Jan Vande Putte during Radiation Survey of Mr Toru Anzai's House in Iitate

Greenpeace radiation specialist, Jan vande Putte conducting survey of the home of evacuee Mr Toru Anzai in Iitate, Fukushima prefecture. The house, which is approximately 32 km northwest of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, was heavily exposed to radioactive fallout in March 2011. The Government lifted evacuation orders for a part of Iitate in March 2017 despite radiation readings that mean it is not safe for people to return to Iitate. As of December 2017, the population of Iitate was 505, 7.7% of the population in March 2011. Greenpeace has been conducting radiation surveys in Iitate since March 2011, when it was the first to warn of the high levels of radiation and the urgent need to evacuate.

Unique identifier: GP0STRLOV

Type: Image

Shoot date: 01/10/2017

Locations: East Asia, Fukushima Prefecture, Iitate, Japan

Credit line: © Christian Åslund / Greenpeace

Ranking: ★★★★ (E)

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Radiation Survey in Fukushima Prefecture

A comprehensive survey by Greenpeace Japan in the towns of Iitate and Namie in Fukushima prefecture, including the exclusion zone, revealed radiation levels up to 100 times higher than the international limit for public exposure. The high radiation levels in these areas pose a significant risk to returning evacuees until at least the 2050’s and well into next century. The findings come just two weeks ahead of a critical decision at at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) review on Japan’s human rights record and commitments to evacuees from the nuclear disaster.

Greenpeace conducted the investigations in September and October 2017 measuring tens of thousands of data points around homes, forests, roads and farmland in the open areas of Namie and Iitate, as well as inside the closed Namie exclusion zone. The government plans to open up small areas of the exclusion zone, including Obori and Tsushima, for human habitation in 2023. The survey shows the decontamination program to be ineffective, combined with a region that is 70-80% mountainous forest which cannot be decontaminated.

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