Plutonium has been detected in soil samples which were taken from the surrounding area of Japan’s Fukishima Dai-ichi nuclear plant – TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Co and plant operator) confirmed on Monday.
The government of Japan said the plutonium mixed soil has potential health hazards. The area which is critical or dangerous around the plant is about 150 miles northeast of Tokyo. Mr. Yukio Edano, a spokesman for the government told the media that there is a big risk to human health at the moment in Japan especially in surrounding areas of the plant reactors.
The Plutonium is a very hazardous carcinogen which can also be used to make nuclear weapons. This combination of properties makes it one of the most dangerous substances. It is a metallic chemical element classified among the actinides on the periodic table of elements, according to wise Geek. This highly radioactive element is used primarily for weapons and nuclear power plants. Plutonium is relatively rare, occurring in uranium rich ores in trace amounts; most of the world’s working supply of this element is obtained through neutron bombardment of uranium, a close neighbor on the periodic table. Also, if the plutonium is isolated then maybe its appearance changes because plutonium has 6 allotropic forms but these forms are changed with their density. These forms of plutonium have same basic chemical properties of toxicity, radioactivity and reactivity.
The report from Japan’s government said that the water, located in a trench and shaft, has a radioactivity level of 1,000 millisieverts per hour. Also, the same level is detected in water soaking the basement of the unit’s turbine building. The government has confirmed that a large quantity of highly radioactive water is found outside the reactor number 2 at the Fukisima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, raising the possibility of presence of toxic water leaking in to the ocean surrounding about 55 meters.
According to the report, many workers are making efforts to cool the overheating reactors but they stepped back because of the leaking of highly radioactive water from the plant in to the soil and the ocean. Sakae Muto, vice president of TEPCO, has apologized for this latest development.