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Radiation dose rates now and in the future for residents neighboring restricted areas of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

ABSTRACT: Radiation dose rates were evaluated in three areas neighboring a restricted area within a 20- to 50-km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in August-September 2012 and projected to 2022 and 2062. Study participants wore personal dosimeters measuring external dose equivalents, almost entirely from deposited radionuclides (groundshine). External dose rate equivalents owing to the accident averaged 1.03, 2.75, and 1.66 mSv/y in the village of Kawauchi, the Tamano area of Soma, and the Haramachi area of Minamisoma, respectively. Internal dose rates estimated from dietary intake of radiocesium averaged 0.0058, 0.019, and 0.0088 mSv/y in Kawauchi, Tamano, and Haramachi, respectively. Dose rates from inhalation of resuspended radiocesium were lower than 0.001 mSv/y. In 2012, the average annual doses from radiocesium were close to the average background radiation exposure (2 mSv/y) in Japan. Accounting only for the physical decay of radiocesium, mean annual dose rates in 2022 were estimated as 0.31, 0.87, and 0.53 mSv/y in Kawauchi, Tamano, and Haramachi, respectively. The simple and conservative estimates are comparable with variations in the background dose, and unlikely to exceed the ordinary permissible dose rate (1 mSv/y) for the majority of the Fukushima population. Health risk assessment indicates that post-2012 doses will increase lifetime solid cancer, leukemia, and breast cancer incidences by 1.06%, 0.03% and 0.28% respectively, in Tamano. This assessment was derived from short-term observation with uncertainties and did not evaluate the first-year dose and radioiodine exposure. Nevertheless, this estimate provides perspective on the long-term radiation exposure levels in the three regions.

SUBMITTER: Harada KH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3956155 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Radiation dose rates now and in the future for residents neighboring restricted areas of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

Harada Kouji H KH Niisoe Tamon T Imanaka Mie M Takahashi Tomoyuki T Amako Katsumi K Fujii Yukiko Y Kanameishi Masatoshi M Ohse Kenji K Nakai Yasumichi Y Nishikawa Tamami T Saito Yuuichi Y Sakamoto Hiroko H Ueyama Keiko K Hisaki Kumiko K Ohara Eiji E Inoue Tokiko T Yamamoto Kanako K Matsuoka Yukiyo Y Ohata Hitomi H Toshima Kazue K Okada Ayumi A Sato Hitomi H Kuwamori Toyomi T Tani Hiroko H Suzuki Reiko R Kashikura Mai M Nezu Michiko M Miyachi Yoko Y Arai Fusako F Kuwamori Masanori M Harada Sumiko S Ohmori Akira A Ishikawa Hirohiko H Koizumi Akio A

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20140224 10

Radiation dose rates were evaluated in three areas neighboring a restricted area within a 20- to 50-km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in August-September 2012 and projected to 2022 and 2062. Study participants wore personal dosimeters measuring external dose equivalents, almost entirely from deposited radionuclides (groundshine). External dose rate equivalents owing to the accident averaged 1.03, 2.75, and 1.66 mSv/y in the village of Kawauchi, the Tamano area of Soma, and t ...[more]

PMID: 24567380

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Project description:The accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant on March 11, 2011, released radioactive material into the atmosphere and contaminated the land in Fukushima and several neighboring prefectures. Five years after the nuclear disaster, the radiation levels have greatly decreased due to physical decay, weathering, and decontamination operations in Fukushima. The populations of 12 communities were forced to evacuate after the accident; as of March 2016, the evacuation order has been lifted in only a limited area, and permanent habitation is still prohibited in most of the areas. In order for the government to lift the evacuation order and for individuals to return to their original residential areas, it is important to assess current and future realistic individual external doses. Here, we used personal dosimeters along with the Global Positioning System and Geographic Information System to understand realistic individual external doses and to relate individual external doses, ambient doses, and activity-patterns of individuals in the affected areas in Fukushima. The results showed that the additional individual external doses were well correlated to the additional ambient doses based on the airborne monitoring survey. The results of linear regression analysis suggested that the additional individual external doses were on average about one-fifth that of the additional ambient doses. The reduction factors, which are defined as the ratios of the additional individual external doses to the additional ambient doses, were calculated to be on average 0.14 and 0.32 for time spent at home and outdoors, respectively. Analysis of the contribution of various activity patterns to the total individual external dose demonstrated good agreement with the average fraction of time spent daily in each activity, but the contribution due to being outdoors varied widely. These results are a valuable contribution to understanding realistic individual external doses and the corresponding airborne monitoring-based ambient doses and time-activity patterns of individuals. Moreover, the results provide important information for predicting future cumulative doses after the return of residents to evacuation order areas in Fukushima.

Project description:BackgroundTo shed light on the mental health of evacuees after the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS), we evaluate the results of the Fukushima Health Management Survey (FHMS) of the residents at Kawauchi village in Fukushima, which is located less than 30 km from the FDNPS.MethodsWe conducted the cross-sectional study within the framework of the FHMS. Exposure values were "anorexia," "subjective feelings about health," "feelings about sleep satisfaction," and "bereavement caused by the disaster," confounding variables were "age" and "sex," and outcome variables were "K6 points." We collected data from the FHMS, and employed the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6) and the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Checklist Stressor-Specific Version (PCL-S) to carry out the research. A total of 13 or greater was the cut-off for identifying serious mental illness using the K6 scale. The study subjects included residents (n = 542) of over 30 years of age from Kawauchi village, and data were used from the period of January 1, 2012 to October 31, 2012.ResultsA total of 474 residents (87.5%) scored less than 13 points in the K6 and 68 (12.6%) scored 13 points or more. The proportion of elderly residents (over 65 years old) among people with K6 score above the cut-off was higher than that among people with K6 score below the cut-off (44.1 vs 31.0%, p < 0.05). In addition, the proportion of residents with anorexia and mental illness among people with K6 score above the cut-off was higher than among people with K6 score below the cut-off (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05, respectively). The amount of residents who scored 44 points or more in the PCL-S among people with K6 score above the cut-off was also considerably higher than among people with K6 score below the cut-off (79.4 vs 12.9%, p < 0.001). Interestingly, the proportion of residents who scored more than among people with K6 score above the cut-off and the among people with PCL-S score above the cut-off in Kawauchi was higher than in previous studies in other locations.ConclusionsThese results suggest that there are severe mental health problems, such as depression and PTSD, among adults as a consequence of the accident at the FDNPS. Our study showed that residents who lived in the evacuation zone before the disaster are at high risk psychological distress. To facilitate local residents' recovery from Fukushima, there is a need to continue providing them with physical and mental support, as well as communication regarding the health risks of radiation.

Project description:A major incident occurred at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station following the tsunami triggered by the Tohoku-Pacific Ocean Earthquake in March 2011, whereby seawater entered the torus room in the basement of the reactor building. Here, we identify and analyze the bacterial communities in the torus room water and several environmental samples. Samples of the torus room water (1 × 109 Bq137Cs/L) were collected by the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings from two sampling points between 30 cm and 1 m from the bottom of the room (TW1) and the bottom layer (TW2). A structural analysis of the bacterial communities based on 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing revealed that the predominant bacterial genera in TW1 and TW2 were similar. TW1 primarily contained the genus Limnobacter, a thiosulfate-oxidizing bacterium. γ-Irradiation tests on Limnobacter thiooxidans, the most closely related phylogenetically found in TW1, indicated that its radiation resistance was similar to ordinary bacteria. TW2 predominantly contained the genus Brevirhabdus, a manganese-oxidizing bacterium. Although bacterial diversity in the torus room water was lower than seawater near Fukushima, ~70% of identified genera were associated with metal corrosion. Latent environment allocation-an analytical technique that estimates habitat distributions and co-detection analyses-revealed that the microbial communities in the torus room water originated from a distinct blend of natural marine microbial and artificial bacterial communities typical of biofilms, sludge, and wastewater. Understanding the specific bacteria linked to metal corrosion in damaged plants is important for advancing decommissioning efforts.ImportanceIn the context of nuclear power station decommissioning, the proliferation of microorganisms within the reactor and piping systems constitutes a formidable challenge. Therefore, the identification of microbial communities in such environments is of paramount importance. In the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident, microbial community analysis was conducted on environmental samples collected mainly outside the site. However, analyses using samples from on-site areas, including adjacent soil and seawater, were not performed. This study represents the first comprehensive analysis of microbial communities, utilizing meta 16S amplicon sequencing, with a focus on environmental samples collected from the radioactive element-containing water in the torus room, including the surrounding environments. Some of the identified microbial genera are shared with those previously identified in spent nuclear fuel pools in countries such as France and Brazil. Moreover, our discussion in this paper elucidates the correlation of many of these bacteria with metal corrosion.

Project description:OBJECTIVES:After the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster in 2011, residents of Kawauchi village who experienced evacuation had a high risk of suffering from diabetes and metabolic syndrome compared with non-evacuees. In addition to evacuation, lifestyle characteristics can be important factors influencing the development and prognosis of diabetes or glucose tolerance. The current study aimed to evaluate the effects of evacuation (i.e., lifestyle changes) on the incidence of diabetes among the non-diabetic residents of Kawauchi village. METHODS:Design is retrospective cohort study. Annual health examination data of residents of Kawauchi village and control area (Ono town) in Fukushima prefecture from 2008 to 2017, as available from the Japanese National Health Insurance system. Participants were classified into three groups: "Diabetes (DM)" (FBG ? 126?mg/dL or HbA1c ? 6.5% or hospital visit for DM or usage of diabetic medication), "Borderline DM" (126?mg/dL > FBG ? 110?mg/dL or 6.5% > HbA1c ? 6.0%, and without hospital visit, and without diabetic medication), and "Normoglycemic" (FBG < 110?mg/dL and HbA1c < 6.0%, and without hospital visit, and without diabetic medication). New onset of diabetes was evaluated and the events or missing data were occurred at health checkup. For this survival analysis, 339 residents in Kawauchi and 598 residents in Ono were included. Average follow-up periods after 2010 were 3.9?years in Kawauchi village and 3.6?years in Ono town. RESULTS:Compared with the normoglycemic group, incidence of DM was much greater in the borderline DM group, where DM occurred among 38.2% of the group in 2012 and increased to over 60% cumulatively through 2017 in Kawauchi village. DM had a prevalence of 16.3% in 2012, and below 30% in 2017 in borderline DM group of Ono town. Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was applied to non-DM groups at both study sites separately to evaluate the effects of lifestyle changes at each site. While BMI, BMI change, and the lack of regular exercise (HR = 1.29, 1.72, and 5.04, respectively) showed significant associations with the onset of diabetes in Ono town, only BMI and late-night dinner (HR = 1.21 and 4.86, respectively) showed significant associations with diabetes onset in Kawauchi village. CONCLUSIONS:The current results confirmed that diabetes incidence was increased 6?years after the Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster in Kawauchi. We also found changes in lifestyle habits, suggesting that diabetes prevention with promotion of healthy lifestyle behaviors is an urgent priority.

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Radiation dose rates now and in the future for residents neighboring restricted areas of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

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Radiation dose rates now and in the future for residents neighboring restricted areas of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

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