Effects of the Fukushima nuclear meltdowns on environment and health March 9th, 2012

Effects of the Fukushima nuclear meltdowns on environment and healthMarch 9th, 2012

...Conclusions:

• The damage to the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant leading to the emission of

radioactivity was caused primarily by the 9.0 magnitude earthquake. Further damage was

incurred by the ensuing tsunami. Overheating of the core due to total power failure then

caused separate nuclear meltdowns in reactors 3 and the spent fuel pond of reactor 4

• Atmospheric emissions of more than 30 radioactive isotopes occurred through the explosions

in reactors 1-3 and the spent fuel pond of reactor 4, smoke from the ensuing fires, deliberate

venting of the reactors to relieve pressure as well as the evaporation of massive amounts of

water used for cooling the reactors

• Total emission of iodine-131 in the first three to four days of the Fukushima nuclear disaster

amounted to about 20% of the total iodine-131 emissions of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Total emission of caesium-137 in the first three to four days of the Fukushima nuclear disaster

amounted to about 40-60% of the total caesium-137 emissions of the Chernobyl nuclear

disaster

• While iodine-131 and caesium-137 are the most prominent radioactive isotopes emitted by

Fukushima, strontium-90, xenon-133, plutonium-239 and more than two dozen more

radioactive substances were spread throughout the region as radioactive fallout.

• Marine and groundwater contamination was caused by backflow and deliberate discharge of

radioactive waste water from the plant. With approximately 15-27 PBq of radioactive marine

discharge, the Fukushima nuclear disaster constitutes the single worst radioactive

contamination of the oceans ever recorded. Dilution and dispersion effects may reduce the

amount of contamination in the vicinity of the plant, but only causes the long-lived radioactive

isotopes to spread out over a larger area, exposing an even greater population to the effects

of radioactive contamination.

• Radioactive fallout occurred mainly above the Northern Pacific (79%), with about 19% of the

fallout contaminating Eastern Honshu island, including the Tokyo Metropolitan area and

leaving an area of more than 1000 km2 highly contaminated with radioactive isotopes

• 200,000 people were forced to leave their homes as a 20 km2 zone around the plant was

evacuated indefinitely

• 70,000 people remained in more than 870 km2 of highly contaminated land outside of the

evacuation zone, where they were exposed to an external radioactivity 100 times higher than

the normal background radiation in the first year after the catastrophe.

• The risk of developing cancer and other radiation-induced diseases increased proportionally to

the amount of radioactive exposure. There is no lower threshold, as even the slightest amount

of radioactivity can cause harmful tissue damage and genetic mutations.

• Radioactive contamination has been detected in all kinds of fruits and vegetables grown in the

affected regions as well as in meat of animals grazing on contaminated land. Radioactivity has

also been detected in milk, tea and tap water, even in the Tokyo Metropolitan area. Eating just

500g of contaminated vegetables can cause internal exposure to more than 100 times the

normal annual amount of radioactive food content for adults and more than 200 times for

children.

• Fish and seafood caught in the North Pacific are highly contaminated, with a clear

accumulation of radioactivity in animals higher up the food-chain in the months after the

disaster. Washout and bioaccumulation will continue to cause radioactive contamination of

marine animals for many years.

• Children are most severely affected by radioactivity, as their bodies have a higher sensibility

and as their natural habits expose them to greater dosage. Raising the permissible radioactive

dose level to 20 mSv per year and withholding iodine tablets has led to a high exposure of

children in Fukushima prefecture.

• It is too early and too little data exists in order to estimate the extent of health effects caused

by the nuclear disaster. Large-scale epidemiological studies are required in order to determine

the effect and the extent of health consequences for the population. It is important that this

research is performed by independent groups not associated with the nuclear industry, such

as TEPCO, JAEA, the IAEA or affiliated organizations.

• Claims by scientists affiliated with the nuclear industry that no health effects are to be

expected are unscientific and immoral.

FULL REPORT CAN BE FOUND HERE--LINK