Radioactive strontium found in 3 locations in Tokyo

I'm actually surprised they found any soil outside the International Forum in Yurakucho- that is a pretty concreted-over area.

How many locations was radiocative strontium not found in tokyo and yokohama?

It's not from Fukushima, eh? Well, here's a news flash for j-gov: IT'S STILL NOT SUPPOSED TO BE THERE!!

gaijinTechie.

Agree, but I am sure if the same level of checking(as is happening now in Japan) was done in overseas locations quiet a few eye-brows would get raised and quiet a few heads would start rolling.

Presence alone don't indicate if it was there from a long time or a new "addition".

There is an old proverb "The guards are the most vigilant and alert after the fact.". Who guards the guards guarding the guards?

Tokyo Olympic Bid for 2020? Clean up first.

It''S ME

Exactly what I was thinking. People in other, supposedly "radiation free" countries should take this as a hint to maybe scan their neighborhoods for radiation. I know measuring radiation isn't as easy as pointing your Geiger at stuff, but even if the measurements are not exact, it would still identify sources of radiation which could then be measured by experts.

People in Western countries often get cancer despite a healthy lifestyle. Well, who knows if those people haven't spent decades living next to a buried crate of of uranium paint or an unfortunate hotspot of radiation caused by past events such as atomic bomb tests? If you spend many years next to a radiation source, the likeliness to get cancer does rise.

But I fear the West will once again be content with pointing at the "sheepish Japanese" who "don't put their government under enough scrutiny", while believing in their alleged superior position of "it couldn't happen here!"

I have found some relatively high cesium. 2.4 Usually found in dry mud near drainage areas. It accumulates with run off.

So where is it from, then? The fact is the government has and will continue to lie as it pleases, regardless of the true source of this contamination. I imagine they can find strontium anywhere they look in Tokyo.

It took a citizens group to find it, quite easily I gather. Not the Government nor TEPCO. Half life of 28 odd years...guess I can start smoking again. After all WHO can tell where the cancer came from?

An excerpt from Wikipedia.......

"Strontium-90 is a "bone seeker" that exhibits biochemical behavior similar to calcium, the next lighter Group 2 element. After entering the organism, most often by ingestion with contaminated food or water, about 70–80% of the dose gets excreted. Virtually all remaining strontium-90 is deposited in bones and bone marrow, with the remaining 1% remaining in blood and soft tissues. Its presence in bones can cause bone cancer, cancer of nearby tissues, and leukemia. Exposure to 90Sr can be tested by a bioassay, most commonly by urinalysis."

As I have said, if you don't have an exit strategy ,then start planning now!

well that's no surprise,it's all over japan, do your best japan!!

@Darren Brannan hahahaha funny! lol!!

@kurisupisu

After well over a decade in Japan my life was planned out. I imagined working to retirement and then moving, with my wife, to Okinawa to enjoy the golden years. But on March 11th that dream was shattered. Come the next day when I saw the first reactor explode I knew it was time to leave Tokyo as soon as possible. My wife and I made all the necessary arrangements to have our belongings shipped abroad and contacted our apartment rental company to pay off the last month's rent and give our notice. We cancelled all our utilities and took care of all other loose ends. We then went to the far south of Japan and from there planned our exit from Japan.

I have been in a state of complete and utter horror and shock since that day. I follow the online news daily (hourly) since that day and am thoroughly dismayed at the handling the Japanese government, TEPCO, and the media (Japanese and foreign). I feared that they would downplay and coverup but never could I have suspected the magnitude of what has transpired (and still is) in Japan. I am beyond words when I think of the invisible death and destruction that Fukushima Daiichi has and will wrought to Japan and its beautiful people.

I think the worst thing about this all is the feeling of helplessness and hopelessness about it all. I am so very shocked to see video of Tokyo and other areas further north where people are just going about their daily lives as though everything is ok and the food is safe. If the radioactive fallout was a visible threat (like Godzilla for example) they would flee in terror but this invisible monster is slowly and silently doing what it does and people are none the wiser. Truly horrific beyond imagination.

ssway you really should've stayed. i know for sure even when bad things happen like march 11 i would stay in japan. i won't let radiation fear or any kind of fear take over my life. we all die eventually.

anyways your decision but if i was in your shoes i would stay and pretend nothing happened.

One thing to consider is that never before anybody took measurements from the same spots. We need comparable data now/before March 11 to make precise conclusions for certain area. Of coarse to a certain extend with the isotope ratio it can be determined if it is from Fukushima or from previous events but still precise study is not possible.

And I wonder why they don't mention the name of this citizens group? Are they minors or what? It seems they are doing good job and public should be aware of where this group to be found.

@ssway-I am very glad that you and your wife are in a safer place-you made the right decision at the right time.Part of the problem is that the threat is invisible and can creep insidiously into our lives no matter who we are. Still,the lack of education and misinformation concerning this issue in Japan is astounding.The official line is that radiation is mostly harmless and in some cases good for you.It doesn't seem to matter that radioactive cesium and strontium keep appearing in major conurbations such as Tokyo and Yokohama with increasing regularity. The marketing and sale of radioactive goods ,raising exposure limits etc will seriously affect the population here. Also,the decision to burn radioactive debris is going to compound the situation far into the future. The present generation might not feel the results of this mistake but the next most certainly will.

I agree with your opinion that it is 'truly horrific beyond imagination'

@LH10 as I said in a previous post; 'ignorance is bliss,' until it kills you!

Riddle me this, If the accident occurred more than 8 months ago, and the half life of strontium 89 is 50 days, why in the He** would they expect to find it? Either I am missing something or they are incredibly stupid, or think we are...

It could just be from ceramics a small not-radioactive amount exist in the material

Half life is 29 years. Quarter life is 58 years. Eighth life is 87 years. Still active after 100 years.

So it could have come from all the atmospheric testing done by China in the 60s and 70s, or it could have come from Hiroshima or Nagasaki, both upwind of Tokyo within the SW prevailing winds.

Still,the lack of education and misinformation concerning this issue in Japan is astounding.The official line is that radiation is mostly harmless and in some cases good for you.It doesn't seem to matter that radioactive cesium and strontium keep appearing in major conurbations such as Tokyo and Yokohama with increasing regularity.

@LH10 as I said in a previous post; 'ignorance is bliss,' until it kills you!

I do feel sad for those who really are terrified by the current situation - it is bad in Fukushima, but in Tokyo it will be pretty much life as normal if current sitaution prevails.

Large (?) amounts of fallout hit Tokyo on March 20-23, coinciding with the first rains after the earthquake - since then there hasn't really been large amounts, and most of the time, it is undetectable.

A 90 year old woman died of natural causes having slept on top of radium bottles for 40 years. People were worried about the level on the street, but she was literally on top of it.

There will be problems, there may even be deaths, but to treat it with such fear is probably not wise, and to give up your life because of that fear?

I honestly wish you well, but try not to think we are ignorant - that isn't fair.

Truly horrific beyond imagination.

What is truly horrific beyond imagination is what happened to the 20,000 people who were killed by the earthquake and tsunami in March 11. To say that the slightly raised risk of cancer we who are still in Tokyo may suffer from is "truly horrific" and "beyond imagination" shows a serious lack of perspective in my opinion.

Anyone who feels like this is definitely better off leaving though as they would certainly worry themselves to death long before cancer got them.

zichi

In a recent Tokyo Court case, lawyers stated to the court that once the radiation leaves the atomic power plant, it no longer belongs to TEPCO! LOL!

I actually like that theory. Lets expand on it if the radiation doesnt belong to TEPCO once it leaves the plant then neither does electricity so looks like free electricity once it leaves the plant.....

http://onhudson.typepad.com/onhudsoncom/2011/04/radiation-levels-in-cities-around-the-world-exceed-tokyo-today-is-that-a-comforting-thing-.html

This article gives an interesting comparison of radioactive levels around the world. Ssway, cross HK, NYC and Cornwall in the UK off your safe list!

Apparently, baby teeth from children living near nuclear power plants in the US have shown increased levels of strontium 90 in their bodies. In a few years, baby teeth from Fukushima and surrounding areas may be a good indicator of just how bad the situation really is. How Can I Protect Myself from Radiation in the Environment? While an unexpectedly high level of Strontium-90 may raise cancer risk, it does not guarantee illness. It may be possible to reduce risk through: eating a proper diet; taking antioxidants and calcium supplements; drinking water from distilled or reverse osmosis sources; and other healthy lifestyle practices.

want to lead a healthy life? for starters, move out of the 23 wards.

To those who downvoted me or disagreed with my choice I understand. We are all different and have our differing opinions and we are all equally entitled to them. I simply made the only choice I felt I could make. I left many friends, coworkers and relatives (both sides of the family) behind which has made for some rather awkward situations (especially the in-law side). I recall the strong anti-"flyjin" movement directly after the disaster which I found rather surprising from the foreigners online but again we all have our own opinions.

I will add that I felt, and still feel, an extreme sense of guilt or some sort of angst regarding my decision despite my conviction that it was the right choice. I could not accept my family becoming ill in 5-10 (or more) years if I had decided to stay. For me it was a "now or never" decision and I felt I had to take it. There were, and still are (even more so), so many unknowns as to what was transpiring that I could not rely on the media to tell the truth. The stakes were too high for me to accept so given that I had the resources and ability I took the chance and left.

To those telling me I made the wrong choice or I should have stayed since Tokyo is fine. My two concerns immediately following my seeing the first reactor explode was that the fallout would come to Tokyo and affect the air/water then following that would be the food. My thinking was even if we could avoid the air/water issue the food would be a serious hazard especially given the Japanese government's history (Minamata) and the long history of food mislabeling scandals.

Please understand that while I am writing about our own problems since 3-11 I fully realize that what we have experienced and went through is nothing compared to what others further North have experienced. I feel great sorrow for those who lost their precious lives in the Tsunami and others who have had to flee their homes due to the fallout.

Finally I wish that Japan can recover from this with all my heart. My soul is in Japan and I do not feel at home outside of it. I have faith in the strength and resilience of Japanese but despite this the government and TEPCO are systematically working to destroy everything whether they realize it or not.

It is unimaginable to me that any country, especially Japan, could let itself come to this. This is truly the tragedy of tragedies.

@ssway What is "anti-flyjin movement"?

@ssway : i 100% feel what u feel and agree.

My wife and I (US citizens) live in a western Tokyo suburb, and we're not going anywhere. Our children and grandchildren live here and we would never leave them. Radiation or no, this is our home now. I am in no way knocking those who move. You have to do what's right for you. On the flip side, how many thousands die each year from smoking-related diseases yet there's no panic and people continue to smoke?

Sensei258, well said.

Alcohol, smoking, drinking from plastic bottles, living near a highway, getting too much sun, taking too much vitamin E, A and/ or multivitamins, not getting enough exercise, too much salt, too little salt, meat, fish, apples, walking barefoot in the grass, the list goes on and on.

ssway, your last post has just made me cry. I truly understand. You may want to listen to a song of Weber "I Cry for Argentina, I have never left You". Anyway, I wish you the best. You derserve it.

Correcton to the above post-Don't Cry for me Argentina

Truth is no matter where in the world you go, if you took a radiation measuring device with you, you are bound to find locations / spots that have much higher levels of radiation readings that is not normal for the area. Be it a patch of mud, a puddle of water in a corner somewhere, the brick from a house etc etc.

To ssway. Well written. I really understand where you're coming from

To sensei258. I admire your loyalty to Japan, but cigarette smoking and what's happened in Fukushima is two totally different things.

@ ssway

you did right to get you and yours out of harms way. because this situation is not going to get better any time soon

@ssway. I totally understand what you are saying. No-one has the right to ridicule anyone who genuinely is just trying to do the best for his or her family. I haven't met anyone on this board yet who can predict the future or who has total in-depth knowledge of the situation in Japan at the moment. I am sure though that none of us predicted being flung into events post March 11th. Stay or go is a totally personal situation.

I thank you all for your kind words. I fully agree that it is an extremely personal choice and I cannot speak for those who have chosen to remain. While I disagree with their choice I respect it. It is their right as it is mine to leave. I do, however, take issue with those who compare the radioactive fallout to that of drinking alcohol or smoking however as the impact from the fallout is much greater as it will not only affect the parents but also the children and even the population growth as a whole.

The situation at Fukushima, despite what the the news would have us believe, is still highly unstable and the near and long term future impacts of this disaster are still unknown. There are many experts who chime on this matter but none can really "know" what will happen. We also do not know what may happen if another large earthquake and possibly tsunami hits the Fukushima (or other) area. Do you think the Daiichi site could possibly withstand any further damage (especially reactor #4's spent fuel pool)?

Again regarding my choice. I made up my mind rather quickly about leaving but to this day still feel conflicted. My rationale for the decision I mad was simple:

Option #1 - Stay in Japan.

Best case scenario - situation improves at Fukushima Daiichi, contaminated food is fully quarantined and no major health impact to populace. We made a risky choice but it worked out in the end and we are able to have a semblance of our previous life in Japan with a future for our children.

Worst case scenario - situation devolves resulting in medium to major health impact to populace of Japan (by means of fallout and food contamination). Future is bleak and health is a major concern at best. If we stayed in Japan and the worst case scenario occurs there is no option. Checkmate. This is the scenario I dread most as I could not accept it nor bear the responsibility for having made the choice (even if it was made with my family).

Option #2 - Leave Japan.

Best case scenario - situation improves at Fukushima Daiichi, contaminated food is fully quarantined and no major health impact to populace. I unnecessarily left Japan at great financial expense with some frayed relations to my in-laws and great remorse for leaving but we are able to live a healthy life and a semblance of our previous life. We can still come back to Japan in the future if we want.

Worst case scenario - situation devolves resulting in medium to major health impact to populace of Japan (by means of fallout and food contamination). Relieved we left but with great sorrow for those directly affected. Still very strong feelings of remorse and guilt for having left but will do our best to live our lives as best we can.

The above was essentially what I boiled my options and their possible outcomes to. When I was able to visualize this it made the difficult choice simple to see yet still difficult to carry out.

I, of course, wish for the best case scenario for all but I am not very optimistic given the secrecy and lies of the Japanese government and TEPCO. I remain hopeful however, very hopeful.

I do, however, take issue with those who compare the radioactive fallout to that of drinking alcohol or smoking however as the impact from the fallout is much greater as it will not only affect the parents but also the children and even the population growth as a whole.

Getting back to the article for just a second, the amounts of strontium were relatively small and somewhat localised. I understand form what you are writing that you believe these amounts to be more dangerous than the amount of smokers in Tokyo in terms of final number of deaths? You might want to revist that point. As someone raised in a family of smokers but never having smoked a single cigarette myself, I'm acutely aware of the danger I have been exposed to. Thankfully the world is changing because of peoples awareness of the dangers, and the science tells me that the levels we are seeing in Tokyo are just now worth worrying about. This isn't the Japanese governement, this isn't industry sponsored scientists, these are independant scientists (e.g. Oxford Professor) who have worked in the field and know it well. Let's not forget the amount of pollutants in the air from coal fired power stations, known to cause asthma, etc as well as diesel exhaust. I don't know where you moved to but I don't know of anywhere that is 100% safe from either natural or human originated threat.

So, try not to worry about it too much, you will probably end up with heart disease! Time to move on from the Cold War views of nuclear war fallout.

BTW - the locales immediately around Fukushima are a different matter - the levels are completely different.

@ssway - as others have said, you had to make what you believed was the best decision for you and your family. You made the right choice for yourself, and no one should have a problem with that. And I'm happy to note your last few posts have taken on a more considered tone. You also seem to now recognize that those who have decided to stay do not all have their heads buried in the sand.

Sorry to nit-pick, but you do contradict yourself in your last post, saying in the first paragraph that the radiation WILL affect parents and children, and then in the second paragraph saying that no one - even experts - know what will happen.

However, what we DO know for certain is that smoking leads to cancer. The evidence cannot be refuted. If you smoke, you raise the risk of cancer considerably. And if you smoke in your house, you raise the risk to your family considerably too. I feel the earlier comparisons stand.

The thing with the radiation situation is, it depends on where you are. Being in Tokyo is better than being in Fukushima, but being in Iwaki City is better than being in Minamisoma, and being in Osaka is better than being in Tokyo....it's not possible to say that we are all in danger and we are ignoring those dangers by remaining in Japan.

Too often on this site, if people say a particular incident does not raise the personal danger level significantly, you'll see posts coming back basically accusing them of having their heads in the sand and believing everything the government is telling them. When I look at the UK map showing radon deposits, I'm frankly appalled at the dangers I could be facing if I bought a house in some of the most scenic and idyllic places of my home country.

http://www.ukradon.org/map.php?map=englandwales

You made the right decision for your family and now have peace of mind. No one can complain about that. But no one should complain about those who have stayed either. I wish you and your family all the best.

@hatsoff - great link!

@ssway - the risk page on the link hatsoff provided has a vey good graphic way to see this - http://www.ukradon.org/article.php?key=risksradon.

1,000 deaths due to Radon related cancer vs 30,000 for smoking related (note the index has had to be broken to allow the difference between the minor values to be noticeable. This is for natural radiation is predominant in the environment, not small concentartions here and there. Also the risk of being an aircrew worker greater than working at a nuclear plant.

Hope it helps you get a clearer picture.

@gyouza

The science ministry of Japan has sampled (emissions 0f) 17,354 becquerels per square meter in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward. The modus operandi of sampling done in Japan is usually from the air, most of the contamination is at ground level! Can we expect to be able make a judgement based on factual information?

I doubt it.

Radiation accumulates in bones,teeth,muscle and fat.Ingestion of Strontium 90 (found in Tokyo) results in 30% of the ingested dose being absorbed by the body! What is background radiation 10 or 100 years ago, or now is immaterial,Exposure in an airplane cannot be compared to a situation in which reactors have fissioned out of containment. Quite simply,there has never been an event like the one at Fukushima.

There are only two ways to effectively reduce exposure to radiation. 1.Distance 2.Shielding.

Ssway took the logical step and left Japan;I am working on my exit right now as I can only see things becoming worse in the the future

The citizens of Japan are being led to believe that it acceptable to stay put-17,354 becquerels being emitted from areas in Tokyo is a cause for concern as it is a major health hazard.

First to those comparing radioactive contamination to smoking. I, nor anyone, in my family smoke so no comparison could be drawn for us. 1mg of Plutonium inhaled will more than likely cause cancer and damage DNA that would be passed on to children thus destroying the family line.

Just to note, I have never said I had any qualms with those who left nor do I ridicule them or otherwise. I completely disagree with the decision to stay but when it is not mine to make I can say nothing and of course many people simply have no choice due to financial and visa situations.

I will say that I believe the risk is much greater than we can understand at this time as there are too many unknowns (new hotspots being discovered on an ongoing basis), too much deception from officials to the public and the main point that the nuclear fuel is still open the outside air all this time. Finally add to this that the situation is extremely unstable and further (possibly greater) explosions may occur due to fuel hitting the water table, hydrogen gas explosions or other unforeseen dangers.

The point is that the situation is so unpredictable that the risks, IMO, outweigh any possible benefit in staying. As hard as the decision was for me to make, and even deal with now, I would still make the same decision again even spending my entire savings to do so.

I will add that I still do not feel safe where I am now as the jet stream is carrying the contaminants across the entire northern hemisphere but it was the best I could do.

@kurisupisu The figure you quoted for Shinjuku is actually much higher - 36,000 becquerels per sqm of fallout was registered in Hyakunincho on 3/22. The background radiation readings rose accordingly from 0.034 microsieverts per hour (3/14) to 0.14 on 3/23. The background readings are now down to 0.052 and have been in that region (0.06 and under) since early May. These are recorded daily and published. The people doing it are not making exit plans, and the government hasn't found the need t exit Tokyo yet - surely if they were in any way concerned they would have found a reason to relocate to Osaka or somewhere else. If they are lying to us, then they are also leaving themselves in danger, right?

But even with the elevated reading on March (it stayed above 0.1 microSv/h for ten days) it is still similar LESS than the background reading in HK (0.13~0.15). Current levels are lower than Singapore (0.09~0.1) and London (0.08 - although I'm trying to track a good source for these numbers - they may also be airborn).

@ssway The ongoing hotspots are interesting - two have been due to ancient radon discoveries, and the others are almost exclusively where large surface areas drain off into rain channels or ducts, etc - I'm not actually a scientist but this makes huge sense to me. The one thing that I completely and utterly agree with you on is that the situation is still unpredictable - but wasn't it the same before 3/11? I don't think anyone had a M9 quake on the tarot cards.

To sensei258. I admire your loyalty to Japan, but cigarette smoking and what's happened in Fukushima is two totally different things.

Justin - you are absolutely right, smoking is far more dangerous!

First to those comparing radioactive contamination to smoking. I, nor anyone, in my family smoke so no comparison could be drawn for us. 1mg of Plutonium inhaled will more than likely cause cancer and damage DNA that would be passed on to children thus destroying the family line.

Yes, but you are exposed to second hand smoke, smog, and other pollutants that are far more likely to cause you health problems in the future. 1mg of Plutonium? I hope you are not seriously worried about that. I think you need to read more on Plutonium if you think that is the case.

@Zichi - I love the scale used!

Good map Zichi-san. The scale is terrible though as gyouza mentions.