After 5 years from the Fukushima disaster: Impacts on the environment

http://www.newsx.com/world/17265-eu-to-ease-restrictions-on-fukushima-food

It has been 5 years since a 9.0-magnitude earthquake followed by a 30-foot tsunami hit northeast Japan, which caused the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant to meltdown. Greenpeace Japan, which is a non-governmental environmental organization, reported in March that the environmental impacts caused by this accident are becoming apparent and these impacts will last for decades or even for centuries. According to the investigations by Greenpeace, these environmental impacts include:

・Mutations in trees

・DNA damaged worms

・Radiation-contaminated mountain water

・Heritable mutations in pale blue butterfly populations

・Reduced fertility in barn swallows

・Decreases in the abundance of 57 bird species with higher radiation levels

・High levels of cesium contamination of coastal estuaries

Mutant Dandelions in Fukushima. Photo by Timothy Mousseau

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10027088782

http://yournewswire.com/nine-million-bags-of-nuclear-waste-piled-up-in-fukushima/

This topic relates to ecology because wildlife has been threatened by the nuclear accident. Even though tsunami and earthquake are natural phenomena and we cannot control them, we could have prevented the nuclear accident. The safety of nuclear power plants has been one of the biggest concerns for not only Japanese citizens, but also for the whole world. Japanese decision-makers failed to learn lessons from the nuclear disaster that happened at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986. Thus the safety measures were not reconsidered and Fukushima nuclear disaster happened in 2011. The environmental effects were not visible five years ago, but they are becoming apparent and serious today. This is not only an issue for Fukushima or Japan, but also an issue for the countries that possess nuclear power plants. Many species have been exposed to radiation from the nuclear power plants since the accident. Radiation causes long-term effects so decontamination work is needed for reducing the ecological impacts, but the Japanese government has been doing nothing to this issue. Over 9 million bags of nuclear wastes from decontamination works have been piled up near the nuclear power plants in Fukushima. Japanese Prime Minister Abe has been spreading a myth that “the situation is returning to normal.” Moreover, Abe government plans to restart nuclear power plants that were shut down after the nuclear disaster in Fukushima. The future of nuclear power depends on decisions we make today. If we do not learn from Fukushima disaster, we will repeat the same mistake again. I think that the Japanese government is not taking this issue seriously. Many Japanese citizens, including myself, are skeptical about the Japanese government. The Fukushima issue has not solved yet and the ecological impacts are becoming apparent, but the government is ignoring it and restarting nuclear power plants. People are starting to forget about the Fukushima disaster and the Japanese government is trying to erase people’s memories about the disaster. If the government does not take responsibility for the Fukushima accident, no one can solve this issue. We must never let the the Fukushima disaster happen again.

Source:
http://www.globalresearch.ca/five-years-after-fukushima-no-end-in-sight-to-ecological-fallout/5512546