. Many of our elected officials are turning a blind eye to the issues because of “beltway” “affiliations.”
So, we all have to do what we can. I’m sure that as we move along, Michael and Denise Anne will guide us as to what kinds of proactive efforts we can make.
The next Fukushima WILL be near “Mainstreet USA” if something is not done to mitigate the awful risk.
Michael—am eagerly anticipating tomorrow’s article here on our “own” E-R site!
I like Potrblog’s comment (made a few days ago) about how all of this new need for protection represents (lamentably) the “New Post-Fukushima Normal.”
When you really think about the implications of that, it is very, very disturbing. Potrblog’s phrase captues the essence of all of this in just a few words.
Oh, and BTW, although E-R has been around since before any of this ever started, WE, our little “Radation Station” community are just about a month old!
So, Happy Anniversary to our wonderful “new” community here–we are an awesome group– and a loud, enthusiastic HURRAY for Michael and Denise Anne—hopefully, as we grow, to be heard around the world!!
Suzanne—thanks for creating the petition. I signed it. I arranged to have my “signature” be kept private (I have safety issues related to my job and do not want people googling me up). I even wrote a short “blog” in the “personal statement” section!
I think Dr. Lyman’s testimony is superb—whether our elected officials will adequately deal with it remains to be seen. There is a huge “push” on Capitol Hill to fund (LOL, through taxpayer monies, LOL) additional plants—-and little provision for “fixing” old ones.
That would be the ultimate irony for us, wouldn’t it? To know that our taxes are helping to fund the very nuclear power plants we’re trying to get rid of or at least render safer. They need taxpayer “back up” funds because the investment giants on Wall Street (self-protective as they are) are “jittery” about backing up such a risk-prone industry.
Ironic, isn’t it?
Good work, Suzanne!!
Hi,
I’ll echo the sentiments of everyone else when I say thank you for this site, and these helpful comments.
I’m wondering about a few things, any answers much appreciated.
Why are “large, leafy greens” worse when it comes to absorbing I131? What veggies, if any, would be considered safer?
Michael, you’ve mentioned finding safe powdered milk. Any tips on how you determined if a brand or supply was safe? Is everyone off dairy? How will you know when it’s okay to go back on?
For those of you with children, what are you doing with your kids? We are still going and playing, but never in the rain, and we are carefully monitoring levels, plus taking lots of supplements to detox. What else are others doing?
I know that the rain is polluted, and we are no longer going out at all in the rain. For those of you with pets, do you have a plan? I hate to think of our dogs walking out in the rain and then bringing pollutants indoors with them.
Finally, thoughts of wading in the (Pacific) ocean? We live at the beach and hate to think of our summer without beach days… 🙁
Thanks, All.
Ann, I131 has a half life of 8 days. If you have 100 lbs of I131, after 8 days you would only have 50 lbs of I131 left; the other 50 pounds would have changed into Xenon 131.
In the Human body, I131 has a BIOLOGICAL half life of 100days. That means if on day one you ate 1 lbs of I131, in 100 days your body would have excreted 0.5 lbs of I131 via your body’s normal waste removal processes.
So by the time your body can process and remove even half of the iodine that it has ingested that Iodine has already converted itself to Xenon 131.
Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, are all different types of radiation given off by an unstable element as it changes from one type of element to another.
Why is the only video on EnviroReporter.com of the monitor?
Video should be top concern for any internet news source. The first thing anyone should see is a current news report on video. One click and your getting it! not a link from somewhere else or a written story (reading off the computer hurts your eyes) but real people on camera reporting the news, the real news! giving CNN and the rest of them a run for their money!
-2×2=4×4=16×16=256..
I think it would be really helpful to maintain a proof positive and active list of what contaminants have made it to the west coast and continental us, and what kind of radiation they are (gamma, beta,… alpha, if/when that kind of radiation contamination arrives), it’s half life, it’s life if not ingested or if ingested (biological half life?), how to protect from each contaminant (physical practical strategies), and nutritional strategies to use now to minimize the effects if they are ingested, and the known ways to detox from said contaminants if they are ingested (the last two items are similar strategies, often). Since this incident happened, I have been doing this kind of research all on my own and trying to cobble it together. I went out and spoke to countless health professionals, mostly holistic, and I have a lot of info on the nutritional strategies. but I bet several of you out there have pieces to the puzzle, especially the science part, that I don’t have and together we could all benefit from a better guide as to how to handle this crisis.
I continue to worry about the arrival of the alpha particulates. the continued crisis still has me worried that those more harmful particulates could make their way over here.
I’m looking forward to the preparedness/ what to do page that Michael is going to post. it sounds like this page may address what I’m talking about.
I’ve been reading a lot of info and somehow I’ve picked this idea up. Not sure if it is correct. Can someone confirm or deny…
Regarding the I-131 that has come down in California rains…
is the common understanding that the I-131 has a certain half life (8 days?) but if it is ingested it is (100 days)?
I feel confused about this because if this is so, gamma is not a particle but a wave, so how is it different in it’s behavior if it is ingested or not.
seeking answers!
thank you in advance.
2 weeks ago someone posted about a high quality Miso Soup.
I can no longer find the post. Is that person still on here, could you post again please?
Michael thank you, I”m looking forward to the new “prepare” page.
I would be feeling so alone and more worried with out this site. I can’t thank you enough.
AJ thank you for the Veterans Exclusive. Wonderful.
Liz thank you.
Portrblog thank you.
Re:Robert Thompson and all
Yes, the traditional news sources here in the US have never been so blatantly dictated by corporate/government interests (that includes PBS). It’s really a shame. These are the times we can see who’s-who-?; like Republicans taking cuts out of regular people’s livelihoods before taking it from wealthier people and corporations, and Democrats running a close second behind Republicans for being ineffective corporate sponsored leaders of the day.
“if the blind lead the blind they will both fall in the ditch” -KJV Bible
People: send a message, CANCEL your cable television subscription! You will be saving money, and not have to deal with commercials, not to mention infomercials anymore…paying to see commercials is crazy!
Vote Independent: Be part of the solution, not the problem. Rebublicans and Democrats are all corporate sponsored dupes. “Trump”? come on!, are they serious?! “Jesse Ventura”? why not?
ISSUES NOW! we have some issues now, that can not just be labeled by the next candidate as “change”. Someone needs to be specific and not back out once elected. We all wanted change but it doesn’t seem like much of anything has changed, for the better anyway.
We need to start formulating and organizing, and quit being so complacent and manipulated, and apathetic.
Forward. to the streets. get up. come on, shut that computer off, make a sign and wake people up! we can’t do it alone. Quit wallowing in the problems and move into the solutions.. Yes radiation is the immediate concern, but learn from this, because next time it may be right in your backyard.
No Nuclear, no coal, CHANGE, yes we need to change are ideas about energy consumption ..for one thing.
-Two Cents
Hi Liz, thanks for posting the info about Dr. Lyman’s testimony before the Subcommittee. I’ve started a petition asking the committe to take Dr. Lyman’s testimony seriously and to implement the steps he recommends. Please sign the petition! http://www.change.org/petitions/nukes-could-be-safer-take-steps-now?share_id=dDZGPljdMR&pe=pce
Hi Steve,
We’ll be discussing preparedness on Thursday on a new page which will be published as we break new news about radiation levels in Los Angeles. I highly doubt anybody is measuring the radioactivity of produce at farmers markets. IF someone is, then they should advertise it because it would be a big draw – but they should also prove it. But common sense says that with all the I-131 that has come down in California rains, eating big green leafy vegetables is playing radiation roulette.
http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/hauptnavigation/startseite#/beitrag/livevideo/1283558/Japanisches-Fernsehen—live-kommentiert
Japanese TV
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUXlxW8tGQ0
Have you seen this? Would this, if it really happens, create a huge Tsunami that could hit the US Westcoast?
Hey Michael,
Thanks for keeping the measurements of external radiation going – much appreciated.
Now that low levels of radioactivity is starting to accumulate (and ultimately concentrate) in our local food chain – what is your feeling about how we protect ourselves from that threat? Is there anybody measuring the radioactivity of produce being sold at farmers markets? In Stores?
STEVE…
http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/hauptnavigation/startseite#/beitrag/livevideo/1283558/Japanisches-Fernsehen—live-kommentiert
Japanese TV
‘Trust but verify’. Sound familiar?
Independent testing. You’ll never know until you know.
Not a bad idea to have a RENEWED PASSPORT for each of your beloveds…
Another little known gem to stock up on- Red Feather canned butter from New Zealand. It also happens to be my favorite butter.
The benefits:
It has a near indefinite shelf life if properly stored.
New Zealand herds typically have a better casein makeup.
It literally is my favorite butter.
Since it does not require refrigeration, it is ready to eat and cook.
One down side- I am unsure if the can has a BPA liner.
I do NOT have a Red Feather link on my blog site, because quantities appear to be limited, and prices vary from site to site.
My suggestion is to do a Google shopping search for
“red feather canned butter”
Veterans Today Exclusive: What To Do About the Radioactive Poison
Protect Yourself and Loved Ones – Not a Drill.
by Bob Nichols
San Francisco) – What we know:
The daily outflow of deadly radiation from Japan’s Four Chernobyl’d Reactors increased Ten Times on March 31…..
More… http://www.veteranstoday.com/2011/04/11/veterans-today-exclusive-what-to-do-about-the-radioactive-poison/
Or, http://tinyurl.com/426jm3q
Here is Dr. Ed Lyman’s testimony before the U.S. Senate from 4/6 regarding the need for us to deal with nuclear safety here (before a Fukushima-level event occurs here).
UCS is neither pro nor con nuclear power, but stand as an excellent watchdog group. They truly hold the Utilities, U.S. Government and U.S. Regulatory Agencies (like the NRC) accountable, and they don’t let up.
They do a good job of holding feet to the fire—-and also of keeping the public informed about the “real” risks—not the watered down versions publically presented by the regulatory agencies.
This is an important article to read.
http://www.ucsusa.org/assets/documents/nuclear_power/lyman-energy-and-commerce-statement-04-06-11.pdf
A reassuring statement from NIRS (dated 3/27) about protective measures and concerns about Fukushima fallout here in the U.S.
It pretty much reinforces what Michael and others such as Potrblog have been saying here.
The article ends with a statement from NIRS that if further or more drastic measures are needed here (such as sheltering or Potassium Iodide) are necessary, THEY WILL WARN US.
I find this very reassuring and I fully trust that they will warn us.
Here is the link:
http://nirs.org/fukushima/radcombined.htm
Michael, Row the Boat Ashore!
Is your beloved Land of Milk and Honey becoming the wretched golden acres of Iodine-131 and Goo?
Once again, dear Mr. Man Hands and Mrs. Lady Fingers, a SoCal rain sample has been collected during our most recent rain event, this one being of last Fri.
Strontium-89/90; Iodine-131/Cesium-134/Cesium-137; Plutonium 238/239/240; Uranium 234/235/238 … these run about $500 for the set to test at a decent laboratory. With now seven samples awaiting testing, we’re in the neighborhood of an almost $4K outlay of cold hard cash. And that is not including soil sampling; for that, add another few thousand dollars. So far as I can tell, southern California-area county supervisors have not ordered the collection of rain or soil samples or anything else for that matter or had anything like them tested. So, what to do? A gamma scanner is all fine and dandy but nothing compares to real results from a lab, yes? Then there’s this whole chain of custody legalese monkey biz. Plus some types of tests are better than others and labs vary widely as you know in their credibility. Travel distance is also a factor as is the quantity of rainwater or soil required for each lab. Half lives can be misleading. Iodine-131 can hang around in rainwater (inside a sealed container, for instance) at much longer than just eight days. The BIOLOGICAL half-life of Iodine-131 is around 100 days. Cesium-137 & Strontium 90 have biological half lifes of 100-300+ years (and not just the 30 years of a non-biological half-life as touted by industry).
Maybe a primer on testing is needed in your comments, care to interject?
Funding also should be brought up so we can possibly share knowledge of samples from the West Coast of the U.S.
Warren Buffett, you listening? Fund this puppy.
The ‘official’ levels of radioactive release must be hidden to protect the special corporate privileges of GE whose CEO is Obammy’s advisor. The toll must be hidden to protect the nuclear renaissance people and their greenhouse gas scam. That is why our fascist government and all those controlled by the same financial interests do less monitoring and allow more contamination. If the world realized GE, the US and its financiers are nothing but dirty bombers destroying our health it would mean Barry and the boys could finally be arrested.
I certainly will read it Mr. Collins and thank you to you and your wife for all your hard work. I appreciate the information and forum you are providing very much.
Thanks for answering my question. I have to say it’s refreshing to find a site that isn’t downplaying this terrible Fukushima tragedy. So much information here.
We don’t control the ads on Ustream, mrsjones.
Radiation In Plain Language
I think clarification needs to be made about the different types of radiation as there is a lot of confusion about this. Think of an isotope as an atom (a very small particle of matter). Alpha radiation is actually a particle that is smaller than most atoms and is emitted from some isotopes as they decay. Beta radiation, likewise, is also a particle and is even smaller than an alpha particle. Generally, in order of decreasing size or mass we have atoms, alpha and then beta particles. In contrast, think of gamma radiation more like a ray of light that can penetrate solid matter to varying degrees depending on the density of the matter. Or you can think of gamma rays as being like x-rays. These rays have no weight or mass like an alpha or beta particle does. Gamma rays tend to penetrate matter more deeply than alpha or beta particles.
It has been more than twenty years since I took a physics class and I was not a science major in college, so if there are any errors in this info I am sure one the radiation experts on this blog will point that out.
Why is there a BP ad on this page saying the’ve cleaned up the spill??? Isn’t that going against the honesty this site is supposed to relay?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_japan_earthquake
I haven’t found anything alarming the one time I checked greens, Keri. The reason it was just one time is that I plan to reduce our possible exposure by using common sense and avoiding the kinds of things that might be contaminated by I-131 and/or Cs-137. Can’t speak to the safety of milk and veggies from Mexico but remember it’s in the Northern Hemisphere too. Try to get powdered milk that was probably produced before the meltdowns and subsequent geysers of goo began March 11.
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/12_05.html
Hi Michael, you mentioned that you have been checking your greens. Have you found anything alarming? Also, is it true that Milk and Veggies from Mexico would be safer? Thanks for everything.
Thanks for the info Michael! Much appreciated. I am a woman in Los Angeles, who has been right here with you since the start. Miso-man is my handle because before Fukushima I absolutely detested miso, Miso – man! 🙁 & 🙂 at the same time, you know.
I have KI tabs on hand (thankfully I was able to purchase them 2 days after the disaster) and will await word on when to use. I make organic botanical skin care which has environmental protection so that has helped on the outside. Also eating lots of anti-cancer foods, plus miso, nori, rosemary and kale since day 5, but have since laid off the green leafy kale. I am also purchasing all of my produce imported from S. America and filter my tap water 3 times in separate carbon filtering devices. Gave up half & half for canned sweetened condensed milk packaged before the disaster. Don’t go out much except to and from work and have only been caught in the rain once about two weeks ago. Going to get a hepa this weekend. My throat has had an achy burning sensation lately though and I am becoming mildly concerned.
I am very grateful for this site and for all the work you and Denise Ann do. And thankful for this entire community for their great links and info as well. Bisous!
To Lucy—
Thank you for clarifying the EPA’s reports! I was beginning to wonder if I was missing or misinterpreting something. Now I see that no thay ARE minimizing.
To Claudia–
Thank you for joining in to remind us all that while we all struggle to make sense of the disaster in Japan (and its effects upon our own people and environment), we must stay focusd on what we can do here in the U.S. to confront the nuclear issue. I’m also grateful that you sent the means to “sign on” so that our legislative bodies will “hear” our opinions!
To Michael–
Thanks for posting a repetition, for Miso-Man, of your sensible and comforting suggestions about what kinds of prudent measures we should take for the time being….
…And for reminding us that there ARE trustworthy sources–(the respected scientists and scientific communities) which WILL warn us if additional measures are warranted.
And that would include our “own” EnviroReporter site!!! It is obvious that on a daily basis, our community is growing in a hopeful level of commitment and understanding.
We must not succumb to hysteria. If we are to be proactive, as Claudia says, we must cling to intellectual honesty, common sense and to a strong sense of ethics and circumspection.
In that manner, our common voice will register in a wider circle with a degree of credibility that is crucial if we hope to keep others beyond our community informed…or if we hope to capture their attention and belief.
It cannot be stated enough–Michael and Denise Anne have started something that will have a far-reaching impact beyond what they might initially have imagined.
Let’s recall that we remain blessed here, in our country, with so much abundance and with so much freedom to speak out. We need to recall every day that those in the “real” circle of risk created by Fukushima and all of its darker implications (TEPCO) are too devastated to even begin to address what really went wrong.
I saw a film clip tonight of some Japanese people reacting to the irony of a TEPCO sign promising the hope of a great future with the “protection” that nuclear energy would provide.
I also saw a poignant clip of a little dog, left tethered and starving in the yard where his evacuated family once lived, being tossed some food by a renegade journalist with a compassionate heart.
I thank God that I am thousands of miles away from all of that.
For now.
Here is a recent TIMES article written about the change to Level 7: http://ecocentric.blogs.time.com/2011/04/11/what-does-fukushima%E2%80%99s-new-%E2%80%9Clevel-7%E2%80%9D-status-mean/
The statistics I find particularly interesting… “The amount of radioactive material being released at Fukushima today, however, is less than 1 terabecquerel, and NISA says that to date Fukushima has only released about 10% of total radiation released in Chernobyl — 1.8 million terabecquerels — 25 years ago.” No mention of elevated radiation around the globe, however. There is also a distinct possibility these stats are fudged and misleading, so keep that in mind…
IOSAT and other Iodine solutions available again!
To borrow off what Michael posted; I would NOT take IOSAT unless I personally saw the mushroom cloud or was told to do so by a physician I trusted.
Here is a link to the items I purchased, and rationale on why now is the time to stock up quickly.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/iosat-and-other-iodine-solutions.html
Tomorrow, Lucystoner, EnviroReporter.com is coming out with an article that you will want to read, especially if you live in Southern California. Don’t miss it.
Liz is right.As horrible as the Fukushima event is,we are sitting on a time bomb ourselves…. Maybe this was the wake-up call this country needed!
That’s why I urge everyone to sign the petition (copy the pre-written letter ,sign it and paste it to the 2 e-mails down in the link below,takes 2 minutes) NOW – for updated seismic studies of the 2 Nuclear Power Plants in California…..I am usually a “quiet one”,but this subject woke me up and I want to be pro active!!!!
a4nr.org (Alliance For Nuclear Responsibility)
Claudia
Miso-man, it is not time for the KI yet. I can’t give you specific advise because you don’t say where you live but you certainly do not want to be taking KI now. Authorities and medical experts you can trust will give the say-so perhaps but you can count on us to impart the best advice we can.
What you want to do is control as much of your environment as possible. I talked about this a few days ago and we are currently creating a Radiation Nation Preparedness page which will show, in part, what Denise Anne and I have done to secure our living and working spaces, air, water and food.
But here’s some of what I wrote:
Liz,
The EPA is still doing the same “it’s below levels of concern” song and dance. I refer to their site because unfortunately there just isn’t much raw data out there for every state. There are journalists, bloggers and citizens who are concerned about the data on the EPA website. Although the EPA continues to say levels are safe, there are people looking at the EPA’s own data and finding the levels concerning.
The federal drinking water limit is 3 pCi/l. According to the EPA lab results (this is just one example) milk in Hawaii contained 19 pCi/l Cs-137, 18 pCi/l I-131, and 24 pCi/l Cs-134. Well above their own “safe” limits.
Also, the data FINALLY being posted by the EPA is weeks or several days old. Too little info, too late.
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sampling-data.html
A little step forward. “Like” “Say no to nuclear” on facebook.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Say-no-to-nuclear/141188415946703?ref=ts&sk=wall#!/pages/Say-no-to-nuclear/141188415946703
The post from Claudia was rather alarming to me and caused me to do some further reading. Full article here:
http://www.euractiv.com/en/health/radiation-risks-fukushima-longer-negligible-news-503947
My favorite quote: “In normal times, no trace of iodine-131 should be detectable in rainwater or milk”
Here is the actual CRIIRAD report (in french):
http://94.23.16.204/criirad_telechargement_pdf/eau_de_pluie_iode_131.pdf
It lists the amounts for various regions in the US up until 3/22 in the form of gas and particulate matter in the graph. Can anyone make sense of these levels please. I have some comprehension of the french language and see very high percentages.
A quote from CRIIRAD: “It is necessary to consider that the contamination of the air will extend itself during the minimum 15 days and that the activities of the air, and
consequently rainwater, will be probably superior to what is measured currently.”
Michael, is it time for KI – now that reactor 4 has experienced another fire and the French gov’t, on the other side of the world, is warning it’s citizens to “limit risky behavior” ? Or is it too late for KI? Suggestions? Thanks.
Update to breaking news: It wasn’t the IAEA that upgraded the international nuclear event scale rating to a 7. It was the Japanese Gov’t.
That doesn’t change the seriousness of this, but I’m such a stickler for accuracy of reporting, and I inaccurately relayed that it was the IAEA after a breaking CNN story caught my attention half-way through the story.
It doesn’t matter because Michael et. al here have been predicting all along that this event would surpass all others in specific respects, even Chernobyl.
Thanks, Claudia, for the information from France. From what all of the circumspect post-ers here (and Michael) have said, it seems that there is certainly reasonable concern for all of us about exposure to radioactive material from Japan.
Without falling prey to the stident conspiracy theory voices out there, I DO believe that as the NIRS et. al. have established (scientifically) we have already been misled by the EPA about the risk inherent in the MANNER we are exposed–i.e. that there is a quantifiable difference between a “plume” passing over and us being exposed to fallen-out or rained-out actual radioactive particles which can be ingested or inhaled.
The EPA and FDA remain focused (from what I can tell) on quantity, while the reliable scientific sites are clearly demonstrating that this focus completely misses the point and also misleads the American people into believing that they are entirely safe when, in fact, they are not entirely safe.
Some of our really good scientific post-ers here have provided such excellent information about the kinds of risks we actually do face.
In the meantime, I find quite helpful Michael’s suggestions from yesterday about reasonably prudent precautions to take and I am following them as best I can without turning into a “Howard Hughs” type of recluse, LOL and fearing even contact with the outdoors.
Also, we cannot afford to let the urgency of constant breaking news from Japan and about radiation exposure here to distract us from something equally important—the determined effort to work HERE to prevent a disaster of this scale from happening in our own backyards.
If we don’t persist in that effort, we will eventually face here a Fukushima logarithmically multiplied.
BREAKING NEWS!!!!
CNN just announced that the IAEA just designated Fukushima as a 7 on the international nuclear incident scale.
Fukushima has now rivals Chernobyl as the greatest nuclear disaster ever (which many here on ER have been saying all along).
Also, possible reports of a fire in reactor 4?????
The CNN analyst claims that the reason for the “upgrade” on the scale is because the “experts” “reanalyzed” the “early” information and decided that they’d underestimated the magnitude of everything that was wrong.
The analyst also claims that the new rating was based on the “amount of radiation” that had been released so far.
I would suspect that they’re also including new information in their re-assessment, not simply revisiting earlier assessments.
There was also a new aftershock just over an hour ago, a 6.4 or higher.
I just do not understand how so many people here (meaning in the U.S.) can be so complacent about it.
Hi, Lucy—I’m glad you emerged from being quiet to posting! And thank you so much for your generous words—I sometimes stumble around with all of this, but am learning so much!
Thanks for the U-234 info—I’ll check it when done with the post. I couldn’t find it anywhere on any reliable site.
I did read that U-234 can be a breakdown of Plutonium????—it was a few days ago and I’m doubtful I remember correctly. It has also been historically present in this area clearly from other sources.
A question for you, Lucy, or others who cite the EPA—-every time I get on there, all I see is information about the “minimal” levels of radionuclides from Japan and how it is always millions of times below “risk” limits.
Yet some of the really careful and intelligent post-ers here are finding some statements from the EPA about higher amounts. Am I looking at the wrong pages within that site?
LOL, not that I entirely trust the EPA! I trust what the UCS and the NIRS TELL ME I can trust about the EPA–and what they tell me I can’t.
CJ, Michael, Potrblog—anyone want to educate us about U-234? What is it, what does it come from, etc. etc. It’s so great to have all of these experts here!!
Thanks again, Lucy–keep posting, now that you have emerged from being one of the quiet ones.
Isn’t it wonderful that there are so many we don’t even KNOW about who read the information on this site and who are learning and sharing our concern!!!! Michael and Denise Anne—I think over time your E-R site will be even more far-reaching than either of you two imagined it would be!
CRIIRAD, French independent radiation monitoring group releases warning to Europe that levels of radiation from Fukushima fallout may have already exceeded safe levels for children, pregnant women, and other high risk populations. They urge caution, warning that enormous amounts of radiation have been released in Japan and continue to be released. They do not see an immediate end to this danger.
http://www.nuclearfreeplanet.org/articles/radiation-risks-from-fukushima-no-longer-negligible.html
Hi Liz,
First of all your contributions to the forum are truly insightful, intelligent and amazing. I’m one of the quiet ones but I read the forum daily. Thank you for being a voice here. I really appreciate your contributions. (You too CJ, Port and Michael.)
Regarding the U-234 there is data from the EPA showing it in CA, HI and Guam. The data is on the first table – collected March 15-24th.
http://www.epa.gov/radiation/docs/rert/radnet-cart-filter-final.pdf
CJ,
I have posted this to you before, I did not identify the source as I123, I made a conjecture that it was I123 based on the possible half life, and identification of radioiodines in the area. I123 CAN be produced from Fukushima fallout, specifically the interaction of solar produced protons with Cesium 133. Cesium 133 is the decay product of Xenon 133. That is one of the reasons I am concerned about the next Earth directed Coronal Mass Ejections (CME). The upper atmosphere is now bathed in Fukushima produced C133; when the next CME hits the entire sun facing side of the Northern Hemisphere is going to have a percentage of that C133 turn into I123 (plus a bunch of other nasty radionuclides.)
I was able to do some testing with the fallout that came down here in Saint Louis on 4/9/11. I filtered the source for α,β, and γ. Primarily, I detected beta radiation. See the video of the detection and filtering here
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/video-4911-saint-louis-missouri.html
calibration of devices made by different manufacturers varies.
this is typical of the nuclear industry so a member of the public has a difficult time with rads, rems, becquerels, etc etc. one counter says background is 18 cpm another device says 32,
Thank you, CJ for your two posts examining the deductive process involved in determining the source of a particular isotope detected.
I work in an Investigations field and am thus always aware that I must exercise great care in analyzing the origin or any particular evidence I observe. For example, injuries to a person could have an accidental origin, a deliberate origin, or a medical origin. It is thus necessary to examine certain questions, keeping also in mind contexts created by witness statements, collateral facts or known history (such as DOJ records) about the parties involved, etc.
Important physical elements to examine might be the nature of the injury, the location of the injury, the pattern (if any) of the injury, etc. After evaluating everything, one can usually arrive at a conclusion to at least a preponderance of the evidence about the etiology of the injury.
Thus, it seems to me that a similar process must apply to analyzing data about radioactive isotopes found in the field since Fukushima: identifying their properties; their known origin (as in whether from fission or not); their decay rate as compared to the date on which they were detected; the level or quantity that appears at a particular site (i.e. trace amounts or large amounts); known meteorological patterns; nearby presence of other identified emittors (such as power plants, medical facilities); known historical sources (such as nuclear testing).
Thus, evidence is always evaluated within a particular context and through a careful process of ruling out other important variables.
Obviously, at a certain level, if a high level of a radioactive material is found, there is concern for human and environmental safety, REGARDLESS of the origin.
I agree with the PSR position that there is NO acceptable level of (unnatural) radiation (excepting medical necessity, of course).
However, it does seem important for us to know whether newly identified material comes from Japan or not.
On Saturday, one of the regular post-ers on this site who tends to report information from the (irresponsible) alarmist conspiracy-theory resources said that (I think it was) U-234 had been detected in California.
When I researched that, I found nothing from any reliable source about any recent observations of that, but I did uncover interesting historical information about that element being found in 2002 and 2006.
Irresponsible journalists and fear-mongering websites do not bother with any kind of ethical deductive process. Unfortunately, there are too many people who do not or cannot ask discerning questions about what they read or hear. Irresponsible web-sites take advantage of such people.
As I noted in an earlier post, it is possible to statistically demonstrate that babies come from storks!
Thank you for your informative posts. They are a great help to all of us.
What’s the deal with the precipitation measurements on EPA site? Looks like significant spikes in radiation during end of March. Should I keep my children inside during rain events? I am in Cal.
Thank you for your continued diligence. I can’t believe only 96 visitors this morning, down from thousands at the outset of Japan events. Also amazing? The absence of news from Japan on mainstream media.
Thank you for your thorough reply, Michael. It was very helpful.
I am just going to bed but I’m now seeing reports buzzing about EPA finding milk samples in Hawaii at 20.33 times the federal drinking limit… very startling. Just thought I would pass along the EPA data: http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sampling-data.html#milk
TO: Mr. Collins
Since I-131 is a by-product of all fission reactions, its source cannot be assumed to be only from Japan. It could be the result of a release of gas from San Onofre, or perhaps even a nuclear powered warship passing along the coast (?). Both possibilities crossed my mind while trying to discern the cause of the beta gross count spike recorded by the EPA’s San Diego monitoring station for the last 2 days. Anyway, time to go to sleep on this for now. Good night everyone.
This is not good. The EPA’s Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for Iodine-131 in water is “3piC/L for drinking water” according to EPA RadNet Japanese Nuclear Emergency: Radiation Monitoring FAQs.
That means this reading is .39/3 = 13% of the MCL which is about 1/8th. Too close for comfort. Will it get worse?
TO: Liz
Good ‘ole detective work is certainly one possible answer to your question about radioactive fingerprints. As an example, the other day Potrblog (aka:doingsomethingtotheroses) was describing the radioactive fluid discovered on the hood of his SUV in St. Louis and theorizing that it may have crossed the western U.S. from the Pacific, having originated in Japan. He identified the isotope (I-123) along with its half-life (13.2 hours). (There are devices that identify specific radionuclides). In this case, the identified iodine isotope (123) is not a by-product of nuclear fission which is what occurs in a reactor; it is created in a lab by a particle accelerator known as a cyclotron (for what that’s worth). Not only that, but I-131, which is a by-product of fission, is a beta particle emitter and I-123 emits gamma rays. It’s because of the gamma rays that I-123 is so effective in medical imagery, which is why it’s produced in the first place. So, as you can see, in this example we can deduce that whatever the source of the radioactive iodine on Potrblog’s vehicle, it didn’t come from Fukushima. Most likely it came from improperly discarded medical waste. Or, perhaps it was left by someone who was doingsomethingonthehoodofthesuv.
As I understand it, the wait for an Inspector like we have is four months. I can’t speak to other models. Be aware that no nuclear radiation monitors or Geiger counters are made equally and older models, while perfectly usable in most cases, won’t be practical for you kids. Also, a new monitor should come calibrated so don’t worry about that. And the manufacturer of any model you may be lucky enough to find should be able to recalibrate it.
LA drinking water 0.39. Very bad?
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-sampling-data.html
Thank you for this Weaver and thank you for watching Radiation Station since day three. I will try to answer your questions succinctly:
1. Yes, to a degree. You should control your air: Have air cleaners with Hepa filters in your most used spaces – like your office, living room, bedroom – where you spend a lot of your time. Note that fallout seems to have been coming down in precipitation so try to keep your wet umbrella, slickers and boots from dripping all over the place and rinse them off in the shower and let them drip dry in there.
2. I miswrote: there was nothing abnormal with the readings – i.e. the Inspector didn’t detect increased ionization even within a half inch. Re-rinsing: the tap water isn’t contaminated in So Cal where we are but we can’t speak for yours so we don’t know why you came to that conclusion.
3. What do we think? We think you should be prepared for the worst and hope for the best. We think you should use the links on our Resources page to keep a close eye on the situation. You can see much more detail of what we think that expressed in our quotes and comments thoughout the website – search “Michael Collins” in Comments. Please look at them, and the comments of others, because you will learn enough to draw your own conclusions. And those conclusions do not include doing nothing and wishing this nightmare away.
4. Unlikely – that’s what “background” calculations of these radionuclides are so you know what the overages are because of the meltdowns. Some radiation visiting our shores right now, like Iodine 131 with an eight day half life, could have only come from the Japanese meltdowns.
We hope this helps but we encourage you to review the thousand-plus comments on EnviroReporter.com that discuss all this. There has been much lively and informed discussion regarding this, one of the greatest manmade disasters of modern times, one that is nowhere near being safely contained, controlled and concluded.
That’s why there’s a Radiation Station.
http://www.allvoices.com/s/event-8727182/aHR0cDovL2F0bWMuanAvcGxhbnQvcmFkLz9uPTE=
maybe this spike answers my question about the bizarre webcam images of the plant on 4-9-11 for several hours.
what do we know now about this brand NEW leak?
“Another radioactive leak has occured in Japan and the material leaked is of the highest level of radioactive isotopes. The leak is separate from Fukushima it took place at a different nuclear plant Onagawa located in Miyagi. It leaked in 8 different places following the earthquakes again yesterday. The material leaked has 5,410 bequerels per kilogram of radioactive isotopes.”
Interesting… the EPA’s beta gross count monitors from San Diego (where we earlier reported a 2-day beta spike), Riverside, San Bernardino, San Jose, SF, Las Vegas, Reno, Grand Junction, Denver, Colorado Springs, Kansas City, Springfield, and all of Nebraska… are out of commission. You don’t suppose they’re all plugged-in to the same extension cord, do you?
A few days ago I went to a meeting hosted by Rochelle Becker,Exec. Director of the “Alliance For Nuclear Responsibility” and we were all asked to write or e-mail letters to the Governor and the CPUC (California Public Utilities Commission) about the importance of new,current seismic studies for the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant-before their license renewal……You can use their pre-written letters on the website:.
http://a4nr.org/
Let’s hope we can accomplish,what happened to Humboldt years ago…….
They did seismic studies and it would have been to expensive to remodel,so the plant was shut down…..
The Humboldt Bay Nuclear Power Plant is a 63 MWe boiling water reactor, owned by Pacific Gas and Electric Company that operated from August 1963 to July 1976 just south of Eureka, California. Concern about previously undiscovered seismic faults combined with more stringent requirements required after the Three Mile Island Incident rendered the small plant unprofitable if restarted. It was shut down permanently in July 1976. It was then placed in SAFSTOR inactive status in 1988.
Claudia
To Weaver and R. Stiles—-
You both raise the question as to whether radioactive fallout can be accurately identified as coming from a specific source or not.
I’m sure that Michael, Potrblog or CJ can address this question in more detail, but I have read in the last few days some scientific articles (don’t remember or have access to the citations right now, but will research them)–explaining that radioactive fallout, or rather the isotopes associated with it reflect a distinctive “fingerprint” that can help identify it as coming from a particular source (i.e. Fukushima, as opposed to previous nuclear testing, or leakage from nearby plants).
The articles I read explained this discernment process very well; There are actual physical properties that can be measured, such as decay rates, atomic structure, known weather patterns or soil contamination issues that are factored in.
It appears that it is actually quite possible to identify radioactive material as being from Fukushima or some other source, and further, to identify that other source if not from Fukushima (i.e. Chernobyl, Nevada testing, etc.). Believe it or not, Chernobyl “clouds” are still circumnavigating the glove!
I don’t recall the details, nor could I represent them accurately since I am not a nuclear scientist.
However, Michael, CJ, Potrblog or others who have real background in this—–would you help clarify this issue, please?
TO: Ms. Liz
God bless you and thank you for your very kind words! I spent 35 years in public emergency services, but now I’m just another one of those “expert consultants”. Like CNN’s favorite expert, MIT’s Dr. Jim Walsh, would say, “I’m a nuclear expert, but not a nuclear engineer”. (I love that guy!) So, guess that makes me as qualified to offer my opinion to you folks as lawyer and community-organizer-turned President, Barack Obama, who promised us that no radiation would reach Hawaii from Japan, let alone the mainland, or, say, best-selling author, political pundit and lawyer, Ann Coulter, who suggested that a few extra rads a day can keep most doctors at bay, or, even Jim Walsh, whose PhD is in the field of political science and governmental affairs, or some such.
Seriously though, my dear Ms. Liz, I am a certified terrorism & weapons of mass destruction (WMD) instructor for first responders and I’ve been trained by the feds to do site security assessments of critical infrastructure targets, including nuclear facilities (the latter is really pretty much what Jim Walsh does on a larger scale through his position at MIT by the way). I’ve been there and done that as the saying goes, including having the very humbling experience of leaning over the rail of spent nuclear fuel pools and gazing at the enormity of the power lying just a few yards away. I have no agenda, either pro or anti nuclear power, so if I offer some comments at any time, it is because I have specific knowledge or training to share that could prove helpful to others in assessing potential threats to themselves and their families.
I bore you and everyone else with all that background crap just to make this one point: It is critical that each of us listen, read and where appropriate, learn from every source we come across. At the same time, however, it is imperative that we establish the credibility of each source before we blindly accept any opinions as truths. And, yes, that includes the opinions and advice we receive from our governments. In the end, only we have the best interests of our families at heart and we are accountable to them for the quality of due diligence we put forth.
would someone kindly take a look at these shots from the webcam of fuki from yesterday (saturday 4-9-2011) from like 1pm to 5pm. what is going on there? one of the shots looks like a neutron beam was emitted.
http://www.woweather.com/weather/news/fukushima?LANG=us&VAR=webcam&SAT=201104090500
its disturbing that we cannot see what is really going on there. i do know there are only three concrete pumps in the world large enough to bury fuki and they are all in transit there.
i would really appreciate an interpretation of those webcam shots.
I feel like I have no other choice than to buy a radiation monitor for my garden, the food I buy at the grocery store, etc. So, that being said, I looked at monitors, trying to find a reasonably priced one but then I read how they have to be calibrated…? Do I buy one & then try to find some place to have it calibrated? Can anyone shed light on a) what type to buy that is reliable & reasonable, and b) once I buy it, how to go about getting it calibrated? I have been so very concerned about my daughter who lives in Noho & now find out that the radiation that has fallen in Des Moines, Iowa, is far worse than where she is, which is where my son is going to college. I have bought my daughter water filters for all her faucets, a “Vita Shower” head filtration system for her showerhead, a Honeywell HEPA air filter for her bedroom. She will stay out of the rain, and continues to take her liquid mutli, detox tea, a capsule of kelp every day, as well as a daily dosage of fulvic minerals. I am hoping this is enough. I get a pit in my stomach, how overwhelming it is to think that so many children are being unduly exposed while playing in the rain because the Govt & mass media wants to down-play the severity of it all. I’m going to Des Moines in a few days to “arm” my son as best I can.
FYI: How surveillance works for this situation.
I discovered an **AQMD** page that presents the radiation status for the Southern California region. I believe that AQMD services three RADNET monitors in this region on an hourly basis and reports the results of the instrumentation to the EPA. There is a video from public health which explains the extensive monitoring of everything now under way.
http://www.aqmd.gov/ will tell you ‘normal background radiation’. Additional languages are provided.
First of all thank you to all who maintain this great service; your diligence is very comforting in this chaotic time. I have just a few questions; if you have the time I would greatly appreciate any response.
1) If particulates are in the air and falling all over the world, are we tracking them inside our homes? It would seem they would cover clothing, bottoms of shoes, etc. Wouldn’t they eventually accumulate inside?
2) Mr. Collins mentioned in a recent comment that he was actively scanning vegetables from the market and noted that “Nothing was about normal” in regards to the radiation. What does this mean? He also suggested we wash them with warm water. Isn’t the tapwater contaminated as well?
3) Does it seem to anyone else that the findings vary dramatically from source to source? I’ve been seeing so many bloggers – non-media, non-gov sources – touting info straight from the EPA… their findings range from barely-readable, tiny increases to Doomsday-like prophecies of death and global catastrophe. Meanwhile, the EPA – which is supposedly supplying all this information – maintains that the levels are still relatively low and we should not be concerned. What do you think?
4) A recent comment (I can’t remember the source, so I apologize for not posting it) said that the fallout from Japan is only a fraction of the fallout from the 900 or so nuclear devices blown up inside the US only 50 years ago, in the range of 1/100 to 1/1000 the scale. What’s more is that these radioactive particles have been in our food and milk for a considerably long period of time and will remain there for several more years. While I do believe that particles from Japan have entered our food supply, is it possible that many of the recently-detected particles have always been there?
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I am very concerned about this situation and know very little about radiation (I’ve been coming to enviroreporter.com daily since March 18). All I can do now is try and stay informed, which is surprisingly difficult on the Internet.
To Two Cents—That’s clever and funny—that China might buy products from Japan, repackage them and ship them here, LOL….. they’ve certainly sent over enough other contaminants!!
It looks like the epa is on the case..
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/data-updates.html
To Michael—-
LOL, your reply is perfect—that radiation does not care which political party a person belongs to. Perfectly said!
Indeed, a disaster of this magnitude is a great equalizer; we are all in this together; it cuts across all educational, socio-economic and political lines.
It is a new and sometimes uneasy fellowship, but a fellowship nevertheless. Upon it, our survival (in the broader, not immediate sense, for now) may ultimately depend.
CJ–
Thanks for being a first responder and for dedicating your life to protecting and serving the public in that capacity, and for being willing to undertake the risks, including the ultimate sacrifice, in order to provide that service.
All of you, whether fire, police, TSA, ATF, military and rescue agencies, et. al.–You are all heroes to all of us. We are deeply proud of you and so very grateful for all you do. God bless every single one of you!!
For those concerned, I believe you can use your car’s engine and cabin air filters to either keep track, or provide a history of your exposure to radioactive fallout particles. You might even want to keep a spare filter or two on hand. see the my blog for more details
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/if-you-have-geiger-counter-please-check.html
To Potrblog–
Thanks for the info on the CPM—that’s a staggeringly high number, but I am not surprised that rainfall would create such a spike; I have read scientific articles on nuclear “rain-out” and indeed, “hot spots” like that can occur and are, indeed, dangerous.
That’s why I was so concerned about my garden hose after seeing your first disturbing video–since then, I have studiously avoided contact with rain-covered surfaces or with rain-water (when I can avoid it).
People with pets should be particularly careful about them coming into contact with radioactive rainwater; dogs are notorious for drinking out of fresh puddles, splashing through them or getting their feet wet in them.
I hope that you will (if you haven’t already) contact some of the important resources with this information and with the methodology you used to detect these amounts.
Although clearly, as you indicate, the government regulatory agencies like the EPA and the FDA are far less than reliable or trustworthy sources, I would think that Greenpeace or NIRS et. al. might be interested and might be able to do something with the information in terms of concerns they are actively working on right now.
I also agree that the “real” truth will emerge years from now when there is a suspicious increase in the number of cancer cases and/or deaths and an independent researcher begins to investigate it and probe any possible correlation.
I also agree with your comments about why the EPA/FDA does not want the public to truly understand this. As noted in my earlier post today, I am not one of those conspiracy theorists by any means, but NIRS has established beyond any doubt that both agencies have misrepresented the actual risk to the public from Fukushima radiation here in the U.S.
I do think that beyond the issue of wanting to avoid any kind of panic that could have significant economic or logistical consequences, that both of those agencies are uncomfortably tied into the utilities or to other industry giants to the extent that I would apply the legal term, “conflict of interst.”
That’s not a term I apply lightly to this situation; it has very disturbing implications.
However, the FOIA “bust” of the NRC’s public v. private “internal” declarations this past week is one of many illustrations of that.
Keep doing your good work. LOL, but WEAR GLOVES next time!!! Not that gloves would be particularly useful for gamma radiation, but at least it lends the “impression” of safety!!!
Sorry all… forgot to include the link:http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-data-map.html.
The EPA’s Radnet site shows an unusual (2x-3x) spike in gross beta count for San Diego over the last day and a half. No similar such spikes from LA, Anaheim, or Riverside monitoring stations. Iodine-131 and caesium-137 are both beta emitters. FYI.
I meant that it might be an insult to Joyce not everybody. I happen to have admired a great number of Republicans including one of our greatest presidents, President Abraham Lincoln. Anyway, radiation doesn’t care which party you belong to nor do I.
TO: Mr. Collins
Your post to Joyce wherein you assume that misidentifying her as a republican surely must have been an insult was a great disappointment and an insult to some of us here. I had assumed that your interest in provided us this forum was to provide a vehicle through which ideas and knowledge about a world-wide crisis could be shared. In my humble opinion, this is not the time for those who profess themselves to be journalists and investigators to be capitalizing on events of the day to further irrelevant political agendas. We can all turn to network news organizations for that. By the way, I’m one of those government first-responders (and WMD instructors)that Joyce was worried about and that you were defending in the same post.
I do appreciate the service you have provided here, don’t misunderstand that, but I’m disappointed that you couldn’t control yourself better. No need to respond.
Joyce, I did indeed misidentify you as a Republican which surely must have been insulting… I apologize. However no posts of yours have ever been deleted. That said, you and others may wish to review our comments policy. It is not the ‘right’ of any commenter or letter writer to have his/her words published, just like any other media source.
I agree with you wholeheartedly about the travesty of the EPA’s statements regarding air quality at the WTC. You clearly you have not reviewed our investigations where we have challenged several government agencies over issues that affect the public and the environment. But no matter. You are entitled to your opinions as we are to ours.
Great POST “Liz”, and so important to have OTHER sources on anything.
QUOTED from “Liz”: “not…the popular cable news media or the major U.S. papers—I mean places like our own EnriroReporter, or Greenpeace, UCS, PSR, NIRS and some other more quiet, but just as reliable individuals or agencies.”
..and I was JUST surfing the net for other places happening on this subject and NOTHING! (will check your above suggestions next). Food is my biggest concern at this point. I don’t have a detector and am not really clear who to trust per food stats, not to mention water and air.
At this point my common sense tells me (here in PHX, AZ):
– avoid excess outside air/activity?
– use only filtered water as much as possible (I do that anyway). Reverse-osmosis machines 25-40 cents per gal.
– avoid foods from California and of course the Pacific Ocean, Japan or anything near Japan.
* guessing foods from Mexico and South America are best now[?]
* Can’t trust “made in China”!, with their track record they’re bound to buy Japanese contaminated rejects, repackage them and sell them to the USA.
Micheal
In your last post to me you said…
You’ve said that you’re a Republican who thinks the government ……
I have stated in a previous post, which was deleted by you that I am not a republicrat or a democan and I have awakone to the false political paradigm they have set up for us
Now please don’t put words in my mouth and please don’t delete my posts just so you can look good for those here
I’m sincerly hoping you can show some honesty here with me
Re a investigative journalist respecting the Gov? your words
There’s a bunch of dead WTC workers and first responders that are dead because the EPA lied to them about the safety of the air they were breathing
Its never too late late to wake up, it took me 40 years and now that I’ve regained my eyesight, everything is so very clear
Why haven’t we heard a lot from Government regarding the fallout? The answer is simple, governments don’t like unplanned instability. A full blown response with public explanations and detail on a disaster of Fukushima’s magnitude would cause a run on limited resources, and disrupt economic activity; the result would be political and economic instability.
On the other hand, had this disaster been a limited small dirty bomb in Oklahoma City with much smaller and less deadly fallout, there would have been a massive governmental response. They would be warning the public about all sorts of risks, and the TSA would be doing visible street corner “safety” checks all over the nation. Those overwhelming actions would serve to reassure the public, improve stability, and help insure governmental control.
Liz,
the equivalent reading on the Inspector would be 700 CPM. For the first tests and subsequent tests I was wearing gloves; I got caught off guard on that one test because the earlier tests were lower. But, handling this type of fallout is the new post Fukushima normal.
I do not like being in uncontrolled contact with any SOURCE of radiation, especially an unnatural source. It is concerning that the short detection windows for this fallout radionuclide will prevent health departments taking any notice of the event until years later after epidemiological studies show an uptick in deaths.
I have not identified the radionuclide, but check my blog for an exposure mitigation strategy.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/reasonable-risk-mitigation-strategy-for.html
You are correct, Joyce, this is not a ‘government lies’ forum – indeed this isn’t a forum at all but a (very lengthy) comments section on EnviroReporter.com’s Radiation Station post.
You’ve said that you’re a Republican who thinks the government is out to kill her and all of us. Okay, you have a right to that opinion even though I find it rather bizarre. You clearly don’t respect the government so that means you don’t respect our military, emergency responders, government social workers and millions of hard working Americans who try to make your life better (even though there are many bad apples as there are in any organization, large or small).
If it is “dangerous and naive” to respect your government, I trust that you don’t pay your taxes, don’t pull over when a cop tells you to, put stamps on envelopes, stop at stop signs or put your hand over your heart when a funeral procession of an American soldier goes by. Of course that is ludicrous but so is your statement.
If you took the time to peruse our website, you will see that we have called the government out many many times on not protecting the environment as sworn to. In just West Los Angeles alone, we forced the George W. Bush Administration to back off a $4 billion plan to take Veterans Administration land and allow private fat cat developers to build on it. Sound like a government toady?
From Day One of Radiation Station, conspiracy freaks, militia-types, Tea Partiers, neo-Nazi’s, racists and all sorts of kooks have been trying to hijack this site and silence us. They will not succeed.
And we will not parry these lame lobs anymore and will stick to the business of what we do, which in this case is to provide you with crucial information to keep you, your family, friends and country better informed regarding one of the worst environmental disasters ever visited upon the planet.
Michael–Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words!
This remarkable E-R site has become a “home” to so many of us who remain so concerned while the rest of the public continues on relatively unaware of the issues.
I want to add, also to what you say about the references here to things like the government trying to do us in.
I truly believe that such opinions come from some of the questionable sites I mentioned in the last post. These sources thrive on conspiracy theories and alarmist reporting.
Indeed, some of the rad-numbers reported on those places are not echoed by any of the more reliable sites.
By reliable, I do not mean the popular cable news media or the major U.S. papers—I mean places like our own EnriroReporter, or Greenpeace, UCS, PSR, NIRS and some other more quiet, but just as reliable individuals or agencies.
These sources are all decidedly and determindly anti-nuke, but their position is based on years and years of careful research, on ethical investigations into concerns, and on independent scientific research (i.e. not tied to industry or government regulatory agency research nor to alarmist groups).
These sources all have outstanding reputations for independent reliability—even among those who disagree with their positions. Because of the care they put into their work, their voices are respected. That is how change is effected.
By contrast, the sources that create alarmist headlines about dangerous levels of Uranium and Plutonium, or soaring levels of radioactive iodine, all the while suggesting that the government is involved in some machiavellian plot to exterminate us—those sites cause unnecessary fear, create panic and lead many astray into the dark waters of paranoia. There is nothing constructive about that other than to frighten people and cause others to dismiss the anti-nuke movement as a bunch of conspiracy-theory nay-sayers.
I truly believe that when any nuclear realted concern arises (including dangerous levels of radiation,from this global Fukushima tragedy), that the reliable sources will warn and inform us.
I trust them also to call the government agencies on the carpet when that is warranted. As I’ve said previously, last week the NIRS, PSR and UCS all publically scolded the FDA and EPA for mispresenting the true nature of radiation exposure risk to the unsuspecting public. This week, they’ve exposed a major contradiction between public NRC declarations and private communications among NRC scientists.
In other words, I trust these sites to provide accurate information about risks that directly affect us here, not just in relation to Fukushima, but in terms of the entire nuclear industry issue.
It is patently obvious that these sources are working overtime to go through mainstream legal channels (courts and appellate courts) to acquire documents to expose misinformation from the regulatory agencies and the Utilities. Greenpeace has even sent volunteers into the field in Japan, into “hot” areas to test radiation levels and thus provide accurate, not “minimized” information to the Japanese and American public. Our own Michael and Denise Anne are working overtime to acquire accurate information for us and to present it in a rational manner. They have done many careful and dramatically productive investigations over the years that have changed the toxic landscape here and beyond in remarkable ways.
Thus, when I see someone reporting skyrocketing numbers I’ll check first on the trustworthy sites. I urge others to do the same.
If we become irrational, no one will listen. If what we want is to effect change, to raise awareness, to expose the inherent risks of nuclear power and ultimately topple an industry that is so deeply entrenched in our culture and economy, sometimes, the old tale of the hare and tortoise must apply—steady and careful sometimes produces the best results.
John,
I addressed this six hours before you posed your questions here: https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/03/enviroreporter-coms-radiation-station/#comment-34413. Not versed in radiation detection? Check out Radiation Station FAQs here: https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/03/radiation-station-faqs/
Hello: Once again I would like to thank you for performing this service for your fellow Americans. A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to hike to the Avila bay lighthouse. The trail being on PG&E property (diablo canyon). The docent that accompanied us worked at the nuke plant. I asked him if any radiation ever escapes from the plant and he said yes – regularly. He also volunteered that many of the radiation detectors surrounding the plant did not function. Now we hear of a report from a San Luis Obispo dairy with radiation in their milk. I submit that this radiation is from Diablo Canyon nuke plant NOT Japan. This is REAL homegrown terrorism. San Luis Obispo borders Diablo Canyon and is a very beautiful area. It is maddening to see it damaged by these greedy creatures at PG&E.
Hi from Korea,
I just saw the posting regarding the radiation downpour in Korea. I live in Korea and wonder how safe it would be walk outside the day after a rainfall like that occured…Any ideas?
Michael
I’ve learned never pick a fight with people that control the ink and the power to shut you ‘off’
Anyway, I’m not trying to pick a fight, but I and I’m sure many others find your words of
‘I respect the governemnt’ coming from an investigative journalist to be rather bizarre
Even as federal radiation detectors go offline all over the country while we the people are experiencing the biggest nuke disaster in history
I could compile of list of lies the governemnt you say you respect about amile long showing that type of thinking is very dangerous and naive, but I won’t since this is not the forum for it
I hope you will still allow me to post here and I also hope this entry is posted
Thanks
Joyce
Japan Nuclear Radiation 4 Times Chernobyl Levels OUTSIDE Evacuation Zone
Independent scientists find radiation levels beyond Japan evacuation zone are 4 times higher than Chernobyl levels beyond the 30km evacuation zone and higher than official government reported numbers.
The Japanese New Service Asashi reports that radiation levels measured by a collaboration of independent scientists from Kyoto University and Hiroshima university refute the official radiation levels released by the Government of Japan.
i have a monitor 4 made by SEI the background here is average 18 cpm. mtns above palm springs. i just stick it outside while it is snowing and the background count has remained average 18 since march 14 when i got my gm counter
Hello, I am just wondering why your readings are showing everything is OK and radiation levels are normal when we have all these reports of small amounts of radiation in milk and rain water etc etc. One would think we would see some kind of higher readings from time to time.
There are many reports and maps of the fall out reaching the US even as far as the Eastern sea board. it makes me wonder how good these radiation detection units being used are?
I find it very difficult to believe these constant low and normal readings, something just doesn’t sit well with me. An explanation would be much appreciated, thank you.
John
for those of you who would like to see a local investigative opinion [it is not me, but the writer is someone I am familiar with] about diablo canyon nuke plant up the coast from los angeles, here is our local digital fish wrap:
http://calcoastnews.com/2011/04/diablo-nuclear-plant-disaster-waiting-to-happen/
my understanding is the state sniffer at diablo is still not functioning…
First off, to Claudia and Liz – your kind words really touch Denise Anne and I and help keep us going. We’re in an unprecedented situation, one that is getting worse, not better. Friends speaking to truth and caring about each other all the while learning and taking adequate precautions is an excellent result seen here in these comments. They have been a fount of information and much of it in real time like our friend in St. Louis. We appreciate the n”quiet ones” taking this all in and welcome the broad range of voices from around the country that have looked to Radiation Station as a place to exchange information, debate this debacle and its effects and just to vent during one of the greatest crises in human history, one that hasn’t really registered in the minds of most Americans thanks in part to the way mainstream media works now days.
Thank you Claudia for your kind words and thank you Liz for probing and insight comments as well as your generous donation to EnviroReporter.com. You exemplify the very best of the concerned community here.
Joyce – thank you for your comments though I don’t agree that your country is out to kill you. It is too inept to do that. But also, the government is made up of four million good Americans who do their jobs well making us the better for it. I respect the government.
But when it comes to measuring radiation, I respect the Inspector and my long history using it looking for radiation contamination around the country. Los Angeles’ continuing background-level readings at Radiation Station, which have been documented here since March 15, are in my opinion the result of a fortunate Jet Stream flow pattern that keeps flowing to the north of us and several fronts from the northwest that pull up short heading south. That’s how it seems to me.
Anaheim has had high Iodine-131 readings in the rain water two weeks ago but the rain water we tested at that time came back normal. Today in Los Angeles, it was announced that I-131 had been found in milk here coming in at nearly the EPA’s maximum contaminant level for the radionuclide.
So how could our readings still be normal? Well, the cows that produced that milk weren’t from Los Angeles and Anaheim isn’t LA. Radiation does not form a homogenous front as it moves through the atmosphere.
We have been lucky so far, to answer your question. The Inspector is extremely sensitive, so much so, I just checked Denise Anne’s and my food after going shopping. (Mind you, we did NOT buy milk or vegetables and now will only used verifiably safe powdered milk and water that has undergone special reverse osmosis treatment).
You can control certain main pathways for pathogens, Joyce, that is plain and simple advise for all of us facing this radiological fallout threat:
1. Wash your hand a lot, especially after going outdoors. That cuts the risk of you introducing rads into your mouth and orifices and is so simple to do.
2. Control your air: Have air cleaners with Hepa filters in your most used spaces – like your office, living room, bedroom – where you spend a lot of your time.
3. Control your water: get a reverse osmosis system to filter most rads. Use it for drinking and cooking but don’t worry about using tap water for washing and bathing.
4. Control your food: If you have confirmation of contamination where you are, then adapt to what you have to watch out for. Denise Anne and I have cut out leafy greens unless I go to the store with the Inspector to see if they are hot or not (doing this discreetly, of course). Because we wanted to leave Radiation Station running, we bought the food and then checked it. Nothing was about normal. IF you are going to buy vegetables, especially leafy greens, wash them well under warm water before cooking.
5. Control the weather: If it’s going to rain and you suspect it could be impacted by fallout because you have kept well informed, make sure to try to minimize your contact with the rain, keeping an eye on children playing outside in it. When driving in impacted rain, turn the air on to recirculate.
Now these are just five ideas to minimize your contact with radiation whether you live in Los Angeles or elsewhere. They are designed to reduce exposure 100%. But keep in mind that radiation exposure has a cumulative effect so less contact based on common sense can effectively help you deal with any situation.
The most important thing is to stay informed and with the media’s spotlight constantly roving, it gets harder to find information relevant to your need for it. There is a wealth of knowledge here as well as at the Radiation Station News Feed.
Knowledge and preparedness are two intemingled ways to not only respond in a way that protects you and yours, it helps community and country by not being a burden should things get worse. Thank our lucky stars (and Jet Stream), Joyce, for the normal radiation readings. Prepare now so any potential problem, or the inevitable “Big One” earthquake, can be dealt with in a rational effective manner.
In addition to http://www.euradcom.org there’s http://www.llrc.org which is also a European site. It’s got lots of information on the history of low level radiation research, the dose controversy re internal and external exposure etc.
To Claudia— Just wanted to say I’m glad you posted….there are a lot of “quiet ones” here, and it’s wonderful that they’re finding the same inspiration and help with information that the rest of us are.
Thanks for contributing and I’m glad that so many are here, learning and reading, even if not always opining!!
And you live near San Onofre! There is a ton of stuff written about safety cover-ups and problems with SoCalEdison–and that plant. It’s the one that all of us down here are concerned about.
Diablo Canyon’s even worse! And there are some in the Mid-West and Eastern seaboard that are even alarmingly worse.
We all have to support the work that Michael and Denise Anne are doing, and also PSR and the other ethical anti-nuke agencies.
There are a lot of spurious “alarmist” sites out there which present innacurate information or which misrepresent facts and figures.
Sadly, those sources, in turn, discredit the serious and careful work that legitimate anti-nuke agencies are doing, and give all of us a bad name.
In their own way they’re just as bad as the government agencies which minimize risks in order to support the industry.
The Union of Concerned Scientists just put out a bulletin (On their “All Things Nuclear” blog) revealing the extent to which the NRC misrepresented maximal risk levels in a study they just did.
UCS acquired some e-mails through an FOIA Petition which reveal that NRC insiders were privately disputing the safety results of their own study, all the while publically declaring it to be “sound.”
It’s frightening that our own government regulatory agencies are engaged to that degree in deceiving the public about safety issues.
I have a question
I keep reading about and posting articles telling of increased radiation readings all over the US and the world
I’ve been watching the detector here at Enviroreporter since it began on the net and to the best of my recolection, no increases to speak of
So, have we in LA been lucky? or has this detector missed something?
Kinda baffled why we have not seen any increases, as I had said earlier, most everyone else has
Thanks in advance
To Potrblog—this is really disturbing. Thanks for performing these simple tests. Can you please “translate” for us what the readings mean in terms of comparison to CPM and/or to standardized (“acceptable”–put in quote marks for a reason, LOL) limits, etc?
Also, I noticed you were touching the paper towel with your bare hands. Was the reading low enough that you felt ok about doing that?
You seem very good at deductive understanding of these events (as to what type of isotopes are involved, rate of decay, etc.), so can you explain that also? Thanks!!
Here is a link to a VERY simple “Radiation Dosage Chart”, again not liking the seemingly over generic term “radiation”. Are they taking into account any INGESTION of radio-active particles from any of these sources? or does that even matter…if it’s all around or all around and inside us? Where is THAT simple chart? If that matters??
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1v2fpf/www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/radiation-dosage-chart/
•Los Angeles milk radiation was above federal drinking water standards.
•Radiation found in Phoenix milk was almost at the federal drinking water standard.
•Radioactive Iodine in Boise Idaho rainwater was 130 times above Federal Drinking Water standards.
•Radioactive Caesium was 13.66 times above federal limit for Caesium-134, 2 year half-life.
•Radioactive Caesium was 12 times federal limit for Caesium-137, 30 year half-life.
•Tennessee drinking water was detected with radiation slightly above 1/2 the federal maximum.
•Radioactive Iodine has been detected in the drinking water across the entire US in the following states: California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Tennessee, Montana, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, New Jersey, and Alabama, as well as in Canada.
•Cesium and Tellurium were found in Boise, Las Vegas, Nome and Dutch Harbor, Honolulu, Kauai and Oahu, Anaheim, Riverside, San Francisco, and San Bernardino, Jacksonville and Orlando, Salt Lake City, Guam, and Saipan.
•Uranium-234, with a half-life of 245,500 years has been found in Hawaii, California, and Washington.
Radiation Detected In Drinking Water In 13 More US Cities, Cesium-137 In Vermont Milk
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, but this is a conservative standard designed to minimize exposure over a lifetime, so EPA does not consider these levels to pose a health threat.
Commentary:
That the same EPA insisted the air at Ground Zero was safe to breathe? The same EPA that insisted gulf coast sea food is safe to eat?
Thought so.
4/9/11 Video: Saint Louis, Missouri Radioactive Thunderstorm
0.2 mR/hr
Stay out of the rain! If you have to drive through a fallout laden radioactive thunderstorm, make sure your vehicle’s ventilation system is set to ‘recirculate’.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/video-4911-saint-louis-missouri.html
I just wanted to say “THANK YOU” for all you do,Michael and “Ms ladyfinger”.Every day you keep us updated and you have created a space for people to communicate and to educate themselves.I have not posted anything,I’m one of the “quiet ones”- but I come “visit” several times a day ,knowing that I’m not the only one who is concerned… .I live in Southern California,close to San Onofre and it blows my mind how ignorant most people are……
They say,we all have a purpose in life-thank you for helping us all through this difficult time!!
Claudia
http://www.euradcom.org/2003/execsumm.htm
this is the sanest, most honest recommendation without any obvious agenda that I have seen yet, and it was written in 2003. it very clearly spells out why background level monitoring, especially now is ludicrous in light of the inability to measure individual ingestions of fallout particulate. the epa should be warning everyone of the potential harm from internal irradiation no matter how small. the ‘spinny’ assertion that eating 400 pounds of contaminated spinach or strawberries is equivalent to the exposure of a cross country flight is absurd, misleading and downright evil unless it can be quantified that such a flight would result in the ingestion of equal amounts of i-131 cs 137-134 and potential strontium and plutonium particulate. cell damage from internal emitters ingested from 1945 to 1963 account for todays cancer epidemic. i would love to hear the rebuttles for this so i can go back into denial.
[Breaking ALERT] 4/9/11- Backside of Thunderstorm Radioactive @ 0.2 mR/hr
I took additional readings between 6am and 7am on 4/9/11; the trailing edge of the Thunderstorm that moved through had reading of roughly 0.2 mR/hr. I detected Beta and possibly some Gamma radiation from the sample by using a sheet of plastic and some sheet metal as filters. Video to hopefully follow later in the day.
The front half of the storm gave readings of 0.05 mR/hr max
check the blog site for more details
http://pissinonth…
Back to Liz: I understand your point about ingesting radiation! I can speculate about my dose of radiation
1)lots of denal xrays- 2) cat scan of head when scanners were new 3) work in a lab where there were medical tracers
4) work in a very heavy industrial site with extreme exotic hazards 5) Lived West of Nevada during above ground bomb testing as a child and I drank milk. Who knows? Someone could have spilled something on a highway. A parent with credentials in nuclear med was privately very angry at the above ground testing…I also lived down river(quite a ways) from Hanford. I have been suspicious all my life for celiac – maybe that is related. My thyroid cancer was discovered as an incidentaloma (‘subclinical’) …and immediately biopsied with a needle for prompt diagnosis. I was a human radiation hazard when I took the I-131 treatment pill as patients are not kept in the hospital these days…. Thyroid cancer requires followups for life and is maintained in many cases by blood tests and ultrasounds. None of my ancestors had cancer. It is interesting that Canada is the supplier of I-131 for medical purposes…. I don’t think we have our own facilities for this in the USA.
I just got a report out of Pennsylvania of 5x background radiation with a very rapid decay. He is guessing that it might be xenon off gassing from the rain water. If that is the case it would be not be good to be driving down a wet interstate with 18 wheelers kicking up spray.
Here is a link
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/pennsylvania-4811-rapid-decay-of.html
Thanks, Lotus— I try not to over-react, but I am well aware that the agencies I trust (Physicians for Social Responsibility, Union of Concerned Scientists, etc.) indicate that there is a difference between receiving doses of “background radiation” or even a radioactive “plume” passing by, and actually ingesting or inhaling radioactive isotope particles.
There have been some excellent “blogs” on this Commentary site by seemingly informed and sophisticated people about the effects of ingesting even small amounts of certain isotopes on cellular structure and DNA.
The aforementioned agencies (PSR, UCS, NIRS, etc.) have already issued a joint statement (a few days ago) that the EPA has not adequately informed the public about that entire issue in a forthcoming manner.
—so I would try to exercise reasonable caution without curtailing or avoiding everything I normally enjoy cooking with. I do prefer to cook with fresh ingredients. How did you recieve a dose of ionizing radiation?
http://fukushima.greenaction-japan.org/petition/
This petition is seeking signatures on behalf of the Japanese people. Issues here regarding the size of the evacuation zone and the safety limits on food.
Reply to Liz on cooking.
I am guessing that some cheese on the shelf is already aged and has milk from before the event but cheese may change as we go forward in the next months. There also may be European frozen foods and cheeses available. Use cans of mushroom soup. I don’t like processed foods; however some cheese/macaroni kits that are inexpensive can give people the calcium they need. I am not trying to eat elegantly. I usually prefer fresh foods, but not in the present situation until things get figured out. Canned berries may be preferable to fresh crops. I am cutting fresh dairy products. One can eat canned tomatoes instead of fresh ones. I am wondering about the seaweed derivatives in lipsticks and toothpaste in the coming months – as these would be products used daily. Might not be a bad idea to stock up on some consumer goods that might have contaminated components in the future…. if we can’t trace the origin of said components…. I am being overly cautious, perhaps, because I was treated already for one ionized radiation cancer several years ago. Thyroid cancer has been on the rise worldwide….EAT TO LIVE, not LIVE to EAT! Some markets refuse to disclose the origin of their food. This is NOT consumer friendly and is not appreciated under these circumstances.
Thanks, Michael. LOL, Now you have been injured (from the incredible amount of typing you have to do ever since thousands of people began to depend on your site) in this truly heroic effort that you and Denise Anne are putting forth
We are all so indebted to you both! EnviroReporter is a place for all of us to find information; share information; sort through our thoughts and reactions; and most of all, to find comfort in the reassurance that no matter what happens, we will always find the truth, carefully and accurately reported here!
Hi Liz,
I apologize, that was a misprint. The band aids on two of my fingers (because of all the typing!) made me hit 5 instead of 4. It is 43.3 cpm at 4:40pm exterior.
We had seen a slight upward trend, but things have leveled off. And with on rain coming down, we look good on continuing our grand luck of not being really hammered by fallout in the Los Angeles Basin.
Michael
Michael: Question:
On the averages from just awhile ago, the 4:30 p.m. exterior is noted to be 53.3 CPM.
Is this an error (b/c it’s followed by a “normal” designation)? That’s one of the higher readings you’ve taken so far.
I also notice that there is a higher number than usual, today, of slightly above normal CPM averages.
Of course, these readings are not significantly above normal, but nevertheless, are interesting.
What do you think?
http://www.ucsusa.org/nuclear_power/nuclear_power_risk/safety/safety/nuclear-crisis-japan-telepress-transcript-04-07-11.html\
Here is the transcript of a daily “Press-er” from David Lochbaum and Dr. Ed Lyman of the Union of Concerned Scientists.
This press conference takes place via telephone with reporters from all over the world.
It has excellent information about current criticality potential; the FOIA acquisition of the NRC e-mails and the significance of what they say; structural problems at the plant; an interesting comparison to TMI; the significance of certain phenomena being reported; the recent nitrogen effort; the issue of too much water now being in the containment buildings; the need for a broader evacuation zone.
This daily press conference is one of the most informative sources out there and UCS reports the truth—they’re as concerned as we are! I highly recommend this. (And it’s layperson friendly).
Lotus, did you say mushrooms? What are the findings? I so often cook with them, but haven’t the last 2 weeks (not b/c of the crisis, but b/c I simply haven’t used them). Do you think they are unsafe? I’m avoiding milk and spinach. I guess that also means cheese, but what about cheese from other parts of the country? And how can we be sure where it comes from?
To Ann,
Thank you so much, I am tired and have too much to do, I have learnt so much about nucular :o) these past weeks, my brain needs a rest.
Here is a link, posted on NIRS of footage shot by Japanese reporters who went into the exclusion zone.
It’s chilling—their detectors reflect readings as high as 112 micro sieverts/hr
It’s heartbreaking to see the family dogs who obviously were left behind.
Although the vido is in Japanese, the chilling scenes of a virtual ghost-town, a toxic wasteland, transcend any language: no words needed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHWvbisFg0I&feature=share
UC Berkeley Dept of Nuclear Engineering is also now testing/evaluating strawberries and grass and soil.
This is added to air,water,rain water,mushrooms,and spinach sampling.
http://seaandskyjp.wordpress.com/2011/04/06/plume-forecast-for-japan-48/
is a link to a dispersion map. THIS MAP SAYS NO RELEASE, but that this is what might happen if there were a release.
One really has to be cautious at looking at what all these plots mean before making any conclusions…..
http://www.yeswaterisfuel.com suggests that certain corporations have been attacking their website for 2 days. I myself had access problems. They had put up dispersion maps for plumes.
Is the Crisis degenerating into Cyber War?
Unusual event declaration, April 8, at Hanford.
Huffington Post reports. FYI
(not Fukushima connected)http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/08/columbia-generating-station-unusual-event_n_846520.html
To my dear “Houston WHAP”
“radioisotope,” “radionucleotide”… etc. words I don’t really use much until a few weeks ago, and now I know I’m using them badly and still trying to understand what all they really mean. is it a wave, is it a partical, etc, which have made it over here which are a concern in japan, etc? every field of science or art or medicine, etc. has a language.
Even celebrities have a language and I can hear one of them talking to you now:
“Duh.” “Don’t be a troll” “not winning.”
: )
the fact is, my friend, we’re all stuck here together trying to figure out whatever it is each of us does not know.
Good news
Parigini said Putzmeister – an arm of Germany’s Putzmeister Concrete Pumps GmbH – has already been working with Japanese authorities to help cool the leaky nuclear reactors in northern Japan.
But the long-term plan, Parigini said, calls for the pumps to be used to pour acres of concrete onto them, sealing off airborne contamination.
Putzmeister is sending Parigini’s pump, the one in Georgia and two smaller ones to join a pump already working at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi plant.
Parigini described the effort ahead as “a Herculean logistical task.”
Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/04/08/3536898/gigantic-concrete-pump-heads-to.html#ixzz1IxAF78b8 News: Sac Bee. April 8
Cargo in the hugest Russian plane on its way to Japan from LAX this morning! Finally?
Japanese officials speculate that airborne releases could continue for months. And yesterday the U.S. began deploying the Marines’ Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (CBIRF) of 150+ highly trained personnel to Japan, reportedly due to concerns over the situation at Fukushima.
Daily Doublespeak 4-7-2010 — Nuclear Expert Says Feds Hiding Truth About Japan Nuclear Reactor Disaster
==============
Is Background Radiation Safe? Find out how many people in the US will get cancer and die from it
An analysis of Government provided statistics on cancer rates and background radiation including final percentages and number of people in the US who will die from “safe” background radiation.
Is Background Radiation Safe? Find out how many people in the US will get cancer and die from it
An analysis of Government provided statistics on cancer rates and background radiation including final percentages and number of people in the US who will die from “safe” background radiation.
Info from the website http://www.llrc.org on erroneous dose concept:
…. There are important concerns with respect to the heterogeneity of dose delivery within tissues and cells from short-range charged particle emissions, the extent to which current models adequately represent such interactions with biological targets, and the specification of target cells at risk. Indeed, the actual concepts of absorbed dose become questionable, and sometimes meaningless, when considering interactions at the cellular and molecular levels.
(CERRIE Majority Report Chapter 2.1 paragraph 11).
In other words, where hot or warm particles or Plutonium or Uranium are located in body tissue
or where sequentially decaying radionuclides like Strontium 90 are organically bound (e.g. to DNA) “dose” means nothing.
This is massively significant. Official radiation risk agencies universally quantify risk in terms of dose. If it means nothing the agencies know nothing and can give no valid advice.
Their public reassurances fall to the ground. They can no longer compare nuclear industry discharges with the 2 millisieverts we get every year from natural radiation, or the cosmic rays you’d receive flying to Tenerife for a holiday.
The nonsense of Absorbed Dose
Absorbed doses of ionising radiation are defined as an average of the energy that is transferred into large volumes of body tissue. This approach is valid for considering external exposures, like X-rays or natural gamma (cosmic rays) but not for situations where radioactive substances inside the body irradiate microscopic volume of tissue selectively. Particles of Uranium and Plutonium are examples; the range of their alpha emissions is so tiny that all the energy is concentrated into a few hundred cells. Some call this kind of situation “pinpoint radiation”. Using absorbed dose to assess the potential health damage is like a doctor ignoring small circular burn-marks on the skin of a child he is examining.
From the New York Times today (https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/08/world/asia/08japan.html?hp)
“But some of the radiation readings at Reactors Nos. 1 and 3 over the last week were nearly as high as or higher than the 3,300 rems per hour that the commission said it was trying to explain”
Acute exposure to 450 rems is considered lethal for half of people receiving such a dose. An 8 minute exposure at 3300 rems per hour would be fatal. This just gives some idea of the challenges the workers at Fukushima face and how most media reports gloss over the implications of some of the numbers referenced.
Denise Anne (and the E-R community we have established here)—Yay, I’m back ON, finally!! And yes (responding to your post just a bit ago), by this morning after trying all night last night, (convinced something was wrong with my computer) I began to wonder if some detractors had done something to the site…..
But it’s working perfectly now, I will enjoy reviewing the posts for the last 24 hours and catching up on the wealth of information and guidance that is here, as well as the interest in and concern about nuclear energy in general that Fukushima has inspired in so many of us.
So many of us feel that this is one place we can turn to for the truth!!
South Koreans Wear Masks Out of Fear of Radiation from Japan
As Zero Hedge noted yesterday:
As the following animation from ZAMG demonstrates, courtesy of Northeastern winds, a major cloud of radioactive Iodine 131 is currently passing right over South Korea
http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2011/04/south-koreans-wear-gas-masks-out-of.html
Sorry for OT, but who learnt english in one week?
Christine:
thank you for your post. I saw it late last night.
Plato:
as for your comments back to Christine, I am still trying to understand, you wrote:
“gamma does not ‘get into’ bottled H20 or H20 of any kind. Gamma radiation is a wave that can cause damage to DNA in cells although as a wave it does not dissolve into any solvents. It is emitted as radiation from the radioactive decay of isotopes. It is the radioisotope that can get into any water source and emit gamma (and also alpha and beta) radiation when it decays. If ingested it can be absorbed into bone and other tissues. Good luck and good idea about produce from Chile.”
right now, on the west coast, we have discussed there currently is a doubt that alpha particulates have hit the U.S., there seems to be a consensus on that, I hope.
so we are wanting to protect against the continual onslaught of gamma and beta radiation that has been detected here, the build up of this kind of radiation exposure over time, etc.
how does this affect our water? if as you say the gamma radiation cannot dissolve into water, a filter does not help for that. but are you saying, and forgive me if I sound ridiculous but I simply am not good at this subject matter, are you saying there are radioisotopes here on the west coast now that a filter would help protect us from ingesting via water?
I am confused by all the words, frankly. when we say the west coast has had some exposure to gamma and beta radiation, do I assume it is what you say, radioisotopes that emit gamma and beta? so a water filter would help to protect from ingestion.
looking for confirmation.
sorry to be so mickey mouse but seriously, it’s difficult to understand a language you were never taught…. and have to learn in one weeks time….
CJ makes a good point about foreign beverages; Any thing made or grown in the southern hemisphere will be in much better shape.
Ann,
the specs for that unit say that it reduced fluoride by 95.9%
Two Cents, Yes, we had some problems with the site and after some investigating the problem turned out to be the plugin for the Facebook Like box. We were worried too as we have some detractors who have been trying to cause problems in a variety of ways. Rest assured we are doing regular backups of the site and no one will stop us from reporting the truth and having a safe place for concerned individuals to share information with each other.
To Portblog:
thank you for sharing your radiation knowledge. I do know that one does not sense radiation (I am a physician.) What I was concerned about that day is the fact that my car got ver hot when I was in close proximity to the cloud, although my thermostat for outside showed 68 degrees. My steering weel got so hot that I could not really hold it and had to rotate my hands. The other thing that I was concerned about was how low this cloud hang, meaning it was on the level of my 3rd floor hotel and that I had a discomfort in my lungs which went away when I drove away from the cloud after about 10 miles or so.
Trust me, this was not a normal cloud.
To concerned:
Please compare the Radnet data for 4/2 SIMULTANEOUSLY For the cities of San francisco, Sacramento, Riverside, Anaheim and San Diego, ALL CITIES HAVE A SPIKE THAT DAY. That is what I am concerned about. That shows that on that day ALL these cities had a spike and that cannot be a coincidence.
Again, call me paranoid, I did see a massive cloud very low lying over San Francisco with black particles in it.
It was on the level of the 3 rd floor of my hotel room. Usually, as I recall, real clouds do not hang that low.
There has been a block on this link and Enviroreporter.com here in Scottsdale, Arizona for the past two days; on several computers and different Scottsdale locations [eliminating the possibility of my computer/server being the problem], not sure what other regions were effected or WHERE that came from! Maybe some disgruntled super geek or ??? Funny, when that happened I felt such a loss, like this is so much more real than any other connection on these matters I know. Is there a back-up plan IN CASE some entity does shut this down? The Internet has the capability to change the world! and of course there are those that will want to control and or stop change, even before it starts.
http://www.fairewinds.com/multimedia
France detects radioactive iodine in rainwater, milk
Euractiv
After the radioactive cloud emanating from Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant reached Europe last week, French authorities have detected radioactive iodine-131 in rainwater and milk…
Hi Ann,
If your interested in a good water filtration system for a reasonable price and also eliminates fluoride,go to http://www.6atools.com and hit the installation accessories tab. I have this system set up under my sink and am VERY happy with it.
TO: Ann
Instead of spending serious $ on water filtration systems, have you considered a more cost-effective approach… foreign beer or wine? Just a thought.
Potrblog:
I must have misread the specs… you are saying that the model you like does remove flouride… please confirm.
Ann,
Pretty much every reverse osmosis filter on the market removes fluoride. There are also some aluminum based catalyst filters out there, but they require lots of time to work well
Potrblog,
thank you for expaining. I read some reviews of that filter and got a sense of it. we do need a filter. I am frustrated though as that one does not seem to also remove flouride. I am really stuck trying to figure out the best filtration method for us. I want the flouride out and the same protections from fallout exposure over time that you seem concerned with, both. ideas?
Ashland, Oregon – Measured on a rebranded RadAlert 100 sold by Vernier. This device is calibrated for cesium 137. Measurements are taken outside with the device enclosed in a very thin plastic bag. Cesium 137 is a medium-high energy beta and gamma emitter and a thin sheet of plastic as such will not substantially affect the readings for this radio-isotope. It will affect counts for radio-isotopes which are alpha emitters or lower energy beta emitters. Please regard these readings as a very general and simplistic indication of radiation counts. Because gm tube sizes and sensitivities vary by model, absolute comparisons between CPM for different models of detectors cannot be easily made.
Because of these longer measurement times, CPM increases may be somewhat more significant. I can’t help but notice that the higher counts seem to be associated with rain.
4/6 2:25PM 60 minutes 1027/60 = 17.1CPM raining
4/6 8:15AM 60 minutes 894/60 = 14.7CPM
4/5 6:10PM 60 minutes 813/60 = 13.6CPM
4/5 6:50AM 60 minutes 976/60 = 16.2CPM raining
4/4 10:20PM 60 minutes 974/60 = 16.2CPM raining
4/3 3:45PM 60 minutes 930/60 = 15.5CPM
4/3 8:40AM 60 minutes 890/60 = 14.8CPM
4/2 6:30PM 60 minutes 905/60 = 15.1CPM
4/2 5:42AM 60 minutes 861/60 = 14.4 CPM
4/1 6:15PM 60 minutes 864/60 = 14.4 CPM
3/31 7:02AM 60 minutes 848/60 = 14.1 CPM
Ann,
A good portion of any potential radioiodine in the tap water would be captured in the carbon filter. The majority of the remaining water soluble radionuclides and suspended particles would be removed by the reverse osmosis filter; The filter discharges most of the latter directly into the drain as waste water.
The two ASTM/NSF standards I mentioned in my link are directly concern what I just described above. That’s why its important to get a filter that has been certified to those standards.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/radioactive-fallout-risk-mitigation.html
Christine:
No, gamma does not ‘get into’ bottled H20 or H20 of any kind. Gamma radiation is a wave that can cause damage to DNA in cells although as a wave it does not dissolve into any solvents. It is emitted as radiation from the radioactive decay of isotopes. It is the radioisotope that can get into any water source and emit gamma (and also alpha and beta) radiation when it decays. If ingested it can be absorbed into bone and other tissues. Good luck and good idea about produce from Chile.
There are people here saying the readings here http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/video-radioactive-rain-and.html are from I-123
but they do not post a link in which where they got that info
No where in the link or the video does it say it is I-123 , so I ask these people to show your evidence that it is I-123
Unless you show where you got your information, it is nothing BS
Thank you
Portblog:
thank you for your thoughts. please explain, what would happen with the biproducts with reverse osmosis? wouldn’t similar problems exist with disposal of waste? where does the waste go in a reverse osmosis system?
Ann,
The problem with distillation is how is one going to control the radioactive products that boil off the water (they will be dumped into the air in your house) and what are you going to do with the radioactive products that remains after the water has vaporized. Throw in the power requirements and distillation didn’t cut it for me. One thing I know for sure is that if I was in Tokyo right now, I would not want to have rely on a distiller.
CJ,
Let me clarify, I made the conjecture that it was I-123 based on the the short half life <18 hours and detections of radioiodine in the area. No matter what it was, if it blew in over California it was very radioactive while it was there. So radioactive, that I would hope that it would have been detected in California.
My conjecture is that it maybe I123 produced by solar proton induced nuclear spallation of Cs133 (the decay product of Xe-133). Again I don't know for sure what it was; but the next Earth directed Coronal Mass Ejection will generate some data to test the conjecture. In the mean time stay out of the rain.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/threat-alert-iodine-123-production-via.html
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/update-threat-alert-iodine-123.html
Simone,
Generally one’s senses can not detect radiation. The exception to that are reports of astronauts getting bright flashes across their retinas (even with their eyes closed).
If there was an increase in radiation in the area it is possible it was from “cloudshine”, but the dust you mentioned would have also caused detectible “groundshine”.
If it is any comfort, my best SWAG (scientific wild assed guess) is that the biggest risk is from the accumulation of fallout over time, as thing drags on for months. Time is our alley at the moment, pray for a well engineered solution.
Its unfortunate that your concerns were treated harshly by the Berkeley engineers. Engineers/scientists often have much hubris and little humility. As a rule of thumb, its much safer to have an engineer/scientist explain how something went FUBAR, than it is to rely on them to warn you that things will go FUBAR.
To SIMONE :
Looking at the ANAHEIM data I see that there was a spike of 150cpm on the Beta gross chart on FEBRUARY 5 and spikes of over 100cpm around Valentines day. These both occurred a month before the Japan disaster. Unless this data was changed to throw the public off guard, there could also be other reasons for the spike you are referencing.
I am not trying to diminish your account of the cloud, I’m just saying that multiple things could be happening.
Senate Committee Energy and Natural Resources
March 29th
This is a presented briefing not a hearing.
1hr 44 minute video and transcript.
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/NuclearEv
CJ,
Its only a SWAG that it was I123, based on the Cs133 +p= I123 conjecture.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/update-threat-alert-iodine-123.html
Thank you all for the posts related to water filtration. It looks like we have two votes for distillation and one for reverse osmosis.
On another topic, I want to mention the work of a holistic family practitioner, Dr. David Brownstein who talks about supplementation with iodine with a kind of intermediate dosage, not the low MCG dose you would find in kelp products, but also, not the extreme of a 130 to 150 MG of iodine which would be appropriate for thyroid protection if you were closer to a contamination site, but a dosage that is in-between which would be protective of the thyroid if exposed to lower doses of radiation. I had a hard time getting my hands on some lugols solution but I have since had my husband and myself on approx 35-50 mg iodine per day, (along with a pro-active approach to increasing glutathion production via several key pre-curser supplements.) Most health practitioners, pharmacists, even holistic doctors do not know, they are simply not aware, that there is in fact an intermediate dosage level of iodine supplementation that could be provided at this time that would be appropriate for potential low level exposure, for adults but also especially for children or young people. read about this on dr. brownsteins blog (www.drbrownstein.com). If you chose to take this approach, or to research it further, be aware if you talk to another health practitioner about this who is not aware of this strategy you will get an earful of warnings because the “health practitioners” are still currently worried people will overdose on iodine so the moment the topic comes up they go into appeasement mode.
another person who has spoken about this intermediate dose is Ben Fuchs who has a post attempting to address this issue on his blog, http://www.pharmacistben.com. he has a daily radio show so if you call in to talk with him about this topic he can clarify his approach to dosages.
thank you everyone for your informative posts and support.
TO: Joyce
The I-123 that was detected on the car in St. Louis and identified by Potrblog, is a radioactive isotope used in nuclear medicine imaging. It is NOT a by-product of the nuclear reactor fission process. Perhaps someone got sloppy with some waste material from a hospital.
To Ann:
1) if anyone is yet going to measures such as using only bottled water, not drinking milk or eating produce?
Yes, we purchased 6 months of bottled water and a carbon filtration system. We only drink the bottled and filtered water. I boil/steam our food with it also. Some may believe this to be silly but when you have babies /small children and/or pregnant then why not be careful. We are not drinking any milk. We stocked up on dry milk for cooking /baking and giving the children almond milk/hemp milk/coconut milk and nursing baby. No we are not eating any produce unless it’s from Chile or some southern country. We stocked up on canned/frozen veggies/fruit.
3)if we were worried about tap water contamination, would filtering water be of any help if gamma (& beta?) can pass through most surfaces? representatives of berkey filters will not make any claims for legal reasons, so I am curious for the opinions of others if filtering water could be effective at all…
That is a good question. Does Gamma get into the bottled water…….gosh, I sure hope not!!!!!!
TO: Joyce
Before you get too excited about the St. Louis readings, please read my two posts to Potrblog from this morning.
TO: Big R
Got to apologize to you for my post last night. I just reread it and managed to confuse myself. As I wrote to Potrblog earlier, I was probably trying to do too many things at once while posting last night.
You were absolutely correct in your assessment of the diminishing threat from I-131 as a result of its short half-life. And you were operating under the assumption that the reactors were hut-down and no fission reactions were ongoing. What I was attempting to express was that in the furor to stop the meltdowns of the reactor cores by throwing more water on them, new releases of I-131 could be occurring as a result of continuing spontaneous fission reactions. This is a theory offered by Arnie Gunderson of Fairewinds Associates. In a video over the weekend, he suggested that the sighting of neutron beams and the detection of a chorine isotope in and around Fukushima, (he specified Unit#1), could mean that the reactor was experiencing periodic and inadvertent start-ups. Since I-131 as well as other isotopes are by-products of the fission process, then that could mean that there’s no end in sight for the production of these toxins. If this theory proves legit, then the fluctuating radiation levels within the reactor building would make it impossible for workers to do anything to prevent total meltdown of the core. Of course, a meltdown is a separate but related issue. According to Japanese sources, the radiation levels within the reactor buildings 1, 2 and 3 are already off-the-map.
Don’t know if I explained my point any better, but again, sorry for the confusion.
You have got to see this, a guy in St. Louis takes radiation readings from rainwater….and its not good
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/video-radioactive-rain-and.html
TO: Potrblog
Sorry, forgot to add that there are only two radioactive isotopes of iodine created in the fission process: I-129, with a half-life of 15.7 million years and I-131, with a have life of 8 days. For more on the latter, refer to the excellent half-life post by Big R from 10:56 pm last night. Whatever the source of your I-123, it didn’t come from Japan via California.
TO: Potrblog
Sorry for the confusion. From your post I did not pick-up on the fact that you had identified the isotope and by virtue of that, its half-life. I was merely trying to provide a prospective on your mR reading as it related to one’s effective exposure to that level of radioactivity over time. I don’t recall ever making any reference as to how that exposure would occur, ingestion, inhalation or external source and if I did, my apology. I certainly agree that ingestion of a radioactive isotope would be about as bad as it could get, but that wasn’t the point of my post.
My assumption was that you were discussing radioactive fallout you had measured in the St. Louis area, originating from Fukushima and from a rain water source on your SUV. I must’ve been multi-tasking too much because I totally missed the reference to I-123. I-123 is not a by-product of nuclear fission, so whatever its origin, it wasn’t fallout from Fukushima.
Again, sorry for any confusion.
Here is a troubling article from the NY Times. The quote from David Lochbaum (Union of Concerned Scientists) cited in the article (and below) sums up the gloomy prognosis pretty well.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/06/world/asia/06nuclear.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&hp&adxnnlx=1302105654-b8c1sUlzLL1au165Ubz4NA
“Even the best juggler in the world can get too many balls up in the air,” Mr. Lochbaum said of the multiplicity of problems at the plant. “They’ve got a lot of nasty things to negotiate in the future, and one missed step could make the situation much, much worse.” From article in the N.Y. Times by James Glanz and William Broad
To Portrblog: and everyone on this FORUM PLEASE READ VERY VERY IMPORTANT
relating to your Iodine findings in rain 4 days ago, I need to let everyone know that on 4/2 I saw a massive, huge, thick cloud over San Francisco that had black parts in it.
This was not a marine layer. I have never been so scared in my whole life. I do swear this was a massive radioactive cloud, I could literally feel it, my lungs were hurting somewhat when I was wihing a 4 mile radius. I am not making this up. The cloud looked as though consisting of particles, not just a marine cloud. When I woke up that morning, before noticing the cloud I had a very slight strange metallic taste in my mouth. I was about 1 mile from that cloud in my room. I went online and another reader on the UC berkely nuclear department engineering website was concerned about the thickness of that cloud and that she also had not seen anything like that in San Francisco.
At the same time, on 4/2, all the cities in California show an increase to 100 CPM in the radnet data the official website of the EPA, an increase from 50 CPM to 100 CPM at the same day that I saw that cloud.
The air was terribly dusty, I could barely roll my window down.
When I asked the UC berkeley nuclear engineering department team to comment on the cloud and the increase to 100 CPM I was not given an answer, instead I was told by “anonymous” to leave the forum and ask my silly questions elsewhere.
Very interesting to learn that the TEPCO head is a graduate from the UC berkeley nuclear engineering department.
From my experience with this cloud, and there is no doubt that this was a radioactive cloud to me, the way it was reflecting the sun rays, my car got so hot although it was only 68 degrees in my car, I do believe the US is covering up the true extent of this fallout and UC berkely is helping them, repeatedly downplaying valid readers concerns and their measurememts are as low in concentrations as Germanys although Germany is much much farther away.
We need to do our own independent monitoring, but honestly after 4/2 I am afraid we have already been exposed to much more than we ever thought would be possible. I am also convinced that the black part of the cloud was plutonium oxide. russia found strontium already.
there was no factory next to the cloud and no rain threat that could have explained the silver/black part of the cloud that traveled silently over San Francisco. I am not making this up, I am not paranoid, but I do KNOW IN MY HEART that this cloud was radioactive, just the taste in my mouth alone says it all and my bronchi were sore, and I usually do not have any of this for no reason.
check out the radnet data website http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-data-map.html
you will see a spike from 50 CPM to 100 CPM on 4/2 in Sacramento, San Francisco, Riverside, LA, San Diego.
No one from UC berkely got back to me to answer my question about this spike!!! Tepco officer is a graduate from U C berkely nuclear engineering department Sakae Muto, Executive Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer at Tokyo Electric Power Company got his Masters in Nuclear Engineering from Berkeley in 1981.
and the way UC berkely is downplaying readers concerns to me is part of a cover up.
CJ,
The source I found here is Saint Louis had a half life of less than around 18 hours; so the threat mode you calculated does not fit. Three threat modes to consider.
(1) it was a very small source, just a few drops of rain wiped off my SUV.
(2) the threat increases the closer one is to the source, you can’t have much greater threat than ingesting this fallout.
(3) Assuming that the fallout was I123 with a half life of 13 hours, and that rate of change dosage is proportional to the half life, and that 4 days ago this fallout was over California. Then, these few drops of fallout when they were over California would have had a reading of roughly 44.000mR/hr .I would hate to think a reading that high would get unnoticed in California, so lets pray there is another explanation
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/video-radioactive-rain-and.html
Ann,
here is the a link to the reverse osmosis water filter I just purchased; I go in to a bit of detail on why this one is the one to get.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/radioactive-fallout-risk-mitigation.html
http://www.jaif.or.jp/english/
I do my daily research & came across this. I am hoping it is helpful to someone here plus who can decipher it for we non-science people if it is worth it. Blessings to you all~~
This is the English translation of the German
to be found here: http://www.dasgelbeforum.de.org/forum_entry.php?id=209608
Most methods and tools being recommended here in this thread such as purification by filtration will not lead to your desired result of decontaminating “radioactive water”.
a) Radioactive contamination of drinking water at this point in time can come about in only two ways:
1) The source is actual surface water like lakes or rivers, possibly filtrated through river banks and thus came into contact with e.g. radioactive rain and/or dust. The Netherlands rely almost totally on water drawn from the Rhine and fed into the drinking water supply after conditioning.
2) The water may have been contaminated after production (e.g. in open cisterns/basins), which in effect is similar to bullet a1).
In all other cases it springs from groundwater (wells) and has often been concealed for years before being extracted again. As limnologists would say “groundwater” has an elephant’s memory, i.e. if you drop a can of used oil in a forest it may take ten years until you become aware of oil traces in your drinking water. This means that on one hand ground water wells should as a rule not yet show contamination from rain fall so shortly after a nuclear accident and on the other hand that when it appears further “down the road” all short-lived contamination should have decayed. This is by no means meant to downplay the issue.
So far I would have thought it unlikely to already find radioactive contamination in water that does not come from surface water or bank filtrate. If it should be true it would be alarming.
Now though, let’s assume it were true as authorities would rather hush up things than exaggerate them, thus let’s take some degree of water contamination for granted.
b) How can you reprocess radioactively contaminated (drinking) water so that it is (relatively) safe to use?
All radioactivity in (drinking) water can take only one of three forms:
1) It is in the form of radioactive hydrogen (called tritium, three times as heavy as normal hydrogen and emitting very weak beta rays, i.e. electrons, which, however, can damage your genome and cause cancer etc. when swallowed). When tritium has been released to the environment it will be incorporated in “heavy” water molecules. However, these are chemically indistinct from normal water, hence you cannot chemically separate radioactive water from normal water. You will have to live with tritium in your water and air (vapour) until it has decayed. With a half-life of approx. 12 years it will be down to one thousandth in about 120 years … All you can do (in theory) is move to another location where the tritium from the power plant has not yet reached (eventually the tritium will be evenly dispersed world-wide by wind and wave, however, then also the dosage of radiation will diminish reciprocally with its dilution). Or you “import” clean water (and add a pressurised air cylinder from a clean pristine source for good measure).
And don’t forget: once you’ve moved to another place there might be yet another malfunctioning nuclear power station around the corner – from the frypan into the fire … Help close down all nucler power stations and so-called reprocessing plants!
2) The water could contain gases, esp. radioactive noble gases (like neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), xenon (Xe), radon (Rn)) Rather unlikely but for the sake of completeness we will mention them here. These can be driven out from the water by heating it to boiling temperature as hot liquids dissolve more gases than cold ones (with solid solubles, e.g. salts, it is vice versa with the rare exception of kitchen salt –sodium chloride- which hardly changes in solubility from almost zero to 100 degrees centigrade).
3) The main contaminants by far should be soluble solids, e.g. metal salts of e.g. radioactive caesium, rubidium etc. These can not be filtered e.g. by charcoal or any ceramic or paper filter with whatever fine pore structure since they are dissolved! You can only either try to demineralise that water (e.g. by reverse osmosis) or purify it by distillation thus leaving the radioactive solids behind (the condensed water in the lids of your pots consists of such distilled water droplets). A third potential method would be chemical precipitation. However, in order to know which chemical to use to precipitate the contaminant(s) with, you’d first have to analyse the water components. And in all probability the traces would be too small for normal analysis and if the salt etc. was determined then you might find there is no precipitant to go with it or it may have adverse side effects, e.g. be poisonous. So de-mineralisation or distillation it is.
These are the only three viable methods that might help in this predicament. Anything else is “snake oil”.
While activated charcoal does by virtue of adsorption delay the passage even of solved salts all these filtration methods are only really designed for capturing suspended matter. But what has been bank filtrated or springs from ground water wells is not a suspension, or at least no water utility would dare inject murky water into its system!!!
If anyone could translate this into Japanese – you are most welcome to post this anywhere if you attribute the source, and in any form and language!
See the German version here, if you are more comfortable with German:
http://www.dasgelbeforum.de.org/forum_entry.php?id=209608
And if so, you might also be interested in my collection of articles on the Japanese catastrophe, nuclear energy in general and what all this means for Japan and the rest of the world:
http://www.dasgelbeforum.de.org/forum_entry.php?id=208864
Do not use automatic translators – they will garble the meaning beyond comprehension!!! If you lose its precision you might as well drink the water “as is”.
I will not comment further on any other “alternative” purification methods as these have been sufficiently excoriated.
> Can you still use contaminated water for the following purposes (keep in mind, it is all a matter of how contaminated it all is!):
> – cleaning a garden path for example,
Yes, but may I suggest: only if the path would be less contaminated than before. But before you breathe contaminated dust from a contaminated path by all means use contaminated water to keep it in place!
> – personal hygiene,
Rather not! You would also absorb some contaminants through your skin, however small. However, if you need to decontaminate yourself from a greater dose than what is in your water, do wash it all down and reduce your exposure! Again – “contaminated” water may be heavily or only negligibly contaminated – use your best judgment! We are talking dangerously contaminated here!
> – to wash dishes,
Well, if you dry well it would be better than becoming ill from mouldy dishes! Only if your water were excessively contaminated I wouldn’t. However, your utility will not pump such water and your spigot would be dry by then. When your plates and glasses are without water stains, then there is also no radioactive deposit from radioactive salts. Only if you leave stains – these are the radioactive salts, if you want to take a look at them!
> – laundry,
Weigh your options: if your clothes are contaminated they should be cleaned. The harder you spin dry the less water will still remain on your fibres and the more likely what little water then is left to dry will deposit less radioactive material than you just got rid of by rinsing and washing!
> – cooking?
If you use the steam and e.g. your vegetables do not come into contact with the water – then the steam will be relatively “clean” as it is the same process as distillation described above. Also consider frying and other methods that can do away with water. Consider using bottled water if you want to stay on the safe side.
And for drinking, but esp. for your infants or if preparing infant formulas – use bottled water from a reliable brand!!!
And good luck …
Spread the word – feel free to e.g. repost/retranslate as long as you mention your source.
German overview article: http://dasgelbeforum.de.org/forum_entry.php?id=208864
TO: Big R
Your half-life table for I-131 is correct. However, your assumption that the radionuclides released have been limited to those that escaped containment soon after the reactors were shut-down on March 11th is not. Reactor shut-down systems are very quick, but it is a common misconception that shut-down alone is sufficient to halt the decay of fissionable material. The fuel continues to generate heat (decay) even after the fission process stops which is why redundancies in cooling systems are so critical. If the fuel loses coolant, is exposed to the air in other words, even outside of the fission process, then decay resumes and radioactive isotopes are released. This is what is meant by the unscientific term “meltdown”.
At least one, perhaps three and maybe even four of the Fukushima Daiichi reactors (Who really knows for sure at this point?)are undergoing the meltdown process currently, creating new or fresh radioactive by-products. Richard Lahey, a safety design engineer for GE’s boiling water reactor division has publicly stated that he believes that the race to prevent a complete meltdown at Unit #2 has already been lost. (As I recall, GE built 2 of these reactors, Unit #1 and likely Unit #2).
The bottom line, while it’s comforting to think that the radiation release has ended and that at least some of the radionuclides released are well on their way to being neutered by time, most likely this is nothing more than a pipe dream. Unfortunately, all evidence points to a protracted environmental disaster if the Japanese don’t find the means of containing the release of these toxins.
To Ann:
Regarding request for opinions on filtering tap water for possible radiological contamination. As far as I know, water distillation will produce the purest water of any water purification method including reverse osmosis. You can find water distillers online. If cost is an issue you can buy 1 gallon bottles of distilled water at grocery and drug stores for about $1.25. Read the label, I believe you should look for “steam distillation” on the label, but I am not really sure if that matters. Note, I am not a doctor or health expert and I have heard both criticism and praise for drinking distilled water. The critics say that distilled water lacks minerals we need, which is true, but advocates say we get minerals mostly from food anyway (also multi-vitamin pills have minerals) and that there are benefits of drinking distilled water. I think most claims are based on what ever the salesmen are trying to sell you (reverse osmosis vs distiller vs carbon filters, etc.). Another note, if you buy a distiller you will need to clean the boiler often since mineral deposits and impurities will collect there. I would wear disposable gloves during cleaning to avoid contact with any residue.
I think a water distiller gives you flexibility in that you could purify a variety of water sources like tap water, rain, sea water, maybe even swimming pool or jacuzzi water if it came to that situation, as long as you have electricity to run the distiller. It is always good to have more than one way to treat and store water.
That’s my opinion.
Here is a half-life table. I posted this earlier but the numbers got garbled up when I copied and pasted into this blog. The first number is the number of half-lives in parentheses ( ), the second number is the remaining fraction of an isotope like iodine 131. Note that after 10 half-lives (80 days) the remaining fraction of iodine 131 is 1/1024 or 0.1%. After 20 half-lives the remaining fraction is 1/1,048,576 or 0.0001%. After 30 half-lives one billionth remains. It’s getting late but I am sure the math is correct, but you can check it yourselves. Maybe this will ease some minds a little bit as far as I-131 goes. More than 24 days have passed since the earthquake so we have passed 3 half-lives for I-131. Some isotopes have shorter half-lives, others longer.
(1) 1/2
(2) 1/4
(3) 1/8
(4) 1/16
(5) 1/32
(6) 1/64
(7) 1/128
(8) 1/256
(9) 1/512
(10) 1/1024 (80 days for iodine 131)
skip
(20) 1/1,048,576 (160 days for I-131)
skip
(30) 1/1,073,741,824 (240 days for I-131)
etc.
TO: All
Just in case you haven’t seen the fly-over pics, here’s a site worth viewing. Unit #1 is the most northern reactor building, Unit #2 is the one that looks intact, but may, repeat may, be the one experiencing the spontaneous moments of criticality (reaction), #3 is the reactor containing the MOX (mixed oxide) fuel and then, of course, Unit #4 is the last in line moving southward.
http://www.stralsakerhetsmyndigheten.se/Global/Publikationer/Rapport/Sakerhet-vid-karnkraftverken/1996/i96-01-Tjernobyl_10ar.pdf
1986 report from Sweden, with map, some reindeeer from certain areas they know are bad and are destroyed, some lakes are worse than others and they don’t know why, Mushrooms be careful with, Thankfully it sounds pretty good, considering,
Good night!
Hi Liz,
Don’t think I’ve written about the plume or strontium-90, today, at least, but S-90 is a by-product of all fission reactions, like caesium-137, iodine-131 and about 15 plutonium isotopes among others.
To: HoustonWHAP
Yeah, but if we knew then what we know now, most likely we would have put romance aside and taken our honeymoon someplace else like Libya perhaps, or Somalia. We were too young to care and too ignorant to know better.
CJ—that story about the birds captures the very essence of nuclear disasters. Of course, any scientist would want to carefully examine the etiology of the bizarre-looking pigeons—
But sometimes, common sense can prevail over the researchers–it does not seem like rocket-science would be required to understand why so many more than the first one poor bird were afflicted with strange and unsettling characteristics this Chernobyl effect.
Watch the documentary, “Chernobyl Heart” and see the same effect on human children!
QUESTION: I think it was you, CJ (I tried to read all of the posts since this morning, so I may be confused) who referenced Strontium-90 as being a concern in the soon-to-arrive “plume” material?
(If it was another of our wonderful post-ers, please forgive me—it’s been a long day!).
This is the first time I have heard about this isotope being an issue for Fukushima—-it certainly was for Chernobyl, from what I’ve read.
Can anyone comment?
Here’s some perspective on the Radioactive Rain video that Potrblog shared with us:
Finding from the video: .228 mR/Hr from St. Louis rain water = .0023 mS/Hr
Assuming the radiation source was slow decaying like caesium or plutonium and one were to be constantly exposed to it for 1 year, or 8766 hours,
then one would receive a cumulative exposure dose of 1998.65 mR, or 19.99 mS(sieverts).
The annual average dose for Americans from all sources, natural and otherwise, is 5.86 mS. The annual permitted dose for U.S. nuclear workers, excluding natural sources, is 50 mS.
http://www.ehso.com/ehso3.php?URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.epa.gov/clariton/
page 195 and down are interesting, page 6?
I am originally from Reindeercountry, not sure if they quit milking for a while, I will try to find out.
The past 6 years have been very difficult, I am not sure how I feel about going forward with some plans I have, but if CJ went to “the east” for their honeymoon, maybe I will just keep going and hope for the best, no guts-no glory.
Thanks, Michael and Denise Anne and Christine for the 60 Minutes link. I just watched the segment.
I am left only with a very heavy heart and with profound sorrow and compassion for the people who have to endure not just the natural effects of the earthquake and tsunami, but on top of it, the dangerous and invisible Radiation that is emanating from that plant.
Add to that the sense of despair the people of Japan must feel knowing that they are not even accorded the dignity of being told the entire truth about the nature and risks of their situation by the Japanese Gov’t or TEPCO.
Today, at work, I introduced myself to a Japanese woman who works at a professional level in my office, nor far from where my own small cubicle is. Stoicly, ever since the inception of this crisis in her country, she has sat nearby, working hard, as she always does—arriving early, leaving late, and working quietly, without fanfare, without calling attention to herself.
She is a native Japanese, as is her husband. Her brother in law (she recounted to me, today) lost everything he had in the tsunami. The majority of her family live in the south or in the eastern section of the country, but she has some family in Sendai or in the northern/west coast area. She has been in constant touch with family and friends on a daily basis.
She talked about how the Japanese people know that they are being lied to about the full extent of the nuclear crisis.
She described in direct and powerful terms how afraid everyone felt of this invisible danger that no one without sophisticated instruments could possibly hope to measure, much less analyse the implications of.
During the conversation, her eyes at times reflected the brightness of tears constrained by strength and dignity.
Her grace, fortitude and gentle stoicism reminded me at the deepest level of why this man-made nuclear disaster on top of such a devastating natural catastrophe is so very, very wrong.
The Xenon 133 engulfing the the planet is MUCH more scary than most people can visualize. Xenon 133 decays in 5 days to Cesium 133, which is stable. Cs 133 won’t decay any further and will be floating in the world’s atmosphere for quite some time.
Now what makes that a nightmare is something call nuclear spallation. When Cesium 133 is hit by a high energy proton it busts apart into various radioactive elements like, I123, I124, I125, I126, Te123, Sb124, Xe123, Xe125 and maybe others. The potential source of these high energy protons? A massive Coronal Mass Ejection from the sun; and, it just so happens that the Sun is in a high cycle.
I blogged about writing this scenario into an apocalyptic novel about how to destroy the thyroid of every of single mammal on the sun side facing part of the planet. In fact, I suspect that the short half life rain fallout I am receiving here in Missouri is from Iodine 121 produced from solar proton spallation of Cesium 133 (if it is not that, then what I am measuring here in Saint Louis was one hell of a lot more radioactive when it was over California)
If have have more free time, I’ll try to develop some models on the potential yields from a Cs133 CME spallation event on the sun facing side of the planet.
In the mean time here are some links where I blogged about the subject.
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/threat-alert-iodine-123-production-via.html
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/update-threat-alert-iodine-123.html
TO: Ann
Yes, ma’am. How come you were able to express that in so fewer words than I did?
to CJ: THANKS, I see the post you wrote now. It’s helpful to have some confirmation from someone who is studying or knows about this issue better than me…. So really, the worries about alpha particulates is very small, so your concerns for the west coast would be about the hazzards of increases in Gamma and Beta radiation….
hope i have finally got that right.
So carrying this inquiry a bit further, with the levels of gamma and beta exposure that have been reported to date, and mention of exposures in the rainwater and possibly in the tap water (though some on this forum are saying that claim has been over-exaggerated) I am wondering:
1) if anyone is yet going to measures such as using only bottled water, not drinking milk or eating produce?
2) if not now, at what point might we have to go to this level of concern? if background levels were to double? or do we have to worry about it sooner than that… ie, now.
3)if we were worried about tap water contamination, would filtering water be of any help if gamma (& beta?) can pass through most surfaces? representatives of berkey filters will not make any claims for legal reasons, so I am curious for the opinions of others if filtering water could be effective at all…
opinions wanted!
(apologies to anyone that finds this conversation to be too obvious or if this has already been discussed. I have not read every post on this forum and I’m not a scientist at all, just a concerned person.)
Michael,
Here is the link to the Radioactive Rain video, it is the scary one, it was only a very FEW drops of rain off of my Truck that caused these readings
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/video-radioactive-rain-and.html
The snow was a few days before that, and I only posted photos of it
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/who-knew-snow-was-so-hot-radioactive.html
TO: HoustonWHAP
You asked about the cows, etc. near Chernobyl. We can probably guess that theirs was the same fate as the initial fire crews and all the domestic animals that were left behind. However, I recently read where wildlife in the “exclusion” zone is flourishing 25 years later. Of course, there’s no one hunting them critters either.
If I may be permitted to share a personal story: My wife and I honeymooned in Western and Eastern Europe less than one month following the Chernobyl disaster (perhaps not too bright of us). We had read several stories in Stars & Stripes about flocks of homing pigeons and other birds that had flat disappeared during their annual migratory treks, so we were not totally oblivious to what was going on in the world around us. Anyway, we were in the Slovenian (then Yugoslavian)city of Ljubljana, roughly 800 miles from Chernobyl, walking through the charming old downtown. It had rained the night before and there were still quite a few puddles of standing water about. We came across a pigeon that was drinking from one of these puddles. It was the most bizarre looking bird I’d ever seen: From the top of its wings up to the base of its skull, all of its feathers were gone, like something or someone had plucked them out, one by one. We were looking at the bird’s naked spine. A few minutes later we saw another similar appearing bird, then another and so on. Pretty quickly we ruled out the possibility of a serial animal abuser running loose and figured out that all of these birds had one thing in common, aside from their appearances, of course. They’d all been drinking rain water from the street and gutters.
I have no idea what this all means. Was this a case of radiation poisoning, or poisoning from some other source? Whatever the case, the memory of what we saw is still fresh in our minds 25 years later.
These are the links I have found to current EPA “acceptable radiation” limits.
http://www.epa.gov/rpdweb00/understand/health_effects.html#whatlimits
http://www.epa.gov/rpdweb00/understand/health_effects.html
FYI for those in Oregon. I tested rain on my car hood just as Portrblog did on his blog. I did this with my PM1703M and nothing registered. No change.
I understand there is another concentrated plume and more rain to show up tomorrow thru the 9th. I will continue to test collected rain.
I also have looked for this sticky substance or yellow rain that a few commented, nothing of this matter in Oregon.
Liz – here is the 60 minutes
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7360349n&tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea.5
Hi Liz! Here’s the link to the 60 Minutes segment that is a must-watch for those concerned about how grave the situation is.
The Norwegian plume is the subject of much debate. But know that it’s for Xenon-133 and not for I-131 or Cs-137 which are of greater concern (and the Norwegian maps of their plumes are not nearly as scary looking).
Potrblog – Your video of testing the snow is soooo shocking! Do you have a link for it so people can see for themselves the load of hooey you folks in the St. Louis area are being fed?
Truth – We are not censoring your comments. We are just waiting for an explanation for why you misrepresented yourself as being one of the scientists at UC Berkeley. That was not acceptable. We’d welcome any explanation.
christine, I found some information, I rather not post it since I don’t know what I am talking about, maybe I can send it to MH?
The Missouri Department of Health can’t find any radiation is Missouri; yet I have found it in fresh rain and snow fall every single time I have tested. I’m not so sure that any of these governmental agencies are prepared to find radioactive contamination that has a half life of less that 18 hours. By the time they get their test results back,the samples have degraded so much that they end up making comments like these
http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2011/04/05/no-missouri-readings-of-japanese-radioactive-fallout/
Michael and Denise Anne—
Can you guys re-post the 60 Minutes link you mentioned (I think, this morning, or last night)?
I came home from a long day and there are such wonderful posts (thanks, CJ, for yours), and I’m hunting around for the 60 minutes link, but I’ve searched 4 pages already.
What a great day of posting! So many comments and information that is so helpful!
QUESTION: Also—does anyone know what, exactly is expected in the “plume” that is coming with the rain on Friday? I’ve been following the NIHU (norwegian) site also. Does anyone know what, exactly their modeling is based on? I assume all meterological conditions, topography conditions, manner of dispersal of the radioactive material (i.e. how high/forcibly ejected or released), types of isotopes, sources (steam, smoke) etc. to arrive at their calculations?
TO: JMS, HoustonWHAP, Two Cents & SLO
Thank you for the kind words and you’re all most welcome for the hopefully helpful posts.
TO: Ann
You keep asking about various types of radiation and their transitory natures. I believe most of your questions were answered in an earlier post this morning, around 11:30.
Thanks, CJ, for your post. That is the most layman(or woman)-friendly (referring to myself) explanation I have seen so far.
Thank You CJ, I will print that out, so does anybody know what happened to calves and foals after Chernobyl?
thanks CJ. (a little more info)
and it’s not just me but no doubt more than a majority are filled with anxiety—because they don’t quite understand what’s going on more than anything. ..It’s “the devil you don’t know” that’s scary.
Somebody should make a documentary or video short to put all this in an easily understood form. You would think, but all we have to choose from is psuedo and other intellectuals battling it out, dumbed down sites or dumbed down television bits.
Where’s Underdog? I want to see a cartoon that explains all this.
“we are not sure what we are doing but when we puts this thingy in there, we makes a lots of money”
also we need a radiation station jingle or theme song..
come on Hollywood! writers etc.
by the way, I still don’t know what’s going on! but I’ll keep reading these posts and maybe it will all start to become clearer one day.
In the name of Jesus, God protect us from this current folly and give human kind the wisdom to choose the right things on this little planet and help us to understand all this from earthquake to nuclear disaster. If it is our time as one’s swallowed by the tsunami, let us be brave and trust your wisdom. -Amen
CJ-
Thank you for that informative post(4/5/11 2:21pm post). It was truly helpful.
SLO, there was a report posted here earlier that trace amounts of radioactive Iodine was detected in at least one tap water testing in Ca. At that point at least, the level of contamination was so low it barely registered. It could easily have gone up in the meantime, so further information would be welcome.
Hello,
I will ask this again, just in case my question got buried among the other posts…….
When the chat was open a week or so ago, some one posted the EPA guidelines for acceptable levels of radiation.
Does anyone still have this before the guidelines are updated to higher limits?
Michael, Denise Anne,
thank you for responding to my post, very much. I must be misreading or misunderstanding something. I see the daily averages. I’ve been checking them often. I understood these are gamma averages and from those I have felt reassured that the background/gamma radiation has not gone up enough or for a long enough time to be worried about having too much of this kind of radiation arriving on the west coast.
I have understood gamma radiation to be the kind that travels the furthest and passes through most surfaces. I continue to wonder if the alpha and beta particulates are arriving with the gamma radiation however, since I read that these are very dangerous if ingested, yet they are heavier and presumably may not make the journey to the west coast. And though you have now told me where to look, I don’t see in sidebar or in the text where this log might be… I only see the 10 minute average log which I thought was for gamma/background radiation, and then two graphs of those readings.
I must be misunderstanding something. I just don’t see where you are tracking what you are calling the daily inspections of alpha and beta particles… (I do appreciate the reassurance from Michael that he has not seen an increase yet).
if you can help me see where I am blind, let me know! : )
thanks again for all your hard work. I tell everyone who will listen about your site. regards.
To Two Cents:
Probably most “experts” would agree that monitoring the presence of radioactive iodine (I-131) and to a lesser extent, caesium-137 (C-137), in milk and perhaps rainwater, is the most efficient method of monitoring the current potential threat to the U.S.
I-131 is a beta emitter and C-137, a metal, emits both beta particles and gamma rays. I-131 enters the body via ingestion or inhalation; C-137 normally enters the body the same way, but due to it’s gamma decay element, may also enter the body externally, through the skin in other words.
Aside from inhalation, both isotopes can enter the food chain via plants, (including grass) and water. In the case of milk, the cows eat the contaminated grass. With I-131, it is then concentrated 700-1000 times in the milk the cow produces. The biggest threat I-131 poses to humans, especially infants and children, involves thyroid cancer which, incidentally, is one of the easiest cancers to treat and cure.
I-131 has a half-life of 8 days. That means that in roughly 80 days, its toxicity will have been completely depleted. Following the Three Mile Island accident, the Herschey chocolate factory freeze-dried its milk supplies for 90 days before unfreezing the no longer toxic milk and using it in its chocolate.
C-137, on the other hand, has a half-life of 30 years, meaning that in a century or so, it will have decayed away its toxicity completely. It’s C-137 that, 25 years after the Chernobyl accident, has rendered the original exclusion zone around the plant still uninhabitable. In the human body, C-137 is uniformly distributed in soft tissue, more in muscle tissue than in bone marrow. The good news, if there is any, is that C-137 is eliminated from the body in a fairly short time period. And, it is eliminated more rapidly in infants and children than it is with adults.
What is the bottom line? To date, while there has been an increase (above the norm) in some levels of radioactivity in milk and rain water here in the U.S. since March 11th, those levels have not risen to a level of great concern as of yet. It’s important to remember that all radiation levels are detectable, so the mere fact that some increases have been detected does not necessarily equate to cause for concern. However, operating, as I do and most of the scientific community does, that there is a linear relationship between radiation exposure and cancer and that there is no such thing as an established threshold of “safe” exposure, it is very prudent that we continue to monitor radiation levels and hold our government accountable to do the same.
I know this is probably more information than you wanted, but hopefully, this has helped to address some of your concerns.
Has anyone seen a report that any extra radiation has been measured in tap water in USA? I have not, only reported measurements I have seen have been rain water.
Ohmealy,
have you ever eaten any of the sources that caused those radioactive fields you were exposed to? Otherwise, its basically an apples vs oranges conversation.
In regards to panic, places like NYC are actively suppressing panic by following the ‘early phase’ Radiological Dispersal Device playbook (based on the Goiânia incident.
see
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/quelling-public-panic-when-every-rain.html
translations please, what about the simpler people here? What about the children? I seem to just get lost in all the jargon. Not dumbed down but explained in laymans/simple terms. Start with the most urgent concern for us here in the USA, what is that?
-Is IT airborne radio-active particles? which can not or should not be compared to x-ray radiation etc. or anything else?
-AND of these particles, how long do they pose a danger in our environment?
-AND when “they” say they’re detected in things like air, water and food and are low? Does that mean weak? [and getting weaker?] or does that mean low ratio? and if low ratio does that mean still bad but chances are lower of being exposed because there is less around?
To Ohmealey,
Latency periods between exposure to radiation and the presence of solid tumor, depending upon the type and dose of exposure(s), organ(s) or systems affected and so on, can be as long as 60 years. Since you’re still apparently hard at work in the lab, likely you haven’t yet reached the tender age of say, 70. Hopefully your health and those of the scientists you do and have worked with will continue to be untouched by cancer.
Exactly who is in a panic, Ohmealy? What lab do you work at? If you want to keep it confidential, tell me at contact *at* enviroreporter.com.
I ask because anyone who says they work at a lab is generally considered an authority on these subjects and trusted. I have to trust that the person who comments saying they work at a lab really does.
Do tell, okay?
Talk about unnecessary panic. I’ve worked with many scientists over the years. We have been exposed to radiation fields much higher than any that the public my ever be exposed to. None of us have suffered any harm from radiation here at the labs.
“Truth”, the public data you provided does not support some of your statements, especially the claim that “tap water could have been ingested for at most 1 day” The first listed sample of tap water measurement is on 3/29. The maximum I131 rain fall detection occurred SIX days BEFORE on 3/23. Given the half life is 8 days, its plausible to extrapolate that public might have received a more significant dosage from I131 in tap water before 3/29. Absent any data to the contrary, one would have to believe the public was exposed for more than one day. Moreover one would have to assume that the concentrations could have been greater closer to the tap water intake source.
Here is are some useful results I would like to see you provide from the data.
(1) time between rain fall and tap water contamination
(2) Dilution rates- normalized to a stable contaminant
(3) A chart estimating tap water dosage rates for a range of radioisotopes, by time, assuming one initial rain fall
(4) A chart estimating tap water dosage rates for a range of radioisotopes, by time, assuming reoccurring rain falls based on the average/max/min historical rain fall data
By providing that information at least the public would Know how long they have to fill up and store tap water in containers if a heavily radioactive downpour is detected. They would also know how many more radioactive rain falls are required before they should start to get worried.
Finally, on 3/23 there where apparently 60.3 Bq of I131 at Berkeley, what would the safety procedures have been if some one had spilled that on the floor? And where those procedures followed considering that was what was pouring onto the roof?
Ann inquired earlier about checking for alpha particles, so I thought some input on alpha would be helpful. While it’s always good to check one’s environment for hazards, should we detect a substantive increase in alpha particles, then it will be time for all of us to don the respirators and flee the region. Of the radioactive isotopes released at Fukushima, plutonium is the only alpha emitter.
Alpha is the most destructive form of ionizing radiation if ingested or inhaled; it does not represent much of a danger externally as it is easily shielded. Cellular chromosome damage is 10-1000 times that of beta or gamma radiation. As little as 1 microgram of plutonium inhaled or ingested, as an example, would be sufficient to cause cancer. However, it’s important to keep in mind that being a heavy metal, it would be quite challenging, if not impossible, for plutonium-239 to become a long-distance airborne particulate.
So, while alpha radiation is a big concern around the Fukushima plant with the discovery of runaway plutonium particles, here on the Left Coast, we should focus our attention on the sources of beta and gamma decay which are iodine-131, caesium-137, and strontium-90.
Why did you write, Truth, in regards to UC Berkeley “Response to some misleading claims about our measurements” if you don’t work there? You did it before too. What’s up with that?
Dan Hirsch is a top notch and highly regarded expert, so WTVM knew to go to an excellent source. That speaks volumes about their reporting.
The radiation plume info comes from this site http://transport.nilu.no/products/fukushima which has some disclaimers about their work.
Agree the BP commercial is terrible. The cost to do live webcam streaming is way beyond our budget. If anyone wants to contribute the donation button is on the right.
Truth, do you work for Berkley in an official capacity? If so, please identify yourself as it’s important that we verify authenticity for our reader’s sake.
I would like to point out to readers this excellent article – http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=14343830 which includes many important observations by nuclear expert Dan Hirsch, two of which are listed below.
Ann – also – there is a log of recent inspections at https://www.enviroreporter.com/investigations/fukushima/radiation-station-stats/ and this is linked to from several pages including this one that you have left a comment on – it’s in the text and on sidebar in the “RAD STATS” graphic. Inspections are done multiple times a day.
Ann, we do alpha and beta tests regularly on outdoor objects at Radiation Station and have picked up no abnormal bumps in radiation. Our friend in St. Louis picked up 3 x background in snow which says ‘stay outta of the snow.’
LA will get a rainstorm Friday which we will test extensively. Be wary of precipitation bringing the fallout down onto you and yours!
For those interested, here is a report from Simon Fraser University (near Vancouver, B.C.) regarding amounts of absorption of radioactive material the lab there tested in the Vancouver and Vancouver Island area:
“This e-mail is sent in response to your request of information on 131I
analysis in seaweed samples at the Simon Fraser University.
Included below is the summary of measurement results.
We have analyzed dehydrated samples from two sources:
North Vancouver, near the Seabus terminal,
49 (degrees) 18′ 44.55″ N 123 (degrees) 05′ 13.85″ W
Bamfield,Vancouver Island Eagle Bay, Barkley Sound
48(degrees) 50′ N 124(degrees) 09′ W
The result for North Vancouver are
collection time 131I specific activity [Bq/kg]
15/03/2011 18:00:00 0 (50)
22/03/2011 18:00:00 310 (60)
28/03/2011 19:30:00 380 (80)
The result for Bamfield are
collection time 131I specific activity [Bq/kg]
22/03/2011 10:00:00 10 (2)
25/03/2011 13:56:00 150 (30)
28/03/2011 15:30:00 250 (50)
The number in parenthesis following the specific activity value is the
uncertainty of the measurement.
Here are the calculations which should put these numbers into perspective.
Let us assume the upper limit of 400 Bq/kg which is equivalent to
400 decays per second per kilogram of dehydrated seaweed.
A conversion from Bq/kg to Sv is 1.44e-08 Sv/Bq for I-131
ingestion (effective dose) according to:
United States Office of EPA-520/1-88-020
Environmental Protection Radiation Program September 1988
Agency Washington, DC 20460
Radiation EPA
Limiting Values of Radionuclide Intake And Air Concentration
and Dose Conversion Factors for Inhalation, Submersion, and Ingestion
Federal Guidance Report No.11
With this conversion factor 400 Bq/kg corresponds to 5.8 micro Sv/kg.
This puts consumption of 1 kg of dried seaweed on the same level of
exposure as a dental X-ray
Consumption of 2 kg of dried seaweed per day gives exposure nearly
equal to the exposure of the radiation from natural sources per day.
Consumption of 6 kg of dried seaweed gives the same exposure as a flight
from New York to LA.
The chart for further comparison is included.
For those of you who are trying to pick up these levels with a Geiger counter, this is most likely impossible.”
Have you guys done a recent test for alpha, beta particulates in the environment? I scan over this site and it seems like the last inspection was done long ago and I don’t see any log for recent inspections.
I am frustrated because there are behavioral changes that can be made when and if the situation escalates, and there is nowhere to get the information straight if it is time to make a behavioral change. for instance, if it’s only gamma radiation, it does not seem to matter if we are indoors or outdoors, we are going to be exposed to it. but if the alpha and beta particles are around, we could reduce our time outside and people could stop exercising outside. no one is talking about these very pragmatic topics, it seems to me, and I’m upset about that. maybe I am misunderstanding some science here, I have had to cobble together my understanding about all this through websites and whatnot and I do not have a science background. but I repeat, it seems it would be know if the alpha and beta particulates are arriving on the west coast or not.
if someone can correct my line of thinking or comment on this as to if I am on the right track, I would appreciate it.
secondly, are people living on the coastal areas and west coast now at a point of not wanting to eat the produce and milk and tap water for a while? it seems to be in the news now that the tap water is showing increases. I don’t understand the half lives involved in what we are dealing with. is it time to avoid tap water, produce, milk until this situation is resolved?
a shoutback by anyone who feels strongly about this would be helpful. any methods people are using to deal with the situation, pragmatics anyone? would be helpful.
When the chat was open a week or so ago, some one posted the EPA guidelines for acceptable levels of radiation.
Does anyone still have this before the guidelines are updated to higher limits?
What was up with the thing just earlier being at 45-65 and then it started climbing steadily until after 5 minutes it was at 445? Then it was taken down and averaged and now its settin at 40-60 again?
Oh ok. Thanks FAQs.
Why is this going higher and higher? Is it really reading that bad?
Just another day in Orwellville
EPA to raise limits for radiation exposure while Canada turns off fallout detectors
http://www.naturalnews.com/031963_radiation_exposure.html#ixzz1If7bHTPV
Let your food be medicine and your medicine be food….Hippocrates.
Clean raw whole food is our life line and now that is being threatened.
How does anyone continue to support nuclear power after this?
Jen – Thank you for putting into perfect words (in my opinion) on a public forum how many of us are feeling right now. I’m no where near as articulate as many of you on this board, so thank you for expressing just how I’m feeling. I too watched the 60 minutes and the China Syndrome last night and went to bed just feeling devasted for the future of my children. As a mom who tried so very hard to eat healthy and limit my exposure to toxins while pregnant, nursed both my children for years and continues to diligently provide the very best foods and toxic free life for them as I can….well, to now have them exposed to all these toxic cancer causing radicals, has me feeling defeated at many moments during the day.
“Truth” pointed out that Berkley detected Te 132 at low levels. The real scary question is where is it coming from, it has a half life of 3 days. All the precursors to Te 132 have half lives of minutes to milliseconds. This can only mean that ongoing fission of Uranium is occurring somewhere upwind.
Here is a useful chart on decay of Te132
http://periodictable.com/Isotopes/052.132/index2.full.dm.prod.html
Jen–
Thanks for a powerful and passionate reminder about the human cost of all of this.
Ramey,
If any one thinks the Fukushima situation is under control, they mean it in the same way as hanging by one fingernail off a cliff over a boiling pot of razorblades is “under control”
Here are some real facts. Fukushima is in a monsoon zone. But it gets worse, Bath’s law tells us to expect at least one 8.0 aftershock, ten 7.0 aftershocks, and one hundred 6.0 aftershocks. Japanese history tells us to expect it between a few days to two years after the quake.
The Fukushima site has nowhere near the earthquake resistance it did before; one well placed earthquake or Tsunami and we are all in even deeper squat.
The only thing that is going to put Fukushima “under control” is to scrape it down to the bedrock and remove and distribute the materials in a location without the Tsunami danger. Unfortunately, an on site Chernobyl style sarcophagus is not any where near a solution for the reasons I listed. On top of that, throw in the fact that the world’s third largest economy is in tatters and you are just scratching at the surface of this mess.
Things are very far from under control. To inject some humor in it, the only thing this scenario is missing is zombies. That is not to say that a solution cannot be engineered, but it won’t be quick; if we are lucky there will be some periods punctuated by calm.
However, you are right that now is not the time for blind panic. Now is the time to position yourself to make use of your own resources to minimize risk in the most cost efficient manner. Or to phrase it in Scuba diving terms, you don’t have to out swim the shark you just have to out swim the guy next to you. It’s a lot easier to do that when there is a little “devil Darwin” on the other guy’s shoulder telling him everything is under control. The little Angel Darwin on my shoulder told me to get these things
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/radioactive-fallout-risk-mitigation.html
When I was in graduate school working on my doctorate in the social sciences, I took, and later instructed as a T.A., a couple of Statistics courses.
The professor, who had a maverick sense of humor, included a book entitled, How to Lie with Statistics.
With much tongue in cheek, these mathematical mendicants postulated that babies came from storks, as one year, in Sweden, there was a clear mathematical correlation between the number of storks that appeared in the region and the number of babies born at the time.
I thus learned to ask always the “right” questions: What kind of data were used (nominal, ordinal, integer), what kinds of questions were asked, what kinds of physical properties were observed, what kind of population “sample” was used, what kinds of existing variables might “confound” the analysis….etc., etc.
I am strongly in the anti-nuke camp. Ultimately, however, my inclination in that direction is not based on statistics.
Those can be manipulated to “fit” any theory about Radiation exposure. There are studies that indicate that nearly 400,000 people developed cancer or died as a result the Chernobyl disaster. There are those who with equal “statistical authority” claim that less than a few thousand succumbed to Radiation-inflicted harm and damage and that the Linear No Threshold model (i.e. that no amount of Radiation exposure is without risk) is statistically and scientifically flawed.
Ultimately, what influences my decision is this: The terror and loss as thousands of people have to evacuate from communities and homes where they have lived for generations. The definite correlation between cancer or genetic mutation and Radiation exposure no matter WHAT your statistical model might be. The images of Japanese people disfigured, killed or genetically altered by Hiroshima. The contamination of ground water, streams, oceans, plant life, animals and human beings with something that is NOT natural but rather created by man in inestimable Hubris.
I always rebel when scientists exclaim, “But ‘only’ a few thousand people died!” One person dying from something that is both unnatural and unnecessary is one too many deaths for me to accept. If you happen to be in the families of the “few” people who die, or which reflect genetically mutated birth defects, your “statistics” just jump to 100%.
The NIRS has an article on its site, today about how GE (the company that designed the flawed TEPCO reactors) and its CEO, Jeffrey Imeldt paid no taxes in the U.S., but yet garnered millions of dollars in profits.
I am not opposed to a healthy and robust economy. I am opposed to profiteering at the expense of human well-being and life, and then obfuscating the facts so as to hide the ill that you committed.
Statistics and science has much with which to inform us. We do well to ask questions.
But perhaps the greater question to ask is: If a Nuclear plant within 20 miles of your home had a catastrophic accident that released excessive amounts of Radiation into the air, water and ground around you, would you want to hang around to experience the outcome?
Would you want your small children to play in the rain puddles nearby?
Oh dear God……
I watched the 60 minutes episode. It’s been tough, as a mom of two wee ones, to only imagine what they are going through and I have avoided watching any of the videos since it happened because I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle it. I was awake the night of the tsunami and saw the whole event unfold and that was hard enough. This made me loose it. I had to stop watching for a bit and stop crying before I could finish watching.
This is the very reason why I have had to stop going on Facebook or talking to people about this. The cavalier attitude of the American public towards this disaster, be it the tsunami, the earthquakes or the plant, is distressing in the least. No one is even talking about what is going on, much less recognizing the actual impact. I don’t care if you have convinced yourself that it won’t really affect us here; what happens when it DOES happen HERE? When Cali has a 7.0, 8.0, 9.0 earthquake? What will you be saying when you see the videos of Muir Woods National Park, or the Golden Gate under water? Or Disneyland or the houses along 101 being swept into the sea? Will it hit you then?
I am not a fatalist. I don’t think it’s going to happen tomorrow but it will happen. At some point, either in Japan, or around the Hawaiian islands or off the coasts of Cali or Oregon. What will we do then? THEN will we take this seriously?
I continue to pray to the God I believe in that the people over there CAN get this under control. Not just for me and my children but for that 6 year old little girl who miraculously survived her gym being flooded by a wall of water. I sickens me to think that in 10 years she could end up sick with some form of cancer. I understand there is tremendous amounts of natural radiation but THIS IS NOT NATURAL. You cannot, and will never after this, convince me that ANY of this is ok. For those who believe that hydroelectric is just as damaging because a dam could break and kill thousands of people: True. You mourn, you bury your dead and you clean up the mess. But you don’t have a fallout area hundreds of miles wide where no can live and people thousands of miles away sick from something that could have been completely avoided.
Just my opinion.
– Jen
Most of the information I get is from numerous sources in my role as an environmental investigative journalist, not from a single source like a student (who probably knows plenty but hasn’t schooled you in the subject for 13 years like I have been taught out in the field, in research and in consultation with numerous experts in many fields).
You may be flying blind but I am not so don’t speak for me or the other people in this conversation because you are making a fatal flaw: you are making assumptions.
One false assumption is that the Japanese and American governments think that the situation is “under control.” Neither government has ever said that. Indeed, the Japanese government has been preparing its people for the worst – read the statements of the Prime Minister.
And they don’t evacuate tens of thousands of Japanese just for the hell of it — it is because the land is hot and may get even hotter from radiation. (So much for your contention that no radiation has escaped the reactors)
The American government had to tell the Japanese government that ‘you must send as many people as it takes to get in there and defeat this monster even if they must die doing it.’ Sound “under control”? Hardly. Don’t believe me? Believe 60 Minutes. This is one of the most chilling 60 Minutes interviews that Denise Anne and I have ever watched.
You and I both agree that “the last thing we need at this point is blind panic” and if you actually looked at our site, our comments, our chat and our readings, you will see that we have kept people from panicking. We’ve even allowed you free rein in your comments even when you are admittedly not expert in the field, though you posture as such, and rely on a nuclear engineering grad to help you understand the situation.
EnviroReporter.com will continue to dispute any reckless remarks made here on this website but certainly welcome yours regardless of their accuracy. Just don’t be surprised when we call you on it.
I am preparing as best I can for my family.I think most people don’t realize the long term severity of it all. Many are just trying to keep their house from foreclosure or keep their job so this catastrophe “way over in Japan” seems like a distant problem for many. Life will never be the same and we who are more cognizant & pro-active with preparing will fare better.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDeFNDsfeoI
http://www.mext.go.jp/component/english/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2011/04/04/1304485_040419u.pdf
Readings of the radiation rate with the cooperation of universities on 4/3 – 4/4.
Page 2 is nice.
http://www.mext.go.jp/component/english/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2011/04/04/1304089_040419.pdf
Reading of environmental radioactivity level by prefecture[Fallout]
（4.3.9AM～4.4.9AM）
“millisieverts”
I’m going to stop posting for the time being, this is really getting to me
Withdrawal:
My apologies CJ, today is not my day. I misread the site I checked. The amounts listed should indeed be in microsieverts. Proportionally the rates are still however the same.
CJ, I don’t know where you got those numbers from, but I double checked mine before posting.
In terms of radiation type, I was talking about external exposure. Alpha particles are easily stopped, and will not penetrate the outer layers of skin. Having the source inside the body opens a whole new can of worms.
Truth, thank you for the vote of hopeful confidence. I am not knowingly lying, and most of my knowledge on the subject comes straight from a nuclear engineering graduate.
Unfortunately I think the spot where we are all flying blind is in terms of the exact condition of the plant. What little information I have on that topic is conflicting and/or incomplete. Both the Japanese and American governments believe that the situation is under control. Several other sources say the opposite, but many of those do not seem to be in a position to tell for themselves.
Regardless of the exact case, the last thing we need at this point is blind panic.
If our milk is showing Iodine 123 then would it be responsible to say that our eggs will be also?
I’m feeling so much angst over not knowing what to feed my young children. My son is three and doesn’t and will not eat meat so his main source of protein has been eggs.
It’s such a shame that I have to feed them canned/frozen veg/fruit which is not fresh and has much less nutritional value.
Japan To Dump Thousands Of TONS Of Radioactive Material Into The Ocean!
http://revolutionarypolitics.tv/video/viewVideo.php?video_id=14489
My apologies, I made a mistake in the last post. Gamma radiation is generally considered the deadliest and consists merely of photons (albeit energized beyond belief). Ionized protons and neutrons form Alpha radiation, the least penetrating of the three, though not necessarily the least deadly
Response to Ramey’s post: 3 sieverts, or 3000 mSv, will bring on nausea and vomiting in 24-48 hours. 4000 mSv, or 4 sieverts is potentially fatal. 5 sieverts, or 5000 mSv will result in nausea, vomiting & diarrhea along with loss of hair and appetite in 1 week; 50% fatality rate. 12 sieverts, or 12,000 mSv will result in death within a few days. So, using Ramey’s exposure schedule, half of those who receive full-body CT scans die as a result of the procedure and never have to concern themselves with further diagnosis or treatment.
Additionally, on the subject of radiation types and notwithstanding penetration competencies, the most damaging to cellular structure is alpha, because of size and speed, not gamma. Alpha is emitted from plutonium decay by the way.
Finally, there is no such thing as a 7 year cycle of cellular repair recognized in health physics. In fact, the vast majority of experts, sans Ann Coulter, best-selling author, political pundit and lawyer, agree that radiation exposure is cumulative over one’s lifetime, that there is no “safe” exposure and that, in fact, no specific threshold of “safe” exposure can be established for humans at this point in time.
@ Two Cents
Sort of, the music you hear is merely oscillations in the air particles, not radiation. However you are largely correct on a need for a clearer vocabulary, since heat, light , radio waves, etc. are all different examples of radiation.
The deadliest form of radiation consists of a proton or neutron that is knocked off of and “fired” from an unstable atom. Think of a small caliber bullet fired into a sand dune. The dune as a whole is unaffected, but individual particles along the path are knocked aside or shifted. Now think of the same thing happening to your body on a subatomic level. One, or even a hundred such occurrences won’t affect you in a manner you can actually notice, but a highly active source can easily release hundreds of thousands of such particles per second.
I leave in guadeloupe , and I thank you for your explications when the meter go up to 433 . There is no pic of radiations from japan after 10 days and 21 days.
Radiation seems too unspecific of a word, Chuck Berry’s music is radiating at me right now, right? but that feels good…so some radiation may even be good for us? Heat radiating in cold, etc. WE NEED A SET VOCABULARY HERE, THAT IS EASILY UNDERSTOOD BY EVERYONE. Semantics – can be the deadliest thing ever? Linguistics? Propoganda?
I’ve read somewhere, one form of “radiation” that is particularly bad is RANDOM SUB-ATOMIC PARTICLES ..supposedly over-working the thyroid/adrenal glands [i.e computers, cell phones, etc.] ..another subject we are conveiniently being dumbed down about.
-2c
A bit more info on radiation levels. Exposure to radiation is generally measured in accumulated sieverts. The body can over time deal with the effects, but it can take as much as the full seven year cellular cycle to completely reset the counter.
avg yearly exposure to natural radiation: 3.3 sieverts
recommended yearly exposure limit to non natural radiation (except for medical purposes): 1 sievert
exposure per session for a full body CT scan: 6.9 sieverts
avg exposure before known adverse medical symptoms show: 200 sieverts
avg exposure before serious medical symptoms show: 500 sieverts
immediately lethal dose: 7,000~10,000 sieverts
CPM, or counts per minute, is a rate of external exposure to radiation, and is approximately equal to .01 microsieverts an hour. 40 CPM would then translate to about 3.5 sieverts a year.
Cancer, and its relation to radiation exposure is still being explored. We know that the more radiation, the more likely it is to occur, but the lower limits where it can or cannot occur are unfortunately unknown.
The particles involved in the fallout we are seeing emit Alpha and Beta radiation. Alpha cannot penetrate the outer layer of dead skin cells and only travels for a few inches in any case, Beta has difficulty getting past the inner layer. Both however can cause serious problems if the source is inside the body. Particles emitting Gamma radiation are the real nightmare, since they can penetrate nearly any amount of organic material. Fortunately none of those have been released to the best of my knowledge.
I would also add, Michael that the Union of Concerned Scientists, the Physicians for Social Responsibility and the Nuclear Information Resource Services—all very solid, scientific sites have also stated that there is NO safe level of ionizing radiation coming from nuclear power sources.
These same agencies have also recently (on 4/2 or 4/3) issued a statement strongly criticizing the FDA and EPA for issuing false assurances that compare our current amount of exposure to Fukushima radiation with “background” natural radiation.
Inhaling and ingesting radioactive isotope fallout is NOT the same thing as lying on the beach for 5 hours or taking an airplane trip across the country!!!!
The gov’t agencies and pro-nuke champions have a huge stake for various reasons, in minimizing this concern.
It is a very serious concern. Nuclear accidents have caused this kind of damage repeatedly since the mid-50s when a plant in Canada had an accident.
The cover-ups, fugded safety records, “cooked” numbers, and hidden faulty design plans in nuclear power plants (including those in our own SoCal back yard) are legion and are researchable in some very reliable and trustworthy articles, scientific papers and research/policy papers.
The scary thing is that our regulatory agencies are not doing much about it and seem to blow with the political/economic wind. There are many examples of this from San Onofre in 2006 and 2009, and also with respect to Diablo Canyon.
Look up in the sky Michael, see that big glowing thingy? That is the largest nuclear power plant within lightyears of us, and it outputs an incredible amount of radiation on a daily basis. Most of it is absorbed or deflected by the atmosphere before it reaches us, but not all. Humanity has been living healthy lives with constant 24/7 exposure to radiation, both direct from the sun, and from other sources. If there was not a safe limit to exposure, not one of us would be alive to argue over the matter. We can argue over where that limit is, and I suspect we have differing ideas on the topic, but attempting to ridicule me will not change the fact that it does exist.
I suspect that had the full article been posted, we would have seen the DOE acknowledge that fact.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG6Jq1Zn_o0&feature=player_embedded
Radiation Ramey once again falsely “implies” that “there is indeed a safe limit to radiation exposure” when the Department of Energy, as Nojustice points out, says it isn’t so. Rad Ramey would have you believe that he/she knows more about radiation than DOE. I don’t think that is plausible, do you?
But why let facts get in the way of false assertions, Rad Ramey? Well, because positing such nonsense is not appreciated at a time when Americans need to know as much about radiation as possible.
What is known is that no amount of low-level radiation exposure is safe. In late July 2005, the prestigious National Academy of Sciences came out with a milestone report that confirmed this. “The scientific research base shows that there is no threshold of exposure below which low levels of ionized radiation can be demonstrated to be harmless or beneficial,” said Richard R. Monson, the panel chairman and a professor of epidemiology at Harvard’s School of Public Health.
Consider the source, folks, when people like Rad Ramey push their phony “safe limit to radiation” hooey. This is the same person who has claimed in these comments that no radiation has even escaped Fukushima’s melted fuel and cracked cores. This is the kind of nonsense, buttressed by an enabler in these comments as well, that is not only irresponsible but dangerous.
We have allowed such false comments to appear on our website simply because exposing the lie to the pro-nukers’ arguments is educational for all of us. You will hear a lot more of this hokum if the fallout from Fukushima continues to visit our shores in even greater concentrations, God forbid, as this disaster continues to worsen.
I would advise our readers to heed the knowledge of the Department of Energy and the National Academy of Sciences than some anonymous pro-nuke poster like Rad Ramey.
Nojustice, that is an inherently flawed statement when taken out of context. We get bombarded with radiation every day, a condition occurring on this planet since long before life ever emerged. By definition, that more than implies that there is indeed a safe limit to radiation exposure, frankly, life could not exist without it.
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/04/20114219250664111.html#
Brian, the averages, taken several times daily, have their own page now called Radiation Station Stats. And, no, I wasn’t referring to the yellow sticky residue that people are referring to but I have never seen myself.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2369
and
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2370
JMiller is one of the physicists working on the project and just last night DChivers (the lead) was back to answering some questions.
The Norwegian Institute of Air Research is also predicting that moderate levels of radiation will hit the U.S. west coast on April 5th and 6th.
http://theintelhub.com/2011/04/03/rainwater-in-california-measured-181-times-the-acceptable-limit-for-drinking-water/
They have an animation there showing what areas will be hit the hardest
I will arm myself with a humanitarian attitude and try to help as many people as I can. If someone feels a gun is a better solution and I can not defend myself ( the last act on this earth of killing or injuring another human over a can of soup) so be it.
Michael, I never once suggested, much less said that the contamination of rainwater is nothing to worry about.
What I was trying to point out is that while the rainwater is contaminated to an unacceptable degree, tap water is not, at least not yet. It is still 40% below what is considered unsafe levels, rather than 18,100% above it, as Joyce was saying.
Does anybody know what happened to the UC Berkeley website? They stopped reporting their sampling data on March 31, and now I can’t even connect to their website.
I’m really troubled because this website and theirs are one of the few doing the necessary and daily sampling and monitoring. Not even the government (EPA/FDA) is releasing current sampling on tap water, rain water, etc. UC Berkeley’s info was being released daily.
I get the feeling the government wishes we’d all forget about it, because if radiation is a problem, then the agricultural industry could take an ecoonomic hit, and that’s the last thing they want in the fragile economy.
Thanks!
Nancy
?? what happened to the daily averages??
Hello Michael I have a Question.. you said something about rain water so hot it is dangerous, are you referring to the yellow sticky residue left behind after the rain?? thx Brian
That is a good question, so good that I don’t have the answer. Instinctively, I’d go with the AQMD on this one.
As always, Michael, you express it so very well.
I would say that the word, “safety” and the word “nuclear” form the ultimate contradiction in terms.
There simply isn’t a “safe” nuclear plant. Even if the statistical probablilty indicates that an accident is “not likely,” many of us here have said repeatedly, that when an accident DOES occur, the consequences are devastating for humanity (world-wide) and for the enviroment in ways that completely negate the “low-probability” statistics about accidents.
Once hundreds of thousands of people are affected by one single accident the concept of safety “probability” becomes irrelevant.
And the truth is (as some of your investigative reporting has demonstrated and as many of EnviroReporter’s Commentary section responders have noted) that we are not often told the truth about individual plant dangers and risks, about the history of plant accidents (dating all the way back to the late 50s if you include Canada) or about the broad consequences of nuclear accidents.
Now….about gardens. Whether there was a “hot spot” in my garden or not, I should not have to be dealing with even a concern about such a possibility.
No one anywere in the world should have to deal with the “fall-out” of nuclear accidents—whether in power plants or in military contexts.
Whether literally or figuratively, when it comes to the consequences of nuclear disasters, whatever appears in my garden appears in everyone’s garden.
Michael,
Does Nuclear Radiation follow the same pattern as smog does in Los Angeles? I know there is some cites that get more smog than other cities in LA. I recently contacted the http://www.aqmd.gov/ (Air Quality Control of So. Cal.) and asked them this same question. They said, “I don’t think so.” What do you think?
Again, thank you for your continued commitment to this undertaking. It gives me repeated reassurance that is available nowhere else and there are constant improvements such as the weather and time data, the averages and now the point chart of averages. Great work. Appreciate that you make this public, see-for-yourself, instead of “trust the authorities”, seeing IS believing.
Gratefully,
Stefanie
As a general rule of thumb, someone who tells you that rainwater that has 18,100% more radiation than is allowed in drinking water is nothing to worry about is someone who either is ill-informed or has an agenda, say, a pro-nuke agenda.
Rain water waters gardens and affects vegetation which livestock eat and it is also drank by wildlife making it one substance on our planet that we don’t want pulverized by radiation.
Pro nukers distinguish themselves as know-it-alls who dismiss radiation as a hazard and embrace it as a save all for the planet. After Fukushima, I think most people will know that this delusion is not only wishful thinking but dangerous.
The days of unsubstantiated proclamations of nuclear power plant safety are over. People are not going to take it.
Deceiving people that no radiation has escaped the reactors, even with countless reports of that not being the case, and then dismissing rain water so hot that it’s dangerous, is outrageous and reprehensible.
Ramey, although your posts are excellent, on this one point, I would disagree with you.
I do not dispute that nuclear plants are a prolific source of energy. And certainly fossil fuel sources have their own inherent problems (viz. the BP debacle).
I do not entirely agree that this disaster (and other similar ones) are the result solely of design flaws. Human error is a factor, as the human inability to adequately identify a “worst case” scenario because of our all-too-human tendency to assume that we are in control of nature rather than the other way around.
I understand that all of this represents a complicated problem because even those of us who oppose nuclear power and who encourage exploration of “alternative” sources also contribute, whether we want to admit it or not, to the problem.
We (here in the U.S.) are an energy-driven, energy obsessed culture.). Our entire socio-economic structure and social fabric are based on energy needs.
We are entirely (excessively, IMO) technology dependent, which in itself requires power, not to mention that the products with which our culture is obsessed (the latest techo-gadgets) must be produced somewhere in factories…..powered by TEPCO or GE or the Chinese or Korean equivalant (the latter of which is even more troubling).
There was an interesting Op Ed in the L.A. Times, today. I have mixed feelings about Times journalism, but I thought that this article did a good job of emphasizing a point I believe is important—
Which is that as long as our dependence on outrageous amounts of power and “products” continues to increase and proliferate, it is not likely that the problems inherent in both atomic and fossil forms of energy will be properly addressed.
I would not, for a single minute, oversimplify this problem. It is vastly complex and involves multi-layered social, economic and moral issues that cannot be adequately addressed in any “Op Ed” by anyone.
I guess we have to keep pondering, considering and engaging in respectful and thoughtful debate or discussion—and doing what we can to prevent disasters of this scale from happening again (and I’d include BP in that).
Obviously, returning to candles and donkey-propelled transportation is not a pragmatic solution, and I am not so naive as to even suggest it.
Within a single year, we have suffered 2 tragedies with universal impact, with global scope—BP and Fukushima.
Something is very wrong, and perhaps we will have to examine the very deepest levels of our existence to even begin to address the problems and complexities involved.
Joyce, you didn’t read the report thoroughly. Levels in Rainwater were 18,100% above drinking standards. Levels in tap water were far lower, here is the quote from that same link you provided
“This level is much lower than our rain water measurements by a factor of approximately 300, and lower than our milk measurement by a factor of 30. We will be continuing measurements of tap water to confirm this result; the level is so low it is approaching the threshold of detection.”
As a general rule of thumb, if something is so rare that you have trouble detecting it exists at all, it generally isn’t enough to worry about.
Thanks, Miso—and yes, this is, for me, also a praying situation.
One theme I hear repeatedly from the trustworthy sources is that we are in completely uncharted waters, here; no one knows exactly what the critical paramaters are (because there is little available accurate instrumentation or measurement resources)….and also because Japan and the Utility are not being forthcoming about the information they DO know.
I am also troubled by the relative silence of the IAEA, the NRC and other “regulatory” agencies, all of whom are “on-scene” so to speak.
Greenpeace has a few isolated people in the field, and the numbers and concerns they are reporting are not consistent with what the “heavy hitter” agencies are saying.
I think we do not know what is really going on; I’m not sure even the best experts do. I’ve been following David Lochbaum’s (and other UCS experts’) daily “pressers” and they have emphasized this point repeatedly–that at best, they are operating with theoretical models and with a degree of “informed guesswork.”
I do think that donations to Japan are important. Some cities in the Inland Empire, where I live are really undertaking that effort in a wholehearted way through municipal governments, individuals and churches.
I’ve said this before that while we here are also facing a very real concern and possible long-term effects and consequences, the people of Japan must endure suffering a hundredfold worse than what me must contend with.
Anything we can do to help is important.
Andorra. Without a doubt the best place to be. Radiation just wouldn’t be able to find this hidden gem. Beijing might be just the place. In the wake of Japan’s nuclear crisis, on March 16 Beijing halted approvals of new nuclear power plants pending changes to safety standards.
Chauncy, current windpatterns are blowing the fallout to the south and east, but that can change. There’s no way to guarantee that any particular country won’t see at least a bit of it. Not being able to predict the future, I’d say west Europe and Africa are likely to see the least, if any.
Let me put this a bit bluntly Liz, in terms of economically viable energy systems, we have exactly two choices. More fossil fuel plants, or more nuclear power plants. With the exception of hydroelectric, which we have tapped out, not one of the alternative energy programs work on a large scale. Solar is too expensive, same for wind, ethanol is the biggest joke ever made, and is responsible for at least two food crises in third world countries that I know of, etc.
This latest disaster occurred in part because of design oversights. Someone decided to make a plant that was far too vulnerable to flood damage in a tsunami prone region. If you want to make a difference, push for global safety standards.
Michael,
In your opinion, where are the safest countries to live without getting affected by this radiation? Is Beijing, China okay?
“The Omega Man” (apocalypse survival training video) trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3HyFgttw1g
Mike you are absolutely correct in your approach that the worst is still lingering with us, and will be for some time. I received a letter on Friday from the Vienna office of the IAEA with this statement “The Fukushima crisis has ‘confronted the Agency and the international community with a major challenge'”, according to Director General Amano. So the issue is thus; no one really knows what to do because the experts have never encountered such a situation, which, as it has been publicly stated by Japanese officials, is “a massive crisis beyond our scope”. It’s a waiting game now, and perhaps a praying one too.
Meanwhile, stories are emerging from within the 30K evacuation zone and the Mayor of Minami-Soma City in the Fukushima Prefecture (25K zone) has put out a plea for help on youtube. It seems no one wants to risk radiation to get supplies in to those who have been told to stay indoors (for the last 3 weeks). This video was recorded on 3/24.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70ZHQ–cK40
For a list of things these people need:
http://translate.google.com/translate?js=n&prev=_t&hl=ja&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&sl=ja&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.city.minamisoma.lg.jp
Click ‘East Earthquake realated information’. Then click ‘Accept relief supplies’. For address info.
I’m sending a big box of healthy organic goodies and other material supplies tomorrow. I feel it’s the very least to do.
Michael—this is so chilling!!! From what I’d read (at the more “reliable” places—i.e. neither government controlled nor of the alarmist camp) I truly had the impression that a core meltdown that would contact the ground water and thus cause that massive steam explosion was not very likely anymore, although it was a “close call” in the early phases, from what I read.
I did read that a constant stream of radioactive particulate matter (at unacceptable, above-normal limits) will be making its way to the U.S. for a long period of time and that readings/measurements so far have been far more serious and significant than what is being reported by the EPA and the FDA and some of the other government agencies.
PSR et. al are also saying that when those agencies DO report the numbers, they present a misleading interpretation/analysis of the significance of the results, like comparing the “apples and oranges.”
The NIRS, PRS and UCS indicated in its joint statements yesterday that the FDA was leading people to believe that these radiation levels, no matter how high were “safe” because the levels were “equivalant to” “background” radiation, when in fact the manner of contact and the nature of the isotopes are quite different; the two types of exposures cannot be compared.
Now, I did hear about the chlorine 138 yesterday and was reading several experts’ tentative analysis of that (which matches what you are saying)—
But even experts like David Lochbaum are saying that part of the problem is that there is SO LITTLE real or accurate information forthcoming from Japan or TEPCO (and no real instrumentation within the area to measure or diagnose with) that every the best experts are left with only deductive, theoretical models—essentially “informed guesswork” as they try to understand what is actually happening.
So, what you’re saying is that it isn’t true that core temps have lowered and that the possibility of full core meltdown is therefore (and also because of other factors) diminished??????
I was feeling much better believing that it was………but I guess I have fallen prey to wishful thinking.
In a way, in a very broader sense, whether or not there is a dramatic catastrophe, the important issue remains: Nuclear energy is a drastically inherently unsafe type of utility.
Statistically, the probability of catastrophic accidents may be “low”…..but when accidents HAPPEN, the catastrophic effects are felt throughout the entire global community……….with horrific short-term and long-term effects world-wide for human life and for every level of the environment.
That is why, whether Fukushima worsens or not, we must galvanize as much effort as we can to prevent more such plants from coming online and to shut down as many others as possible–(and in the meantime, maintain a close “independent” watchdog vigilance over them).
Thanks for posting this. I trust you and ER so very much and perhaps if/when you have time to post updates like this for us, it will be of great benefit.
Sign me on for the long-haul!
This simply should not be happening, but it will continue to happen unless it is stopped.
No, Joyce, because the cities are 400 miles apart and do not have the same weather or the same amount of the jet stream impacting them at any one time. In the last two weeks, the jet stream has more directly impacted SF than LA as many weather motion graphics bear out.
Also, we tested the rain water for alpha and beta radiation and found no increase in radioactivity. Thank goodness for the folks in this part of Southern California!
Michael
Since the radiation in the rain and some drinking water in San Fran has gone thru the roof, would it not be safe to think the same has taken place in the LA area?
Christina – Question 1 is yes. You can’t “put out” a reactor core going experiencing “inadvertent criticality” like Reactor 1 is and expect that burying it in sand/concrete/boric acid and know that it will work. You can’t smother a radioactive meltdown or fire. So it will continue to burn right down past the containment structure, concrete superstructure, ground and then hit the water table and then an explosion that could shoot a highly radioactive geyser tens of thousands of feet into the atmosphere.
Question 2: That is so incorrect it makes me question how Kaku could be right on a number of observations and so wrong on this one. A doctor should know not to make an absolute determination when events haven’t run their course. Just because we haven’t had total and uncontrollable meltdowns at this point is no sign of success; it just means the Japanese haven’t lost total control yet. Remember what I reported in our March 15 post Melt Down Wind – “We just don’t know what’s going to happen,” said Dr. Ira Helfand, a radioactive exposure expert and board member of Physicians for Social Responsibility. “Quite frankly, the operators of the plants don’t either.”
So how does Kaku know? He doesn’t. But let me tell you what I know: When radiation is already showing up in the U.S at high levels (Iodine 131 in Berkeley rain water at 18,000 times the drinking water limit for the radionuclide is just one example) before a full meltdown(s), you know we’re going to have a real problem if this disaster continues to go south.
3. You would have to ask the Radnet folks that question.
Allow me a moment to address some of the wishful thinking that I’ve seen in a small number of comments of late herein: wishful thinking is just that – wishful. To even entertain that the worst is behind us betrays an ignorance of the facts that anyone with a pair of eyes can see: there are several blown apart reactors at Fukushima that are slipping into criticality.
Reactor 1’s water has been tested positive for Chlorine 138, a byproduct of neutron bombardment of Cl 137 which comes from sea water. This means the sea water has come in contact with the core which is breached. Every time the sea water has been poured into Reactor 1, this “inadvertent criticality” occurs and heats up the core and evaporates the water off and then stops reacting. That means Reactor 1 is turning on and off without being controlled by the workers (who are getting hammered by neutron bombardment that doesn’t register on a dosimeter).
Reactor 1 is out of control. The other reactors and spent fuel ponds are not under control. This is a disaster that gets worse as time goes by, not better as posited here by dismissive naysayers who clearly are not in command of the facts.
The sea water a quarter mile offshore is irradiated. Bodies in the hot zone can’t be dealt with because they are too hot to handle. The soil, water and air have been fouled by an unrelenting release of the most lethal radionuclides without end in sight. Fukushima is making Chernobyl look like a walk in the park.
While it feels good to think things will somehow magically get better, one should take stock of this: things could get A LOT WORSE and that’s not even taking into account the 104 nuclear reactors sitting in this country like ticking timebombs should the unthinkable ever happen.
Like the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station 50 miles south of Los Angeles that can withstand an earthquake only 1 (one) percent of the magnitude of the one that destroyed so much of Japan. Earthquake faults discovered after building this poorly run facility lie just a few miles away. Ditto with the reactors at Diablo Canyon in San Luis Obispo County.
“But it can’t happen here!” Really? That’s what they thought in Japan too.
So to the meltdown deniers, let me quote Clint Eastwood – “Feeling lucky, punk?”
We’ll I’m not and that’s why we have established Radiation Station. And that’s why the Radiation Nation is going to prepare for the worst and hope, but not falsely assert, for the best.
Yes and no. The rods themselves were not physically damaged, and so are not releasing any physical material at this point. What they are releasing at the moment is “pure” radiation on all bands, which is either projecting harmlessly towards space through the hole in the ceiling, or being blocked by the concrete and lead shielding. This is a massive problem for anyone trying to work onsite, but not for us. What we are concerned about are the radioactive waste products, which had been stored in tanks above the cores when they blew (that makes three significant design flaws I know of incidentally). By this point, any waste material not already blown into the atmosphere should be secured onsite. I may be wrong, its been tough to get any accurate data on the state of things over there, and it is possible they were unable to reach something.
Ramey, I would tend to agree with you that a further catastrophic episode is not so likely to occur at Fukushima at this point in time. There has been some natural “cool-down” process to the rods by now; a classic “meltdown” is not as imminent a threat as it was in the early days of the disaster, when core temperatures were at their highest.
However, some associated with the Union of Concerned Scientists are indicating that in 2 or 3 (I forget which) of the reactors, the cores remain exposed several feet or more above water level.
It certinaly does seem likely that there will be a slow, continuous dispersal of radioactive material into the air, soil, ground water and ocean, although hopefully, now, no major “ejection” of any such material into the atmosphere at higher altitudes through steam blast, explosion or other more violent means of dispersal.
The constant “drift” does have some implicaitons for us, from what I’ve read on the ethical, responsible sites like UCS, PSR and NIRS–but less likely at the catastrophe level.
I remain concerned about possibly having encountered a “hot spot” from “rain out” in my own garden, but there is not much I can do about that, now, other than possibly find someone to check a sample for me—and detectible amounts would be determined by type of isotope and its associated half-life.
I do think that what has happened with Fukushima should engage all of us in serious consideration about the implications any accident would have closer to home—that is probably where we most need to focus our attention at the present time.
Thanks, Ramey; you seem quite well informed.
Well it looks like everything is going to be okay. Once I puchase a gun and avoid bananas. I’m not going bananas anymore. Well unless I’m hungry and they’re cheap and organic. Will a squirt gun be sufficient for defending any bananas I may or may not purchase? I don’t think the looters will be able to tell in the dark. There are also good videos out to help train for these scenarios, (i.e. The Omega Man, The Road), maybe a super-soaker?, they’re pretty strong you know.
-2cents
Dear Michael Collins,
Obviously the continued and increased release of radioactive contamination is perilous for Japan, the US and the world.
1). Addressing this, physicist Dr. Michio Kaku recently critisized (rightly) Japan’s mismanagement of the reactor crises at Fukushima. He also suggested a “Chernobyl option” – burying the reactors in sand/concrete/boric acid – as a last resort, similar to what the Russians did decades ago.
But I recall your statement that if a meltdown occured, it would eventually hit the water table and then could explode into the upper atmosphere.
My question is, would burying it as Dr. Kaku recomends create such meltdown scenario, with the materials doomed to eventually hit the water table and then “backfire” explosively into the upper atmosphere?
Dr. Kaku link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obK4zISRgyo&feature=youtube_gdata_player
2). Also in the above clip, Dr. Kaku dismisses the threat of Japan’s radioactive fallout posing a US health risk. I wonder what long term studies he bases that on. Modern medicine can’t pinpoint the source of most cancers, so who’s to say that even Chernobyl fallout didn’t have a part to play. What is your position?
3). Is it possible to determine which radioactive isotope(s) correspond to the gamma energy ranges on a Radnet chart? If so please explain.
Thanks again,
– C
Bill G your on something
A gun or a banana?
Like a chainsaw or welder, a gun is just a tool. Proper training and respect is required for safe use. Get trained on the proper use if you have one. Each too their own but for hunting or protection, I view a gun as a neccessary survival tool. I hope I don’t need it but I’m certainly glad I have it.
Regardless, an event requiring evacuation is not remotely likely at this point. If a true meltdown was in the works, it would have already occurred. It appears that the failsafe systems did engage, and the only reason there is any problem in the first place was the trashed coolant pipes. This means the rods were down to under 10% max temperature in the first few minutes. All that remains is to finish the cooldown process, unfortunately without the equipment in place designed for it. Short of a terrorist planting a bomb in there, we’ve already seen the worst that plant can throw at us now.
NoJustice – please prepare in advance and advise loved ones to do the same. The more people that are prepared the less likely chaos will ensue as the prepared will not risk going out to purchase/loot items.
I’ve seen some good lists here highlighting readiness action items. You can help the idiotic masses by giving the govt and local authorities one less family to worry about/supply to.
A gun will only risk a hazardous situation to you from others (perhaps an overwhelming majority) that want to take it. Expect for hunting purposes (which I don’t foresee becoming necessary), useful and practical knives (fixed, utility, pocket) will serve more useful to you as tools as means of food acquisition.
Please don’t even think of looting. Let’s learn from the calm and respectful people of Japan that showed us how despite disaster they can be very orderly – compared to US citizens as seen after the Katrina disaster and all of the looting that occurred. = /
Boy Scout motto: Be prepared.
Thanks Ramey. I was treated for thyroid cancer in 2006, so probably the iodine isn’t as big an issue for me. I have dropped yogurt and switched to canned milk until this ends.
I am also eating canned bean salads instead of fresh produce as I don’t want to ingest the other isotopes…. one cancer is ENUF. I was a child during the above ground atomic blasts.
California: Radioactive Iodine-131 In Rainwater 181 Times Above Drinking Water Standards, Has Also Been Detected In Multiple Milk Samples, While US Gov Has Still Not Published Any Official Data On Japan Disaster
http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2011/04/02/california-radioactive-iodine-131-in-rainwater-181-times-above-drinking-water-standards-has-also-been-detected-in-multiple-milk-samples-while-us-gov-has-still-not-published-any-official-data-on-jap/
Thanks Lotus. Looks like just some of the lesser waste particles, not the heavy hitters. None of them emit Gamma band radiation, so as an external threat they are limited. The Xenon should disperse pretty quickly without settling, its a noble gas. The Cesium and Iodine are a concern. They could pose a big problem if ingested in relatively significant quantity, the iodine in particular, since that accumulates in the thyroid. I’d suggest sticking to filtered water, and washing fresh produce carefully for a time. A simple surgical mask may not be a bad idea if a cloud is in the area. Whatever particles do settle will get recycled by the environment fairly quickly. Do bear in mind however, I’m going off of the report below, if other kinds of waste were released aside from those three, they would have different properties.
Thanks, Bill G—I had always thought of dietary potassium (in reasonable quantities, obviously) as a healthy ingredient—which I assume it is–thanks for the helpful explanation.
There are so many well-informed people on this site, and everyone is presenting such good sources of information.
Ramey, oh, of course, that makes perfect sense. I was wondering about Bananas because suddenly everyone’s mentioning them in that context and I had always thought of them as a perfectly innocuous food source, LOL. Thanks for the very clear clarification.
Thanks for this site, Lotus. It seems quite useful if it is based on accurate modeling.
Liz, It is my understanding that bananas contain potassium. And a form of potassium is radioactive. This form is makes up a small part of the potassium in a banana, but it is statistically there none the less. So, we ingest some radioactive potassium with each banana we eat.
There is an interactive plot of various isotopes…. I don’t know who puts this out, possibly a Norwegian meterology group.
Looks like animated surface trajectories are also predicted.
This is by the day.
I don’t know the veracity of this group, but this could be very useful. Cut Time is used as a reference. You can isolate to Pacific area, Asia, North America, US,etc. Units are Bqs
http://transport.nilu.no/products/browser/fpv_fuku?fpp=conc_Xe-133_0_;region=DMANC1
I am having problems with press announcements. Some suggest that a cement sarophagus is imminent and others suggest that the perfect cooling system will take months with more spewing of radiation.
To answer your question about the bananas Liz, all living organisms emit low levels of radiation, including ourselves. Primarily, its from the Carbon atoms that our cell structure is based on. In fact, when we use Carbon dating to calculate the age of organic materials, that is exactly what they are measuring, the rate of radioactive decay.
Hi, Rico—-
Oh, my, this is unsettling news in a way, although it’s validating. I was hoping that some sort of strange anomaly was at work in my garden, or that the stickiness on the hose was a random coincidence.
But when I started reading Potr’s articles on his web-site, my concern rose.
Now, your own experience with the plants just considerably lowered the probability of this being a coincidence.
I should also add that I live along the trajectory that many Pacific storms (depending on type and origin) take as they enter Southern California—they tend to come up through the northern part of Orange County and travel on into the Inland Empire.
With respect to these recent storms, Anaheim, Riverside and the north-eastern portions of Sbdo County got hit harder than other area with intense rainfall. There were correlated elevated levels of radiation detected here during the same time.
Taking all of this information into account—now 2 reports of sticky substances; the timing of the incidents involving sticky substances–i.e. during/after significant rainfall during the “fall-out” period; Potr’s detection of elevated radioactivity in St. Louis; other reports of elevated amounts of ionizing radiation in rain and snow on the East Coast—
I believe it is logical to assume that the material on my hose and on your plant was likely related to the Fukushima release.
Now, I’m concerned because I had contact with the stuff and it can be absorbed cutaneously.
I assume you didn’t touch your plant……… (?). Thanks for this info.
Reading about the “sticky stuff” here and have my own experience. I’m in So Cal. I have 2 identical indoor palm plants. Sometimes I take them outside and trim off the dead parts and left one outside and it rained that night. Next day it was all sticky and had a glazed look to it. The plant that did not get rained on was not sticky at all.
Did not pay it much mind until reading this blog. Oh boy.
http://www.unitedstatesaction.com/nuclear_radiation_and_fallout.htm
There really is an “INFOWAR” going on. Shame on me for relying on TV/CABLE for answers/updates FOR ANYTHING. CNN, the top news source I know of is now including celebrity interviews in their format! (now–of all times)..and I’ve yet to see the Internet as a reliable info source, or know of one site streaming live, current, relevant news.
Television, radio, newspapers it seems has become like politics, government and everything else—dominated by Corporations (USA anway.. was it always?). ‘Consumerism above all’, ‘It’s safe because we said it’s safe’, ‘don’t question authority’. Truth is a marvelous thing, what is true? Can we handle the truth? The medias lack of dealing with this subject extensively only reinforces that saying, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”. Control is who’s controling information/education/peoples minds. It’s not just this current Japanese contamination issue but many other issues we are not focusing on as we should be as stewards of the earth. We are too conservative and only react when we see a clear and present danger. Are the homeless people the only true revolutionaries in our society? The only people refusing and resisting? What the majority does is the only true vote we have today. If the majority is using nuclear energy, nuclear energy will be.
– two cents
Well, you’re right, BigR, I hadn’t thought of it that way.
What I was thinking of was the NIRS, PSR, et. al. criticizing the FDA and EPA for comparing the radiation we’re receiving from Japan to “normal” background radiation—and they said that this was not a reasonable nor accurate comparison because people don’t ingest or inhale particles containig ionizing radiation and the dangerous isotopes it contains.
But in a broader sense, it is true, there is much natural radiation (and some “unnatural” radiation) around. There is Uranium in bricks and concrete and in the Midwest, Radon is quite a problem.
However, I would maintain that’s different from weapons-grade Plutonium, Cesium 137 and Strontium 90 (not coming from Japan so far, I’ve heard?).
And I have a question: Why is everyone saying there’s radiation in Banannas? I’d never heard that before? What, exactly is it, if anyone knows. LOL, I’ve always liked Banannas! Thanks, BigR
Here is a link to the radiation dosage chart.
http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/radiation-dosage-chart/
To Liz,
I don’t agree with your last sentence of your posting on 4/3/2011, “We don’t inhale or ingest background radiation, nor feel it on cars, garden hoses, etc.” . We do inhale and ingest material with naturally occurring background radiation; we are surrounded by it. I just saw a radiation dosage chart that had listed bananas as a source of radiation, I also heard of other food as a source of radiation. Some of us live in areas where we might inhale dust that has uranium in it as it is naturally occurring. Some tiles in homes and some soils emit radon gas (ever see those home radon gas test kits). I agree that no normal person should want to have additional doses of radiation, but that last sentence is not accurate.
I really appreciate this site, thank you for running it! Now I have a question about precipitation. We had a lot of rain last night, which turned into snow, so I am about to go outside and shovel it off the driveway and sidewalks. do I need to be concerned or careful about this snow? Could it contain high levels of radioactive particles?
Michael,
if you know anyone who can interview the affected dairy farmers; it could prove interesting
see by blog for details.
Is anyone testing radioiodine exposed west coast dairy cows for thyroid damage? They should be!
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/04/is-anyone-testing-radioiodine-exposed.html
Thanks for the vid, Brian–
And thanks for the tip, Jessica about removing any fallout we might have contact with—-
And thanks for the explanation of the measurements, Potr–
I intially wasn’t going to say anything about the sticky substance I felt on my garden hose b/c I didn’t want to fall prey to alarm, and I thought it was just my overactive imagination.
But after I saw Potr’s video yesterday, I grew concerned all over again.
For 4 1/2 years, that hose (the nozzle section that you pick up) has ALWAYS been in the same place. During heavy rains that front section of the garden sometimes does pond with an inch or two or water. So that hose was sitting in that for almost a week while it rained continually out here.
The minute I picked up that hose the other day, I felt something that felt like tree sap or fly glue, but much stickier than that. It was all over my hand, and I instantly wondered if it could be radioactive “rain out” material.
I have never, ever felt anything like that on the hose. And I can guarantee that there are no sap secreting plants nearby. The sticky material went along the length of the hose as far as I ran my hand down it.
I had to finish watering and then came in to get it off, which is when I discovered that ordinary soap would NOT remove it, and had to resort to the Ajax.
Well, there’s nothing I can do about it, now. I suppose I could get the fire department out here to measure it, but what would that accomplish (LOL, other than making them think I’m a nut case if it turns out not to be radioactive, LOL).
Last night, I talked to an ex-boyfriend about it. He is one of the top people in his field (Non-destructive testing)—He conducts scientific, instrument-based inspections of metal, concrete, etc, and in his day has inspected many nuclear reactors.
He also works with nuclear materials all the time b/c of the kinds of tests he applies–and he said it was perfectly possible that the substance WAS radioactive, but he also said that if there had been a heavy concentration, my hand would have blistered, which it didn’t. Except that not all types of isotopes would cause that, I’m thinking.
I also have to address a statement made by the FDA, claiming that we don’t need to worry about rainwater because “we don’t drink it.” That is patently ridiculous!! Children play in puddles and PETS drink rain water if they are outdoors.
I’ve said this before: Whether these are “safe” (so-called) levels or not, NONE of us should be subjected to having to even worry about it. We are wrongfully being told that this is the same as “background” radiation. It is not. We don’t inhale or ingest background radiation, nor feel it on cars, garden hoses, etc.
Fine, don’t want to believe me? Believe the data staring you right in the face. Over the past several days, the recorded data on this monitor has NEVER been over 52 CPM, barely above average background radiation.
This is not the first radiation scare to occur, and it is also not the first scare where people chose to exaggerate or even falsify data for their own reasons.
For informational purposes, here is a half-life time table for iodine-131, the isotope most frequently mentioned.
# Half-lives # of Days Fraction of Remaining Isotope (I-131)
1 8 1/2
2 16 1/4
3 24 1/8
4 32 1/16
5 40 1/32
6 48 1/64
7 56 1/128
8 64 1/256
9 72 1/512
10 80 1/1,024
– – –
20 160 1/1,048,576 (about one millionth)
– – –
30 240 1/1,073,741,824 (about one billionth)
– – –
45 360 1/35,184,372,088,832 (about one 35 trillionth)
@ Liz I found a few videos on youtube of yellow sticky rain falling on Japan & also in Arizona too.. here are links to the info hope it helps..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UumpHTsnKs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTqb__RO9bQ
it is reported to be yellow, but I see you said your hose was submerged in water, possibly coloring it a diff color, but is deff labeled as stick substance, and was the same thing they reported in Chernobyl, but they tried to pass it off as POLLEN, the same as Japan & Arizona… hope this helps..
I am so thankful for this forum! I wanted to pass on something I stumbled upon 2 weeks ago. I was looking for something to help with a rash I had – came across the box set of Calagel and Tecnu, and was stunned to read the side of the box;
“Tecnu – outdoor skin cleanser
Poison Oak, Ivy and Nuclear Fallout
Tecnu was developed in 1961, during the cold war years by chemical engineer, Dr. Robert Smith, as an effective waterless cleanser capable of removing radioactive dust from skin and clothing. His wife accidentally discovered that Tecnu would cleanse poison plant oils after exposure to poison oak and ivy. Tecnu has become standard-issue in first aid kits of outdoor professionals acros the country…..”
Might not be entirely useful at the moment, but here in Southern California (thank goodness I’ve been hoarding food in the event of ‘the’ eartquake!), we’re in between Diablo and San Onofre. Might be good to have on hand.
Also, don’t forget that cilantro and parsley are good for removing metals and toxins from the body. Glutathione is another thing to look at (helps remove free radicals and seems to be beneficial for radiation exposure). This is a link to a slightly hysterical website, but it does have some good information. Oh, and did I mention it was a little hysterical?
http://www.amazing-glutathione.com/radiation-exposure-and-glutathione.html
Watching my son sleep with a sigh. It’s not something that we can outrun, but certainly – from this distance, something we can at least try to mitigate. He’ll miss his yogurt.
In Peace,
Jessica
btw – the weather girl is hot! She’s a little disproportionate, but seems to be a healthy weight. I have mammory glands, and am not offended.
Liz,
I usually take readings in mR/hr. The readings in my video are in mR/hr. The conversion for the inspector is 1 mR/hr = 3500 cpm. The reason I use mR/hr is because it is measured against a standard sample of Cs-137, whereas CPM varies from one type of Geiger counter to another (based on the size of the detection tube)
Yes it is and you can bet we’re going to start using it for that. I’m not sure how effective the state is going to be checking our food stuffs but I know how effective I’m going to be.
The contamination in food is a real concern. Is the Inspector sensitive enough that it could detect small amounts in food?
WOW!!! Now there’s a testimonial that I am humbled by. I’ve known Andrea since the Friday Night Skate in Santa Monica and heading off to Moorea Tahiti to race in the first ever inline marathon held in that paradise.
I can tell you folks that Andrea can out inline speed skate almost anyone and the longer the distance the better. She get a sly smile on her lovely face and slips on those five wheels rockets and she is goooooone!
And she’s vegan meaning, unlike you and me, Andrea won’t be worried about dairy and meat products possibly polluted with cesium-137 and strontium-90. The problem for vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters alike is making sure our produce is radiation-free which may become a nearly impossible task.
People will have to make sure that the government folks in charge of food safety in their region are doing a proper job inspecting our food stuffs to make sure they aren’t contaminated by fallout from the Fukushima nuclear meltdowns.
Michael–thank you so much for running this equipment and this website! Having known you personally, I trust you, and your integrity. You’re not the corporate media. I’m staying tuned! Your old skater buddy, from way back when, Andrea 🙂
Hey Man Hands, can the Inspector measure the amounts of radioactive particle in foods such as milk or butter, etc? If so, have you tested anything?
Potrblog—what are your units of measurement? um/hr, ms/hr, or CPM or other?
does air monitoring work, if it only measures external emmiters? That is even the smallest amount of radiation inhaled or ingested and thus turned into an internal emmitter can be extremely significant to health. Please read below article:
http://www.bandepleteduranium.org/en/docs/97.pdf
I second that applause for Potrblog, Michael!! He seems to really know what he is doing and to be extremely well-informed.
The rain here in SoCal was also my concern. Are you sure about that sticky substance I told you about that I found in my garden on the hose????
Because I can guarantee you, I have lived here for over 4 years, have had the same hose, which has always lain in the same spot and I have never encountered any sticky substance on it, and there are no sap-secreting trees nearby.
Prior to Japan and the subsequent rain we got here, there was never any substance like that on my hose.
The substance was so sticky that soap and water would not remove it. I had to scrub with Ajax and even that took several applications. And it was all over the hose.
I didn’t touch the hose between 3/18 and the other day, b/c there was so much rain, there was no need to. So that was more than a week’s deposit of whatever was on my hose…which b/c of the ponding I get in the garden, was laying in a puddle of rainwater for more than a week.
And the research I briefly checked did indicate that radiation that “falls out” or “rains out” has a sticky characteristic that makes it cling to surfaces and buildings.
That spike on Potrblog’s monitor was pretty unsettling–and all he did was wipe his car, wet from rainwater, with the paper towel!!!
His theory about Coronal activity is really interesting, also.
From what I have read about “rain-out” the rain pulls down any radioactive particles from the air and deposits them on the ground, and on surfaces.
I had to use the hose again, today and I used gloves (for whatever good they, porus as they are, might do).
This is getting really unsettling!!!
Not to make light of our situation, but I think the Little
Rascals said it best when they said, “Don’t drink the milk! It’s spoiled!!”
See link below and to Brian,I’m right there with you, buddy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B02D4FtCwj4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKUW1_PAjIE&feature=player_embedded
Yikes! This does not look good for Wa/Or/Ca, especially Oregon & California for April 6th!
Does anyone know what the 1e+03 means?
Look at Potrblog’s incredible work! He really knows his stuff and knows how to demonstrate it. A large round of Man Hands-sized applause!
Here in Saint Louis, I have detected radioactive fallout in both snow and rain. The rain was by far worse because it involved only a few drops wiped from my truck. That sample tested at 0.228 mR/hr. I suspect that the fallout was Iodine 123, which is not good because by the time it is detected by an ASTM D3648 test it will have greatly reduced in severity. The same goes for milk tests, etc.
for the video of my test and the rest of the details see
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/2011/03/video-radioactive-rain-and.html
you can see the entire blog at
http://pissinontheroses.blogspot.com/
It would be wise to stay out of the rain.
Ramey,
You are patently wrong about that. My goodness. This is plain ol’ nonsense.
Calm down people.
The peak radiation levels in Japan after the incident topped off at 60 CPM (outside of the plant). In terms of yearly radiation exposure, they are still on schedule to have only about two thirds of what US citizens get on a normal basis. Incidentally, for short bursts, you can be exposed to levels as high as 20,000 CPM without any noticeable medical problems. For 24/7 exposure, it can be as high as 1,000 (in theory).
@ Liz, I read somewhere, which is now gone, that the GOVT and BIGWIGS have pressure their friends at the EPA to raise acceptable levels as to not have to trip any alarms.. while I still see cuba in a red zoned state of alert, but they tried to cut it out from Radiation Network, I am sure a Govt run site, but they still show some scary readings in Denver, cause of the elevation, and Alab. has a spike of 177 and never came back online to report..HMM..google it.. it will be hard to find, but I did..
yes I do understand it is an average, but I do know what I saw, and it scared me, I don’t claim to be a nuclear specialist, but I am smarter than the average person, cause I think for my own, and don’t let the media do it for me.. I am not a sheep, but a Manic/depressive, bi-polar person, I live a normal life, work have a family, and a above average IQ.. I was nuclear illiterate about a week ago, well not 100% but not into the detail I have dug up, and I am a very well self educated person, I did Graduate HS, average student, but I have a unfulfilled drive and thirst for knowledge and I do learn something everyday.. my mind races at probably 10 X the average person being manic, and an insomniac. So I have a lot of time to learn and educate myself and others.. if anyone wishes to contact me directly E mail me at voodoo6669@aol.com, put nuclear in subject or I will delete… I think my comp has been comprised, due to weird things happening to it.. and I know my comp VERY well… and to see one thing one day, and it to not be there the next..Hmm… and after my wife sent a concerned message to her father who works for N.A.S.A. our comp system was locked for about 10-15 minutes.. Hmmm.. and I used a bunch of non friendly KEY words the GOVT listen for.. so.. feel free to ask away.. and thx for this site it is better than nothing, and I wish I had a counter, If someone has an extra counter that they would be willing to part with I can do the same as this site and put up an atomic clock and counter on a 24 hour stream from the Tampa area in the Gulf… just some FYI but I do however own military issue fallout masks, with extra filters.. a good & cheap source for these is Cheaperthandirt.com they have 2 czech issue with 2 unopened filters and brand new never opened masks.. am working on ordering more .. and filling up anything I can with potable water, and tuna, and reconcilable foods… and other supplies ..thx to all who have responded to me.. & GOD BLESS US ALL & PRAY FOR A MIRACLE WAKE UP CALL !!!!!!!!
I would suggest that for immediate answers back and forth that you use the Radiation Station Chat at https://www.enviroreporter.com/radiation-station-chat/. Register and join and get to quickly exchange information back and forth!
@Brian – Do you have your own radiation detector? The CPMs you saw last night, are these on Environreporter or your own detector?
@ Lindy, that is what I have been doing and telling anyone who believes me to do the same, but people are lazy and ignorant, and will believe anything there see on TV, but the net, now that is lying.. BS.. but I and select few are posting links on my facebook account, and posting it on friends walls that live in other countries like the UK.. some of my friends, so the message will try to get out, but it seems to still be being suppressed.. and I just realized this is worse than Katrina or the Gulf, at least we did something withing the MONTH.. it is now going on 22 days strait… WTF !!!!!!!! WHY ????????? I say again GET OFF YOUR A$$ES AND FIX THIS !!!!!!!!!!!!! and to all PLEASE do the same post it to death of facebook, and your friends walls too in other countries.. even if you don’t know them, whats the worst, they read it, and delete, and are informed or leave it and pass it on, but we need to inform the public faster or have a protect so we who are worried can get on TV to share OUR CONCERNS… the media is just downplaying it to death and all the info keeps getting back peddled everytime I see it… just like with BP & the Gulf..
Brian, your frustration is totally understandable. You speak for so many Americans who don’t know where to turn or who to tell what they feel.
One note, when you see the spikes like that, note the little sign underneath the Inspector that says we are taking a total count for averaging. We discuss this on our Radiation Station FAQs page where we write:
WHY ARE THEY STILL TRYING TO SAVE THESE REACTORS. NOW THERE TRYING LIQUID NITROGEN… WTF… WHY KEEP MESSING WITH IT. THEY ARE GOING TO KEEP MESSING AROUND UNTIL IT IT TOO LATE OR DANGEROUS TO EVEN GET WITHIN MILES OF IT TO CAP IT… MR PRES. P.M. OF JAPAN, GOD, GET OFF YOUR ASS PLEASE AND DEMAND A FIX TO THIS INSTEAD OF THE CONSTANT DEBATING OF HOW TO SAVE IT… WHAT IS THERE THAT IS SOOO SECRET OR VALUABLE THAT THE MUST NOT CAP AND LEAVE, BUT TRY TO SAVE ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
I live in Fla… my wife and I saw it at about 3 am .. it spiked to like 79 first, then I went and woke my wife up to show her your site, and when we came into the room, it was at about 130 cpm and then in about 10 seconds shot over 200.. then about another 20 seconds and it was at 250,279,240,310, so on back and forth for about 4 minutes, and it was over 500 cpm… I called a friend of mine, and asked him about the devise you were using, and told him the readings, he is trained in non evasive nuclear imagining.. kinda like x-ray but better.. he knows some nuclear info, and has books that are not changing there info like the net.. I hope to talk more with him today, but he says if the Iodine-131 is being picked up, he fear as I do the cesium and possible weapons grade plutonium is already possible in the jet stream, which is what he said to be really worried about.. the rest will seem like child play.. and yes and unsettled myself as I have a newborn son, and it is beyond dangerous for them vs us, cause there thyroid is not filled or enough with natural iodine.. and I-131 was picked up up as far as Iceland on the 22nd of March. and was suspected to engulf the entire northern hemisphere be the end of that week, so I still ask ???WHY DID WE NOT FORCE OURSELVES UPON THEM TO HELP, WE FORCE OURSELVES INTO EVERYTHING ELSE ESP WAR.. WHY NOT CAPPING THE BIGGEST NUCLEAR PROBLEM IN HISTORY?????????? there just now bringing the worlds largest concrete pouring machine, why not from day 1 after realizing you lost the fight, or day 2 when the place blew, we know what is in there, the US built the damn thing for GE electric.. so again, why is America just sitting here with our heads up our butts, listening to our & Japan’s lying a$$ GOVT. I have a bit of experience in hearing all the lies, I live in the Gulf region, and listened to there lies daily and it sickened me, and no to listen to this, cry for the public to DEMAND the TRUTH !!!!
Thanks for the effort JK.
Quote from T.V. station KHOU in Houston texas—link supplied by Jan–
This pretty accurately defines the problem:
“KHOU also discovered that politics and pressure from utilities can play a part in the EPA’s regulatory decisions about drinking water”
Something to think about!
Lindy—great statement, and that’s exactly what this growing community gathered together through EnviroReporter can and should do! Good call.
JMS – Thank you so much for your email. You have made some great additions. I’m going to order a HEPA filter.
Brain – Where are you from? I have a PM1703M device that has not read any major activity for a week. It stays right around 8 uR/h or 48 CPM. I’m worried this device is not picking up what we need to be aware of. My concern is that we will have a false sense of security when in fact I just have the wrong device. The only time I see a change is when I set the device on the granite countertop. In fact, the reading actually goes down to 2 uR/h – 4 uR/h when I leave the house. So, staying inside our house is actually worse!!
Brian, I totally “get” where you are coming from. Now I am thinking that it would be great to take our concern and angst and channel it into something productive…writing to our government, educating people, maybe start a blog with ongoing information and including links and articles, etc. While we can’t do too much to fix the situation right now, we CAN still make a difference.
Quote from former President, PSR in NIRS article cited below:
“Dr. Jeffrey Patterson, former president of Physicians for Social Responsibility, said:
“There is no ‘safe’ or harmless dose of radiation. While the current levels of radiation are quiet low and do not require any preventive measures, adding to the burden of background radiation with radio nuclides such as radioactive Iodine, Cesium, or other long lived nuclides which move up the food chain and concentrate in human tissue, is neither safe nor acceptable. The FDA has a responsibility to inform the public of this process and the attendant risks.””
Quote from articla on NIRS (Nuclear Information Resource Service):
“On March 30, in response to reports that radioactive iodine-131 has been found in milk in Washington state, FDA senior scientist Patricia Hansen said, “Radiation is all around us in our daily lives, and these findings are a miniscule amount compared to what people experience every day. For example, a person would be exposed to low levels of radiation on a round trip cross country flight, watching television, and even from construction materials.”
This statement was called improper by experts at Beyond Nuclear, Food and Water Watch, Friends of the Earth, Nuclear Information and Resource Service, and Physicians for Social Responsibility, as well as by Robert Alvarez, former Senior Policy Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Energy during the Clinton Administration.
Robert Alvarez, former Senior Policy Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Energy during the Clinton Administration, said:
“No matter how small the dose might be, it is out of context to compare an exposure to a specific radioisotope that is released by a major nuclear accident with radiation exposures in everyday life. The FDA spokesperson should have informed the public that radioiodine provides a unique form of exposure in that it concentrates rapidly in dairy products and in the human thyroid. The dose received, based on official measurements, may be quite small, and pose an equally small risk. However, making a conclusion on the basis of one measurement is fragmentary at best and unscientific at worst. As the accident in Fukushima continues to unfold, the public should be provided with all measurements made of radioactive fallout from the Fukushima reactors to allow for independent analyses.””
Exerpted from article on NIRS by Kelly Trout.
Lind to site provided in pervious post, below
JMS, Christine, Jan, and all who are raising questions about U.S. implications for air, food, water—
Everyone should read this article. It reflects the position of Physicians for Social Responsibility and Nuclear Information Resource Service (among others)—agencies I trust NOT to be alarmist and irresponsible–
And the article is clearly stating that the FDA and EPA are not releasing accurate information to the public! They’re not calling for alarm, but are clearly raising the question about the way everything is being analyzed and represted to the public.
Here is the link, below. It’s a very strong statement from PSR et. al.
http://www.foe.org/FDA-comparison-radiation-milk-everyday-exposures-called-improper
Here is the latest… It gives me chills.
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/04/02/japan.nuclear.status/
Ashland, Oregon – Measured on a rebranded RadAlert 100 sold by Vernier. This device is calibrated for cesium 137. Measurements are taken outside with the device enclosed in a very thin plastic bag. Cesium 137 is a medium-high energy beta and gamma emitter and a thin sheet of plastic as such will not substantially affect the readings for this radio-isotope. It will affect counts for radio-isotopes which are alpha emitters or lower energy beta emitters. Please regard these readings as a very general and simplistic indication of radiation counts. Readings remain in the normal range for this location.
4/2 5:42AM 60 minutes 861/60 = 14.35 CPM
4/1 6:15PM 60 minutes 864/60 = 14.4 CPM
4/1 7:02AM 60 minutes 848/60 = 14.13 CPM
I am going out of my mind wishing I had people who just understood the severity of what is truly happening.. this is far worse than Chernobyl.. and from what I have read & studied, from 1986-2004 over a MILLION people died directly from the fallout.. and yes I wish the masses would wake up, and start a cry to do something about this.. they are “thinking it is a total loss and capping it with cement like Chernobyl” ???? WHY WERE THEY NOT DOING THIS WEEKS AGO ????? when they had already realized that it was super serious when 3 of 6 reactors are melting down, and they also store about the past 40 years worth of spent nuclear rods too, which a crane unfortunately fell on, and still no report of the damage to them ? the cooling pool?? hearing that there was a neutron beam emitted 1.5 km out of were the reactor has suppose to have melted through…and I have read to which I am sure is buried or taken of the net, there is a 2nd and possible a 3rd nuclear power plant having similar problems, just not of such an epic scale.. if something is not done soon, it will be too late.. PLEASE GOD HELP !!! Let these people open their eyes before if it isn’t too late.. and yes the angst I have with a desire to just have someone to talk to that understands.. AGH
Interesting (infuriating) article on EPA’s tactics used to skew downwards radiation counts in water supplies. Some of the above include subtracting, rounding, and ignoring. They are not interested in protecting us.
http://www.khou.com/home/I-Team-EPA-under-reports-radiation-in-Americas-drinking-water-.html
I have been doing alot of serious research on this, and it is all bad.. they are using a MOX fuel system, which uses weapons grade plutonium, diff types P-239, P-240, P-241, P-242.. all like way worse than normal plutonium, go to Wikipedia and look up MOX to get a better definition.. but the plant had a hydrogen explosion which shot this into the air, there were rad spikes in ALA. on the 28th up to 177 on Radiation network, but the site quickly shut down.. and Denver reported almost counts of 100.. until the denied it.. I don’t get why they are now just deciding to cement it in like Chernobyl.. they new there severity of this, and what was truly going on, as does our GOVT. I am sure, but they will keep down playing it, cause they don’t need mass hysteria or rioting , cause if the World truly knew what was going on there would be would wide chaos.. of about 6.5 billion. so they will downplay it till everyone is dead.. GOD HELP US !!!!
About everyone else not seeming to know, notice, or care about this disaster…
I was talking to a friend from Germany who was a child when Chernobyl happened and she said she cannot understand the lack of concern here about the ongoing crisis. In Europe, she said, everyone is talking about Fukushima right now, it is all over the place. When Chernobyl happened she said that parents kept their kids inside for over a month, they could not go outside to play, and as everyone knows the governments imported frozen food from other places to feed their populations. I really think that the media’s incessant repetition that “but levels are far below anything that would be relevant to health, we get much more radiation from rocks….” has functioned as a type of hypnosis, and of course those who don’t read the news have no idea about it anyway. Ironically many of my liberal friends are those who don’t read the news because of its sensationalist and generally uninformative approach, and they are not concerned. We’re not FEELING any effects, and since it’s not in the mainstream media (except to say that it’s all fine) it is probably human nature to believe that everything is normal, as that is what we WANT to believe. The power of media and popular suggestion to shape reality is incredible.
My point is that it felt really good and sane-making to hear my German friend’s perspective because I feel like I’m the one who must be nuts since I’m worrying about this so much when everyone else around me is not. It’s not only about what has already happened but the fact that no major media outlet is covering the continuing mess as it relates to the US; it’s completely as if the disaster is over and all we had was a couple of spikes in radiation measured by the EPA and it all turned out to be no big deal. Did anyone notice how they highlighted some readings from areas on the East Coast and conveniently obscured information about California, which is clearly bearing the brunt of the fallout along with Alaska as far as the US is concerned? Again, shaping reality. And of course the milk, but the news was quick to mention that there is also natural radiation in milk. While we will see some effects here eventually that will be difficult to associate statistically with the event, yet related nonetheless, the effect on people in Japan is a whole different story. I project reading studies ten years from now that document the immense rise in cancer that is likely to occur there. The continued radioactive releases and evidence of localized resumption of fission occurring are extremely troubling.
A couple of times I’ve considered changing my approach and relaxing about the whole thing like everyone else seems to be doing, but I’ve read the studies, I’ve kept up on the ZAMG and fairwinds.org and UCB websites data and it’s clear that taking precautions is the only sane thing to do, especially for people with young children like myself. People who get the data will continue to be concerned but the masses will be unaware or, at worst, ridicule those who find it serious as is the case with most social issues of great importance. It’s just a relief to find that other people here on this site are experiencing the same things.
at around 2:00 am my wife and I say it the CPM climb to near 79 CPM, we thought that was kinda bad, until we say it climb to over 500 CPM… then back to the 40&50’s to me that was scary to see, knowing and hearing anything over 100 is bad… GOD HELP US, THE GOVT. WON’T !!!!
addressing Christine’s call for discussion on food/diet to protect from/detox radiation,
apart from what has already been mentioned check out ‘zeolites’ that can be taken as a spray, also coconut products especially creme, turmeric, chlorophyll rich foods/supplements, vitamin C and other antioxidants, DMSO, reishi and changa mushrooms…
also a new interesting/perturbing article by the wonderful Dr Caldicott http://www.prx.org/pieces/61089-dr-helen-caldicott-no-safe-levels-of-radiation-n
…it again begs the question I keep asking (which I know might be boring many), if ingestion of radioactive particles, even one microgram of them, can cause cancer (not to mention how they bioaccumulate) and they know they are getting here, then how can monitors tell us we have reached a significant increase that will be harmful? Aren’t any particles that get here and are ingested harmful even if they are arriving in amounts that don’t raise the background radiation levels significantly? Once again, radioactive rays that the monitors measure outside (our bodies) including background radiation are different to particles that are ingested and then radiate from inside.
Christine,
Are you the same Christine that has been posting on the UCB site?
I am in the same situation with my husband. He is concerned but also thinks I am a tad overreacting but he is willing to “humor” me in order to keep me sane. I was keeping it all in for a while and when I finally unloaded and told him all my fears and concerns; I think he finally understood where I am coming from. So he is trying his best to be supportive.
I have one girlfriend who is sort-of listening to me, but even she thinks I am a little nuts. Pretty much everyone else would think I am certifiable if I told them everything we are doing.
So far this is what we have done:
1. Only purchasing reverse osmosis and active charcoal filtered water. (I am grateful that my mom only drinks bottled or filtered water, so at least I feel safe at my parents house with the water used. She already only gives my son the bottled water.)
2. Stockpiled enough canned fruits and vegetables to last 3 months.
3. Bought enough cheese to freeze for future use and will change it out with cheese that has been able to “cure” long enough for the I-131 to be gone.
4. Only using powdered milk (previously purchased in bulk) for cooking, if necessary. Drinking only soy.
5. Taking extra vitamin A-E, calcium, and extra C. Trying to find alternative forms of antioxidants.
6. Stocked up on major grains (rice, flour, oatmeal)
7. Eating fruits and vegetables from regions other than West Coast. (Realistically, they are getting stuff back east too, but we are getting the brunt here.)
9. Only eating out occasionally. (We don’t eat out often anyway, so it’s not THAT big of a deal.)
10. Cutting down on red meat consumption (even the CCRCAL advises cutting down on red meat to help prevent other forms of cancer.)
11. All other forms of dairy are out unless they can be rotated out every 11 weeks (at least).
12. Keeping shoes outside or next to the front door.
13. Keeping an eye on the jet stream and limiting outdoor exposure on certain days. They still need to get outdoors sometime. (Call me crazy but I was looking at the accumulations over the past week and every time there was a major accumulation overhead,there was a spike in the I-131 and Cs levels. (Using the Berkeley air and water measurements along with http://squall.sfsu.edu/crws/jetstream.html)
14. Taking short showers.
15. Going to get a certified HEPA air system for the bedroom.
That’s all I can think of for now. I understand that this may not do much, but every percentage of a chance I give my children to survive this, no matter how long or short term this may be, the better I feel like I am protecting and providing for the gifts God has given me. It could mean nothing, but at least I did the best I could to protect my children.
Christine, kelp, chlorella, spirulina, NAC, apple pectin and bentonite clay have been discussed, among others. Kinda hard to sort through it all and it is sometimes dicy with supplements (and can add up) but these have gotten some buzz. I wanted to pull some research/links together but just haven’t had a second to do so.
I know what you mean, Christine. I mentioned about the reactor crisis to someone today, and they said, “You mean that hasn’t been fixed yet?” It seems most people are not even aware that there is still a serious problem!!
JMS – thank you for your post. I feel exactly the same way. It’s so upsetting for me to be feeling all alone (outside of this site) in my family and friends regarding the radiation exposure. I am also unable to talk with anyone about it. After 3 weeks of missing preschool, I finally took my son back today and asked the teacher not to give him any water or milk at lunch time. When she asked why, I wanted to tell her the truth but decided it would be better if I just said that the milk hurts his tummy and I prefer him to drink filtered water. None of my friends, family not even my sister who has 3 children are at least bit concerned or even giving this a thought. My husband is some what supportive but only because he knows if he’s not I will have a nervous break down. I also am nursing my daughter and worry about what her future health will be in 5, 10, 20 years. We have made a lot of changes at home to limit our exposure, and with each of them my 3 yr old son asks “why mommy” every time. A question that is getting more and more difficult to answer.
I would really like to get a discussion going about food/diet changes. Most of us on this site, are now fully aware and acknowlege that we are being exposed to unhealthy levels of radiation from numerous sources (air, water, rain, food). So, now it’s all about getting our bodies healthy and detoxed to deal with the exposure whatever amount/level that may be. I want to have more children, but honestly….I am now fearful. Especially, after doing some research on Chernobyl and watching several different documentaries.
I have spent the past 3 weeks on this site, searching the web, reading reports, purchased a radiation detector, analyzing weather maps, radiation charts and forecast models. Ugh! It’s all been so overwhelming.
Today and going forward I’m going to focus on how best to eliminate my exposure and my childrens’. We know it’s out there, so spending time trying to figure out how much is not productive. How are we going to change our diet, boost our immune system and detox? Let’s talk about that!
I will start with what our family is doing:
1. Bottled Water for the next 4 months.
2. Purchased butter/cheese for next 4 months.
3. Purchased canned/frozen veggies & fruits
4. Purchased frozen salmon/shrimp for next 2 months.
5. Purchased canned tuna for next year.
6. Stocked up on breads, pastas, rice, oatmeal, soups, flour, sugar, honey, etc.
7. Purchasing fresh fruits/veggies from ONLY Southern Countries.
8. Eating out going forward will be selective & minimal
9. Keeping our shoes outside.
10.Staying out of the rain.
11. Taking probiotics, Flaxseed, Fish Oils
12. Drinking green tea and rooibus tea.
13. Washing hands with soap and water often.
14. No new dairy products going forward for next 4 – 6 months.
15. Stay indoors on days the jetstream is forecast to pass over and rainy days.
That’s a start. I would love to hear from you and others on what you are doing to help minimize your exposure and boost your immune system to deal with the exposure.
Thank you,
Christine
Loving mother to Benjamin & Allison
Liz, I couldn’t agree more. I am also a devout Christian and the whole thing, quite honestly, makes me ill.
But what is also bothering me is how people are just dismissing this whole issue as if it doesn’t exist. I have friends that I cannot discuss my fears/concerns/frustrations with because they will make fun of me for being ‘Chicken Little’. And what is even worse is that there are thousands dead, even more missing in Japan and now they have to deal with the repercussions of a series of stupid decisions. And yet there is an alarming LACK of information out there in the general public. My own inlaws knew only there was a tsunami. I had to have a two hour discussion with them to catch them up with everything that has been going on and they had no idea. THIS I find extremely concerning. What if something terrible does happen (beyond what already exists)? How can you warn or convince people who have had their heads shoved so far deeply in the sand the consequences of what can (and probably will) happen?
Meanwhile, I cannot explain to people why I am modifying my family’s diet in order to limit the exposure we could (and probably are) receiving because I will be accused of being a fear monger.
I cannot even imagine what the Japanese are going through. I have a 5 month old who is breastfeeding that I worry about getting a bio-accumulate dose of this crap from me. I can’t even BEGIN to imagine what the mothers over there are going through. Every time I hear a story about the little kids it makes me want to cry.
This is “off-topic” in a sense, and I will not normally post anything “off-topic, but in a broader sense (in terms of the chaos in the world) it is not entirely irrelevant.
I heard the news on CNN just awhile ago about that “wing-nut” “pastor” in Florida who just recently burned the Quran…
…which apparently resulted in a tragic attack on U.N. forces in the Mid-East (not sure which country, just heard the news)in which many people died.
I am a devout Christian and on behalf of all Christians, I humbly apologize for the wrongful and evil actions of that so-called “pastor.”
Christians do not/should not burn the Sacred Books of other people’s faiths or attack others in any way.
This is yet one more sorrow in the world, and all the more shameful because that man respresents himself as a Christian when he follows nothing of Christian principles.
It’s just another aspect of a world gone mad…..
Now, back to Japan…. I think that it is important that while we, here in the U.S. are legitimately concerned about the effects of Fukushima here…. we should all remember that the people nearer to the region (Japan and other neigboring countries) are in far greater danger.
After everything that has happened to them from natural sources (earthquakes and tsunamis), it seems unspeakable that they must now also endure this added burden……one made entirely by man.
We must keep those people first and foremost in our hearts or prayers.
LOL, Or did I mean lowering the concern bar—i.e. less “wiggle room” for those who would reassure at the expense of minimizing important concerns.
Carrie—thanks for the information from your friend in Radiation Physics—-there are quieter voices out there (like his) which, while not being irresponsible or alarmist (two things which I abhor), are in a discrete way, raising the concern bar a bit higher than the EPA et. al. have led us to believe is a good height. Thanks.
So, after the FAQ was written, we had people want to see the actual averaging so left the inspector on camera. We will update the FAQ tonight to better explain this.
Carla and Fiona, the radiation inspector was “averaging” during that time – and there probably was a sign below it that said so – but I understand that can be pretty alarming if you don’t know what averaging means. From our FAQ page:
What just happened? It just spiked from 50 to 389?
We used to leave the Inspector on view during our 10 minute averaging which counts the total ionizing events which are then divided by ten for a more accurate Counts Per Minute measurement. This practice confused and alarmed some folks because they thought that was the actual CPM going up and up. We now remove the Inspector for 10-15 minute periods to do this averaging which is then immediately posted on EnviroReporter.com’s Radiation Station. Click here to see a running list of averages.
I am interested in what Fiona said. Any response Michael, Liz?
“Fiona says:
March 31, 2011 at 9:58 pm
just before 9pm., the reader on the left jumped from 140 to 380 in a matter of a few minutes and now its been taken down with a sign saying ‘stand by averaging’.
trying to make sense of the sudden escalation. any news?”
for those in Oregon (like myself)
http://www.ktvl.com/articles/point-1199369-radiations-central.html
http://public.health.oregon.gov/Preparedness/CurrentHazards/Pages/DailyAirMonitoring.aspx
I don’t agree that displaying the image of a provacatively dressed woman is sexist.
(“sex·ist [ séksist ]
believing one sex is inferior: believing that one sex is inferior to the other in a variety of attributes
of belief in one sex’s inferiority: resulting from or relating to the belief that one sex is inferior to the other in a variety of attributes
somebody sexist: somebody who believes that one sex is inferior to the other” [define: sexism at Bing])
though it may be inappropriate or offensive, etc…
– Sorry if I missed the answer, but it does seem bizzare, if that’s the only choice for the that display[?] It does send mixed messages, like where am I? a strip club site? Lol. Especially now this radiation is becoming not just serious but real!
Too many people do not seem to want to deal with this issue the way it is, and if we don’t learn from this we are bound to repeat it. “We” needs to be the majority! If there is a mission, let it be enlightenment, please. This is serious. Too many [in the general public] are being dumbed down and/or unfocused with superfulous and non-essential information.
The links by posters are great but please summarize more on what any link is or better interpret in your own words with the link for reference. Not sure what the next step is here? I think our small numbers should not be content, because no change will occur through small numbers.
-Two Cents [aka. BB Cuda}
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW3JMPsQb0w&feature=player_embedded
Could some one please help make sense of this map. Could anyone convert the dosage amount on the right side of the map?
Elevated radiation levels in WA State. The detected some radiation in the milk. I’m in the Eastern part of the state. We have a friend who has a PhD in Radiation Physics and works at Idaho National Labs (Idaho Springs). He called this morning and said we should start taking the Potassium Iod in small quantities to get it elevated in our system. We are going to start taking the FDA recommended dosage of 30mg a day. He and his family are starting it as well. Just to be on the safe side…not freaking out about it. Yet.
The “weather girl” on your website is sexist. It disturbs me that the moderators and other posters think it is cute and if you don’t agree that it is harmless fun, then you don’t have a sense of humor. I can find radiation information somewhere else without being subjected to sexism. Good bye.
Annette—Thanks for the link to the NRDC site—it looks like another good source of accurate and reliable information. It’s not clear whether as a group they support Obama’s intent to INCREASE our reliance on nuclear energy or whether they don’t—-One article I briefly read seemed not to support that, but I saw other statements that seem to. A good site, nevertheless. Thanks!!
Radiation Station Chat is back! Chat while watching the count that counts the most at https://www.enviroreporter.com/radiation-station-chat/. Register and join this robust and user friendly chat about some of the most challenging issues of our time. Lady Fingers and Man Hands are expecting you.
just before 9pm., the reader on the left jumped from 140 to 380 in a matter of a few minutes and now its been taken down with a sign saying ‘stand by averaging’.
trying to make sense of the sudden escalation. any news?
What a treat to come home after a long day away to such lively conversation on our message board.
Danha—you raise such important concerns about how cumulative doses/esposure is being calculated. I have wondered the same thing myself, mostly because this mess is not just a single “event,” but rather, will likely result in an ongoing “plume” of particulate matter containing radioactive particles crossing the U.S. for quite awhile.
Annette—I am astonished at the “pro forma” lame response from your Congressman as to your concerns. He wrote a form letter and inserted your name–a “stock” response from his office that also takes no stand whatsoever (pro or con) but rather is more like the classic “I’ll take it under advisement.” I shouldn’t be surprised. I’m growing very weary of politicians from BOTH ends of the political spectrum and all points in-between.
Jaybird—I’m not familiar with the web-site you linked, although I did get on it to briefly browse around. I have not heard this news in other quarters, but will later google it up. If this is true, it is very, very disturbing.
Stephanie (and Michael). Has everyone lost their sense of humor? “Gina” the weather-girl is nothing more than that—a bit of levity on a utilitarian device that is serving an important purpose (in this case to provide us with a time/date stamp for Michael’s monitor). I agree with Michael—would it be better if we made her frumpy? Obviously there is sometimes a real issue with “sexualizing” women (as in putting small, heavily made-up, “sexy” little pre-school/school age girls in beauty pageants, pornography, prostitution, exploitation, child sexual abuse and other social ills that are worthy of our concern and attention). Denise earlier explained that it was a gift from her family to provide a little bit of laughter and a “conversation piece.” I think that as such, it is lighthearted and we all need to lighten up a bit about such things and focus on the REALLY BIG issues out there (like the ones I mentioned above). Nevertheless, Stephanie, one of the great things about this message board is the broad range of opinions, and you have contributed some terrific posts!!!
Hi Truth,
I bought up tons of Reese’s smoked oysters a week ago as they come from Thailand in the vicinity just south of the plant. I’ve also bought up numerous smoked fish that I know come from that region about a week ago. I am blessed as my hubby and I have worked hard & to me, having a stockpile (oh, not to mention the tons of canned wild Alaskan salmon I have!!) is worth the weight in hindsight. My mother thinks I’m over-reacting. I told her tonight I will try my best to supply her as well 6 months from now with all the food she loves to cook with! lol
To further clarify – the chat will be on a new page on our website, and you’ll be able to register directly from that page. We’re just doing a few test runs and will post the new page ASAP.
I’ve been a member of NRDC since 1989 & have trusted their vision for a long time. I thought some of you may be interested in what their latest blog has on Fukushima plus some historical technical data on the 6 nuclear power units in 2008.
http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/mmckinzie/the_nrdc_nuclear_programs_note.html
The new chat room is almost ready! I’m just doing a few tests now. We’ll send out the info shortly.
How can we sign up for the new chat room? I can’t find out where to send the email. Please help!
(i want to register for the new rs chat) nick [redacted]. p.s. i received my pi tabs today what a relief, i went to the other site and HUMPREYDOG was there calling me out so i dont say anything till he leaves ,then i asked coldfusion23 ? about snow and king crab amd i get locked out. the spammer got me kicked out !!!!!!
Yeah, Gina is a hoot all right (though I expect you meant “a hooters”).
And, to you, Michael, how about an atomic clock with no girl or guy on it? Just the info….
I, for one (as a woman myself), think “Gina” is a hoot. Leave her be.
I have contacted all my senators & reps (even emailed the Prez) on my opinion of how horrendous Fukushima has been handled, and I just got this in. I wrote back and said the NRC has not even come close to what has to be done.
Anyways, just thought I’d share my frustrations here.
March 31, 2011
Mrs. Annette
Dear:
Thank you for contacting me regarding your opposition to nuclear power.
Like all Americans, I was deeply saddened by the recent tragedy in Japan, including the chaos surrounding the Fukushima nuclear power plant. As you know, the nuclear power industry has faced renewed scrutiny from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission since that tragedy; like the White House, I believe that the NRC is capable of providing the needed oversight.
Due to events in the Middle East, and because of the tragedy in Japan, members of Congress are now discussing America’s energy future. Should energy legislation come to the floor, I will be sure to keep your views in mind.
Thank you again for your feedback and counsel; it is a privilege to serve you and the people of the 14th Congressional District. If you have additional questions, or if I can ever be helpful to you or your family, do not hesitate to contact me or my staff at 202-225-2976, or 630-232-7104.
Sincerely,
Randy Hultgren
Member of Congress
RH/GS
Hi,
I was hoping we could get a discussion going about “timing” of food and bottled water from ground to shelf. Two weeks ago I sent my husband out to costco to get bottled water and food. He did not get enough, despite my consistent urging to get MORE MORE MORE. My question, is it now too late. I don’t know what the distribution time frame is for food and water.
Is the water sitting on the store shelves today from sources before the March 13th event or after?
Same with food?
We don’t drink cows milk but we did get a bunch of cheese/butter that will not expire for 6 months.
Is there still time to purchase Alaska Salmon/Halibut to freeze and store or has that time passed.
We got frozen and canned fruits/veggies and going forward I will only buy fruits/veggies from southern countries.
If there is anyone who understands this food/water time model, please share even if it’s just an opinion.
I would like to get more discussion around food/water, especially now that there are reports of isotopes in US cows milk and rain water.
Thank you,
Christine
Loveing mother to Benjamin and Allison
Stephanie, what is it about a “sexy woman” that causes a ruckus? How is it demeaning? If she was “unsexy” and changed into increasingly frumpy attire, would that be better? This is beyond ridiculous.
The “Weather Girl,” nicknamed Gina in our first chat room, is part of an Atomic Clock used to clearly document the exact time and date so as to make clear that the stream isn’t some kind of loop (as has been suggested by a few wing-nut conspiracy theorists).
There is another atomic clock, however, and it’s called Atomic Alarm Clock With “Weather Man” which costs $39.95 + tax/shipping/batteries.
Would this suit you better? If it does, and you would rather see it for some of the time instead of Gina, then donate to us the cost of the clock and “Junior” will grace our display.
In fact, donate something to us anyway – the time it takes to equip and maintain the Radiation Station, run its chat (the second ‘registered chatters only’ one coming tonight), take numerous averages and then explain it all, costs money. The costliest part is my lost work hours for journalism which costs me plenty.
So, Stephanie, donate us the cost of “Junior” and we’ll let you name him!
This is related but not related to the screen readings. Why oh why does almost everything we look at have to be ‘sexualized’? I find it once again, objectifying women (thus demeaning them as well). It would be far more fairer to 50% of the population of the so-called “fairer sex”, if you could lose the image of the “sexy woman” on the gauge. I’m sure that would be easy enough to do. Let’s have an egalitarian interchange for once, especially on such an important, life-and-death topic of reality. Seriously, think about making this change….
EPA: Radioactive Iodine-131 levels in PA & MA rainwater “exceed maximum contaminant level permitted in drinking water”
Tags: FUKUSHIMA DISASTER
Radioactive Iodine-131 in Pennsylvania rainwater sample 3300% above federal drinking water standard.
Susanne – my thoughts are exactly the same. I really appreciate the information on this site and from UC Berkely. However, the measurements we get are for external exposure only, right. They indicate the radiation levels at that EXACT moment in time at that precise location. (Someone please correct me if I am wrong).
I am not a nuclear scientist or expert by any means but here’s my main concern. It’d be greatly appreciated if someone with more knowledge explain/provide some clarity to this hypothetical situation: What happens if you ingest 10 atoms of Strontium 90 with each glass of milk and you drink 1 glass of milk every day? Will the Strontium 90 (or Cesium or Iodine 131 from Fukushima) bioaccumulate in our bodies? After 1 year/365 days, would that mean you’d have 3,650 Strontium atoms in your body as a result of the drinking that daily glass of milk (10 atoms/glass X 1 glass/day X 365 days)? If so, then wouldn’t you be constantly exposed to the resulting radiation from those 3,650 Strontium atoms in your body until they degrade completely? With a half life of 28.8 years for Strontium, you’d still have approximately 1,825 atoms in your body after 28.8 years, 912 after 58 years and have 456 after 86.4 years???
Please comment!?!
Enviro,
I really like seeing the running list of averages. It’s a lot easier to spot when it comes up not in the “Normal” range.
I didn’t notice that before. Thank You
drumwife06
I had been depending upon UC Berkeley site for information about radiation from Japan. I trusted (past tense) them because the guys collecting and analyzing the data are all highly educated nuclear scientists. Today they gave the report of I131 in milk (also noted on CNN) but then analyzed (dumbed it down for us) that a person would have to drink tons of gallons of this milk to receive the same dose of radiation equal to a plane trip across the country. This is not the way to compare radiation exposures. Drinking or ingesting radiation is much different than external exposure. Noone has detected Strontium 90 in milk but I think it will happen. I have been taking calcium supplements daily since 3/12 to help protect against the inevitable Strontium 90 in milk. And drinking much less milk too!
Maybe it’s not Iodine-131 we should be so concerned about. Look at Xenon-133 & Cesium-137.
http://www.woweather.com/weather/news/fukushima?LANG=us&VAR=niluhemis131&HH=9&LOOP=1
http://www.woweather.com/weather/news/fukushima?LANG=us&VAR=niluhemis133&HH=9&LOOP=1
http://www.woweather.com/weather/news/fukushima?LANG=us&VAR=niluhemis137&HH=0&LOOP=1
The latest news from Union of Concerned Scientists—not good.
http://allthingsnuclear.org/
It was also announced on the news this morning that “low” radiation levels have turned up in milk here in California. They did not say which isotopes were in the milk. Normally Strontium 90 affects milk, but I have not heard of that Isotope being reported in the California radiation.
It may be “thousands of times below dangerous levels” (as they report), but there is something really disturbing about it.
I’m so excited about the chat room. Thanks to Michael and Denise Anne, we have really become a community!
Don’t fret!! Mr. Man Hands & Mrs. Lady Fingers have our backs. Man Hands says NEW CHAT STARTS TOMORROW!! Send Man Hands and email if you want to join.
I appreciate all you are doing with giving us readings. YOu are doing a great public service and it is very helpful to people in this state and elsewhere.
I also look forward to the chat group because I have gotten some really good links and information from there. For a while they were posting levels from various cities across the country and that was helpful. I have always been concerned about nuclear power plants for a long time and the more information I get the better.
I missed a lot of the bad stuff on the chat or tuned it out or didn’t understand it but I felt a couple of the people I saw posting should have been more respectful of you as you are providing a wonderful service.
As a compromise, couldn’t you just monitor the chat and make sure that nothing disrepectful is posted or that, if posted, it is removed. Then those of us who have this need for info can learn from the other posters because what we are really seeking is all kinds of information. There is so much I do not know about situations like this.
Please forgive me Wilma P. I must have missed your post(s?).
I certainly know where to have those samples tested and that would be TestAmerica because of their excellent work and because I trust them not to skew the results. HOWEVER, our interior and exterior readings for two weeks, seen at https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/03/enviroreporter-coms-radiation-station/#averages (where we are about to post new averages) show that the baseline background readings of 42 to 46 counts per minute have not varied much. Those readings are primarily for gamma radiation. Iodine-131 is a ferocious beta radionuclide that emits gamma and we have not detected any increase in gamma in the interior and exterior readings. Ms. Lady Fingers (a nice nickname given my bride Denise in lieu of my nickname Man Hands) and I have also done extensive testing of the rainwater ourselves for alpha, beta and gamma and have found no heightened radioactivity.
IF any I-131 had traversed the Pacific and came down in the rain, it would have taken between 6-10 days to do so according to experts we questioned during a press conference that we covered in the March 15 article “Melt Down Wind.” Add to that the two days lost because I didn’t respond (due to the avalanche of work Lady Fingers and I have been doing in relation to the meltdowns), that makes a minimum of 8 days. I-131’s half life is 8 days so what you have, if it had any I-131, would be half as potent.
Regardless, if there even is I-131 in your samples, it probably is an incredibly small amount. But that isn’t to say that finding it wouldn’t be significant. BUT to test is very costly and just not worth it. Our readings show that this area has not had significant fallout. Yet.
So save your dough. Buy KI pills and maybe some apple pectin pills which were used to soak up cesium in kids after Chernobyl. Lady Fingers and I have bought extra KI for our family in the Midwest and on the East Coast.
Do something else just as valuable to you and that’s accessing free knowledge courtesy of our NEW CHAT COMING ONLINE WITHIN 24 HOURS – SEND US YOUR NAME, CHAT HANDLE, E-MAIL ADDRESS IN AN EMAIL ENTITLED “I WANT TO REGISTER FOR THE NEW CHAT” TO contact {[at]} EnviroReporter.com and you will learn more than even that sample could tell you.
Thank you Wilma P for going to the effort of collecting that rainwater. IF we had detected high readings from the rainwater we’ve tested, we certainly would have had it tested already. Taking the initiative you have is the kind of American ‘get up and go’ needed during this crisis that is going to get much worse.
Now this is really growing into an awesome group!!
Annette—thanks for perfectly describing the issue about how commentary should be! And yes, in Illinois, you have so many plants and are so very near the New Madrid fault (if it should rupture in a big way). There is tons of information about plants in Illinois to be found on the responsible, reliable sites.
BBCuda—You said it perfectly—and Denise Anne—your answer touched on a concern that all of us who have become so devoted to this site have—that the inappropriate comments from others might lend an initial impression to new visitors to this wonderful place that would be entirely inaccurate.
Carla–thanks for the Caldicott site. When I got there, there was no article (was there supposed to be?), but there was a wonderful slide show about TMI. Caldicott is a hero in the anti-nuclear world and in the environmentalist world in general. Thanks for that link.
Debbie—wonderful, all the way from Canada!! What is the status of nuclear plants in Canada? Depending on where you are, you may not be far from some of the U.S. plants.
What a group!!
Whatever concern, sorrow, fear and anxiety we might have felt in the last 2 weeks, this site has been a refuge for all of us, a source of excellent, reliable information, and a growing community where responsible discussion of the issues can help direct all of us towards a deeper understanding of this complex issue.
and this EXCELLENT USEFUL informative link
http://blog.imva.info/medicine/treatments-nuclear-contamination
comes by way of this site
http://www.health-matrix.net/
provided by Carla’s earlier contribution
Thanks for sharing with us
Where art thou, Michael?
Two whole days have gone by and you have not pointed me in the right direction. ;(
Check back through posts within this comments section, please.
Within them, you will read one pertaining to the fact that I collected four rainwater samples from the last four most recent southern California rainstorms. I also have a baseline rain sample collected in Jan-Feb 2011. They are each carefully labeled and each has its own separate container.
You KNOW where and HOW one can get these tested locally, I read through your extensive Runkle Canyon investigation.
So, Mr. Hands, fess up! Let’s get these examined before all the Iodine 131 disappears!!
How about a local university contact? Or PhD candidate? Put that thinking cap on. No wild goose chases would be most appreciated.
You all have been so kind. We will figure out a way to chat, perhaps, and get that going soon. Ustream provides a wonderful service, though, and we have all benefited from it.
thank you and your beautiful wife for your time and efforts mr.hand. ? will chat site return ,i hope so i never chatted before only observe crazy world ,also i ordered pi tabs from your link(tku) but forgot link to get ups tracking #.i need link again please please. it will get stolen from my porch,tku again mr. and mrs. hand.
I understand that some think comments should not be posted. but they also have the option of not reading them by selecting the option to hide the Chat window box. The Chat room is very vital for us to share the latest information with each other. It may not seem like that to those living far east, but us here on the west coast could use a medium like this Chat to pass on much needed news and links. That’s just my 2 cents. I hope you allow the chat open again,thank you for your services Enviro-Reporter!
I’m not too keen on chats. I think this website is ample for what we (most of us) really want to know… information, right? At least the posts can be published after review which will keep the integrity high. This is a time where opinions should be kept at bay (in my humble opinion)& accurate, accountable information should be given. I am not an alarmist and I do not want to be reading alarmist view points. We need cool heads to decipher what really is happening to our Earth. Unfortunately, we have been lied to by Japan, our Govt, the “powers that be” in media, so we really need to all pool together at this time & support these wonderful people who have given us this remarkable website…. I am very thankful for your hard work & I know it’s got to be a lot of work.
Annette
Who resides in IL which has the most nuclear power plants in the USA, and on fault lines….
Offering thanks, again, to Michael and Denise Anne for the service they are providing to all. I,too, found many links, offered from a variety of room folks, helpful and informative. I will continue to read the comment thread with the intentions to support and do my best to offer constructive information.
For those looking for some well-informed and objective accounting about what is going on, and advice about what to do:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-Helen-Caldicott/102772801940?sk=wall
http://www.health-matrix.net/
Mr.Man Hands or Mrs. Lady Fingers,
Shouldn’t it be time for another averaging? Please and Thanks.
Drumwife06
BB Cuda, your comment is one reason why we had to kill the chat – some folks thought we were “allowing” abusive posting when in actually we just couldn’t keep an eye on it (even when we were logged in – so it might have appeared we were monitoring but weren’t.) It’s impossible to watch it with a careful eye 24-7. When we signed up for UStream, we didn’t know chat was part of the package and have sure learned a lot since then. However, we too met some wonderful people and really liked (some) of the community that was forming there. I am looking into other options for an inexpensive chat function on this website that will allow us more control and/or less need to watch the conversations so closely.
all DECENT comments should be allowed that are ON OR RELATED TO THIS TOPIC, PRO OR CON, LEFT OR RIGHT. Let all share their thoughts and let NONE BE PUT DOWN for them. Disagreements are fine, debate is fine, DO NOT LET A DISAGREEMENT ESCALATE TO A PERSONAL ATTACK ON ANY INDIVIDUAL, and DO NOT LET A PERSONAL ATTACK BE ANSWERED WITH A PERSONAL ATTACK, that is when a moderator should be moderating, removing abusive posts and posters. This has been a decent place to post so far, I did not participate in the “chat” though and I have discontinued posting at sites where the monitor was allowing abusive posting—‘that’ is not freedom of speech.
I am very interested in all the links that all of you were giving out. It kept me very informed on what is going on, I got more info from this site then I did anywhere else.
CNN says that the radiation in the seawater around the plant is 3,500 times normal. Then they say that because the ocean is so large that amount is insignificant. I don’t think the sea life around the plant would agree with that! It’s hard to find information from a source that isn’t dependant upon the nuclear industries. Then some are independant but so darn scary! It’s pretty clear that nuclear power doesn’t make sense in any way.
Thank You, this is soo much better.
Christine—glad you liked the PSR article. I thought it was so informative and carefully done!
It’s great that we can share links and information like that here.
Hopefully, with the chat gone, and as some of the crisis-mode dies down (which may take a long time b/c of breaking/unfolding events occurring constantly out of Japan), we’ll be left here with a group of people who really want to explore and learn together and to help each other be informed and who inspire each other to get involved.
I’m glad that readings still seem ok up in Portland!!
Gee, I check back in on a short break from working and find that all “heck” has broken loose!
I agree with all of those who just now posted about the chat on USTREAM. There were far too many offensive, crazy, “conspiracy” “wing-nut” and sexually or morally offensive comments on there. Even some of the screen-names were grossly offensive and/or inappropriate.
But it’s also true that Michael and Denise Anne are busy working hard through this site and their other activities to be true investigative “watch-dogs” in the wider fight to protect our environment (and us, too). So, they don’t have time to monitor the chat, nor should they have to.
It is too bad that those offenders had to spoil it for everyone else. I haven’t even looked at that chat area since Michael and Denise Anne separated it again from the main ER site, as this comment site seems to be largely (with a few exceptions) a rational, responsible crowd with a genuine interesting in learning and sharing.
I think the problem is that sites like USTREAM attract all kinds of strange, obnoxious people, along, of course with some quite appropriate folks.
IDEA:
Is there any way, over time, that an “In-House” chat could be set up just within the ER site? With maybe certain times when “live-chat” would be active?
Some good sites about social or scientific issues have people actually register and become “members” (no fee attached)—and only those people are allowed to post either on comments or in chat rooms. The general public can only read, not post.
Just a thought.
Again, and as always, Michael and Denise Anne—we are all so grateful for the exceptional service you offer and the dedication and hard work you reflect for this, and so many other issues of concern!
I have to say that I agree with this decision to pause the chat and open it only when someone with a sense of accountability and responsibility is online. Otherwise – people new to the site could read posts by those who – with or without intending to – create panic for innocent others.
Not only that – some have used this forum to spread disinformation and to harass others who are not as well informed, rather than taking the time to inform them – a sad observation for me.
Perhaps moderation of the chat could be shared so that Mr and Mrs. Collins do not have to shoulder such an enormous burden themselves. This venue has been an invaluable outlet for many people, and a place of calm in the midst of a very unpredictable storm. I hope a solution can be found here.
Suggestions anyone?
I am also sorry you had to pull the chat. I found it informative, for the most part. Interesting to hear how folks from other countries and other parts of America feel.
Regardless of what you decide on returning the chat I want to thank you so much for putting up your monitor for us all to see. I figure if it gets bad in Santa Monica it won’t be long before it is bad here in Lake Elsinore.
How about a limited time chat? i.e. 8pm-11pm evenings? It was a good source of connection and information and fellowship. Please come back! We need u….. There will always be rude people; just ban them completely and keep going! Come back!
Just to let you know that I found some useful links to other sites from your chat area. But I never joined in the conversations because of the constant bashing of different ethnic groups, occasional offensive sexual references or too many snippy comments from some chatters. I just check in now and then to see how the numbers are. I am in southern Ontario and there isn’t a whole lot of info online for Canada. Keep up the good work!
This is not “was” a very informative site. We approve all comments that meet the standards necessary to continue this lively and productive conversation about the nuclear disaster in Japan and how it will impact the United States and beyond.
That said, comments on *this article* and Radiation Station, are welcome!
Thanks to all who have expressed such strong support.
I was actually wondering what was going on with the site, and well its really sad that the people that really want to inform others cant just because there are aholes out there that are so stupidly immature that had to go and screw it up for the rest of us.
Is there any way that you could make it so that only people that you allow can comment on the site?
This was a very informative site for me, and I really hope that there is a way for you moderate it to the point where only people that you allow can comment.
Could we please not start posting rants and name calling “here” now that the chat is gone. Let’s keep this source of info & communication clean and clear of all that. I and others don’t want to have to scan thru all these type of comments (including this one) to find the informational posts.
Thank you.
So sorry you had to pull down the chat, even with the Trolls it was still the one place we could go to to ask questions and get answers. Please bring it back…We need a place to talk! If not for anything but stress release! A place where we felt we were getting true info…:(
Thank you Liz for the PSR article.
Portland, Oregon readings are still at 6 uR/h – 8 uR/h or 36 CPM – 48 CPM
Readings from PM1703M device.
That chat was NECESSARY! I got a lot of great info from there inlcuding some key websites and that manual. Idiots! Maybe they will slither off somewhere and we can have it back soon.
Drumwife06
I am hoping the discussion on the upstream site starts again, keep up the good work, have a nice day gr Jel.
Its sad & upsetting that again the few ruined it for the rest of us (majority) who really cared & had great info to provide & encouraged & gave strength to those that needed it. I hope it goes back on soon & a way to keep these annoying people out is found…Its a great webs site with great info about this very dire moments that soo many still do not believe is going on until they finally see the elephant in the room but by then it may be too late. Loved the info provided related to nutritional stuff & things we could do to help with the radiation that enters our bodies…..especially information regarding things we could do to keep our children safe…the most vulnerable.
BRING IT BACK :(…..THANKS FOR DOING THE AVERAGES
PS. WHO EVER IT WAS THAT PRETENDED TO BE MR.COLLIN…YOU HAD NO RIGHT & I HOPE HE COMES AFTER YOU FOR PRETENDING TO BE HIM….YOU MAGGOT
Ruth, the chat became unmanageable because it demands 24/7 moderation and we just can’t do that. We will continue to focus on our investigative reporting and keeping Radiation Station accurate and up-to-date.
While the majority of the chatters were of good intention and hungry for valuable information that we and other chatters could provide, there was an active and persistent minority of people hell-bent on wrecking the chat with profanity, racism, dumb jokes, conspiracy theories, and repeated attempts to discredit me.
The last straw was late last night when someone registered as “michael collins” and initiated a discussion about ‘firing’ EnviroReporter. It doesn’t get dumber than that. So we are forced to have only moderated chats occassionally which may or may not be announced.
We also have people attempting to spam our comments using various aliases but these folks aren’t too hard to catch and quarantine. Of course, their comments are ignored in order to keep the comments an informative place for our readers and occassionally a fun one as Shibui’s comment shows.
Thank you for your interest in the subject and in EnviroReporter.com‘s Radiation Station.
I am hoping the discussion on the upstream site starts again as I was learning about readings in other places there. I have friends in other states I’m worried about. Maybe you could just regulate some of the people who get out of line there.
You people are insane.
I strongly recommend that everyone read this long but excellent article from PSR about the health risks of radiation from Fukushima. It challenges generally touted declarations about radiation from the plant being “safe” or “normal,” yet not at all in an alarmist or irresponsible way.
It contains helpful explanations about radiation, radiation sources and radiation doses, and examines all of it in terms of what’s happening in Japan.
Also Dr. Dave Lochbaum is testifying right now before the Senate, and you can read his statement on allthingsnuclear.org or through the Union of Concerned Scientists web site.
Below is the info for the PSR statement.
http://www.psr.org/resources/health-risks-releases-radioactivity.pdf
Carla—go to the U.C. Berkeley testing site (linked on this page in Michael’s list of agencies who are monitoring. It seems very scientific–indeed, with respect to certain measurements, they indicate that they will refrain from commenting until they understand better what the significance of some of their data is.
Although I don’t understand the more technical aspects, I can clearly see that for the time being, we are not getting a harmfrul dose–and yes, they do provide (very reassuring) information about the amount of material we’re exposed to in terms of time frames.
I trust the site to be independent and not tied to any effort to minimize problems so as to promote nuclear energy.
Check it out—I think you’ll find it reassuring.
That said, all of this remains completely unacceptable, and we should all be motivated to start taking action against nuclear power in whatever way we can.
it seems like the gulf oil spill. the company “hides” the amount of radiation that has leaked into the environment. evidently they are not equipped to be handling this situation.
there is no honor in japan any more. otherwise there would be at least 4 hari kiri suicides of TEPCO management. greedy bastards have ruined japan for a million years.
isotopes of plutonium are the most toxic substance ever designed by man.
ONE MICROGRAM inhaled in the lungs causes lung cancer without fail.
Plutonium particles – or ‘Piano’ particles
UPDATE 1-Japan says plutonium found at Fukushima | Metals & Mining | Reuters
af.reuters.com
TOKYO, March 28 (Reuters) – Plutonium has been found in soil at various points within Japan’s stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex…]
[AIRBORNE HAZARD
Plutonium 238, 239 and 240 are highly radioactive but their radiation is in alpha particles, which only travels very short distances and cannot penetrate human skin. Where they are highly dangerous is if they are inhaled. Their radiation causes DNA damage in tissue, which then boosts the risk of cancer. The bone marrow and liver, where plutonium is transported through a blood protein called transferring, are especially vulnerable. Just a dozen milligrams of plutonium are lethal for a human, according to tests on lab animals cited by France’s Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN).
…]
What They’re Covering Up at Fukushima
By HIROSE TAKASHI
Introduced by Douglas Lummis
Okinawa
[….
Yoh: So making comparisons with X-rays and CT scans has no meaning. Because you can breathe in radioactive material.
Hirose: That’s right. When it enters your body, there’s no telling where it will go. The biggest danger is women, especially pregnant women, and little children. Now they’re talking about iodine and cesium, but that’s only part of it, they’re not using the proper detection instruments. What they call monitoring means only measuring the amount of radiation in the air. Their instruments don’t eat. What they measure has no connection with the amount of radioactive material. . . .
Yoh: So damage from radioactive rays and damage from radioactive material are not the same.
Hirose: If you ask, are any radioactive rays from the Fukushima Nuclear Station here in this studio, the answer will be no. But radioactive particles are carried here by the air. When the core begins to melt down, elements inside like iodine turn to gas. It rises to the top, so if there is any crevice it escapes outside.
Yoh: Is there any way to detect this?
Hirose: I was told by a newspaper reporter that now Tepco is not in shape even to do regular monitoring. They just take an occasional measurement, and that becomes the basis of Edano’s statements. You have to take constant measurements, but they are not able to do that. And you need to investigate just what is escaping, and how much. That requires very sophisticated measuring instruments. You can’t do it just by keeping a monitoring post. It’s no good just to measure the level of radiation in the air. Whiz in by car, take a measurement, it’s high, it’s low – that’s not the point. We need to know what kind of radioactive materials are escaping, and where they are going – they don’t have a system in place for doing that now.
….]
No actually, they’re not and “particularly Southern California” is just false. No, you’re not getting nuked in So Cal. Yet.
http://www.zamg.ac.at/docs/aktuell/Japan2011-03-25_1600_E_2.pdf
It has been proven beyond a doubt that radioactive particles from the disaster are reaching the US, particularly Southern California, so unfortunately we are living in a moment in history when yes Michael, pianos are falling on our heads. Each of us needs to hope we are not the unlucky ones under them.
Yes it does examined closely, within an inch or so. Takes a lab to identify it but we can pick up its ionization.
Does the inspector pick up radiation from plutonium?
Carla, sure and a piano could land on me tomorrow. If the fallout hits this area in any concentration worth noting, we will detect its gamma signature. We also do daily/nightly alpha/beta/gamma exterior tests. But yes, an atomic particle from the disaster could slip through without us detecting the larger formation, but I doubt it.
I appreciate your truly noble intention enviroreporter but these radiation monitors do not tell us what is really dangerous to our health; that is, it is not the radiation rays in the air that are dangerous (which is what the radiation monitors pick up, that include rays from the natural surrounds etc.), it is the individual radioactive fallout particles which we may ingest either by breathing or eating. There do not need to be many of these latter to be greatly detrimental to health. Please read this: http://www.counterpunch.org/takashi03222011.html
Ashland, Oregon – Measured on a rebranded RadAlert 100 sold by Vernier. This device is calibrated for cesium 137. Measurements are taken outside with the device enclosed in a very thin plastic bag. Cesium 137 is a medium-high energy beta and gamma emitter and a thin sheet of plastic as such will not substantially affect the readings for this radio-isotope. It will affect counts for radio-isotopes which are alpha emitters or lower energy beta emitters. Please regard these readings as a very general and simplistic indication of radiation counts. Counts remain in the normal range.
3/29 10:12PM 10 minutes 145/10 = 14.5 CPM
3/29 6:55PM 10 minutes 150/10 = 15 CPM
3/29 8:05AM 10 minutes 152/10 = 15.2 CPM
3/28 9:02PM 10 minutes 130/10 = 13 CPM
3/28 6:22PM 10 minutes 162/10 = 16.2 CPM
3/28 3:20PM 10 minutes 140/10 = 14 CPM
3/28 1:36PM 10 minutes 140/10 = 14 CPM
To Is It Safe:
Or maybe they’re just tired, feeling goofy and breaking the monotony, since they have been doing this EVERY DAY for over a week.
I would too. ;o)
Comment and question: Annette, thanks also for reminding us about the heroic people who are making this “stand” under such dark and dangerous conditions to do what they can to stave off a disaster. Their work is truly sacrificial. They will certainly be in my prayers.
And the question: Tonight, on CNN, Sanjay Gupta said that in the U.S. we are receiving “less than 1/2 of a chest x-ray.”
Although I truly am quite reassured about our status (by NIRS, et. al), I do have a question.
When “they” mention 1/2 of a chest x-ray, what is the time ratio to that? Per event, per plume, per day, week, month or year?
Because all indicators are that there will be continual “drift” of this material in an easterly direction, eventually to circumnavigate the globe.
So, does that mean we will be receiving 1/2 of a chest x-ray every day, every week, every month, or for the entire event?
I’m not very good at math, but if you add all of that up on a cumulative basis, it seems like an awful lot of chest x-rays…..
Just a thought.
Hmmm. Cryptic images of potassium iodide, family photo’s and other goodies during the CPM averaging…. What aren’t they telling us…? And why ?
Hi, Annette—I have had the same reaction to CNN, and it does seem that Paula Hancock is playing politics, keeping close to the “party line” about all of this. Shame on Anderson Cooper—what happened to “Keeping them honest?”
He’s doing a bit better tonight, quoting Fukushima workers on the cover-up and failures on the part of TEPCO.
That’s one of the reasons why (as it was reported on the NIRS earlier today), the NIRS, Physicians for Social Responsibility and Friends of the Earth filed a Freedom of Information Act Petition to obtain the results that U.S. Government regulatory agencies are acquiring through their daily testing.
It’s interesting that 10 days ago, U.S regulatory authorities were protesting and disclosing often and loudly–even to Congress—but since then, there has been not one word from any of them, although they are there, on scene, and testing.
So that’s why a Freedom of Information Act Petition was filed by NIRS et. al.
And your poignant observation about what is pouring into the sea, onto the land. We are the least of those to be concerned for ourselves. What about the people who were decimated by a nuclear bomb in 1945 and who now must certainly be recalling that as they live through this?
What about sea and land animals, plants, freshwater sources—such extensive contamination, and most certainly, we don’t yet know the half of it.
The same thing happened with Chernobyl. No danger. No contamination. No risk. Go ahead and play in the rain puddles (places in which children played and in which, it was later learned, there were astronimical levels of harmful radioactive isotopes). That was the “party line” worldwide.
The horrendous truth emerged only in increments, much later, and, incredibly (or perhaps not so incredibly) is still emerging. To this day, there is a statistically disproportionate number of children still being born with defects medically determined to be related to that disaster.
The “real” truth was never fully told about Three Mile Island, either. That is a separate subject unto itself and there is some excellent and ethical information about it.
The alarming thing is that the story that is not being told about safety violations and risks right here in our own country with reference to existing plants and/or proposals for new plants (and the use of Plutonium).
Ultimately we must cling to the fact that no matter what “authorities” might say about the radiation from this and other accidens not being harmful, the official position of PSR is that no amount of unnecessary radiation is acceptable for human life or for the other creatures (birds, fish, animals) who dwell on the earth with us and to whom we have a deep responsibiity.
Thank you for doing such a service to your fellow Americans. You have provided something that should have been done by the general government. But they are too busy stealing oil and killing. Once again thank you.
My 22 yr old daughter is within the L.A. basin. Concentrated levels will always stay in basins. So many down sides for the long term living in North Hollywood.
I continue to delve DEEP via the www to see what the hell is really going on in Japan at Fukushima. I’m just now listening to CNN ad nauseum on the Fukushima plant. Paula Hancock is playing politics over there. Mass media is so skewed.
Plutonium is leaking into our Pacific Ocean. It continues to leak and no one knows where the leak is coming from.
Wow… where is NATO?!!
I bought up my smoked oysters, love them, will not eat them ever again probably. I’m bummed.
Praying for those Samurai workers in Japan. My heart aches for those beautiful, heroic souls.
[In PHX.] Back from L.A. road trip ..about half way there things did not look or feel right, of course that’s L.A., right? but worse than ever, I thought and a sort of new burning/feverish sensation.
Once there, tried to make the best of things but nothing really felt right and all plans seemed to disinegrate and people not getting along [etc.], again, that’s L.A… but[?] So trip cut short and again half way here things seemed to clear, the daze, the haze, the crazy feeling, again, that’s L.A., right[?]..
Also: A little bit of a tightness in chest/short of breath sensation like I haven’t had since when I was a kid swimming in Lake Michigan-Chicago in the seventies when who knows what was in the water! [it would go away the next day though] ..can still feel it a little now ..and I am a healthy person.
See previous comment, Dan. And read our Radiation Station FAQs: https://www.enviroreporter.com/2011/03/radiation-station-faqs/
A few minutes ago i saw values on device skyrocketing to – 300!! Can somebody tell me whats going on? Did device malfunctioned?
We average for ten minutes taking a total count and dividing by ten. Therefore the average was 44.4 cpm Interior = NORMAL.
Hello, I am french and I dont write english very well. Why the number in your meter is up to 444 this noon?
Yes Michael I will send you photos. I don’t have your email address so I will use the contact tab in this site.
Our numbers have nothing to do with the numbers on this map. Also, the second link is in another language. This is an English language website, FYI.
I am going to refrain from answering questions in this comment thread. Those questions are better addressed to our chat on the Ustream feed.
No, no and no.
We published “anonymous” comment to show just how loony some of our commenters get. But don’t get your britches in a wad, “anonymous,” – you are just posting nonsense here and do it under that lame handle. But good for comic relief!
The map link below is something a friend sent me, why do your numbers not represent what the maps are showing? What is really going on? Dr Tom
http://www.zamg.ac.at/pict/aktuell/20110325_Reanalyse-I131-Period2.gif
http://www.zamg.ac.at/aktuell/index.php?seite=1&artikel=ZAMG_2011-03-25GMT15:41
LOL, Truth, don’t feel bad about misreading the averaging numbers. As familiar as I’ve been with this site, a few days ago I logged on and saw the numbers skyrocketing.
An advertisement was mostly blocking the “stand by” sign and for just a second, my heart rate certainly did climb, until I realized that the unit was averaging. Whew!!
Provocative question of the moment: Did the US Government immediately decide to go to(officially undeclared) war with Libya to knock the increasingly grim news from Japan out of the international headlines?
Is Obama in a radioactive proof underground bunker somewhere since 3/11 and were just merely listening to the “Obama” hologram?
News from NIRS (Nuclear Information Resource Service)—
As of yesterday, NIRS, in conjunction with Physicians for Social Responsibility and Friends of the Earth, has filed a Freedom of Information Act Request to obtain the results of radiation monitoring in and around Fukushima and broader areas as well. A copy of the Request is available on their site.
NIRS also reports that there is a video and a written report from the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum describing a large crane that fell on one of the reactors in the last day or so, causing even more damage.
However, when you try to access the links, the youtube site for video indicates that due to “copyright” problems the video cannot be seen, and when you try to access the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum report, you get a “web site” unavailable type of message.
NIRS has daily updates that are very informative and which most certainly are trustworthy.
San Pedro reporting that there is radiation on containers from Japan at the loading docks!
U.S. Customs says “no cause for alarm”.
Uh-huh.
Thank you but we post what we choose. We do not post people who use multiple identities in order to cram their agenda onto our site and readers. You are not one of those people Truth. You are just confused. If you had read the label under the Inspector, you would have seen we were averaging over 10 minutes, hence the high counts. In these scary times, one can avoid needless panic by simply paying better attention, and in this case reading the sign across the Inspector which told viewers what we were doing. You, Truth, are not alone in becoming alarmed by the seemingly high readings on the Inspector.
This is one of many mystifying messages we get. But calling me “Al Gore” is a complement I do not reserve. And, yes, we are still detecting normal activity in the LA Basin west. KTLA-Channel 5 News reported on radiation found in our port. The article behind the video has our Radiation Station as the first link (of course!): http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-local-radiation-monitors,0,2685193.story
Christine, do not listen to all the advice here. You have an excellent detector, instructions and customer service. Keep taking measurements and report them to us, please. Take a few photos and email them to me too!
Remember “What the Door Knob Said”, ” Keep Your Head” and do not ignore Al Gore’s station reporting. From the scale above the low count rad days still outnumber the high count days or just on the verge of reporting validity. Time to revamp!
@JK – OK, so does this mean my device is not going to tell me if their is harmful radiation? It came with instructions, I have not had a chance to research much. I called customer service, and a sales guy told me not to worry that this device is very sensitive and will pick up any radiation. It’s $$$ so it better! He also said it was designed to detect “dirty bombs” on ships.
Ashland, Oregon – Measured on a rebranded RadAlert 100 sold by Vernier. This device is calibrated for cesium 137. Measurements are taken outside with the device enclosed in a very thin plastic bag. Cesium 137 is a medium-high energy beta and gamma emitter and a thin sheet of plastic as such will not substantially affect the readings for this radio-isotope. It will affect counts for radio-isotopes which are alpha emitters or lower energy beta emitters. Please regard these readings as a very general and simplistic indication of radiation counts which to date appear to be in the normal range.
3/28 9:02PM 10 minutes 130/10 = 13 CPM
3/28 6:22PM 10 minutes 162/10 = 16.2 CPM
3/28 3:20PM 10 minutes 140/10 = 14 CPM
3/28 1:36PM 10 minutes 140/10 = 14 CPM
3/27 12:02PM 10 minutes 145/10 = 14.5 CPM
3/27 8:46AM 10 minutes 134/10 = 13.4 CPM
3/26 10:55PM 10 minutes 139/10 = 13.9 CPM
3/26 1:10PM 10 minutes 164/10 = 16.4 CPM
3/26 9:55AM 10 minutes 160/10 = 16 CPM
putting two and two together, it seems that yellow rain or “snow” was strontium in the chernobyl explosion.
it follows that the yellow snow falling in tokyo, is also strontium-90.
strontium collects in bones. at chernobyl the authorities said it was harmless “pollen”, guess what the japanese said it was?
@Christine: According to http://www.radon.com/products/pm1703.html your device is only sensitive to gamma emitting radio-isotopes. Plutonium isotopes are mostly alpha emitters and their emissions would not register on the model type device you listed. Do you have additional information about the sensitivity of your device?
Hi, Christine and Wilma—between the two of you, it sounds like we’ve got even more people to monitor and collect samples in different locations!
That’s awesome that you thought to take rain and soil samples, Wilma. Maybe Michael or someone else here knows where to send them.
And it sounds like you’ve really got a good instrument there, Christine. From your numbers, it seems that readings in Portland are pretty much normal?
The U.C. site indcates that so far, these are really trace amounts that we are receiving. I suspect there are “hot spots” in places because of the “rain-out” effect, but otherwise, these do not seem like doses we need to be alarmed about.
However, I do like to bear in mind that the official position of the PSR is that NO amount of (unnecessary) ionizing radiation is acceptable.
Wilma P. – I would be very interested in your rain/soil results. Will you please post on this site when you have the results.
I have a PM1703M Radiation Detector that was designed for the coast guard. It is highly sensitive and will detect
Cs-137 and plutonium.
Portland Oregon readings for the past 4 days have been
averaging 6 uR/h or 36 CPM indoors and 8 uR/h or 48 CPM outdoors.
Kudos to this nicely put together site.
I have a rain sample taken in the local area. The sample is from BEFORE Fukishima, collected January-February of this year.
I also have collected Southern California rainwater from each of the separate storms we’ve had since the March 11th Japan Quake. These date about one week after the 11th and continue as each storm dumped rain. There are now four samples awaiting testing reflecting the four rain events of these past few days.
So, Michael, you and any readers out there — where to go for testing? I have also collected soil samples prior to the rains, during breaks in the rain, and now after the rains.
Berkeley has its results; we don’t have ours even though the Jet Stream marshalled in precipitation down here to, the same kind of precip that the university found to have elevated Cesium 137, Iodine 131, and Cesium 134.
Hi, Brad—this was a pattern with Chernobyl and TMI also—and with other less “publicized” accidents or “near-misses.”
But really, if you get on the various recommended websites (I just suggested Greenpeace, below), like Physicians for Social Responsibiity, or The Union of Concerned Scientists, or The Nuclear Information Resource Service, you will find constant updates, breaking news—-and it is all independent, not tied to the Utility, to the Japanese or U.S. Governments, or to any big companies (like GE) who had a financial tie to TEPCO.
Not to mention this very EnviroReporter site which also has tons of information, blogs, articles and links.
I really recommend these sites because they are constantly updated not only with information but with perspectives and opinions from experts who can interpret the information so that we understand the implications of it.
And, importantly, they are very careful and ethical with information.
These sites also have outstanding articles about nuclear energy in general, nuclear physics (for laymen, LOL), radiation exposure parameters, government “conflicts of interest” (I’m trying to use polite phrase for that, LOL) and other problems in the industry at large, far beyond the Japan disaster.
Let us all know what you think of those sites.
Thanks for the reminder, Michael about reproducing copyrighted material. I assume it’s ok to reference (without quoting) a remark made by an expert (or non-expert, LOL, like the doctor interviewed on CNN who said that he did not believe the injured Fukushima workers really sustained radiation burns standing in water 10,000 times above normal limits)—
And is it also ok to describe information on a web site that may be of interest to this group, along with the site web-address?
I do want to refer everyone here to Greenpeace. They have up to date information there, including that Greenpeace workers are measuring radiation levels in towns near and far from Fukushima and they’ve posted their results (along a Google map with the exact measurements and an explanation of what the significance of those measurements are).
Their latest update says that they found harmful radiation levels in a town 20 miles (or km, can’t remember which) BEYOND the farthest perimeter of the government’s retricted area.
They have all kinds of commentary, Blogs and up-to-date information that contradicts (in a responsible way) much of the information we’re getting from government and utility.
Address is greenpeace.org
I wish some of their people were also traveling around the west coast taking measurements!!
there should be a tv channel or webpage that has this
reactor meltdown on 24/7 with constant updates. the fact that there isn’t such a news source implies that the power industry is preventing all the dire news from being spread.
I hope there will be more people around the world like you who monitor radiation so that people actually can follow the measuring of radiation. Thank you!
We appreciate all the comments we have been receiving but must address one type of them: cutting and pasting articles into comments and submitting them to us.
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@CJ: You are correct. Plastic will stop beta emitters but the thickness needed to do so is dependent on the energy of the beta particle. I assumed that a thin plastic film would have negligible effect on medium to higher energy emissions (cesium 137 beta emissions fall in that category) but perhaps I am in error here. One radiation shielding manual suggests 1.4mm of Lucite plastic is required to completely block cesium 137 beta emissions.
2Dogs—thanks for jumping in with a comment!!
We are ALL “wondering” as you say, about what the “readings” and implications for us here in California, and what the real effects and consequences of this are.
There is lots of information on the reliable, well-researched sites about Diablo Canyon. That facility has had a lot of safety issues, from what I’ve read, and since you live near that plant, you should probably read up on it.
Unfortunately, the Japanese Government, the Japanese Utility and the broader International establishment, government-affiliated regulatory nuclear community has become rather closed-mouthed about the entire debacle.
That does not mean that we should plunge over the cliff of complete “conspiracy” paranoia (most of which is not based on proper research or ethically presented information)….
But at the same time, it is reassuring that we have, thanks to EnviroReporter and some of the other ethical sites (see below), access to some independent information about radiation levels (carefully measured) and radiation types (isotopes, etc.)that potentially could impact us here.
A look at one section of the EPA web site will tell you that all of the readings up through today are within “normal” limits, while in an entirely different section of their own website, the EPA admits that some not-normal (although “safe”) levels of Japan radiation HAVE been detected in a number of states.
There is a lot of “double-speak,” ambiguity and contradiction in the U.S. government sites and in the media. A pundit from U. Texas Radiation Oncology Dept. actually stated yesterday on CNN that he “doubted” that the 3 workers who were reported in ALL legitimate media sites to have sustained burns had actually suffered radiation burns, as he questioned the widely reported radiation levels in the water!!
Flying in the face of ALL of the mainstream information, this physician (James Cox, M.D., interviewed yesterday by Don Lemon of CNN) stated that he did not “believe” that these poor workers sustained anything more than “thermal burns” and that the reports of radiation burns, internal radiation and levels as high as 10,000 times normal were legitimate.
With reportage like that (in the face of what every legitimate source of information was reporting), it is no wonder we sense a “disconnect” with some of the media reports.
I fear that we cannot fully trust either the Industry/Government information OR the media.
At the same time, we must be very, very careful at this time not to fall prey to the irresponsible “paranoia” of the fear-mongering and hyperbolic sources that are using this tragedy to promote their spurious causes.
Stick with EnviroReporter and other sites like Physicians for Social Responsibility and the Union of Concerned Scientists or the Nuclear Information Resource Service for the REAL information.
And thanks, again for sharing your concerns and opinions with us!
Kyodo, Breaking News: Urgent: ‘Radioactive water from No. 2 due to partial meltdown. Edano’ The tape then reports ‘Partial meltdown of fuel rods believed to be temporary.’
I honestly do not understand japanese.
Dear TEPCO – Is it melting? Is it not melting? Do you know what is happening? Do you know how to fix it? You do understand Fukushima has now become one of the worst environmental disasters in recorded history, correct?
Dear TEPCO – it is time for you to humble thyself and ask for some international HELP. Samurai can not win this war.
I have been lurking here a bit and agree the comments are intelligent and I appreciate the information. I have watched the LA reading and hope they reflect what we had here. I assume from what I have seen that there was not a spike as I had feared.
I reside on the central cali coast near the diablo canyon plant. shocked their sniffer was ‘out’- along with a few more here in teh state. they only had a week of estimated time before the first waves of stuff hit!
a broader question is I recall the feds saying the naval groups first assigned had some jet based sniffing capability- does anyone else recall that? if so, where are those readings? it was fairly quick that the naval groups were redeployed away from the plume, so I assume if they found something that is why they moved. there must be more capability and info out there than we are getting. that disturbs me more than anything else.
I work for a City here in California. I am outside all day. How much exposure can my body take before its irreversible?
Hi, Denise Anne—Thank you!!! I saw you guys on and off today trying to moderate, correct and, in the worst cases, delete offensive comments, and I was thinking, my gosh, you guys are already doing so much for us, for our State and for the wider world at large……the last thing you need is one more task!!
I agree about the bonding, and maybe with time, after the “crisis-mode” settles down, we could have an “in-house” chat-room (i.e. one not connected to USTREAM, but rather one simply connected to EnviroReporter).
I have a feeling that you and Michael have galvanized a real community here, and it’ll be wonderful so see where that goes as all of this moves along. Maybe a real community “posting” group, maybe seminars and meetings……
Honestly, part of my concern is an “already-proprietary” one about EnviroReporter; I feel that this service is so important, that I hate to see questionable things associated with it that might lower its overall appeal to people who are seriously concerned about the nuclear industry.
I do feel that by inviting a broader community onto your site, you and Michael are providing an “education” opportunity that might not be available elsewhere, though, so that’s one of the benefits of the USTREAM chat-room.
I’m glad not to have to see the offensive chats anymore; out of sight is out of mind. There are some awesome people that have been attracted to your site in the last 2 weeks, and I can’t wait to see where it will all go next!
Bless both of you a million times over for your committment to this movement. I’m hoping at the end of the month to be able to send you guys a small, humble but heartfelt donation.
Hi Liz, You are right – there should be a place for straight-up talk about this issue without having to see the chat so if you refresh your page it won’t be in the sidebar on this page any longer. We thought it might be value added but it’s just too hard to moderate the chat all the time and while some of the wandering off topic helps the community get to know each other and bond some, there will be offensive comments that get by us and we certainly don’t want that displayed on our site. Thank you for such great comments and helpful information.
Brad—I’m glad you got on that site. There is wealth of important (and worrisome) information on there.
The actual site for the Union of Concerned Scientists has further information. Their website is ucsusa.org
Dr. Lochbaum participates there in regular press conferences concerning the Fukushima situation, and you can see the transcripts (or listen to the recorded version) online.
Thanks for highlighting the essential design flaw that may have contributed to possible leaks in the spent fuel rod pools (which are of great import because of the high levels of Plutonium there)—
Even while we’re all focused on Japan, we need to start applying some of the disaster elements and scenarios (as they unfold) to plants here in the U.S. (and in other countries).
I’m glad we all gathering here to have intelligent discussions in this “comments” section about these issues.
LOL, I wish there were a chat room for those of us who want to discuss these kinds of things rather than some of the subject matter that is in the chat-room section, LOL.
I guess the comments section is the best place for the serious discussions. Thanks again, Brad.
@JK: I believe that plastic will stop beta emitters.
thanks for the link address to “www.allthingsnuclear.org” hosted by the union of concerned scientists. here’s why the cooling ponds are leaking, as with the space shuttle blowing up years ago, humans seem to have trouble with seals. quote from all things nuclear, “Dave Lochbaum has suggested a common failure mode for leaks in the spent fuel pools. Large doors in the side of the pools are equipped with rubber tubes that are inflated to seal around the door. Even if these seals were not damaged, without power to run the pumps that keep the seals inflated, they can lose air over time and create leaks around the door. Such leaks may not show up immediately since it could take some time for the seals to lose air pressure.
The pumps for these seals currently do not have backup power so leaks of this kind can result from an extended loss of power from the grid. This is a vulnerability of this type of plant design that could happen elsewhere, including at a number of plants in the the US, and needs to be addressed.
I learned this afternoon that radiation has been detected here in Las Vegas area where we are currently visiting. Both yesterday and today we have been outside, hiking and enjoying the great weather. Does that mean that we have inhaled some of the dangerous particles that have the 30-year half life? Would it be better if we were to stay inside?
I have tried to understand which particles are being detected, whether they are alpha, beta or gamma, but I actually can’t find the info I am looking for. Any help would be appreciated! And thank you for posting the monitor!
Truth, the ads are not part of EnviroReporter, but rather part of USTREAM, the vehicle through which EnviroReporter streams the live radiation monitor (as a public service).
EnviroReporter is one of of the best sites/organizations around. Read the background, press info and history of EnviroReporter and you will see how ethical and passionately devoted to protection of the environment EnviroReporter is.
From our FAQ, which should actually be obvious:
I don’t like the ads in the streaming video
Those commercials are by UStream Live. We are using UStream because it is free and easy and we are hoping others will do the same thing we are doing.
Interesting little analysis:
From the Union of Concerned Scientists
Check out their “update” on allthingsnuclear.org
dated today.
TEPCO has made us believe that the “power” is back on, and have shown widely a picture of the control room to “prove” this.
One of the UCS scientists has examined the picture closely, and reports that only the lights, and nothing else, including the sensors, alarms and valve controls is working in there.
He’s included a copy of the famous TEPCO photo and has circled in red and described the items not working (which is everything but the lights). So, there’s misleading info from TEPCO right there.
UCS has some good articles. They’re not as committed to full “anti-nuke” policy as most of us here, but they are a watchdog group and have examined a number of U.S. industry safety violations over the years.
Ashland, Oregon – Measured on a rebranded RadAlert 100 sold by Vernier. This device is calibrated for cesium 137. Measurements are taken outside with the device enclosed in a Ziplock bag. Cesium 137 is a beta and gamma emitter and a plastic bag will not affect the readings for this radio-isotope. It will affect counts for radio-isotopes which are alpha emitters. Please regard these readings as a a very general and simplistic indication of radiation counts.
3/27 12:02PM 10 minutes 145/10 = 14.5 CPM
3/27 8:46AM 10 minutes 134/10 = 13.4 CPM
3/26 10:55PM 10 minutes 139/10 = 13.9 CPM
3/26 1:10PM 10 minutes 164/10 = 16.4 CPM
3/26 9:55AM 10 minutes 160/10 = 16 CPM
It looks like the chat group has changed in nature—or maybe it’s just the time of day. The names are different (there were a few that were really inappropriate, previously), and the conversation seems about issues or appropriate subjects instead of unrelated things like descriptions of people’s marijuana use and other off-topic and not appropriate subjects. Much better!
I hope everyone is watching the numbers. The “10 million times above normal” has now been down-scaled to “100,000 times above normal” (TEPCO claims it “erred” in its’ original measurement).
Either way, this is very grim.
Also, U.C. Berkely (linked to this site) is reporting a significant rise in Cesium. They are examining what is going on and will report more.
Also, Japan radiation has now been found in Boston rain water!
It’s looking like this will be a very long-lasting (and serious) problem. Thanks for fixing the chat room.
In reviewing the Radnet data, there seems to be a trend in the western states of radiation level spikes in early March before the tsunami. Any ideas why?
Japan Nuclear Radiation Alert: Levels 10 Million Times Normal
Note the comment about how materials only created by fission are being found. This means one of two things. Either the reactor cores are now confirmed as breached, and/or the fuel rods in the reactors and spent fuel pools are undergoing uncontrolled fission. Given the increasing levels of radiation, I would conclude the latter.
Mar
27
08:43
Tiny amounts of radiation from Japan reach Nev.
Tags: FUKUSHIMA DISASTER
Nevada has joined several western states in reporting that minuscule amounts of radiation from Japan’s damaged nuclear plant are showing up. But as with the other states, scientists say there is no health risk.
Webmaster’s Commentary:
For months the US Government has wagged the dog at us that a single terrorist with a suitcase bomb consisting of TNT mixed with radioactive isotopes could wipe out an entire American city, yet now we have a half-dozen wrecked and leaking reactors spewing radiation across half the planet and we are told it is no big deal!
7:30 in sunday morning,
iodine-134 with a half life of ONE HOUR has been found in water in turbine room reactor 2. this is a short lived FISSION PRODUCT. most likely coming from the reactor containment vessel which has been breached. the iodine-134 is TEN MILLION TIMES ABOVE SAFE LEVEL. japan will be unliveable after this debacle.
too late for the fresh water. the spent fuel is already entombed in a salt sarcophagus, unable to be cooled by water either saltwater or fresh water. when they melt completely and the mass drops to the floor of the building there will be a steam explosion punching up deadly levels of radioactivity into the higher atmosphere. get pre explosion food stored.
correction to typo in my last post—I meant newcomers will see that Illegitimate chat going on and immediately leave. I don’t want anyone to get the wrong impression about this awesome community. (see my post, below)
Hi, Rauol and Denise Anne—-I, also have observed really inappropriate content in the “chat” window. I’ve found a way to avoid it. When you click on the radiation monitor window, sometimes the system takes you directly to USTREAM and then you’re stuck with the chat window. But if you click out of it and go back in, you wind up only on the EnviroReporter site, with just our comments and the daily averages.
Some of those chatters have really inappropriate or offensive screen-names and from what I’ve seen, they mostly talk about all the pot they’ve smoked/are smoking. They seem like a bunch of obnoxious kids mostly, although sometimes some few people on there actually make legitimate comments.
They do not seem like the same community that is making such wonderful and thoughtful posts in the commentary section.
I was also, like Rauol, going to say something about it, but since I figured out a way to avoid it, I said nothing.
My concern is that newcomers to this wonderful EnviroReporter site will see that legitimate chat and immediately leave.
The inappropriate chatters thus could damage the credibility of this wonderful site.
I personaly bought a radioactivity detector in France (Radex) and began monitoring radiation at different places in my garden since march 18th. I can testify that a small growth of the average values is slowly beginning (from 0.11 micro sievert to 0.14 micro sievert)and there has been no rain so far.
I hope the japaneese ingenior are about to find a solution in Fukushima.
God bless Japan
I can’t seem to get the chat thing to accept my information (my luck). So here is a movie for all those that want to tell us how like 28 people died from chernobyl and radiation is good for us. Not that those people would watch something like this.
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/chernobyl-heart/
Warning tearjerker! But for us on the west coast there isn’t a better movie so far. I think the website has a nuclear propaganda film too if you want to just start lying to yourself to feel better. hahaha
Here is a very comprehensive little article that I found today. I highly recommend that you all read it when you have a moment today.
http://beforeitsnews.com/story/501/260/What_Theyre_Covering_Up_at_Fukushima.html
hmmmm, wish I had seen some of this “all caps & stay insid in oregon” stuff. Anyone want to paraphrase? We have a very legitimate reason to be fearful right now. I have been staying inside but alas that will not keep us safe from the type of radiation particles we are dealing with. Resigned to fate.
and…so let me get this straight…”physicist who’s been on national news talking about the Japanese nuclear crisis” is here in portland. Well, (expletive). excuse me…sigh. So during this Massive Nuclear Crisis that has given him national attention daily… he is just still tooling around peddling books to katu in Portland. Oh, well that sounds totally rational and I wouldn’t be at all alarmed at all about him being here then….totally normal. ahem…oh my I feel nauseous.
ps. thanks enviroreporter you are pretty Rad. get it rad. haha
my information is from the epa website I listed. It has a running list for the month feel free to take a peek.
Thanks Citizenoftheplanet. I’ve done some looking around and all of the chat platforms (that would allow us the number of concurrent users we’d need) are price prohibitive so we’re going to stay with UStream for now and find a way to make it work. We appreciate your kind words 🙂
I want to tell you what I have just experienced. Called California Radiation Hotline, supposedly 24/7 updates. DISCONNECTED TEN TIMES WITH NO ANSWER. Called CDC Hotline last night. DISCONNECTED four times in a row. Called local radiation hotline in Los Angeles. Eleven to Five only, falsely advertised as 24/7.
Have seen various live graphs and charts of jet stream movement and color chart levels repeatedly either crash or impart sudden blaster worm viruses onto my computer. Also recieve viruses when I got to INFOWARS.COM or any non mainstream news media outlets.
Last but not least? Just ordered a product overnight shipping on Amazon (organic brown seaweed powder) which is much more powerful than potassium iodide and is strictly used for toxic heavy metals and radiation poisoning…it saved lives around Chernobyl.
It hasn’t arrived and this morning I have discovered a virus on the UPS tracking number.
Will report if it goes “lost”.
“No sensors between San Fransisco and Los Angeles are in operation”-Mercury News 3/25/11
Does anyone here know the names Galton, Malthus, and Spenser?
Does tha ring a bell in terms of what’s happening here?
Once again, THANKS TO MICHAEL AND DENISE ANNE for their ongoing past, relentless present and future efforts to investigate, inform and inspire civil community. May your efforts to secure and impliment a new chat platform go as effortlessly as possible and be cause for celebration when it happens for all !
Hi Rauol, I don’t know what happened last night on the Ustream chat but I can say it is not easy to moderate – to remove unidentified people and provocateurs while also reading with a careful, critical eye, what others are saying, and we can’t be on it 24-7. It’s been just over a week that we’ve used Ustream and had no idea the chat was part of the package. A community has formed there now so we are reluctant to forgo the chat entirely, instead I am looking into setting up one on this website so we can have a better ability to moderate who is on it and therefore won’t need to be tied to always moderating the chat itself. So I ask you be patient with us while we grow. We really appreciate your participation in this new “Radiation Nation” community.
http://www.infinite-energy.com/resources/abc.html
I saw a spike at the Fresno airport site a few days ago that went up to 400 ur/hr. It was one single spike. The general level was higher that day, in or above 40 and up to 70 than it has been on subsequent days (in the 20s). I think this was Tuesday when that happened.
I thought it was just an anomoly, something related to the equippment. Don’t know if it’s related or not. I posted about it, asking if anyone knew.
EnviroReporter thank you for all the great information, the LIVE stream is nothing i have ever came across a thing as such before
Autumn – I just saw your post below. OK, yes that is very strange. I would also like an answer. Let’s get in touch.
nordbch@yahoo.com
Christine
Autumn – When was Portland at 400CPM? I live in Portland, that is why I’m asking. I have a radiation monitor and it’s been reading at 6 uR/h for the past 3 days. I don’t know what that is in CPM but the instructions said that
10 uR/h is normal background.
Feel free to email me if you would like me to give you daily readings. nordbch@yahoo.com
Still very curious about the 400CPM and when that occured?
Radiation from CT coronary scans is considered low, but, statistically, it causes cancer in one of every 270 40-year-old women who receive the scan. Twenty year olds will have double that rate. Annually, 29,000 cancers are caused by the 70 million CT scans done in the US. Common, low-dose dental x-rays more than double the rate of thyroid cancer. Those exposed to repeated dental x-rays have an even higher risk of thyroid cancer.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_17702771?nclick_check=1
Gaps In US Monitoring System
Hi, anyone knows where to buy a radiation monitor just like the one in the live video? Thanks!
C2C hyper brain washing with disinformation and misinformation, has got you DH FROM LA. hoagland is compelling but just working for the nasa nazis.
they have twisted every thought into a meme that fits their purpose.
their purpose? one world order. depopulation.
http://www.thule.org/plan.html
a bunch of stuff will happen that C2C aren’t smart enough to have made up in advance. alex jones, gerald celente, et al. all wanting to put their scare message on your brain. get your testosterone up, make us argue, then nothing gets done about any serious problem. einstein was incorrect, max planck, heisenberg were correct.
So I think I have this right….. according to E How to read a geiger counter:
Convert radiation in units of CPM to radiation in units of mR. Geiger counters commonly use a conversion ratio of 1,000 CPM = 1 mR
and……The maximum recommended dosage of radiation is 5,000 mR/year for radiation workers in the United States and 200 mR/year for non-workers.
So if Portland was at about 400 CPM does that just about equal about 1mR every two minutes? I am trying to not feel like I am adding apples and oranges. If so couldn’t we reach that 200 mR pretty quick?
autumn = mindfudged
@Charlie I’m not at all surprised, but the fact that you were here instead of just watching CNN is a pretty good start and getting un-lost.
Ok …. I posted how the numbers for portland Ore were high on the 15th a whopping 699 CPM!! Now it seems today on the 25th it is just over 400! The rest of the days are low in the below 50 mark. This is super alarming right? http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-portland-bg.html Maybe somebody else will take a look at it…
I am in the chat room…for now. Thank you Powers that Be!
Don’t know if it’s just me or something isn’t working with the chat. I don’t appear to show up on it when I say anything. I’ve rebooted the web page several times. I’d love to hear any words of wisdom.
SylviaCa
Japanese & U.S. Govts Know What’s Going On & They’re Not Being Honest! (About Nuclear Crisis)
http://revolutionarypolitics.tv/video/viewVideo.php?video_id=14399
You lost me at 12-foot Skeletons…
Hi, Michael, Denise Anne, et. al. The averages for today seem more consistent with “normal” than the slight trend upwards we were seeing 2 days ago, which is reassuring. U.C. Berkley’s site also seems trustworthy and reassuring.
Of course, we are all awaiting further news out of Japan regarding the possible containment vessel breach at reactor 3, and now, possibly also reactor 1. The Japanese government and TEPCO are hardly forthcoming, and the U.S. regulatory “usual suspects” are suspiciously silent.
Michael, did you write a new blog? You mentioned you were going to post one, so I am anticipating it eagerly.
There is such a wealth of interesting (and worrisome) information on NIRS. I was reading a fact-sheet, today about routine release of radioactive material from U.S. plants into the environment.
Apparently, none of this is being monitored “in sitio,” but rather is tracked largely by theoretical computer modeling from afar. I wonder how much of this the public really knows; I’d always thought that such things were monitored on site using samples taken from surrounding soil/air/water. Come to find out, this is not being done.
Once again, I have to state that I greatly appreciate the careful research and fact-checking/source citation used by Enviro-Reporter, PSR and NIRS, and other similar organizations.
While hyperbolic and alarmist statements so well play to the legitimate fears that all of us have, I trust those who present their information in a carefully researched way; to me, that makes the information so much more credible, and thus, ultimately more useful.
Well, I hope your blog comes out soon. Where will it be on this site? Under Blogs?
Bless you and Denise Anne both for doing this. Just by providing this service, you have involved more people in concern, and hopefully action about the entire nuclear industry.
Wow Denise….I saw my first person-walking-around-with-a-face-mask today.
I, of course was at Whole Foods…buying miso!!! LOL!
Brad Smith, actually there is technology available hidden in the corporate hidey hole that can neutralize radiation virtually instantly. It employs REAL physics, not the misinformation crap that you are familiar with. Richard C Hoagland writes a lot about it, calling it Torsional or Hyperdimensional physics. It explain, for one thing, why it’s not just our planet, but ALL the planets are heating up, and why 2012 is going to be even more “interesting” than 2011. It explains free energy, and it explains the unified field that Einstein either didn’t succeed at explaining or was suppressed from revealing. Check it out before you laugh.
Charlie, I refuse to re-succumb to the view of the human condition that you and the majority of the world hold. Evolution as it is taught simply isn’t supported by evidence.
What about the 12 foot skeletons they have been digging up in India for example??
What about the artifacts showing up INSIDE solid rock hundreds of millions of years older than we are supposed to be? I’m not WORRIED about “conspiracies” but I’m damn sure glad I’m aware of them. I spend my days enjoying my simple life trying to improve myself and hopefully others as best I can. I try to stay off the artificial treadmill that our society is addicted to. I eat as healthily as I can afford to try to offset the poisons in our water and in our air and in our food. Above all I want to stay out of the AMA’s revolving door. Maybe the retirees you mention would last a bit longer after retirement if they weren’t suffering withdrawal from the entrained addictions of busy work and endless acquisition syndrome. Capitalism is a lie you are fed while the “shadow government” steals society blind. The “cutting edge technology” in your coveted iphone is the table scraps the the elites will allow us to have while they use the good stuff to prolong our enslavement. Wars are engineered and planned while the elites profit from both sides. Have you ever met another person who genuinely wanted an attack on another country before being riled up and LIED TO by propagandizing politicians? It’s the “survival of the fittest” myth that we are fed that is keeping us down. In truth, without cooperation men would never have survived. One caveman, no matter how strong, would eventually be bear food but against a tribe the bear was food. Maybe try to quit competing and start cooperating. One of the best quotes I’ve read since I stopped brushing off the wisdoms of the Masters is that “we are not physical beings who have spiritual experiences, we are spiritual beings having a physical experience.” The hope of the world is that more people will awaken to this. I don’t want to take up any more space in this blog on this thread, but I hope you, my friend Charlie, will start to dig around a little with open eyes. Google Nassim Haramein. His 8 hour lecture on youtube will blow your mind. Just for fun, google H.A.A.R.P. ……..
just like there is NO SOLUTION FOR RADIOACTIVE WASTE INCLUDING THOUSANDS OF SPENT FUEL RODS there is no “free energy” hidden in some corporate hidey hole. technology has reached a cul de sac. the wars we are fighting are for resources. terrorism is a sham. as long as we keep using energy at the overblown rate, we will suffer consequences. the consequences from occasional nuclear accidents are CUMULATIVE. more and more cancers, mutations and death. welcome to the real world run by greedy corporations with no consideration for humanity. we are just sheeple to them. the congress and the president are in the money filled pockets of the wealthy, george soros and his two sons, buffoon warren buffet, sterility vaccination traitor bill gates, the evil koch brothers, etc. the rich dont have the masses in mind, except to eliminate them as fast as possible. now it seems mother nature is getting irritated with the human cancer clear cutting, overfishing, 19 million chickens a week get butchered and eaten, by unthinking meat eaters. you are what you eat. use less for everybody’s sake.
Fuel for thought (re: “yellow rain”)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_dust
-(Take a look at the season it most frequently occurs….. and what month are we heading into?…..)
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2001/ast17may_1/
– Nasa article dating back to 2001. Hmm……
http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/05/16/us-climate-dust-idUSN1545698320070516
– 2007 Reuters article on the same subject.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3585223.stm
– BBC, March 31, 2004
Look, I’m not at all implying that, considering what has been going on, governments are not being completely forthcoming with everything that is happening or how bad it actually is; and yes, maybe it could be carrying radioactive material considering current circumstances. But it is worth considering that they may be being honest up to a point. Bad time for these issues to coincide and definitely not a help towards the mental and emotional stability of the poor Japanese people, but it’s worth taking the time to take a deep breath and do some research before freaking out.
All this and much more is on the way… this Japan thing will continue to get worse. Anybody remember the little oil spill, or the waves of economic tsunami that we ALL are getting hit with each day. WTF
For a great 8 min movie about a japan nuclear plant accident and the drama that insued … youtube mt. fuji in red. by akria kurosawa
DH… Human beings are Animals. I mean this in a technical sense… As mammals we have evolved through countless millenia to the point where we have become industrialized, we harness a number of other things, living and non, to make our lives easier. The unprecidented leaps we have taken over the past two centuries are the most advance any lifeform has ever become, in all history. Man has been in (practically) this evolved state for over a quarter million years… though our recorded history goes back, what, a few thousand? And how accurate it that? The average lifespan was 30 not to far back. 30 years old and you were a senior. In the us it was just upped to 77. Thats 12 years longer than it was when the US passed the social security act.
Keep in mind only a fraction of the world lives with education and opportunity. Even in the developed world, we break down to slaughtering eachother frequently… via murder, war, etc… Yes, we need to be kept busy, via work, school, or something of the like. Statistically, Retiree’s tend to die shortly after retiring. Widowed men statistically die very closely to their wife’s passing. The throey goes, once your reason for livine is gone, you go… Lotto winners statistically wond up back in their pre-lotto lifestyle once the money is gone. Its usually wasted, as something given is used much differently than something earned. People need to find a reason to be in this world, to accomplish something, to feel important. I’m saying paradise is not possible in this world due to the inherent nature of man. If you want to debate this, and you have any money in an IRA, 401k, Savings account, own a house, etc. you are only proving my point. Give your money to someone who needs it, then retort. That would bring us closer to utopia, right? Why has capitalism time and time again trumped socialism?
We’ve very young in terms of a species… We’ve made unprecidented leaps due to a highly beneficial environment, that has conveniently killed off our apex predators, and allowed mammals to develop. Maybe down the road, something can change, but for now its still darwinisn that defines us. The strong survive, but now the plahying field is even. Short, tall, strong, weak, makes little difference. Learn more, work harder, and you survive. I guarantee you that if you spent more time bettering yourself that worrying about a shadow govenrment conspiracy you’d be enjoying your life more.
Charlie, yes, we’ve been very lucky to be here in the good ol USA, but if you just look around you’ll see it being systematically dismantled. Our manufacturing and food growing capabilities have been strangled. As soon as other countries decide not to trade oil in US dollars our economy is THROUGH. I’m not pissed off. I was at first, as I was learning about the all the lies and manipulations, but now I’ve progressed to the point of extreme optimism. I think things may get worse before they get better, especially for us spoiled Americans, but all it will take is for more people to take responsibility for THEIR part in the revolutionizing of humanity for things to go off the scale for the better. That starts with being open to change even if it means not having so many luxuries at first, being informed, and not being so fearful and obsessed with survival that you can’t be kind sharing.
To answer your question, yes, “their” goal is exactly that, “to stifle human growth and progress”. The reason, to maintain their precarious position on the pinnacle of the food chain. The release of free energy technology will mean the end of greed. You have a much darker view of your neighbor than I do if you think we need “busy work” to be fulfilled. The world need not be the cold dark place you have been entrained to think we deserve, but there will never be peace on earth until the regular guy just flat out refuses to shoot another regular guy.
Like I said, I was exactly where you are just 3 years ago. Long live the Internet!!!
” I know this will sound tinfoil-hatty to you ”
Ya… It does… Though, FREE energy wouldn’t necessarily be a good thing… We need some sort of infrastructure to keep people busy… People need to work, need to feel they are contributing to something… Humanity strives for purpose, so you can’t deny people that. Look at the craziness of Hollywood. Theres a bunch of people who work a week a year; the free time and wealth gives them too much rope…
And yes, politicians are bound to the realm of politics, which is more about popularity than what’s really important. Its an Ends-Justifies-The-Means type of system. Get elected however possible, then you can try and do some good.
But come on now… Massive government conspiracies? Think the end all of what you’re saying… What is the real point of all this? Whats the goal? To stifle human growth and progress? To cheat people without reason? Remember that the US is the most advanced nation around… Would you argue that the last 100 years were the most important in Human History? And what nation was responsible for most of it? We’ve got one of the highest ‘Happiness Index’ ratings, high quality of life, One of the highest earnings per capita, and almost the longest average lifespan.
You can’t live your life pissed off about imaginary demons pulling strings… The world is a cold, dark place… the US is the light, and deserves our respect, our admiration, and our continued hard work. Paradise does not exist, and nothing is perfect. The US is the closest humanity has come, ever. It drives me nuts when people bash without reason, and make vitrolic, yet imaginary claims.
@Charlie…. Have you heard Eisenhower’s warning speech about the military industrial complex acquiring too much power? The problem with any well intentioned politician in this country is that he/she is powerlessly controlled by that shadowy complex. Kennedy died in part because he tried to get in their way. Alternative energy, not only that, FREE energy HAS been figured out. Stanley Meyer made a car that ran on water. He’s not around anymore, poisoned. Check out HHO and resonant dissociation of water. A guy named Daniel Dingle drives his water powered car around the Phillipines but he’s been threatened with death if he talks any more about it. Tesla demonstrated that he could beam free power to anywhere in the world– but you’ll have to go deeper that Wikipedia to learn the true story there. Cold fusion was demonstrated in the 70’s and hushed. Dirty energy and military budgets and wars and drug trade and ridiculously priced pharmaceutical poisons fulfill several agendas for the world’s shadow controllers not the least of which is black budget funding for yet more control over every human on the planet. As long as we let them, or as long as the majority of Americans believe the cover story that this is a “democracy” and that our government only wants what’s best for us, they will keep us just sick enough that we can still pay taxes. I know this will sound tinfoil-hatty to you, I was there 3 years ago, but the deeper you dig and the more you pull aside your own blinders the more you’ll see that a lot of “conspiracy theories” explain what’s been going on with this crazy world a hell of a lot better than the News and the history we’re taught.
Oh Paul Watson, go fear-monger where you belong… With your disaster-profiteering, irrational-fear-stoking boss, Alex “I have no scrupples” Jones.
Chernobyl-Style Yellow Rain Causes Panic In Japan
Paul Joseph Watson
Infowars.com
March 24, 2011
Radioactive yellow rain that fell in Tokyo and surrounding areas last night caused panic amongst Japanese citizens and prompted a flood of phone calls to Japan’s Meteorological Agency this morning, with people concerned that they were being fed the same lies as victims of Chernobyl, who were told that yellow rain which fell over Russia and surrounding countries after the 1986 disaster was merely pollen, the same explanation now being offered by Japanese authorities.
Brad Smith- Do any of the plants operate in the green? Can they function without government $$$$ assistance? Rancho Seco in Ca was deep in the hole and poorly run continuously.
nuclear power is not cheap. what planet do you live on. the middle class is destroyed, jobs are unavailable. obama lied as a candidate in order to win, a typical politician. we dont need an alternative to nuclear power, we just need to use less power, and have less babies. dont know why americans think they can be gluttons.
Over the last few days the news had less and less coverage of the nuclear disaster in Japan. And the media was SO careful to mention how safe we are and how the U.S. has only been exposed to a MINISCULE amount of radiation. Now I wake up to news on CNN about reactor #3 leaking. Good grief! I think that is the one with the MOX that is so bad. Even my husband is now taking notice and is beginning to think maybe I’m NOT overreaction to the situation. I usually like to be right, but not this time. Breakfast menu: miso soup, pumpkin/kelp muffin, Xanax.
Very bad news: Everyone’s waking up this morning to hear that Japanese authorities are claiming that there “appears” to be a breach of the containment vessel of Reactor 3 and that “massive” amounts of radiation “could be dispersed in the atmosphere.”
Apparently they discovered this after 3 workers yesterday had to be hospitalized because they stood in radioactive water that turned out to be (per CNN) 10,000 times about normal.
Michael—can you walk us through the implications of this? I would think that anything that would affect us would depend on the manner in which this stuff will be “dispersed” (i.e. large explosion v. daily leaks).
Does this mean that from now on out we on the West Coast will be subjected to daily increases in radiation for a long time?
A side note: CNN ran a little story about how there seems to be on the West Coast widespread “mistrust” of government reassurances about radiation levels, (LOL). Gee, ya think????
It is interesting that ever since our U.S. nuclear authorities made dramatic pronouncements last week, disagreeing with Japanese assessments, they have been absolutely silent ever since. Hmmmm.
Hey, Fantastic, lots of “normal” readings again yesterday.
Half of the 12 EPA detectors in California have problems that could delay alerts.
http://www.latimes.com/health/la-me-radiation-california-20110325,0,3305630.story
It comes down to our progress as a species… We Could use less energy, but consider the rippling effects of this… Consider the US makes up abour 4% of the world, though makes up 20% of the global economy. We have more colleges, research hospitals, and more freedom that any other nation. The US holds far more patents than any other nation, in fact, we hold almost more then the next 2 countries combined. And of course, we’ve got the longest running single government in the history of the world. The fact is, the world Needs the US to continue forward growth for all humanity. Its so good here, we have huge problems keeping people out! This is a RARE Problem for a nation! This should be seen not only as a strong attribute, but as a responsibility, for us all to take advantage of everything we have available, to ensure we’re moving in the correct direction.
The Cop-outs drive me insane… The corporations do this… The politicians do that… Its easy to sit back and complain… How about you do something instead? Politicians got where they are for a reason, and none of them woke up one day and said, ‘I’m going to be evil.’ They’re people like the rest of us, doing the best they can. If you think you can do better, Go for it. You have the option in this great nation of ours.
Lastly… Obama excited voters and drove them to the polls like no other president in recent memory because of his youth, his ideals, his drive. I myself got caught up in it, though I knew there were things that he promised that were simply impossible. Now look at the polls… He holds the distinction of being the US president to have the Sharpest, fastest decline in his ratings since they’ve been keeping records. What does this mean? That America is fickle, and LOVES to complain. He’s a good person. He is doing the best that he can. But this doesn’t matter… Because its ALWAYS easier to complain.
If you want less Nuclear energy use, Find an alternative… Trust me, no one WANTS to deal with radioactive waste. But right now, without it, people would be freezing to death, starving to death, etc. Figure out Cold Fusion. Make solar panels and turbines more efficient… Until then, its the cheapest, most reliable, and statistically in the US, The Safest & Least Polluting energy source.
Thank you Michael for keeping the public informed, something our government should be doing. Keeping people in the dark only feeds panic of the unknown. Wish there were more monitors for all to see. Again thank you.
Brad—yes, thanks for reminding us that the spent fuel rods/nuclear waste issue is HUGE. Japan has called our attention to spent fuel rod storage in a whole new way!
And yes, I also feel that many politicians have what could be called a “conflict of interest” with respect to the industry…….so that’s quite an issue as well.
Why is the reading fluctuating? Does that mean there is radiation in the environment, regardless of its strength?
the solution is to use LESS electricity. most reactors are at least 25 years old, let’s bury them and cut down our usage.
well, the politicians get paid off by the nuclear industry, it doesn’t matter who is representing, they DONT REPRESENT US. if voting could change anything, it would be illegal. that leaves us with the filthy used highly radioactive spent fuel rods. they told us since the 50s there would be a “technological” solution for radioactive cancer causing waste. THERE IS NO SOLUTION. so the spent fuel piles up at each reactor.
Jan–thank you for this article. It is well-written and contains much important information.
I would add one thing to it—-
Regardless of the statistical or theoretical model of risk to nuclear plants in general or to a particular nuclear plant (and there are various ones out there)….
The essential issue is that when something DOES go wrong (especially because there ARE safety violations and cover-ups within the industry)……
….the human consequences are catastrophic. Just catastrophic.
And so are the environmental ones.
I really urge everyone to get online and watch the documentary, “Chernobyl Heart.” There is also a very chilling (and reliable) documentary on what really happened at Three Mile Island.
Thus, a plant can be “safe” for years…….but when something does go wrong, there is immediate potential for an ultimately profound and devastating effect beyond anyting that statistics and theoretical models could possibly adequately capture.
Charlie—thank you so much for bringing up your points in such a careful and well-thought out way.
Although I disagree with some of your premises, you raise some important questions, and this time, in a respectful and intellectually honest way.
You ask some good questions, including at the end of your post. I think it’s legitimate to question whether those of us who champion environmental causes “practice what we preach” so to speak.
I know that I do not always, and I think that my most fundamental responsibility is to re-consider how I live and what I can give up.
Thank you again for sticking with us and being willing to be a voice of dissent or question. That is not always easy.
This is such a respectful and ethical web-site and I think that the “conversation” between us regular “post-ers” reflects that.
Anything that poisons the milk that our babies drink is very bad and not necessary. We need to turn off all electrical appliances that are not really needed. And VOTE next election for the candidate that will really come through with a serious promotion of alternative energy.
Thank you Liz for the dose of sanity. Well said. And thank you Brad Smith for bringing in the crazy train.
the japanese are lying through their teeth. they will apologize to hundreds of thousands for being misleading. if there was any honor left in japan there would now be a bunch of hari kiri going down, that means suicide in case you are too young to know. we will have to get used to using less power, there are no viable options, except killing off about 6 billion people. they have been planning depopulation since publication of “limits to growth”. bill and melinda gates started a vaccination campaign with $750,000,000 spare chump change, to vaccinate the masses, give them a shot for free. in the vaccination is DNA bits that produce sterility in the person years later. the rich eliminating the poor.
I think it’s unfortunate to see political polarization entering into this issue. While I am not blind to political realities, I believe that people of all types of political inclincations and affiliations can work together in addressing the serious problems and concerns regarding the nuclear industry.
I’m a political independent; I am liberal on some issues and a moderate conservative on others. I do not always vote along party lines. And frankly, I’m frustrated and fed up with most politicians (from all stripes) because so many are self-serving and fundamentally dishonest.
But I believe that people at either end of the political spectrum can work together in this area of addressing the risks and dangers of the nuclear industry–at least I would like to hope so.
The problem is complex and vast. Obviously there are legitimate questions about where we will get sufficient energy to run everything that we Americans are so fond of running. (See my earlier post about how, in a way, we ALL have a hand in this because of our addiction to an energy-driven lifestyle). And I think it’s fine to raise those questions in a respectful manner.
I think that it’s important to be circumspect, temperate and ethical in our statements, while at the same time keeping a level of passion in our concern.
Michael’s arcitles do that very well, as do the papers and research articles from PSR or NIRS.
There is a distinct ABSENCE of political grand-standing in those articles which I appreciate very much. And the research is quite solid and well-sourced.
This is an oppotrunity for others who perahps have not considered the issue to become informed about it and hopefully, become also, concerned.
Let’s not “pollute” our own atmosphere with sniping and negative characterizations.
Although politics and economics play a huge role in this issue, it is ultimately, above everything else a HUMAN issue.
I always like to say that God made atoms. Man used them for evil.
That is a well written, strong article advocating the case against nuclear power. And if you google “Argument FOR Nuclear Power” you will find equally strong articles to counter it…
What All of this comes back to, is that the market inevitably sets the playing field… IF there were an energy source as clean and as thoroughly used/available/tested/proven as Nuclear energy, it would be a simple choice. So where is this choice?
You’ll hear the conspiracy theorists claim that its the corporations that keep it down… The evil corporations are making too much money, and will make the lowly serfs suffer perpetually…
But Reality is… that Billions of dollars are spent trying to create this replacement. Billions. Ethanol, Solar, Wind, Geothermal… and while this research has not yet yielded marketable results, I believe it will one day. And to those who believe in a conspiracy, why are you not gaining an engineering degree right now in an effort to help develop these new fascinating energy sources? Thare is nothing holding you back, but it is definately easier to complain about a problem then to try and remedy it.
Don’t you think the energey companies would want to develop newer, more profitable technologies also? Especially with the green/eco-craze/Al-Gore-ism that has gripped America? They are spending the money and conducting the research also. Turns out Ethanol was not a good idea. Wind turbines only get a fraction of the power we thought they would, and solar panels are horribly inefficient. And ALL of those cause high levels of pollution and waste in their construction. There is no conspiracy, turn off the x-files, we’d all love paradise but we haven’t figured it out yet.
And here’s another agrument. There are I believe just over 100 active plants in the us supplying roughly a fifth of US power needs. This fifth has been several times cleaner, and caused significantly fewer deaths than all other sources. This fifth was designed and built several decades ago… back when black and white TV’s were still sold regularly. Rotary phones were still heavily used, etc… Before Personal Computers for crying out loud. So… Reactors built on that technological level… have generated a fifth of US power per year. Does it make sense to say that technology has improved somewhat since then? Can you begin to imagine the efficiency and safety levels that a state of the art US manufactured reactor could do now?
Lastly… To whomever wishes to retort… How many solar panels do you have on your house? How many wind turbines on your property, and how many electric cars do you own? If you answered, 0, take your own advice before you write.
Translation question: Does anyone know if it’s possible to determine which isotope(s) correspond to the gamma energy ranges on a Radnet (Gamma Gross Count Rate) chart? And if so please explain. Thanks, -C
Well Snap, Mr. Collins, Snap indeed…
So are you on the ‘Close the evil reactors’ side of the argument? If so, where will we get that additional 20% of CLEAN US Power? More coal burning? Oil Burining? Or perhaps Ethanol?
And as an emphatically self described Lib, I assume you adhere strictly to all Liberal agenda, without exception?
Fukushima Radiation Spreading To More U.S. States
EPA says some air monitors might not be working properly
Steve Watson
Prisonplanet.com
March 24, 2011
Radiation from the ongoing disaster in Japan is spreading throughout the United States, and while the EPA says the levels are not dangerous, it also admits that some of its radiation-tracking air monitors may not even be working
what gives booting me for a harmless joke,let me back in
just so you know, i woulda changed it, but couldn’t fig out how to log out, too bad now you have made an enemy of me
To Marija,
Are you that dense? How could we close down our Nuclear plants? Where will our energy come from? Most of these were built DECADES AGO and we’ve had ONE Incident in the US, and it was EXTREMELY MINOR due to our EXTENSIVE safety precautions. Stop being a typical lib, and look ONE STEP PAST THIS DECISION. If they Shut it down, are you prepared to live without electricity? Water pressure? What would that do to our economy? Our labor force? If anything we need MORE PLANTS in the us. You want us off foreign oil? Power has to come from somewhere… Gasoline engines have killed Hundreds of Thousands of times MORE people than Nuke plants, so should we all give up cars? Until we can convert into energy your holier than thou attitude and ridiculous hot air, we’re all stuck in the real world.
real mature asshole..imma make it my mission to discredit you whenever possible, don’t slip!
I just want to say Thank you Mike for doing this! It is greatly appreciated.
For all interested here is a petition that I just signed regarding the San Onofre and Diablo Canyon nuc plants
http://www.change.org/petitions/petition-to-safely-close-down-san-onofre-and-diablo-canyon-nuclear-plants#updates
u dont hafta post this,.. just wanted to say, Thanks for posting a chick on the timer, I get a kick outa that! and.. I dont like it when the average is getn into the 50’s =(.
Thank you EnviroReporter!
It’s very valuable, helpful info, though not quite sure what to do if and when the radiation levels go through the roof.
Flee? But where to?
“We also do exterior averaging with the alpha/beta/gamma-detecting Inspector. As of this writing update, March 23 at 9:40 am, we have detected no radiation from fallout on plants, foliage and other objects outside.”
As the numbers seem to be increasing this is greatly, hugely appreciated. Lay people have no way to check for this themselves nor any other place to go to for that information, to understand if the alpha & beta particulates are here, so you are heroes to be checking this regularly for us.
Would it be possible, could you consider adding a daily inspection report somewhere on your page?
As the gamma numbers seem to be sneaking higher, this question becomes imperative to make further behavioral changes to avoid alpha/beta particulates.
Many thanks.
BB cuda: good luck running east… http://www.irsn.fr/FR/popup/Pages/irsn-meteo-france_22mars.aspx
Fukushima Radiation Release Rivals Chernobyl
Paul Joseph Watson
Infowars.com
March 24, 2011
The radiation released by the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant already rivals and in one sense exceeds the Chernobyl catastrophe according to Austria’s Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics, even as media spin downplays the severity of the crisis despite the fact that the problems at the plant show no signs of abating.
Here’s (supposedly) the latest news update that I could find on the reactors:
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/24/japan.nuclear.status/
Hi, Keri—A lot of people have been noticing things like that. It’s hard for any of us to know whether it’s simply coincidence, or whether our imaginations are making associations that aren’t really there.
On Friday, a lot of people noticed a kind of “smog” brown haze. Sometimes, we do get that here in SoCal, but really, the weather conditions on Friday weren’t right for it (per NOAA). And the sunset most definitely showed that kind of refracted light normally seen with a fire or with dust from a really bad Santa Ana wind.
It’s difficult to believe that such heavy particulate matter could travel so far without falling out before it would get here, but then, look at dust from volcanic explosions that travels around the globe. (Except that dust is blasted far into the atmosphere, so theoretically could travel further before falling out).
To me, the main point is that we’re all walking around wondering about and noticing these things and that (such a level of concern) alone, is a type of “fallout” we should not have to endure.
I am horrified for the people in Japan. I cannot imagine what it must be like for them.
BTW, since Michael’s post mentioned Chernobyl, I recommend a really good documentary film (you can view it on an online documentary film site for free) called “Chernobyl Heart.” It’s all about the genetic effects on children born since that disaster. It puts a real human face on all of those numbers.
I’ll be out driving around today, hoping that Cesium-137 isn’t blowing through my car’s heating system.
Hi Liz. I have to say that I have noticed a few strange things besides dust. First, I noticed the 5 near the grapevine looked like there had been recent fires, the sky was brown…Super brown. Me and my family have been getting pimple like bumps on our necks, on the lymph. We eat super healthy, organic, and are usually pretty sensitive. We would run west but how far west would matter. I do believe that we can detox anything from our bodies and would encourage everybody to do so.
next planet?
but seriously, WHERE IS THE NEWS FROM JAPAN? The main-stream media is back to celebrity gossip, war and politics.. Is there a relevant news source anywhere? ..and monitors? this is the only place I’ve found with a monitor of some sort that doesn’t look like a bunch of baloney. I have to be in L.A. tomorrow…when really I want to go the opposite direction. see ya!!
Dear Michael Collins,
A big thanks for all your work. I have some observations + a question or two that maybe you might be able to address…
1). The media has time and time again shown “clouds of white smoke” rising from the damaged reactors with Japanese officials repeatedly quoted that they don’t know what it is (or why).
Now if we can acurately measure radiation levels/sources at 5000 miles away, doesn’t logic dictate they should be able to provide something more scientifically substantial (than “dunno”) right there? Sure would help to know what’s coming people’s way.
2). You mentioned the NIRS report, “Releases of radioactive Cesium now reported at 20-60% of Chernobyl releases; Iodine-131 at 20% of Chernobyl releases.”. Then added, “Now Liz, can you guess what I think? I bet you can…”
I for one, would like to know what you think…
3). The above (dire) report, which had originated from Austria’s “Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics” began it with the words (translated – German), “The lying about the crisis region disturbance is removed…” Any thoughts?
4). The same organisation reports (in technobable for me) “During the first two days (March 12 and 13) material was transported to the Pacific Ocean and reached as early as 17 3. California…The highest measured concentration of iodine-131 were 14 000 μBqm -3, with an accuracy of 10 μBqm -3.
The estimated source terms for iodine-131 are very constant, namely 1.3 10 17 Bq / day for the first two days (U.S. measurements)
For cesium-137 measurements… the U.S. a source term of 5 10 15 Bq.”
I’ve been trying to translate these into layman’s terms (looked up rads, rems, grays, sievents etc.) w/out success. Are these bad and if so, how bad?
All the best,
– C
um, so I was just checking out an epa website someone else on here suggested and check out portland on the 15th! I am reading this correctly right?http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-portland-bg.html
This link will get you to the oregon health authority there is data for Portland Oregon, Corvallis Oregon, and Eureka California. http://public.health.oregon.gov/Preparedness/CurrentHazards/Pages/DailyAirMonitoring.aspx
Funny that there is nothing to worry about but that nothing just reached Europe. Hurry and stock up on foods you can store away that way you can be sure in the future they didn’t come from contaminated areas.
Just read excellent arcitle from the NIRS, taken from PSR, about whether the radiation from Fukushima will affect the U.S., and if so, how.
The article is excellent, because it addresses the complexities of making any kind of determination about exposure/dose/effects, since so many variables are involved.
It’s a very common-sense and rational article, with careful source citations and even more careful analysis of the research and review of the literature conducted.
But essentially, the bottom line seems to be that there is a very large question mark over the entire issue and that what kind of impact there is will be determined by a number of as-of-yet unpredictable factors (such as type of release, amount of release, isotopes in release, weather patterns, etc.).
The even more bottom line is that this simply is not acceptable and that somehow, although hopefully we will not be directly at risk, we have to use the potential for unfavorable results from this disaster to encourage others to examine with more critical thinking the destructive power inherent in any accident at any nuclear power plant, whether nearby or far away.
Dear reporter . How about this after noon .after 2:pm CPM?
Thanks
Michael–all I can say is that I’m left with goose-bumps on my arms. The position of PSR is that no (unnecessary) radiation is acceptable. This would go far beyond that.
I noticed driving to the office yesterday that there was a peculiar dust on my car, not normally seen. I don’t have a garage, just a shelter, so my car is exposed to the elements to an extent. I was out driving around on Friday before the rain started on Saturday/Sunday.
There was no “Santa-Ana” wind in recent days such that a typical layer of dust from the Inland Empire’s usual alluvial-fan type of soil should be deposited on my car. It has been raining, so there shouldn’t be any dust.
And the dust seemed not like normal dust—it had a “sticky,” more “heavy” appearance than the normal super-fine soil particles (although who knows what THEY contain, LOL).
I will add here that I have a remarkable view of the sunset from where I live and that on Friday afternoon, it seemed very much like the kind of particulate “dust” sunset that we normally see with fires.
A particulate-matter sunset is an unmistakable occurrence for those of us who live here. It is not the same as a weather-determined “red” sunset.
Just to be on the safe side, I hosed my car off, tonight, with the water stream directed away from me with great care.
Maybe I’ve fallen prey to my imagination running away, but here’s the point:
None of us should have to “wonder” about dust on our cars.
There is something so very, very wrong with all of this.
Goose-bumps still present. I will await your Blog with eager anticipation…..and much concern.
thanks for the streaming video.. very interesting
@ Liz – thank you for this and all you, and others, have written. There is certainly an upward trend but I will share my sense of it, and many other issues of the last week, in a blog post on this site coming out late tonight. But here’s something to think about before I do:
From Nuclear Information Resources Service website:
Updated Noon, Wednesday, March 23, 2011. Releases of radioactive Cesium now reported at 20-60% of Chernobyl releases; Iodine-131 at 20% of Chernobyl releases.
Now Liz, can you guess what I think? I bet you can…
Hi Valerie: It’s good that you are keeping your kids inside out of the rain just to be on the safe side. Here is a website that might be helpful http://www.radiationnetwork.com They use the same way of counting radiation as this site (CPM) so it’s reassuring to see the numbers kind of match up. Also the first website link listed on this website has Oregon data.
I was just watching the 10 minute averaging. It seemed to stop at 49.7 or somewhere therabouts. There does seem to be an ever-so-slight uptick in the regular averages. I would assume this might be due to radiation from Japan, although I don’t know what other variables are present at that location that might also cause this.
It’s not just an increase in the amt. of radiation, but also the particular isotopes we need to be aware of. It seems from other sites that Cesium-137 is the most common one. If Plutonium starts arriving we need to be a bit more concerned, although not alarmed (depending on the CPM or other standard measurement).
Michael, what’s your sense of this upward trend in the CPM averages, today?
Thank you Michael Collins for putting up this counter. I do see an upward trend. I have four kids and live on the beach in central Oregon. And there is no where to go to get information about the radiation count we have here. And people are out walking in the rain. Thank you for being there. I am still wild with fright.
The EPA’s RadNet site https://cdxnode64.epa.gov/radnet-public/ does allow viewing of what they monitor in map view or query. Sadly, it should not surprise anyone, that there is very little being monitored, nor reliable of what they do monitor.
The closest monitor to San Onofre is in San Diego and it has been off for months. Many of the EPA monitors in California “shut off” when they get into the 600+ CPM’s. As a few have done since this started 3/18/11 when the big spikes came in. But everything is safe! Other locations only log 0 CPM’s all the time, or are shut down for EPA to “filter/massage” the data before anyone can look at it. Another big waste of tax payer money for nothing!
Reality is, even if kids were glowing from radiation in their beds at night, our government is broke from wasting money for 40 years and have no way to do anything about this. Official information will always report “SAFE”.
So take care of yourself and don’t hang outside breathing in this stuff anymore than you have to and you’ll be fine. Just know that, Lung “organ dosage weightings” limits for radiation absorption are only 19% of the reported 100% body rating of 50 mrem’s additional per month max. This is only 9.5 mrem’s per month for your lungs. Which is only .317 rems per day, or .013 mrem’s per hour. Keep that in mind!
Hi to all,
I live in France but often come to L.A. and I’veve planed a trip on April so…
Thanks for your website
It’s a bit higher today, isn’t it? I saw twice a mesure of more than 70… What do you think about it?
Japanese only ‘estimating’ radiation, not actually measuring
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Admits: ‘We’re Not Able to Measure the Amount of Radiation Coming from Power Plant’
In an another astounding clip in the wake of Japan’s nuclear power plant crisis, Yukio Edano, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary, admits that they are not actually measuring radiation levels at Fukushima’s nuclear power plant (and cannot accurately do so), but are instead only “estimating” the radiation via the use of a computer simulation model.
Looks like the readings are a bit elevated today…. worried. Rain is here and perhaps people should not be out. Looking forward to the next averages.
Question: is it possible alpha and beta particulates are heavier and will not make it across the ocean to the west coast or is this wishful thinking?
I’ve analyzed all the data and have come to a conclusion. PROGNOSIS: FUK ashima ED.
>Dave Longo-thanks for the alternative news source [I think..Lol]: and specifically this very scary article that we are totally being dumbed down about [in the main-stream media], real-time, right now! My hope is this info will be unimportant as things unfold and this nuclear disaster IS as reported by main-stream media–‘harmless for the USA and basically winding down’..[?]..:
What do you make of the slightly increased readings over the last few days, those that are out of the normal range?
Neutron beam observed 13 times at crippled Fukushima nuke plant
http://tinyurl.com/4kg8xqz
There were over 600,000 fuel rods stored at Fukushima, I can’t imgine what would happen if this neutron beam hit them
The Fukushima Daiichi plant has seven pools dedicated to spent fuel rods. These are located at the top of six reactor buildings – or were until explosions and fires ravaged the plant. On the ground level there is a common pool in a separate building that was critical damaged by the tsunami. Each reactor building pool holds 3,450 fuel rod assemblies and the common pool holds 6,291 fuel rod assemblies. Each assembly holds sixty-three fuel rods. In short, the Fukushima Daiichi plant contains over 600,000 spent fuel rods
To Patricianl: In my opinion you can trust the readings on this site. When you look at the list of dates and readings you will see that for the first few days the readings are posted without indicating INTERIOR nor EXTERIOR. These early readings are all interior. Then later they began to take both interior and also exterior readings and began to label each reading in all caps INTERIOR or EXTERIOR. They aren’t in separate columns so you have to just read each one to see from where the reading was taken. Once you have looked through them though, it’s easy to just look at the top of the readings to see the most recent ones.
Read the graph more carefully – we do interior and exterior readings.
if i have read the article correctly, this instrument is INSIDE a structure (“The unit is approximately one meter off of the ground in a wood-floored structure built over crawlspace with soil foundation”).
so this is not at all a relevant reading if this is the case – we would like to know what the readings are OUTSIDE OF THIS STRUCTURE.
anyone know where we can find accurate readings that can be trusted?
We just had our first not-normal interior reading. My husband (and the media) says not to worry but this is scary stuff. I’m sucessful in getting him to take supplements like mushrooms, omegas, calcium, probiotics and a couple of times put some Betadine on his skin. I’m giving the dogs, cats and chickens some nutritional yeast sprinkled on their food (not sure why, just seems like a good idea). Is there anything else we can do besides the above while trying not to stress out?
Hey SR,
A graph of our numbers would be most welcome! Send it via our contact page on this site. We REALLY appreciate that!
I’ve graphed your numbers if you want a trend — not sure how to post it here or if you’d like that. Pls contact me offlist if you want the graph. Thx.
I understand the readings CPM and Sv and mR; etc.
What does the following mean? What is gamma energy range?
Thank you for your help.
Gamma Energy Range 10 Gross(CPM): 130
It dosen’t matter, the radiation gets picked up in the jet stream & what goes around comes around. Nobody can hide even if they’re vactioning in brazil or took a week off to hide in a bunker. Sane is seeing reality.
Michael
The same EPA that lied about the air quality at the WTC leading to the deaths of large amounts of rescue/cleanup workers
And the same EPA that let BP spray hundreds of thousands of gallons of Corexit on the gulf, making the oil sink to the bottom, outa site outa mind
That EPA?
What problem?
Ann Coulter says radiation is good for you!
http://www.infowars.com/ann-coulter-radiation-is-good-for-you/
Thank you for this website. I can’t express adequately how much I appreciate the Objective radiation monitoring. I have my 22 yr old daughter in North Hollywood & I keep vacillating whether I should fly her home for a month until we know what is really happening.
Annette
Hello . You saw 87. what city ? Thanks
Thank you for being a source of sane and scientific information —while others are “losing their heads”—or not reporting —-
Courtesy of Bloomberg:
“Some Radiation-Tracking Air Monitors May Not Be Working Properly, EPA Says”
Eight of 18 air monitors in California, Oregon and Washington state that track radiation from Japan’s nuclear reactors are “undergoing quality review,” according to the Environmental Protection Agency’s website.
A sufficient number of devices are working and can measure any changes in radiation levels from the damaged Fukushima Dai- Ichi reactors, said Ronald Fraass, director of the EPA’s National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory in Montgomery, Alabama.
“What we are seeing is not a problem,” Fraass said today in a telephone interview.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-21/some-radiation-tracking-air-monitors-may-not-be-working-properly-epa-says.html
NOW FOLKS, if my EPA director of the National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory actually believed that 8 out of 18 monitors being out “is not a problem,” he would be FIRED.
The worst meltdowns in world history upwind of our country and 44% of a paltry 18 rad detectors are out and the man in charge says it isn’t a problem.
It is a problem.
To CHRISTIAN :
It looks like the Austrians have it tracked/projected (on their map) through 3/20/11 here…
http://www.zamg.ac.at/aktuell/index.php?seite=1&artikel=ZAMG_2011-03-18GMT09:52
Some Radiation-Tracking Air Monitors May Not Be Working Properly, EPA Says
By: Ness
Tags: COVER-UP/DECEPTIONS/PROPAGANDAFUKUSHIMA DISASTER
Monitors are listed as undergoing review if they report an abnormal reading, Fraass said. Scientists then evaluate the reason, Fraass said.
An abnormality might mean that the monitor isn’t working correctly, or the device measured a spike in radiation levels attributable to an environmental change, Fraass said. For example, higher temperatures can cause higher levels of naturally occurring radon gas, he said.
Twenty-two monitors weren’t working and were listed as out of service today, Fraass said.
“If a monitor in one area is being repaired, EPA’s network will still be able to detect any fluctuation in background radiation levels,” Gilfillan said
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-21/some-radiation-tracking-air-monitors-may-not-be-working-properly-epa-says.html
Great job Michael!! Keep up the great work. This will hopefully give more people accurate and up to date info in regards to the fallout from the Fukashima reactor complex.
Austria’s “Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics” (http://www.zamg.ac.at/aktuell/index.php?seite=1&artikel=ZAMG_2011-03-15GMT08%3A26) stopped posting updated tracking data for cesium -137. The metorological tracking stops on March 18th, just before west coast landfall.
Because this has a long half-life (30yrs) I thought current tracking data was worth looking into. So I went to another page on the same site looking for updates. Plenty of iodine info, but nothing for cesium and I’m pretty sure iodine -131 has much shorter half life.
One concern (i.e. beyond inhaling etc) is that the radioactive cesium might have the potential to stick around, getting into US ground water, argricultural soil, food crops, animal feed etc.
Then I finally found a PDF they posted (http://www.zamg.ac.at/docs/aktuell/Japan2011-03-22_1500_E.pdf) which at least had a couple of cesium related sentances but concluded, “In sum, this could amount to about 50% of the Chernobyl source term of cesium -137.”
If half a Chernobyl’s worth of radioactive cesium was released, is airborne and possibly headed west, it’s worth getting more info on it. Really disappointed the tracking stopped just short of the west coast.
I did look elsewhere for addional info (from same organisation) and found a CNN interview (preceeded by commercial, sorry) (http://ht-mobile.cdn.turner.com/cnn/big/world/2011/03/18/chance.radiation.detection.cnn_647883.3gp)
When asked what health effects Californians could get from (even) “low level” radiation – now already measured in Sacremento – the official responded, “look, this is where cooperation with national entities, countries and international organizations is coming in.”
If anyone updated has meteorological tracking data on this please feel free to contribute, – C
Question: Does anyone know what the spikes in the Fresno airport readings mean? There was one yesterday that went up to about 80 (ur/hr) and another one today that went up to nearly 140. Since the spike occurs at about the same time of day, I’m wondering if this is related to something other than a spike in radiation. Does anyone know?
UCLA Berkley has detected small amounts of radiation in the rainwater there. I know that this is a very small amount BUT considering how it gets concentrated in cows milk is anyone thinking about not drinking milk? I love milk but I’m seriously considering not drinking it for weeks or even months depending on how long Japan leaks radiation. I’ve used soymilk in the past but it’s just not the same. What are you going to do?
Suzanne—Thanks for your post!! I think most of us here agree that Michael and Denise Ann’s work is a real gift to us—especially because they are so responsible and careful with the information— I think posts that include insulting (and irresponsible) insinuations like a covert liaison with BP are simply best ignored.
I was at my far-off office all day, so just got home around 6:30. I missed being able to check in with this site all day—it has become a great comfort precisely because it is so ethical and trustworthy!
Michael, I will read your report on San Onofre right now. I’ve been concerned for many years about the nuclear industry, but have not been involved in an active way—(I do a ton of volunteer work for a number of causes). But, if nothing else good comes out of this entire nuclear crisis, I believe that it will call many (including myself) to more intentional and proactive action.
Your leadership in this area is much appreciated. BTW, I read the Chino Hills story last night on this sight. I drive through that area on a regular basis, and knew about the munitions storage, but little else. What a fabulous investigation!!
Question for Della (earlier post on 3/22)–you had mentioned that the CPM levels in the Inland Empire were higher, some in the 90s—where did you find that info—I couldn’t locate it anywhere. Anyway, I do wonder (if indeed that’s an accurate reading from a careful and ethical monitor) whether topography plays a role. I do know that in the event of something going wrong at San Onofre, certain parts of the I.E. (Corona, Riverside, and on into the northeast–Fontana, SBdo, etc.) will be right in the path.
Thanks to both of you, Michael and Denise Ann for being providing this service.
Denise Anne… Yeah, I guess I was kidding around with Michael as well with my own bad jokes. My sincere thanks to you guys for what you are working hard to do. I do have to say though that for a minute my dis-info detector alarms went crazy when I saw that BP ad with the smiling oil worker guy in spotless clothes!
I found the ustream live video feed by accident and posted it for my friends on facebook last week. I just came across this corresponding site. I can’t tell you how much we all appreciate the real time, no nonsense monitoring. I wish I had found this site earlier because when you went off line I have to admit we were all a little concerned, glad to know you were only …sleeping. Thanks again!!!
Dear fellow posters, during this time of stress we should all be pulling together. Please think before you post anything out of anger, especially if your anger is directed to the people that are putting their time and resources (and heart) into providing us with something we can’t find anywhere else. If it wasn’t for this site I would feel “in the dark” and alone. Anyway, thank you for the site and I want to thank all those that have posted really great website links and information. You are all appreciated.
EH, you can find that equation in our FAQs in this post. We use CPMs because it is easier for people to understand and because we can do 10-minute up to 24-hour averaging on the Inspector but not with dose-based calculations.
Forgive me if you’ve answered this already, and your explanation of sustained CPM levels is understandable. But can you explain what elevated CPMs would translate or relate to in terms of roentgen equivalent to man (rem) units? Thank you so much for what you are doing.
DH, your welcome, but Michael was making a joke about how ludicrous it is to accuse him, of all people, of being somehow in cahoots with BP. A rational, honest person would be most offended by that accusation, especially this particular Michael Collins. However, he’s a funny guy and responds to comments that can be considered no better than a bad joke with his own sense of humor. It’s an Irish thing – British Petroleum ain’t.
Keep in mind after reading this article
Reactor #3 is the one that was using MOX fuel (Plutonium)
Denise Anne, Thanks for your explanation of the origin of the ads. I kind of figured that might be the case after I submitted my comment.
Michael, that’s some pretty venomous defensive posturing. Why would a rational honest person resort to that level? Raise any suspicions???
To: XXXXXXXX@epamail.epa.gov
CC: XXXXXXXX@epa.gov
Subject: FYI: Latest EPA/DOE Press Release
From: XXXXX@epamail.epa.gov
Date: Tue, 22 Mar 2011 16:48:19 -0700
NEWS MEDIA CONTACT FOR EPA:
press@epa.gov
202-XXX-XXXX
NEWS MEDIA CONTACT FOR DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY:
(202) 586-4940
Radiation Monitors Continue to Confirm That No Radiation Levels of Concern Have Reached the United States
WASHINGTON – During a detailed analysis of four west coast RadNet air monitor filters, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) identified trace amounts of radioactive iodine, cesium, and tellurium consistent with the Japanese nuclear incident. These levels are consistent with the levels found by a Department of Energy monitor last week and are to be expected in the coming days.
EPA’s samples were captured by three monitors in California and one in Washington State on Friday, March 18 and sent to EPA scientists for detailed laboratory analysis. The data was reviewed over the weekend and the analysis was completed Monday night. The radiation levels detected on the filters from California and Washington monitors are millions of times below levels of concern.
In addition, last night preliminary monitor results in Hawaii detected minuscule levels of an isotope that is also consistent with the Japanese nuclear incident. This detection varies from background and historical data in Hawaii. This isotope was detected at our fixed monitor in Hawaii, and it is far below any level of concern for human health. The sampling filter from this monitor is being sent to our national radiation lab for further analysis.
In a typical day, Americans receive doses of radiation from natural sources like rocks, bricks and the sun that are about 100,000 times higher than what we have detected coming from Japan. For example, the levels we’re seeing coming from Japan are 100,000 times lower than what you get from taking a roundtrip international flight.
EPA is in the process of conducting detailed filter analyses for fixed monitors located in Oregon.
EPA’s RadNet filter results for San Francisco, Seattle, Riverside and Anaheim, California detected minuscule quantities of iodine isotopes and other radioactive particles that pose no health concern at the detected levels. Below are the results of the detailed filter analysis. All of the radiation levels detected during the detailed filter analysis are millions of times below levels of concern.
All units are in Picocuries per meter cubed.
– Filter results for Anaheim, Calif. found:
Cesium-137: 0.0017
Tellurium-132: 0.012
Iodine-132: 0.0095
Iodine-131: 0.046
– Filter results for Riverside, Calif. found:
Cesium-137: 0.00024
Tellurium-132: 0.0014
Iodine-132: 0.0015
Iodine-131: 0.011
– Filter results for Seattle, Wash. found:
Cesium-137: 0.00045
Tellurium-132: 0.0034
Iodine-132: 0.0029
Iodine-131: 0.013
– Filter results for San Francisco, Calif. found:
Cesium-137: 0.0013
Tellurium-132: 0.0075
Iodine-132: 0.0066
Iodine-131: 0.068
EPA’s RadNet system is designed to protect the public by notifying scientists, in near real time, of elevated levels of radiation so they can determine whether protective action is required. In addition, an analysis of the filters in the monitors can identify even the smallest trace amounts of specific radioactive isotopes.
As part of the federal government’s continuing effort to make our activities and science transparent and available to the public, EPA will continue to keep RadNet data available at: http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/
——————-
Mary Simms
Press Officer|U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
t: 415.XXX e: XXXXXXXX@epa.gov
dang i saw the number jump to 87!
What They’re Covering Up at Fukushima
Hirose Takashi has written a whole shelf full of books, mostly on the nuclear power industry and the military-industrial complex. Probably his best known book is Nuclear Power Plants for Tokyo in which he took the logic of the nuke promoters to its logical conclusion: if you are so sure that they’re safe, why not build them in the center of the city, instead of hundreds of miles away where you lose half the electricity in the wires?
He did the TV interview that is partly translated below somewhat against his present impulses. I talked to him on the telephone today (March 22 , 2011) and he told me that while it made sense to oppose nuclear power back then, now that the disaster has begun he would just as soon remain silent, but the lies they are telling on the radio and TV are so gross that he cannot remain silent.
Please read the FAQ section (and thinking) before sending insults:
Raise suspicions of what, DH?
In a world where multiple meltdowns can happen after one of the most terrible and terrifying earthquakes and tsunamis in history, I guess anything is possible. But can you really think that a company named BP, or British Petroleum, would deliberately advertise on a website co-run by Michael Collins?
Pretty unlikely.
But thanks for the looniness, DH. Perhaps we’ve missed detecting the funny water that has the last two commenters going a little berserk.
On the page with the live feed of the monitor there is a BP ad.
It directs you to their website to see “real stories from the Gulf”.
Raise any suspicions???
We published Bonnie’s comment because we wanted you to see that there are a number of folks out there who do not like what we are doing. My response, however, cannot be printed because this website is for all ages. Needless to say, though, “Bonnie” here is a few atoms short of a complete molecule.
while you think you can get away with lying to the public.. aren’t you going to tell them that radiation has been detected all over the united states. even in the east coast? woe to the people who believed this lie.. YOU MAKE ME SICK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SUCH A LIAR
In case you didn’t know [from kqed.org]:
“..Don’t remember hearing about the accident? Not many do. Located in Ventura County, California, The Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL) was a testing site for rockets and nuclear work during the dawn of the Cold War. As such, there was an experimental attitude and secrecy associated with this site as these technologies were being developed. The events at SSFL essentially lay hidden from the public for twenty years. It wasn’t until scares from the Three Mile Island disaster in 1979 ignited UCLA and reporters to unearth the nuclear accident at SSFL that the public first learned about the immensity of this meltdown.
..only 1/100 the size of the Three Mile Island reactor. However, it’s been reported to have released up to 240 times more radiation than the 1979 disaster.”
above quoted from this recent news article:
http://www.kqed.org/quest/blog/2011/03/20/californias-historical-nuclear-meltdown/
Bing map location:
http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?q=Ventura+County%2c+California%2c+The+Santa+Susana+Field+Laboratory+(SSFL)&mkt=en-US&FORM=BYFD
Thanks again for tracking this for all of us folks out here
and adding 10 minutes averages in and out.
Much appreciated. : )
Thank you for taking the time and effort to report radiation levels in real time
Toronto, Canada
Wow, worst meltdown in USA, in California? was where? ..down the road? around L.A.? ..will Bing that next.
Thanks for this altenative to Government/Corporations news sites. Great work.
Suggestion: Since the 10min average list is getting so long, after so many days condense old days to only low, high, and average for that day and depending how long you are going to keep this site, eventually reduce old days to low, high, and average per a week, etc.
Hi Marcelino,
We don’t have time to feed our numbers into your site (which does not have us linked, BTW). Good luck!
Hi Michael,
Would you be interested in providing a feed of data for our site? We’re aggregating feeds from throughout the world in the hopes of keeping people informed.
Let us know. You can see our current data set here: http://rdtn.org
Cheers,
M
Actually, we started before any Fukushima fallout could get here. AND we have averaged this area for YEARS and it has remained the same. We do not know why this area has higher BG than others… but we did have the worst meltdown in U.S. history right up the road (though I do not think that is the only reason for high BG): https://www.enviroreporter.com/rocketdyneinvestigation
The problem with your “normal” characterization of the readings is that you did not operate a baseline study prior to Fukushima and are unqualified to assert that radiation above forty cpm is normal background radiation for your area. Numerous citizen monitoring sites around the world indicate normal background radiation is under twenty cpm everywhere that is not affected by a radiologic event or abnormal background from radon. As a citizen monitor going back five years, I have no confidence in your characterization of LA background radiation because you started after the crisis in Japan began.
Thanks, my prior comment was at the same time you were updating us on the reading. Thanks
just want to thank you for your continuing work with this and responsiveness to people’s questions and comments. best to all, midi
Hi Michael,
Just noticed that the Inspector is now showing a different measurement. Is this in miliservets? If so, what are the thresholds for normal radiation? Thanks
Folks, we are showing readings in milliroentgens per hour right now at the request of people watching the Inspector, and chatting about it, over at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/live-radiation-monitoring-from-west-la
We will go back to Counts Per Minute in a little while.
Note that the Inspector is measuring the same thing, byt the mR/hr gives you a “dose rate.”
In addition to national, regional and independent monitoring sites and networks -(see also my page ‘Current Radiation Levels’) -, some international organizations run their own monitoring network(s); I’ve made a list of what I’ve found so far, here:
And in the search for more monitoring stations, I can report this back from New Zealand:
——————————————————
Dear Michael,
New Zealand does not possess a nuclear industry. Any large scale contamination would take several days at least to reach New Zealand.
Contamination from the Fukushima-Daiichi power plant emergency is not expected to reach New Zealand.
New Zealand has no automated radiation monitoring sites and I therefore cannot provide you with any links.
best regards
Dr Nikolaus Hermanspahn
Advisor (Science)
National Radiation Laboratory
[New Zealand] Ministry of Health
————————————————
Good eyes, Bill G. We established a baseline of 42 to 46 cpm for several days which we then called NORMAL. Since there have been minute overages, we didn’t call them NORMAL but statistically they are not abnormal but we decided not to call them normal (and this helps if we have an upward trend). Posting new numbers in readings now…
10:00 am 10-minute EXTERIOR average: 47.8 CPM
Do you now consider a reading greater than 46.5 ABNORMAL?
The 47.0 reading on 3/17 at 2:40pm was designated as NORMAL. But, the last two reading on 3/21 were readings not marked NORMAL even though they were less than 47.0 (46.8 and 46.7).
We think that by enabling links over on UStream, we got spammed with porn links while we were… sleeping. So, in order to avoid being cut off by possible complaints over this (though our notion is just a theory) we will disable links over there when we go to… sleep.
Thank you for your patience.
We have written about the problems at San Onofre ten years ago. The LA Weekly story is called Radiating Fear.
WE ARE BACK ONLINE – LATEST READING AT 8:21 AM 3/21 = NORMAL! 41.2 CPM
Why Off Air , again ,,, after being up for days ?? Anything wrong ?
Does anyone know what the levels are in Orange County? Also, so far we’re getting the early radiation. Does anyone have any idea what is likely to be coming in the next week?
OK last one, promise
Japan says high seawater radiation levels are no cause for alarm
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2011/0322/Japan-says-high-seawater-radiation-levels-are-no-cause-for-alarm
I noticed you are not on air anymore. Is there a problem? Thanks
Photo Evidence: Temperature in Fuel Rod Pool Above Boiling Point
Hey guys, thank you so much for putting this site up…it’s so nice to feel like we actually have some information available to us. I really appreciate it. And please don’t bother with the clock…how silly to focus on that. As an independent woman with feminist tendencies, I assure you that I don’t care about your sexy clock..in fact I thought it was nice to see some personality. Freedom of speech is a beautiful thing…above everything I am just so grateful that you are giving your time to us!! Thanks so much!
Hi, is this site down?
Norsk Institute – Xe-133 – RADIATION Dispersion Forecast – USA and CANADA
It could have to do with topography. Many areas in the Inland Empire (the inland citrus belt for you non-Californians) have valley areas that tend to trap any pollution in the air. For this reason, Riverside has one of the worst smog problems in Southern California. Everything from the L.A. basin blows there and then is trapped there. You can actually see it hanging in the air over Riverside coming down the Cajon pass or coming northbound from the hills of Corona on the I-15.
Thus, it seems possible that if radiation levels are higher, that could be a factor.
West L.A. tends to have a lot of on-shore breeze/wind blowing which, in turn could disperse the radiation coming in off the ocean.
Just a theory. When anyone has a chance, look at the issues of Indian Point Nuclear Plant in N.Y. There are huge safety violations there. Not to mention San Onofre for us here in SoCal. Keep up the good work, Michael et. al.
why off air???? 3/22/6am
While the average Gamma Rad for California is in the 40s, Riverside has 90 and another area has 60. Can anyone know why the big difference?
Dee
Micheal
What I am trying to say is that just because the monitor did not detect any big rise/rise in background readings, it does no mean the air does not have radioactive particles in it, it just means one of those particles did not get near your monitor
Correct?
Thank you very much for all you are doing, too bad the trillions ‘our’ gov spends does little if any good for we the people, actually our money is used against us in the form of Disinfo, propaganda and outright lies in the ‘Operation Mockingbird’ Media
Thanks again
We apologize for our live streaming webcam going offline but it’s up again!
Correct. But radiation can be detected and our readings are negative so far based on our continuing background reading baseline. It appears the Los Angeles didn’t feel the impact of any fallout unlike other areas further to the east. We’ll be exploring that in an upcoming blog post.
Note that the background levels are not “low” in the area we’re monitoring; they’re normal. This area has a higher BG level than many other areas in California.
Thanks for doing some outdoor monitoring, although the backround levels are low, it does not mean that a contaminated particle/particles are not out there
Right?
When will it be on air again?
Grateful for the exterior readings, MC, Thank you
I have a question for clarification: The following was posted on the International Atomic Energy Agency recently with regards to gamma radiation measured on March 20th,”The dose-rate results ranged from 2-160 microsieverts per hour, which compares to a typical natural background level of around 0.1 microsieverts per hour.” That doesn’t make sense, and if normal background radiation is 0.1 (1/10th of) microsierverts/hr….then the range shows something horrible going on, not just something of background radiation. Can someone look at this and make head or tails of it for me?
Thanks,
Mike
I forgot to mention in my previous post:
Thanks, Denise and Michael for posting this. Even if we don’t all say it, we appreciate your hard and consistent work.
Thank you, Michael for your exhortation that we get involved in volunteering for or donating to efforts to stop this kind of nuclear nightmare from ever happening again. PSR is a remarkable organization.
I wonder, though, how much all of us have, albeit unwittingly, perhaps in small, individually inadvertent ways, contributed to this very monster that now dominates the landscape, both literally and figuratively.
As a society, we (as Americans) are perhaps more dependent on technology and electrical power than are most countries in the world.
It seems that our lives in recent years center around being “plugged in.” We are obsessed with all of our electricity or technology-driven “devices.” Plasma or LCD T.V. sets. Now we even have “3-D television. Cell phones (which must be charged), GPS devices (ditto), increasingly state-of-the art microwaves and other household gadgets.
How many people read “real” books anymore, now that reading material is available on digital devices? Our home offices are full of machines—technologically advanced versions of printers, lap-tops, fax machines, photo-printing gadgets.
Instead of old-fashioned picture frames, we now have digital ones (which rely on electricity) so that we can enjoy even more pictures without the clutter of beautifully old, worn frames everywhere.
We cook our food in microwaves instead of the old-fashioned way. We don’t see the irony that this is referred to as “nuking” the food.
We live in increasingly large houses and protect our “stuff” with increasingly technologically advanced alarm systems.
We rely heavily on machines to do tasks for us—washing machines, dryers and dishwashers which, even in more “energy efficient” models use a substantial amount of power.
We must pause to consider the vast manufacturing output that creates these machines (a significant portion of which are made in…
Japan…
…at factories powered by…
…TEPCO).
Thus, without really wanting to, many of us have, perhaps in these infinitesimally small, inadvertent ways, contributed to the cycle of production/use of technology that creates even greater demands for energy and allows companies like TEPCO (and Southern California Edison) to be so entrenched in our way of life.
The nuclear industry is driven by a powerful lobby in this country and it has attained that status in part because there is such an incessant demand for more and more electrical power in our increasingly technology-dependent culture and socio-economic structure.
Of course, there are other, vastly more complex forces at work behind the status of the nuclear industry, not the least of which involves our own government’s investment in the staggering amount of money produced by that industry.
It is not my intent, here, to oversimplify what has become a monstrous problem.
Our task to work for the curtailment of nuclear energy is large, indeed. At times, it feels even daunting, although urgently necessary.
But before sallying forth to do battle where battle should be done, it is always wise to begin with a survey of our own tiny, individual contribution to the problem.
No matter how “Green” we all might try to be, how often do we really “unplug” and listen to the still, small voice of a bird in the garden?
No nuclear power plant was ever needed to supply energy to create such a simple, perfect miracle.
Hi Susanne, my deepest gratitude to you and others who have fought for choice throughout the years. I am quite certain I would not be who I am today without those efforts. I do understand what you are saying and we are looking into alternative clocks. Peace to you too, and again, much gratitude.
The problem with radiation is that by the time you confirm it is there it’s too late, you have to preload your thyroid with iodine. At least start eating a triple dose of sea kelp, it’s good for you anyway. My brother was a downwinder and he died a horrific death at age 22 from leukemia.
Here’s a link to a french simulation of the plume spreading in the northern hemisphere
http://www.irsn.fr/FR/popup/Pages/irsn-meteo-france_19mars.aspx
Denise Ann, I’m sorry I said negative things about the gift from your parents. It is cute and a very nice gift given to you for you to enjoy. But it isn’t something everyone will enjoy and I would still appreciate it if you could cover up the image. If you don’t want to, that is your choice and that is what women my age (and through the ages) have fought for. For you to have the choice.
Thank you for all your hard work during this very stressful time. Hang in there Sister. Peace.
And in the process, PSR won a Nobel Peace Prize for its nuke work in the `80s! It is time to volunteer again, as it is for you people wondering how to get a handle on all this. Here’s one way: do it like Polly and get involved with PSR. I am certainly fond of PSR-LA which is the reason I got into enviro reporting in the first place. Check them out at http://www.psr-la.org/ and exchange fear and panic with determination and action.
DO IT! (213) 689-9170
Volunteer or donate or do both!
Hi Michael,
Thanks for your time doing this site. I wanted to share that I volunteered for PSR back in 1979/1980 ish in Cambridge Mass when I was a teenager. I idolized Helen Caldicott and spent a year in the mailroom of that small back room on the second floor, in that old Central Square walkup, working with her when she wasn’t traveling.
I had to inform my daughter and her friends yesterday that we did try to stop this from happening back then. We tried…
Thank you, Liz. The indoor baseline should be pretty close to the outdoor one, that is before the goo gets here. So assuming that, we are monitoring outdoors too. Taking an outdoor 10-min average right now.
Thank you for this excellent and informed message, Liz. Keep ’em coming.
Thank you, Michael, for this service. While clearly the majority of rational voices seem to concur that any amount of radiation from Japan would be “minimal” many of us nevertheless appreciate being informed.
Certain isotopes (such as Plutonium) can be harmful even in “minimal” quantities, although obviously, the term “minimal” would have to be defined as well as the ratio of amount of exposure to time frames (per minute, per hour, per event, etc.)
I would think that it would be useful to use the detector outdoors, perhaps more than indoors. I understand that you have no baseline established for outdoors and that there are sources of radiation, such as Uranium in concrete and other background emittors.
But the level outdoors would be the one that people would be most curious about, since presumably, staying indoors (by all accounts) is deemed to provide a higher level of protection, and therefore would logically reflect a lower level of radioactive contamination.
Early results from Berkeley suggest that there are some trace amounts of Cesium in the rain water, which is another interesting issue.
While it does not appear that there is excessive cause for worry at this point, the issue of reactor 3 must be carefully monitored because of its MOX fuel use and high rate of Plutonium and Uranium–isotopes, which by the way have a longer half-life and can be carried for thousands of miles.
Thank you again for being so careful and ethical about this set-up, presentation and the information you present.
It was my idea that we use the clock and I am a feminist. It was a fun gift from my parents and I suggested we use it as a) it was handy and 2) we needed an immediate way to prove to people that we were live. We are over-extended as it is, so if you would like another atomic clock please send us one and we’ll use it. I found there is one with Weather Man – http://www.improvementscatalog.com/product/atomic-alarm-clock-with–weather-man-.do# – if anyone wants to get that for us or donate we’ll use it and alternate between them.
I agree with Mara Lindstrom that the clock is sexist. Please put a post-it over the image with a label that says something like “Official EnviroReporter Atomic Clock”. This current situation is bad enough without an offensive and divisive reminder that women are still treated as second class citizens. If women had been given equal positions of power and decision-making we never would have built that first nuclear power plant.
Folks have demanded I go outdoors and take readings. They have legitimate reasons. So we are doing that. Don’t expect too much of a difference. Later today, we will be inspecting various surfaces outside but that means the Inspector won’t be onscreen for a while.
What is the difference between INTERIOR and EXTERIOR with regard to the location and the expected readings?
Thank you for the service you are doing. Even an unofficial source is better than no source at all.
I apologize if Weather Girl seems offensive. People were demanding a clock to show that we weren’t looping our rad readings. But to answer your question, sure why not? I’d use a clock with a dude doing same if I had one. Find one and send it to me and I will. But again, I do know it bothers some people but I need a good Atomic Clock and that is one.
Why is the “sexy” sexist female graphic back? I still find it very degrading and wonder why you think it is appropriate. If you have (or had) a daughter, would this be a posture or a costume in which you would like to see her?
Hi Keri, I read about Miso being a good protective food. It was in an article about a Dr. that treated his hospital staff and the victims of the Hiroshima blast with a diet of Miso, sea vegetables, brown rice and very limited refined sugars. This weekend I went out and bought two packages of miso. I don’t follow the directions on the package though because heating it too much destroys the enzymes. Take boiling water and pour over the miso and stir (with whatever else you want to add to make it soup). I just add minced onion and toasted Nori torn into little bits and the boiled water softens it nicely. Even my husband tried my soup yesterday and said he liked it. He also let me rub Betadine on his abdomen, which is a very nice large surface for absorbing the product!
Can I remind everyone who is looking at the EPA site to check out the background levels before the event? Some place had spikes that would be considered FAR more serious, not to mention, in the LA case, Riverside is one of the closest neighbor on the map and they did not detect a spike. The website specifically says “Electrical interference can cause spikes, shown on the graph as one point significantly higher than the rest of the data.” Granted we have been having some crazy rain throughout the state that is “scrubbing” the air, but you are still seeing normal average readings. I am just as concerned as everyone else but it doesn’t do any good to have your blood pressure raised by freaking out. Stay calm people but stay informed.
@Keri – This is totally unproven for radiation but thanks anyway. It is healthier eating, regardless.
This Is Great. Can someone explain me how they are doing this.
im a little ignorant about this but i want to learn.
For those of you that have heard that Miso is the best food to eat to counter any radiation exposure, here is why it is true. Miso contains fermented soy. Fermented foods create enzymes that eat up toxins in the blood. You can get it in the form of a supplement called Natto. I know that Jarrow brand has a Natto supplement. Most natural Doctors use Natto for pretty much everything. It wouldn’t hurt take either way since it is so good for you.
Michael, would you please take another average (or more) OUTSIDE? I am sure others are curious as well.
Thanks!
CPM spike [now] on EPA site [per Los Angeles]. click link below:
http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-losangeles-bg.html
Thank you EnviroReporter for what you are doing for us here in California.
Thanks Simone for the link. Informative.
Hello everyone
This mail reached me from a friend about the problem
current nuclear, I want to leave you this info,
just for info, without any intention to panic, just
for the event!
In Part I a very nutritional advice
interesting to discover (see attachment) and
Part of valuable advice when
contamination by radioactivity
I wish you a great day
Friendships
Manfred
PS. You’ve probably already received this link regarding the
Directive THMPD
To view and do what you think should be done to
Defence of Natural Medicine
http://www.defensemedecinenaturelle.eu/
Hello
You’re much to write, email or SMS,
here is my answer.
Here’s what I knew and was confirmed to me by
Research people I know.
These food items should be based on your
power supply design.
This does not prevent differences, except in times of
suffering – illness or period of intoxication …
radioactive in particular.
For homeopathy, you should know that will contain the cloud.
Remember that anxiety and stress do nothing
other than disrupt your immune system. Fear
is a bouffeuse energy.
Remember that quality food is essential
to keep and develop your defenses.
Among others:
– Stop milk products, sugar fast,
chocolate bars, pastries, sweets etc.
– Ban anything that looks like Mac
Do and other brands of the same style
– Ban the microwave … products
Lightweight … – read the compositions …
– Proper diet, ie avoid
fried foods, all prepared foods, overcooked …
– Priority in brown rice, quinoa, buckwheat, miso,
auklets, Tamari …
Avoid anything that contains wheat non-organic. Do not overuse
bread, even organic, even if you are not intolerant
gluten.
– When possible breakfast attached. It is a
Revitalization very deep, which becomes gradually
spectacular
And hope this is not the Apocalypse, or
Angels will trigger a big storm on the Pacific
for irradiation in the waves are flat
and return to the ocean bottom flaws. . . !
Meditations on the light for all those who
suffer in Japan ….
Here is what I found by browsing on flash
measures to be taken in case of nuclear issue:
iodine, not terrible, and miso, much better.
Regards. Thierry
> http://www.dissident-
media.org / infonucleaire / iode_tranqui.html
>
> http://www.dissident-
media.org / infonucleaire / QM_iode.jpg
>
> http://www.urgencenucleaire.qc.ca/rolecomprimes.php
>
> http://tenryu.over-blog.com/article-33583817.html
>
> http://chamok.unblog.fr/2007/03/13/comment-se-
detoxify des-radioactive radiation /
>
On August 9, 1945
atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. Radiation
Atomic deadly spread over the city razed. A large
number of
people experienced a death agony. For a small
number, it was a miracle. None of those
working
the hospital suffered or died from radiation. (…) It
there was in the hospital a large stock and miso
tamari.
We also had a large supply of rice and
of wakame (seaweed used to make a broth or
the
miso soup). I had my staff fed rice
Complete and miso soup for some time before
bombardment. None of them suffered from
Atomic Radiation. How miso soup could she
guard
against radiation? Science may one day give
a firm answer to this question if we allowed
people
provide elements for experience … ”
Dr. S. Akizuki, St. Francis Hospital in Nagasaki, Japan
How to Detoxify Radiation
radioactivesEnregistré in: Nuclear – chamok @ 17:47
. Pdf version
Small page to detoxify the body of
up to radioactive particles
The tablets of potassium iodide (KI) or iodate
Potassium (KIO3) should be taken once met a
nuclear accident in your vicinity (Read the instructions for
learn to use). Unnecessary and unhealthy to want to
make a DMARD .. ..
You should know that these tablets effectively protects
THAT the thyroid gland. The “rest” while the rest is
not protected.
In the absence of these iodine tablets KI or KI03, Ken
Miller, nuclear physicist Health Medical Center
Hershey
found that an adult could get a dose of
blocking of stable iodine by painting 8 ml of a tincture
2% (Two percent) of iodine on the abdomen or forearm
approximately 2 hours before the contamination
After being exposed to radioactive contamination,
you shower and you brush generously
long time with a stiff brush everywhere ..
everywhere .. yes yes even there! and you’ll have
now take a bath in Epsom salt, or
a chlorine-based disinfectant (not clean .. of course!)
or clay to remove any residue on your skin
and to leach heavy metals
Now continue with the food and see what
Tatsuichiro Akizuki, who was director of the department
internal medicine at the hospital in Nagasaki gave
staff and patients to detoxify after
the explosion of the bomb
A strict diet of brown rice, soup soy,
miso, tamari, wakame, kombu and other seaweed,
Hokkaido pumpkin (Pumpkin), and sea salt
It also prohibits the consumption of sugar and
candy as they suppress the immune system
Algae contain substances that bind
Radioactive particles and send them outside the body
was exposed to radiation.
At Chernobyl, he was employed at a rate of spirulina
of 5gr. (Five grams) for 45 days. Of
Scientists
Israeli kids were also treated with contaminated
doses of beta-carotene and algae
Dunaliella
Algae chlorella have also shown the effects
radioprotective
Canadian researchers have discovered under the direction of
Dr. Stanley Skoryna that sea vegetables (seaweed)
contain a polysaccharide called alginate sodium
who knows care to eliminate radioactive strontium
The sodium alginate is found in many algae,
especially kelp, and since the Russians
seriously sought to use their own seaweed
of Vladivlostok in which they isolated the
polysaccharide U-Fucoidan which became another
detoxifieur radioactive.
Going back to Japan and their miso soup
allowed them to discover the zybicolin used to
detoxify
radioactive strontium
In short .. You can eat algae with almost
any type of chelation formula commercial
heavy metal to bind radioactive particles and
to help send them out of the body.
In terms of fluids to drink, black tea and green tea
showed radioprotective effects if one or the other
are consumed before or after exposure to
radiation.
Basically, an anti-radiation diet should
focus on the following foods:
> 1. Miso soup
> 2. Spirulina, chlorella and algae
> 3. Brassica vegetables and vegetables containing beta-
carotene
> 4. Beans and lentils
> 5. Potassium, calcium and mineral rich foods
> 6. Foods rich in content for nucleotides
help cell repair including spirulina,
chlorella, algae, yeast, sardines,
liver, anchovies and mackerel
> 7. Cod liver oil and olive oil
> 8. A good multivitamin / multiminaux
> 9. A very special mention for
the regime of pectin from apple seeds with
which excellent results were obtained for
will eliminate the Cesium
of the organism from contaminated Chernobyl. Pending
to know a precise dosage, you can safely
swallow the equivalent of seeds of 2 (two) potatoes .. vivi
what’s around too .. the flesh, if you like ..
Associations have financed inputs very
important for children of Chernobyl.
10. Avoid sugar, sweets and wheat This is
integral part of the “regime” and must be respected.
Vitamin B-12 prevents the acquisition of Cobalt-60 (used
in nuclear medicine), zinc prevents the seizure of
Zinc-65 and sulfur is preventative for incorporation
Sulfur-35 (a product of nuclear reactors) by the
body.
Since nuclear workers are potentially
exposed to radioactive sulfur, this means that
workers in the nuclear power industry have
need a higher content of sulfur in their
regime. MSM supplements provide a source of
dietary sulfur, but thiol supplements such as
cysteine, lipoic acid and glutathione are used to
double
vocation in this area because they help detoxify
the body and attack all sorts of other
problems
health as well. The immune system is
usually hit hard after exposure to
radiation, and
number of measures can be taken to prevent
Opportunistic infections after an incident
radioactive.
But the full dimensions of the protective mechanism
are still unknown. Siberian ginseng is a form
of
ginseng that exerts a radioprotective effect and has defined
been shown to decrease the side effects of
radiation. It was widely distributed by Union
Soviet people who were exposed to radiation
Chernobyl and is commonly used to help
patients with cancer and undergoing therapy
radiation.
Consuming Reishi mushrooms is another way
proven to support your immune system
after radiation exposure, it reduces the damage
radiation. It has been used to reduce disease
of
radiation in animals and to help them
recover more quickly after exposure
potentially fatal.
Panax ginseng prevents bleeding after exposure
radiation, it prevents death of spinal and
stimulates
formation of blood cells, and this is another
supplement to add to a protocol.
In short, yeast, beta glucans, pollen
Bee and various forms of ginseng have all been
used to support the immune system after
incident radiation.
In terms of radiation burns, aloe vera has
a
Proven ability to treat serious burns
radiation and offers other radioprotective effects, which
can
easily be used at home.
L-Glutamine amino acid can be used to
help repair the intestine
if you suffer from gastro-intestinal syndrome due to
exposure to radiation, and a variety of substances
can help
rebuild blood cells to prevent
hematopoietic syndrome. These particular foods
include
beet juice, liver extract, extract
spleen, and alkyglycerols shark. Most
Oncologists
do not know that shark liver oil, with
alkyglycerols, can help increase the number of
platelets
a few days.
Because the U.S. weapons are made from
Depleted Uranium and after bombardment
environment that eventually spilled into
Earth’s atmosphere, anyone can absorb this
Uranium said
Depleted. Because the kidneys are usually
first organs to show chemical damage
exposure to uranium, military manuals
suggest that the doses or infusions of bicarbonate
soda helps
Alkalinization in the urine if this happens. This makes ion
uranyl less kidney-toxic and promotes excretion of
complex nontoxic uranium carbonate.
In areas contaminated by depleted uranium, it
therefore necessary to drink water (not dirty!)
slightly alkaline and promote a non-acid
to help the detoxification.
That detoxify heavy metals, such as soup
miso, chlorella, spirulina and algae, are a
good
sense guaranteed.
Another thing you can do is possibly
to use homeopathy after exposure
radiation. People usually discuss the topic at
Learn the benefits of homeopathy or not, but if you
take the position that they produce no result
you must also assume that they certainly do
you
not hurt, which means that the only loss to the
use is a few euros. There would be cases
innumerable
and double-blind study in which dye
provoqueraint homeopathic healing effects
physical body.
Therefore they are a viable option for adding
treatment.
In homeopathy, it would be l’URANIUM nitricum
(Uranium nitrate) that homeopaths suggèrereraient
to use in cases of poisoning and exposure
to
Depleted uranium or uranium. Soldiers or
civilians not simply exposed to the battlefield, but
the
miners and uranium radiation can
find it quite useful.
and finally, let me show you what is
Perhaps the only natural Geiger counter:
(Tradescantia ohiensis)
The spiderwort flower is so sensitive to changes
radiation levels (its petals change
color upon exposure) that is used
often as natural radiation detector
(Dosimeter), just as canaries were used in
mines as detectors of poisonous gas.
Thank you to inform you about this text that can
someday be useful to very useful for workers
working “in the nuclear” for the returning soldier
its war, especially for us civilians, eternal
victims of the vagaries of power assuming the right
Look at the post. It is updated.
Last news from french CRIIRAD independant organisation:
03/21/2011. JAPAN.
“Winds turned south and drive now the contaminated air masses toward populated area instead of Pacific ocean. In an average of 100km south from FUKUSHIMA, radiations are clarly increasing in IBARAKI county : from the 03/17/2011, the rate was between 0,1 and 1µSv/h.
In TAKAHAGI, increasing has started this Monday 21 around 09AM (local time). Ratio increased tenfold between 11.30AM and 14PM: from 0,37µSv/h to 3,7µSv/h.
TOKYO air contamination:
The rate of iodine131 increased from 0,1 Bq/m3 on the 00AM/08AM period/Sunday the 20th to 15,6 Bq/m3 this Monday (on the 08AM/10AM period).
This rate came down to 8 Bq/M3 between 02PM and 04PM but this information won’t be significant the next hours according to meteorological simulation.”
not sure if this post/angle [copied and pasted here below from: Daniel/Mar20 12:05pm] is valid and if so acknowledged here on this site/”FAQ” (and where are FAQ here? is the little info just not labeled as FAQ or did I overlook the FAQ link?), but are there other monitoring sources/info out there that if this is true (don’t know why it wouldn’t be) are monitored possible PARTICLES!? [i.e. wind, rain, snow, etc?]
The only site I see [I know of] that seems to be monitoring “particles” so far is:
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling
excerpt from previous post by Daniel/Mar20 12:05pm:
“…The threat is from the particles that are blown in the air. These particles are what emit the radiation as they fall around you. That is why they talk of radiation clouds. They are talking about clouds of particles that are radiating due to being radioactive. And the real threat from them is if you get them inside your body by eating or breathing primarily. You see a particle as a tiny point source puts out gobs of radiation at that point. So if for example you have particles or molecules of Iodine that are absorbed by the body and all collect at oneplace like the thyroid, you get way high rays in the thyroid, leading probabistically to someday cancer there at that spot. Same with cesium or strontium. If a particle happens to lodge in your body and stay there, there is a high probability of eventual cancer. Understand? It is quite logical.
So, to really see if there are particles outside, I suggest taking a piece of cloth, put it around the meter, and measure it’s radioactivity for maybe 1/2 hour as a baseline. Then put it outside for a couple hrs in a way that it is filtering the wind throught it. Then re-read the radioactivity as above again. This will give you a much better idea of what the real threat is.”
2nd posting as first post did not show after posting[?]
Michael, how much was the average you just did?
Dear Readers,
check out the Uc berkeley link where they found radioactive iodine cesium and tellurim in the rain.
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling
The problem with cesium is his long half life (30 years? anyone can fill in please?
Andrea,
I tried to Log in to the ERA site, but it gives an error.:((((
Thank you everybody!
CHECK Current Radiation Levels – ALL over the world!
I put a website together for easy access to monitors all over the world.
Check it out: http://wp.me/PuwO9-63
BTW, Tx for taking the initiative to add an extra monitor to what may be one of the world’s most pathetic monitoring networks in the world (the US’s).
Why can’t I see any readings?
No, ocgirl, it’s on alright and still reading normal.
@orangecountygirl – yes it is.
I’m not seeing any readings. Is it off?
Hi all of reporter Thank you very much. I am living in California . if you need me do something let me know
maryhu888@yahoo.com
Reply to Suzanne at 5:08
We’ve got the same information tricks, here in France… Lybia takes already the front pages. But I can set here a link toward the french CRIIAD site, which is a (believed) independant organisation concerning radioactivity reports.
Sorry folks, it’s in french. 😉 But they already talk about serious contamination on food and water in north Japan area (Ibaraki county) http://www.criirad.org/
And this link: http://www.irsn.fr/FR/popup/Pages/irsn-meteo-france_19mars.aspx
We were just discussing this! That MOX fuel indeed has alpha-emitting material with low gamma radiation. We would have to take swipes of outdoor dust/precipitate to then get within half an inch to detect this alpha with the Inspector. Of course the Inspector can detect alpha and beta.
You are correct in being concerned about this fuel, David. It is really poisonous and being vented into the air at a ferocious rate. We will be alerted to its presence, possibly, by increased gamma from other radionuclides in the approaching fallout. Then we’d zero in on the alpha.
Thank you for such an intelligent comment.
We were just discussing this! That MOX fuel is indeed has alpha-emitting material with low gamma radiation. We would have to take swipes of outdoor dust/precipitate to then get within half an inch to detect this alpha with the Inspector. Of course the Inspector can detect alpha and beta.
You are correct in being concerned about this fuel, David. It is really poisonous and being vented into the air at a ferocious rate. We will be alerted to its presence, possibly, by increased gamma from other radionuclides in the approaching fallout. Then we’d zero in on the alpha.
Thank you for such an intelligent comment.
I have a question – My understanding is that the MOX fuel used in reactor 3 leaked material (MOX) that emits greater amounts of alpha radiation, which cannot be easily measured by an indoor counter such as yours, because alpha radiation is blocked by even a thin layer of paper. Your reader presumably is designed to measure gamma radiation, which travels further and through many materials.
Can you confirm that your counter is probably not measuring alpha radiation otherwise present from MOX fuel arriving on the west coast?
@Andrea – This is precisely how we do it. How you got any other ideas about how we are doing this is not clear but the Inspector does the work for us, just as the copy you provide shows. “I too tried to do the averaging like you did” means you somehow misunderstood how we do the averaging, not to be harsh about it. We took the simple route – we followed the Inspector’s instructions.
Michael, I too tried to do the averaging like you did, and wasn’t sure it is mathematically right. So I looked at the Medcom manual, and found instructions that actually allow for the instrument to do this counting for you. I believe it is different than the manual averaging, so below are the instructions. I know that if you do it this way now it would probably give different numbers than thus far, but at least (if you agree to change) they would be accurate and we could compare them every 12 hrs to see if those numbers increase.
Please do not take this comment harshly, I am just trying to help you and all the rest of LA who is watching this site. I am a scientist, but not in the radiaology field, so I, too, am striving to find the answers here…
Taking a Timed Count
When a timed count is taken over a longer period, the average count per minute is more accurate, and any small increase is more significant. For example, if one 10-minute average is one count higher than another 10-minute average, the increase may be due to normal variation. But over 12 hours, a one-count increase over the 12-hour background average may be statistically significant.
The Inspector can give you a total count for a timed period of from one minute to 24 hours. Follow these steps:
1. With the Inspector operating, set the Mode switch to Total/Timer. The display shows TOTAL.
2. Set the Timer switch on the end panel to Set. The display shows SET, the hourglass, and the most recent timing period used. The first time you use the timer, the setting is 00:01, which means one minute.
3. Use the + and – buttons to set the timing period. The timed period can be for 1 to 10 minutes in one-minute increments, for 10 to 50 minutes in ten-minute increments, or for 1 to 24 hours in one-hour increments.
4. Set the Timer switch to On. The Inspector beeps three times and starts counting. The hourglass indicator flashes during the timed period.
If you want to see how many minutes remain, set the Timer switch to Set. The display counts down from the time setting in hours and minutes to zero. For example, if the display says 00:21, 21 minutes remain. Be sure to set the switch back to On to see the total count when the timed period is finished.
5. At the end of the timed period, the Inspector beeps three times, and repeats the beeping several times. The number displayed is the total count.
6. To find the average counts per minute for the timed period, divide the total by the number of minutes.
7. Set the Timer switch to Off to return to normal operation.
As long as the Timer switch is set to On, the timer mode is active in the background even when the Mode switch is set to one of the dose rate modes. For example, during and after the timed period, you can switch back and forth between Total/Timer and mR/hr; when the timed period is over, the total is displayed whenever you switch back to Total/Timer. period is over, the total is displayed whenever you switch back to Total/Timer. The hourglass indicator is shown on the display in any mode setting; it is blinking while the timer is totaling counts.
Taking a Total Count
The timer can take timed counts of up to twenty-four hours. In certain situations, you may want to take a total count without the timer; for example, taking a count for longer than twenty-four hours. Follow these steps:
1. Place the Inspector in the location where you plan to take the count.
2. Note the time.
3. Immediately when you note the time, set the mode switch to Total/Timer.
4. At the end of the time period, note the time and the number of counts on the numeric display.
5. Subtract the starting time from the ending time to determine the exact number of minutes in the timing period.
6. To get the average count, divide the total counts by the number of minutes in the timing period.
The conversation about indoor readings vs. outdoor readings is most interesting and clearly shows that we are just about completely illiterate and unprepared for any fallout that may impact the U.S. and or Europe and or the rest of the planet (for those readers who want to “Nuke Iran”, please keep all this in mind.)
#1) what should we be concerned about and why? #2) on what basis is that determination made? #3) what kind of measurements are meaningful, and under what conditions must they be made? #4) who can certify that the measurements are accurate, valid, and/or relevant? #5) what is the best source of information for accurate readings that can be explained in layperson’s terms which enable the layperson to determine for himself or herself what impact that information may have on their near and long term living conditions?
For example, I now know it’s 46CPM in your basement where the rain clouds are not depositing cesium-137 or iodine-131, but are they are doing so outside in the drinking water aquafirs, on the S. Cal. farm crops and animal feed, etc. In the 1970’s conference at Columbia Uinversity called “ho Killed Karen Silkwood?” (Bella Abzug was there in front of me with one of her trademark big hats and I couldn’t see the speakers) I once asked Nuclear Physicist Michio Kaku who monitors our drinking water for radioactivity. He said no one. I hope that has changed.
In addition, he said there is no known way to remove radioactivity from our drinking water. I hope that has changed since then also. Please read the two sentences above again.
With that said, I certainly do not have any answers. However, I am most appreciative of your efforts and the comments that appear to be very relevant, especially those that challenge your logic and references. This is a grass-roots (no pun intended) opportunity to work together for the common good, although one must never forget that no good deed shall go unpunished, i.e. whatever you do, someone will undoubtedly brand it as evil.
On that note, please understand that I sell a professionally calibrated particle monitor for $2,000 which has more features than the $450 one. (However, I’d be more than happy to direct you to the website of the less expensive brand.) Both monitors measure 2.5 micron (large) and 0.5 micron (small) sized particle counts.
These are a particle counters only and do not, I repeat, do not, not, not measure radiation. Did I mention that these monitors do not measure radiation?
Taking the sales pitch a ;little further, I also sell a system that removes 90% of the 0.5 micron sized – particles electromagnetically from a room with the only patented alternating current electronic circuit which causes the (+) and (-) sub-micron particles to collide, get stuck together, lose overall charge and grow large enough to be captured with airflow (fans) and filters, i.e., inexpensive HEPA filters. All this on a circuit that uses under 70 watts (plus a fan).
All this means that you can measure your living room as it goes from “normal” to a 90% clean room. Should we ever get to the point that you might be concerned about the number of particulates in your house, you now know you have at least one option for addressing the situation in the manner described above.
I also beg you not to vote for Armageddon Annie in 2012. Do you really want to make a bad global nuclear fallout situation worse?
juandegringo – Syracuse, NY
Thanks for the service! Anyone have any idea when the blasts will/have passed? I noticed a spike Friday afternoon, in the EPA’s RadNet data, for the coast; and am wondering what that was and if more is to come.
Some is CPM 56. Some is 464 CPM? what is wrong ? if 464 we have to out of CA
@sdc The amount of goo coming from these reactors, and the amount of goo in them yet unexploded or burned, dwarfs Chernobyl. That said, the likelihood, at this time, of it spreading far and wide is still unknown.
I have not reported on it because there has been too much to do but, sdc, the amount of poor information being imparted here in California is amazing. Either the government official spouting it are none too swift or it is deliberate. Either way it’s disconcerting (and one of the reasons our site and streaming are essential to Southern Californians.)
FYI – KI pills are cheap as dirt to make, last practically forever, and are stockpiled somewhere here in California for the state in case of emergency (though no plan to distribute them is known). Americans getting them have nothing to do with Japanese getting them or not.
Thank you, sdc, for your radiation readings. You obviously know how to use your detector and hope you keep detecting nothing but background and keep us up to date.
Is there a t.v. station that is NOT owned by a huge corporation and only interviews nuclear experts that are owned by government/military/energy? Good grief, I’m asking too much aren’t I? I’m thinking about joining in and marching if there are any peaceful anti-nuclear demonstrations in the future. It’s time to get our sh*t together. I’ve been so focused on work and saving for retirement etc etc I haven’t been thinking about the big picture.
@Michael Collins
Fair enough but most experts agree that while there is still danger, it has greatly diminished.
This is no Chernobyl, there is no raging graphite fire, spewing radioactive material into high altitude. The point is, the likelihood of radioactive material reaching far and wide is exceedingly low.
In hindsight, I admit my statement was a little arrogant but in my defense, I have grown wary of all the fear mongering, the proliferation of conspiracies, and talk of government lies. People are taking Potassium Iodide, not understanding that they are doing more harm than good.
Additionally, the cost/available of these pills and radiation detectors has made it very difficult for people who really need them (Japanese).
BTW, I am seeing an average of 17 CPM (outside sampling) in Vancouver. Six month ago, I was also seeing an average of 17 CPM.
I am using a slightly less sensitive RadAlert 100.
@sdc This comment says that the “Fukushima reactor failures had a virtually zero affect…” (my emphasis).
The past tense is not applicable as this is an ongoing, multiple partial meltdown event with the water sprayed on the molten goo being blown into the atmosphere as highly radioactive steam that catches the jet stream.
It ain’t over till it’s over and it won’t be over for a long long time.
You are correct about the Inspector’s temporary spikes. So with your knowledge, you should know better than being simply dismissive. That is a dangerous attitude towards this unprecedented and continuing event.
I feel much better now after your explanation.Thanks 🙂
OMG! Get educated people!
The Fukushima reactor failures had a virtually zero affect and change over normal background radiation in North America! The affects over Europe will be even less… so less than near zero is zero.
Also, high values on the Inspector are temporary, perfectly natural, and not alarming.
We did that on-air because a viewer requested it. If we do it off-air, people wonder where the Inspector is. Either way is bound to cause a little confusion so my apologies.
You really scared me with that last 10 minute average. Whew! Maybe you could cover the meter’s readings, to ensure no one misses the notice 😉
That is a ten minute average = 46.4 CPM = NORMAL (a little over…)
I just saw a 464 CPM spike around 5:55 pm on Sat 03/20/11!!!
AGAIN 464 CPM!!! What was that all about???
464???WTH
This is quite nice! We will continue to stream the most up-to-date information on potential fallout arriving in the Los Angeles Basin. We hope these numbers never go up.
Why is it in the 400″s now?
We are averaging just like the note says: Take a total count for 10 minutes, divide by 10 and then have a more accurate CPM which just came in at 46.4 CPM.
The counter is over 220….should we be concerned?? I was told if it reached 90 we should head out of CA….
5:59Pm 185?????
The levels seem to be consistently higher than over the past week. Will you be doing an average again shortly? Your site is the only one my entire family and all my friends and business associates as watching! Thanks for your live stream we really appreciate it!
I’ve been watching CNN and MSNBC for news, mostly it is about Libya and the news about Japan is more of human interest and economic news. Does anyone have an idea where I can find info about the reactors and what is happening with them? I know this “event” isn’t over yet but the news isn’t covering it (up to my satisfaction). Please post and I will check back often. I have satellite t.v. Thank you.
Ashland, OR 3/20, 2011 4:12-4:22PM, 10 minute average 146/10=14.6 CPM taken on a Vernier rebranded Radalert 100 digital radiation monitor calibrated for Cesium 137.
Daniel: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling
the above site might address your concerns in more detail
Dear Michael,
Thank you for this site. Is your meter testing outside air? If not, can and will you please do that? Is it possible for you to test the rain water? Are there other sites that you trust for this information?
Thanks again,
Dave
Are you really sincere when you say you are living in california ????
I am in france and we are going to get the radioactive cloud on these wenesday march 23rd 2011, just in 48 hours only, and so the radioactive cloud should have already impacted California since some time, but your radiation’s station says only there are cpm from 38 to 60 and not more …. it seems very strange , doesn’t it ????
I would have liked to see images of outside around of your housing with sun and surrounding landscape,
sorry but north america should normally be impacted before europe , so why ???
why is it averaging? and when can it be available for us to see??
The clock is running on time and the CPM number is correct. Thanks, Robert.
Thanks for this site ,, it seems perhaps that your clock is losing time ,,, last nite , it was correct ,, this afternoon , it is now 5 min behind ! ,, I don’t know if this is due to Lag ,, or if your batteries are running down ,,, hope the CPM number is correct ,,, thanx again
What can you do? Let you voice be heard.
Join this Facebook group.
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_186052018104752
Join this Facebook cause.
http://www.causes.com/causes/593423-bury-the-reactor/about
hopefully the rain will help.
What was it you where doing just now? I saw your hands and the number changed????
(P.S. just in case as you are not familiar with the area I assume, some cities in Ventura County are Moorpark, CA, CAmarillo, CA, Thousand Oaks, CA, Newbury Park, CA, (some part of Wetslake Village, also).
to agnieszka-
Have you looked into the Ventura county area- instead of Glendale. Look up bestplaces.net and type in both cities. Then, go to their “health” tab on both and compare. God bless to you and all your family :).
Thank you for this site.
For a proper early warning, this indoor monitor is not sufficient.
I read your Q&A and found it not so satisfactory. The threat from any Nuclear event that is not close by, is not from the Gamma radiation that origonates at the event. You say the radiation is comming directly from Japan. NO NO NO! The threat is from the particles that are blown in the air. These particles are what emit the radiation as they fall around you. That is why they talk of radiation clouds. They are talking about clouds of particles that are radiating due to being radioactive. And the real threat from them is if you get them inside your body by eating or breathing primarily. You see a particle as a tiny point source puts out gobs of radiation at that point. So if for example you have particles or molecules of Iodine that are absorbed by the body and all collect at oneplace like the thyroid, you get way high rays in the thyroid, leading probabistically to someday cancer there at that spot. Same with cesium or strontium. If a particle happens to lodge in your body and stay there, there is a high probability of eventual cancer. Understand? It is quite logical.
So, to really see if there are particles outside, I suggest taking a piece of cloth, put it around the meter, and measure it’s radioactivity for maybe 1/2 hour as a baseline. Then put it outside for a couple hrs in a way that it is filtering the wind throught it. Then re-read the radioactivity as above again. This will give you a much better idea of what the real threat is.
OK? Logical?
All of you WA people interested in current readings of rad lvls http://www.doh.wa.gov/Topics/japan/monitor-history.htm
Please disregard my previous question about taking an outdoor reading, i now see the post in which it was answered. However, my question about the current rainfall (acid rain) is still a concern. does anyone know if it is safe to go outside right now?!
This cannot be an accurate reading if it is INDOORS, can it?! Can you try and find a way to get an OUTDOOR reading? My fear is allowing my daughter to go outside and play. Also, what are the general thoughts on the rain falling down now? Isn’t that called ACID RAIN?! I am so concerned!
Michael,
This is Andreea; I wrote here a few days ago. Since then, it really seems to me that there are much more readings in the 50-67 range, than there were the first day you set this up. When you do the 10-min average, is it really random? Is it an instrument setting that calculates it, and are you able to see a sequence of 10-min averages? Are they all under 50?
Second, I saw someone on one of your sites asking about the EPA data. Here are the instructions on how to access it (from their website): http://www.epa.gov/narel/radnet/pdf/How_to_Access_RadNet_Data.pdf.
I logged myself in and can see all readings throughout the US (in the left-hand side of the page Query selection). However, I also saw internet commnets that they do not post the controversial numbers, and often do see no data for LA for the latest 6 hrs, while all their other sites are up-to-date to the hour….
Do not appreciate your comment system, as I’ve left several comments that I was very interested in reading others responses in relation to, but I am now of the belief that you are only allowing certain posts that you [whoever you are] decide to allow for what ever reason, and that’s fine–it’s your site, but that should be stated up front also. It’s insulting [to say the least] to participate in a message board and then not be allowed for no good reason. My last few posts have basically been directed at you [whoever you are] but my first were genuinely participating in what I thought was an open quite interesting forum/subject/conversation of posts. I understand not allowing off-subject, advertisements, or vulgar posts, but none have mine been such. I will be happy when this is over so I can delete your link but as of now you hold a little power over me with the percentage of your actions I appreciate, thanks again and an explanation of your posts monitoring system style [what is allowed what is not?] would be appreciated by me and everyone else experiencing this. Restricting freedom of speech is not cool, I am cool though, and will stay cool regardless.
Ashland, OR 3/20, 2011 9:33-9:43AM 10 minute average 139/10=13.9 CPM taken on a Vernier rebranded Radalert 100 digital radiation monitor calibrated for Cesium 137.
A bunch of ” ChickenLittles “Ha!
Michael Collins: I’m a little concerned about the low number of “hits” on the testosterone meter, only about 3 so far. Sorry, definition of “hit” = notes of interest in female body icon displayed on the right. I’m afraid this is the result of radiation that affects hormone production in the male. If the worst happens and we need to repopulate the world I’m afraid there will be too few males that would be interested in volunteering in that effort.
Thanks for altering the woman’s picture on the monitor. I don’t understand why there needs to be a picture of a woman on there, but perhaps it was made that way (God knows why) and you cannot remove it totally. Anyway, I appreciate the effort.
Your monitor has been a great source of info and calm for me this week.
Thanks!
Thought this would be interesting to everyone. There are doing measurements at Berkeley. They are also able to determine specific isotopes that are showing up. They also measured what the rain has scrubbed from the atmosphere. There has been iodine and cesium that are not naturally occuring to the area. As of yet very low levels. From what I understand this is just the initial release that is showing up.
Here’s the link: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/UCBAirSampling
With Love.
I live in Bay Area. Does anybody know what levels do we have here? I will place your link to the facebook, so we would have more interactions with other cities and states. Thank you for doing this!
Can you tell us what levels were today, march 20th, please?
Mon fils est à San Diego et je m’inquiete egalement.
Following headline is from nature.com blog. I was wondering if someone fluent in german could translate the following link supplied. It is from Austria’s weather service, the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics in Vienna. They posted an update today of its dispersion modelling of radiation from the troubled Fukushima nuclear power. (I used google translate but there is much lost in the translation (last paragraph)).
http://www.zamg.ac.at/aktuell/index.php?seite=1&artikel=ZAMG_2011-03-20GMT10:21
Curious, why was there a flash light and later a red laser pen-light shining on the detector? Is the power out in the area, is it near a window? (seen at 5:58am PST)
safe levels of radiation- you must be kidding right…
research on low level radiation exposure. by:John Gofman – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
please find a summarizing article on his elaborated research on the issue:
http://s12-us2.startpage-proxy.com/do/highlight.pl?c=hf&rid=LBLNKKPSMRQR&l=english&cat=web&sp=10c5809a95046d44173206ad6304f1eb&ts=MTMwMDU4NDgxNQ%3D%3D&q=dr.+rosalie+bertell+japan&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ratical.org%2Fradiation%2FCNR%2FRIC%2Fchp1F.html&/file.gz
CHAPTER 1
The Five Most Important Conclusions of This Book
Before summarizing the five key findings of this book, we need to specify what we mean by a few terms.
The term “radiation” in the title of this book refers to X-rays, gamma rays, and beta particles — in other words, to ionizing radiation in the low-LET class (LET, or Linear Energy Transfer). The very special nature of ionizing radiation and of Linear Energy Transfer, with respect to biological injury, is
The term “low-dose exposure” in this field refers to internal organ-doses below about 20 centi-grays (a centi-gray or cGy is the same as a rad). The estimates derived in this book, of cancer-risk per centi-gray, apply to the dose-range between zero and five centi-grays of internal organ-dose. And our risk-estimates apply to received instantaneously (acutely).
Our range of zero to five centi-grays is the applicable low-dose range for most environmental, occupational, medical (diagnostic), and dental exposures.
The term “an independent analysis” in the title refers to independence from the radiation community. We use the term “radiation community” in this book to mean all the industries, professions, and governments engaged in activities which cause exposure to ionizing radiation, plus the individuals who regard their jobs, their research grants, or their personal advancement as dependent on such sources.
The leading members of the radiation community are (A) governments — which sponsor civilian and/or military uses of nuclear energy, and sponsor the overwhelming share of all research on radiation’s health-hazards — plus (B) the nuclear electric industry and (C) the professions of nuclear medicine and radiology.
The Prominent Radiation Committees :
The radiation community’s most prominent committees on health effects are four: BEIR, ICRP, NCRP, and UNSCEAR, and they each issue sporadic reports. Their individual members receive recognition in our Chapter 37. BEIR and NCRP are American committees, and ICRP and UNSCEAR are international. Radiations, and the BEIR Committee is organized under the auspices of the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences, at the request and expense of the federal government, now via its Office of Science and Technology Policy, Committee on Interagency Radiation Research and Policy Coordination. NCRP stands for National Council on Radiation Protection, and the NCRP is funded by the radiation community too.
BEIR stands for Biological Effects of Ionizing ICRP stands for International Commission on Radiological Protection. Founded in 1928 by radiologists, it continues to select its own members from various segments of the radiation community. UNSCEAR stands for United Nations Scientific Committee on Effects of Atomic Radiation, and it reports to the U.N. General Assembly.
The Atomic-Bomb Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki :
Of the five key findings in this book, the first three are directly related to the on-going Lifespan Study of 91,231 atomic-bomb survivors. Contrary to common assumption, the A-Bomb Study is primarily a low-dose study; very few of the survivors at Hiroshima and Nagasaki received high doses. Over half of the 91,231 survivors in this study are still alive, so the Lifespan Study is far from completed.
The A-Bomb Study is maintained in Hiroshima by the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF), which is sponsored equally by the U.S. Department of Energy (through a contract with the National Academy of Sciences) and the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare.
Currently, there are two sets of dose-estimates in the A-Bomb Study. The set established in 1965 is called T65DR. A partial, interim set of new dose-estimates, introduced in 1986, is called DS86. In making our point about how few of the survivors received high doses, we will state the dose-estimates in both dosimetries. Doses shown on the next page refer to average whole-body internal organ-doses, and they are given in centi-sieverts (rems) instead of centi-grays (rads). This change is just the signal that adjustment for the survivors’ small exposure to neutrons has been made, and that the doses are equivalent to doses in centi-grays (rads).
Initial T65DR: Mean Organ- DS86: Mean Organ-
Persons Dose (cSv or rems) Dose (cSv or rems)
66,028 0.66 0.88
14,943 10.99 14.56
4,225 35.36 40.62
6,035 71.31 and up 74.24 and up
——–
91,231
The five most important conclusions
of this book follow sequentially, below.
— Finding (1) :
Method for Handling
the Retroactive Alteration
of Dose-Estimates in the A-Bomb Study :
A clear rule in epidemiological research is that one does not change input to a study after any of the study’s output is known. Such rules have been established in research not in order to be bureaucratic, but only to ensure believability for the results. It is virtually self-evident that retroactive revisions of a study’s input can create Orwellian opportunities to alter the meaning of the existing results.
Nonetheless, the new DS86 dosimetry for the A-Bomb Study has become the occasion for retroactively altering the entire architecture of this study, and destroying its continuity. The details are thoroughly documented in our Chapters 5 and 10.
There is a “right” way and a “wrong” way to handle new insights about dosimetry in any study.
We emphatically welcome new insights, and Finding Number One of this book is the demonstration of a method for introducing the new DS86 dosimetry into the A-Bomb Study without putting the study’s scientific credibility into peril. Our way of handling the new DS86 dosimetry is very different from its current handling elsewhere — handling which we regard as at variance with acceptable practice in prospective epidemiologic research.
In Chapter 25, we show that the “wrong” approach to the new DS86 dosimetry has already raised a puzzling inconsistency on a key risk-issue, and that the problem can be resolved only by restoring the study’s legitimate continuity.
We do not think that the meaningful rules of research can just be disregarded in this field. We consider our Finding Number One as more important than ever, because the 1988 UNSCEAR and 1990 BEIR-5 reports do not question the current handling of the retroactive alterations at all.
— Finding (2):
Cancer-Risk at Moderate
and High Dose-Levels, Acute Delivery Only :
Substantial agreement exists between this book and the new UNSCEAR and BEIR reports with respect to cancer-risk per rad from moderate and high doses acutely delivered, now that those committees have greatly increased their past estimates. This finding indicates that our independent methods and theirs can lead to the same results.
— Finding (3) :
Cancer-Risk at Low Doses,
Acutely and Slowly Delivered :
Serious disagreement exists between this book and the radiation committees about the cancer-risk from low-dose exposure, either acutely or slowly received — and acute-low and slow-low doses are the ones which occur in the overwhelming share of human exposures.
This book, using human evidence exclusively, arrives at risk-estimates for acute-low and slow-low exposures which are up to 30-fold higher than the wide range of values provided by UNSCEAR and BEIR. Chapters 22, 23, and 25 show that there is no mystery about the source of disagreement. The record shows that the radiation committees reach approximately the same conclusions as we do with respect to the relevant human evidence, but then the committees recommend use of what we call more “optimistic” (less disturbing) findings based on other species.
We wish our own risk-estimates were lower — for no one welcomes potency in a carcinogen — but we cannot ignore the direct human evidence.
— Finding (4) :
Disproof of Any Safe Dose or Dose-Rate :
Influential segments of the radiation community have been speculating (especially since the Chernobyl accident) about a “threshold” — namely the notion that low doses and dose-rates may be completely safe. Indeed, some segments are speculating in print that there may be a positive net benefit for human health from low-dose exposure — a speculation known as “hormesis.” The 1988 UNSCEAR Report does not challenge either of the two speculations.
By contrast, we do.
In Chapter 35, we examine studies which are invoked in the name of hormesis, and we find that they provide no scientific basis to support such speculation.
In Chapters 18 through 21, we prove beyond reasonable doubt that no safe dose or dose-rate exists with respect to radiogenic cancer. Our disproof of a threshold is based on human evidence. Both the 1988 UNSCEAR and 1990 BEIR reports fail to address our disproof, although an earlier version of the disproof circulated widely in the radiation community.
In 1987, the U.S. Department of Energy or DOE released its report on the estimated health effects from the Chernobyl accident. The report, which we discuss in detail in our Chapter 24, asserts at every occasion that fallout from the accident may cause no extra cancers at all beyond the immediate vicinity — which is the same as asserting that there may be a safe dose and dose-rate. The authors (one of whom is on the 1988 UNSCEAR Committee) call this the “zero risk model” (Doe87, p.J.8) and elsewhere, they state that, “There are no direct data that confirm that a few random ionizations in tissue cause fatal cancers” (Doe87, p.7.5).
This book provides those data. And, by reasonable scientific standards, these data rule out the threshold idea with regard to the radiation-induction of human cancer.
— Finding (5) :
The Practical
Implications for Human Health :
The practical implications for human health, of realistic versus mistaken risk-estimates in this field, can be illustrated by evaluation of the Chernobyl accident, but this accident is just “the tip of the iceberg.”
Proposals are pending to exclude very low-dose exposure of entire populations from consideration in risk-estimates, and also to handle a large share of radioactive waste as if it were not radioactive — in other words, to declare a threshold by using edict to over-rule evidence.
It is self-evident that if a mistaken notion about safe doses and dose-rates prevails in this field, human exposures to ionizing radiation will rise dramatically — from occupational, environmental, and medical doses. Quite aside from heritable genetic consequences, which are not discussed in this book, such a mistake would be far from trivial. Over time, it could mean cancer inflicted on a hundred million or more humans.
Indeed, low-dose ionizing radiation may turn out to be the most important single carcinogen to which huge numbers of humans are actually exposed. No one can possibly be sure yet, in the absence of comparable data on all the other human carcinogens and on the magnitude of exposure to them.
In short, Finding Number Five is that the practical implications for human health are extremely high in the so-called “radiation controversy.”
Our independent analysis of the human evidence arrives at seriously different conclusions from those put forth by the radiation community. Readers who take our step-by-step journey in this book, from the evidence to the conclusions, will be in a position to judge for themselves whether or not our conclusions are believable.
The five key findings are reviewed in greater detail in our Closing Statement (Chapter 25).
@Nick: Thank you for the thoughtful comments but there’s a couple of problems with them. First, we have one Inspector and they’re going for $600+ which your nice donation would cover 0.52% of, which is a start but there are no nuclear radiation monitors to be had with the run on them. We keep the detector inside for a number of reasons, not the least of which is creating ‘control’ or ‘baseline’ data to compare against any possible fallout from Japan. Since we have a growing data set, we’re not going to change the Inspector’s location because we then we would not have accurate ratio readings vis-a-vis the background we’re establishing in this location in this time period.
That’s not to say we won’t take the Inspector outside – we will. We are mindful, however, that many people are watching Radiation Station and rely on its immediate live-time data. Events will dictate the use of the Inspector but we are ever vigilant about keeping the instrument free from contamination which could skew its readings.
But back to your idea, Nick. If you took the Inspector outside as such, protected in a plastic bag, it very well might pick up more gamma in the manner you describe. HOWEVER, the plastic bag would prevent any reading of alpha and beta in any potential fallout because that kind of radiation is stopped by such material. During significant fallout, people outside could get it on themselves and in themselves to substantial detriment. If I were to measure outside during fallout with the plastic bag, I may get a higher cumulative reading from gamma radiation, which would be higher than inside, but not the alpha or beta exposure so the reading would significantly under-detect the actual radiation. That would result in me reporting exposure rates outside that are lower than the higher, and more harmful, actual radiation exposure.
Add to that this rub: the fallout would coat the bag and the person doing the detecting, necessitating decontamination before re-entering my office. Do you know what that entails? It is complicated and difficult as the main goals are to not bring the contamination back in with me, or have it on me, so I need to remove my protective clothing outside etc. etc. etc. I know how to do this, however, and we have robust radiation protection outfits and equipment but for your $3.13, going outside in the fallout to take false measurements doesn’t make much sense, does it?
@Colin – Actually, if any significant amounts of the huge releases of radiation reach our shores, there will be very very high gamma radiation. Gamma is a high emitter in the beta-emitter Iodine 131 with its 8-day half life that makes it so dangerous. That’s what the KI pills are for.
I am troubled by “there is not enough Gamma from this incident to do any harm inside your home.” How do you know that? No one knows how much goo has gotten out of Fukushima and/or how much more there is to come. This statement, like a few others in the comments, betray a light understanding of radiation, how to measure it and how to apply those measurements to the on-the-ground situation.
We take what we are doing here quite seriously. If you want to make serious suggestions that are scientifically sound, that’s great.
I would suggest that this kind of misplaced energy be put towards preparing for the worst instead of expecting the best.
And then think about the fact that San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in Southern California can withstand an earthquake of 7.0 magnitude. The Japanese earthquake was a 9.0, 100 times stronger.
Stay tuned. All is still normal background!
JK from Ashland Or, I am from the Medford area and would love to some how keep in touch for the levels you are getting!
Considering where you have placed the meter, in my opinion there is not enough data to be collected facing a wall. Take into consideration the environment is full of radioactive material from many devices.
Many times sat around 11 40 pm you had about 71 to 74cpm which is pretty high for santa monica.
Thanks for being the ONLY place to get info! And I agree, we’re so not outta the woods yet. Monday will tell- we’ll see what the readings are. But nothing has gotten any better.
Sorry but it looks like normal background at this point. If you look at Denver at this link http://www.radiationnetwork.com/ they get up as high as 80 CPM on some days and it is even before this thing in Japan. Not dissing your site but I wouldn’t scare people for no good reason. The Americium in your smoke detector is way hotter than your numbers and no one thinks about them. Have an old Coleman lantern mantel laying around? It makes detectors scream when close because of the Thorium in it. Old orange Fiestaware uses Uranium oxide and is also very hot. All I am saying is keep a cool head and educate yourself. Even concrete is radioactive as well as potassium inside of your body. No way to get away from it. 50 CPM is way lower than what I deal with at work and is considered negligible. Chemical poisons and GMO’s have a better chance of ruining your day. My opinion.
Does anyone know what is going on at the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Plant(not the Daiichi plant)? From my understanding, on the 13th of March, they vented radioactive air to release pressure. Similar to what they did with the Daiichi plant. I look forward to a link to an article or something. Thanks.
The guy who set up this website is smart! What a great idea. I am a bit concerned about the monitor being inside his house instead of outside. If you’re trying to warn people, don’t you think it would have a more accurate reading outside where the radioactivity may fall?
Would this be more accurate if the meter were outside???
Thanks – Scott
Thank you very very much for providing this interface for every one to watch real time radiation level around LA area. I called US environment health safety dept. but was taold that gov. doesn’t have any info online, I called CA environment health safety dept. as well, but no one pick up phone. I couldn’t find real time report from any Our gov. website.
Again, I really appreciate your efforts.
People want to know, “Is there an increased risk OUTSIDE from breathing Japan’s radioactive dust? Or should I wear a mask, or just stay inside?” This site monitors only from inside and will always read NORMAL. Most structures protect you from the Alpha and Beta rays, and there is not enough Gamma from this incident to do any harm inside your home.
The most dangerous situation for West Coasters is inhaling the charged Cs-137 dust from outside until this finishes falling out on the ground (in weeks from now?). While they are in the air, this charged dust deposits into the lungs in higher concentrations than any average readings from the air outside, and is directly absorbed into the soft-tissue of your lungs.
Example: Look at your floor in your house. Looks clean, just swept it! On “average” not many particles per square foot, right? Now vacuum that floor again and look in the bag. A very-high concentration of dust is now seen in that small little area! Your lungs are like that vacuum cleaner while outside breathing radioactive dust.
We are trapping that dust and concentrating these energized particles, to many times more than the mRem safety ratings you find. Which are set for being in contact with radiation on your much stronger skin. No one factors breathing them in. Radon lung research covers this topic well.
Where is an objective source of data that is reporting from outside, and in mRems or Sieverts of (Beta and Gamma) to be of more use to the public?
Hello,
I would be will into to donate $3.13(so that you know it was me) for the following:
1. Place detector in a Ziploc bag(to avoid contamination and potential damage from the elements)
2.place detector outside and run a 10 minute average to compare to the indoors average.
I will check periodically to see if an outside reading has been taken and donate if so.
My reasons for this are as follows:
While it is true that Gamma radiation will travel through your home easily, the type of radiation contamination we are getting is in dilute particles. These particles are emitting radiation in rays randomly in the full 360 degrees. Think of it as vectors eliminating from a tiny sphere, as you move away from the sphere the vectors get less dense exponentially. What that means is since the gamma emitters are many feet away from your detector you will get a false low reading compared to the actual level of fallout a person would receive outside where the particles are allowed to come in direct contact with the person, absorbing radiation from at least 180 degrees of the particle. Wrapping the detector in a plastic bag will protect it and also allow the particle to come within inches of the detector, showing a much more realistic reading as to what a person outside would receive, and thus our actual level of contamination.
What kinds of particles does this detect? Does it detect all isotopes?
The phamaceutical companies will make up for it tho if the rads get higher. Then there will be a run on Iodide AND Xanax! Just planning ahead… I think medical marijuana would be an appropriate palliative for radiation sickness. We better stock up on all necessities!
You guys are costing the pharmaceutical industry alot of Zanax sales.
Keep up the good work!
Does anyone know of any other sites I can check on? My husband won’t let me watch the news on t.v. anymore but I want to be aware if something happens. It makes me more nervous to be cut off from the news.
I notice that my boost mobile web pretends this site doesn’t exist. I think it only has certain sites it recognizes. It would be a lot easier to track this when I go out if I could do it on my phone.
Is there a source, or even a relevance (i.e. threat due to transport/exposure), for Central American data? Thanks for the info.
If you get high reading from the inside, then the people outside must be all dead.
Come on. I am not expert. But read it from inside? you got to be kidding me. I’d rather check out govt’s data.
Ashland, OR 3:55-4:05 PM 3/19/11 10 minute count taken on front porch 146/10 = 14.6 CPM measured on a Vernier Digital Radiation Monitor which is a rebranded Radalert 100 which is calibrated for Cesium 137. For those of you who prefer to see this converted to micro-sieverts, that would be 0.146 micro-sieverts/hr.
(FYI – taken from FAQ’s)
WHY ISN’T THE MONITOR OUTSIDE?
We keep the Inspector inside so we can light it easier for you to be able to see 24/7. There is no need to have it outside or face it into the wind.
The kind of radiation we’re looking for at first with fallout that may travel across the Pacific Ocean to Southern California is gamma radiation. Gamma travels great distances and goes through just about anything, including you and me. Lead will stop it.
In fallout, one the primary radionuclides of concern is iodine-131 which emits a lot of gamma radiation but is a beta emitter as well. If we left the Inspector outside and fallout begins to come down, the beta emitting I-131 could contaminate the instrument.
Even without contamination issues, measuring it inside or outside, if at the same elevation, location and not over concrete (which has some uranium in it which skews the readings higher), is the same.
omg Im scared im just going to hide in my room 🙁
It is perfectly appropriate to be concerned (though not panicked at this point). There are 6 reactors at the Daichi Plant. As of 3/18, 3 have damaged cores and have lost about half of their cooling water causing fuel rods to be exposed and get continually hotter – if cooling is not successful, meltdown with large radiation release is a real possibility. Spent fuel rods are stored above each reactor. All totalled, the pools above the reactors may contain as many as 6-10 additional reactor’s worth of nuclear material (my guestimate). At least 4 of the pools are not holding sufficient water to keep the old reactor rods cool and temperatures are presumed to be rising. At high enough temperaturea, meltdown and release of radioactivity will occur. At least two of the reactors and pools contain rods with plutonium (not present in Chernobyl), which would make for exceptionally nasty fall out. So far, the Japanese are using fire trucks, water cannons, and generator operated pumps, with out much success. I heard for the first time today that they are now considering concrete entombment – does anyone know if this will contain a meltdown, or just cover up after one occurs?
Yes, we are 5000 miles away, but if a meltdown does occur, we are looking at the potential for multiple reactors worth of radiation to be released into the atmosphere and find its way to the US, and elsewhere.
Not trying to create fear, just provide some reality.
We are publishing a running list – maybe clear out your cache? I am also deleting cache from our program on this end to see if that helps.
Are you going to publish the averages from yesterday & today? Up to Thursday afternoon, the CPMs were fairly stable. Last night the counter was fluctuating a lot, with higher numbers at the top end than before. Of course, it’s just chance whether the numbers are fairly low, high or stable when you check in on the counter. So, when you shut down at 11:40 pm to run the averaging, I eagerly awaited results, which so far have not been published. Thank you for providing the live stream. This is the only public real-time data available that I know of. Impressive. But, I have to ask, can we rely on the accuracy if you are unable to publish averages for 36 hours? Are there technical problems or other issues?
I could be wrong , but it seems to me to be reading (overall) hotter today than the past couple days.
Thank you for giving us a place to see what is really going on. Yes Japan is over 5000 mls away but we are talking radiation and plutonium particles, prevailing winds and a jet stream blowing directly here. This is a very serious situation so don’t down play it. Remember the 1st explosion was last fri the second sat and then the 3rd mon so there is a chance things could get serious. Also remember the biggest threat is those cores are still melting down and if they hit the water table it will be Ka-boom, water is hydrogen and oxegen. We are hardly out of the woods yet this catastrophe hasn’t even begun. To bad we all can’t take our family out of the country for a week like Obama. Study Chernobyl and it was 1 reactor and half the size. They weren’t to woried about it either! Good luck and God Bless
I’m french and my daughter is in placerville near Sacramento.
I’m also anxious for her. is there a divice to detect radioactivity on the eldorado zone ?
Thanks to all of you,
Jacques
To bad this wasn’t around when they were poping A Bombs in Nevada in the late 40s and 50s. Of course we have a bit more cancer out here and I blame the cancer cigerettes cause to the plutonium that would fall on the tobacco leaves and be smoked.
Thanks for reporting. Every city should be doing the same.
Where are your latest averages? Could you type up a mock layout of your digital display. The units (degrees,rads, etc.) are indistinguishable online.
Pls. keep posting the tabulated data i.e. Time and Background CPM tabluated, it’s important to create, view or see a chart over a period of days to observe trends or the timing of trends thanks!
Who cares what the CPM is if no one is tuned-in to this website to view it. What you need is to put that radiation detector in uSv mode and also show the mSv for a given range of time.
Thanks for clarifying that your station checks for gamma rays that are not inhibited, except by lead or thick concrete.
Some of the Japanease reactors use Mox, which means that plutinium and other sources of radioactivity are being sent into the atmosphere. Plutonium gives off alpha rays, that do not pass through simple barriers such as wooden walls.
Any contact with radioactivity has a long-term impact on the body. It is a question of dose. See :
http://www.euradcom.org/publications/chernobylinformation.htm
I know we are not yet in the same case as Chernobyl, but we have no idea what will happen next in Japan.
According to the French news, radioactivity was detected in California this morning. However, the amount was not “significative”. Sorry, I don’t have a link for that.
Do we have any information on protective measures if the radioactivity increases on the West Coast of the US?
Best wishes, Laura
The clock with the “sexy” girl is a nice touch. I need to find me one of those.
Thanks for setting this up. I hope you don’t regret doing it after receiving all of the annoying questions.
Well, it seems the numbers are still within normal range, as of this Saturday morning, Mar. 19, 2011. Had anyone seem spikes over 100 since this radiation monitor had been set up? Readings in the 40-50 range appear ‘normal’ background radiation, as far as I can tell.
Where is the latest ten minute average CPM?
Can these be done more often?
It’s hard to decipher the averages I need to make informed and educated decisions about my health and well-being.
Thank you!
I’m so fortunate to live in a house with about 25 coats of lead based paint and leaded windows
Thank you for monitoring and sharing with us. I find the female graphic very demeaning to women. Would you even CONSIDER putting up a picture of a man dressed like that on the monitor?
We will move with my family to Los Angeles (Glendale) end of this month.
Somebody can advise me if it will a good idea ?
I’m pregnet (5months) and I have one 2 years little boy, I’m wooried.I don’t know what I can do.
Cool We need this for any other radiation or we wiill die
You should join up with this site
http://www.radiationnetwork.com/
They do national “grassroots” tracking everyone logs on it is national.
Their message
http://www.radiationnetwork.com/Message.htm
Cool We need this for any other radiation
Governments are keeping ordinary people in the dark as to scientific data/facts and what is really happening to our planet earth. A good example of this is NASA saying the supermoon has no effect on disasters and only affects tides in the oceans. I would like to remind everyone that the forces between two large planetary masses is explained by Newton’s Law of Gravity and that the magma beneath our crust is also another form of liquid. I simply ask, why is not the network of geiger sensors along the west coast not hooked up to the internet and available to the public? They keep the information from us and manage us like a herd of cows. Information and knowledge has always meant power and through the course of time the balance of this power has shifted from the religious domains into the scientific domains. Read what the Vatican did to Galileo. The Truth will be coming out soon. (no need to post this) http://cid-ef6ba48532841ac8.photos.live.com/self.aspx/Slice%20of%20Pi/PICT0006.JPG [The U.S. Government military establishment is aware of ‘visitors’ but is not telling the public of such. They are trying to keep our crust stable as possible but there comes a point when there is nothing left to hold onto and energy is released in the form of earthquakes. This planet is dying] The first video is the orginal as filmed, I’m acting a bit goofy for the original video to have some fun and the second video is what your eyes missed when it is slowed down to 6 fps and images are extracted from the original. The continental plate of North America is now at a breaking point and the pressure has to be relieved or else greater devastation will result if not in a controlled release. I have been trying to warn Government’s especially the U.S. Military but they do not want the public to panic and ruin their party. This is not an ordinary solar cycle either, the heliosphere of this solar system is torn and the interstellar cloud is damaging the sun with subsequent effects on the planet. These videos are but one of many that I have filmed from August 2010 through November 2010.
Original as filmed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS44NalXTrY
Slowed down to 6 fps using Avidemux software and images extracted.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0OuXSWdp1I
Sincerely,
Ed Klinard
Engineering ’84
MBA ’96
ps: There is only one universe we exist in and hence there is only one Truth.
Hello,
Could u put your detector OUTSIDE please !
I’m not in your home, i’m outside !!!!
Thanks u.
Oh, sorry, now I can see all the updates.
3/18/11
11:50 pm 10-minute average: 41.9 Counts Per Minute NORMAL
8:30 pm 10-minute average: 41.4 Counts Per Minute NORMAL
5:05 pm 10-min average: 42.7 Counts Per Minute NORMAL
1:00 pm 10-min average: 44.8 Counts Per Minute NORMAL
9:10 am 10-minute average: 44.2 Counts Per Minute NORMAL
1:42 am 10-minute average: 45.1 Counts Per Minute NORMAL
Hi, why there is no update on the 10-minute average reading for more than 24 hours??
I think it’s the average # that really matters.
Thanks!
Wouldn’t this be more effective if the monitor were placed outside?
Wouldn’t this be more effective if the monitor was placed outside?
I think Obama like Maryland and Duke (national pasttime dont cha know). Curiously Obama is out of the jet stream right now doing a Latin and South American tour. And he brought the children with him.
…on the other side of a window or sliding glass door, with the camera inside. This would be more reassuring. Thanks for your service!!!
there is not enougth data to say some thing about the dangerous of this numbers. cpm is just a unit for “counts per minute” to know what it mean, there are not enougth data: what kind of counter is it, what nuklids are included, how its calibrated. to change the unit into a relevant unit like bequrel or sievert you need more data!
greets from germany
(facebook: aufgepasst esgehtallean )
BTW – the model detector I have appears to be a rebranded Radalert® 100 from International MedCom. In terms of contact with the “outside air” we are measuring beta and gamma ionizing radiation. The plastic bag protects from contaminants that could become trapped in the device and possibly cause it to yield results with cumulatively greater inaccuracy over time. The plastic will not affect these readings. Even a thin layer of plastic will affect alpha radiation, but that is not of primary concern at this point. Please note the plastic covers on the radiation sensors pictured in news photos of people being scanned in Japan.
SO, how can we be sure the outside air is getting to this??? it could be rigged. how bout you prove to the people watching this that its actually 100% legit. otherwise nobody is going to believe this.
thanks,
busted
Thanks for publising this. Not all of us are stupid. Some of us truly want to know. I find it very reassuring. After doing my HW and figuring out that anything of 200 is cause for concern, I see the readings are under half that and it makes me feel better.
We also ordered a geiger counter and we live in a city with a melted Sodium nuke at the top of our mountains, so when this is all over, we’ll have more uses for it when we going hiking in the park next to where the reactor is melted.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simi_Valley,_California
I say give the info to the people who want it. Those who have done their HW will understand.
Thanks!
I just received a Vernier Radiation Monitor from an educational supply company which looks to be identical to your Inspector model. A 40 minute average CPM = 869/40 = 21.725 CPM taken on the front porch of my home with the monitor protected in a plastic bag from 11:50PM – 12:30AM (3/18/11).
I am located in Ashland, OR, elevation 540m. While I am a novice at this I do understand the basics and can provide accurate CMP averages periodically. I am doing this primarily out of curiosity rather than alarm.
See specs below to compare;
Sensor: Halogen-quenched Geiger-Mueller tube with mica
end window (LND 712 or equivalent). Mica
window density 1.5-2.0 mg/cm2. Side wall is .012”
#446 stainless steel.
Display: 4-digit liquid crystal display with mode indicators
Operating Range: mR/hr: 0.001 to 110
CPM: 0 to 350,000
Total: 1 to 9,999,000 counts
μSv/hr: 0.01 to 1100
CPS: 1 to 3,500
Energy
Sensitivity:
1000 CPM/mR/hr referenced to Cs-137
Accuracy: ±10% typical, ±15% max. (mR/hr and μSv/hr
Thanks for this site.
I am in MN but have many friends with children in CA and WA.
To those who are downplaying the radiation risk, I ask you, how can you be so sure?
I don’t feel getting more informed is ever a bad idea, from a variety of sources.
The news initially trotted out one nuclear industry insider after another and called them “experts”. They seemed more concerned about protecting the American nuclear “renaissance” than giving an objective view of this tragedy. Hard to believe these guys when you realize some other experts recommended building 6 reactors closely together on a fault line in a tsunami zone. My father had a saying… “Just smart enough to be stupid”
Here’s some links I’ve found helpful in educating myself about this stuff
Great info on fallout from overseas…
http://www.ki4u.com/illwind.htm
A very disturbing video time-lapse on nuclear detonations (I find it odd that the news to only only mentions chernobyll when talking about fallout, we in U.S. have a great deal of experience with this, in the form of tests)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLCF7vPanrY
And evidence of the possible thyroid issues endangering the people of Japan….
http://formontana.net/meagher.html
Again, thanks for doing this and I will let others know about your site.
Lets remember something. We are just getting the first initial dose of radiation. And the radiation in Japan has gotten worse since then which has not reached us yet. Depending on the jet stream, we will be continually bombarded until they “fix” whatever they have to fix over there. Also note this satellite weather map at (11:39PM)
http://www.weather.com/maps/maptype/satelliteworld/pacificoceansatellite_large_animated.html
Bringing a storm from the area of Japan which will absorb some of that radiation.
I am not trying to scare anyone and it may turn out to be nothing. But keep your eyes and ears open.
Having a little bit of “extra” radiation at one shot is one thing, but to get a “little bit” of radiation over a continuous period is another.
(That was fun, to see the big hand come into camera view.)
Thank You for providing the view of this information!
First, thanks for doing this. It’ll calm a lot of frayed nerves.
What’s the second meter shown here?
Here is a link to a air monitoring station in Washington.
http://www.doh.wa.gov/Topics/japan/monitor-history.htm
CNN said that there has been some small amount of radiation detected on the West Coast this afternoon/evening. It looks like the detector has gone up a bit but I can’t take an average just by watching. But it looks like it may have climbed maybe 4 or 5 CPM. I hope they take an evening 10 minute count even though I can already tell that it will be within normal range. I’ll check back tomorrow…
Thank you for doing the job that our government is too secretive and untrustworthy to do: informing us, the public, in real time with actual, concrete data.
I agree with Joe. Unit #3 at Fukushima is worse than Chernobyl by itself, not to mention #1, #2, #4 and the spent fuel rods that are on fire. If the first landfall was detectable of this “plume”, and it is only the off gassing from Friday, then the stuff coming from the explosions (especially unit #3) will likely be significant if not dangerous. It looks like they are just getting fired up at Fukushima, they are pulling out workers, all attempts at cooling the units and spent rods have failed. Full melt down now is not just possibility, it looks inevitable.
We have no idea – it’s gone dark twice today, once in the am and then now. I just restarted the broadcast and everything came back. We are new users to UStream, I’m going to have to go to their support page and see if there’s any helpful info.
Just wondering why the Radiation Station goes “Off the air” here & there.
Just prior to viewing your monitor was watching webcam radiation monitor from Tokyo. There numbers were bouncing around 22.1 cpm
Thanks,
Dick
I think you can get a more accurate reading if you put the detector outside or if your windows are open (not sure if they already are).
I just read the FAQ on this website and it answered all my questions. I like FAQ that are well written like these. Thank you guys.
I agree w/ Alex – how reliable can the readings be if the monitor is inside – shielded from the outsIde ambient air – where the potential radioactive particles could be? Please clarify this apparent contradiction, -Cheers
Hello,
Congratulation for your citizen gesture. Hope we’ll have the same in France if needed. Thing I doubt according to our national and historical sense of “burying our heads in the sand”… Which won’t be that serious as long as we won’t find any Cesium in it.
All the best.
Hello,
Thanks so much for this website and the informations about radiations.
Somebody can advise me? We will move from NYC to Los Angeles (Glendale) end of this month. I’m worried, I’m pregnet (5 months) and I have a 2 years old little boy…
It will be a good Idea to move to Los Angeles (Glendale) for our family ?
Please let me know..I dont know what to do !
Hi, you have a good device there, I live up in Vancouver,WA. I wish I could know the levels here, but i think they are similar. I see that you doing the tests inside, can you do the readings outside of the house or it doesn’t matter? Thanks
Thank you for providing this information for the world…It provides truth in such an uncertain time,,with the internet as the worlds info center.. it is nice to see a citizen providing trust for people . i hope more people will follow your steps and take action,for the enviroment,the people and the earth,. thank you.
L.H.
Have just embedded your live stream here in Brazil (South America) for our science readers/visitors.
I can’t believe that there are people here making fun of us who just want to be informed. What is more important than your health? NOTHING! Every single past nuclear disaster has been extremely white-washed by the media. The ignorant will continue to believe everything they say. The more educated will always ask questions and take precautions.
To educator. You are incorrect in your assumptions about those that receive radioactive iodine treatment for thyroid conditions. These patients are first assessed for competency (i.e. will they follow a set of rules) following discharge from a hospital/clinic licensed to administer Iodine-131. In reality if you hospitalize such patients the surrounding patients, nurses, doctors, dietary staff, etc are far more at risk at being exposed than if this patient was to be released home. Furthermore, I can assure you that patients far prefer to be home than in a hospital room and would not intentionally expose any one individual. The radiation risk from such treatments is truly minimal and not a “danger” as you have stated. These treatments have been studied for over 6 decades, the amount of radiation the general public receives if far below the 500mRem guideline set forth by the NRC. Additionally, those that received this radioactive iodine treatment have never been subjected to a secondary cancer caused by the radiation received for the initial treatment, so the risk for the general public is essentially non-existent.
As for your geiger count measurements the CPM background is typically, as you have stated, about 40cpm. But even if it double, or tripled the absorbed dose is insignificant. You have to get into “effective dose equivalence” in rem or sieverts/grays for it to mean anything. So people please take all this with a BIG grain of salt, you are far far more likely to have health issues by living in a polluted city, if you smoke or even if you drive to work than you would from a few extra “ticks” on a geiger counter.
I appreciate the information on this site. I do not feel I am over reacting; however I do like to be informed. I think the unofficial monitoring may see if the official info we are receiving is even in the same ballpark. Thank you in particular for information near Anchorage, Alaska where my daughter lives.
I’d like to suggest that the most current comments/readings go to the TOP of the page rather than the bottom. 🙂
We are trying. to update site but are having trouble getting in due to hits. Now we are only able to access and approve comments via Droid which is slower but oddly has better connectivity though still intermittent. All still normal as of now. Will work to improvements web speed as best we can.
Nice real time clock thingie, Michael. Saw a KTLA and an NBC truck parked at Palisades Park bluffs about an hour ago. Will probably show shots later on the news of people out walking and jogging with nary a face mask to be seen anywhere (and I was prepared to wear one today, believe me).
I was coming home from my Japanese auto shop getting my 90,000 car serviced because….parts will be scarce and expensive. If any of you have a Prius and have any battery issues….the batteries are made in Sendai. Good luck.
Why no more average level updates?
Having the RadAlert OUTSIDE is not going to make any difference what is being read is gamma radiation, same as a x-ray, alpha & beta is blocked.
You guys are awesome. Everytime one of my friends or family calls all PANICED… I just tell them to view this & get back to work / life.
A. what’s the new device do????
B. what about the plutonium rods that were stored on the roof when the reactor blew?
these home monortering machines do not measure plutonium particles. this dwarfing Chernobyl!
Why cannot I see the video???IS anyone seeing it??
Rich
Everyone needs to realize that this only detects a small band of the radiation, we haven’t been hit by the large amounts of radioactivity yet (should hit Monday) and that these only monitor exterior radiation.
The danger comes from internalizing any of the radioactive isotopes. The WHO model is completely corrupt and created by the nuclear industry after Chernobyl to cover up the massive amounts of cancer increase and birth defects.
Now is not the time to worry, the worst of the radiation hasn’t even come yet.
How does this thing work?
What do the number mean?
Are they good or bad numbers?
i live in Hawaii… if we start morphing from the radiation. I’ll let you know. lol.
Is there some particular reason everyone is freaking out about this. Japan is 6,000 miles away. The trace amounts of radiation that will reach us insignificant. Heck, we used to test atomic bombs in Nevada, and H Bombs in the south pacific. That was a heck of a lot more radiation blown into the atmosphere than this. Why is everyone bugging out on this now? Relax, take a deep breath, and stop obsessing.
It is funny to read how many people are scared. You are quite a distance away and any fallout will be too small to harm you.
Then again be scared… panic and scream and cry and lose tons of sleep.
I need something to keep me entertained.
I see you added a clock/testosterone meter. Nice.
Hello,
Congratulation for your citizen gesture. Hope we’ll have the same in France if needed. Which I doubt according to our national and historical sense of “burying our heads in the sand”.
All the best.
The EPA’s RadNet map gives counts per min.(CPM) for 10 different readings:
Beta Gross Count Rate (CPM)
Gamma Energy Range 2
(3,4,5,6,7,8,9) to
Gamma Energy Range 10
Anyone know which number I should be looking for? All of the above?
Can anyone explain EPA RADNET map showing Area 9 gamma rays at over 900 in Los Angeles? If you look at all areas back from west coast to east the range decreases to around 100 on east coast.
Woah…How did you get Jillian Barberie to pose on your “clock”? Schweeeeet!
Hello,
I think that we should make a network.
I am living in west indies islan and about to buy a geiger counter.
It is hard to find one in France.
In april, I should get a good one, with SD card, capables to do graphics on a period.
I keep you in touch.
JP
SO WHAT’S THE NEW DEVICE TO THE LEFT?
John: Our government is controlled by multinational corporations and Wall Street. Obama is completely under their control. They usually act in opposition to our interests. Little of the media is accurate or truthful.
Thank you for this station. Science and the truth are very important.
I’ve seen it spike as high as 75. Anyone else?
it’s been over 50 for a while. let’s see a 10 min average.
Nice radiation monitor. It could use a clock with the date or a calendar sitting next to it to ensure we are seeing a live or recent image.
THERE SHOULD BE A COPY OF TODAY’S NEWSPAPER NEXT TO THE DEVICE. THAT WAY WE KNOW IT IS IN FACT TODAY’S READINGS BEING POSTED. OTHERWISE THIS VIDEO COULD BE FROM DAYS BEFORE AND WE WOULDN’T KNOW. PLEASE PLACE A COPY OF TODAY’S NEWSPAPER NEXT THE THE DEVICE. THANK YOU.
Thank you for doing this as we’ve been searching for this type of data for almost a week now. Your site, so far, is the only source we can find regarding west coast radiation levels.
Anyone who has reliable sources for radiation and jet stream data along the west coast please share it on our Facebook.
sharing information we gather constantly from sources regarding Japan – and now – radiation to the west coast.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Japan-Crisis-Page/195920323775193
We want individuals who are experienced using their equipment for accurate and real time radiation and jet stream data from Alaska to Los Angeles…
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Japan-Crisis-Page/195920323775193
Please have them sign on to the”Japan Crisis” Facebook page or simply email at in2wishn@Yahoo.com
I’m sure many of you feel that we cannot rely on Government and main stream news sources to inform us.
Thanks again for this site and I thank all of you as we, the people, need to stick together on this and have all individuals along the coast who are tracking this share their data.
All the Best
Rona
other sources to share with you:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nhk-world-tv
http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/japan_nuclear_crisis/
http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698
From my experience during Three Mile Island in Middletown, PA The government didn’t tell us until it was too late for many of my friends and family who continue to struggle with medical issues to this day.
I’m glad we can rely on individuals like yourself for data. The Government WILL NOT inform us. It’s obvious Obama is more concerned with Libya and news gatekeepers are tight.
We need more people like you sharing information. Are there others along the west coast and can we get in touch with them and have the share as well????
We all need to know how reliable this device reading is.
We set up a Facebook page sharing information we gather constantly from sources regarding Japan – and now – most important to the west coast.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Japan-Crisis-Page/195920323775193
Are there any others along the coast who can share data from what they’re monitoring? I’d like real time radiation and jet stream data from Alaska to Los Angeles.
Please have them email me or sign up via the “Japan Crisis” Facebook page as I’m confident the Government and main stream news sources WILL NOT inform us.
Does this measure plutonium, cesium, etc.? Are there some types of radiation that it will not measure?
I was just sent this site yesterday. I find this such a valuable resource. You write that you post every 2 hours but I’m curious why you only posted twice on 3/17?
Thanks for letting us post our questions and concerns.
Leslee
I have read above comments, I was working in part of a study in the 90s, the effects of Chernobyl in the region. Yes the people, food, water that are located 500 to 3000 miles haven’t effected right away, but over the next 5 to 20 years there were serious implications.
so who ever saying ‘nothing’ will happen, don’t know what they are saying. unfortunately there will be effects and we wont know after we see statistical data taken over the years, the number of cancer patients can also be increased because of this exposure, just like what happened in the neighboring countries to Chernobyl after 5 to 20 years.
Thanks for putting this up.I would like all the scientists in sweden or switzerland or wherever they are and government officials(including the president)to stay in Norcal for a week,then tell me there is nothing to worry about.Or we can all sit around the tv and believe what the government and media tells us, whatever its not like the government would ever lie to us.
shouldn’t this thing be located outside instead of indoors?
will you take it out side
I’ve been trying to follow this website for 3 days now and it seems everytime I view this site it is either off line or a message is showing up instead of the monitor readings. What’s going on?
Thank you so much for doing this for us!! but what happened? Will the live feed start again?
This website was put up by some guy with a cheap hand-held gizmo placed in a totally uncontrolled environment who is looking for some free PR and he’s doing this by spreading fear.
The radiation from Japan need to travel 5,000 miles to reach California. The particles will be so diluted that levels will be barely noticeable. The media loves to report on fear because it keeps people glued to their stations!!!
I see a lot of worry based on misinformation in the comments here, so a little background info:
The plume, if and when it arrives, is not “radiation” itself, but radioactive particles that have traveled here on the wind. It’s not the air and wind that are the problem but the particles they carry. You get contaminated by having those particles (some as fine as ash or dust or even smaller) settle on you, near you or get ingested through breathing them or eating food on which they’ve settled.
Because we on the West Coast are so far away, most of the radioactive particles that have been ejected into the air in Japan and picked up by wind currents will have fallen into the ocean long before they get to the West Coast. They also get washed out of the sky by precipitation (rain or snow) along the way, if there is any.
Three things are protective against radiation: distance, time and shielding.
Our distance from the event in Japan means not only will the amount of radioactive fallout (particles) be limited but it must take several days to get here, during which it loses much of its radioactivity. The radioactive half-life of many of the elements comprising the particles is measured in hours and days.
Distance can also refer to the distance between you and the radioactive particles. It’s most dangerous to breath or eat them, somewhat less to have them settle on your skin, even less to have them settle on your roof and be washed away by the first rain into your drains and away.
‘Time’ can be thought of in two ways – one, the length of time that has passed since the radiation event (explosion usually), during which the radioactive particles lose their radioactivity and become less dangerous, and two, the length of one’s exposure to them. The longer since the event the less dangerous the particles are, and the shorter the exposure the less dangerous.
Shielding means barriers between you and the radioactive particles sufficient to block most of the radiation coming from them. While it is true that gamma rays can go through almost anything, very few can get through enough of something. To the person who worried that gamma rays could get through a mountain, they won’t. But radioactive particles may drift over the mountain in the wind.
Generally speaking, even for people within the evacuation zone in Japan, three feet of packed dirt or the equivalent in concrete or other dense materials will block 99.9% of the radioactivity and be more than adequately protective. If you work above the third or fourth floor of a concrete office building, but at least three or four feet below the top floor, and stayed in the interior of the building, you’d be quite well protected against fallout from a much closer event than this one, because the lower floors would protect you against particles that have fallen on the ground, the upper floors protect you against the particles that have fallen on the roof, and the exterior and interior walls protect against the sideways radiation from ground particles, particles in the air and on nearby buildings.
Likewise if you stayed in a below-grade basement of a three or four story concrete building (with concrete floors and roof), you’d be pretty well shielded by the dirt to the sides and the concrete above you. And this is to a much closer event than Japan.
If radiation levels do rise to a concerning level, the best protective measures are those that keep the radioactive particles away from you: stay indoors with closed doors and windows, wear a face mask and something like a hooded rain parka when outdoors so that particles can’t get in your mouth or be breathed in and will be sloughed off of your clothing (leave the parka and shoes outside when you return home to avoid bringing radioactive particles inside), shower when you return home, wet mop and dust rather than dry dust or sweep your floors and avoid using fans that might stir up particles and cause you to breath them. For the amount of radioactive fallout we’d be likely to get from Japan, these measures would probably be protective enough.
Thank you for providing this.
I took a look at it yesterday and noted that it hung around 40 (as you’ve recorded since then) with occasional jumps up to 60 or down into the 20’s (which I’m guessing have to do with things like small solar flares & other normal background).
Anyway this morning my 76 year old mother called all worried about ‘radiation’ and, after telling her normal background was 40 plus-or-minus a few, I was able to inform her that currently it was at the ‘terrifying’ level of 32.
She was quite relieved.
Thank you for helping me un-scare an old lady.
Thanks for making this available to all. I want to correct a falsehood promoted by “Johnny 5 is glowing” above that only 50 deaths can be linked to Chernobyl.
“Although large uncertainties remain on the full consequences of Chernobyl, results of recent studies (included in the report) featured in the report estimate that over 250,000 cancers and nearly 100,000 fatal cancers will be caused by the accident. The report challenges the IAEA Chernobyl Forum report’s prediction of 4,000 additional deaths attributable to the accident as a ‘gross simplification of the breadth of human suffering.'”
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/press/releases/greenpeace-new-study-reveals-d/
Hello. We really honestly and truly appreciate this information and service you are providing as I am highly distrustful of what I may hear on TV, and the track record of every nuclear incident being lied/spun to keep people calm. With that said, I have to say that I’m sitting in my basement food cave, listening to glenn beck on a hand crank radio, watching this on my cell phone, and surrounded by 12 buckets with gamma seal lids filled with flour, rice, beans, sugar, cooking oil, and silver bullion. We are not worry as our house is fully sealed with 4 mil plastic liner over all windows and door and vents and registers. Its 32 degrees outside but we have all ventilation systems off. The particle masks on the kids are a little loose but I have remedied that by using duct tape which I hear washes out of hair easily if you use polyethylbutylisomethanne and common lye. We are not worried about groundwater contamination as we have filled up an entire 10×20 room with 6 gallon water containers and 24 packs of Nestle with Flouride Water. THANK GOD the pallet of MRE’s arrived last week, just in time, although the high sodium levels have made my ankles swell up to the size of Hillary Clintons cankles and well, it may be sexy on her, but not a 250 pound dewd. The air is getting a little thin in here, but we are about to open up these oxygen cannisters to refresh and I’m sure there will be no issue with the portable space hea
*static*
i dont know where to see the readings?? what are they friday am? what is normal ..say last friday? ..thanks for getting back .. i have kids ..thinking of flying to santa fe for the weekend …
Shouldn’t this device be set up outdoors to measure outdoor radiation levels?
Hey guys, just wanted to pipe in again. The number you need to look out for is 15,000 CPM and greater. At this rate, if sustained for one month, your chance of getting cancer has slightly increased. If you have Microsoft Excel ’07+ then click my username “LucidObscurity” above to download a spreadsheet I put together where you can enter the CPM and see it converted to various measurements. There is also information about bodily affects at various levels.
Could you put a clock next to the monitor so show the live time also?
63 at 6:42am
Hi,
YES PLEASE PUT A CLOCK NEXT TO IT – That would be terrific and would verify it!
THANKS IN ADVANCE FROM ITALY – CONCERNED ABOUT MY SISTER TRAVELING THE US WEST COAST.
Patrick
what’s happening why did the geiger counter stopped ?
why did he stopped the geiger counter ? what’s happening ?
Brent – So far in the US any activity that you can think of is responsible for more deaths than all US Nuclear Power Facilities combined. I’m not talking about nuclear bombs going off above ground. That was and unfortunate part of the learning curve.
This is such a strange comparison because there are no deaths from US Nuclear Facilities. Does that mean it couldn’t happen no but cars, electricity, medicine, pools, rivers, lakes have caused deaths and we still use all of them. I bet tomorrow just about everyone of those things I mentioned will kill somebody while we sit and wait to see nothing happen on the geiger counter.
our chosen leader is down south in Rio, out of the wind stream. so thank god
When it gets over 100 it’s dangerous.
Im leaving LA!
Brent – I’m sorry for your loss. I had a history teacher that was convinced the US government killed John Wayne. I guess one of the movies he was in was shot down wind from where they were testing nuclear bombs above ground. A majority of the movie crew died from cancer.
That being said, there’s no comparison what so ever between exploding a nuclear war head above ground and what’s going on in Japan. None. Yes being down wind from a nuclear weapon going off would be bad. That’s not the situation. Nor do I own any stock in anything.
I’m glad people are doing independent monitoring but when today comes and goes with out incident will you then admit perhaps some people blew this way out of proportion. We have nothing to fear but fear itself.
I’ve had two CT scans recently, plus a chest x-ray and a mammogram. I plan to travel this summer on a long trip by plane. I certainly don’t want to add to the radiation that I’ve already had this year for health reasons, plus the radiation that I will voluntarily have for pleasure!
Learn the truth about the COMING fallout. Remember, the huge explosion at the Fukushima nuclear power plant occurred last Tuesday. The radiation we are currently getting here on the west coast of the U.S. is from the initial explosion, which was MUCH smaller than the huge explosion last Tuesday. Also, keep in mind that GAMMA radiation measuring equipment like geiger counters cannot detect particles such as plutonium, which is a pure ALPHA emitter. There are many different radioactive particles that are in that smoke and it WILL travel around the globe at varying levels. Anyone who says that Japan is 5,000 miles away and that the radiation coming from there poses no risk to the United States knows not of what they speak.
To Johnny: Just so you know, there were waaay more people dead because of Chernobyl. Trust me, I lived really close and I know that for a fact. Also, there were thousands of people involved in containing (well, mostly sealing up) that disaster. Many of them had long-lasting health effects. Whole generation of kids was affected. It’s not a small matter.
With Japanese situation – we shall see how it turns out. So far, it does not inspire optimism. But in any case, if looking at numbers helps people get some sleep, then, surely, it’s not that bad of an idea? People will panic, it’s a given. Especially when government declared that there is no danger and at the same time starts evacuation of diplomat’s families.
Just saying…
Hey thanks for putting this up! Can you post the same text here on the ustream page? or at least a link if your trying to drive to the site. the meter with no explanation leaves people wondering what there looking at while in a tense frame of mind. Add trolls and its spreading fear. just my 2. Thanks again for the resource!
I’m glad that there is a radiation monitoring station uncontrolled by the CIA. We can not expect any government to take care of us…we’re on our own! No reason to get paranoid though. Things are as they are, and we choose our response. By the way, where is Obama? Does he have anything to say??? Is he really in charge of anything? Is he really the best and brightest that the US has to offer? I don’t think so. I think that we’ll have to rely on unofficial monitoring stations for the truth as to what’s going on. A little truth is always better than any amount of lies.
http://www.catastrophemap.com/downwinders.html – forgot the dotcom
johnny 5 – some of us are not overblowing this nor panicking, but you really need to quit worrying about all those nuclear energy stocks you bought, and find the facts, . .Why has no one in japan died of radiation?, . .well it takes time of course, .. .the less rad exposure, . . .the more time it takes, . .believe it or not, my father died of radiation poisening here in the US, it was a rare form of Lukemia in the end that got him, . this is a result of radiation poisening he recieved in gem county idaho as a result of nuclear weapon testing in nevada – here is a link that has a map of the nuclear spread from that testing – http://www.catastrophemap/downwinders.html hopefully I spelled that link right as my spelling suks and this sight wont let me spellcheck, of course you can always google “downwinders nuclear reca” to see many studies have been done by our govt. and they even paid off victims in utah with a program called reca, . . Johnny 5 – you need to understand that radiation does not necesarily need to immediatly kill – to kill, …the people here are not panicking, . they are a part of a group of people on the web who are trying to keep an eye on readings here across the US, . .this is a good thing if taken in the right light as it will help gather much needed information, and may even help put some peoples minds at ease, . ..but telling everybody “radiation is never going to happen here in the US” and “this isnt chrnoble” (Which it isnt its different but the risk IS there) , and trying to downplay a real possibility is probably doing your fellow americans, no good at all
be afraid. be very afraid. dig a hole and crawl in, then pull the dirt on top of you. believe in things you don’t understand and it will make you crazy.
Lot of worried people, and we want to try and help each other be safe I am sure, so hopefully at least everybody gets the take home” Be Prepared, Have Your Disaster Kit Ready!”.Potassium Iodide only protects your thyroid, not your other organs(for that you need Prussian Blue and NOT the Artist’s stuff, you need a prescription. The gov does have a stockpile, more…) There are certain ways certain folks such as pregnant people etc. should consume these things, so please take the time now to learn all about it, if you like, I think it will make you feel safer, and you can just print it out and stick it in your kit. Many other links to regulatory agencies. be well everyone, and thanks for doing this!:)
I really hope people take away from this just how over blown this entire episode has been. My fear is that people will just take away that we got lucky. We are in no danger what so ever. We never were. Japan is over 5000 miles away. People that live within about 50 miles might get some small levels of exposure. That’s it. Might I remind everyone no one died because of Three Mile Island and only 50 people can be linked to Chernobyl. 50 people who actively worked on containing that disaster.
Having read and listened to people that actually work in the field of nuclear reactors they are all stunned by the gross fear mongering by everyone. All the experts on TV couldn’t be more wrong. If anyone compares this to Chernobyl quit listening immediately. That’s an instant clue that they have no idea what they’re talking about.
The truth of the matter is this disaster has proven to be quite the success story. These reactors are functioning better than they were designed to function. They were hit by something that was on a magnitude of 1000 times more powerful than what they were designed to with stand. That’s and engineering marvel unto it self.
Yes, Thank you very much! Been watching a couple days now. Relieved to see it stay at baseline.
Laura,
Gamma radiation doesn’t really worry about walls, windows or doors.
Why isn’t the monitor outside?
why the comments stop at 2pm after it show on the monitor 398??
Mary,
Using the weblink you provided, I figure 40 CPM is about equivalent to 2.9mSv per year.
To put this into perspective, my employer assumes I will get 2mSv per year from background radiation. So being nearly 50% out (in their favour, of course) isn’t too bad…
If anyone can check my figures, please do.
To reference this to the display, a reading of 110 CPM (constant) will give you the same as a full time (international) airline pilot. (I think!).
Education:
It’s not about getting worked up, it’s about being smart with your exposure.
I spend about 700 hours a year in the air – as far as I can tell that is equivalent to around 200-300 chest x-rays PER YEAR. Then my doc wants me to jump into a Cat scanner, with no regard about how much extra that will give me.
Most of my exposure is based around an assumed background limit. If it’s wrong, I want to know about it.
I am supposed to be a “radiation worker” (otherwise known as an airline pilot). Our limit is 6mSv/year in addition to the normal background radiation of (it is assumed to be) 2mSv/year.
If I understand correctly, the radalert you are using can also be set to read Sieverts. Can you tell me what is the current setting of you display, so that I can do the conversion into SI units myself?
Keep up the good work.
Or maybe it was saying 9pm, I am sorry if I misread it. Just was curious.
Thanks again for doing this. It is very very thoughtful.
I just came to this site and it is 9:55pm but the “live stream” i am seeing says “Back in 10 min – 2pm”. Is this a recording? Just seems strange.
You people are actually going to sit around and watch this thing?
That reactor is 5,000 miles away.
Get a life!
God bless you!!
Thanks – very helpful for So. Calif people. I think though that the detector should be outside. Also, if you place a note next to the detector to show the what the danger readings would be – 120 – 130 CPM, that would be helpful.
Run for your lives you’re all going to die!!!!!
I only jest. Here’s what’s going to happen NOTHING!
You’ll get more radiation going through the TSA screening devices than you’ll get from the catastrophic disaster over in Japan.
Let everyone remember what they’ve learned from this site in the future about how much of a non story this actually was the entire time.
Be careful if you’re taking iodine pills too, I read that 1 in 7 people are allergic to them.
Can someone please donate to Michael a remote camera w/an extension cord long enough so this device can be placed in a dry outside area for “that immediate reading.”
Impatient, father of two, and want to know right then and there.
Can someone please donate a remote camera w/an extension cord long enough so this device can be placed in a dry outside area for “that immediate reading.”
Impatient, father of two, and want to know right then and there.
Please find a way to put the device outside! We can build Nuclear Plants that poison the masses…. there’s got to be a way to set that up outside. Pretty please w/sugar on it.
Thank you again for doing this.
(no need to post this comment) With the monitor being indoors I don’t know if you will less accurate air quality readings than if it was reading direct outside air in real time? Just a thought.
I use Google Earth with the cloud and radar feature turned on to see the large scale wind currents from Japan towards the west coast.
Hi
Is the reading also for people who are living in Orange County?
after i checked this, i feel like i have to move
Great idea. Does anyone know if there’s anything similar to this in the San Francisco area? I’m not about to trust the government’s numbers or advice.
For everybody with tons of technical questions, like “what kind of radiation does this device measure” etc etc, tech specs are easily found: http://www.medcom.com/inspect.htm
Wondering why you haven’t set the Inspector to display µSv/hr instead of CPM – people seem to be confused by the unit, since everybody in the mainstream media is talking about microsieverts… I think it would make it easier for people to get that they shouldn’t be freaking out all over the place…
In the excel spreadsheet just change the cpm value at the top and the rest will calculate.
I make an excel spreadsheet you can use to determine what the cpm value means to you as far as exposure and risk.
Y’all need to have your heads examined. The media is scaring the hell out of you. Chill out.
I have found a website that offers a free pamphlet you can download that has tons of information about radiation and more importantly, what we can do if we get exposed. It is about complex technology yet he explains everything so that even I can understand it. (well, most of it) It is at http://www.radiationdetox.com. I think it will answer many of the questions the previous posters have asked and it’s FREE.
@Carl – My question was the same as yours – how to convert CPM (counts per minute) to doseage. I researched this for about an hour on the Internet, finding all the different units of measuring radiation pretty confusing – but here is a link that specifically addresses our question:
http://www.blackcatsystems.com/GM/converting_CPM_mRhr.html
Why do you have the detector inside? Won’t you have a much more accurate reading of the radiation level if it is outside and facing the wind? Can you put it outside, but next to a window so that you can film it?
Many thanks, Laura
First of all, thanks for setting this up. I am highly skeptical of the danger, and even more skeptical of giving an uneducated public access to numbers they do not understand.
On a day-to-day basis, you are in far more danger from the random person who has received a treatment dose of radioactive iodine who has chosen not to isolate themselves at home to protect others from the gamma radiation. The NRC says it’s perfectly safe for the public to just send patients who have had this kind of treatment home, rather than hospitalize them to protect the public. That’s the real radiation risk. This person could be standing next to you and your kids at Trader Joe’s, and you would have no idea.
But go ahead and get worked up by measurements of background radiation that are present everyday, or thinking being indoors is going to protect you. Or the mountains. Gamma radiation goes through everything but many inches of concrete and steel.
so 44 on the screen in reality is 4.4 and 389 was 38.9? Am i following this right?
For background (no pun intended), my old Johnson survery meter shows 50 counts/minute as 0.02 mRem/hr.
What type of radiation does this monitor? Is it just alpha & beta? If so what about gamma is there any way to monitor that? Thank you for having this up.
im scared what can we do about this
Thank you for putting it up…anyway you can put a clock next to it just so we all can make sure its live?
It’s too early to start downing pills like potassium iodide but I’m finding that downing Xanax right now is appropriate for me.
so if the numbers go up and stay up what should one do?
Hello,
thanks very much for this it’s extremely interesting.
Out of interest, how much CPM do we get when we’re in a plane on a long-haul flight at 38000 feet.
And what are the consequences for the body, to get this amount of CPM on a 12 hours flight such as London Los Angeles.
Thanks very much !
Thank you for doing this, have had it up on a separate tab all day and it is just nice to be able to check on the levels throughout the day.
Why aren’t they updating the averages?
@Dylan – I am looking at the counter that you posted now, (http://www.ustream.tv/channel/geiger-counter-tokyo) and it looks like it reads (gets blurry on the left) . . .
1,000,013.77 cmp I hope the “1,” is actually another “0” that I am not reading correctly. Under that it reads 0078h00m41s. I wonder where this is set up? What is WONDERFUL about Michael Collins, is he has made everything as transparent as possible, and answered all of our questions from indoor/outdoor to event posting averages for all to see. That stream does not have any comments. In addition, I can not read to language =(. I will see if I can use Google to translate it.
Thank you Mr. Collins. There are a lot of scared people out there right now ready to start downing pills that will do their bodies more harm than good if they don’t need them (i.e. Potassium iodide. etc.)
MUCH thanks to you. All Americans and the world should learn from this example. It is clear the sociopaths in control are not to be trusted with necessary information; in addition, they use panic and fear as a control device. We have to stick together. Please support Japan – we are together in this, obviously.
Thank you for doing this. I have a window on my monitor array open to your site at all times. I was wondering if you know where we can purchase our own geiger counter in this time when the sellers of those devices are being swamped with purchase orders. I could not locate anyone in Los Angeles who has them for sale.
Thank you so much for setting this up.
Does elevation play into this? I am at 5500 feet above sea level in California. Could it be more or less intense?
Thank you!
thanks for the 389 update, i though that 40-50cpm was right, but when i saw 389, almost escaped from la. So essentially reading of 40 is .40?
Since the thing spikes up (I saw it go to 77), perhaps say in the intro how common it is to see the number fluctuate and not just the average.
Hello, I have a very simple idea on how to get water into the reactors since the tops are open access with very little effort, and see no reason why it wouldn’t work and why no one else has thought of it. But me as a nobody have no clue how to pass this idea on. You being in the media may have the connections to get this to the right people. I know you are busy, but this could halt things getting worse, and making it better so they could proceed to get in there once things calm down a bit to safer levels and maybe save countless lives and further damage.
Just drop a weighted hose at the end with a camera mounted for guidence from copters from high up for their safety, and easily lay it down to a safe distance, which would be there in the length of it being high, that could be hooked up directly to a pump and turn it on.
I see this to be very easy compared to what they have tried and very effective, and would instantly fill them, which would halt further rad release, and drop rad levels enough so they could get in there closer and safer to actually go on to a fix of the pipes and pumps. It was always my job in life while working to think stuff up and I have a good grasp on technology and mechanics and such and I was known as Mr. Fix it. This would work!
Please think of this and please pass this on to whom could consider this and lets save the country and the countless souls living there.
Thank You and Best of Luck. Everyone has my Prayers.
According to your readings, what level of radiation is considered harmful? Thanks
Question, I’ve been reading that geiger counters don’t detect plutonium that well. Is this true?
What are the definitions of acceptable, worrisome and harmful numbers?
I thought you would like to check out another site that monitors radiation levels across the country.Their web site is,radiationnetwork.com
will ,san diego
Thanks so much for doing this. We here in Canada really appreciate it. I was just wondering when the rest of the readings from 03/17/2011 will be posted?
THEY ARE SHOWING A DAMN PRO-BP (THE SHRIMPIN’S FINE!) COMMERCIAL BEFORE YOUR TOP VIDEO..
AAAARRRRGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you for setting this up to prepare the public! It’s also good to know there are other preppers in SoCal that are squared away! Hopefully you can maintain OpSec in light of this publicity, but the service to the public is truly welcome and appreciated! The people should ask why no-one in city, county, state, or federal government bothered to dispel rumors with plain, raw, transparent, data gathering and publishing as you are doing it.
For all of us iPhone users who can’t view the live feed. Would all of you guys mind writing down the count every hour so we can read it in the thread? Especially througout today and tomorrow. We’d all appreciate it, thanks!
If the fallout does manage to reach SoCal and even if it is small amounts and we have small children ages 7,4,and 1 yrs old.,would you recommend going somewhere east? If so,
How far east in California do you think we should go?
Would the Sierra Mountains (Mammoth) be safe?
Thank you!
At what levels of sustained radiation do we proceed in the following manner and for how long (i.e. safe levels?):
Fly to the east and where do yu suggest back east?
Drive to the east?
Do not go outside and shelter in our residence and turn off the AC?
Take Potassium Iodine/ammount based on levels?
Thank you
I cannot see full reading as screen of instrument is shadowed from
an unknown source…
Thanks
Gus
Shouldn’t it be near an open window or outside? A sealed house isn’t going to help. What about adding a clock next to the geiger counter or placing a news paper in view? That way we know its not a video loop set up by the government.
Hi! Your 10 minute averages only go through yesterday at this point – have you stopped recording them? Also, at one point today the reading was at 86. It soon went back down to the 40’s, but like many other people, I’m wondering when to really be alarmed. I can’t find clear answers online so far. Any insight?
Thanks for doing this!
Sent this feed to my college kids in SoCal. Thanks so very much for this service. It really helps keep the public informed to enable to plan and protect ourselves.
Thank you for keeping us updated with the readings. Do you have any readings before the plant explosion in Japan? I know we’re still within the “safe zone”, but I’m interested to know if the readings were elevated after the plant explosion.
Thank you for showing us real time radiation levels. There is little verifiable information out there and you are doing everyone a great service. You deserve an award for these pages. Can you please tell us at what point would one want to take iodine and how long will iodine protection last?
Can you graph the results on excel and post a running line graph? Also, could there be a counter outside the building as well?
You are performing a great public service. Thank you, bless you from a mom who is concerned for her child!
This is fascinating! Thank you.
No results for today?
THanks for doing this. Didn’t even know a regular person could buy a geiger counter! Not my industry/field.
This is interesting and at the same time, horrifying.
What is the best outcome in this plume situation? That a lot of wind disperses this over the Pacific Ocean and contaminates the water/plants/animals?
Let us know what we should be hoping will happen.
🙂
Congratulation on the initiative.
More people who have proper equipment to read the radiation level around the world should do the same.
This way we’ll have a better picture what is going on.
Earlier this morning the reading was 380. Then the monitor disappeared for a while. Now reading normal. What is the story with that please?
What took place about 20 minutes ago, the readings went into the high 300s for about 5 minutes, then the site goes offline
All this technology we sit around watching some guy’s counter on a Ustream feed trying to figure out how bad it really is. Nice. at least we have THIS!
Is there any chance it hitting the Oregon Coast?
what happen to the spike of 389, that is very high
Thanks for the info. I live in Europe but worry for my son and family in California and all his friens and for everybody else. It is good to know that somebody is taking care of this measurements because newspapers are there to sell papers!
At 9:30 am, 3/17/11, did anyone else see that the level spiked to 380?
Update the site already!!!
Where is the current update/10min average? It is March 17, 9:45AM California Time and the last update/10min average I see posted here is from March 16, 11:40AM!! I am in Phoenix AZ. -thank you
what is going on? no averages and no replys
Michael, no biggie but check the math on the last CPM average.
Why was it at 389 and now its bck to 40? We are freaking out. lol
I almost had a heart attack. Was there something wrong with the monitor?
it just spiked from 50 to 389. Should I get out of California now. I’m scared.
Um, does that say 389?
LEVELS ARE HIGH WHAT IS GOING ON?
I hope to see some new radiation averages for today. Please post some news for us. Thank you.
CAN YOU PLEASE POSTS SOME SCREEN SHOTS OF THE READINGS FOR LA PLEASE.
I CAN NOT VIEW USTREAM (I GET A BLOCK BOX THAT’S ALL) AND NO ONE IS ABLE TO TELL ME HOW TO FIX THIS ISSUE.
NOT A FLASH ISSUE, GOT ALL KINDS OF COOKIES CLEARED ETC ETC BEEN TRYING TO FIC THIS FOR A MONTH NOW TO NO AVAIL.
PLEASE EITHER POST SCREEN SHOTS OR A TEXT UPDATE IN COMMENTS. THANK YOU.
Is it me or I am I seeing the levels rise?
Thanks so much for setting this up
Thanks From Vancouver B.C.
How do we convert CPM of the gamma rays this device detects to some measure of dosage, such as mrem/hour or microsievert/hour? Or do I have the wrong terms for dosage? Are the radioactive elements coming out of the Fukushima Daiichi reactors gamma emitters? Do those radioactive elements also emit alpha and/or beta radiation? I know the indoor location probably wouldn’t detect the alpha or beta radiation, but I’m trying to figure out how to decide what the CPM measurement means in terms of health hazards. — Carl.
I will be watching this a lot in the next couple of days . Hope you keep it running and thank you.
Are levels higher during the day than at night?
Also, will you be posting the averages since you stopped as of 11am yesterday?
Your shared knowledge and live monitioring site is very much appreciated. We need to have an indepentant source for this type of information, someone who won’t bull—- us! Thank you!
I just watched the segment on KTLA. My question if we see this this plume, by which direction is the jet stream bring it down? Also if gamma rays which we should be concerned with can go through anything, I would assume mountains as well? I live in Lake Hughes and surrounded by mountains and hill it is a small community.
Thanks for doing this— I am wondering— even though the plume is predicted to be light…(like I have any confidence in this prediction??) I am wondering if I should keep my kids indoors on Friday when the plume is going to hit us? Anyone have any thoughts?
It is only 130 feet above sealevel? Is that high enough to survive a tsunami?
Thanks for taking an action that most of us cannot. And also for being very informative. At times like these people like yourself are of great need and help. I do have a question though. At what level on the detector should we be thinking about iodide pills or incasing ourselves in a box made of lead.
Keep up the good work. Thank you.
excellent job on the interview with KTLA – i’ve posted links to your helpful site in a few places so folks can find you – keep up the good works
thanks, someone cares about the people of this nation.
1) Your explination of why it is indoors scares the woohoo out of me! That much radiation can come inside my house if this stuff comes this way?
2) THANK YOU for doing this for all of us. Some way to donate to you guys for help us?
3) Is there anything, any counter, near Northern Nevada that can show real time readings like this one?
4) Does that pick up Cesium and Platonium or just typical radiation? I really don’t know how to ask that, I mean, I hear there was a difference in them.
Again, BIG THANKS for taking the time out of your own lives to help the public like this.
@salvador – I read that too and it is alarming. I cannot say if there is a clear and present danger. The weather and winds could change and it might have dissapated. IF there was any dangerous fallout, you could drive into it inadvertently. Stay informed as will we.
Bless your heart for doing this!!
Hi Michael–
I just read a NYT article saying the radiation cloud will be here Fri– based on what you’ve seen/heard/read do you think there is a real and present danger? Should I take my family out of LA as a precaution?
http://mobile.nytimes.com/article;jsessionid=D8D7313E515526D975EDA341672FD5F5.w5?a=762206&f=19
* Julie Bien is a top notch journalist who is tearing it up on Moorpark Patch – http://moorpark.patch.com/users/julie-bien.
Julie’s mother, Joan, also produces first class journalism for MP – http://moorpark.patch.com/users/joan-bien.
Joan and I wrote a long comprehensive article on the worst meltdown in the United States for Miller-McCune and it is well worth the read – https://www.enviroreporter.com/investigations/rocketdyne/50-years-after-america%E2%80%99s-worst-nuclear-meltdown/
In fact, EnviroReporter.com thinks so highly of Joan that she has her own page to describe this wonderful person – https://www.enviroreporter.com/about/joan-trossman-bien/
And speaking of wonderful, Joan’s television news director of a husband, Steve, rocks the house on our favorite news in Southern California – KTLA Channel 5 News at http://www.ktla.com/. Steve is a mensch and is responsible for the coverage of Radiation Station throughout Wednesday day and night. Wow!
EnviroReporter.com is the richer for having known these terrific folks, even though we haven’t met Julie yet. These are some of the perks of journalism and Denise and I wanted to tell you about these fabulous friends of hours who put in the long hours to make you, the reader, better informed and entertained.
Thanks for providing this valuable public serrvice. Keep up your great work. Also, I appreciate KTLA for letting me know about your work.
Bob
Great service and I appreciate it. One suggestion, can you provide a backup website or phone number to call if your readings go through the roof, for verification, before we all head out the door in panic mode.
Thanks for broadcasting your monitor! One question… could you light the display better please? Maybe a little more direct lighting?
Thanks!
We thank you from Asheville NC :o)
Thank you for doing this….you never know what is going to happen and you can’t find this information anywhere else.
Hi Michael,
We all saw you on KTLA today! Glad to hear that you got the camera working (I know last night was a bit touch and go.)
Keep up the good work!
-Julie (Joan and Steve’s daughter)
* dylan- no accounting for that except to say the counter is stuck at 13.78 to 13.79 and CPM don’t stay consistent like that. That said, let’s hope that it’s that low.
* Jimmy- yes the Inspector will detect radiation from fallout first as heightened gamma. I do not know if similar data is *available* up there but anyone with a detector (who knows how to use it) and webcam are welcome to join Radiation Station.
I’ve contacted the Health Department, the Environmental Protection Agency, various national laboratories, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and even the Deputy Director of Public Affairs at the National Nuclear Security Administration in an attempt to obtain the information that you are providing here. I can’t thank you enough for the peace of mind that this provides me; your help extends way beyond just those who are monitoring this site. Two questions if you have the time: Will you confirm that this unit monitors the type (?) of radiation pertaining to fallout? Do you know if similar data is available in Northern California or Southern Oregon?
Many Thanks!
Thank you, much respect and appreciation,
-Jimmy
this is a counter in tokyo. why are the readings lower than yours?
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/geiger-counter-tokyo
Bo—as i understand it, this 40-44ish reading would need to be fairly constant (for a longish period of time) at 2-3 times this amt. to warrant concern; also check http://www.radiationnetwork.com whose map measures in CPM; it has been at 22-25 in north cali for days and would have to go to 132 for a danger alert
hi, anyone else online with me in here? the rate is going really high.
Thanks so much for this.. beats trying to get into radnet and worrying about the accuracy.
Will the radiation settle into the ocean? Then what?
So. 40.4 is normal or 404/10 how much does it have to rise to be not normal. How is “normal” determined? And are you measuring THE most Dangerous kind or hurtful kind of radiation or Doesn’t that matter? As a mom, I am concerned and not at all smart about this stuff. Will we know when to take Potassium Iodine?
And a BIG THANK YOU~!
What an awesome service you guys are providing! Now, if we can just get sth going up here on the Oregon coast.
Thanks,
Jace Cook
Andie, CPM measures the ionizing radiation events going throught the detector. You provide a lot of good information here and hope you find those scales and bring them back here to share links to them. We are too busy on our end to do that immediately. I think you could do this, Andie, and we’d all be grateful.
Susanne, you can read about the Inspector and make sure to look up what you don’t understand. http://www.medcom.com/inspect.htm And check out the EPA for guidance on radiation because as much as I’d like to answer that, I don’t have time to do the research right now. They make it nice and clear, that’s for sure. Your kitty is just fine! We have detected nothing abnormal yet so don’t worry about a thing, just keep watching our numbers and the news. And thank you for the donation to us. It isn’t a cause though; we’re media. But thanks anyway!
Dave and Myles – Start paying attention at twice background and certainly take notice at three times bg according to DOE and EPA rules of thumb.
Thank you Terner but the numbers are the same in and outside right now though, with radiation, they can change block to block. If there ever was any fallout, it would be much higher outside because of the particulate matter in the air.
Are the readings outside in open air, consistant with the indoor readings?
Suggestion:
It would be interesting, if you can report an outdoor reading once or twice a day a day (just to see if they are similar to the indoor).
Thank you, this is very interesting.
Thank you so much for this. I am up in Portland Oregon and WISH I had a geiger counter too!
Thank Michael for such a great site…one question I have though, is what the numbers need to be for us all to be concerned, ie: at what point would we have to take medication and/or head for the hills.
I’ve noticed some regular hits this hour in the 50’s and 60’s. What would the measurement need to reach to make you believe the RADAlert Monitor is picking up radiation from Japan? Also, at what measurement should we be “concerned?”
What is the meter counting? We don’t use “rads” anymore, is it counting “grays” or “microsieverts”? I want to know so if we get high readings I can see how much radiation we are exposed to. Thanks for setting this up, it is very very helpful. Having information helps with the anxiety factor. My cat threw up this morning before I found your site and I’m freaking out that my cat has acute radiation sickness! Good grief. Anyway thank you so much, I’m going to make a donation to your cause.
Hi == Thanks for doing this. Do you understand what CPM really measures? At what level do we worry? What’s considered not safe? I understand 130 is the national RadNet alert level, and yet Las Vegas is around 350 CPM on average, maybe due to the nuclear testing in the 50’s. Any scales you could find would be most appreciated.
Lulu2: This RadAlert Inspector takes 10-minute averaging counts in CPM and not millirem per hour hence why we are staying with CPM to determine levels above background should they occur. That said, we are picking a fairly consistent NORMAL background range of 0.014 to 0.02 mrem/hr just by eyeballing the instrument. We will put a call into the manufacturers of the Inspector, International Medcom, to see if they can give us an accurate chart so we can nail down the exact equivalent numbers so we all know what the ‘dose’ factor is. We have not been able to do that yet because of multiple television media requests for interviews.
Damon Duval – Inside or out in a normal situation, which this one still is, the readings inside and out of the gamma radiation are the same. The Inspector is inside so it can be shot with a webcam and streamed.
Michael…..I can’t thank you enough. I live right at the beach in the Palisades at one of the MH parks and have no protection….just open ocean….which is why we were evacuated Sat. morning! This is awesome….thanks again. And will look for you on KTLA (which I watch every morning).
Michael – Awesome! – Please tell us that the device is outside!
This is much appreciated, thank you.
very much appreciate this site; can you marry the data to millisieverts?
Thank you!
hb – Those commercials are by UStream Live which is a small price to pay for their excellent, and free, platform.
joe – Don’t let that the vagaries of live ion detecting freak you out. Ions from the earth (radium and uranium) and cosmic radiation (including the Sun) do not emit in a steady manner. It’s random. That said, when the numbers go up and stay up, that’s the time to pay close attention.
The last averaging we did, just now is this:
11:30 AM to 11:40 AM
Ten minute average Counts Per Minute: 404/10 = 40.4 CPM background
That means that, right now, the BACKGROUND RADIATION IS NORMAL.
Can anyone explain why it occasionally spikes to the 60’s and 70’s but then drops back down to 40’s? I’m not panicking, I’m just curious to what causes such jumps. I will admit though, seeing it shoot from the 30’s to the 70’s made me sit up a bit!
THANK YOU.
Thanks for doing this but I just have to say…. commercials… hilarious.
Thank you so much for setting this up.
Good luck to us all.
Glad to see it’s up and running.
Thank you for explaining why it’s inside. Makes sense why it doesn’t make a difference since gamma radiation goes through just about anything. If only staying indoors COULD keep radiation out.
I guess my iPad won’t let me view the live stream. Please keep updating the comments with the counts. Thank you so much for doing this!
Jay, we were hoping someone would ask that so thank you. The kind of radiation we’re looking for, in general, is gamma radiation which travels great distances and goes through just about anything, including you and me. Lead will stop it, though. In fallout, one the primary radionuclides of concern is iodine-131 which emits a lot of gamma radiation but is a beta emitter as well. If we left the Inspector outside and fallout begins to come down, the beta emitting I-131 could contaminate the instrument by falling on it. But, nevertheless, even without contamination issues, measuring it inside or outside, if at the same elevation, location and not over concrete (which has some uranium in it which skews the readings higher), is the same. We keep the Inspector inside so we can light it easier for you to be able to see 24/7. There is no need to have it outside.
Why is it inside an office?
You really need to have it outdoors to be valid.
Thanks for setting this up. Much appreciation.