Russia reports normal radiation level
April 16th, 2011 - 4:49 pm ICT by IANSMoscow, April 16 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Experts conducting round-the-clock monitoring in Russia’s Far East said Saturday that radiation levels did not exceed natural background despite the accident at the Japanese nuclear power plant in March.
“As of Saturday morning, we have not detected radiation above natural background levels in Far Eastern regions [of Russia],” said a representative of the Emergency Situations Ministry’s Far Eastern regional center.
Background radiation is what is constantly present in the environment and is emitted from a variety of natural and artificial sources.
The official said there were 630 fixed and mobile stations monitoring radiation levels across Russia’s Far East, operated by the Emergency Situations Ministry, the Hydrometeorological Service, Russian sanitary watchdog Rospotrebnadzor and the military.
Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant was badly damaged by the powerful earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan March 11.
Fukushima’s operator has since been struggling to stop radioactive leaks from the plant’s crippled reactors.
Russian officials have consistently said there is no evidence the radiation has spread to Russia’s Pacific coast and they have advised people against taking radiation antidotes, but fears of nuclear fallout from the crippled nuclear plant have sparked a surge in sales of iodine-rich kelp in Russia’s Far East.
Iodine lessens the amount of radiation the human body can absorb.
Meanwhile, 47 Japanese automobiles indicating high levels of radioactivity remain in the port at the Russian Far East city of Vladivostok.
The Russian Geographic Society will next week send an expedition to the Sea of Japan to monitor the levels of nuclear contamination in the water, and check on seismic processes in an area stretching from the Kuril Islands to Kamchatka Peninsula.
–IANS/RIA Novosti
sd/vt
- Radiation level within norms in Russia's Far East - Apr 17, 2011
- Radioactive iodine detected in Tokyo tap water - Mar 19, 2011
- Japan raises Fukushima accident level to worst - Apr 12, 2011
- Russia halts food imports from Japan - Mar 24, 2011
- Japan declares 20 km no-go zone around Fukushima n-plant - Apr 21, 2011
- Radiation levels still within norm in Russia's Far East - Mar 29, 2011
- Japan quake, tsunami toll tops 12,000 - Apr 03, 2011
- Radiation levels no danger to marine life: Japan - Mar 26, 2011
- Outflow of highly radioactive water from Japan n-plant stops (Lead) - Apr 06, 2011
- Sea water off Kukushima has high level of radioactive iodine - Mar 24, 2011
- Russia to send mission to assess Sea of Japan nuclear contamination - Apr 16, 2011
- TEPCO to cleanup radioactive debris from n-plant by July - Apr 25, 2011
- Radioactive levels at Fukushima lower than earlier reported:Kyodo - Mar 28, 2011
- Russian found with radioactive car - Apr 10, 2012
- Japan urges end of nuclear industry - Aug 01, 2011
Tags: artificial sources, background radiation, center background, far eastern regions, hydrometeorological service, japan march, japanese automobiles, kamchatka peninsula, kuril islands, mobile stations, natural background levels, nuclear contamination, nuclear fallout, nuclear power plant, radiation level, radiation levels, ria novosti, russian far east, sea of japan, seismic processes