Nuclear Adviser Resigns over Japanese Government's Increase in Allowable Level of Radiation Exposure for Children
Interview with Michio Kaku, theoretical physicist and author of "Physics of the Future" , conducted by Scott Harris
The March 11 Japanese earthquake and tsunami that killed 14,700 people and left an estimated 11,000 missing also destroyed the Fukushima nuclear power plant complex in the north of the country. On April 21, the Japanese government evacuated residents living within a 20-kilometer radius of the disabled nuclear complex -- and barred them from returning to their homes due to increased levels of radiation.
Utility workers have been struggling to repair the cooling systems of Fukushima’s three stricken reactors, but high levels of radiation have prevented workers from entering the reactor buildings. In recent days, fans with filters are being deployed to reduce radiation levels inside the reactor buildings necessary to allow repair crews to begin their work. Officials of the Tokyo Electric Power Company, which owns the Fukushima complex , has said it may take the rest of the year to regain control of the broken reactors.
Open displays of dissent within the Japanese government are rare, but that changed on April 30, when senior nuclear adviser Toshiso Kosako, a professor at the University of Tokyo's graduate school, held a press conference to resign his post over his disagreement with the government’s levels of allowable radiation exposure. Kosako quit in protest over the government's April 19 decision to set the annual radiation limit at 20 millisieverts per year for infants, toddlers and primary school students. Between The Lines’ Scott Harris spoke with Dr. Michio Kaku, theoretical physicist and author, who is a professor at the City College of New York. Dr. Kaku assesses the ongoing health threat from the disaster at the failed Fukushima nuclear reactors -- and the debate over the government’s annual allowable radiation limits.
Dr. Michio Kaku, theoretical physicist, is co-founder of string field theory and a professor at the City College of New York. His newest book is titled, “Physics of the Future.” Visit his website to find links to Dr. Kaku’s latest articles and other information on the Fukushima disaster at www.mkaku.org.
Related Links:
- Full-length Counterpoint interview with Michio Kaku, conducted by Scott Harris, May 2, 2011 (20:28)
- "Parents fight back over raised radiation limits," by David McNeill, The Guardian/UK, May 2, 2011