The information we have gotten from the Japanese government and media, the international media, online, and directly from our own governments is confusing and contradictory, to say the least. For about a week or so after the earthquake and the tsunami struck, CNN and BBC featured almost nonstop coverage of these disasters, and the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Crisis that followed. This coverage included a number of real experts with a range of opinions, so someone who paid attention and did a reasonable amount of online homework could get a reasonable idea of what the implications of some of the things that were happening might be, and some pausible theories of the best and worst case scenarios. Soon after the US Embassy and State Department issued their evacuation guidelines (which included the advice that residents of parts of Japan far removed from the plant should "seriously consider evacuation" - which I for one would regard as diplomatic speak for get out now), and the no-fly zone in Libya was implemented, it all just seemed to get flushed down the memory hole. Now, instead of serious analysis for real experts, all we seem to get is superficial fluff. Meanwhile, thousands of us are now sitting overseas, wondering if and when we can safely get back to Japan to restart our lives...and what the long-term consequences of this event will be. So to get the ball rolling, here are some of the main questions I've got. Anybody care to comment, answer, or offer some more of their own?
1. How long can we expect radiation to continue leaking for the plant? At what levels? (Best case, best guess, and worst case scenarios)
2. If the radiation leaks continue, how far out can the impact zone be expected to be? So far we have been quite lucky with the wind patterns, but what happens when these change? How far into the country could strong east winds (not to mention a good typhoon) take the radiation? Are Gunma, Nagano, Niigata, Akita, etc. at risk? Just how far away would need to be to truly be considered "safe"?
3. Does the risk of a catastrophic melt-down (and/or explosive event) still exist? What would the results of something like that be?
4. Under a kind of best case scenario, what exactly is the end game...that is, how does TEPCO get the plant under complete control and shut down all future leakage of radiation? Is that even possible?
5. What are the long term effects on the food supply likely to be? How widespread is the contamination going to be?
6. Are we likely to get some sort of "All clear" from our governments...or are we basically our own with this?
Well, that's more than enough for now. Looking forward to hear what everybody else has to say!
1. How long can we expect radiation to continue leaking for the plant? At what levels? (Best case, best guess, and worst case scenarios)
2. If the radiation leaks continue, how far out can the impact zone be expected to be? So far we have been quite lucky with the wind patterns, but what happens when these change? How far into the country could strong east winds (not to mention a good typhoon) take the radiation? Are Gunma, Nagano, Niigata, Akita, etc. at risk? Just how far away would need to be to truly be considered "safe"?
3. Does the risk of a catastrophic melt-down (and/or explosive event) still exist? What would the results of something like that be?
4. Under a kind of best case scenario, what exactly is the end game...that is, how does TEPCO get the plant under complete control and shut down all future leakage of radiation? Is that even possible?
5. What are the long term effects on the food supply likely to be? How widespread is the contamination going to be?
6. Are we likely to get some sort of "All clear" from our governments...or are we basically our own with this?
Well, that's more than enough for now. Looking forward to hear what everybody else has to say!
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