Why did so few refugees return to the Fukushima fallout-impacted region after remediation? An interdisciplinary case study from Iitate village, Japan

Asanuma-Brice, Cécile; Evrard, Olivier; Chalaux, Thomas

doi:10.1016/j.ijdrr.2022.103498

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 33 publications

(25 reference statements)

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“…The key question is, was the time, expense, and waste generated to restore 16% of the contaminated area worth the investment? As of 2019, 30% of the population returned to the region ( 48 ), which would not have been possible without the remediation effort. In any case, we hope that our results raise questions and lead to robust discussions among scientists, policy makers, and citizens about how to deal with potential nuclear fallout disasters in the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lessons learnt on the impact of an unprecedented soil decontamination program in Fukushima on contaminant fluxes

Vandromme,

Hayashi,

Tsuji

et al. 2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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In the context of elevated concerns related to nuclear accidents and warfare, the lessons learnt from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in 2011 are important. In particular, Japanese authorities implemented an ambitious decontamination program to reduce the air dose rate in order to facilitate the return of the local inhabitants to previously evacuated areas. This approach contrasts the strategy adopted in Chernobyl, where the most contaminated areas remain off limits. Nonetheless, the effectiveness of the Japanese decontamination strategy on the dispersion of radioactive contaminant fluxes across mountainous landscapes exposed to typhoons has not been quantified. Based on the unique combination of river monitoring and modeling in a catchment representative of the most impacted area in Japan, we demonstrate that decontamination of 16% of the catchment area resulted in a decrease of 17% of sediment-bound radioactive fluxes in rivers. Decontamination operations were therefore relatively effective, although they could only be conducted in a small part of the area due to the dominance of steep forested slopes. In fact, 67% of the initial radiocesium contamination was calculated to remain stored in forested landscapes, which may contribute to future downstream radiocesium dispersion during erosive events. Given that only a limited proportion of the initial population had returned in 2019 (~30%), it raises the question as to whether decontaminating a small percentage of the contaminated area was worth the effort, the price, and the amount of waste generated?

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lessons learnt on the impact of an unprecedented soil decontamination program in Fukushima on contaminant fluxes

Vandromme,

Hayashi,

Tsuji

et al. 2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Impacts of farmland decontamination on 137Cs transfers in rivers after Fukushima nuclear accident: Evidence from a retrospective sediment core study

Chalaux-Clergue,

Foucher,

Chaboche

et al. 2024

Science of The Total Environment

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Personality Traits and Types of Housing Recovery after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

et al. 2023

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The Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami struck the northeastern coastal area of Japan on 11 March 2011, resulting in the relocation of 329,000 households and the repair of 572,000 houses. Previous studies predominantly addressed the impact of demographic factors on housing recovery. However, the types of housing recoveries and the impact of individual psycho-behavioral factors have been poorly addressed. This study examined the impact of survivors’ demographic and personality-trait factors using a discriminant analysis of five types of housing recovery among 573 survivors in the five years after the disaster. The results revealed two important axes. One axis discriminated self-procured (rebuilt, repaired, and chartered housing) houses from those that were publicly available (emergency temporary and public disaster housing) affected by three personality traits (stubbornness, problem-solving, and active well-being) and survivors’ age. The other axis represented rebuilt houses affected by household size. These results demonstrate that personality traits and not just demographic factors impact three types of self-procured housing recoveries. Further exploration of personality traits that impact housing recovery can improve post-disaster reconstruction and recovery practices.

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Why did so few refugees return to the Fukushima fallout-impacted region after remediation? An interdisciplinary case study from Iitate village, Japan

Cited by 4 publications

References 33 publications

Lessons learnt on the impact of an unprecedented soil decontamination program in Fukushima on contaminant fluxes

Lessons learnt on the impact of an unprecedented soil decontamination program in Fukushima on contaminant fluxes

Impacts of farmland decontamination on 137Cs transfers in rivers after Fukushima nuclear accident: Evidence from a retrospective sediment core study

Personality Traits and Types of Housing Recovery after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

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