Radiation in the Ocean

The Fukushima plant is continuing to dump radiation into the ocean. 300 tons of contaminated water spew into Pacific Ocean everyday. On Sept. 2013 Japan finally acknowledged the urgency of the situation. The plant had tried to seal off the leak with concrete and failed since the concrete was unable to solidify properly. This means that radiation is still gushing out by the tons into the Pacific Ocean, where it affects wild life in numerous ways daily.

The Fukishima nuclear radiation has caused fish to register higher levels of radiation. Fish found near the reactor have much higher levels of Cesium than before. Near the radiation site offshore, radiation levels were found to be over 40 times higher than normal. Over 42 species of fish near the site are considered unsafe. Despite this it is still being insisted that the radiation levels found in fish within the Pacific Ocean are safe for consumption. However, we know that no level of radiation is safe.  The radioactive elements in the water could take decades to degrade, affecting several generations of fish. Some elements in radiation such as caesium 134 and 135 have a half life of two million plus years, meaning they will be half as potent then.  The Japanese Fisheries Agency has been testing the radiation in fish caught in its waters since March 2011 and have seen a rise in numbers.

The effects of radiation work their way up the food chain. Sharks, dolphins and whales that reside near the top consume large quantities of fish. This causes the radiation to become more condensed within a single animal. Radiation can cause the deaths of many of these animals that consume contaminated fish. Humans that consume fish have the same risk when consuming contaminated fish.

 

Bioaccumulation:

Toxins released into the water from factories/power plants> fish eat it>you eat it

http://canadaam.ctvnews.ca/report-raises-fresh-concerns-about-radiation-levels-in-japanese-fish-1.1486514#ixzz2hAEyiUbR

http://ecowatch.com/2013/10/09/fukushima-radiation-safe-to-eat-fish/

http://www.enviroreporter.com/investigations/fukushima/a-radioactive-nightmare/

http://www.osti.gov/scitech/biblio/6802363

http://www.egr.msu.edu/tosc/grandcal/factsheets/contaminated%20sediments.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopes_of_caesium