Australian teachers for Japan – in irradiated areas?
Australian teachers in Japan may be placed too close to leaky nuclear reactors, Liam Walsh ,The Courier-Mail August 20, 2011 A LEADING Japanese recruiter of teachers from Australia is placing recruits closer to leaky nuclear reactors than recommended by Canberra’s radiation safety agency.
The move by the Japanese Government-sponsored JET program reflects the gulf between what Japanese and other nations’ authorities constitute a safe distance……The program confirmed to The Courier-Mail that 31 new JET participants from English-speaking nations were offered placements within 80km of the nuclear plants. Three who took up the offer were Australians, JET said.
The Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency recommends Australians keep at least 80km away from the reactors.”As a precautionary measure … Australians within an 80km zone from the Fukushima nuclear power plant (are recommended to) move out of the area,” an advisory guide says….”The US had made a similar recommendation in accordance with the standard guidelines of their Nuclear Regulatory Commission.”
JET’s explanation document details that it might place participants closer to reactors than advised by foreign governments.– http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/national/australian-teachers-in-japan-may-be-placed-too-close-to-leaky-nuclear-reactors/story-e6freooo-1226118370859
World War 2 USA soldiers – radiation victims from Hiroshima and Nagasaki
When the servicemen returned to the United States, many of them suffered from strange rashes and sores. Years later some were afflicted with disease (such as thyroid problems and leukemia) or cancer associated with radiation exposure. Little could be proven beyond a doubt, and all of their disability and compensation claims were denied,
The Last Great Untold Story of World War II—and the Lingering Effects Today, THE NATION, Greg Mitchell, August 19, 2011 “……..Most of the [U.S.]troops in Hiroshima were based in camps on the edge of the city, but a larger number did set up camps inside Nagasaki. Because of the alleged absence of residual radiation, no one was urged to take precautions. Some bunked down in buildings close to ground zero, even slept on the earth and engaged in cleanup operations, including disposing bodies, without protective gear. Few if any wore radiation detection badges.
“We walked into Nagasaki unprepared…. Really, we were ignorant about what the hell the bomb was,” one soldier would recall. Another vet said: “Hell, we drank the water, we breathed the air, and we lived in the rubble. We did our duty.” Continue reading
Japanese women in Sydney host holidays for Fukushima children
In Japan they cannot go outside without masks, without worrying about radiation. Even in school at PE time, they have to stay indoors.
“So [here in Sydney] they are so happy to walk around, go to the beach, and be free without radiation.”
Fukushima children swap fear for fun, ABC 702 Sydney, Monique Ross, August 17, 2011 A Japanese woman living in Australia is helping children living in the shadow of the Fukushima nuclear crisis forget the worries plaguing their region – if only for a little while.
Many parents sent their children away from Fukushima in the aftermath of the March disaster and life has also changed for those who remain, with outside play heavily restricted. While watching the continuing crisis unfold from her home in Sydney, Yukiko Hirano decided to form the Sydney Rainbow Stay Project.
The program takes children away from the nuclear fears that hang over their lives in Japan and brings them to Sydney for a home-stay holiday. Continue reading
Australia’s Northern Territory seeking to have 20 renewable energy hub towns
Energy hubs planned for outback, NT News, ALYSSA BETTS | August 19th, 2011, PLANS are afoot to execute one big leap for Territory-kind-renewable energy hubs to free the bush of the tyranny of distance, diesel and degraded roads. Chief Minister Paul Henderson wants each of the 20 Territory growth towns to become independent energy hubs, using, in particular, solar technology. He is in Canberra for a Council of Australian Governments shindig and will today pitch the vision. Continue reading
Japan’s doctors finding radiation health problems
Doctors in Japan are already treating patients suffering health effects they attribute to radiation from the ongoing nuclear disaster.
“We have begun to see increased nosebleeds, stubborn cases of diarrhoea, and flu-like symptoms in children,” Dr Yuko Yanagisawa, a physician at Funabashi Futawa Hospital in Chiba Prefecture, told Al Jazeera.
Fukushima radiation alarms doctors , Aljazeera, .Dahr Jamail Japanese doctors warn of public health problems caused by Fukushima radiation.: 18 Aug 2011 , Scientists and doctors are calling for a new national policy in Japan that mandates the testing of food, soil, water, and the air for radioactivity still being emitted from Fukushima’s heavily damaged Daiichi nuclear power plant.
“How much radioactive materials have been released from the plant?” asked Dr Tatsuhiko Kodama, a professor at the Research Centre for Advanced Science and Technology and Director of the University of Tokyo’s Radioisotope Centre, in a July 27 speech to the Committee of Health, Labour and Welfare at Japan’s House of Representatives.
“The government and TEPCO have not reported the total amount of the released radioactivity yet,” said Kodama, who believes things are far worse than even the recent detection of extremely high radiation levels at the plant. Continue reading
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