#Radioactive Tea For Longevity Celebration

In one of the tragi-comical moments in Japan after the March 11 nuke accident, Tokorozawa City in Saitama Prefecture was just about to send the gifts of hand-picked green tea to the city's elderly residents celebrating 88 years of age (a celebratory number in Japan). The hitch was that it contained almost 3 times as much radioactive cesium as the provisional safety limit.

Oops.

The city wouldn't have known it, and probably would have given the gifts if it were not for the voluntary testing by the tea plantation.

That bureaucrats don't think is an understatement. It is a disease.

From Asahi Shinbun (9/9/2011):

埼玉県所沢市は９日、敬老の日のお祝いとして、市内の８８歳（米寿）の高齢者約８００人に贈る予定だった特産の狭山茶から国の基準（１キロあたり５００ベクレル）を超える放射性セシウムが検出されたとして、贈呈を取りやめると発表した。

Tokorozawa City in Saitama Prefecture announced on September 9 that radioactive cesium exceeding the national provisional safety limit (500 becquerels/kg) was detected from the "sayama-cha" green tea, a specialty of the region. The tea was to be given as gifts on September 15 ("Respect the Elder Day") to 800 elderly residents who would celebrate their 88th birthdays.

　市によると、この狭山茶は市内の茶業者「増田園」が所沢産の若芽を早摘みした製茶。同園が自主的に民間の検査機関に調査を依頼したところ、１４３６ベクレルが検出されたという。

According to the city, this sayama-cha was picked and processed by "Masuda-en", a tea merchant in the city. The young tea leaves were picked early in the season [meaning it was the premium "first pick"]. Masuda-en had the tea tested by a private testing laboratory, and the tea was found with 1,436 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium.

　このため増田園は納品を辞退し、取り扱っている製茶の販売を自粛した。市はお祝い品をカツオ節などに差し替えるとともに、増田園の製品について埼玉県に検査を依頼する。

Upon receiving the result, Masuda-en voluntarily declined to sell the tea to the city, and stopped the sale of its blended teas. The city will substitute the gift with other items like dried bonito, and will ask Saitama Prefecture to test the teas by Masuda-en.

I just hope dried bonito was made from shipjacks caught last year or year before (higher quality if dried and aged longer).

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"Ecological Half Life" of Cesium-137 May Be 180 to 320 Years?

A Wired Magazine article dated December 15, 2009 cites a poster session presentation of the research of the Chernobyl exclusion zone at the American Geophysical Union conference in 2009, and says radioactive cesium may be remaining in the soil far longer than what the half life (30 years) suggests.



To note: it was a poster session presentation, and I'm looking to see if it has been formally published in a scientific paper since then.



From Wired Magazine (12/15/2009):

SAN FRANCISCO — Chernobyl, the worst nuclear accident in history, created an inadvertent laboratory to study the impacts of radiation — and more than twenty years later, the site still holds surprises.



Reinhabiting the large exclusion zone around the accident site may have to wait longer than expected. Radioactive cesium isn’t disappearing from the environment as quickly as predicted, according to new research presented here Monday at the meeting of the American Geophysical Union. Cesium 137’s half-life — the time it takes for half of a given amount of material to decay — is 30 years. In addition to that, cesium-137’s total ecological half-life — the time for half the cesium to disappear from the local environment through processes such as migration, weathering, and removal by organisms is also typically 30 years or less, but the amount of cesium in soil near Chernobyl isn’t decreasing nearly that fast. And scientists don’t know why.



It stands to reason that at some point the Ukrainian government would like to be able to use that land again, but the scientists have calculated that what they call cesium’s “ecological half-life” — the time for half the cesium to disappear from the local environment — is between 180 and 320 years.



“Normally you’d say that every 30 years, it’s half as bad as it was. But it’s not,” said Tim Jannik, nuclear scientist at Savannah River National Laboratory and a collaborator on the work. “It’s going to be longer before they repopulate the area.”



In 1986, after the Chernobyl accident, a series of test sites was established along paths that scientists expected the fallout to take. Soil samples were taken at different depths to gauge how the radioactive isotopes of strontium, cesium and plutonium migrated in the ground. They’ve been taking these measurements for more than 20 years, providing a unique experiment in the long-term environmental repercussions of a near worst-case nuclear accident.



In some ways, Chernobyl is easier to understand than DOE sites like Hanford, which have been contaminated by long-term processes. With Chernobyl, said Boris Faybishenko, a nuclear remediation expert at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, we have a definite date at which the contamination began and a series of measurements carried out from that time to today.



“I have been involved in Chernobyl studies for many years and this particular study could be of great importance to many [Department of Energy] researchers,” said Faybishenko.



The results of this study came as a surprise. Scientists expected the ecological half-lives of radioactive isotopes to be shorter than their physical half-life as natural dispersion helped reduce the amount of material in any given soil sample. For strontium, that idea has held up. But for cesium the the opposite appears to be true.



The physical properties of cesium haven’t changed, so scientists think there must be an environmental explanation. It could be that new cesium is blowing over the soil sites from closer to the Chernobyl site. Or perhaps cesium is migrating up through the soil from deeper in the ground. Jannik hopes more research will uncover the truth.



“There are a lot of unknowns that are probably causing this phenomenon,” he said.



Beyond the societal impacts of the study, the work also emphasizes the uncertainties associated with radioactive contamination. Thankfully, Chernobyl-scale accidents have been rare, but that also means there is a paucity of places to study how radioactive contamination really behaves in the wild.



“The data from Chernobyl can be used for validating models,” said Faybishenko. “This is the most value that we can gain from it.”



Update 12/28: The second paragraph of this story was updated after discussion with Tim Jannik to more accurately reflect the idea of ecological half-life.



Image: flickr/StuckinCustoms



Citation: “Long-Term Dynamics of Radionuclides Vertical Migration in Soils of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Zone” by Yu.A. Ivanov, V.A. Kashparov, S.E. Levchuk, Yu.V. Khomutinin, M.D. Bondarkov, A.M. Maximenko, E.B. Farfan, G.T. Jannik, and J.C. Marra. AGU 2009 poster session.

More about → "Ecological Half Life" of Cesium-137 May Be 180 to 320 Years?

Update: 3200 Becquerels/Kg Cesiuim Detected from Beef from Minami-Soma City in Fukushima

These cattle were allowed to be sold, as long as they were scrubbed clean of radioactive materials on their skin, thanks to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the same ministry that is pushing to have the Japanese cuisine recognized as UNESCO's "world intangible cultural heritage".

According to Asahi Shinbun (link below), the Tokyo Metropolitan government tested the remaining 10 meat cows from Minami-Soma City that were processed on July 8. The highest number was 3200 becquerels/kg of cesium, and even the lowest number was 1530 becquerels/kg, more than 3 times the government's provisional safety limit for cesium in foods.

The one that was tested on July 8 had 2300 becquerels/kg radioactive cesium.

Asahi Shinbun (7/9/2011) also says:

芝浦と場では、農水省の指示で、福島第一原発から２０～３０キロ圏内から出荷された牛でも、他地域の牛と同様、放射性物質についての特別な調査はしていな い。ただし、厚労省からの指示が今回をのぞいてこれまでに５回あり、その際に行った検査ではいずれも基準値を下回っていたという。

Following the instruction from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Metropolitan Shibaura Slaughterhouse doesn't conduct radiation testing at all, whether the cattle come from the 20-30 kilometer radius from Fukushima I Nuke Plant or from other areas. However, there have been 5 instances where the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare instructed them to test for radiation, and in those instances the radioactive materials detected were less than the provisional limit.

Yomiuri Shinbun (7/9/2011) says something more disturbing:

福島県の調査では、４月下旬以後、同区域からは２９２４頭の肉用牛が出荷されたことが判明。

According to the investigation by Fukushima Prefecture, 2924 meat cows have been shipped from the same area since the end of April.

農林水産省は４月下旬、この区域から出荷される肉用牛全頭を対象に、県が体の表面を検査などすれば出荷を認めると指導。事故後に見合わせていた出荷が再開されていた。

At the end of April, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries issued its guidance that would allow the shipment of meat cows from this area as long as Fukushima Prefecture conducted the radiation testing on the body surface of the cows and took other measures [i.e. questionnaires]. Accordingly, the shipment resumed which had been halted after the Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident.

I sort of know what will be coming shortly: a noise from the government's Nuclear Safety Commission that the current provisional safety limit is too strict, and there won't be anything that can be sold if the limit remains 500 becquerels/kg for cesium...

Many cows from Fukushima have been "evacuated" from Fukushima Prefecture, with only surface radiation testing and information on how they were raised, even to far-away places like Miyazaki Prefecture in Kyushu.

(For more details on how these cows - and pigs and chickens - moved out of Fukushima, thanks to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, please read my new post.)

More about → Update: 3200 Becquerels/Kg Cesiuim Detected from Beef from Minami-Soma City in Fukushima

#Radiation in Japan: Radioactive Cesium from Ashes from Household Garbage at Waste Disposal Plant in Edogawa-Ku, Tokyo

Not a water purification plant or at a waste water treatment plant, but a plant that burns regular, household garbage in eastern Tokyo was found with a high level of radioactive cesium in the fly ashes caught in the incinerator filter.

Edogawa-ku is located at the eastern end of Tokyo. Along with its northern neighbor Katsushika-ku, Edogawa-ku seems to have been in denial of the elevated radiation levels throughout the ward, and has only recently (June 18) started to measure the radiation at multiple locations within the ward.

The Edogawa waste disposal plant is located by the Edogawa River that separates Edogawa-ku and Chiba Prefecture. The plant can burn 600 tonnes of garbage per day with 24-hour operation, with 2 incinerators. It's in a mixed residential/commercial neighborhood, with 2 elementary schools nearby, and a nursery school right next to the plant, according to the Google Map.

From Sankei Shinbun (6/27/2011):

東京都と東京２３区清掃一部事務組合は２７日、一般家庭ゴミなどを処理する２３区内の清掃工場のうち、江戸川清掃工場で発生した焼却灰から、１キロ グラムあたり８千ベクレルを超える放射性セシウムが検出されたと発表した。同組合によると、灰はフィルターで集められ、運搬時などは密閉しているほか、施 設周辺の空間放射線量の測定結果からも、外部環境への影響はないとみている。

The Tokyo Metropolitan government and the "Clean Association Tokyo 23" (organization of waste disposal facilities in Tokyo's 23 "ku" or wards) announced on June 27 that radioactive cesium in excess of 8,000 becquerels/kilogram was detected from the fine ashes from the waste disposal plant in Edogawa-ku. The plant burns regular garbage collected from households in Edogawa-ku. According to the Association, the ashes are collected by the filter, and the filter is in a sealed container during transport. The air radiation levels have been measured around the plant, and there appears to be no effect on the environment.

　都などによると、一般廃棄物の焼却灰の放射線量を測定したのは福島県をのぞく自治体では初めてとみられる。

According to the Tokyo Metropolitan government, it was the first time that any municipal government measured the ashes from the regular waste disposal.

.............

　 　清掃工場から発生する灰には、焼却後に焼却炉の中にたまる「主灰」と、焼却時にフィルターなどに集められる「飛灰」がある。

There are two types of ashes as the result of incineration at the waste disposal plants: "main ashes" that collect inside the incinerator, and "fly ashes" that are collected by the filter.

　今回、１キログラムあたり８千ベクレルを超える放射性セシウムが検出されたのは江戸川清掃工場の飛灰で、９７４０ベクレル。同工場の主灰や、ほかの清掃工場の飛灰、主灰は８千ベクレルを下回った。

Rradioactive cesium of over 8,000 becquerels/kilogram was detected from the fly ashes produced at the Edogawa Waste Disposal Plant. Cesium from the main ashes from the plant, or the fly ashes and main ashes from the other waste disposal plants was less than 8,000 becquerels/kilogram.

　このため、江戸川清掃工場の飛灰は当面、工場内の放射能を遮れる施設で一時保管される。それ以外の灰については、最終処分場に埋め立てるという。

The fly ashes at the Edogawa plant will be stored temporarily at a facility at the plant that can shield radiation. The main ashes will be buried in the final waste processing facility.

　都では、今後も灰を継続して調査するとともに、多摩地域の市町村にも調査を要請する。

The Tokyo Metropolitan government will continue the survey of the ashes, and will ask municipalities in Tama region [western part of Tokyo] to conduct the survey.

There is no safety standard for radioactive materials in wastes OUTSIDE Fukushima Prefecture. So, the Tokyo Metropolitan government is using the standard that the national government has set for Fukushima Prefecture, and it will bury the main ashes and fly ashes as long as the radioactive materials detected are less than 8,000 becquerels per kilogram.

Now, here's the actual survey result, dated June 27. The amount of cesium detected from the fly ashes at the Edogawa plant is 9,740 becquerels/kilogram.

Other high but below 8000 numbers (page 3):

• Katsushika: 6,610 becquerels/kg

• Ota: 6,030 becquerels/kg

• Koto: 4,850 becquerels/kg

• Meguro: 4,180 becquerels/kg

Looking at the numbers for the air radiation in the surrounding areas (page 5), contrary to what Sankei reports, the areas do seem to have elevated levels of air radiation.

For the Edogawa Plant, the air radiation level inside the plant is between 0.07 to 0.16 microsievert/hour. Outside the plant, the level is much higher, between 0.21 to 0.24 microsievert/hour.

As I said above, a nursery school is right next to the plant, and there are 2 elementary schools nearby.

Ashes, ashes, we all fall down...

More about → #Radiation in Japan: Radioactive Cesium from Ashes from Household Garbage at Waste Disposal Plant in Edogawa-Ku, Tokyo

#Radioactive Tea in France: Shizuoka Governor Tells France Tea Is Safe, "No Problem"

Besides, the tea leaves may not be from Shizuoka anyway, says his government.

The Oxford PhD (in comparative economic history) governor of Shizuoka strikes again, responding to the news that the French authorities confiscated the radioactive tea from Shizuoka Prefecture at the Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris for the high radioactive cesium count (1038 becquerels per kilogram), more than twice the safety limit for the EU. (I'm rather surprised that it's that high in the EU.)

From Asahi Shinbun (10:43PM JST 6/18/2011):

「静岡」の茶から基準を超える放射性物質が検出されたとのフランス政府の発表を受け、静岡県の川勝平太知事はコメントを発表し、「仮に製茶の数値が １千ベクレルだとしても飲用茶にすれば１０ベクレル程度になる。飲んでもまったく問題ないと考える」と県の独自調査の結果を示して安全性を強調。その上で 「情報を確認し、早急に輸出ルートを調査する」とした。

Governor Heita Kawakatsu of Shizuoka Prefecture issued a comment in response to the French government's announcement that the radioactive materials have been detected in Shizuoka tea in excess of the safety limit, and said "Even if the final blend tea measured 1,000 becquerels/kilogram, when you brew it the number will go down to about 10 becquerels. I don't think there's any problem at all if you drink the tea." He emphasized the safety of Shizuoka tea showing the survey done by the prefecture. He added that his government "will verify the French information, and investigate the export route."

　茶の輸出手続きを担当する同県経済産業部によると、フランスで検査対象となった茶の最終加工地が「静岡」だった可能性はあるものの、県内では他県産や海外産の茶葉を加工して出荷する場合もあり、茶葉自体がどこで生産されたものかはまだ分からないという。

The Economy and Industry Division of the Shizuoka prefectural government, who is in charge of export control of the teas from Shizuoka, said it was possible that the tea tested in France was final-blended in Shizuoka, but that didn't mean the tea leaves themselves were grown and harvested in Shizuoka. The division said the tea leaves from other prefectures and even from overseas are processed in Shizuoka and then shipped.

I don't have a PhD so I defer to the expert judgment of the governor, who must know more than we the mere non-PhD mortals do.

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#Radioactive Tea: Shizuoka Governor Accuses NHK of Spreading "Baseless Rumor"

Again, in "Newspeak" in post-Fukushima Japan, "baseless rumor" means "radioactivity".

(Other "newspeak" examples: "Safe" means "dangerous and/or radioactive and to be avoided", and "no immediate health concern" means "there's long-term health concern".)

But this Oxford PhD governor of Shizuoka is hilarious. In his mind, the report in the newspaper and TV that some of Shizuoka's teas have been found with radioactive cesium exceeding the national safety limit is an unconscionable lie. He accuses the press for saying all Shizuoka's teas are radioactive, when none of them said anything remotely resembling that.

The governor must be suffering a hysteria episode of a different kind.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (8:58AM JST 6/15/2011):

　製茶から国の暫定規制値を超える放射性セシウムが検出された問題で、静岡県の川勝知事は１４日の記者会見で、「報道が風評被害をあおっている」とＮＨＫを名指しで厳しく批判した。

Concerning the detection of radioactive cesium exceeding the national provisional level from the "seicha" (final blend tea) in Shizuoka, Governor Kawakatsu held a press conference on June 14 and harshly criticized NHK for creating the "baseless rumor" [on Shizuoka's tea].

　川勝知事は「風評被害の最たるものは、一部のここにいる人たちです。９日の９時台の全国ニュースは、『静岡県で暫定規制値を上回るものが出た』。なんというふらちなことだ。一局所を全体であるかのごとく報道する、本当に道義的に問われるべきだ」と激しい口調で批判した。

Governor Kawakatsu breathlessly accused the press, "The culprits for the baseless rumor are right here [he means the press]. On June 9, on the 9 o'clock national news [on NHK], they reported 'some tea in Shizuoka exceeded the provisional safety limit for radioactive materials.' What nonsense! They report as if the teas in entire Shizuoka Prefecture are radioactive. It is truly unconscionable."

　さらに、「公器であることをわきまえなさい。１面トップや、ＮＨＫを見た人が、見出しと報道で、静岡茶は全部やられたと思っています。一部をもって、全体にした反省をしていただきたい。責任重大ですよ、君たち」と批判を続けた。

He continued, "Be responsible as the public media. People who read the newspaper headlines or watched NHK News now think all Shizuoka teas are radioactive. I demand that you apologize for having exaggerated. You will be held responsible, do you understand?"

　ＮＨＫ名古屋放送局広報部は、取材に対し、「報道した内容は事実です。知事の発言についてコメントすることはありません」と話した。

NHK's Nagoya Station said "We reported the facts and we stand by our report. We have no comments on the governor's remarks."

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#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Kurion's System Test Run Result

TEPCO did the test run of Kurion's cesium absorption system on June 14, using the "low" contamination water.

The samples after the test was taken at the end of the cesium absorption process, bypassing the decontamination system by Areva (which will be tested on June 15, also using the low contamination water).

According to the number, the amount of cesium in the water was reduced to about 1/3000.

Kurion's system consists of series of towers filled with zeolite. (Tell me again, what's the expertise of Kurion other than putting zeolite in towers?)

TEPCO's press conference handout on June 14 (English labels added by me):

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#Radiation in Japan: Cesium from Milk in Niigata Prefecture

(UPDATE) From TEPCO's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuke Plant website (in Japanese only), I've learned that they test radiations in soil, water, food, etc. once every quarter in the area within 5 kilometers from the plant. The latest measurement data on the website is from 2009.

---------------------------------------------------

It is a minute amount, but at least TEPCO's Matsumoto, who announced the news of the detection, didn't say "there is no effect on health" like its regulatory agency in the government or the government's cabinet secretary.

The milk samples were taken on May 12.

Niigata Prefecture is on the Japan Sea side. Kashiwazaki City, where radioactive cesium was detected from the milk, has Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant, but TEPCO says cesium was from Fukushima I Nuke Plant.

Well, the prevailing wind has switched, and now the plume from Fukushima I is often going inland, and sometimes all the way across to the Japan Sea. It is no surprise that radioactive cesium has been detected in Niigata. There is no escaping the radioactive particles.

(Picture shows the Nagatori railroad station. Nagatori is one of the two locations where cesium was detected from milk.)

From Mainichi Shinbun Japanese (9:10PM JST 6/14/2011):

東京電力は１４日、新潟県柏崎市内で採取した牛乳から微量の放射性セシウムを検出したと発表した。検出量は原乳１リットルあたり最大０．０４６ベク レルで、内閣府原子力安全委員会の指針が定める摂取制限の約４０００分の１の値という。柏崎刈羽原発からは放射性物質の漏えいはなく、東電は福島第１原発 から飛散したものとみている。

TEPCO announced on June 14 that a minute amount of radioactive cesium was detected in the raw milk produced in Kashiwazaki City in Niigata Prefecture. The amount was maximum 0.046 becquerel/liter, about 1/4000 of the limit set by the Nuclear Safety Commission. There has been no radioactive materials leak from Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant, and TEPCO believes cesium came airborne from Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.

　５月１２日に柏崎市長鳥と同市北条の２カ所で採取した牛乳を測定したところ、セシウム１３４が１リットル当たり０～０．０２５ベクレル、セシウム １３７が同０．０２１～０．０２５ベクレル検出された。東電は柏崎刈羽原発の周辺自治体との安全協定に基づき、定期的に放射性物質の調査を実施している。

The milk samples taken in Nagatori and Kitajo districts of Kashiwazaki City on May 12 were tested. Cesium-134 was detected at 0 to 0.025 becquerel/liter, and cesium-137 was detected at 0.021 to 0.025 becquerel/liter. TEPCO conducts regular surveys of radioactive materials in the area around Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant, according to the agreement with the local municipalities.

　東電の松本純一原子力・立地本部長代理は「改めて事故の大きさを認識している。他の農作物や福島県内でも測定を検討したい」としている。

TEPCO's Junichi Matsumoto said, "We again recognize the enormity of this accident. We will consider testing the other agricultural crops [in Niigata?] and testing [the milk?] in Fukushima Prefecture."

More about → #Radiation in Japan: Cesium from Milk in Niigata Prefecture

One Shizuoka Tea Tested 679 Becquerels/Kg Cesium in the Final Product

In the morning of June 9 (JST) a local newspaper in Shizuoka Prefecture (Shizuoka Shinbun) vocally questioned the national government policy on the allowed radiation level for teas in various stages of tea processing. By the nightfall the paper had to report that radioactive cesium exceeding that level was detected in the final tea ("seicha") in one of the 11 tea-growing regions whose test results were announced on June 9.

The results for the other 8 tea-growing regions had been announced on June 8, and the growers and tea merchants in Shizuoka were much relieved to see that the numbers for radioactive cesium were below the provisional limit of 500 becquerels per kilogram and declared the Shizuoka tea to be "safe". (They were actually surprisingly high numbers; they were all in 3 digits, the highest being 385 becquerels/kg.)

(When they declare "safe", flee.)

When the paper questioned the validity of the 500 becquerels/kg standard, it cited, of all things, the minutes of the Nuclear Safety Commission's meeting, in which several commissioners expressed their opinion that the standard should be "flexible" (as I posted on June 2). Shizuoka Shinbun took it to mean that the opinion of the nuclear experts at the Nuclear Safety Commission was not reflected in the policy, which is too severe to the tea-growers and tea-merchants in the prefecture.

The Nuclear Safety Commission, as quoted by Shizuoka Shinbun, is of the opinion that the provisional safety limit should not be used as the guideline to restrict sales of the tea.

Vocal questioning of the national standard for teas (Shizuoka Shinbun 8:08AM JST 6/9/2011):

茶の放射性物質検査を検討した原子力安全委員会の議事録によれば、政府が専門家の意見を十分に踏まえた政策判断をしたとは言い難い。背景に「災害対応に追 われる政府が地方の声を吸い上げることができず、放射性物質と食品の安全をめぐる議論が曖昧になっている」（県幹部）実態がある。

In light of the minutes of the Nuclear Safety Commission's meeting in which the testing of radioactive materials in teas was discussed, the policy decision by the national government was hardly based on the expert opinion. The reality is that "the national government is unable to listen to the local people as it is busy dealing with the crisis, and the discussion about radioactive materials and food safety is not conclusive," according to the Shizuoka prefectrual government sources.

　農薬や添加物などの規制と異なり、茶と放射性物質をめぐる調査研究は政府内で不足している。今回の検査実施は「荒茶は普通食べない」として生茶葉の検査で安全性確保が可能とする農林水産省を、食品検査を所管する厚生労働省が押し切る形で実施が決まった。

The research on radioactivity in teas is lacking in the national government, unlike the regulations on agricultural chemicals and additives. The testing [of teas] this time was done at the express request from the Ministry of Health and Labor who is in charge of testing food items, against the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries who insists the testing of raw tea leaves is enough to ensure safety as "aracha" (bulk tea before the blend) is normally not eaten.

　新茶の生葉は天ぷらなどにして味わうことがある。だが、政府による「荒茶が消費者の口に入る可能性はゼロではない」との政策判断は、何をどれだけ摂取したら健康被害が懸念されるのか、明確にされていない。

Occasionally, people eat raw tea leaves of "shincha" (new tea) in tempura. However, the government's assessment that "the possibility is not zero that "aracha" will be eaten by the consumers" doesn't specifically say how much ingestion will cause a health hazard.

　 福島第１原発事故は想定外の事態であり、国民の健康維持のため食の安全に関する政策が規制強化に傾くのはやむを得ない。ただ、科学的根拠を欠いた政策判断 がまかり通れば社会不安をあおり、仮に製茶が１キロ当たり５００ベクレルを上回る結果となれば、県や市町、茶業界はそのダメージ回復の手だてを講ずること すら難しくなる。
　（政治部・中島忠男）

The Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident was "beyond assumption", and it can't be helped if the the food safety policies lean toward greater regulation to ensure the health of the citizens. However, if a policy decision without any scientific basis is pushed through, it will only increase the social anxiety and fear. If "seicha" (final product) is tested for more than 500 becquerels/kilogram [cesium], it will be very difficult for the prefecture, local municipalities and the tea industry in Shizuoka to recover from the damage. (By Tadao Nakajima, Political Desk)

Then the tea that exceeded the 500 becquerels/kg was found.

About the tea that exceeded the national standard (Shizuoka Shinbun 8:09PM JST 6/9/2011):

県は９日、県内の１１産地１３カ所で生産された一番茶のうち販売前の「製茶」について、放射性セシウムの検査を実施した結果、静岡市藁科地区で「本山茶」 を製造した工場から、国の暫定基準値（１キログラム当たり５００ベクレル）を上回る６７９ベクレルを検出したと発表した。

The Shizuoka prefectural government announced on June 9 that it had conducted the test for radioactive cesium in "seicha" (final product) of "ichiban-cha" (first-pick new tea) produced in 13 locations in 11 tea growing regions in Shizuoka, and found 679 becquerels/kg of cesium in "Hon-yama cha" in the Warashina district of Shizuoka City. The national provisional limit is 500 becquerels/kg.

　県産の茶葉から基準値を超す放射性物質が検出されたのは初めて。残り１２カ所は基準値を下回った。

It was the first time that radioactive materials were detected in the tea leaves in Shizuoka in the amount exceeding the provisional limit. At the remaining 12 locations, the numbers did not exceed the limit.

　県は「健康に影響が出るレベルではない」と説明。同地区にある約１００カ所の製茶工場に出荷自粛を求め、問屋などには商品が流通しないよう要請する。

The Shizuoka government says "It is not the level that will affect health." The government will request 100 tea processing plants in the district not to ship the tea on a voluntary basis, and also request the wholesalers not to distribute.

As Nikkei Shinbun reports, this "Hon-yama cha" exceeding the provisional limit was only discovered because a food grocer located outside Shizuoka Prefecture tested the tea on its own and alerted the Shizuoka government.

I am really losing faith in the Japanese growers.

More about → One Shizuoka Tea Tested 679 Becquerels/Kg Cesium in the Final Product

High Level of Radioactive Cesium from Snow in #Fukushima

Radioactive pollution is now detected in snow and freshwater fish.

And Japan's Kan administration still pushes for nuclear power, not just for the Japanese but for the up-and-coming countries in Asia and the rest of the world.

From Mainichi Shinbun Japanese (5/30/2011; link, emphasis added):

山岳愛好家らで作る「高山（たかやま）の原生林を守る会」は２９日、福島市周辺の山岳地帯から採取した雪の放射線量分析結果を公表した。標高１５００メー トル以下を中心に高濃度の放射性セシウムが検出され、最高は箕輪山東斜面の１３３８メートル地点で１キロ当たり２９６８ベクレルだった。市内の阿武隈川の ヤマメなど川魚からは国の暫定規制値（１キロ当たり５００ベクレル）を上回るセシウムが検出され、雪解け水の流入が原因とみられるという。

On May 29, a private association of mountain lovers [in Fukushima], "Association for preserving the primal forests in Takayama Mountain", announced the result of radiation analysis of snow samples taken from the mountains around Fukushima City in Fukushima Prefecture. High concentration of radioactive cesium was detected from snow samples taken below the altitude of 1,500 meters (4,921 feet), with the highest being 2,968 becquerels per kilogram from the sample taken on the east slope of Mount Minowa at 1,338 meters high. Radioactive cesium that exceeds the provisional national limit (500 becquerels per kilogram) has been detected from freshwater fish in the Abukuma river that runs through Fukushima City, and it is considered that radioactive cesium in fish comes from the water from melted snow.

More about → High Level of Radioactive Cesium from Snow in #Fukushima