Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident: Various issues with iodine distribution and medication orders

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-133
Author(s):  
Isao Nakajima, PhD, MD ◽  
Kiyoshi Kurokawa, MD, MACP
Keyword(s):  
Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Base Stations ◽  
Radioactive Isotopes ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Social Infrastructure ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant Accident

Immediately after the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, the public could not receive accurate information concerning about the reality of the accident at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant because of communication problems with mobile phone base stations caused by power outages and the inadequate use of communication satellites between local governments. These telecommunications troubles caused not only a delay between the Japanese central government to local governments, but also a failure in conveying the seriousness of the accident to residents. The central government issued evacuation orders, but in some areas, a delay was seen in the time residents took to notice the orders. Some residents were forced to change their evacuation site several times and move to areas with higher radiation exposure. Although iodine preparations needed to be distributed to saturate the thyroid gland and reduce the uptake of iodine-131, a radioactive isotope, many municipalities were unable to secure them. Preparations were distributed on March 15, 2011 when the detectable amount of radioactive isotopes peaked, but only the Naraha and Miharu towns received them. At the time of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident, communication lines had already been interrupted by the major earthquake that struck on March 11, and information systems between local governments were not communicating well. With such a social infrastructure, residential evacuation orders were inadequate, and the delivery of medication was extremely difficult. The experience of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident suggests that the government should have distributed iodine preparations to residents living within a 30-km radius of the plant in advance, so that they could learn about the background and side effects of the drug beforehand. This distribution strategy is similar to that of targeted antivirus prophylaxis (TAP), which is an extralegal policy carried out in situations where face-to-face medical treatment is impossible because of an outbreak during a pandemic. 

scholarly journals Impact on Fisheries in Contaminated Water Discharged from Nuclear Power and Reprocessing Plants: The Cases of La Hague Reprocessing Plant, Sellafield Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing Plant, and TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 840-865
Author(s):  
Tetsuya Nakamura ◽  
Steven Lloyd ◽  
Atsushi Maruyama ◽  
Satoru Masuda ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Contaminated Water ◽  
Government Information ◽  
Nuclear Reprocessing ◽  
Fukushima Daiichi ◽  
Reprocessing Plant

This paper statistically analyzes residents’ understanding of problems related to radioactively contaminated water discharged from nuclear power and nuclear reprocessing plants. Moreover, this paper examines their impact on the surrounding fisheries by using the cases of La Hague, Sellafield, and Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Survey data shows that more than 60% respondents disagree with the release of contaminated water, and this sentiment is particularly strong among both British and French respondents. Regarding seafood caught in the vicinity of the nuclear power and nuclear reprocessing plants, although British respondents noted that they hold it in high regard, many people do not purchase this seafood. In contrast, many Japanese respondents reported that they were less concerned, and thus, willingly purchase seafood caught off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture. In all three countries, many people did not trust government information on the release of contaminated water. Compensation to the affected people was provided by the central government, companies involved, and local governments, in that order. Japanese and British respondents reported higher expectation for compensation as compared to French respondents. Japanese and French respondents noted that they have knowledge of radioactive materials and contaminated water, and many of them purchased seafood caught in the vicinity of the nuclear power and reprocessing plants. British respondents were the most opposed to the release of contaminated water, whereas Japanese respondents were the least reliant on government information about the release of contaminated water. Finally, among those who trusted information from the government and retailers, French respondents were the least concerned about contamination. French respondents were also the least likely to expect any compensation for the fishermen affected by contamination. Both British and French residents around the affected plants expected the central government to compensate the affected fishermen, whereas those who did not reside around the affected plants did not expect the fishermen to be compensated. French respondents were more likely to expect compensation from the local governments; affluent respondents were more likely to expect the compensation to be funded by taxation, whereas less affluent respondents expected them to be funded by donations. Respondents who were more skeptical of government information wanted the companies involved to compensate the fishermen. British respondents reported a tendency for wanting the companies involved to provide this compensation, and did not support the concept of compensation provided through donations.

scholarly journals Simulation of Information Spreading on Twitter Concerning Radiation After the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Accident

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yukie Sano ◽  
Hiroyuki A. Torii ◽  
Yosuke Onoue ◽  
Kazuko Uno
Keyword(s):  
Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Uncertain Information ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant Accident ◽  
Significant Damage ◽  
Information Spreading

Information spreading on social media is a crucial issue to build a safe society. In particular, during emergencies, misinformation and uncertain information can lead to social disruption and cause significant damage to our lives. Here we built a retweet network from 24 million radiation-related tweets by 1.3 million accounts in the immediate aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident in 2011. Then we simulated the information spreading on the network to explore ways to spread scientifically accurate information. Our simulation replicated the reality in which the number of scientific evidence-based tweets experienced a gradual decline while the number of emotional tweets increased. We also showed that increasing new direct retweets from the influencers could effectively spread scientific evidence-based information in our hypothetical simulations.

scholarly journals The radiological assessment, hazard evaluation, and spatial distribution for a hypothetical nuclear power plant accident at Baiji potential site

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ismael Mohammed Mohammed Saeed ◽  
Muneer Aziz Mohammed Saleh ◽  
Suhairul Hashim ◽  
Younis Mohammed Salih Hama ◽  
Khaidzir Hamza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Distribution ◽  
Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Hazard Evaluation ◽  
Radiological Assessment ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant Accident ◽  
Potential Site

Distrust in government and its relationship with mental health after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident

2020 ◽  
pp. 002076402096812
Author(s):  
Maiko Fukasawa ◽  
Norito Kawakami ◽  
Maki Umeda ◽  
Tsuyoshi Akiyama ◽  
Naoko Horikoshi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Residential Area ◽  
National Government ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant Accident ◽  
Fukushima Prefecture ◽  
The Government

Background: Distrust in authorities has negative effects on mental health. Aims: In this study, we aimed to explore whether the impact of distrust in government on mental health became stronger in the area heavily affected by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant accident. Methods: We examined the effects of distrust in the national government on depressive symptoms three years after the accident among community residents in Fukushima prefecture using those in the Kanto area (the area surrounding Tokyo) as a control. A questionnaire survey was administered to a random sample of 1000 residents in Fukushima prefecture and 1650 residents in the Kanto area. Distrust in the national government was assessed using a four-point single-item scale. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. The associations of residential area (i.e. living in Fukushima prefecture or in the Kanto area) and distrust in the national government with depressive symptoms were examined, controlling for socio-demographic characteristics and disaster-related experiences using multivariate linear regression analyses. We used the interaction term of residential area and distrust in the government to explore the difference in the association between the respondents in Fukushima prefecture and those in the Kanto area. Results: Valid responses were obtained from 976 (36.8%) residents. Distrust in the government was associated with depressive symptoms and the association was stronger in Fukushima prefecture than in the Kanto area. Conclusion: The deleterious effects of distrust in the government on mental health may become more serious after a nuclear power plant accident and require careful attention during support activities in an affected area.

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