A nursery school in Akita Prefecture bought turf from Ibaraki Prefecture, which is located south of Fukushima Prefecture and was doused with radioactive materials by downwind from Fukushima I Nuke Plant creating areas with high radiation, in middle of July. Small children were playing on the freshly installed turf. Then the city came and measured the air radiation level. Guess what. It was high.
Duh.
From Yomiuri Shinbun local Akita version (9/8/2011):
横手市は７日、同市横手町の相愛保育園（園児１１８人）の園庭に植えられた芝生の上の空間放射線量を測ったところ、県の通常レベルの最大値である毎時０・０８６マイクロ・シーベルトを上回る同０・１３５マイクロ・シーベルトが検出されたと発表した。同園は７日休園し、芝生を除去した。
Yokote City in Akita Prefecture announced on September 7 that the air radiation level above the turf in the school yard at Soai Nursery School (118 children) was 0.135 microsievert/hr, exceeding the normal maximum level in Akita Prefecture of 0.086 microsievert/hr. The school didn't open on September 7, and removed the turf.
同市子育て支援課などによると、同市は今月５日から、市内の保育園など５６施設を対象に空間放射線量を測定していた。同保育園で５日に行った測定で、芝生の地上１センチ、同５０センチ、同１メートルのいずれからも異常値が出た。芝生の外では異常はなかった。
The city had been measuring the air radiation levels since September 5 at 56 facilities including nursery schools. The survey done at this particular nursery school on September 5 revealed abnormal levels at 1 centimeter from the surface of the turf, 50 centimeters, and 1 meter. There was no abnormality outside the turfed area.
芝生は７月中旬、横手市内の造園業者が茨城県つくば市の業者から仕入れ、同２１日、園庭の約８００平方メートルに植えた。７日、造園業者が芝生を掘り起こして撤去した後で測ったところ、異常はなかった。
The turf was bought by a landscaping contractor in Yokote City from a dealer in Tsukuba City in Ibaraki Prefecture. 800 square meters of the school yard were covered with the turf on July 21. The contractor removed the turf on September 7 and measured the radiation, which was then dropped to normal levels.
同課の長谷山達夫課長は「危険な数値ではないと考えているが、慎重を期したい」と話している。
The city says "We don't think it is a dangerous level, but we want to be cautious".
横手市は８日にも園庭で測定する。異常がなければ、同園は９日にも再開する。市は今後、撤去した芝生の放射性物質の濃度を検査する。
The city plans to measure the radiation on September 8, and if there is no abnormal reading the nursery school will open on September 9. The city will measure the density of radioactive materials in the removed turf.
No news of what happened to the turf or what kind of radioactive material density it had.
