Survey on cesium in water and soil

March 20, 2012

High-level cesium logged in soil near Fukushima power plant: gov't survey

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20120320p2g00m0dm016000c.html

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- A recent government survey showed a reading of 154,000 becquerels of radioactive cesium per kilogram in soil in the village of Iitate near the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the highest level yet recorded, the Environment Ministry said Monday.

The high-level cesium was logged in soil on the bank of the Niida River in Iitate in evacuation zones around the power plant which was crippled by earthquake and tsunami last March, the ministry said.

The figure topped the level that requires ash from incinerated debris showing more than 100,000 becquerels of cesium to be buried at disposal sites with ferroconcrete partitions.

The ministry conducted its third such survey from Jan. 5 through Jan. 27 to measure the density of cesium contained in water and soil at 179 points across the prefecture.

In the water survey, 8 becquerels of cesium per liter were detected in the Hirose River in the city of Date but no cesium was detected at most points surveyed, the ministry said.