Obtuse to a radiation leak
(From The Japan Times August 11 issue)

放射能漏れへの対応の鈍さ

The actions of the U.S. Navy and the Japanese Foreign Ministry concerning the possible leak of radioactive water from a nuclear-powered submarine during its port calls in Japan in March and April show that they lack sensitivity to the concerns of Japanese citizens.

A small leak was confirmed aboard the Houston, a 6,103-ton Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine, on July 24. Radioactivity was detected in water that splashed over a sailor during a regular maintenance check of the sub July 17 in dry dock in Hawaii.

The U.S. Navy notified the Foreign Ministry of the leak on the afternoon of Aug. 1 — a week after the confirmation. The leak may have continued for a few months. The submarine visited White Beach in Uruma, Okinawa Prefecture, on March 12 and docked in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, from March 27 to April 2 and on April 6. It also stopped over at its home base in Guam and in Hawaii from May to June.

Surprisingly, the Foreign Ministry did not immediately communicate the information to the local governments concerned because the U.S. side said the radiation had no effects on the environment and human bodies. No government leaders were notified immediately, either.

It is outrageous that the Foreign Ministry did not communicate the information to the parties concerned until the morning of Aug. 2 — after Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura learned of the leak incident from CNN news reports. The United States explained that the amount of radioactivity released was "less than the quantity of naturally occurring radioactivity in a bag of common lawn and garden fertilizer." Since Washington and Tokyo have insisted that nuclear-powered ships are safe, the U.S. Navy's admission of a radioactivity leak, even if small, is significant. Japan should ask the United States why the leak occurred.

In May, a fire occurred aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George Washington, which is scheduled to start using Yokosuka as its home port in September. Both governments should demonstrate that they take a serious view about the safety of nuclear-powered ships.

3月と4月に日本に寄港した米原子力潜水艦の放射能漏れに対し、米海軍と日本の外務省がとった対応は、日本国民への配慮に欠けていた。

ロサンゼルス級攻撃型潜水艦ヒューストンから微量の放射能漏れが確認されたのは7月24日。ハワイの乾ドックで7月17日、定期点検中の乗組員にかかった水から放射能が検出された。

確認から1週間後の8月1日、米海軍は外務省に漏洩を連絡。潜水艦は3月以降、沖縄、長崎などに寄港、数ヶ月間漏れ続けた可能性があるが、外務省は、関係自治体に速やかに通報しなかった。

高村外相が報道で事故を知る8月2日まで外務省が連絡を怠ったのは言語道断だ。「園芸用肥料1袋から検出される自然放射能より低い」量でも、原子力船の安全性を説く日米政府には重大な問題。米国側に原因究明を求めるべきだ。

5月に火災を起こした原子力空母ジョージ･ワシントンが9月に横須賀に配備されるが、日米政府は原子力船の安全重視を示す必要がある。