Japan:IAEA team continues observing decontamination

Laaska News Oct. 10,2011

Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency have observed the Japanese government’s experimental decontamination of a farm in Iitate Village. The land is in Fukushima Prefecture, inside the government-designated evacuation zone.

The 12 experts on the IAEA team arrived in Fukushima on Sunday to give advice about effective methods to clear away radioactive substances.

They visited a rice paddy on Monday where the experimental decontamination is being carried out.

Government officials explained radiation levels were reduced by 75 percent per kilogram of soil after workers removed 4 centimeters of top soil. They also said the dose of radiation in unpolished rice was about 0.1 percent of that of soil.

IAEA experts say these radiation levels are low and pose no problem.

They also inspected a site that uses 400 degree Celsius heat to process plants containing radioactive substances.

Government officials said they contained radioactive cesium within the plants when they converted them into charcoal. They said this method could help reduce the weight of plants.

An IAEA member said it would be necessary to work out a plan to effectively burn massive amounts of plants.

The IAEA experts are meeting Fukushima Governor Yuhei Sato on Tuesday, their last day in the prefecture.

NHK.
Laaska News.
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