information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
3 Avril 2012
April 3, 2012
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T120402004436.htm
Many residents of Tamura and Kawauchi, both in Fukushima Prefecture, have temporarily returned home since the no-entry restriction on their communities was lifted Sunday in line with a review of evacuation zoning established after the outbreak of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
"Today is a new start," 67-year-old Akiko Tsuboi said as she left by car for her house in Tamura's Miyakojimachi-Furumichi area, about 20 kilometers from her temporary housing unit, at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. She reached her two-story wooden house about 30 minutes after passing a checkpoint.
Tsuboi lived in the house, and raised three children there, from the time of her marriage to her husband, Masaya, until they evacuated on March 12, 2011.
Inside the house, she found mold on the floor caused by a leak in the roof. She did not place flowers on the family altar during a previous visit because she did not want to leave them to wilt. Sunday, however, she put out flowers, saying, "I'm home."
A calendar on a wall was still at the page for March 2011 and a clock had stopped.
Unlike previous temporary visits, which were restricted to four hours including traveling time, there is now no time limit on residents' stay. However, Tsuboi could not use the toilets because the septic tank needed to be checked, so she left her house at 2 p.m.
About 380 people from Tamura, or just under 1 percent of the entire population, lived in the former no-entry zone within a 20-kilometer radius of the crippled plant. About 350 people from Kawauchi lived in the zone, or about 12 percent of that area's population.
Kawauchi returned its public administration functions, which were temporarily shifted to Koriyama in the prefecture, to the village on March 26. Schools will also resume soon.
However, decontamination work in the former no-entry zone is behind schedule, and work on water and other infrastructure has not yet started.
Areas with annual radiation exposure of 20 millisieverts or lower are being prepared for residents' return. The central government plans to complete decontamination work this year in parts of those areas with relatively high radiation.
Such work in the emergency evacuation preparation zone, which was from 20 kilometers to 30 kilometers from the plant, is also behind schedule due to ice and snow. The restriction on this area was lifted in September, but many residents worry decontamination will not finish as planned.
Osamu Sudo, a counselor of the Cabinet Office's support team for evacuees from the nuclear crisis, has admitted the limitations of the measurements on which the review of evacuation zoning was based.
Sudo said at a press conference on Friday: "The government divided areas based on rough measurements of radiation levels.
But it's necessary to ascertain more detailed radiation readings to lift the restrictions and allow residents to return home."
This review is based on measurements of radiation levels taken from a plane. However, these measurements roughly estimate radiation levels one meter off the ground, based on midair sampling. They do not identify "hot spots," specific locations with high radiation levels.
The government plans to measure radiation levels especially in places many people gather, such as schools and hospitals, and take steps to decrease as much as possible the radiation exposure of the residents who return home.
Michiaki Kai, a professor at Oita University of Nursing and Health Sciences, said: "There are some locations with relatively high radiation levels in the areas where residents were allowed to return. While exchanging sufficient information with residents, the government should make plans for measurement and decontamination, and take measurements to decrease radiation exposure."
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