Nuclear physicist suspects surrounding area is contaminated with plutonium “You can never return"

I received the following email a few days ago from a Russian nuclear physicist friend who is an expert on the kinds of gases being released at Fukushima. Here is what he wrote:

"About Japan: the problem is that the reactor uses "dirty" fuel. It is a combination of plutonium and uranium (MOX). I suspect that the old fuel rods have bean spread out due to the explosion and the surrounding area is contaminated with plutonium which means you can never return to this place again. It is like a new Chernobyl. Personally, I am not surprised that the authority has not informed people about this."

Source



I think a Russian nuclear physicist is about as credible as you can get for a source. I'm afraid that OBL has hijacked our attention, but it doesn't mean this will go away.

The practice of using MOX fuel should be banned. Plutonium is considered one of the most toxic elements known to man. If it is able to enter the body:

Alpha rays sent out from within cells cause somewhere between 10 and 1,000 times more chromosomal damage than beta or gamma rays.

The problem is that its half-life is 24 thousand years, so there's no chance of it going away once it's absorbed. It will continue to do damage and potentially cause cancer for the rest of your life.

1 microgram of plutonium will kill a human.

There's 1,000,000 micrograms in a gram.

There's 1,000 grams in a Kilogram.

There's 1000 Kilograms in a ton.



You do the math.

edit on 9-5-2011 by v1rtu0s0 because: (no reason given)

reply to post by v1rtu0s0


Holy crap this is bad if what you bring forward is really true 1 micro gram kill a human and a 1,000,000 micro grams in a gram wow.

I hope we can get the full disclosure from Tepco They really are hiding alot....

(BTW been banned from chat )

reply to post by v1rtu0s0

Personally, I am not surprised that the authority has not informed people about this.

As much as we here on ATS are accused of being conspiratorial, I am not that jaded that
I expected this kind of cover up / blackout by the media.

I am still in a state of semi shock that at this current time, Japan is sinking into the sea,
spewing Plutonium, Strontinum, and Cesium, and not one msm is covering it.

I swear I read somewhere that plutonium passes through the body's intestinal tract fairly easily so it's not as toxic if it gets excreted. Of course just having it in you is really bad, and if it gets absorbed into the blood stream then you're screwed for sure.
EDIT: Let me state again, I nor anyone should be within 100 miles of this stuff

I was just browsing articles @ pub med:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...

It seems like some already have plutonium in their bodies O_o? Doesn't sound good. Then again it's really late and the 1 uBq/g could be so small its negligible, but even one atom has the potential to screw things up...

reply to post by NuclearMitochondria


Yes it can pass in and out of the body, but I think it is likely to bind to bone:

About 80 percent of the plutonium that enters the bloodstream goes either to the liver, bone or bone marrow, where it is retained for years, damaging tissue nearby. That damage may later develop into cancer. Common forms of plutonium do not dissolve significantly in water or body fluids, so little ingested material is actually absorbed into the blood from the gastrointestinal tract.

source


According to the following study published in 1981:

it appears that (1) the chemical forms of plutonium dissolved in natural waters are Pu(IV) and Pu(V), (2) the soluble plutonium in many waters is bound to the organic constituents which probably enhance plutonium solubility

source

So it seems to me that more recent studies indicate that it may be more soluble than initially thought?

Originally posted by jadedANDcynical
reply to post by NuclearMitochondria

 

Yes it can pass in and out of the body, but I think it is likely to bind to bone:

About 80 percent of the plutonium that enters the bloodstream goes either to the liver, bone or bone marrow, where it is retained for years, damaging tissue nearby. That damage may later develop into cancer. Common forms of plutonium do not dissolve significantly in water or body fluids, so little ingested material is actually absorbed into the blood from the gastrointestinal tract.

source


According to the following study published in 1981:

it appears that (1) the chemical forms of plutonium dissolved in natural waters are Pu(IV) and Pu(V), (2) the soluble plutonium in many waters is bound to the organic constituents which probably enhance plutonium solubility

source

So it seems to me that more recent studies indicate that it may be more soluble than initially thought?

That would make it even worse
Especially if it can be bound easily to water tightly, then it could possibly be carried far. I'd hope the molecular weight would make it not too airborne-- but you never know

atmospheric bomb testing spread plutonium across the Earth, the concentrations are of course low. the rise of cancer may start around that time, but it has to be noted that it varies significantly around the globe, while one would expect a more homogeneous pattern, because nuke testing blows a lot of debris into the stratosphere.


therefore, you'll find Pu literally everywhere, if only you look hard enough, its isotopic makeup (www.abovetopsecret.com... addressed before on March 30th) could help determine the source.

while i agree that Fukushima is much worse than publicized, the fact that this guy singles out MOX fuel puts me off to an extent, because every Uranium based reactor will produce Plutonium, that's how it is processed in the first place, concentrate the Pu from used fuel for another pass, so an exploded MOX core will be gradually worse than a 'normal' one, it won't make a world of a difference.

the net effect would is of course the same, if transuranic (inclding Pu) concentrations are too high, the area becomes inhabitable, it's just doubtful that it's really that bad. iirc, even at Chernobyl, fission products like Strontium and Cesium cause the bulk of problems.