WATCH: UVic research team monitors water for Japanese tsunami nuclear debris
The disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant took place more than two years ago, but it’s still fresh in the minds of researchers at the University of Victoria.
UVic oceanographer Jay Cullen set up the InFORM Network, which includes 600 volunteers across B.C. who are helping test local seawater for radioactive debris from the meltdown that was sparked by the massive 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
Since then, higher than normal levels of radiation have been detected on B.C.’s coast. According to Cullen, those elevated levels are “not a cause for concern.”
Despite that, the Fukushima incident has spawned a flood of conspiracy theories as well as accusations of a cover-up.
“I think that when there is a vacuum in terms of good information, other sorts of information will rush in to fill it,” says Cullen. “We’re doing our best to get quality information to the public.”
Many members of the public pitching in by collecting seawater for UVic researchers to analyze.
“I just want to make sure that I’m getting accurate information,” says volunteer Dane Brown. “What better way to do it than first-hand testing.”
Two-and-a-half years after the disaster, the Fukushima plant continues to leak contaminated water into the ocean, something Cullen and his team will be keeping an eye on.
Says Cullen: “If release rates were to return to levels that what we saw in 2011, then monitoring and knowing what the concentrations are now will help us respond to that in the future.”
-with files from Jonathan Bartlett
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