news august 21
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832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 16
Nearly half of children near Fukushima plant
absorbed radiation20110819
Share Article
The government document outlining the results of internal exposure examinations
conducted in March (The Asahi Shimbun) An official explains the results of internal
exposure examinations in Iwaki Fukushima Prefecture on Aug 17 (The Asahi Shimbun)
IWAKI Fukushima Prefecture--A survey of more than 1000 children and babies living near the
quake-stricken Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has produced an alarming finding 45 percentof them suffered internal exposure to radiation following the accident there
Most children absorbed relatively low levels of radiation in their thyroid glands according to
officials who explained the results to residents in Iwaki Fukushima Prefecture on Aug 17
Tests conducted in Iwaki city Kawamata town and Iitate village between March 24 and 30 found
that 26 percent of under-16s absorbed 001 microsievert per hour while 11 percent absorbed 002
microsievert per hour At least one child recorded radiation of 010 microsievert per hour but
officials said that level did not pose a health risk
During a one-on-one consultation session a woman who had received a letter from the government
saying her 14-year-old son had an internal exposure reading of 001 microsievert per hour asked theofficials whether it was safe for her family to continue living in Iwaki
An official responded that radiation levels were low in the city but said she should be careful of
grass and roadside ditches
The meeting did not answer my questions or eliminate my anxieties at all she said She
complained that the officials explanations were no more helpful than what is available on the
Internet and other sources of information
Her son who also attended the meeting said The figure is not zero because my body has taken in
radioactive materials I would like to be told whether I am OK or not
Examinations were conducted on about 1150 children aged 15 or younger including babies under 1year old Data was obtained for 1080 children
In 55 percent of cases no internal exposure was detected
At the time of the tests the Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan said detailed examinations would
be required if internal exposure levels reached 020 microsievert per hour
The standard was based on the assumption that residents had inhaled radioactive materials gradually
over 12 days from March 12 when an explosion shook the nuclear plant and released radioactive
materials a day after the Great East Japan Earthquake struck
But the Japan Atomic Energy Agency and other organizations have since found that large amounts
of radioactive iodine were released over four or five days from March 12
The finding shows that childrens internal organs and tissues may have been exposed to much
higher radiation levels during that period than was initially assumed
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 26
Iodine-131 for example has a half-life of around five to seven days meaning that some children
may have been exposed to levels of radiation that would require detailed examination
Radioactive iodine can develop into cancer if large amounts are accumulated in the thyroid gland
and children are particularly vulnerable The thyroid gland produces hormones related to
metabolism and growth from iodine in the body
The Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan is also not planning to reflect the International AtomicEnergy Agencys new stricter standards for taking medications to protect thyroid glands from
internal exposure
The meeting in Iwaki on Aug 17 was held after residents pressed the government to provide
detailed explanations about the survey Officials had previously said there would be no health
problems but failed to offer figures to back up that statement About 50 residents attended the
meeting in Iwaki
The Fukushima prefectural government plans to conduct lifelong screening for thyroid gland cancer
on about 360000 children in the prefecture who were 18 or younger on April 1
The inspections will start as early as October and initial ultrasound examinations will be carried out
by March 2014 These children will undergo ultrasonography once every two years until they turn20 and once every five years for the rest of their lives
When lumps and other suspected symptoms are detected children will receive detailed
examinations including blood tests
Separate studies of internal exposure started in late June covering all 2 million residents of
Fukushima Prefecture In preliminary examinations internal exposure levels were measured using
whole-body counters for about 180 residents of Iitate Kawamata and other areas where high
radiation levels were detected
Initial estimates are that all residents internal radiation levels over several decades will not exceed 1
millisievert per person officials say
TEPCO to add more than 4000 radiation
experts20110819
Share Article
A resident from Fukushima Prefecture gets checked out for radiation exposure in Mito
Ibaraki Prefecture on March 15 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The government and TEPCO plan to bring in more than 4000 experts to measure radiation levels
and manage workers exposure to radioactivity to end the crisis at the quake-crippled Fukushima
No 1 nuclear power plant
Tokyo Electric Power Co said it will need more experts to measure radiation levels not only at the
Fukushima plant but in municipalities around the plant where residents will return once evacuationorders are lifted
Under the plan to bring the nuclear crisis to an end which was revised on Aug 17 about 4000
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 36
experts will be trained in radiation measurements and about 250 in exposure management
TEPCO said it will need more measurement experts in addition to the current corps of about
2500--1900 at the company and its affiliates who have already received training and 600 from
other electric power companies
Separately about 250 workers will acquire more advanced knowledge and manage workers
exposure to radioactivity within the stricken facility northeast of TokyoIt is difficult to secure a sufficient number of these experts because they often have to work in areas
with high radiation levels
TEPCO is also trying to find electricians and other engineers through the Japan Atomic Industrial
Forum which is made up of companies involved in the nuclear power industry
Professor develops new method for
decontaminating soilBY NOBUTARO KAJI STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
A simple system that combines washing and sieving contaminated soil to remove radioactive
cesium which could be utilized near the crippled Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has been
developed by a Kyoto University team
The team led by associate professor Haruhiko Toyohara said the system should be of great use
especially when decontaminating soil containing little clay such as the topsoil in a houses garden
and parks
The new system will be presented at the September meeting of the Japanese Society of Fisheries
Science in Nagasaki Nagasaki Prefecture
Toyohara experimented with the system using the soil from a park in Koriyama Fukushima
Prefecture about 60 kilometers west of the Fukushima No 1 plant The soil contains 3000 to 5000
becquerels of radioactive cesium per kilogram with the weight of fine clay in the soil comprising
only 4 percent of the total
When washing the soil through a sieve using a scrubbing brush about 88 percent of cesium in thesoil was transferred to the water All cesium in the water was then gathered on the bottom of a
container using a chemical agent When sieving the washed soil to remove fine clay about 99
percent of the cesium initially contained in the soil was eliminated
The weight of contaminated soil removed through the process--the amount of the soil on the bottom
and clay separated by sieving--was reduced to only 5 percent of the total of the original soil
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 46
Nation hit by A-bombs placed big bet on
nuclear powerBY YUTAKA SHIOKURA STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
Workers install the pressure container of the No 1 reactor at the Fukushima No 1
nuclear power plant in May 1969 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The accident at the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has led to magazine articles and
publications that are trying to unravel how two competing images of Japan emerged in modern
history--the nation devastated by the atomic bombings in August 1945 going on to become one of
the major users of nuclear power plants
One aspect that has emerged in those discussions is the role played by the theory that Japan
promoted nuclear energy just because it was the victim of an atomic bombing
On the July 23 broadcast of a TV debate program Italian journalist Pio DEmilia asked Why did a
nation that has the legacy of Hiroshima ever allow so easily the construction of nuclear power
plants
A response was given by Michio Ishikawa a supreme adviser at the Japan Nuclear Technology
Institute who was born before August 1945 and who was involved in nuclear power development
from the earliest stages after the end of World War II
The gist of Ishikawas response was that in his generation many nuclear energy researchers were in
Hiroshima on Aug 6 1945 when the atomic bomb was dropped or in Nagasaki three days later
when the second bomb was dropped All those researchers became involved in nuclear energy on
the grounds of peaceful use of the technology and to use it to improve peoples lives Ishikawa
said
The explanation can be boiled down to one of promoting nuclear energy not in spite of the atomic
bombing but because of it
In the June issue of the magazine Impaction Mikiyo Kano a scholar of womens history discovers
such a thinking of just because in the arguments of the late Mitsuo Taketani who was a major
proponent of the peaceful use of nuclear technology
In the November 1952 issue of Kaizo magazine Taketani argued that the Japanese have the greatest
right to research a peaceful nuclear energy technology because they are the only victims of an
atomic bombing
Some researchers have tried to delve into the psychology that led to the spread of the just because
theory
In the August issue of the magazine Sekai (World) Toshiyuki Tanaka a professor at the Hiroshima
Peace Institute under the Hiroshima City University wrote Because the hibakusha were injured by
the atomic bombing the slogan of The object that took your lives can in fact not only be used to
treat cancer but is also an energy source that can provide a strong life force was accepted by them
as a message of in a sense salvation
Others point to a different psychology at work among the hibakusha
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 56
In the June issue of Shincho 45 the critic Morihide Katayama writes that in the deep roots of the
call for peaceful use of nuclear technology lay a grassroots sense of vengeance
That would be achieved by using the hatred held toward the United States for using the atomic
bombs on them to skillfully utilize that same nuclear technology One aspect of that argument is to
repay the loss of war due to science by using that science
The just because thinking is also related to the emergence in Japan of the myth that nuclear energy was safe
In the June issue of Gendai Shiso (Modern philosophy) the historian Hisato Nakajima focuses on
the process behind the establishment of the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant
He explained how an employee of Tokyo Electric Power Co tried to placate concerns held by local
residents that nuclear power plants were just as dangerous as an atomic bomb
The TEPCO employee apparently gave the following argument to gain consent
I witnessed the atomic bombing and my older brother was killed by it For that reason I
understand the dangers of nuclear technology much better than all of you If someone like me who
lost relatives to the atomic bombing had even a little concern I would not be able to comply even if it was company policy
Because Japan was a victim of the atomic bombing an even stronger myth about nuclear energy
safety would be required for residents and those employees working at the plant
Nakajima points to the possibility of such unique historical circumstances to explain how that safety
myth developed
The sociology researcher Hiroshi Kainuma is in the spotlight for his book Fukushima ron (On
Fukushima) which looks into what nuclear energy meant for Fukushima Prefecture
In his book Kainuma describes nuclear energy as something with the image of being at the cutting
edge of modernityIn explaining what common thread existed between the atomic bomb and nuclear power plants
Kainuma said The cutting edge of modernity is the glory of war and growth
He added The glory of growth in terms of economic prosperity and democratization and the glory
of war in terms of liberation from fascism and the liberation of Asia Both are modern ideals and
that is the reason people observed overwhelming modernity in both nuclear plants and atomic
bombs
This summer the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization made up of
hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki decided on a clear policy of moving away from nuclear
energy through the gradual decommissioning of all nuclear reactors
That represents a major turning point for an organization which since its establishment in 1956
never called for a society that had zero nuclear plants
Japans history of nuclear energy would likely never have begun without inclusion of the thinking of
just because the nation was hit by the atomic bombs
To understand that complicated picture there will likely be a need for a comprehensive re-
examination of Japans modern history including the period of rapid economic growth and the
nuclear strategy of the United States
Fukushima kids take case to Tokyo but get no satisfaction
20110819
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 66
Children from elementary and junior high schools in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture meet with
government officials in Tokyo on Aug 17 to talk about their lives since the March 11 nuclear crisis
(Hiroyuki Yamamoto)
They came looking for answers and left feeling brushed off
More than five months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake crippled the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant on March 11 and children in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture are
desperate to get their lives back to normal They took their case to the central government on Aug
17 and were far from satisfied with the results
Four children from the prefecture all from elementary and junior high schools visited the First
Members Office Building of the Lower House in the capitals Chiyoda Ward
Directly addressing government officials tasked with handling the crisis and bureaucrats in the
education ministry the children spoke about the hardships they have endured since the onset of the
crisis
I want government officials to allow my school friends to evacuate to the same area together saidone student a 13-year-old girl from Miharu who evacuated to Tokyo in June
The girl added that she was deeply saddened at being transferred to another school She also said
she does not understand why people in the prefecture had to experience such tremendous adversity
given that the plant supplied electricity to people in Tokyo
Stumped by the questions from the children the government officials repeatedly responded We
will do our best
At a news conference following the meeting an 11-year-old boy said he didnt understand why the
officials did not take their questions seriously even though they are adults
The children also submitted about 40 letters from other children from the prefecture One letter read Can I bear a healthy child and Until what age can I survive while another said Dear
Prime Minister Naoto Kan I want all nuclear power plants to be stopped
The 13-year-old girl said she wants to know what the government thinks about the letters She
wanted Kan more than anybody else to attend the meeting she said
About 300 people from the Tokyo area and other parts of Japan attended the meeting A 10-year-old
boy from Tokyos Kunitachi who was accompanied by his mother to the meeting said I was truly
touched because the children talked in their own words and the meeting made me realize that both
adults and children have to give more serious thought to the issue
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 26
Iodine-131 for example has a half-life of around five to seven days meaning that some children
may have been exposed to levels of radiation that would require detailed examination
Radioactive iodine can develop into cancer if large amounts are accumulated in the thyroid gland
and children are particularly vulnerable The thyroid gland produces hormones related to
metabolism and growth from iodine in the body
The Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan is also not planning to reflect the International AtomicEnergy Agencys new stricter standards for taking medications to protect thyroid glands from
internal exposure
The meeting in Iwaki on Aug 17 was held after residents pressed the government to provide
detailed explanations about the survey Officials had previously said there would be no health
problems but failed to offer figures to back up that statement About 50 residents attended the
meeting in Iwaki
The Fukushima prefectural government plans to conduct lifelong screening for thyroid gland cancer
on about 360000 children in the prefecture who were 18 or younger on April 1
The inspections will start as early as October and initial ultrasound examinations will be carried out
by March 2014 These children will undergo ultrasonography once every two years until they turn20 and once every five years for the rest of their lives
When lumps and other suspected symptoms are detected children will receive detailed
examinations including blood tests
Separate studies of internal exposure started in late June covering all 2 million residents of
Fukushima Prefecture In preliminary examinations internal exposure levels were measured using
whole-body counters for about 180 residents of Iitate Kawamata and other areas where high
radiation levels were detected
Initial estimates are that all residents internal radiation levels over several decades will not exceed 1
millisievert per person officials say
TEPCO to add more than 4000 radiation
experts20110819
Share Article
A resident from Fukushima Prefecture gets checked out for radiation exposure in Mito
Ibaraki Prefecture on March 15 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The government and TEPCO plan to bring in more than 4000 experts to measure radiation levels
and manage workers exposure to radioactivity to end the crisis at the quake-crippled Fukushima
No 1 nuclear power plant
Tokyo Electric Power Co said it will need more experts to measure radiation levels not only at the
Fukushima plant but in municipalities around the plant where residents will return once evacuationorders are lifted
Under the plan to bring the nuclear crisis to an end which was revised on Aug 17 about 4000
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 36
experts will be trained in radiation measurements and about 250 in exposure management
TEPCO said it will need more measurement experts in addition to the current corps of about
2500--1900 at the company and its affiliates who have already received training and 600 from
other electric power companies
Separately about 250 workers will acquire more advanced knowledge and manage workers
exposure to radioactivity within the stricken facility northeast of TokyoIt is difficult to secure a sufficient number of these experts because they often have to work in areas
with high radiation levels
TEPCO is also trying to find electricians and other engineers through the Japan Atomic Industrial
Forum which is made up of companies involved in the nuclear power industry
Professor develops new method for
decontaminating soilBY NOBUTARO KAJI STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
A simple system that combines washing and sieving contaminated soil to remove radioactive
cesium which could be utilized near the crippled Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has been
developed by a Kyoto University team
The team led by associate professor Haruhiko Toyohara said the system should be of great use
especially when decontaminating soil containing little clay such as the topsoil in a houses garden
and parks
The new system will be presented at the September meeting of the Japanese Society of Fisheries
Science in Nagasaki Nagasaki Prefecture
Toyohara experimented with the system using the soil from a park in Koriyama Fukushima
Prefecture about 60 kilometers west of the Fukushima No 1 plant The soil contains 3000 to 5000
becquerels of radioactive cesium per kilogram with the weight of fine clay in the soil comprising
only 4 percent of the total
When washing the soil through a sieve using a scrubbing brush about 88 percent of cesium in thesoil was transferred to the water All cesium in the water was then gathered on the bottom of a
container using a chemical agent When sieving the washed soil to remove fine clay about 99
percent of the cesium initially contained in the soil was eliminated
The weight of contaminated soil removed through the process--the amount of the soil on the bottom
and clay separated by sieving--was reduced to only 5 percent of the total of the original soil
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 46
Nation hit by A-bombs placed big bet on
nuclear powerBY YUTAKA SHIOKURA STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
Workers install the pressure container of the No 1 reactor at the Fukushima No 1
nuclear power plant in May 1969 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The accident at the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has led to magazine articles and
publications that are trying to unravel how two competing images of Japan emerged in modern
history--the nation devastated by the atomic bombings in August 1945 going on to become one of
the major users of nuclear power plants
One aspect that has emerged in those discussions is the role played by the theory that Japan
promoted nuclear energy just because it was the victim of an atomic bombing
On the July 23 broadcast of a TV debate program Italian journalist Pio DEmilia asked Why did a
nation that has the legacy of Hiroshima ever allow so easily the construction of nuclear power
plants
A response was given by Michio Ishikawa a supreme adviser at the Japan Nuclear Technology
Institute who was born before August 1945 and who was involved in nuclear power development
from the earliest stages after the end of World War II
The gist of Ishikawas response was that in his generation many nuclear energy researchers were in
Hiroshima on Aug 6 1945 when the atomic bomb was dropped or in Nagasaki three days later
when the second bomb was dropped All those researchers became involved in nuclear energy on
the grounds of peaceful use of the technology and to use it to improve peoples lives Ishikawa
said
The explanation can be boiled down to one of promoting nuclear energy not in spite of the atomic
bombing but because of it
In the June issue of the magazine Impaction Mikiyo Kano a scholar of womens history discovers
such a thinking of just because in the arguments of the late Mitsuo Taketani who was a major
proponent of the peaceful use of nuclear technology
In the November 1952 issue of Kaizo magazine Taketani argued that the Japanese have the greatest
right to research a peaceful nuclear energy technology because they are the only victims of an
atomic bombing
Some researchers have tried to delve into the psychology that led to the spread of the just because
theory
In the August issue of the magazine Sekai (World) Toshiyuki Tanaka a professor at the Hiroshima
Peace Institute under the Hiroshima City University wrote Because the hibakusha were injured by
the atomic bombing the slogan of The object that took your lives can in fact not only be used to
treat cancer but is also an energy source that can provide a strong life force was accepted by them
as a message of in a sense salvation
Others point to a different psychology at work among the hibakusha
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 56
In the June issue of Shincho 45 the critic Morihide Katayama writes that in the deep roots of the
call for peaceful use of nuclear technology lay a grassroots sense of vengeance
That would be achieved by using the hatred held toward the United States for using the atomic
bombs on them to skillfully utilize that same nuclear technology One aspect of that argument is to
repay the loss of war due to science by using that science
The just because thinking is also related to the emergence in Japan of the myth that nuclear energy was safe
In the June issue of Gendai Shiso (Modern philosophy) the historian Hisato Nakajima focuses on
the process behind the establishment of the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant
He explained how an employee of Tokyo Electric Power Co tried to placate concerns held by local
residents that nuclear power plants were just as dangerous as an atomic bomb
The TEPCO employee apparently gave the following argument to gain consent
I witnessed the atomic bombing and my older brother was killed by it For that reason I
understand the dangers of nuclear technology much better than all of you If someone like me who
lost relatives to the atomic bombing had even a little concern I would not be able to comply even if it was company policy
Because Japan was a victim of the atomic bombing an even stronger myth about nuclear energy
safety would be required for residents and those employees working at the plant
Nakajima points to the possibility of such unique historical circumstances to explain how that safety
myth developed
The sociology researcher Hiroshi Kainuma is in the spotlight for his book Fukushima ron (On
Fukushima) which looks into what nuclear energy meant for Fukushima Prefecture
In his book Kainuma describes nuclear energy as something with the image of being at the cutting
edge of modernityIn explaining what common thread existed between the atomic bomb and nuclear power plants
Kainuma said The cutting edge of modernity is the glory of war and growth
He added The glory of growth in terms of economic prosperity and democratization and the glory
of war in terms of liberation from fascism and the liberation of Asia Both are modern ideals and
that is the reason people observed overwhelming modernity in both nuclear plants and atomic
bombs
This summer the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization made up of
hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki decided on a clear policy of moving away from nuclear
energy through the gradual decommissioning of all nuclear reactors
That represents a major turning point for an organization which since its establishment in 1956
never called for a society that had zero nuclear plants
Japans history of nuclear energy would likely never have begun without inclusion of the thinking of
just because the nation was hit by the atomic bombs
To understand that complicated picture there will likely be a need for a comprehensive re-
examination of Japans modern history including the period of rapid economic growth and the
nuclear strategy of the United States
Fukushima kids take case to Tokyo but get no satisfaction
20110819
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 66
Children from elementary and junior high schools in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture meet with
government officials in Tokyo on Aug 17 to talk about their lives since the March 11 nuclear crisis
(Hiroyuki Yamamoto)
They came looking for answers and left feeling brushed off
More than five months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake crippled the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant on March 11 and children in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture are
desperate to get their lives back to normal They took their case to the central government on Aug
17 and were far from satisfied with the results
Four children from the prefecture all from elementary and junior high schools visited the First
Members Office Building of the Lower House in the capitals Chiyoda Ward
Directly addressing government officials tasked with handling the crisis and bureaucrats in the
education ministry the children spoke about the hardships they have endured since the onset of the
crisis
I want government officials to allow my school friends to evacuate to the same area together saidone student a 13-year-old girl from Miharu who evacuated to Tokyo in June
The girl added that she was deeply saddened at being transferred to another school She also said
she does not understand why people in the prefecture had to experience such tremendous adversity
given that the plant supplied electricity to people in Tokyo
Stumped by the questions from the children the government officials repeatedly responded We
will do our best
At a news conference following the meeting an 11-year-old boy said he didnt understand why the
officials did not take their questions seriously even though they are adults
The children also submitted about 40 letters from other children from the prefecture One letter read Can I bear a healthy child and Until what age can I survive while another said Dear
Prime Minister Naoto Kan I want all nuclear power plants to be stopped
The 13-year-old girl said she wants to know what the government thinks about the letters She
wanted Kan more than anybody else to attend the meeting she said
About 300 people from the Tokyo area and other parts of Japan attended the meeting A 10-year-old
boy from Tokyos Kunitachi who was accompanied by his mother to the meeting said I was truly
touched because the children talked in their own words and the meeting made me realize that both
adults and children have to give more serious thought to the issue
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 36
experts will be trained in radiation measurements and about 250 in exposure management
TEPCO said it will need more measurement experts in addition to the current corps of about
2500--1900 at the company and its affiliates who have already received training and 600 from
other electric power companies
Separately about 250 workers will acquire more advanced knowledge and manage workers
exposure to radioactivity within the stricken facility northeast of TokyoIt is difficult to secure a sufficient number of these experts because they often have to work in areas
with high radiation levels
TEPCO is also trying to find electricians and other engineers through the Japan Atomic Industrial
Forum which is made up of companies involved in the nuclear power industry
Professor develops new method for
decontaminating soilBY NOBUTARO KAJI STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
A simple system that combines washing and sieving contaminated soil to remove radioactive
cesium which could be utilized near the crippled Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has been
developed by a Kyoto University team
The team led by associate professor Haruhiko Toyohara said the system should be of great use
especially when decontaminating soil containing little clay such as the topsoil in a houses garden
and parks
The new system will be presented at the September meeting of the Japanese Society of Fisheries
Science in Nagasaki Nagasaki Prefecture
Toyohara experimented with the system using the soil from a park in Koriyama Fukushima
Prefecture about 60 kilometers west of the Fukushima No 1 plant The soil contains 3000 to 5000
becquerels of radioactive cesium per kilogram with the weight of fine clay in the soil comprising
only 4 percent of the total
When washing the soil through a sieve using a scrubbing brush about 88 percent of cesium in thesoil was transferred to the water All cesium in the water was then gathered on the bottom of a
container using a chemical agent When sieving the washed soil to remove fine clay about 99
percent of the cesium initially contained in the soil was eliminated
The weight of contaminated soil removed through the process--the amount of the soil on the bottom
and clay separated by sieving--was reduced to only 5 percent of the total of the original soil
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 46
Nation hit by A-bombs placed big bet on
nuclear powerBY YUTAKA SHIOKURA STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
Workers install the pressure container of the No 1 reactor at the Fukushima No 1
nuclear power plant in May 1969 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The accident at the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has led to magazine articles and
publications that are trying to unravel how two competing images of Japan emerged in modern
history--the nation devastated by the atomic bombings in August 1945 going on to become one of
the major users of nuclear power plants
One aspect that has emerged in those discussions is the role played by the theory that Japan
promoted nuclear energy just because it was the victim of an atomic bombing
On the July 23 broadcast of a TV debate program Italian journalist Pio DEmilia asked Why did a
nation that has the legacy of Hiroshima ever allow so easily the construction of nuclear power
plants
A response was given by Michio Ishikawa a supreme adviser at the Japan Nuclear Technology
Institute who was born before August 1945 and who was involved in nuclear power development
from the earliest stages after the end of World War II
The gist of Ishikawas response was that in his generation many nuclear energy researchers were in
Hiroshima on Aug 6 1945 when the atomic bomb was dropped or in Nagasaki three days later
when the second bomb was dropped All those researchers became involved in nuclear energy on
the grounds of peaceful use of the technology and to use it to improve peoples lives Ishikawa
said
The explanation can be boiled down to one of promoting nuclear energy not in spite of the atomic
bombing but because of it
In the June issue of the magazine Impaction Mikiyo Kano a scholar of womens history discovers
such a thinking of just because in the arguments of the late Mitsuo Taketani who was a major
proponent of the peaceful use of nuclear technology
In the November 1952 issue of Kaizo magazine Taketani argued that the Japanese have the greatest
right to research a peaceful nuclear energy technology because they are the only victims of an
atomic bombing
Some researchers have tried to delve into the psychology that led to the spread of the just because
theory
In the August issue of the magazine Sekai (World) Toshiyuki Tanaka a professor at the Hiroshima
Peace Institute under the Hiroshima City University wrote Because the hibakusha were injured by
the atomic bombing the slogan of The object that took your lives can in fact not only be used to
treat cancer but is also an energy source that can provide a strong life force was accepted by them
as a message of in a sense salvation
Others point to a different psychology at work among the hibakusha
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 56
In the June issue of Shincho 45 the critic Morihide Katayama writes that in the deep roots of the
call for peaceful use of nuclear technology lay a grassroots sense of vengeance
That would be achieved by using the hatred held toward the United States for using the atomic
bombs on them to skillfully utilize that same nuclear technology One aspect of that argument is to
repay the loss of war due to science by using that science
The just because thinking is also related to the emergence in Japan of the myth that nuclear energy was safe
In the June issue of Gendai Shiso (Modern philosophy) the historian Hisato Nakajima focuses on
the process behind the establishment of the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant
He explained how an employee of Tokyo Electric Power Co tried to placate concerns held by local
residents that nuclear power plants were just as dangerous as an atomic bomb
The TEPCO employee apparently gave the following argument to gain consent
I witnessed the atomic bombing and my older brother was killed by it For that reason I
understand the dangers of nuclear technology much better than all of you If someone like me who
lost relatives to the atomic bombing had even a little concern I would not be able to comply even if it was company policy
Because Japan was a victim of the atomic bombing an even stronger myth about nuclear energy
safety would be required for residents and those employees working at the plant
Nakajima points to the possibility of such unique historical circumstances to explain how that safety
myth developed
The sociology researcher Hiroshi Kainuma is in the spotlight for his book Fukushima ron (On
Fukushima) which looks into what nuclear energy meant for Fukushima Prefecture
In his book Kainuma describes nuclear energy as something with the image of being at the cutting
edge of modernityIn explaining what common thread existed between the atomic bomb and nuclear power plants
Kainuma said The cutting edge of modernity is the glory of war and growth
He added The glory of growth in terms of economic prosperity and democratization and the glory
of war in terms of liberation from fascism and the liberation of Asia Both are modern ideals and
that is the reason people observed overwhelming modernity in both nuclear plants and atomic
bombs
This summer the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization made up of
hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki decided on a clear policy of moving away from nuclear
energy through the gradual decommissioning of all nuclear reactors
That represents a major turning point for an organization which since its establishment in 1956
never called for a society that had zero nuclear plants
Japans history of nuclear energy would likely never have begun without inclusion of the thinking of
just because the nation was hit by the atomic bombs
To understand that complicated picture there will likely be a need for a comprehensive re-
examination of Japans modern history including the period of rapid economic growth and the
nuclear strategy of the United States
Fukushima kids take case to Tokyo but get no satisfaction
20110819
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 66
Children from elementary and junior high schools in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture meet with
government officials in Tokyo on Aug 17 to talk about their lives since the March 11 nuclear crisis
(Hiroyuki Yamamoto)
They came looking for answers and left feeling brushed off
More than five months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake crippled the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant on March 11 and children in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture are
desperate to get their lives back to normal They took their case to the central government on Aug
17 and were far from satisfied with the results
Four children from the prefecture all from elementary and junior high schools visited the First
Members Office Building of the Lower House in the capitals Chiyoda Ward
Directly addressing government officials tasked with handling the crisis and bureaucrats in the
education ministry the children spoke about the hardships they have endured since the onset of the
crisis
I want government officials to allow my school friends to evacuate to the same area together saidone student a 13-year-old girl from Miharu who evacuated to Tokyo in June
The girl added that she was deeply saddened at being transferred to another school She also said
she does not understand why people in the prefecture had to experience such tremendous adversity
given that the plant supplied electricity to people in Tokyo
Stumped by the questions from the children the government officials repeatedly responded We
will do our best
At a news conference following the meeting an 11-year-old boy said he didnt understand why the
officials did not take their questions seriously even though they are adults
The children also submitted about 40 letters from other children from the prefecture One letter read Can I bear a healthy child and Until what age can I survive while another said Dear
Prime Minister Naoto Kan I want all nuclear power plants to be stopped
The 13-year-old girl said she wants to know what the government thinks about the letters She
wanted Kan more than anybody else to attend the meeting she said
About 300 people from the Tokyo area and other parts of Japan attended the meeting A 10-year-old
boy from Tokyos Kunitachi who was accompanied by his mother to the meeting said I was truly
touched because the children talked in their own words and the meeting made me realize that both
adults and children have to give more serious thought to the issue
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 46
Nation hit by A-bombs placed big bet on
nuclear powerBY YUTAKA SHIOKURA STAFF WRITER
20110821
Share Article
Workers install the pressure container of the No 1 reactor at the Fukushima No 1
nuclear power plant in May 1969 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The accident at the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant has led to magazine articles and
publications that are trying to unravel how two competing images of Japan emerged in modern
history--the nation devastated by the atomic bombings in August 1945 going on to become one of
the major users of nuclear power plants
One aspect that has emerged in those discussions is the role played by the theory that Japan
promoted nuclear energy just because it was the victim of an atomic bombing
On the July 23 broadcast of a TV debate program Italian journalist Pio DEmilia asked Why did a
nation that has the legacy of Hiroshima ever allow so easily the construction of nuclear power
plants
A response was given by Michio Ishikawa a supreme adviser at the Japan Nuclear Technology
Institute who was born before August 1945 and who was involved in nuclear power development
from the earliest stages after the end of World War II
The gist of Ishikawas response was that in his generation many nuclear energy researchers were in
Hiroshima on Aug 6 1945 when the atomic bomb was dropped or in Nagasaki three days later
when the second bomb was dropped All those researchers became involved in nuclear energy on
the grounds of peaceful use of the technology and to use it to improve peoples lives Ishikawa
said
The explanation can be boiled down to one of promoting nuclear energy not in spite of the atomic
bombing but because of it
In the June issue of the magazine Impaction Mikiyo Kano a scholar of womens history discovers
such a thinking of just because in the arguments of the late Mitsuo Taketani who was a major
proponent of the peaceful use of nuclear technology
In the November 1952 issue of Kaizo magazine Taketani argued that the Japanese have the greatest
right to research a peaceful nuclear energy technology because they are the only victims of an
atomic bombing
Some researchers have tried to delve into the psychology that led to the spread of the just because
theory
In the August issue of the magazine Sekai (World) Toshiyuki Tanaka a professor at the Hiroshima
Peace Institute under the Hiroshima City University wrote Because the hibakusha were injured by
the atomic bombing the slogan of The object that took your lives can in fact not only be used to
treat cancer but is also an energy source that can provide a strong life force was accepted by them
as a message of in a sense salvation
Others point to a different psychology at work among the hibakusha
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 56
In the June issue of Shincho 45 the critic Morihide Katayama writes that in the deep roots of the
call for peaceful use of nuclear technology lay a grassroots sense of vengeance
That would be achieved by using the hatred held toward the United States for using the atomic
bombs on them to skillfully utilize that same nuclear technology One aspect of that argument is to
repay the loss of war due to science by using that science
The just because thinking is also related to the emergence in Japan of the myth that nuclear energy was safe
In the June issue of Gendai Shiso (Modern philosophy) the historian Hisato Nakajima focuses on
the process behind the establishment of the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant
He explained how an employee of Tokyo Electric Power Co tried to placate concerns held by local
residents that nuclear power plants were just as dangerous as an atomic bomb
The TEPCO employee apparently gave the following argument to gain consent
I witnessed the atomic bombing and my older brother was killed by it For that reason I
understand the dangers of nuclear technology much better than all of you If someone like me who
lost relatives to the atomic bombing had even a little concern I would not be able to comply even if it was company policy
Because Japan was a victim of the atomic bombing an even stronger myth about nuclear energy
safety would be required for residents and those employees working at the plant
Nakajima points to the possibility of such unique historical circumstances to explain how that safety
myth developed
The sociology researcher Hiroshi Kainuma is in the spotlight for his book Fukushima ron (On
Fukushima) which looks into what nuclear energy meant for Fukushima Prefecture
In his book Kainuma describes nuclear energy as something with the image of being at the cutting
edge of modernityIn explaining what common thread existed between the atomic bomb and nuclear power plants
Kainuma said The cutting edge of modernity is the glory of war and growth
He added The glory of growth in terms of economic prosperity and democratization and the glory
of war in terms of liberation from fascism and the liberation of Asia Both are modern ideals and
that is the reason people observed overwhelming modernity in both nuclear plants and atomic
bombs
This summer the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization made up of
hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki decided on a clear policy of moving away from nuclear
energy through the gradual decommissioning of all nuclear reactors
That represents a major turning point for an organization which since its establishment in 1956
never called for a society that had zero nuclear plants
Japans history of nuclear energy would likely never have begun without inclusion of the thinking of
just because the nation was hit by the atomic bombs
To understand that complicated picture there will likely be a need for a comprehensive re-
examination of Japans modern history including the period of rapid economic growth and the
nuclear strategy of the United States
Fukushima kids take case to Tokyo but get no satisfaction
20110819
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 66
Children from elementary and junior high schools in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture meet with
government officials in Tokyo on Aug 17 to talk about their lives since the March 11 nuclear crisis
(Hiroyuki Yamamoto)
They came looking for answers and left feeling brushed off
More than five months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake crippled the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant on March 11 and children in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture are
desperate to get their lives back to normal They took their case to the central government on Aug
17 and were far from satisfied with the results
Four children from the prefecture all from elementary and junior high schools visited the First
Members Office Building of the Lower House in the capitals Chiyoda Ward
Directly addressing government officials tasked with handling the crisis and bureaucrats in the
education ministry the children spoke about the hardships they have endured since the onset of the
crisis
I want government officials to allow my school friends to evacuate to the same area together saidone student a 13-year-old girl from Miharu who evacuated to Tokyo in June
The girl added that she was deeply saddened at being transferred to another school She also said
she does not understand why people in the prefecture had to experience such tremendous adversity
given that the plant supplied electricity to people in Tokyo
Stumped by the questions from the children the government officials repeatedly responded We
will do our best
At a news conference following the meeting an 11-year-old boy said he didnt understand why the
officials did not take their questions seriously even though they are adults
The children also submitted about 40 letters from other children from the prefecture One letter read Can I bear a healthy child and Until what age can I survive while another said Dear
Prime Minister Naoto Kan I want all nuclear power plants to be stopped
The 13-year-old girl said she wants to know what the government thinks about the letters She
wanted Kan more than anybody else to attend the meeting she said
About 300 people from the Tokyo area and other parts of Japan attended the meeting A 10-year-old
boy from Tokyos Kunitachi who was accompanied by his mother to the meeting said I was truly
touched because the children talked in their own words and the meeting made me realize that both
adults and children have to give more serious thought to the issue
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 56
In the June issue of Shincho 45 the critic Morihide Katayama writes that in the deep roots of the
call for peaceful use of nuclear technology lay a grassroots sense of vengeance
That would be achieved by using the hatred held toward the United States for using the atomic
bombs on them to skillfully utilize that same nuclear technology One aspect of that argument is to
repay the loss of war due to science by using that science
The just because thinking is also related to the emergence in Japan of the myth that nuclear energy was safe
In the June issue of Gendai Shiso (Modern philosophy) the historian Hisato Nakajima focuses on
the process behind the establishment of the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant
He explained how an employee of Tokyo Electric Power Co tried to placate concerns held by local
residents that nuclear power plants were just as dangerous as an atomic bomb
The TEPCO employee apparently gave the following argument to gain consent
I witnessed the atomic bombing and my older brother was killed by it For that reason I
understand the dangers of nuclear technology much better than all of you If someone like me who
lost relatives to the atomic bombing had even a little concern I would not be able to comply even if it was company policy
Because Japan was a victim of the atomic bombing an even stronger myth about nuclear energy
safety would be required for residents and those employees working at the plant
Nakajima points to the possibility of such unique historical circumstances to explain how that safety
myth developed
The sociology researcher Hiroshi Kainuma is in the spotlight for his book Fukushima ron (On
Fukushima) which looks into what nuclear energy meant for Fukushima Prefecture
In his book Kainuma describes nuclear energy as something with the image of being at the cutting
edge of modernityIn explaining what common thread existed between the atomic bomb and nuclear power plants
Kainuma said The cutting edge of modernity is the glory of war and growth
He added The glory of growth in terms of economic prosperity and democratization and the glory
of war in terms of liberation from fascism and the liberation of Asia Both are modern ideals and
that is the reason people observed overwhelming modernity in both nuclear plants and atomic
bombs
This summer the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organization made up of
hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki decided on a clear policy of moving away from nuclear
energy through the gradual decommissioning of all nuclear reactors
That represents a major turning point for an organization which since its establishment in 1956
never called for a society that had zero nuclear plants
Japans history of nuclear energy would likely never have begun without inclusion of the thinking of
just because the nation was hit by the atomic bombs
To understand that complicated picture there will likely be a need for a comprehensive re-
examination of Japans modern history including the period of rapid economic growth and the
nuclear strategy of the United States
Fukushima kids take case to Tokyo but get no satisfaction
20110819
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 66
Children from elementary and junior high schools in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture meet with
government officials in Tokyo on Aug 17 to talk about their lives since the March 11 nuclear crisis
(Hiroyuki Yamamoto)
They came looking for answers and left feeling brushed off
More than five months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake crippled the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant on March 11 and children in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture are
desperate to get their lives back to normal They took their case to the central government on Aug
17 and were far from satisfied with the results
Four children from the prefecture all from elementary and junior high schools visited the First
Members Office Building of the Lower House in the capitals Chiyoda Ward
Directly addressing government officials tasked with handling the crisis and bureaucrats in the
education ministry the children spoke about the hardships they have endured since the onset of the
crisis
I want government officials to allow my school friends to evacuate to the same area together saidone student a 13-year-old girl from Miharu who evacuated to Tokyo in June
The girl added that she was deeply saddened at being transferred to another school She also said
she does not understand why people in the prefecture had to experience such tremendous adversity
given that the plant supplied electricity to people in Tokyo
Stumped by the questions from the children the government officials repeatedly responded We
will do our best
At a news conference following the meeting an 11-year-old boy said he didnt understand why the
officials did not take their questions seriously even though they are adults
The children also submitted about 40 letters from other children from the prefecture One letter read Can I bear a healthy child and Until what age can I survive while another said Dear
Prime Minister Naoto Kan I want all nuclear power plants to be stopped
The 13-year-old girl said she wants to know what the government thinks about the letters She
wanted Kan more than anybody else to attend the meeting she said
About 300 people from the Tokyo area and other parts of Japan attended the meeting A 10-year-old
boy from Tokyos Kunitachi who was accompanied by his mother to the meeting said I was truly
touched because the children talked in their own words and the meeting made me realize that both
adults and children have to give more serious thought to the issue
832019 News August 21
httpslidepdfcomreaderfullnews-august-21 66
Children from elementary and junior high schools in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture meet with
government officials in Tokyo on Aug 17 to talk about their lives since the March 11 nuclear crisis
(Hiroyuki Yamamoto)
They came looking for answers and left feeling brushed off
More than five months have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake crippled the Fukushima No 1 nuclear power plant on March 11 and children in disaster-hit Fukushima Prefecture are
desperate to get their lives back to normal They took their case to the central government on Aug
17 and were far from satisfied with the results
Four children from the prefecture all from elementary and junior high schools visited the First
Members Office Building of the Lower House in the capitals Chiyoda Ward
Directly addressing government officials tasked with handling the crisis and bureaucrats in the
education ministry the children spoke about the hardships they have endured since the onset of the
crisis
I want government officials to allow my school friends to evacuate to the same area together saidone student a 13-year-old girl from Miharu who evacuated to Tokyo in June
The girl added that she was deeply saddened at being transferred to another school She also said
she does not understand why people in the prefecture had to experience such tremendous adversity
given that the plant supplied electricity to people in Tokyo
Stumped by the questions from the children the government officials repeatedly responded We
will do our best
At a news conference following the meeting an 11-year-old boy said he didnt understand why the
officials did not take their questions seriously even though they are adults
The children also submitted about 40 letters from other children from the prefecture One letter read Can I bear a healthy child and Until what age can I survive while another said Dear
Prime Minister Naoto Kan I want all nuclear power plants to be stopped
The 13-year-old girl said she wants to know what the government thinks about the letters She
wanted Kan more than anybody else to attend the meeting she said
About 300 people from the Tokyo area and other parts of Japan attended the meeting A 10-year-old
boy from Tokyos Kunitachi who was accompanied by his mother to the meeting said I was truly
touched because the children talked in their own words and the meeting made me realize that both
adults and children have to give more serious thought to the issue