Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant continues to send radiation seaward
The Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in Japan continues to send radiation into the sea at an alarming rate. Radiation in the seawater at the shoreline has measured several million times the legal limit over the past few days, though officials contended Tuesday that the contamination still does not pose an immediate danger.
Radiation has been pouring in to the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant since a 9.0 magnitude earthquake spawned a massive tsunami that inundated the complex. Over the weekend, workers there discovered a crack where highly contaminated water was spilling directly into the ocean.
The tsunami pulverized about 250 miles of the northeastern coast, flattening whole towns and cities and killing up to 25,000 people. Tens of thousands more lost their homes in the crush of water, and several thousand were forced from the area near the plant because of radiation concerns.
Many of those "radiation refugees" have grown frustrated with the mandatory 12 mile evacuation zone, and plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co, whose stock value has plunged to its lowest level ever, said Tuesday it would give affected towns $240,000 each.
Also Tuesday, TEPCO announced that samples taken from seawater near one of the reactors contained 7.5 million times the legal limit for radioactive iodine on April 2. Two days later, that figure dropped to 5 million. Experts have said that radiation dissipates quickly in the vast Pacific, but they have also said that it's unclear what the longterm effects of large amounts of contamination will be. No fishing is allowed in the vicinity of the complex.
TEPCO said in a statement that even the large amounts would have "no immediate impact" on the environment but added that it is working to stop the leak as soon as possible.
The readings were taken closer to the plant than before, apparently because new measuring points were added after the crack was discovered, and did not necessarily reflect a worsening of the contamination. Other measurements several hundred yards away from the plant have declined to levels about 1,000 times the legal limit, down from 4,385 times the legal limit last week.
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