[ RadSafe ] Hawaii Health Guide - Big Island Dairy Farmers fightradiation with Boron

[Steven Dapra]

May 29

         I don't think it's necessary to call the farmers 
"idiots."  Perhaps a little gullible or naive, but not idiots.  The 
villains are the anti-nuclear agitators.

Steven Dapra


At 11:53 AM 5/29/2011, you wrote:
>Roger, I read the link. These "well meaning farmers" are only poor 
>idiots who have been frightened by antinuclear agitators. 
>Interesting, that no data are reported, only the usual anti-nuclear 
>bla bla of values are "1268" times higher than normal and "546" 
>times higher than the maximum permissible level.
>
>Good questions: What are the actual data? What are the maximum 
>permissible concentrations? This should be given separately for the 
>radionuclides of concern.
>
> >From my unfortunately very extensive experience with the Chernobyl 
> accident in Austria and all of Europe (which was much closer to 
> Chernobyl than the US is to Japan!!!) I am more than severly 
> doubting the horror news, especially knowing how mass media 
> exaggerate the facts, preferably by orders of magnitude. A tiny 
> speck of a radionuclide becomes a deadly threat.
>
>What is of concern in the first phase of a nuclear accident is I-131 
>(and to a lesser extent I-132). Then comes the so called 
>Cesium-phase, when Cs-137 (and for a much lesser time Cs-134) are 
>the radionuclides of concern.
>
>Boron - as explicitely mentioned: "elemental boron!!! - is absurd. 
>No more comment. Borates are used in washing powders to make water 
>soft, as well as zeolites. Zeolites are powerful in adsorbing 
>certain ions, but not "radiation".
>
>I have made together with Fritzi Tataruch, a friend at the Austrian 
>Institute for Wild Life Research (rather she has made it together 
>with me!!) to feed a hexacyanoferrat, which is known to adsorb 
>Cs-137 effectively, to roe deer. Enhanced excretion of Cs-137 was 
>observed. Similar tests were made in a higher affected area in 
>Austria with cows. If I remember correctly the reduction of Cs-137 
>was about  50% - in my opinion not worth the effort.
>
>Let me take the conclusion:
>
>I do not believe at all - unless having reliable data - that any 
>such extremely enhancements of radionuclide concentrations in milk 
>in Hawaii could have occurred.
>.
>Secondly the proposed "remediation" by "boron" is bluntant nonsense, 
>no more comment.
>
>Thirdly the other obviously proposed remedies are just a result of 
>ignorance and lack of knowledge of any radioecological or agricultural facts.
>
>Fourthly in my home country Austria any such experiments  would be 
>subject to severe measures of official approval, if what ever 
>"unusual feed" would be fed. Scientists - real scientists - would be 
>consulted The resulting milk would be screened officially.
>
>
>I start wondering, where all the excellent US radioecologists I used 
>to know have vanished? Nobody of them at RADSAFE? What a pity!
>
>Who is going to tell these persons about the nonsense they try to achieve?
>
>I refrain from further comments, most of all because I have also 
>other things to do.
>
>Best regards to everybody on RADSAFE - should you have some 
>questions, which do not need elaborate work you are of course welcome!
>
>Franz
>
>
>---- Roger Helbig <rhelbig at sfo.com> schrieb:
> > 
> http://hawaiihealthguide.com/healthtalk/display.htm?id=915&hhsid=9ea42c3eb9d
> > 93ab4faf7ca3cd98ee6d8
> >
> > I strongly suspect that these well meaning dairy farmers are 
> doing more harm
> > than good.  Is that the case or does sodium borate do no harm?  If it does
> > harm especially to the resulting milk, then the State of Hawaii's health
> > department should be made aware of this.
> >
> > Roger Helbig

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