ID :
173381
Wed, 04/06/2011 - 07:06
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https://oananews.org//node/173381
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China detects trace amount of radioactive material
Kim Young-gyo
HONG KONG (Yonhap) - The Chinese government said Wednesday it has detected a trace amount of radioactive material in some areas of its country, noting radiation leakage from Japan's quake-hit nuclear plant has not affected the country so far.
The Chinese National Nuclear Emergency Coordination Committee said a higher level of artificial radionuclides, such as cesium-134 and cesium-137, was detected in some areas, although it is still a level of only small traces. Cesium 137 has a half-life of about 30.17 years, and cesium-134 has a half-life of 2.06 years.
The committee said the level of radiation detected in the air, food and drinking water across 20 major cities and provinces did not significantly change this week from last week.
The country's authorities said they will tighten monitoring and analyzing of radioactive material in the environment, although the radiation originating from the crippled Japanese nuclear plant has not yet posed a serious public health hazard in China.
Meanwhile, Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Monday it had begun releasing more than 11,000 tons of contaminated runoff containing over 100 times the legal limit of radiation to make room for the storage of higher-level radioactive water once used to cool overheating reactors.
The release fueled growing public concerns in neighboring South Korea and China over the influence of radioactive leaks from the nuclear plant in northeastern Japan.
South Korea has expressed its concern to Japan over the massive discharge of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, which was struck by a killer earthquake and tsunami last month, while an official response from Chinese authorities has not been reported.
HONG KONG (Yonhap) - The Chinese government said Wednesday it has detected a trace amount of radioactive material in some areas of its country, noting radiation leakage from Japan's quake-hit nuclear plant has not affected the country so far.
The Chinese National Nuclear Emergency Coordination Committee said a higher level of artificial radionuclides, such as cesium-134 and cesium-137, was detected in some areas, although it is still a level of only small traces. Cesium 137 has a half-life of about 30.17 years, and cesium-134 has a half-life of 2.06 years.
The committee said the level of radiation detected in the air, food and drinking water across 20 major cities and provinces did not significantly change this week from last week.
The country's authorities said they will tighten monitoring and analyzing of radioactive material in the environment, although the radiation originating from the crippled Japanese nuclear plant has not yet posed a serious public health hazard in China.
Meanwhile, Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Monday it had begun releasing more than 11,000 tons of contaminated runoff containing over 100 times the legal limit of radiation to make room for the storage of higher-level radioactive water once used to cool overheating reactors.
The release fueled growing public concerns in neighboring South Korea and China over the influence of radioactive leaks from the nuclear plant in northeastern Japan.
South Korea has expressed its concern to Japan over the massive discharge of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, which was struck by a killer earthquake and tsunami last month, while an official response from Chinese authorities has not been reported.
