Nuclear radiation from Japan reaches Pakistan: PAEC
09 Apr 2011
Pakistan has reported traces of airborne radioactive iodine, expected to have originated from the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, in that country.
The Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) made the detection using highly sensitive surveillance systems, the Daily Times reported today.
A PAEC release published by the press said many other countries, including the US, China, South Korea, the UK and Scotland, have also detected very small traces of airborne radioactive iodine.
The report, however, said the radiation reaching Pakistan is extremely diluted as the radiation gets dissipated in the air as it travels the long distances from Japan.
The levels of radioactive iodine detected in Pakistan are tiny and billions of times lower than the permissible levels that could endanger public health or environment and hence does not require any precautionary measures, the PAEC release was quoted as saying.
"Radioactivity from Japan's earthquake-hit nuclear power plant has reached Pakistan, but the levels recorded do not pose any danger to people or the environment," the report quoted Jamshaid Zaidi, a Pakistani nuclear scientist as saying.
