Although there is less call for their services, a number of Tokyo-based citizens groups continue to monitor radioactivity levels to assuage those still not convinced that the worst of the 2011 nuclear crisis is over.
Although there is less call for their services, a number of Tokyo-based citizens groups continue to monitor radioactivity levels to assuage those still not convinced that the worst of the 2011 nuclear crisis is over.
One such organization, Albireo, works out of the Mukodai district of Nishi-Tokyo in the capital's western suburbs.
At an event in November attended by local residents, participants put pears harvested in Fukushima and Nishi-Tokyo into a blender and then heated the mash. The samples were put in a container set onto radiation measurement apparatus made in Belarus.
Homemaker Rumiko Hashiba, 55, is a local resident who participated in the exercise. She too purchased instruments to measure atmospheric radioactivity levels shortly after the disaster at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.
She started to take readings in her garden, local parks and elsewhere, always paying close attention to the radioactivity levels of the water and food she consumed.
In recent months, Hashiba has become increasingly concerned about a drop in media coverage on radiation levels and lack of interest in the issue by those around her.
"We don't know anything until we actually take measurements," Hashiba said after the event. "I was relieved to be able to discuss issues I can't talk about in my daily life."
In the 30-minute session that day, neither of the pears from Fukushima or Nishi-Tokyo registered cesium levels above the detection limit.
Albireo came into being in July 2012, after Makoto Yamada, a 73-year-old local doctor, bought dosimeters and other devices to detect radiation. Yamada is the head of a nationwide network of pediatricians to protect children from radioactivity.
Albireo has 30 or so staff members who are trained in measuring radiation levels. They mainly determine radioactivity in food, but also monitor fruit juice and other drinks.
The facility received around 10 requests for radioactivity measurements in the first few months after it opened. But these days, only one or two requests come in each month.
Dwindling interest has made it difficult for the operators to cover expenses for rent, the cost of promotional material for meetings and so on, with fees for dealing with measurement requests. The operators opted to run the service through a membership system last October.
Albireo currently has 45 members who regularly give lectures to inform local citizens of their activities.
Now that almost four years have passed since the crisis unfolded, Albireo is not the only privately-funded group that is feeling the pinch.
Another is Shinjuku-Yoyogi Shimin Sokuteijo (Shinjuku-Yoyogi citizens radioactivity measurement station), which was established in 2012 in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward.
The group specializes in detecting radioactive materials in urine, a rarity in the field. As it is equipped with powerful devices such as an accurate germanium semiconductor detector, the group even receives requests for radiation readings from other monitoring stations. Yet, requests from the public for readings on food have declined significantly with only one case or so coming in each week.
Expenses including rent are paid by Hiroyuki Kuwano, the 52-year-old chairman.
"We're not making any profit, but we want to continue our services for people who are worried, even if we have scale down our operations," he said.
Yamada of Albireo, who continues to provide consultation services with regard to the health of children in Fukushima Prefecture following the disaster, said: "We don't know what could happen 10 or 20 years from now. That's why we have to continue making efforts as citizens to respond in case of future events. If people can maintain their interest in the issue and continue measuring radioactivity levels, we can keep the memories of the Fukushima nuclear crisis from fading."