All posts by Hutchins AAron

Born in Deutschland 1965, hometown was Bütthart, parents were not U.S. government employees. However, when father was tricked into joining the U.S. Air Force Civil Service, in 1969, with the promise that we could remain in Germany, we were promptly shipped off to Iran. Due to one of my Iranian educators being disappeared, along with her husband, by the U.S. ally Shah of Iran's Israeli & U.S. created Savak (for the then official terrorist act of promoting the idea that women can vote), and due to my U.S. citizen mother being placed on Savak's Terrorist Arrest List (for supporting the idea that women should vote, at that time the U.S. ally Shah of Iran did not allow women to vote, now they can) we left Iran for the United States in 1973, literally in the middle of the night. At the U.S. Embassy airbase the CIA operated Gooney Bird (C-47) was so packed with other U.S. citizens fleeing our ally Iran (because the Shah gave the OK to arrest any U.S. citizen for such terrorist acts as promoting the concept of voting) that we were turned away by the Loadmaster and had to take a chance on a civilian flight out of Tehran's airport. My father told me he and my mother had three culture shocks; first when they arrived in Germany as civilians, then after being shipped off to Iran as U.S. government employees, then again returning to the United States as unemployed civilians (because so much had changed in the U.S. while they were gone, their only news source was the U.S. Armed Forces Radio & Television Service which heavily censored information about the home front). Since I graduated high school in 1982 I've worked for U.S. government contractors and state & local government agencies (in California), convenience store manager in California, retail/property management in Georgia, California and Idaho. Spent the 1990s in the TV news business producing number one rated local news programs in California, Arizona and Idaho. 14+ years with California and Idaho Army National Guard and the U.S. Air Force. Obtained a BA degree in International Studies from Idaho State University at the age of 42. Unemployed since 2015, so don't tell me the economy has recovered.
Fukushima

Radiation in Ocean will spread across Pacific in 3 Months

French nuclear analysts have used radiation numbers, publicly release by Japanese officials, to determine how bad the contamination is in the Pacific Ocean.

The Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety determined that with the current level of contamination (that is the contamination that has already happened) fish and seaweed will need constant monitoring. Also, they said the high levels of radioactive contamination, recently spilled by reactor 2, will spread through out the Pacific Ocean in three months.

They pointed out that some radiation will float with the ocean currents, while other isotopes will sink to the ocean floor.  The ocean does not affect isotope half life, so cesium-137 still has a half life of 30 years in water.  Cesium-137 is in the ocean.

This does not assume any further contamination, so expect it to get worse.

 

Business/Economics, International, Opinion

Japan nuke agency had no plans to warn fishermen of contaminated fish

The Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency admitted that they had no plans to explain the dangers of contaminated fish to the fishing industry.  Japanese fishermen have been turned away from fish markets with their entire catch in tow.

The Federation of Fisheries Cooperative said they asked for an explanation of the dangers, but got none. Many fishing companies continued to fish after reports of radioactive contamination in the ocean.

Iwaki city officials, in one of the biggest fishing areas of Japan, say they’ve been waiting for the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency to explain the situation, but, arrogantly the government agency said that they were waiting for the local people to come to them first.

Sounds like the arrogant Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency needs to pull their head out!

Fukushima

Pregnant women to be evacuated!

Iitate village in Fukushima Prefecture, announced they will start evacuating pregnant women, thanks to increasing radiation levels.

Iitate is 40km (24.8 miles) from the damaged nuclear power plant, and outside the official danger zone, but local officials say they’ve picked up high radiation readings in their area.

Radiation levels exceed standards set by the International Commission on Radiological Protection. So the town, on its own decision with no help from the central government, is going to evacuate pregnant women, children younger than 3 and their guardians. Pregnant women will leave first, by the end of the week. Town officials are still trying to make arraignments, regarding where they will evacuate the people to.

 

Fukushima

No Cold Shut Down for Fukushima says Analyst

NHK interviewed a nuclear analyst who said a cold shut down of the reactors at Fukushima Daiichi can’t be done.

He explained that the reactors are too unstable, and TEPCo is still having trouble getting electrical power to the control rooms. He also said the situation is so dangerous that officials must keep everyone constantly updated.

 

Business/Economics, Fukushima

Toyota hoping for increased parts supply for Japanese plants

Toyota thinks they might have enough parts built up to open more of its Japanese factories.

Toyota hopes to open more plants, in Japan, by late April. However, they point out that they will not be able to run at full production, and, if parts supplies continue to be a problem then all bets are off.

Fukushima, Idaho

Idaho Rain Water over safe limits for Iodine-131

On 22 March 2011, the Federal Environmental Protection Agency reported rain water contamination numbers for Idaho. Do you understand them?

The EPA reported 242 pCi/L of I-131. Understand?  pCi means Picocuries.  I-131 means iodine-131. L means liters. 242 Picocuries per liter of iodine-131. Should you be worried? Yes!

The Federal government set safe levels of iodine-131, in drinking water, at 0.111 Becquerels per liter.  Using a Picocurie to Becquerel conversion program I discovered that the March 22 readings worked out to 8.954 Becquerels per liter, more than the government’s safe limits.

The EPA levels were in rain water, but rain water is used for livestock, and ends up in many municipality’s water systems.

Fukushima

Reactor 1 damaged, explosion immanent?

Tokyo Electric Power Company saying Reactor 1 showing signs of damaged reactor core. They believe hydrogen gas is building up inside. An explosion is immanent unless the hydrogen gas can be counteracted.

They plan on injecting nitrogen gas into the reactor core tomorrow morning.

So far TEPCo does not have a good track record with any of their attempts to control the damaged Fukushima Daiichi plant.

International, U.S.

California Water contaminated 181 times safe limits

University of California Berkeley is reporting that their own testing on rain water revealed radiation contamination 181 times safe limits.

The Federal government’s max safe level of iodine-131 allowed in drinking water is 0.111 becquerels per liter. The UC Berkeley test showed iodine-131 at 20.1 becquerels per liter. Again, that was a test of rain water. Eventually the rain water will end up in municipal water supplies.

Fukushima, International

Russian leaders say situation in Japan Real Bad

Who better to know when a nuclear situation is real bad, then those who dealt with Chernobyl.  Russia, back then part of the now extinct Soviet Union when the Chernobyl disaster happened, says Japan is in trouble.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says the situation at Fukushima Daiichi is showing no signs of improvement. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev says the situation is still out of control.

From the very beginning of the nuclear disaster in Japan, Russian nuclear engineers have warned that the type of design used at Fukushima Daiichi (by the way, designed by General Electric) is dangerous if damaged in a natural disaster. Basically it can not be saved.

 

Fukushima

Local governments encouraging residents to get out, no end in sight for Fukushima Nuclear Disaster!

NHK (Nippon Housou Kyoukai/Japan Broadcasting Corporation) has run several reports that show local prefectural governments, near the damaged nuclear pant, but outside the 20km (12.4 miles) evacuation zone, are encouraging their residents to evacuate.

Some residents are leaving.  Some local governments have even booked hotels for mass evacuations to begin next week.  One hotel said they were booked up for two months.