IEER calls for more stringent, coordinated Fukushima fallout monitoring to determine radioactive iodine risk to U.S. milk and water

Dr. Arjun Makhijani at the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research has called for "More Stringent, Coordinated Fukushima Fallout Monitoring...To Determine Radioactive Iodine Risk to U.S. Milk and Water." Makhijani also chastised the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its misleading downplaying and obscuring of radioactivity risks, stating:

"It is lamentable that the U.S. government is not speaking with a coherent, science-based voice on the risks of radiation," said Dr. Makhijani. "There is no safe level of radiation exposure in the sense of zero risk. Period. This has been repeatedly concluded by official studies, most recently a 2006 study done by the National Academies. Yet there is no shortage of unfortunate official statements on radiation that may seek to placate the public about 'safe' levels of radiation, but actually undermine confidence."

As an example, IEER cited a statement by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that "In general, a yearly dose of 620 millirem from all radiation sources has not been shown to cause humans any harm." (http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/radiation/around-us/doses-daily-lives.html). This annual dose includes medical uses of radiation, including CAT scans, and other voluntary exposures, from which people get some benefits. It also includes indoor radon, which the EPA estimates "is the number one cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.... Overall, radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer [after smoking]. Radon is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year. About 2,900 of these deaths occur among people who have never smoked." (http://www.epa.gov/radon/healthrisks.html).

"While the NRC is saying the 620 millirem a year on average has not been shown to cause harm, the EPA is saying that only about one-third of this total average annual dose attributable to indoor radon, is responsible for thousands of cancer deaths every year," said Dr. Makhijani. "The NRC statement is an appalling misrepresentation of the science that underlies its own regulations as well as published statements on radon risks by the EPA. Using the 2006 National Academies risk estimates for cancer, 620 millirem per year to each of the 311 million people in the United States would eventually be associated with about 200,000 cancers each year; about half of them would be fatal."