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This is not a popular subject, but I think we need to be reminded occasionally.
Quote:
TOKYO (AP) — The utility company operating Fukushima’s tsunami-devastated nuclear power plant said Friday it will run out of space to store massive amounts of contaminated water in three years, adding pressure on the government and the public to reach a consensus on what to do with it.
Even a pea-brain could see that eventually there was going to be a crisis whereby radioactive contaminated water from the meltdown would need to be dumped into the sea. In fact, I suspect they have been doing so secretly for years since the the water treatment plant cannot process as much as is flowing through the site - which has underground river water flowing past the melted cores and goes naturally out to sea in that area.
As far as I understand it, the huge tanks which are filled with radioactive water are already rusting and breaking open, the black plastic bags filled with radioactive soil are rotting in the sunlight and will burst open, and the next major crisis will be an abandoned wasteland which is worse than Chernobyl.
When we read the articles, we would do well to remember that radiation CANNOT BE DILUTED. The news media and others who work for the nuclear industry continue to tell us it can be diluted but it cannot. The radiation particles will get spread about but they never get weaker as a result of being dumped in the ocean.
Radiation particles are like dried peas, they do not become diluted in water. The worst ones will be around in the mud or silt at the bottom for thousands of years. Think how many worms and bottom feeders there are in the sea. These creatures are the bottom of the food-chain and who is at the top? We are, thats who. The radiation gets concentrated in the organs, liver, bones, etc of the creatures which ingest it. That means we get a mega dose when we eat the fish which has eaten other fish, worms, etc.
Really, there is no easy solution for the Japanese or any of us. As soon as the tsunami overtook the power station and the cores melted, they were on their way burning themselves into the Earth, never to be recovered - not in our lifetime anyway. Every time they hit pockets of water, they breathe death, contaminated water, steam, out into the atmosphere and environment. From the start, this was bound to happen, and filling those bags with soil and tanks with water has only given the Japanese some time to come up with "solutions". I feel sad for the people of that area, they will never get their homes back or if they do, they will die there of cancer.
This nuclear power technology is everywhere not just in japan. In the USA, in China, in India, and all the other countries which have nuclear power generating thier electricity. All the power stations are built next to bodies of water and are vulnerable, to some extent, to earthquakes and natural disasters.
So, what should we do ? I believe there are many people with novel solutions out there in the world. I think we should all 'own' this disaster and realise it is a human problem created by humans, not just a country problem. It could have happened to any country due to old equipment and dangerous technology. In the future, I think we need to be more responsible for the technology we unleash on the world and stop using it when we realise it will kill us all.
When we read the articles, we would do well to remember that radiation CANNOT BE DILUTED.
That's not exactly accurate, those nice granite countertops in your kitchen if you have them are radioactive including everything else in your midst. I mention the countertops because they have higher levels of radioactivity than most common items. The top three things for radioactivity exposure are medical procedures, radon and cosmic activity. Simply sitting in the middle of nowhere and you are being pummeled by radioactivity.
The reason it's not killing you is because the level is not that high. Once dispersed the exposure drops. You'd have to know the dispersion and compare to natural sources to arrive at any conclusions to the dangers.
That's not exactly accurate, those nice granite countertops in your kitchen if you have them are radioactive including everything else in your midst. I mention the countertops because they have higher levels of radioactivity than most common items. The top three things for radioactivity exposure are medical procedures, radon and cosmic activity. Simply sitting in the middle of nowhere and you are being pummeled by radioactivity.
It IS exactly accurate. What you say above has nothing to do with my statement about dilution which you quoted.
So, you agree that radioactive particles cannot be diluted?
It is the radiation emitted from the radioactive particles which is unhealthy to our bodies in large doses. Even one particle can cause cancer to develop due to the radiation emitted. Thats why I mentioned about the concentration of radiation in the organs as it travels up the food chain. It is why workers wear exposure meters and why the scientists suggest you do not have too many x-rays of your teeth for example. The elements used in nuclear power plants to produce heat are totally different and far more damaging than the common natural types of exposure - as I am sure you know.
Old fuel rods are often stored in dry caskets on-site and so if any natural disaster occurs, these will be damaged, swept away, etc. How likely is it that there will be a natural disaster within many thousands of years it takes for these fuel rods to change into harmless elements. These caskets are rusting and leaking before then anyway.
In spite of the reassurances by the nuclear industry as to the safety processes followed at nuclear plants, Nature will find a way to disrupt things. Any normal person can see the dangers of heavy radiation released into the environment and how it will remain dangerous.
But the particles can be dispersed, hopefully to the point that few living things would ever collect enough of them in their bodies to do much harm.
I'm no scientist nor have I followed this very closely (you like that disclaimer? ) but is there a case study to reference or even a crude simulation? This would be uncharted waters (no pun intended)...I would think. Could be wrong. You hear about localized spills/dumps of harmful materials (nothing like what they have at Fukushima) and the EPA just monitors it by checking dead fish to see if the local anglers can actually catch and eat them.
It IS exactly accurate. What you say above has nothing to do with my statement about dilution which you quoted.
So, you agree that radioactive particles cannot be diluted?
It is the radiation emitted from the radioactive particles which is unhealthy to our bodies in large doses. Even one particle can cause cancer to develop due to the radiation emitted. Thats why I mentioned about the concentration of radiation in the organs as it travels up the food chain. It is why workers wear exposure meters and why the scientists suggest you do not have too many x-rays of your teeth for example. The elements used in nuclear power plants to produce heat are totally different and far more damaging than the common natural types of exposure - as I am sure you know.
Old fuel rods are often stored in dry caskets on-site and so if any natural disaster occurs, these will be damaged, swept away, etc. How likely is it that there will be a natural disaster within many thousands of years it takes for these fuel rods to change into harmless elements. These caskets are rusting and leaking before then anyway.
In spite of the reassurances by the nuclear industry as to the safety processes followed at nuclear plants, Nature will find a way to disrupt things. Any normal person can see the dangers of heavy radiation released into the environment and how it will remain dangerous.
Do you have any idea how much radioactive stuff has been dumped in the oceans over the years? Russia just as one example dumped old reactors into the pacific.
This is teeny teeny tiny relative to all of that. National Geographic had a nice article on this a while back but you can likely find it or other resources on-line to learn more.
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) but is there a case study to reference or even a crude simulation? This would be uncharted waters (no pun intended)...I would think. Could be wrong. You hear about localized spills/dumps of harmful materials (nothing like what they have at Fukushima) and the EPA just monitors it by checking dead fish to see if the local anglers can actually catch and eat them.
