Thia is the letter I received from a WA Senator in response to my letter. I have not heard from anyone else that I wrote, but I guess this is sufficient to let me know there is no danger to anyone and the Feds have everything under control!!!
Dear Mrs. H:
Thank
you for contacting me regarding the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
As
you know, on March 11, 2011,
the magnitude 9.0 Tohoku
undersea earthquake occurred off the coast of Japan, triggering a tsunami. This terrible natural disaster
left thousands dead and had many consequences on Japan's infrastructure, including but
not limited to a nuclear accident at the Fukushima power plant.
While the reactors have since been stabilized,
there are a number of concerns with
radioactive water from the plant
leaking into the Pacific
Ocean.
In
light of the events in Japan, President Obama
asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC), an
independent federal agency, to perform a comprehensive
review of all U.S. nuclear reactors. As
a result, the NRC ordered nuclear power plants across the country to update their earthquake
and flood protection features, as well as
an ongoing process to update the ventilation
systems in some power plants. The Environmental
Protection Agency increased its radiation monitoring to ensure that there were no harmful levels of radiation
reaching the United States. In Washington state,
the Department of Health also increased its air monitoring, and began to check fish populations for radioactivity. The
federal government has also addressed questions surrounding radiation from Japan reaching U.S. soil,
stating there is no expectation that
harmful levels of radiation will reach the United States. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention also recommended the public need not
take any precautions beyond being fully informed of the situation in Japan.
Recently,
Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz expressed that the U.S. Department of Energy stood ready to assist Japan
with the cleanup of the Fukushima nuclear power plant if needed. Please know that I
am working with my colleagues,
leaders in the Obama Administration, and Washington state agencies
to closely monitor the cleanup operations
at the plant. I will continue to
make sure Americans get clear information about the impact of the crisis in Japan and findings from the
review of U.S. nuclear power plants.
Once
again, thank you for contacting me regarding this important issue. If
you would like to know more about my work in the Senate, please feel free to sign up for my updates at http://murray.senate.gov/updates.
Thank you again for writing, and please keep in touch.
Sincerely,
Patty Murray
United States Senator
