Tag Archives: Tofino

Analysis of Beached Grey Whale in British Columbia for Fukushima Radioisotopes

May 6, 2015 fukushimainform 3 Comments

By Jay T. Cullen

Grey Whale being dissected on Wickaninnish Beach April 23, 2015 (The Whale Centre)

The purpose of this post is to report analyses carried out by the InFORM project on muscle and blubber samples from a grey whale (Eschrichtius robustus), that beached near Tofino, BC on April 20, 2015. The post is the most recent in a series that aims to communicate results of scientific research into the impact of the Fukushima disaster on the environment. With the cooperation of the Ucluelet Aquarium the InFORM project was able to obtain samples of the whales muscle and blubber which were analyzed for the presence of gamma emitting radioisotopes in Health Canada’s laboratories in Ottawa, ON Canada. The gamma radiation spectra were dominated by naturally occurring radioisotopes, primarily Potassium-40 (⁴⁰K half life 1.25 billion years), and after 24 hours of counting no Fukushima derived Cesium-134 (¹³⁴Cs half life ~ 2 years), a fingerprint of the disaster in the environment could be detected. The unfortunate demise of the grey whale is very unlikely to have been the result of acute or chronic radiation exposure owing to Fukushima derived radionuclides in seawater and the whales food. Continue reading Analysis of Beached Grey Whale in British Columbia for Fukushima Radioisotopes →

Algae, British Columbia, Cesium, Peer Reviewed

Kelp Watch 2015: Most Recent Results Looking for Fukushima Contamination

April 12, 2015 fukushimainform 1 Comment

By Jay T. Cullen

The Raincoast Education Society has partnered with the University of Victoria and California State University to carry out radionuclide sampling of sea water and kelp, respectively, in Clayoquot Sound. http://raincoasteducation.org/radiation-monitoring

The purpose of this post is to report the most recent results of Kelp Watch 2015 , a program dedicated to monitoring for the presence of Fukushima contamination off our Pacific Coast. This post is the latest in a series dedicated to the public dissemination of information about the impacts of the Fukushima Dai-ichi disaster on the health of the North Pacific Ocean ecosystem and health of North American residents. New results from the third sampling period (January through March 2015) of Kelp Watch 2015 were released on April 6, 2015 and can be found here. As with previously reported results here, here and here no radioactive isotopes from Fukushima were detected in kelp growing at sampling sites spread along our Pacific coast. The absence of ¹³⁴Cs in kelp suggests that ocean transport of Fukushima contamination had yet to reach North American coastal water. As the contaminated water reaches the shoreline in the coming months Kelp Watch 2015 will help to track the arrival of the plume in time and space. Continue reading Kelp Watch 2015: Most Recent Results Looking for Fukushima Contamination →

Interviews, Presentations & Media

CHEK News Covers Raincoast Eductation Society and Citizen Science in Tofino

March 29, 2015 fukushimainform Leave a comment

Story by Dean Stoltz of CHEK News originally aired March 26, 2015

Citizen Science

Volunteers Collect January 2015 Seawater Sample in Tofino, BC

January 8, 2015 fukushimainform Leave a comment

Raincoast Education Society is our partner organization in Tofino who is working with citizen scientists to help us collect seawater to monitor for the arrival of Fukushima contamination along our coastline. The video below shows a volunteer wading into the surf at Cox Bay to collect seawater today for the project.