Rice Planting With Radiation Protection Suit On – Experimental Planting of Rice and Vegetables in Ookuma – Fukushima Minpou June 13, 2012

* Posted in Unity Design blog – June 14, 2012 –

English translation of a Japanese article, reprint from Fukushima Minpou (newspaper)

In Ookuma Town, the whole area of which is designated as the evacuation zone, on June 12th, experimental planting of rice and vegetables within the town was conducted to check out how much radioactive material is taken in farm products.  According to the town office, this is the first experimental planting within the evacuation zone in Futaba County.  From now on the town office staffs will manage farm products and harvest them on an as needed basis to examine them.

The experimental planting was conducted in the fields 4 meters square at Kamiaza Shimizu, Shimono, Ookuma Town.  Rice and vegetables will be grown to examine their concentration of radioactive contamination.  Another arable land with approximately 5 cm-high surface soil removed will be prepared next to the fields.  Similar way of planting will be conducted in this arable land to confirm decontamination effect.

Town office staffs worked with radiation protection suits on.  They planted rice by hand in the paddy fields, and seeded carrot, spinach, Japanese radish and others in the fields.  The town office plans to “collect data so that they will be able to grow crops though they don’t know how many years it will take.”  According to the town office, radiation dose near the town hall is approximately 7 to 8 μSv/h.