Iori Mochizuki
11:10 pm • 12 February 2012 " Go to http://24000years.tumblr.com/post/17486347487/measurement-of-radiation-may-be-banned-in-japan
Quote: "A Japanese woman who claimed exposure to radiation from damaged nuclear reactors has been denied refugee status in Canada almost one year after that nation was rocked by an earthquake and tsunami that left more than 100,000 people homeless.
The woman’s identity has not been released by an Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) since she’s seeking asylum in this country. She is among several dozen Japanese nationals who filed refugee claims to stay in Canada following the disaster and is one of the first decisions to be reached by the IRB.
“The claimant feared risks of exposure to radiation,” an IRB member said in a ruling. “She was not convinced by the Japanese government’s assurances of safety from radiation.”
The woman was one of hundreds of Japanese citizens who sought refuge in other countries following the March 11, 2011 catastrophe caused by a magnitude 9.0 quake and tsunami that left more than 15,000 dead and nearly 3300 missing.
The acts of nature crippled the Fukushima nuclear plant, leading to core meltdowns at three of its six reactors, and ongoing leaks of radioactive material.
A board member ruled the claimant “feared being a victim of hazards that emanated from a combined natural and man-made disaster.”
The member said the claimant’s risk “is characterized as being widespread and prevalent in Japan.”
The woman can still appeal her case to the Federal Court of Canada, and that decision can still be appealed.
She claimed her life was in danger from radioactive contaminants that spewed into the environment from the Fukushima plant.
More than 100,000 people were evacuated from their homes and businesses in a 20-km no-go zone around the plant.
The accident also raised fears of contamination in everything from fruit and vegetables to fish and water.
It took about nine months for the Japanese government to declare that the Fukushima plant was stable, although it will take about 40 years to decommission the plant.
Japan has since decided to lower its reliance on nuclear power, reversing its plans to boost it to 50 per cent by 2030. Most of its 54 reactors are currently off-line, most of them undergoing safety inspections." Go to http://www.torontosun.com/2012/02/18/japans-nuclear-evacuees-denied-canadian-refugee
Quote: "They call them "gamma sponges" and "glow boys." The teams are called "suicide squads."
Richard "Rich Rad" Meserve, former Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission — and now head of a mindless Washington pro-nuclear lobbying think-tank — calls them "jumpers" as if it were something fun to do. Or perhaps he considers the job healthy exercise. The suits are certainly very heavy, the work arduous, tedious, and dangerous.
Everyone learned to called them "liquidators" after Chernobyl, but there, they called themselves "bio-robots."
Why? Because they had to replace the robots that didn’t work, on account of the fancy electronics don’t work in highly radioactive environments. That’s true today, too.
Their job? In Chernobyl it was to do things like: Heave sand and lead from a helicopter. For a total time over the reactor of just a minute or two.
A couple of trips. Then it’s someone else’s turn.
Or shovel radioactive graphite off the roof of the building for 45 seconds.
Then it’s someone else’s turn.
Or run in and turn a valve part way.
Then it’s someone else’s turn.
It required approximately 800,000 such young men to "clean up" Chernobyl (and I use the term "clean up" very, very loosely!). Virtually all were conscripted.
Now, they’re dropping like flies. It’s called the Chernobyl Syndrome:
"Heart, stomach, liver, kidneys… nervous system… our whole bodies were radically upset [by the radiation and chemical exposure]." — testimony of a liquidator, from the movie Battle for Chernobyl (highly recommended).
Their children and the children of people who were downwind from Chernobyl often wear what’s called the "Chernobyl Necklace". It’s the scar across their throat, left over from thyroid surgery.
Far worse abnormalities and deformities await many others, as well. Thyroid cancer is just the tip of the iceberg, though perhaps the easiest one to prevent and to cure.
The authorities supposedly kept track of everyone’s radiation exposure, but really it was bogus. Needles on radiation detectors were pegged on "high." Radiation detectors themselves were in short supply. Cumulative dose badges were practically unavailable. Nearly everyone’s exposure was projected, estimated, and calculated instead. These bogus records were then used by the Soviet state later, to deny that Chernobyl was the cause of their comrade’s illnesses.
In Japan it’s happening again: Needles are pegging on "high", detectors are in short supply, and exposures are being crudely estimated.
The "heros" — as the media have aptly dubbed them — who are working at the highly-irradiated Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant right now — are reportedly receiving 20 times their normal day’s pay for a day at Fukushima Daiichi.
And perhaps a thousand times their normal daily radiation dose.
Hardly worth it, but thank goodness somebody is willing to do it at any price. The world appreciates their effort. The problem is, nothing’s working. Polymer sponge diapers (I kid you not, that’s what they’re trying) aren’t working. Concrete isn’t working. Sawdust and shredded newspaper (I kid you not…) isn’t working. The plant is still leaking enormous amounts of radioactivity.
And they say that could go on for years.
Every nuclear power plant has the potential to become the next Fukushima. The next Chernobyl. Or the next "worst industrial accident ever" — worse than Chernobyl. Worse than Fukushima.
Shut ‘em down. This is crazy. We sacrifice our fellow citizens. We sacrifice ourselves. We sacrifice our future. We sacrifice our children. Shut ‘em down forever." Go to http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/04/04/fukushima-s-suicide-squads/
...whilst European administrations either ignore the Iodine-131 they have detected on their soils or make ridiculous claims for it's possible origins (go to http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=27654 ).
Japan is facing the prospect of mass-evacuations and years of decontamination procedures but The French and British governments plan to expand their nuclear industries.
Quote:"
Operator Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) and the Japanese government say the tsunami-crippled reactors are all in a "state of cold shutdown" and are keen to give the impression that there is just cleaning up to do.
They acknowledge it is the work of a few decades - perhaps 40 years - but nonetheless insist things are under control.
But that is not how those who spend their days inside the plant see it.
"I can clearly say it's not safe at all," said one worker in his 50s, a subcontractor who has been working on the plant's cooling system since September.
The man did not want to be identified for fear of losing the 8,000 yen ($100) daily paycheck he receives.
"There are many spots where radiation levels are extremely high," he said.
The man said subcontractors like him were treated like animals.
In the height of summer with the mercury rising to 38 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit), workers had to go for up to three hours at a time without water because they were unable to take off their masks.
" For full article go to http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/et-cetera/fears-for-safety-at-fukushima-one-year-on/articleshow/12093884.cms
Japan is facing the prospect of mass-evacuations and years of decontamination procedures but The French and British governments plan to expand their nuclear industries.
Quote:"
They acknowledge it is the work of a few decades - perhaps 40 years - but nonetheless insist things are under control.
But that is not how those who spend their days inside the plant see it.
"I can clearly say it's not safe at all," said one worker in his 50s, a subcontractor who has been working on the plant's cooling system since September.
The man did not want to be identified for fear of losing the 8,000 yen ($100) daily paycheck he receives.
"There are many spots where radiation levels are extremely high," he said.
The man said subcontractors like him were treated like animals.
In the height of summer with the mercury rising to 38 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit), workers had to go for up to three hours at a time without water because they were unable to take off their masks.
" For full article go to http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/et-cetera/fears-for-safety-at-fukushima-one-year-on/articleshow/12093884.cms
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