U.S. Nuke Sub Leaked Radiation, Japan Says

Officials Claim Navy Vessel Dripped Radioactive Water For 2 Years At 3 Different Ports

(AP)  An American nuclear-powered submarine leaked radiation for more than two years and may have affected three Japanese ports where it stopped more extensively than initially thought, Japanese officials said Thursday, releasing a U.S. report.

On Aug. 1, the U.S. Navy notified Japan that the USS Houston had leaked water containing small amounts of radiation during three calls to the southern Japanese ports of Sasebo and Okinawa in March and April this year but caused no threat to people or the environment. The submarine also made stops in Guam and Pearl Harbor.

A new U.S. Embassy report released by the Japanese Foreign Ministry Thursday said the submarine was already leaking during nine earlier port calls in Japan and the amount of radiation leaked was larger than initially reported. It "has been steadily leaking a small amount" of radiation from June 2006 to July 2008 when it entered a drydock in Hawaii, the U.S. report said. It said the total leakage was still negligible.

The radiation leak has caused a stir in Japan where the continued presence of the U.S. military and its nuclear vessels draw complaints from residents about crime, noise and pollution linked to some 50,000 American servicemen based in the country. The presence of nuclear submarines is particularly sensitive, given that Japan is the only country the U.S. ever used atomic bombs against in the closing days of World War II.

"If we add all radiation leaked at every Japanese port, it would be still smaller than the amount of naturally occurring radioactivity found inside home smoke detectors," the Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement accompanying its release of the U.S. report. "Japan also has found no abnormality in its monitoring results during Houston's port calls since June 2006."

U.S. Embassy officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

The USS Houston made three previously undisclosed calls at Sasebo in July 2006, February and April in 2007. The vessel was also leaking during its two port calls in Yokosuka, a large U.S. naval port near Tokyo, in 2007, and four calls in Okinawa in 2007, according to the embassy report.

News of the incident also comes just weeks ahead of the arrival of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington to be based in Yokosuka, just south of Tokyo.

The carrier's arrival, originally set for August under a Japan-U.S. security alliance, was delayed until late September because of a fire aboard the vessel in May, another incident that has caused safety concerns in Japan.

[eggy1620]

"If we add all radiation leaked at every Japanese port, it would be still smaller than the amount of naturally occurring radioactivity found inside home smoke detectors," the Japanese foreign ministry said

That''s less than 1 microcurie. How in the world was that detected and measured?

[squidly8]

I was a nuclear trained machinist on an LA class sub in the ''80s. Some valves have caps over them and water accumulated in the cap to the point where it leaked out of the small vent in the cap. I can''t count how many times I took caps off these valves - thousands. It is a non issue. The Navy classifies systems to be potentially contaminated even if they never touch the reactor or it could be theoretically possible for them to get some contamination. They are sampled on a small interval basis and in my time, never heard of anything EVER being found.

There is no more anal-retentive group than NAVSEA08 which administers the Navy''s nuclear program. If they announced it and gave a number, I believe it.

There will be the usual nuts screaming about this being a huge incident. Then they will log off, go to the airport to catch a flight, go to the dentist/doctor to get an X-ray, go out to the beach or as the article says get a bag of fertilzer or a new smoke detector. All of these expose you to an increased radiation level but they never give a second thought to these "incidents" of radiation exposure.

Yawn.

[mgeg1]

Wasn''t McCain just claiming that nuclear technology is safe based on the results of nuclear submarines? I have no problem with building more nuclear power plants, but that doesn''t look good for McCain''s rationality.

[vietnam21]

A US Navy investigation determined the amount of radioactivity that seeped from a valve was less than half a microcurie, or less than what would be found in a 50-pound (22.6 kilogram) bag of lawn fertilizer.

ofcourse it safe, this is maintenant issue..

[xmanborg]

U.S. Nuke Sub Leaked Radiation

Thats SUPER FANTASTIC!

Nuclear Radiation for EVERY BODY even the children.

[drillusion4u]

WELL THATS THE NAVY FOR YOU!!

[eggy1620]

If the world is so much more full of toxins now than compared to the past, why are life expectancies growing?

[squidly8]

Nancy Naive,

I have zero health issues, 3 healthy children, all my hair and zero regrets because I have taken the time to educate myself on what the risks are associated with my radiation exposure.

Simply, the federal gov''t allows nuclear workers to get 5 Rem a year of exposure. The Navy''s limit is 500 millirem - 10% of the federal limit. Each command sets their limit lower than the Navy limit based on the historical exposure of their crews. If I remember right, my ship had a local limit of one quarter of the Navy limit.

Local policy was that if anyone was getting close to their limit they would remove them from the ship and not allow any additional exposure. I never remember anyone ever coming close to the limits. My cumulative exposure for my 6 years in the canoe club was significantly less than the Navy''s limit for 1 year.

If you take off the loss of radiation exposure due to not seeing the sun for months, it is probably a wash.

Your reaction is typical of someone who has fear of nuclear power but has no desire to inform themselves what the true risk to your health is. Fear only because you choose to remain ignorant.

[questionnews]

"U.S. Nuke Sub Leaked Radiation, Japan Says"

Go ahead & keep it, no charge! Next time though we''ll charge you $4 a gallon.

[bigwhtpony]

Look out! Here comes GODZILLA!!!! Oh, by the way........

Friends and former staffers refuse to comment now, though they helped Edwards last fall by dismissing an October story in the Enquirer of a sexual relationship between Edwards and a campaign videographer when it initially broke.

"Sorry cannot help you on this one," wrote Jennifer Palmieri, a former top Edwards aide, in an e-mail Wednesday.

The Enquirer''s October story, citing unnamed sources, claimed that Edwards was having an affair with a woman who had filmed a series of videos during his presidential campaign. The tabloid later reported that she was pregnant.

[bigwhtpony]

Fear only because you choose to remain ignorant.
Posted by squidly8 at 04:34 PM : Aug 07, 2008

Yeah, ignant (sic) like us for not believing Ubama''s claim that inflating your tires and tune ups would take the place of drilling. More of Ubama''s condescending attitude to people who dare disagree with the ''baby Jesus''.

[drillusion4u]

THE NAVY''S S.O.P. $HIT EVERYWHERE AND DON''T CLEAN UP!!

[rickstas]

As a long-time resident of Japan, I say "US out!!!" We don''t want your miliatary, crimes and nuclear radiation!!!

[pat1967-2009]

squidly8,

Which NNPS class were you in? I was in 8605. You are most likely wasting your time with people like Nancy. She, as well as others, have already made up their minds about nuclear power regardless of what the facts truly are. My lifetime occupational exposure after my 6 was only 125mRem. What most don''t realize is that there is more radioactive material exhausted from coal fired power plants every day than all the accidents the Navy has ever had, combined. Because it is not labeled as nuclear, nobody cares.

[squidly8]

pat1967,

I was in 8304, NPTU IF, SSN690, EAOS 9/88

[squidly8]

pat1967,

I was in 8304, NPTU IF, SSN690, EAOS 9/88

[pat1967-2009]

squidly8,

NNPS 8605, Orlando
NTPU IF, S1W
SSN585
SSBN730B
EAOS 11/91
Still working for the Navy as a Mechanical Engineer.

Nice to meet you, mucho gusto!

[squidly8]

No further commitments on my part after EAOS. Now a mechanical engineer for a major jet engine maker.

585! Did that thing still float? At least you were an ssn sailor before you went to the boomers

Well gotta go hit the rain locker. Adios.

[demwatcher]

"As a long-time resident of Japan, I say "US out!!!" We don''''t want your miliatary, crimes and nuclear radiation!!!

Posted by Rickstas at 05:40 PM : Aug 07, 2008"

I was stationed in Okinawa in the 1990''s and early 2000''s and did some research while I was there:

The (per person) crime rate for US personnel stationed on Okinawa was ONE EIGHTH the crime rate of the Japanese. This is based on crime and incident records from BOTH the local constabulary and the US military.

If that confused you try this:

Per person, an Japanese is 8 times more likely to commit a crime.

I was there when the schoolgirl was raped by the navy and marine persons and it was covered night and day by the Japanese media. What was BARELY COVERED by the news was the schoolgirl from Nago that was raped and MURDERED by three Japanese from the mainland.

So, get off your uma and shut up.

[eggy1620]

"As a long-time resident of Japan, I say "US out!!!" We don''''''''t want your miliatary, crimes and nuclear radiation!!!

Posted by Rickstas at 05:40 PM : Aug 07, 2008"

Your emperor graciously extended an open-ended invitation on Dec 7, 1941.

[kennedy7955]

It is time for us to bring our troops home from all around the world and spend the money on our broken country. We need to get out of the business of being the worlds police.

[txgrouch2006]

As a long-time resident of Japan, I say "US out!!!" We don''''t want your miliatary, crimes and nuclear radiation!!!
Posted by Rickstas at 05:40 PM : Aug 07, 2008

We didn''t want your bombs at Pearl Harbor, either.

Nobody can predict the future. We would be fools to give up the base in Japan that could become vitally important in the future. Especially after we paid such a high price to win it.

[notbaroque]

According the the shipyard this ship SSN Houston was scheduled to be decommissioned around the year 2000:

http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/ssn-688.htm
or blog:
http://moehead.wordpress.com/2008/08/03/submarines-fear-of-fertilizer/