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Sampling the Pacific for Signs of Fukushima

Study of the amount, spread, and impacts of radiation released into the ocean An international research team is reporting the results of a research cruise they organized to study the amount, spread, and impacts of radiation released into the ocean from the tsunami-crippled reactors in Fukushima, Japan. The group of 17 researchers and technicians from eight institutions spent 15 days at sea in June 2011 studying ocean currents, and sampling water and marine organisms up to the edge of the exclusion zone around the reactors.This map shows the sampling stations and cruise track near the Kuroshio Current (shown in yellow and red). Sampling began 400 miles offshore and passed within 20 miles of the nuclear complex. (Credit: Steven Jayne, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)Led by Ken Buesseler, a senior scientist and marine chemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), the team found that the concentration of several key radioactive substances, or radionuclides, were elevated but varied widely across the study area, reflecting the complex nature of the marine environment. In addition, although levels of radioactivity in marine life sampled during the cruise were well below levels of concern for humans and the organisms themselves, the researchers leave open the question ...

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China urges joint maritime projects

Joint marine environmental protection projects with Japan China has proposed joint marine environmental protection projects with Japan in the East China Sea as part of efforts to ease tensions over the disputed Senkaku Islands, sources said Monday.Foreign ministers of the two countries are expected to discuss the issue when they meet on the sidelines of a trilateral foreign ministerial meeting with South Korea in Ningbo, China, this weekend, the sources said.The Chinese government made the proposal earlier this year following an agreement between Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in late December that the two countries would create a new bilateral mechanism to discuss maritime security, including crisis management involving incidents in the East China Sea.The two countries have begun studies on joint projects. In Japan, government agencies such as the Environment Ministry are studying scientific research in areas such as marine ecology as one of the envisaged joint projects, the sources said.By promoting joint projects, Japan hopes to create an environment in which the two countries can resume negotiations toward concluding a treaty on joint gas development in the East China Sea, the sources said. China may seek to conduct a joint survey on marine resources ...

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Japan Tsunami Debris: Fishing Boat Near Canada Heralds Debris Arrival

Wave of 1.5 million tons of debris heading toward North America An empty Japanese fishing boat drifting off the coast of western Canada could be the first wave of 1.5 million tons of debris heading toward North America from Japan's tsunami last March.The wreckage from flattened Japanese coastal towns - including refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, roofs and fishing nets - is heading inexorably east across the Pacific and could arrive sooner than expected, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration."The early indication is that things sitting higher up on the water could potentially move across the Pacific Ocean quicker than we had originally thought," said Nancy Wallace, director of NOAA's Marine Debris Program, which had forecast the appearance of tsunami debris on North American shores only in 2013."Those higher-wind, quicker moving items may actually be onshore much sooner - pretty much now."On March 20, Canada's transport department spotted what it said was an empty Japanese fishing vessel 150 nautical miles south of the Queen Charlotte Islands, adjacent to the main coast of British Columbia.The ship has been declared a hazard to shipping, but Canada has not said what - if anything - it will do with it. The ...

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India, China and Japan join hands for piracy control

Better coordination among their naval ships India, China and Japan recently agreed for better coordination among their naval ships deployed for escort of merchant vessels in the piracy-infested Gulf of Aden, the Lok Sabha was informed on Monday.In a written reply to a question in the Lower House, Defence Minister A K Antony said, "India, China and Japan have recently agreed for better coordination among their naval ships deployed for escort of merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden."Denying that the government has plans to sign pacts with neighbouring countries to counter militant activities and check piracy, Antony said, "Nevertheless, the security and surveillance apparatus for coastal defence has been enhanced over the years."Strengthening of coastal security apparatus is an ongoing process considering the needs and changing security scenario as well as the threat perception, he added.In reply to a question on acquisition of fleet tankers, Antony informed the House that Indian Navy has awarded a contract for acquisition of such a ship to a foreign shipyard."Steel offered by the Shipyard Fincanteri, in response to the Request for Proposal (RFP) for construction of fleet tanker, was technically evaluated by a Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC)," he said.Based on technical clarifications offered ...

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Is Tsunami Debris a Health Risk?

Japan Tsunami Debris Are Degrading Into Tiny Bits Of Plastic One year after a massive tsunami ravaged the east coast of Japan, much attention is focused on the bottles, refrigerators and other debris washed out to sea and its pending arrival on the U.S. West Coast -- endangering ships, seabirds and other wildlife along the way.Some experts, however, are more concerned about the debris we may never see but that might still pose a threat to human health."Over long periods of time, big plastics degrade into smaller and smaller particles, and these may create an additional route of exposure to certain chemical contaminants," said Courtney Arthur, a scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Marine Debris Program.As sunlight and waves break down plastic materials into pieces the size of fish food, new research suggests that fish may mistakenly eat the so-called microplastics and subsequently absorb chemicals into their bodies. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxins, among other toxins, could then travel up the food chain and onto our dinner plates.These pollutants have been linked to everything from hormone problems to neurological disorders to cancer in humans.So far, microplastic debris -- generally defined as particles less than one millimeter wide, or ...

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Japan Tsunami Debris Forecast Discussed By Scientists

3 million to 4 million tons of debris into the ocean Tsunamis generated by the magnitude-9 earthquake in Japan last March dragged 3 million to 4 million tons of debris into the ocean after tearing up Japanese harbors and homes.Scientists believe ocean currents are carrying some of the lumber, refrigerators, fishing boats and other objects across the Pacific toward the United States.One to 5 percent of the 1 million to 2 million tons of debris still in the ocean may reach Hawaii, Alaska, Oregon and Washington and British Columbia, said University of Hawaii senior researcher and ocean current expert Nikolai Maximenko.That's only a portion of the 20 million to 25 million tons of debris the tsunamis generated altogether, including what was left on land.Maximenko plans to discuss Tuesday at a news conference his latest estimates for where the debris is and when it may wash ashore. Last year, his team estimated debris could arrive in Hawaii in early 2013.Some debris appears to have already arrived in the U.S., like a half-dozen large buoys suspected to be from Japanese oyster farms found in Alaska late last year.Nicholas Mallos, conservation biologist and marine debris specialist for the Ocean Conservancy, said many of ...

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India, China, Japan to coordinate in anti- piracy operations

Anti-Piracy Operations to counter piracy in the Gulf of Aden India, China and Japan have started implementing a new mechanism to coordinate the movement of their warships in the Gulf of Aden to provide protection to cargo vessels from sea brigands. The three countries operate independently in the Gulf of Aden to provide protection to cargo ships from pirates and are not part of the two groupings deployed there-- the European EUNAVFOR and the US-led Task Force 151."Earlier what was happening was that the convoys of all these three countries would be spaced by few hours and there would be long hours in a day when no convoy was available for escorting the vessels," Indian Navy's Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Foreign Cooperation and Naval Intelligence) Rear Admiral Monty Khanna told reporters here.The officer was holding a briefing on the 'Milan' naval exercise, which started in Port Blair Wednesday. He said now the three countries have "evolved a mechanism under which it will be ensured that there is enough gap between the Indian, Chinese and the Japanese convoy and they are well-displaced" to be able to escort a greater number of ships in a day. Khanna was replying to a ...

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New IMO chief outlines priorities

Koji Sekimizu, eighth Secretary-General of IMO Japan's Koji Sekimizu, who took office as the new Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) last Jan. 1, 2012 has announced a number of changes in the structure of IMO Secretariat "to improve delivery mechanism" in the Secretariat.Sekimizu, the eighth Secretary-General of IMO, announced that IMO assistant secretary-general Andrew Winbow has been named as the new director of Maritime Safety. Winbow was with the Organization's Administrative Division prior to his new post. Jo-Espinosa-Ferrey of the Marine Environment Division has been named head of the Administrative Division as its new director, while Stefan Micallef now takes over as the new Marine Environment director.In a statement Sekimizu said, "The biggest challenge I see in the coming years, in terms of management of the Organizaton, is how to improve the delivery mechanism in the Secretariat, to address the 'demanding' issues we face, such as 'anti-piracy measures,' the introduction of the Mandatory Member State Audit Scheme (MMSAS) and our ever-increasing workload.""To address this will require effective human resources' deployment and redeployment', the creation of new ways of handling our work and improvements to our working methods," he said, adding. "It will also require close co-operation between the ...

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Singapore, Japan to cooperate in anti-piracy activities off the coast of Somalia

Co-operative Mechanism on Safety of Navigation and Environmental Protection Singapore and Japan should cooperate in anti-piracy activities off the coast of Somalia.That's the view of Mr Norifumi Idee, the Policy Adviser to Japan's Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.He is in Singapore under the Maritime and Port Authority's (MPA) Distinguished Visitors Programme.On Wednesday, Mr Idee called on Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew and also met with MPA's senior management.They discussed key maritime issues of mutual interest, such as the Co-operative Mechanism on Safety of Navigation and Environmental Protection in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, piracy and armed robbery, as well as matters relating to the International Maritime Organization.CEO of MPA Lam Yi Young said: "Japan is a notable player in the international maritime community and a vital strategic maritime partner to Singapore."Mr. Idee's visit underscores the close bilateral maritime relations that Singapore and Japan enjoy and the good co-operation in maritime matters between the two nations both bilaterally and at the IMO."Mr Idee said he's impressed with the advanced traffic control system and port facilities which supported Singapore's position as the leading global hub port and acknowledged Singapore's leadership in the anti-piracy efforts in the Straits of Malacca ...

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NOAA Investigates Origin of Recent Ocean Debris

Bits and Pieces of People's Lives Bits and pieces of people's lives, that is what one reporter said; we are not to think of the Japan tsunami debris as litter when it begins to wash up on our shores in 2013, but rather as bits and pieces of people's lives. But is it already washing up on our shores?2011 ended with a wave of sensationalized headlines from British Columbia, Alaska and Washington, reporting sightings of debris from the Japan tsunami already reaching shore on the West Coast; setting off a contentious debate between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and a few independent oceanographers and flotsam trackers. Waiting for word on the other side of the Pacific, are the people of Japan whose missing families and friends are symbolically represented in the bits and pieces of debris.While painting a picture of 20 million tons of plastic and paper and metal and wood stretching a thousand miles across the Pacific Ocean, some news stories are also raising fear of radiation as a result of the Fukushima meltdown, and others even speak of the possibility of macabre scenes of body parts washing up on our beaches as severed feet in tennis ...

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