ZUKUNASHI’S QUESTION-AND-ANSWER SESSION 2

Q. I am a middle-aged mother of young children living in the west of Tokyo. Although I would like to immigrate to safety, there are nuclear power plants all over Japan, and also radioactivity was spread over a wide area. The more I do a lot of research on present situation, the more I am confused than ever where I have to flee to.

The air dose rate measured in my living Tama-area (in the suburbs of Tokyo) and heart of Tokyo, becomes stable within 0.05 ~ 0.080μSv/h. So I see no need in moving to another place by snap decision. I am just careful of not to eat polluted food. Also I am vigilant about hand-washing, gargle and wearing mask.
I would like you to advise me what I have to do in the future. Thank you.

A.　Thank you very much for your question.
As for your question, it is very difficult to answer. I had an expectation that I could manage to spend the rest of my life here Kanto (around Tokyo). To that end, I had only to be careful of food and drink, keep indoors and spend quiet time under the condition that air dose rate settled in low level. However, I am very wavery now…

These are the reasons of my wavering as follows;

1.　I found the air dose rate measured near my home could indicate elevated levels, very frequently 0.5μSv/h and infrequently 1.15μSv/h even though there is likely to be no radioactivity gathered. This is my suggestion that radioactive substances could flow off to the air from incineration facility and recycling process facility secondarily.

The generation source is likely to be a recycling facility of industrial waste. Every time I got close to the facility with rotary kiln, I was irritating to the nose. Thus I suggest that the facility cleans up flue gas imperfectly. Let's say that facility is the cause, the polluted air with much radioactivity will be released in the air for many years to come as long as the facility continues to dispose of radioactivity-contaminated waste.

Although experiences show that I saw such a high air dose rate for a short time, I was accordingly exposed to the radiation internally by breathing the polluted air. This is to say that I was exposed to multi-risk of internal exposure rather than external exposure in each time.

I do not know whether you could experience the same situation as mine, but there is someone who expresses concerns about the same problem of producing eco-cement in Tama.

2.　As I questioned whether depleted uranium could have flown apart from the plant in Ichihara-city, I measured beta-ray and gamma-ray as a trial while I went walking, and found a hot spot with more than 10,000 cpm!!!

This experience resulted from an accident, and I do not know what source this beta ray is and where it came from. If it came from Fukushima nuclear plant, such high level beta-ray substances possibly fluttered over a large region around Tokyo, not just here.

In other words, it is dangerous to go out while wind is blowing dust because there is not only cesium but beta-ray substances, of course alpha-ray substances in the air.

According to the soil investigation conducted by the United States, you can find high level gross-beta in the area around Tokyo and Tohoku district.

Also I heard that an American went back from Japan to the United States after Fukushima nuclear accident. After returning home, she/he found that her/his furniture brought back from Japan was every contaminated by high level gross-beta and gross-alpha. Then she/he had to dispose all of it.

As to this story, I am not surprised that gross-beta indicated high levels early in Fukushima nuclear accident because both iodine and cesium emits beta-ray. However, I am still wondering what was the source of alpha-ray that made an American dispose every her/his furniture.

3.　I have confirmation that people living around Tokyo were exposed to the radiation both internally and externally to a varying degree.

Around my neighborhood, many kinds of construction works have continued for these 3 years. So range of reduction of air dose rate is relatively higher than other places. I measured my total cumulative amount for these 3 years of external exposure referring to those relatively low air dose rates. That was 3.76mSv.

The other day, I calculated the total cumulative amount of my reader living in the west of Ibaraki prefecture. His total cumulative amount is estimated to 7.19〜7.67mSv for these 3 years and 3.1mSv for the first year of Fukushima nuclear accident.

Also, since very strong plume passed over his town in Mar 15, 2011, there is fear that he was internally exposed to the radiation. Under Japanese law, citizen in normal times (not emergency) should be externally exposed to the artificial radiation under 1mSv per year.

Needless to say that people living around Tokyo and Tohoku district have to avoid radiation exposure as much as possible because there is a fact that they were exposed to the radiation both internally and externally.

Generically no one knows how radioactivity behaves and how it damages human body once it enters your body. So I do not think it make any sense that I estimate internal exposure in Sv.

4.　Even if you sometimes measures air dose rate at whim and find it to be low level, you can't rest easy yet. In Fukushima nuclear plant, iron frames for exhaust towers of plant1 and plant2 were broken. As time passes, the damage will get worse. If the time will come when those chimneys crash down and huge radioactivity is splattered around by any chance, what should be done about it?

Government has not presented any concrete plans against that disaster. It would be impossible for site workers to come closer, and the tasks for conclusion would be completely stopped. What catastrophe would be in store after that??? 　 No one knows… Now TEPCO and Government do nothing, just wait and see how it moves.

Although they do not complete any tasks for conclusion as I described, you would still choose to live in Tokyo as your permanent home??? 　I seriously question that.

5.　As for me, however, I would like to move to another place, but I have no idea where I should move to… just like you.

Since I do not decide new address, I do not decide the date to go. While I wait to decide whether to go or not, catastrophe happen and I wander hopelessly only having clothes I am wearing… At last, I fall down to the ground with my cat… I have a feeling that this is my way to death.

in Japanese