Agricultural Implications of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident : The First Three Years

This book reports the results from on-site research into radioactive cesium contamination in various agricultural systems affected by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident that occurred in March 2011. This is the second volume from the research groups formed in the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences of The University of Tokyo who have published the initial data in their first volume. In this book, additional data collected in the subsequent years are presented to show how the radioactivity level in agricultural products and their growing environments have changed with time. The data clarify the route by which radioactive materials entered agricultural products and their movement among different components (e.g., soil, water, and trees) within an environmental system (e.g., forests). The book consists of various topics, including radioactivity inspection of food products; decontamination trials for rice and livestock production; the state of contamination in wild animals and birds, trees, mushrooms, and timber; the dynamics of radioactivity distribution in mountain and paddy fields; damage incurred by the forestry and fishery industries; and the change in consumers’ minds. The last chapter introduces a real-time radioisotope imaging system, the forefront technique to visualize actual movement of cesium in soil and in plants. This is the only book to provide systematic data about the actual change of radioactivity, and thus is of great value for all researchers who wish to understand the effect of radioactive fallout on agriculture. The project is ongoing; the research groups continue their work in the field for further evaluation of the long-term effects. Front Matter....Pages i-xi An Overview of Our Research....Pages 1-9 Monitoring Inspection for Radioactive Substances in Agricultural, Livestock, Forest and Fishery Products in Fukushima Prefecture....Pages 11-21 Rice Inspections in Fukushima Prefecture....Pages 23-31 Cesium Accumulation in Paddy Field Rice Grown in Fukushima from 2011 to 2013: Cultivars and Fertilization....Pages 33-43 Physiological Verification of the Effect of Potassium Supply on the Reduction of Radiocesium Content in Rice Grain....Pages 45-53 Consecutive Field Trials of Rice Cultivation in Partially Decontaminated Paddy Fields to Reduce Radiocesium Absorption in the Iitate Village in Fukushima Prefecture....Pages 55-76 Effects of “Clean Feeding” Management on Livestock Products Contaminated with Radioactive Cesium Due to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Accident....Pages 77-90 Adverse Effects of Radiocesium on the Promotion of Sustainable Circular Agriculture Including Livestock Due to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Accident....Pages 91-98 Wild Boars in Fukushima After the Nuclear Power Plant Accident: Distribution of Radiocesium....Pages 99-106 Contamination of Wild Animals: Microhabitat Heterogeneity and Ecological Factors of Radioactive Cesium Exposure in Fukushima....Pages 107-118 Translocation of Radiocesium in Fruit Trees....Pages 119-143 The Effects of Radioactive Contamination on the Forestry Industry and Commercial Mushroom-Log Production in Fukushima, Japan....Pages 145-160 Radiocesium in Timber of Japanese Cedar and Japanese Red Pine, in the Forests of Minamisoma, Fukushima....Pages 161-174 Ecosystem Monitoring of Radiocesium Redistribution Dynamics in a Forested Catchment in Fukushima After the Nuclear Power Plant Accident in March 2011....Pages 175-188 Reduction of Air Radiation Dose by Ponding Paddy Fields....Pages 189-204 Collaboration Structure for the Resurrection of Iitate Village, Fukushima: A Case Study of a Nonprofitable Organization....Pages 205-215 Impacts of the Nuclear Power Plant Accident and the Start of Trial Operations in Fukushima Fisheries....Pages 217-228 Consumer Evaluation of Foods from the Disaster Affected Area: Change in 3 Years....Pages 229-245 Imaging Techniques for Radiocesium in Soil and Plants....Pages 247-263 This book is open access under a CC BY license. This book explores if and how Russian policies towards the Far East region of the country - and East Asia more broadly - have changed since the onset of the Ukraine crisis and Russia's annexation of Crimea. Following the 2014 annexation and the subsequent enactment of a sanctions regime against the country, the Kremlin has emphasized the eastern vector in its external relations. But to what extent has Russia's 'pivot to the East' intensified or changed in nature - domestically and internationally - since the onset of the current crisis in relations with the West? Rather than taking the declared 'pivot' as a fact and exploring the consequences of it, the contributors to this volume explore whether a pivot has indeed happened or if what we see today is the continuation of longer-duration trends, concerns and ambitions. Helge Blakkisrud is Head of the Research Group on Russia, Eurasia and the Arctic at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), Norway. His research interests include Russian regional politics, centre-region relations and federalism, as well as nation-building, nationalism and national identity in Russia and Eurasia. His most recent books are The Governors' Last Stand: Federal Bargaining in Russia's Transition to Appointed Regional Heads, 2005-2009 (2015) and The New Russian Nationalism: Imperialism, Ethnicity and Authoritarianism, 2000-2015 (co-edited with Pål Kolstø, 2016). Elana Wilson Rowe is Head of the Research Group on Emerging Powers and International Development at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), Norway; and Adjunct Professor at Nord University, Norway. Her present research interests include Russian foreign policy, particularly in the areas of energy and climate change, and Arctic politics. She is the author of Russian Climate Politics (2013), editor of Russia and the North (2009) and co-editor of The Multilateral Dimension in Russian Foreign Policy (with Stina Torjesen, 2009) and Russia's Encounter with Globalization (with Julie Wilhelmsen, 2011).-- Provided by publisher Following the Fukushima nuclear accident, a large volume of monitoring data has been collected about the soil, air, dust, and seawater, along with data about an immense number of foods supplied to the market. Little is known, however, about the effect of radioactive fallout on agriculture, information about which is vital. Although more than 80% of the damaged area is related to agriculture, in situ information specifically for agriculture is scarce. This book provides data about the actual movement and accumulation of radioactivity in the ecological system—for example, whether debris deposited on mountains can be a cause of secondary contamination, under what conditions plants accumulate radioactive cesium in their edible parts, and how radioactivity is transferred from hay to milk. Because agriculture is so closely related to nature, many specialists with different areas of expertise must be involved in answering these questions. In the case of rice, researchers in rice cultivation as well as in soil, hydrology, and radioactivity measurement are working together to reveal the paths or accumulation of radioactivity in the field. For this purpose, the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences of The University of Tokyo has diverse facilities available throughout Japan, including farmlands, forests, and meadowlands. Many academic staff members have formed groups to conduct on-site research, with more than 40 volunteers participating. This book presents the data collected from the only project being systematically carried out across Japan after the Fukushima accident. Development studies; Russia; Far East; International affairs; Energy; Shanghai cooperation organization; Economic development; Security policy; Multilateral organizations; Diplomacy; Regionalism; Russian–European relations; Russia’s “pivot to the East”; Annexation of Crimea; Regional politics; Eurasia; Ukraine; Sanctions regime; Foreign policy

Development studies; Russia; Far East; International affairs; Energy; Shanghai cooperation organization; Economic development; Security policy; Multilateral organizations; Diplomacy; Regionalism; Russian–European relations; Russia's "pivot to the East"; Annexation of Crimea; Regional politics; Eurasia; Ukraine; Sanctions regime; Foreign policy