Replies

Is this radioactive water headed towards California?

The ocean bound contaminates begin arriving within the next year. The truth is we are in uncharted territory. We have never dumped this much nuclear contamination into an ocean before. If it just continues doing what it has the past two years, some predict the affects on the west coast US will be just a little greater then all those above ground nuclear tests. However it is impossible to accurately predict what will happen because we do not know.

There are three pathways for radiation to the US west coast.

Particles traveling from the atmosphere in Japan to the US. Those were significant in the first few weeks of the accident, but have tapered off the past two years.

Particles in the ocean that make it into the food chain and accumulate in the animals we eat through bio-accumulation. We have no way to predict the actual concentrations or how dangerous they will be.

The other pathway is contaminated coastal waters along the US will release contaminated particles into the atmosphere near the coast. These particles can be breathed into our lungs. Someone who actually analyzed radiation from a nuclear plant operating along the coast of Japan, found that was the biggest source increasing cancer risks to coastal residents.

The above applies if the situation does not worsen. The odds of it worsening are very significant. They have recently resorted to asphalting the areas they can to keep rainwater out of the ground. The entire complex was built over an aquifer. Very serious concerns that the impervious glass walls built along the coast will cause water levels to rise. They have begun to pump it out a couple of days ago. They plan in two years to construct a frozen barrier wall underground on the inland side of the site that prevents the hundreds of tons of groundwater from flowing into the ground under the plant. The problem is no one has ever built a frozen underground barrier as large as they require.

And we should all say prayers for the workers still working at Fukushima. Many of them have already reached exposure levels that qualify them for Leukemia compensation. In other words, they are just about guaranteed to eventually get the disease.