One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Radiation Detected from Japan is About as Threatening as a Banana
In this photo (by R. E. ~ via LAist Featured Photo Pool), non-radioactive milk is paired with non-atomic cookies.
There's radiation in our milk!!! But unlike earlier this month the media is declaring it unquestionably non-threatening, as opposed to shocking viewers to induce vomiting and feverishly turn to adult breastfeeding in fallout shelters. The fact is, there's always radiation... everywhere. Likely more so if you take your milk from a paper or plastic carton rather than one of those fancy glass bottles.
The news is this: Trace levels (i.e. barely detectable) of radiation that originated from the Fukushima nuclear reactor leaks in Japan was found in milk sold in San Luis Obispo County by state health officials. Yes, the radiation that left the island nation of Japan two weeks ago and disappeared into the jet stream has found it's way into the cow that made the milk we had with our Corn Flakes this morning. The measurements came out to 0.8 pico curies per literlevel of iodine-131, according to the WSJ, or less than 1/5000th the amount that regulated by USDA health standards.
The California Department of Public Health has been waiting around for the radioactive Iodine-131 to make its way into the food supply and that day has come. But the radiation levels found in the SLO County Milk (along with milk tested in Spokane, WA) are so minute it's otherwise not worth mentioning. The milk in question was tested Monday and in response to the natural reaction of most people to innately freak out when the words "radioactive" and "milk" are paired in the same sentence, CDPH issued an updated, robotic-reading radiation FAQ stating (to paraphrase): NO THREAT WHATSOEVER.
Closer to the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan it remains a very serious and uncertain situation, with radioactive iodine levels in the water at the plant spiking to levels as high as 10,000 times permissible limits, according to the latest LATimes report. A ban on fishing in the region may affect the market for octopi and marine-based food products popular in Los Angeles, reports KNX.
To put these radiation levels in perspective, check out the brilliant chart below posted by David McCandless of InformationIsBeautiful.net. And then let's eat a banana, shall we?
Chart by David McCandless, InformationIsBeautiful.net. A hi-res PDF is available here (for a $2.50 donation going to Japan Crisis Relief).
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
