Radioactive material found near U.S. nuclear-powered submarine berthed at Yokosuka

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Radioactive material found near U.S. nuclear-powered submarine berthed at Yokosuka

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology announced on September 27 that radioactive material was found near the U.S. nuclear-powered submarine Honolulu berthed at U.S. Yokosuka Naval Base in Kanagawa Prefecture.

According to the ministry, radioactive cobalt 58 and cobalt 60 were detected in the water collected near the stern of the submarine on September 14, and it is possible that nuclear reactor coolant water leaked out.

It is the first time that either radioactive material was found in tests that the government has conducted since 1964 at the following U.S. naval bases that nuclear-powered submarines visited: Yokosuka, Sasebo in Nagasaki Prefecture, and White Beach in Okinawa.

The Japanese and U.S. governments are planning to homeport a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier at Yokosuka in 2008. In a document entitled "Fact Sheet on U.S. Nuclear Powered Warship Safety," the U.S. government stated that "the operation of U.S. nuclear-powered warships does not result in any increase in the general background radioactivity of the environment." Using this document as grounds to cast aside residents' concerns over nuclear accidents, the Japanese government has insisted that nuclear-powered warships are safe and has urged Yokosuka City to accept the deployment.

Kasaki Takeshi, representative of the Japanese Communist Party Kanagawa Prefectural Committee, pointed out that the leak of radioactive material shows that both governments' claims are groundless. He said that the JCP will continue to strive to develop the opposition movement among local residents to block the deployment.
- Akahata, September 28, 2006