Japan’s Media Apocalypse: The Oxfordshire Nuclear Plume
JAPAN’S Media Apocalypse: Anorak’s look at the media’s desire for a nuclear meltdown.
Time for more from Richard Shears – his last effort was memorable:
Hundreds of pregnant women are fleeing Japan’s east coast and capital Tokyo over fears that radiation from the Fukushima nuclear plant will harm their unborn babies.
Hospitals in the Osaka region, 450 miles from the crippled power station which is spewing radiation into the air, have been inundated with requests from mothers-to-be seeking a safe place to give birth.
Shears has also been writing in the Mail again:
Radiation from the Fukushima leak has been detected across Britain, it was confirmed today as Japan was put on ‘maximum’ alert.
The Health Protection Agency revealed that radioactive iodine had already been discovered 5,500 miles from the stricken plant in Oxfordshire and Glasgow.
The news comes as it was reported that the radioactive core of the stricken reactor has melted through the bottom of its containment vessel, onto a concrete floor, raising fears of a full scale meltdown.
Air samples are being tested elsewhere in Britain over fears that much of the country could be hit by the radioactive plume.
Ooer! All dead by Wednesday, then?
Dr Michael Clark of the HPA said: ‘Very low levels of radioactivity, traceable to Fukushima, have been detected at monitoring stations in the UK including Chilton, in Oxfordshire, and Glasgow, in Scotland.
‘These traces have been found in Europe – Switzerland, Germany and Iceland – and in the USA.
‘They’re trace levels but of course with radioactivity we can measure very low amounts.’
Anything more?
The statement added: “This followed reports from HPA’s monitoring stations in Glasgow and Oxfordshire of measurements averaged over the last nine days which found 11 micro-becquerels per cubic metre.
“The dose received from inhaling air with these measured levels of iodine 131 is minuscule and would be very much less than the annual background radiation dose.
“The detection of these trace levels reflects the sensitivity of the monitoring equipment.“
Are you afraid yet? Protons For Breakfast notes:
Take a look at this BBC report on the measurements of radioactive iodine in a water treatment plant in Tokyo. The reporter calls this ‘ground zero’ – a term referring to the point of impact of a nuclear weapon – and after mentioning ‘the fact’, shows frightened parents searching for bottled water. He implies that matters are getting worse… But he fails to mention that ’Radioactive Iodine’ refers to Iodine-131 – an isotope of iodine with a half-life of 8 days. The readings of 130 becquerel per litre, is indeed just above the recommended limit of 100 becquerel per litre for children. However, this is the limit for continued consumption for one year. However, because the half-life of iodine is 8 days, the level will fall below the safe level in a few days.
READ: Japan’s Media Apocalypse
Click the image above to see the horror.
Posted: 29th, March 2011 | In: Key Posts Comments (12) | TrackBack | Permalink
