Environment Fukushima

¶ … radioactive materials that were leaked into the environment by the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. This is a science paper, so it provides me with insight into how radiation pollution is measured and what the key issues are with respect to the environment. For example, cesium in seawater is a key measure that is used. In this paper, they looked at both water pollution and air pollution. The paper also provides hard numbers that can be used in my final paper. Mitamura, et al.

This paper does not talk about Fukushima specifically, as it predates that incident. It provides background scientific knowledge that has helped me learn about some of the key issues with radiation poisoning. What this paper does is discuss long-term effects of curium and barium pollution. It is important to understand the rates at which these radioactive materials decay, in order to have a better understanding of nuclear pollution in general. Wittenben. This paper discusses the public policy effects of Fukushima, particularly those in Europe.

Nuclear power is commonly-used in Europe, but there are concerns about its use in the wake of the Fukushima incident. Public response to Fukushima has informed public policy in countries like Germany. When analyzing the risks posed by nuclear power, it is important to understand how concern over those risks manifests itself in public perceptions and public policy. 4. Hong et al. A complement to the Wittenben paper, Hong discusses the influence of Fukushima on Japan's energy policy.

Again public perceptions of risk are weighed against actual environmental outcomes in determining appropriate public policy. 5. Sylvester, et al. This is a scientific paper, which helps me to understand how the chemical engineers are dealing with Fukushima. The paper specifically discusses the cooling of the reactors, and how this operation has resulted in massive amounts of radioactive waste water than cannot be removed from the site. 6. Parajuli et al. This paper is focused on another element of the waste, which is ash.

The authors note that the adjacent regions to Fukushima have suffered from the presence of cesium-enriched ash. The authors looked at studies of removal of cesium-enriched ash from wood, garbage, and they also looked at issues like soil solubility to understand how this ash has made its way into the ecosystems surrounding Fukushima. 7. Bird et al. This paper is another one focused on public policy, this time in Australia.

There is a balance, the authors note, between the need to reduce the use of fossil fuels and the public perceptions of nuclear energy. This provides a third case study on the effects of Fukushima on public policy. 8. Moser et al. This study was also about the perceptions of risk with respect to nuclear energy. The authors studied how perceptions were affected by beliefs about the ability of future societies to cope with risk, and by the level of emotional involvement.

This views may affect public policy today as well, which is a key outcome of the survey. This paper is valuable for its insight into the way the public and the regulators think about the risks associated with nuclear energy and how cognitive dissonance can emerge.