Asia Times: Accident burns Ibaraki Prefecture's economy



	October 05, 1999	atimes.com

Japan

Accident burns Ibaraki Prefecture's economy

TOKYO - The nuclear reaction triggered by a uranium plant accident in Tokaimura, Ibaraki Prefecture, was contained by Friday morning, but the radiation leak could have burned the regional economy.

''Gamma rays at all surveyed points were normal,'' said an official at Japan's Nuclear Safety Commission on Friday afternoon. No unusual radiation was detected within 10 kilometers of the JCO Co site, where the accident occurred. Now that the nuclear reaction is contained, residents are mostly worried about possible contamination of soil and farm produce by radioactive gas and dust that could have been emitted from the site.

The prefectural government has been inspecting the extent of radioactive contamination since Thursday afternoon by gathering vegetables, soil and river water within a 5 kilometer radius of the site. No radioactive substance such as cesium, iodine or strontium has been detected in samples of bell peppers and daikon, though detailed examination results will not be available for some time. Major steps against contamination, such as large-scale soil removal, may not be needed, but the possibility of highly concentrated contamination cannot be ruled out, experts say.

The economic impact is being mostly felt in farm produce, dealing a blow to a prefecture that relies heavily on the agricultural sector. A group representing agricultural cooperatives in the prefecture decided Friday to suspend shipments of farm products harvested within 10 kilometers of the site until safety is confirmed.

''Only 30 percent of sweet potatoes now in the harvest season have been shipped, while the remaining 70 percent are left untouched in the field,'' said an official at the farm co-op in Hitachinaka, where sweet potatoes account for 90 percent of the value of all shipments. A farm co-op in Naka has been unable to harvest or ship as much as 30,000 10-kilogram cases of eggplant now in the peak shipment season.

Trading of farm products that were harvested in Ibaraki Prefecture, but outside of the 10-kilometer radius is also slow in Tokyo's Ota market. Wholesale prices of sweet potatoes from the area have dropped by 40 percent from a week ago, and the prices of green onions are 10 percent lower from the previous day.

''If the safety announcement is delayed, consumers may shun all Ibaraki-grown products,'' said an official at a wholesaler.

(Asia Pulse/Nikkei)

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©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd.