Radiation level in Singapore very low

Radiation level in Singapore very low

THE likelihood of any radioactive plume reaching Singapore from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in earthquake-stricken Japan remains "very low", said the Singapore Government yesterday.

A joint statement involving various government ministries and agencies said that round-the-clock monitoring of radiation levels shows an average reading which is "safe and is within the normal range of Singapore's natural background level".

The average reading is 0.08 microsieverts per hour. Singapore is about 5,000km away from the incident site in Japan.

The National Environment Agency said in the statement: "Even in the event that prevailing winds were to transport a plume to Singapore, the impact is expected to be insignificant."

The concentration of the plume, after travelling the long distance, would have been significantly reduced to the normal background levels, added the statement.

The Ministry of Health said that any Singaporean who was outside the 20km evacuation zone in Japan will not need any form of medical assessment.

The statement also said that while there are no health reasons that require the screening of passengers from Japan at airports, developments will be monitored and appropriate measures taken if the need arises.

In the statement, the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) confirmed that there have been no food imports from the affected regions in Japan since the start of the incident.

-News courtesy of omy-