Group items tagged

dered the evacuation of all people in a 20-30 kilometre radius around the nuclear plant. This area is now inhabitable but many animals remain including dogs, cats, cows, pigs and horses. The Japanese government didn’t make a plan to save those animals that had to be abandoned by their owners. Many of the pets' owners thought that they would have the opportunity to return to their house in couple of days. But as it turned out they could not return for several days and even weeks. When they finally had the opportunity to return and gather up their belongings many owners discovered that their beloved pets had died of starvation or ran away. The owners of farms could not move many big animals such as cows and horses due to lack of resources and man power. 

There were an estimated 15,000 pets (dogs and cats), 3,500 cows, 30,000 pigs, 440,000 chickens and an unknown numbers of horses that were left behind. It is now six months since the disaster, unfortunately many of the animals have die from dehydration and starvation. However, there are still a few thousand animals that survive. These animals have miraculously survived this tough situation with the help and care from some animal loving volunteers and groups. These groups have been forced to break the law by entering the government’s 20-kilometre radius no-entry zone just to help these animals. Saving animals from the no-entry zone is still prohibited. Unfortunately the Japanese government and the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) still do nothing to help. There ignorance is behind the loss of all these precious animals. All these animals' voices have to be head before the situation becomes worse. Mainstream media in Japan has hardly mentioned the situation these animals face. Therefore, many Japanese do not even know about this tragic situation.

Please help us to save the lives of these animals!  Please click on the letter to Japanese Government and TEPCO. These letters will be sent to them. Hopefully the result of many letters from individuals and groups from around the world will make them realize that we all know what is going on. Just maybe this will force them to do something about this horrible situation. Please don't let the dogs and cats that are loving family members die in this cruel way! Please don't let these cows that fed families meat and milk die in this cruel way!

The Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan has taken a massive toll on animals. The fate of wildlife is largely unknown, but domestic pets and livestock continue to suffer.   Livestock were forcibly abandoned and left behind to starve. Cows contaminated with cesium five times the permissible level have been slaughtered. Buried in the ground, their radioactive carcasses will continue to contaminate the land for decades if Chernobyl is any indication.   Family pets were left behind, tied, abandoned in homes, or left to roam the streets in search of food. Their owners were forbidden to return or were allowed to make brief visits to feed them, often too late. A rabbit born without ears is stoking fears of birth defects and genetic damage among humans while whales have been caught that are found to be contaminated with radioactive cesium. In the event of US reactor accidents, citizens are encouraged to evacuate with their pets. However, evacuation shelters and most hotels do not allow animals. Livestock, of course, cannot be evacuated.

An unknown disease is killing or weakening scores of ringed seals along Alaska’s north coast, where the animals have been found with lesions on their hind flippers and inside their mouths. Ringed seals, the main prey of polar bears, and a species that rarely comes ashore, in late July began showing up on the Beaufort Sea coast outside Barrow with the lesions, patchy hair loss and skin irritation around the nose and eyes. The outbreak was reported first in the Alaska Dispatch.

Officials from the National Marine Fisheries Service and the North Slope Borough said Thursday that 107 animals were found stranded from late July through Sept. 29 and 99 appeared to have lesions. Nearly half died. “Forty-six of the animals were dead when found, or died shortly thereafter,” said Julie Speegle, spokeswoman for the National Marine Fisheries Service. Seals still alive were lethargic or showing labored breathing.Necropsies revealed lesions were not limited to skin of seals. Biologists studying the dead animals found lesions in the respiratory system, liver, lymphoid system, heart and brain, she said.

Wildlife authorities in Canada and Russia have reported similar incidents, she said. “We don’t know if they’re related, but they’re similar,” Speegle said.Linda Deger, a spokeswoman for Fisheries and Oceans Canada, said by email that ringed seals are the only species reported to be affected and the department and other agencies are investigating. “At this point, we don’t know exactly what is causing it,” Speegle said. “Laboratory findings have been inconclusive to date but samples have tested negative for pox virus, herpes virus, papillomavirus, morbillivirus and calicivirus.”

KORIYAMA, Fukushima -- Pursuing research on radiation's effects on animals has been suggested as a way to keep livestock animals roaming the no-entry zone near the disaster-hit Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant from being killed or starving in the harsh winter. Nearly 2,000 cows and other livestock are estimated to still be in the 20-kilometer radius no-entry zone around the crippled power plant. The plan is being pushed by members of the citizens' group "Kibo-no-Bokujo -- Fukushima Project" (ranch of hope -- Fukushima project). On Oct. 21, around 30 people including local livestock farmers, government legislators and veterinarians met in Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, to discuss the issue.

Masami Yoshizawa, 57, who has about 330 high-quality beef cow at his livestock farm situated in the no-entry zone, said he cannot bear to abandon the animals. "I know the cows have lost their economic value since they've been exposed to radiation. But I think there must be a way to allow them to live. As a cattle breeder, I cannot leave them to die," he said. "We have to catch them by winter." Yoshizawa has gotten permission from the government to regularly return to his livestock farm to feed his animals. He says that every time, livestock other than his own also come seeking food. Meanwhile, a 54-year-old woman who had beef cattle in the no-entry zone said tearfully, "I freed 30 of my cows before evacuating. I believe they're still alive." There have also, however, been reports of cows and pigs that are now living wild making their way into residents' left-behind homes.

To keep the animals alive while preventing damage to resident's property, the Kibo-no-Bokujo -- Fukushima Project is working on a plan to enclose the animals on Yoshizawa's farm, where researchers will use them to observe the effects of radiation on large mammals. They are planning to get help from universities and other research institutes. Earlier, in May of this year, university researchers asked the central government to let livestock exposed to radiation in Fukushima Prefecture live for use in research. Senior Vice Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Nobutaka Tsutsui expressed support for the idea, but almost no concrete measures have been mapped out. According to the Kibo-no-Bokujo -- Fukushima Project, there were approximately 3,500 cows, 30,000 pigs and 680,000 chickens remaining in the 20-kilometer radius no-entry zone, which got that designation on April 22. On May 12, the government decided to slaughter all livestock in the zone, and it has so far killed about 300 cows. Most of the pigs and chickens are believed to have died from lack of water and food without people to look after them. Not counting any remaining chicken, there are estimated to be somewhat less than 2,000 animals left, mostly cows.

After the March 11 earthquake and tsunami struck, residents in the area were ordered to evacuate. Knowing that most shelters banned pets and believing the evacuation would be short-lived, many residents left their pets behind. In past weeks, numerous dogs have been found dead, chained to their doghouses.Despite efforts from animal rescue volunteers and advocacy groups, thousands of pets remain in the 12-mile no-go zone, they say.

For dogs alone, there are at least 2,000 to 3,000 left behind in the restricted zone,” said Yuri Nakatani, director of the Hiroshima-based animal rights advocate group Dogs and Cats Orphan Support.Dogs and Cats Orphan Support has rescued about 400 dogs and cats so far from the area, said member Hirofumi Sasaki.Animals rescued by the group are taken to a shelter in neighboring Tochigi prefecture, where they are paired with a temporary caregiver or adopted to a new home, Sasaki said.

“Besides food, what the animals in the shelter crave for is love of human beings,” he said.

“In July” Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology measured 669Bq/Kg of cesium from animal plankton. It includes cesium 134 and 137. The plankton was taken at 3km from the coast of Iwaki shi. Not to mention,it is from Fukushima because the half life time of cesium 134 is only 2 years. According to the official pro-nuc organization “IAEA”‘s report, Concentration factor is Animal plankton 40 Fish 100 Marine animal 400 Fish therefore is likely to be about 1672.5 Bq/Kg. If a sea lion has WBC test,he/she will be 6690 Bq/Kg. This is how we would be. Now even the Japanese “safety” limit of fish is 500Bq/kg. In the sea ,there is nothing left to eat.

CHERNOBYL to FUKUSHIMA – Part 3 – A Radiation Biologist’s Story Uploaded by: eon3 Date: Jun 30, 2011 Description: In the third of five parts of a seminar held at San Francisco State University – April 8, 2011, radiation biologist Natalia Manzurova tells of her experience as a Chernobyl ‘clean up liquidator’ – translated by psychologist Tatiana Mukhamedyarova.

Transcript Summary At 5:40 in The dose of radiation exposure was so high that a lot of animals who were exposed to it just went mad… that is they were just… crazy[?] The dogs that were left in the zone went to the forest… foxes, wolves… started attacking people who were working in the zone In fact even the hogs in the wild, they also became mad and also started attacking We were going from Chernobyl where we stayed overnight to Pripyat… one hog attacked our car with such force that we almost went into the ditch in the car

Migration Japan, Deutscher Wetterdienst [Public institution with partial legal capacity under Germany's Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development], July 27, 2011:

PORTANT NOTE: The provision of this graphics will bei [sic] discontinued on July, 29th. If required, the production will be resumed.  The Deutscher Wetterdienst has ceased to publish its special reports on the “Meteorological situation and dispersion conditions in Japan” as of 31 May 2011. The pictures and the animation in 6-hourly time steps show the possible migration of radioactivly [sic] loaded air emanating from he nuclear power station Fukushima I in 250m height. IMPORTANT NOTE: Since the strength of the emission is unknown, the values are to interpret only as relative distribution and dilution outgoing from an unknown source concentration. A conclusion on the actually radioactive load locally is not possible! Further information can be found on the website of BMU (www.bmu.de).

News: Interview with a Fukushima citizen, Fukushima Diary, October 2, 2011: From Fukushima to Tokyo, mutated creatures are found. In Tokyo, They caught 3 rats. 2 of the rats have deformed tails and 1 of them has a deformed leg.

Pink katydid, these children look forward to growth, Yomiuri Shimbun, October 2, 2011: Google Translation CAPTION: The larvae were found in rice fields Kubikirigisu Minamiboso Chiba Prefecture Pu Tong ku City の Elementary School 児 の [...] have found a pink grasshopper. Children are kept at the club. According to the Central Prefectural Museum, “Kubikirigisu” female larvae. It is usually green or brown, rarely finds a pink pigment mutation. Once adult, it becomes more vibrant pink.

House mice caught three children in the region murine Tokyo Choice, Shinsuke1: Google Translation I caught three fish houses in the region murine Joto child of Tokyo. Like appearance, the remaining two animals one animal is normal in a malformation was. Underdeveloped tail with two dogs, one animal that did not yet left foot back. Growth slowed even more severe deformities. Malformation may be the effects of radiation

France's CEREA has the simulation map of ground deposition of cesium-137 from the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident on its "Fukushima" page. It not only shows Japan but also the entire northern Pacific Rim, from Russian Siberia to Alaska to the West Coast of the US to the entire US. According to the map, the US, particularly the West Coast and particularly California, may be more contaminated with radioactive cesium than the western half of Japan or Hokkaido. It looks more contaminated than South Korea or China. Canada doesn't look too well either, particularly along the border with US on the western half.

From CEREA's Fukushima page: Atmospheric dispersion of radionuclides from the Fukushima-Daichii nuclear power plant CEREA, joint laboratory École des Ponts ParisTech and EdF R&D Victor Winiarek, Marc Bocquet, Yelva Roustan, Camille Birman, Pierre Tran Map of ground deposition of caesium-137 for the Fukushima-Daichii accident. The simulation was performed with a specific version of the numerical atmospheric chemistry and transport model Polyphemus/Polair3D. The parametrisations used for the transport and physical removal of the radionuclides are described in [1,2,3,4]. The magnitude of the deposition field is uncertain and the simulated values of deposited radionuclides could be significantly different from the actual deposition. In particular, the source term remains uncertain. Therefore, these results should be seen as preliminary and they are likely to be revised as new information become available to better constrain the source term and when radionuclides data can be used to evaluate the model simulation results.

The page also has the animated simulation of cesium-137 dispersion from March 11 to April 6, 2011. If the Japanese think they are the only ones who have the radiation and radioactive fallout from the accident, they are very much mistaken, if the simulation is accurate. (Meteorological institutes and bureaus in Austria, Germany, and Norway all had similar simulation maps.) Radioactive materials spewed out of Fukushima I Nuke Plant went up and away on the jet stream, reaching the other side of the Pacific. When the fallout from explosions (March 14, 15) reached the US West Coast, it came with an unusually heavy rainfall in California.

560 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was found in a wild rabbit caught in Yonezawa City First time that radioactive materials exceeding the safety limit (500 becquerels/kg) were found in wild animals in the prefecture Prefectural government has notified the hunters’ associations in the prefecture to voluntarily refrain from eating the meat of wild rabbits until further notice Officials explains that it is possible that the rabbit migrated from Fukushima Prefecture Prefectural government has conducted the tests for radioactive materials since last fall on 25 wild animals including pheasants and Japanese bears, but the density of radioactive cesium has been below the national provisional limit

An unstoppable tide of radioactive trash and chemical waste from Fukushima is pushing ever closer to North America. An estimated 20 million tons of smashed timber, capsized boats and industrial wreckage is more than halfway across the ocean, based on sightings off Midway by a Russian ship's crew. Safe disposal of the solid waste will be monumental task, but the greater threat lies in the invisible chemical stew mixed with sea water.

This new triple disaster floating from northeast Japan is an unprecedented nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) contamination event. Radioactive isotopes cesium and strontium are by now in the marine food chain, moving up the bio-ladder from plankton to invertebrates like squid and then into fish like salmon and halibut. Sea animals are also exposed to the millions of tons of biological waste from pig farms and untreated sludge from tsunami-engulfed coast of Japan, transporting pathogens including the avian influenza virus, which is known to infect fish and turtles. The chemical contamination, either liquid or leached out of plastic and painted metal, will likely have the most immediate effects of harming human health and exterminating marine animals.

Many chemical compounds are volatile and can evaporate with water to form clouds, which will eventually precipitate as rainfall across Canada and the northern United States. The long-term threat extends far inland to the Rockies and beyond, affecting agriculture, rivers, reservoirs and, eventually, aquifers and well water.   Falsifying Oceanography