Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
New Study Confirms Low Levels of Fallout from Fukushima and Enhances Knowledge
(Please note, USGS News Item. Copyright concerns are nil.)
http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=3111
[font face=Times, Times New Roman, Serif][font size=5]New Study Confirms Low Levels of Fallout from Fukushima and Enhances Knowledge[/font]
Released: 2/22/2012 11:02:04 AM
…
[font size=3]Fallout from the 2011 Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power facility in Japan was measured in minimal amounts in precipitation in the United States in about 20 percent of 167 sites sampled in a nationwide study released today. The U.S. Geological Survey led the study as part of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP). Levels measured were similar to measurements made by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the days and weeks immediately following the March 2011 incidents, which were determined to be well below any level of public health concern.
Many NADP sites are located away from major urban areas so that they are more representative of the U.S. landscape as a whole. This study is complementary to EPA results, and together these data will allow for a better picture of the deposition of radioactive fallout across the United States.
"Japan's unfortunate nuclear nightmare provides a rare opportunity for U.S. scientists to test an infrequently needed national capability for detecting and monitoring nuclear fallout over a wide network," explained USGS director Marcia McNutt. "Had this been a national incident, NADP would have revealed the spatial and temporal patterns of radioactive contamination in order to help protect people and the environment."
Precipitation was collected at monitoring sites within the geographically extensive NADP network. USGS scientists detected Iodine -131, Cesium-134, and Cesium-137, the primary radioactive products released during an incident such as this one. These detections were most frequently found along the West Coast, in the central and northern Rocky Mountain States and the eastern United States where precipitation fell most heavily in the weeks after the Fukushima disaster.
The study released today adds important new information from NADP’s network and provides a more detailed picture of fallout in precipitation over most of the Nation. The EPA had used the rapid-response RadNet to monitor network fallout from Fukushima immediately following the incident. RadNet sites provide information about levels of radiation in the Nation’s air, drinking water, precipitation, and pasteurized milk. The levels of radioactive fallout measured at RadNet and NADP sites were similar, and while the USGS does not assess human health risks, the EPA RadNet monitoring confirms that radiation levels were far below any level of concern for human health in the United States. More information on EPA's findings is available online.
…
A USGS report and article published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, as well as a map of NADP sites with observed fallout can be found online.[/font][/font]
Released: 2/22/2012 11:02:04 AM
…
[font size=3]Fallout from the 2011 Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power facility in Japan was measured in minimal amounts in precipitation in the United States in about 20 percent of 167 sites sampled in a nationwide study released today. The U.S. Geological Survey led the study as part of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP). Levels measured were similar to measurements made by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the days and weeks immediately following the March 2011 incidents, which were determined to be well below any level of public health concern.
Many NADP sites are located away from major urban areas so that they are more representative of the U.S. landscape as a whole. This study is complementary to EPA results, and together these data will allow for a better picture of the deposition of radioactive fallout across the United States.
"Japan's unfortunate nuclear nightmare provides a rare opportunity for U.S. scientists to test an infrequently needed national capability for detecting and monitoring nuclear fallout over a wide network," explained USGS director Marcia McNutt. "Had this been a national incident, NADP would have revealed the spatial and temporal patterns of radioactive contamination in order to help protect people and the environment."
Precipitation was collected at monitoring sites within the geographically extensive NADP network. USGS scientists detected Iodine -131, Cesium-134, and Cesium-137, the primary radioactive products released during an incident such as this one. These detections were most frequently found along the West Coast, in the central and northern Rocky Mountain States and the eastern United States where precipitation fell most heavily in the weeks after the Fukushima disaster.
The study released today adds important new information from NADP’s network and provides a more detailed picture of fallout in precipitation over most of the Nation. The EPA had used the rapid-response RadNet to monitor network fallout from Fukushima immediately following the incident. RadNet sites provide information about levels of radiation in the Nation’s air, drinking water, precipitation, and pasteurized milk. The levels of radioactive fallout measured at RadNet and NADP sites were similar, and while the USGS does not assess human health risks, the EPA RadNet monitoring confirms that radiation levels were far below any level of concern for human health in the United States. More information on EPA's findings is available online.
…
A USGS report and article published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, as well as a map of NADP sites with observed fallout can be found online.[/font][/font]
