[ RadSafe ] FW: Radium, Not Fukushima, Source of Western Tokyo Radiation Spike

[Stewart Farber]

REPOST DUE TO LINK PROBLEMS:
Hello all,
I am resending the post below, sent an hour or so ago, because it appears
the 3 hyperlinks I included got messed up in my post [mistakenly sent in a
word doc] when it was converted over to a text file before it was posted by
Radsafe.

So see below:


=================================================
From: Stewart Farber [mailto:SAFarber at optonline.net] 
Sent: Monday, October 17, 2011 3:44 PM
To: 'The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) Mailing List'
Subject: Radium, Not Fukushima, Source of Western Tokyo Radiation Spike

Last week, significantly elevated radiation levels were detected in various
locations very near Tokyo and reported in Bloomberg.com [and many other
places]. See:

“Tokyo plans radiation checks after high reading in Setagaya”:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-13/tokyo-plans-radiation-checks-after-
high-reading-in-setagaya.html

Anti-nuclear activists were instantly making claims that initial,
unverified, measurement by non-specialist citizens with their newly acquired
radiation detection devices,  was evidence that major contamination had
occurred 300 kilometers from Fukushima. Of course extremists like Dr. Chris
in videos and elsewhere claimed that areas even more distant were likely
contaminated to very high levels and the health problems would be very
serious.  Of course most problems that might occur from radiation “binding
to the DNA” as Dr. Chris put it, could be avoided by people consuming his
$75 USD a bottle little Busby magic pills produced by Busby Laboratories for
the Busby Foundation for the Children of Fukushima,  containing nothing more
than trace amounts of 4 minerals –less than are found in a multivitamin].
But I digress
..

Survey’s were made last week by government technical specialists  after the
initial findings of elevated levels noted above near Tokyo and reported as
seen below. See:

Bloomberg.com
Radium, Not Fukushima, Source of Western Tokyo Radiation Spike

By Chisaki Watanabe - Oct 14, 2011 
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-14/radium-not-fukushima-source-of-west
ern-tokyo-radiation-spike.html

Specialized surveys determined that the cause in one area near Tokyo with
the most elevated exposure rate was several bottles containing radium of
some type,  hidden beneath the floorboards of a home which had been occupied
long-term, until very recently,  by a 90 year old woman. Officials reported
the 90 year old woman had a health condition unrelated to radiation. 
Interesting. An elderly person --90 years old –living in a home  for decades
with very greatly elevated radiation levels, no cancer problem. Hmm.  She is
being cared for by her daughter now and may live for many more years.

If this 90 year old has a weak heart [or not], I’m sure we can expect a
YouTube video from some con-man or other, berating us that radiation
exposure caused her heart disease, if present,  at age 90.

Also some of the initial recent reports said that elevated radiation levels
of about 0.25 microsieverts per hour [ 25 microrem/hour] were measured by
citizens running around with rad detectors of some type near Tokyo at dozens
of schools.

For comparison on background radiation variation, decades ago, I carried out
radiation surveys of Boston, Rhode Island, and Harrisburg, PA [after the 3
Mile Island accident] using High Pressure Ionization Chamber [HPIC]
detectors. All around Boston, I found elevated levels of 25 microrem/hour
and more due to granite used in construction. Bunker Hill Monument, the
Christian Science Church, the entry to South Station –the major train
station in Boston, the Mass Statehouse, all had radiation levels of about 25
microrem/hour. In Rhode Island, I measured elevated radiation levels at the
State Capitol, and  up to 47 microrem per hour [ 0.47 microsieverts/hour ]in
Southern RI since the entire town of Westerly, RI essentially  was
constructed of locally mined granite high in natural U-238 and Th-232. 

The rad survey I conducted around TMI  in 1980 showed the highest levels of
gross gamma radiation exposure on the steps of the Pennsylvania State
Capitol, and in the courtroom  [both due to granite in construction] where
lawsuits filed by various parties claiming harm from trivial levels of
radiation exposure from the TMI accident were to be held.  Some of the
survey data results for Boston and RI are shown in an Op-Ed column I
authored in 1976 for the Boston Globe [ “Radiation is all around us” ] and
as columns in RI newspapers. See:

http://www.farber.info/FARBER%20AUTHORED/Boston%20Globe%20op-ed%20Bkg%20Surv
ey%2012_13_1976%20--Westerly%20Sun%2012_05_1976.pdf


Elevated radiation levels  reported recently at dozens of schools by citizen
survey people in Japan are almost certainly to be found as due to
radioactivity in building materials and not multiple random spot
contamination from Fukushima, an inconceivable event.  Even certain kinds of
sheetrock can have much elevated levels of radium leading to exposure rates
of 0.25 microsieverts/hour [25 microrem/hour].

Of course some anti-nukes we’ve witnessed, locked in some kind of delusional
fantasy world,  will probably claim the elevated levels of radiation seen in
1976 in Boston and Rhode Island, and in the Harrisburg, PA area in 1980
time-traveled back from 2011 Japan to contaminate the past in some kind of
time-warp of the space-time continuum.  Nothing could surprise me about the
non-scientific claims being made by some con-men about Fukushima.

The almost total failure of the “media” to even try and  get token expert
input that might help with striving toward accurate news coverage of
Fukushima radiation related issues, instead of allowing their reporting to
be monopolized by anti-nuclear propagandists and scaremongers, is an
outrageous failure of their journalistic responsibilities and ”Code of
Ethics” which supposedly apply to their writings.

Scotty, beam me up there is no intelligent life down here!!!


Stewart Farber, MS Public Health
Farber Medical Solutions, LLC
Bridgeport, CT 06604
email: SAFarber at optonline.net
203-441-8433