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Post by synergy on Mar 15, 2011 0:34:44 GMT -5
I tried this topic a few weeks ago and got zero replies so I will try again.
Since cesium was reported at least in Alaska and BC March 26 and has a half life of about 30 years and is dangerous if breathed in or ingested, is anyone else concerned about the radioactive isotope fallout contamination of food , soil and water. This event at Fukishima is ongoing every moment so radiation levels here that are no risk to human health must be compounding . Is anyone getting speculative that this is a concern?
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Post by synergy on Apr 4, 2011 1:29:19 GMT -5
I am stepping up my plans to build hoophouses to help protect my intensive garden plots, for what that may be worth.
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Post by Leenstar on Apr 4, 2011 10:32:14 GMT -5
I work with radiation and people don't realize that we are literally surrounded by radiation. Live in a brick house? There are radioactive isotopes in bricks. Fly cross country? You take a good dose with every trip. Check this out for some perspective: blog.xkcd.com/2011/03/19/radiation-chart/I am not saying that the Japan incident isn't concerning but the word "radiation" connotes alot of paranoia. Environmental contamination with any number of substances such as lead, dioxans artifical estrogens, plastics are generally more concerning to me.
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Post by synergy on Apr 4, 2011 10:54:18 GMT -5
But a brick house is not emitting cesium isotopes in microscopic sized particles into the atmosphere and to be breathed in or deposited in soils and water and ingested . Cesium has been measured present on the westcoast from Fukishima since March 26th .
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Post by Joseph Lofthouse on Apr 4, 2011 11:47:42 GMT -5
I work with radiation and people don't realize that we are literally surrounded by radiation. The thing about radiation is that we can easily detect a single atom of radiation with simple inexpensive equipment But with normal chemicals we have to have trillions of atoms before we can start detecting the molecules even with our most sensitive and complicated equipment which costs millions of dollars. So we don't worry about the more dangerous chemicals because we can't easily measure them. And we don't even worry about the more dangerous chemicals that are present in high enough concentrations to be easily measured (sugar for example in food, or fluorine in drinking water.)
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Post by spacecase0 on Apr 4, 2011 12:44:18 GMT -5
most of the cesium is to heavy to make it that far, the iodine can go a long way though, but is still dilute when it makes it to north america I mostly quit worrying about it when I saw the actual levels that was arriving I tend to think this is a much bigger worry: Highly Contagious AIDS-Like Disease Spreading in China www.theepochtimes.com/n2/china/highly-contagious-aids-like-disease-spreading-in-china-53864.htmland I hate the fluoride in the water, and I think it is doing way more damage than most people think I filter it out and do much better with the fluoride free water
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Post by mjc on Apr 4, 2011 13:47:59 GMT -5
But a brick house is not emitting cesium isotopes in microscopic sized particles into the atmosphere and to be breathed in or deposited in soils and water and ingested . Cesium has been measured present on the westcoast from Fukishima since March 26th . No...it just emits a tasteless, odorless, highly radioactive gas... Sorry, don't buy the cesium in Alaska is from Japan story...considering that it would take quite a while (like several days/weeks) for anything that heavy to get to Alaska from Japan. Cesium isn't exactly common, but it isn't all that rare either. It is found naturally, along with uranium and most other radioactive elements all over the globe. Always has been and always will be. Any cesium in Alaska is more likely to be from the North Korean bomb tests over two years ago than from the reactor problems. Yes, don't forget those when talking about radiation...even if they were underground tests, some of the radiation and decay products will still escape (well, since it didn't go up into the atmosphere it can't be called fallout). The big problems in Japan are not really the radiation that's getting out. Most of that is very short lived stuff and will be gone by next month. It's what to do with all the water and other materials that because some idiot decided that the reactors could be saved the day of the earthquake instead of permanently shutdown. Yeah, all reactors built in the last twenty years or so, some places longer, have ways of permanently shutting them off...key word--permanently. Once you commit, the reactor is a several billion dollar piece of concrete and steel sculpture. And if there ever was a case for doing that to a reactor...a 8.9 earthquake and followup tsunami is it.
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Post by Leenstar on Apr 4, 2011 15:20:33 GMT -5
But a brick house is not emitting cesium isotopes in microscopic sized particles into the atmosphere and to be breathed in or deposited in soils and water and ingested . Cesium has been measured present on the westcoast from Fukishima since March 26th . There are plenty of other isotopes more concerning than Cesium. Radon in particular. If you have a basement and haven't tested for Radon you are at more risk form Radon now than you are likely to ever be at risk from Cesium exposure. As noted above, radioactive isotopes on the west coast of NA could be from Soviet nuclear bomb tests in Siberian, hydrogen bomb testing in the Pacific, nuclear subs, North Korean Experiments or any number of sources other than the Japan reactor. You can't point to Cesium levels now without a frame of reference for what historic levels of Cesium were in the area being discussed. You might measure something now (Cesium) and find it to be level (x). being level x means NOTHING without knowing the historical background. It only means that right now levels are x. They could have been X+1000 ten years ago in which case levels have improved...
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Post by mjc on Apr 4, 2011 19:50:52 GMT -5
Plus cesium tends to be more prevalent in fallout than reactor by-products, if I recall (heck, it's been 29 yrs since I've studied this stuff).
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Post by steev on Apr 4, 2011 23:08:42 GMT -5
I have two clients who met at a protest at the Diablo Canyon reactor ~20 years ago; eventually they married and had a son. They are an anti-nuclear nuclear family.
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Post by heidihi on Apr 5, 2011 6:56:38 GMT -5
I tried this topic a few weeks ago and got zero replies so I will try again. Since cesium was reported at least in Alaska and BC March 26 and has a half life of about 30 years and is dangerous if breathed in or ingested, is anyone else concerned about the radioactive isotope fallout contamination of food , soil and water. This event at Fukishima is ongoing every moment so radiation levels here that are no risk to human health must be compounding . Is anyone getting speculative that this is a concern? I can only speak for my self and all I can think of is how can I help these people in Japan rebuid life? what can I do..then I think of the Ivory Coast ..then I think of Haiti still suffering ..then I think of Mexico and the Middle East then the gulf of Mexico ..and yes our own state of afairs ... Radioactive isotope contamination affecting me and my garden? ..honestly no I do not worry about this..I am overwhelmed sad and anxious about other people's suffering from what I think is a far worse threat to our world ..human beings suffering insurmountable wars ..natural disasters I am extremely down in the dumps and quite anxious now but not over radioactive isotope contamination and I do live in a brick house with soil so contaminated by heavy metals that present with such high numbers it would make your hair stand on end ..nothing I grow except fruit trees can be grown directly in the soil I live on anyway ..so a few isotopes ..not even going to notice
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Post by mnjrutherford on Apr 5, 2011 8:08:10 GMT -5
I REALLY like your thinking on this Heidi! Do what you can, when and where you can. No one person can fix the whole wide world, but every good thing you do is a good thing done.
As for the radioactivity... well... there isn't a whole lot we can do to stop that, not as average folks. Sort of like the massive quantities of chemicals that keep getting dumped on us. We have to deal with it as best we can. If I could get the farmer on the other side of the property line to quite using roundup ready seed, I sure would! But he thinks we are crackers for trying to do what we are doing. So why on earth should he listen to us?
Makes me think of the fable of the tortoise and the hare.
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Post by synergy on Apr 5, 2011 18:59:52 GMT -5
Ah well, problem solved April 4rth Canada stopped publishing radiation levels from monitors and the EPA is fast tracking legislation to raise acceptable levels of radiation. So it looks like everything is fine : ) No worries.
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Post by mnjrutherford on Apr 5, 2011 20:22:45 GMT -5
Geez, I don't know if I should laugh or cry! Ah, yes, remain focused on "the plan" and forge ahead.
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Post by steev on Apr 5, 2011 21:21:00 GMT -5
Rejoice! Rejoice! We have no choice but to carry on.
Wise words for dealing with every sort of baggage.
I call my farm PlanT Farm, because it's so far past plan B, and it's not a fat-farm or a funny-farm. Well, maybe a home for the bewildered and bemused.
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