Two Studies Contradict WHO Reassurances about Fukushima

On February 28th, 2013 the Associated Press reported a story from the World Health Organization saying that there was only a slight risk of cancer from the Fukushima disaster. The World Health Organization published a study showing that there was only "one extra percentage point" added to a Japanese infant's lifetime cancer risk.

"The additional risk is quite small and will probably be hidden by the noise of other (cancer) risks like people's lifestyle choices and statistical fluctuations," said Richard Wakeford of the University of Manchester, one of the authors of the report. "It's more important not to start smoking than having been in Fukushima."

The article then goes on to quote David Brenner of Columbia University (NY) as agreeing with the study. It then goes on to quote two experts suggesting that the study overstated the risks, Wade Allison, emeritus professor of physics at Oxford and Gerry Thomas, professor of molecular pathology at Imperial College, London.

However, the article fails to cite experts who would argue that the WHO study does not go far enough in warning of the risks from the Fukushima disaster. Harvey Wasserman, posting in Common Dreams, quotes the Fukushima Prefecture Health Management Survey as saying that 40% of the children that they studied already have thyroid abnormalities, which can lead to cancer. They surveyed 94,975, out of which 38,000 already have thyroid abnormalities. They have conducted 10 such studies and they report that the problem has been increasing over time.

The thyroid is especially at risk following a nuclear accident. This is especially true in children who are exposed to radiation since childrens' cells grow at a much faster rate than adults. The thyroid is the organ which helps the body use energy, stay warm, and keep the brain, heart, muscles, and other organs working as they should. Therefore, if a person is exposed to radiation from a nuclear accident and the thyroid is affected, then that person is at risk for experiencing a whole host of health problems over a long period of time.

The Chernybol disaster caused cancer in at least 3,000 children over the next 10 years, most of whom were exposed to the radiation. People who are exposed to that kind of radiation level may require constant care over their lifetimes, meaning a high burden on healthcare systems depending on the magnitude of the disaster.

A news release from the Radiation and Public Health Project reports that there have already been 14,000 excess deaths in the US due to radiation exposure from Fukushima .

Authors Joseph Mangano and Janette Sherman note that their estimate of 14,000 excess U.S. deaths in the 14 weeks after the Fukushima meltdowns is comparable to the 16,500 excess deaths in the 17 weeks after the Chernobyl meltdown in 1986.  The rise in reported deaths after Fukushima was largest among U.S. infants under age one.  The 2010-2011 increase for infant deaths in the spring was 1.8 percent, compared to a decrease of 8.37 percent in the preceding 14 weeks.

Just six days after the disastrous meltdowns struck four reactors at Fukushima on March 11, 2011, scientists detected the plume of toxic fallout had arrived over American shores.  Subsequent measurements by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found levels of radiation in air, water, and milk hundreds of times above normal across the U.S.  The highest detected levels of Iodine-131 in precipitation in the U.S. were as follows (normal is about 2 picocuries I-131 per liter of water):  Boise, ID (390); Kansas City (200); Salt Lake City (190); Jacksonville, FL (150); Olympia, WA (125); and Boston, MA (92).

That news release was published in 2011 and was later revised upwards to 22,000.

Medical Journal Article: 14,000 U.S. Deaths Tied to Fukushima Reactor Disaster Fallout

(Radiation & Public Health Project) -- An estimated 14,000 excess deaths in the United States are linked to the radioactive fallout from the disaster at the Fukushima nuclear reactors in Japan, according to a major new article in the December 2011 edition of the International Journal of Health Services.   This is the first peer-reviewed study published in a medical journal documenting the health hazards of Fukushima.

Authors Joseph Mangano and Janette Sherman note that their estimate of 14,000 excess U.S. deaths in the 14 weeks after the Fukushima meltdowns is comparable to the 16,500 excess deaths in the 17 weeks after the Chernobyl meltdown in 1986.  The rise in reported deaths after Fukushima was largest among U.S. infants under age one.  The 2010-2011 increase for infant deaths in the spring was 1.8 percent, compared to a decrease of 8.37 percent in the preceding 14 weeks.

Just six days after the disastrous meltdowns struck four reactors at Fukushima on March 11, 2011, scientists detected the plume of toxic fallout had arrived over American shores.  Subsequent measurements by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found levels of radiation in air, water, and milk hundreds of times above normal across the U.S.  The highest detected levels of Iodine-131 in precipitation in the U.S. were as follows (normal is about 2 picocuries I-131 per liter of water):  Boise, ID (390); Kansas City (200); Salt Lake City (190); Jacksonville, FL (150); Olympia, WA (125); and Boston, MA (92).

Epidemiologist Joseph Mangano , MPH MBA, said: "This study of Fukushima health hazards is the first to be published in a scientific journal.  It raises concerns, and strongly suggests that health studies continue, to understand the true impact of Fukushima in Japan and around the world.  Findings are important to the current debate of whether to build new reactors, and how long to keep aging ones in operation."

Mangano is executive director, Radiation and Public Health Project, and the author of 27 peer-reviewed medical journal articles and letters.  

Internist and toxicologist Janette Sherman , MD, said: "Based on our continuing research, the actual death count here may be as high as 18,000, with influenza and pneumonia, which were up five-fold in the period in question as a cause of death. Deaths are seen across all ages, but we continue to find that infants are hardest hit because their tissues are rapidly multiplying, they have undeveloped immune systems, and the doses of radioisotopes are proportionally greater than for adults."

Dr. Sherman is an adjunct professor, Western Michigan University, and contributing editor of "Chernobyl - Consequences of the Catastrophe for People and the Environment" published by the NY Academy of Sciences in 2009, and author of "Chemical Exposure and Disease and Life's Delicate Balance - Causes and Prevention of Breast Cancer."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues weekly reports on numbers of deaths for 122 U.S. cities with a population over 100,000, or about 25-30 percent of the U.S.  In the 14 weeks after Fukushima fallout arrived in the U.S. (March 20 to June 25), deaths reported to the CDC rose 4.46 percent from the same period in 2010, compared to just 2.34 percent in the 14 weeks prior.  Estimated excess deaths during this period for the entire U.S. are about 14,000.

Since this news release was published in December, 2011, new data has come out showing that the figure is now closer to 22,000.

Lawmakers, Ameren continue plans for second Callaway plant

Missouri lawmakers and Ameren Missouri have not given up their plans to pursue building a second nuclear power plant in Callaway County, despite recent problems at a Japanese nuclear power plant.

Last week, a Senate committee heard testimony from both supporters and opponents of the proposed second Callaway plant just two days prior to a 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan, causing three reactor explosions at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Even though these explosions have spotlighted potential problems with nuclear plants, Ameren, the state's main utility provider, and its legislative supporters have not changed their stance on legislation dealing with plans for another nuclear plant.

Ameren's Business Operations Supervisor, Rick Eastman, said that Japan's problems with its nuclear reactors have not impeded the company's promotion of legislation pushing for an early site permit needed to begin construction of a second plant in Callaway County.

Eastman also said Ameren has several safety procedures in place to deal to deal with emergency situations, including those caused by natural disasters such as an earthquake or tornado. These safety precautions include steel-enforced concrete walls, seismic sensors, backup generators as well as the ability to shut down the plant if anything "out of the ordinary" is noticed.

"If there is anything that might threaten the plant, the first step is to shut the reactor down," Eastman said

Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, the sponsor of the bill, agreed with Eastman and said Missouri's energy future cannot be influenced by international events and that the option for nuclear power has to be left open.

"We have to continue to talk about what sources of energy we are going to get for this state," Kehoe said. "The unfortunate incident in Japan has not changed the fact that coal is a very expensive source that is under attack from various groups from A to Z, so the way we produce power in this state is, unfortunately, not going to be changed by what happens globally, and the demand for power in this state is going to continue to be there and continue to be a need that we need to address."

So far the Fukushima plant in Japan has suffered from three explosions, which have severely damaged three reactors and caused a fire in a fourth. Following last Friday's earthquake and subsequent tsunami, the Fukushima plant's cooling systems failed, causing spent fuel rods to spike in temperature, cracking the casings around the rods. Once the casings around the rods became damaged, Japanese officials believe that the rods, after coming into contact with the steam released hydrogen gas, which was then vented out of the reactors and caused the explosions.

Eastman, said that the utility provider is waiting for the legislation to make its way through the General Assembly so the company can keep the option of building another plant open. If the proposed legislation passes, Ameren would be allowed to apply for an early site permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as well as charge its ratepayers an additional two dollars for up to 20 years to pay for the construction of the new nuclear facility.

"No decision to build a second plant has been made, the whole legislation regarding the site permit is simply to keep the option open as we continue to look at what's the best thing to do for Missouri's energy future," Eastman said. "If we were to push forward with approved site permit legislation and Ameren Missouri were to file for an application [to build a plant], part of what we would use the three year NRC review time for is to look at all of the various technologies."

Kehoe said that despite general safety concerns, due to strict safety standards in the country, any nuclear plants that Ameren would build would be sufficiently safer then the Fukushima plant in Japan, which was built in 1967.

"It would be irresponsible for someone to say there are no safety concerns," Kehoe said. "There are always safety concerns when you build any kind of project...I think the facilities that we would go forward with would be engineered through the early site permit process to withstand any possible acts of nature that we could have."

The Fukushima Unit 1 reactor follows the Genereal Electric Mark 1 reactor design, making it a boiling water reactor meaning that the coolant water for spent fuel rods is also used for the steam turbine system, causing a high probability of radioactive contamination of the water. According to a report released by the Nuclear Information and Resource Service, a nuclear energy information and watchdog group, there are 23 similar reactors in the United States, four of which are located in Illinois. Unlike these reactors, Ameren's current Callaway plant is a pressurized water reactor, which separates the coolant water from the steam turbine system, reducing the risk of radioactive contamination.

At the committee hearing last Friday, Ameren's CEO, Warren Baxter promoted the benefits of a potential second Callaway plant in front of the Senate committee.

"[A site permit] gives us the opportunity to access federal incentives, which can save our customers money," Baxter said at the hearing. "Certainly there is no doubt that a nuclear plant could present a great economic development opportunity by creating thousand of clean energy jobs and hundreds, if not more, permanent jobs in the future."