People who just have to have a hybrid car will be glad to know that Toyota plans to start making them again.
Toyota’s hybrids are made in Japan, and production was shut down due to parts shortage (thank Mother Earth, 11 March 2011 quake-tsunami). They plan to resume production on Monday.
Production of non-hybrid Toyota vehicles, made in Japan, remains halted.
Some farming villages that escaped the tsunami, did not escape radiation from Fukukshima Daiichi nuclear plant.
What has people amazed is that these farming villages are outside the government’s 30km nuclear disaster zone.
Soil samples have revealed that radiation levels are more than 1,000 times normal. Wind and rain is suspected for bringing the radiation outside the 30km zone.
This is proof that nuclear disasters affected far greater areas than what most people think. This will just add to the world’s growing food supply problems.
TEPCO officials report more problems with trying to get their nuclear plant under control.
Reactor 2 continues to emit more and more radiation. Officials are unable to find out why, because radiation levels are so high that no one can go near the reactor.
Several works have been sent to the hospital because of exposure to high radiation. One worker is said to have “Beta Burns”. At least two workers were standing in radioactive water in reactor 3, trying to connect power lines. The water contains radiation levels as high as 180 millisieverts.
Despite the fact that Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is built on the coast line, TEPCO, and government officials, dismissed concerns over possible tsunami.
Seismologist, Okamura Yukinobu, warned of a debilitating tsunami in June 2009. He also requested that nuclear plant disaster plans be reviewed for tsunami readiness.
Japanese officials dismissed his request because they did not think a tsunami was a threat.
Tanaka Mitsuhiko is an engineer who helped build reactor 4’s containment vessel in 1974. Tanaka says he helped hide a defect in the steel used to make the containment vessel.
Reactor 4 at the Fukushima Daiichi was shut for maintenance when the March 11 quake triggered a tsunami that lead to explosions and radiation leaks.
Tanaka has called reactor 4 a “time bomb”.
NHK reporting that their helicopter crew confirms that there is white smoke come from reactors 1, 2, 3 & 4. This is the first time smoke has come from reactor 1.
Cabinet Secretary, Yukio Edano, announced that reactor 1 is showing pressure increase, even after temperatures were brought down with water. The problem now is that every time they inject water into the cooling system it results in higher pressure in the containment system, which is also bad.
The Japanese government has told people not to eat the vegetables, and not to drink the water, because of radiation contamination. At the same time they say “There is no immediate threat.”
What they mean by that is, that the levels, and types, of radiation contamination is such that you will not notice any bad effects “immediately”. However, if you continue to eat, drink, or expose yourself to even the lowest levels of contamination, over time you will suffer bad effects.
For example: Iodine-131 is a short life span radioactive isotope. It collects on your thyroid glands (just like iodide), and if it builds up will cause cancer. Even low levels of iodine-131 will build up on your thyroid if you keep eating, drinking, or exposing yourself to the contamination. This is why the Japanese government is telling people to stop eating the vegetables, and stop drinking the water, even though there is no “immediate” threat.
In other words, it’s still bad, bad, bad!
Japanese have been told that tap water is contaminated. They’ve also been told not to feed the water to their babies.
The level of contamination is too high for infants. The contamination is mainly short life span Iodine-131. Iodine-131 collects on your thyroid gland, and can cause cancer.
The Japanese government will be issuing clean water to parents with infants, who are, I believe they said, 12 months and younger.
Some people think they can boil the water. The problem is that the radioactive isotopes in the water then become air born in the steam rising from the boiling water, and you breath them in. Also, if you boil for a only a short time there will still be contamination in the water.
The Consumer’s Guide has a web page that explains how to make water safe to drink. Scroll down until you get to the title “More Rigorous Purification Methods”. This section talks about distilling to get rid of radiation fallout in water. It’s more complicated than just boiling. When you distill you’re basically capturing the steam rising off the boiling water, then funneling it into a cup, or pot, to collect it. The article then suggests you filter the water as well.
Japanese Cabinet Secretary, Edano Yukio, explained that the atmospheric radiation levels being published are based on air samples not taken near the nuclear plant, and a computer model.
Edano said the radiation levels at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, are too high to take air samples there. Air samples have been taken in surrounding areas. Then a computer program is used to make radiation level assumptions, based on the samples and possible wind speed and direction.
In other words, it’s a best computer guess.
The United States Geological Survey has vast data on earthquakes. I looked at their “Largest and Deadliest Earthquake” list, which spans 1990 to 2011.
I looked at just those quakes on the Pacific Ring of Fire. I was looking to see if there was an increase in frequency and/or magnitude over the past 21 years.
There were a total of 31 “largest/deadliest” earthquakes on the Pacific Ring of Fire. The magnitudes ranged from 6.3 to 9.1 Richter scale. It looks like the amount of activity is spread evenly over the past 21 years, but it’s deceptive. From year to year the pattern of activity is interesting.
1990 one, 1991 two, 1992 one, 1993 one, 1994 two, 1995 three, 1996 one, 1997 two, 1998 one, 1999 one. At this point it looks like there is a loose pattern; 1/2/1/1/2/3/1/2/1/1.
2000 two, 2001 one, 2002 one, 2003 one, 2004 two, 2005 one, 2006 two, 2007 two, 2008 zero, 2009 two, 2010 one, 2011 two. The pattern is different; 2/1/1/1/2/1/2/2/0/2/1/2.
Where the most quakes hit changes as well. In the 1990s Japan was hit by one large/deadly quake. From 2000 to 2011, Japan has been hit by two large/deadly quakes. But check out Indonesia. In the 1990s the Indonesian islands were hit with two large/deadly quakes. From 2000 to 2010 the Indonesian islands suffered six large/deadly quakes. On the Americas side of the Pacific Ring it looks like quakes are more evenly spread out over the years. From 1990 to 2011 a total of eight large/deadly earthquakes were spread from Alaska to Chile.
What is clear is that the activity is more frequent, and stronger, on the Asian side of the Pacific Ring (probably because that’s where the Pacific plate slams under the Eurasian plate). But that’s no reason not to prepare, if you don’t live on the Asian side.
Note: The Japanese islands and the Indonesia islands are affected by several plates. Japan sits on the Eurasian plate, which is being hit by the Pacific plate and Philippine plate. Indonesia straddles the Eurasian and Philippine plates, which are getting hit by the Pacific plate.