Japan Earthquake | Page 2635
by Edano via English.kyodonews.jp 11/11/2011 12:08:19 PM
english.kyodonews.jp
100-meter-long rainbow flag on 8th-month tsunami anniv.
A rainbow-colored flag stretching over 100 meters is laid on the ground in the Utatsu district in the town of Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, in northeastern Japan on Nov. 11, 2011, marking eight months since a massive earthquake and tsunami struck the region. The flag was created by putting together some 50 2-meter by 2-meter flags bearing messages expressing hope for reconstruction of the area, written by people in Japan and abroad, in an act of continued support organized by a volunteer group. (Kyodo) english.kyodonews.jpby Edano via English.kyodonews.jp 11/11/2011 12:10:03 PM
english.kyodonews.jp
Fukushima holds tourism promotion event in Tokyo
Japanese actress Yoshiko Mita (L) and Fukushima Gov. Yuhei Sato (C) raise their fists, together with landladies of hotels and inns in the prefecture, during a promotional event at a hotel in Tokyo on Nov. 10, 2011. The event was held by Fukushima Prefecture to revitalize its tourism sector that has suffered in the wake of the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant. (Kyodo) english.kyodonews.jpby Edano via English.kyodonews.jp 11/11/2011 12:11:05 PM
www3.nhk.or.jp
Base for Fukushima clean-up shown to the media
An operations base for repair and clean-up efforts at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has been shown to the media for the first time.
A group of journalists visited the J-Village soccer training center in Fukushima Prefecture on Friday, the 8-month anniversary of the March 11th earthquake and tsunami.
The center, located about 20 kilometers south of the plant, has been used to house workers for plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company, Self-Defense Forces members and others.
TEPCO officials led a 3-hour tour showing the lodging facilities, equipment to measure radiation, and a counter to provide protective gear.
A waste storage area has 480,000 pieces of used protective clothing piled up in containers or bags awaiting disposal.
The power company says living conditions have improved over the past 8 months, with a clinic and a dining hall now open around the clock. Workers initially had to sleep on the floor.
An employee assigned to decontaminate vehicles says staff feel more positive now the facilities are cleaner.
TEPCO is also opening the crippled power plant to the media for the first time on Saturday.
Friday, November 11, 2011 18:22 +0900 (JST)
www3.nhk.or.jpby Edano via Www3.nhk.or.jp 11/11/2011 12:12:41 PM- 8 months later, still long way to go
It's been 8 months since the March 11th earthquake and tsunami. But there's still a long way to go before full-fledged reconstruction is possible.
Police say 19,488 people have been confirmed dead or remain missing as of November 10th.
The number of those confirmed dead is 9,501 in Miyagi Prefecture, 4,665 in Iwate Prefecture, and 1,604 in Fukushima Prefecture. 1,995 people remain missing in Miyagi, 1,427 people in Iwate, and 226 in Fukushima.
Reconstruction plans for the disaster-hit areas have been drawn up in 8 municipalities in Iwate, and 7 in Miyagi.
The government's newly established rebuilding subsidies and other funds will shoulder all costs for relocation of residents to higher ground or inland regions.
But the locals will need more time to form a consensus on the mass relocations and reconstruction projects.
Also, no criterion has been set to assess the value of flooded land the government will purchase from owners.
Friday, November 11, 2011 16:15 +0900 (JST)
www3.nhk.or.jpby Edano 11/11/2011 12:14:08 PM - High level of radioactivity in Tochigi mushrooms
Radioactive cesium exceeding government standards has been detected in mushrooms grown outdoors in Tochigi Prefecture, about 120 kilometers from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
The Tochigi prefectural government said on Thursday that it had measured 649 becquerels of radioactive cesium per kilogram of kuritake mushrooms grown outdoors in a city in the prefecture. This level exceeds the government limit of 500 becquerels.
Four other cities in Tochigi Prefecture, southwest of the nuclear plant, have already refrained from shipping their mushrooms.
The prefecture asked the city to voluntarily refrain from shipping its mushrooms and to recall those already on the market.
Earlier this month, levels of radioactive cesium exceeding the government standard were also found in shiitake mushrooms grown in Yokohama, about 260 kilometers from the nuclear plant.
Friday, November 11, 2011 11:03 +0900 (JST)
www3.nhk.or.jpby Edano 11/11/2011 12:14:30 PM 
@Edano stupid it is, why are they doing this it will be demoralising they should be getting call centres etc set up, they should have research centres there are so many forms of employment they could establish for the people there , pushing tourism whilst tepco is running the show is the wrong path to takeby elainekirk 11/11/2011 12:14:51 PM
www3.nhk.or.jp
Cabinet endorses decontamination plan
The Japanese Cabinet has endorsed a basic plan on cleaning up radioactive fallout from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Under the Environment Ministry's plan, decontamination work will be carried out in areas where the annual radiation exposure reaches one millisievert or more.
The central government will be responsible for decontaminating the no-entry and evacuation zones around the troubled plant. Radiation levels are especially high in these areas.
In other affected areas, the clean-ups will be planned and performed by local municipalities, with the central government bearing the cost.
The plan also calls for cutting radiation levels approximately in half within two years in areas where the annual radiation is below 20 millisieverts. In schools and parks where children spend a lot of time, the reduction rate is raised to around 60 percent.
Environment Minister Goshi Hosono told reporters that he wants to hold thorough discussions with the relevant municipalities before designating areas subject to decontamination work.
Friday, November 11, 2011 13:43 +0900 (JST)
www3.nhk.or.jpby Edano via Www3.nhk.or.jp 11/11/2011 12:16:03 PM- they should better localize the corium before inviting tourists.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:16:36 PM
- this is all pure PR, nothing based on science, and this is sad.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:17:30 PM
- in chernobyl they do not deny the danger. this shows clearly the difference to capitalism. the show must go on.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:18:40 PM
- if they go on spreading the radiation all over the land just like they did it until now, there will be no problem to reduce it by 50% within 2 years in the affected rergions...by Edano 11/11/2011 12:22:37 PM
www3.nhk.or.jp
Disaster-hit prefectures promote tourism in Taiwan
Disaster-hit prefectures in northeastern Japan are promoting themselves in Taiwan as safe and ready to welcome back tourists.
The six prefectures are taking part in a major tourism event that opened in Taipei on Friday. More than 60 countries and territories are featured in the four-day event. Japan is hosting a record-high 100 booths.
The prefectures raised a banner thanking Taiwan for donating 18-billion yen, or over 230-million dollars, after the March quake and tsunami.
They also displayed photos of local festivals and tourist spots, including Iwate Prefecture's Hiraizumi district, which was designated as a World Heritage Site this year.
Taiwanese at the event said they feel reassured that tourist spots in the prefectures have fully recovered, with no more effects from the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
A Japanese official said the prefectures hope to promote their recovery and win back tourists this winter.
Before the disaster, Taiwan was the third-biggest source of visitors to Japan, after South Korea and China, at about 1.2 million people per year. But the number fell by an estimated 27 percent in the first nine months of this year.
Friday, November 11, 2011 18:22 +0900 (JST)
www3.nhk.or.jpby Edano via Www3.nhk.or.jp 11/11/2011 12:26:02 PM- speechless....by Edano 11/11/2011 12:26:08 PM
- ..."no more effects from the Fukushima nuclear disaster"....by Edano 11/11/2011 12:27:24 PM
- just look here, liars: www.bousai.ne.jp no more effects .....by Edano 11/11/2011 12:28:30 PM
- 1000 fold radioactivity...by Edano 11/11/2011 12:29:51 PM
- criminal liars. economy before health. i really hate it.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:31:32 PM
- @Edano I cannot help thinking that most other countries the people would be heard far more than the Japanese areby elainekirk 11/11/2011 12:33:54 PM
- ooops: standard & poor's admitted that they downrated french banks in error.... omg....by Edano 11/11/2011 12:34:38 PM
- @elainekirk possible, but on the other hand i think it is the policy of iaea behind the curtains. downplay the nuclear threat by all means.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:36:16 PM
- by Edano 11/11/2011 12:38:32 PM
- i am more and more convinced that the mighty american rating agencies try to destroy europe... is this a political agenda ?by Edano 11/11/2011 12:39:30 PM
- @Edano 'mistake' they don't make mistakes this is just what tepco does, lie lie lie and then call it a 'mistake' when they fear being outedby elainekirk 11/11/2011 12:41:19 PM
- @elainekirk the lies cost us a lot of money.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:43:02 PM
- how can they downrate such a stabile economy like france and then say sorry, when the rates have risen and lots of people have lost their jobs and pensions ? criminal liars, again.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:47:10 PM
- i am very upset today. have to cool down.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:47:43 PM
- the americans first make war and ruin their banks and their economy and then they simply downgrade europe and cause a global crisis. damn.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:50:20 PM
- they should better keep their own house clean.by Edano 11/11/2011 12:51:17 PM
- @Edano yes trueby elainekirk 11/11/2011 12:54:12 PM
@Edano , this is an attempt of diversion. Plenty people here have the feeling that their nation could easily be the next Greece, only on a grander scale. In addition, since the financial crisis of 2008, nobody puts much stock in rating agencies.by Peter 11/11/2011 12:55:10 PM- @Peter oh, they make much pressure here in europe and it has effects...by Edano 11/11/2011 12:57:29 PM
- @Edano , The way I see it, Geitner is desperately trying to froth up liquidity in the market. The US government, as a matter of fact the whole economy, is run on loans. If the money supply dries up and the Fed can't make more without creating hyperinflation, it becomes more and more expensive to borrow and eventually impossible to borrow enough. On top, politicians n this country cannot find a consensus how to reign in spending. Pure desperation.by Peter 11/11/2011 1:03:52 PM
- @Peter so there is a political agenda in the rating agencies. :(by Edano 11/11/2011 1:05:14 PM
@Edano the rating agencies are completely unreliable. They were giving big US banks AAA ratings even though there was blatant evidence there were on the brink of failing. I wouldn't say the rating agencies are on a political agenda because the corporate powers in the US do whatever the want then call the Congress and the White House and bark orders at them.
Dragging Europe down with it sounds about right but remember some of the banks doing the worst of this are very international and had their origins in Europe even though they were playing this insane game that seems to have ground zero in Wall Street. Barclays, Deutche Bank and USB have been eyeball deep in the scandals that started here. Think of it like a viral disease, there is now a global outbreak. The connected nature allowed financial institutions kept doing things that were unwise nobody stopped them and it blew up. The real problem in it spreading is the international nature of businesss now and no international rules or oversight.by lillymunster 11/11/2011 1:09:39 PM- Oh my. Put this NHK story about tourism next to the technical article from yesterday outlining that a massive explosion is still a possibility at the plant. No lasting effects?
www3.nhk.or.jp
www.economic-undertow.com
NHK seems back in govt. propaganda modeby lillymunster 11/11/2011 1:21:21 PM - @lillymunster the tourism PR is insane. just show them this map: www.bousai.ne.jp and the tourists will change their destination.by Edano 11/11/2011 1:23:24 PM
- They were telling people in Taiwan that tourism in those areas is back to normal attendance? That is a pretty simple lie to uncover, just read the news online...by lillymunster 11/11/2011 1:34:39 PM
- The government decontamination plans all coincide with the half life of cesium 134. I wish more in the JP media would call them on this. It is a tacit admission they can't do anything and decontamination isn't working.by lillymunster 11/11/2011 1:41:40 PM
Whoa!! news.yahoo.com Nuke agency reports unusual radiation in Europe. Isn't that how Chernobyl started? Finding I-131 that the Russians were covering up releasing?by wrshpr 11/11/2011 2:23:48 PM- @wrshpr Yikes. I wonder if amounts found and the other locations are documented anywhere. Something had to happen. CR has lots of nuke power plants.by lillymunster 11/11/2011 2:26:05 PM
- IAEA press release provides no more data www.iaea.orgby lillymunster 11/11/2011 2:26:57 PM
- Breaking 1 hour ago: IAEA reports iodine-131 found in Czech Republic and else where in Europe. Iodine-131 has a half life of 8 days. Low levels of radioactive particle in Europe--IAEA. November 11.2011. uk.reuters.comby MaryW 11/11/2011 2:27:49 PM
- Yeah....happy 11-11-11 to you to. I'll see if RT is covering it any.by wrshpr 11/11/2011 2:28:32 PM
- What we need to find is public radiation stations in nearby countries so see if we can detect any spikes. Does anyone remember the German version of Radnet? We looked at some of those during the accident in France. What other public stations could be checked?by lillymunster 11/11/2011 2:32:22 PM
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