By Hidenori Tsuboya and Jin Nishikawa9 June 2011 The Japanese government’s report to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant catalogues multiple failures at all levels of Japan’s nuclear industry, bureaucracy and government. The report, submitted June 7, lists 28 challenges thrown up by the […]
By Carey Gillam; Editing by John Picinich7 Jun 2011 KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) – High-tech seeds and innovations in chemicals and farming will not be enough to solve looming food shortages for the world, according to a report issued Tuesday by a committee formed by food and chemicals conglomerate DuPont. Billions of dollars in private […]
Beijing (AFP) June 7, 2011 – Authorities have closed schools in two towns in China after industrial waste contaminated the water supply for 200,000 residents, officials and state media said Tuesday. Locals in the towns of Pingyao and Liangzhu in the eastern province of Zhejiang have complained their tap water has a strange taste and […]
June 8 (Asahi Shimbun) – Radioactive sewage sludge is quickly filling up treatment facilities in eastern Japan as recycling companies have refused to accept it for safety reasons. The central government, which has only presented guidelines for temporary storage, plans to set standards on final disposal. Radioactive cesium was first detected in sludge at a […]
By Nina Chestney; Editing by James Jukwey8 Jun 2011 LONDON (Reuters) – China’s carbon dioxide emissions rose 10.4 percent in 2010 compared to the previous year as it surpassed the United States as the world’s biggest energy consumer, data released by BP on Wednesday showed. China’s emissions from energy use totaled 8.33 billion tonnes last […]
By Johan van Slooten3 June 2011 Thousands of people in India’s northern state of Orissa are facing serious health risks as a reservoir at the state’s biggest aluminum refinery is reported to be leaking. Amnesty International and local human rights organisations warn that the reservoir at Vedanta Aluminum could overflow during the upcoming monsoon season. […]
By Jonathan Watts3 June 2011 The Chinese government issued its annual “State of the Environment” report on Friday. Here are the highlights along with my interpretation and year-end grade for each subject based on the following standard: A – World classB – GoodC – PassableD – Poor but showing signs of improvementE – Poor and […]
TOKYO, June 7 (AP) – Japan will for the first time report to the UN nuclear watchdog that fuel in its crippled Fukushima plant may have melted through the bottoms of three reactor core vessels, a news report said Tuesday. The Yomiuri Shimbun daily report came a day after Japan more than doubled its estimate […]
June 7 (Asahi Shimbun) – Residents outside the planned evacuation zone near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant are trying to lead normal lives, but radiation levels exceeding the safety standard are posing an increasing threat. A report released June 3 by the science ministry said annual accumulated radiation levels are estimated at 20.1, […]
By Shunsuke Kimura, Jin Nishikawa, Eisuke Sasaki, and Hidenori Tsuboya7 June 2011 As workers struggle to bring the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant under control, signs are increasing that the eventual cleanup of the disaster will take much longer than previously thought. Containers of rubble, unwanted and of unknown levels of contamination, line the […]
