In wake of disaster, children on the west coast of U.S. almost one-third more likely to suffer from thyroid abnormalities; 39% in California

Originally published on April 2, 2013 at Common Dreams

By Lauren McCauley, staff writer

Infants on the West Coast of the United States are showing increased incidents of thyroid abnormalities, which researchers are attributing to radiation released following the March 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

According to a new study (.pdf) published in the Open Journal of Pediatrics, children born in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington between one week and 16 weeks after the meltdown began are an average of 28 percent more likely to suffer from congenital hypothyroidism (CH) than were kids born in those states during the same period one year earlier. In California, the number is a staggering 39 percent.

CH results from a build up of radioactive iodine in our thyroids and can result in stunted growth, lowered intelligence, deafness, and neurological abnormalities—though can be treated if detected early.

Despite disturbing finding, Edison seeks to restart trouble-prone nuclear facility

Hearing Nov. 30 in Laguna Hills as nine cities voice concerns over safety issues

By Miriam Raftery

November 30, 2012 (San Diego)—Southern California Edison has notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of possible sabotage at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating facility, after finding coolant poured in the oil reservoir of an emergency backup generator at Unit 3, Energy News reports.

The FBI is taking over the investigation and criminal charges are possible, according to a plant employee who spoke under condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals, Huffington Post reported yesterday. The NRC has confirmed that Edison reported potential sabotage,Energy News reported.

"The FBI is aware of the alleged security incident that occurred at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating (SONGS) Station.  The FBI is presently reviewing the facts and circumstances concerning this incident," Special agent Darrell Foxworth with the FBI told ECM. "At this time there is no indication that this incident is terrorism related."

Previous news stories have speculated that a disgruntled employee could be the culprit due to recent layoff announcements.

Failure of emergency generators at Fukushima were key factors in that plant’s meltdown last year.  A meltdown at San Onofre would force evacuation of San Diego, portions of East County and also parts of Orange and Riverside counties and could potentially leave the region contaminated for generations.

“The radiation caused by the failure of the spent fuel pools in the event of another earthquake could reach the West Coast within days. That absolutely makes the safe containment and protection of this spent fuel a security issue for the United States.”—Senator Ron Wyden

May 17, 2012 (San Diego)—U.S. Senator Ron Wyden recently visited Japan and issued a warning that the U.S. faces a national security risk from spent fuel pools at Fukushima’s Unit 4. View an MSNBC interview with Wyden.

If another quake strikes the already exposed spent fuel--an event seismic experts say is likely to occur this year--experts including a Nobel Prize winner and a former U.N. ambassador now say that a cataclysmic disaster could occur threatening  lives across the globe.

2 Fukushima-area residents to tell stories; celebrities to join rally

Update March 12:  View a video of the rally www.youtube.com/watch

Video: Fukushim survivors speak: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWKHtIUqnOQ&feature=email

March 9, 2012 (SAN ONOFRE) – Activists from San Diego to Eureka will converge at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS,) just south of San Clemente, on the first anniversary of the devastating Fukushima disaster, March 11, 2012. The peaceful protest will occur a short walk from San Onofre State Beach about 1/8 mile south of the SONGS facility.

May 13, 2011 (Japan) Officials at Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO), operator of the hard-hit Fukushima nuclear facility, yesterday publicly confirmed that a meltdown has occurred at Reactor number one.

Now Japan’s nuclear safety agency states that efforts to cool the reactor with water may be pointless, since fuel rods are believed to have melted and sunk to the bottom of the containment vessel—where highly radioactive water is now leaking through holes at the bottom, Japan’s NHK World news agency reports.

Nuclear disaster offers lessons to be learned in San Diego, as safety questions arise over San Onofre

By Miriam Raftery
 

By Tracy Emblem