ARI Becquerel Center (ABC)
The ARI Becquerel Center measures nuclear radiation in soil, food, and water.
Since its beginning in 2012 it has supported food safety at ARI and the local community of Nasu and beyond.
The Asian Rural Institute opened the ARI Becquerel Center in the Nasu Seminar House on January 10, 2012. It is equipped to measure radiation in foodstuff and other substances.
The ABC is supported by the National Christian Council in Japan Ecumenical Disaster Response Office (JEDRO), Nasunogahara Resident’s Association for Radiation Protection (NRARP), the United Church of Canada (UCC), and dedicated local volunteers.
Thus far, we have conducted more than 6,000 measurements and have given others advice from our experience and knowledge. Farmers and other food producers, and mothers with small children have come to take advantage of it. The equipment operators respond to the radiation concerns of the community by explaining the results of the measurements and providing advice based on the results.
Appointments
All requests are taken via telephone:
Location
Nasu Seminar House
Tsukinukisawa 420-22, Nasushiobara City
Operating Hours
Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00am to 12:20pm
(Sundays and Mondays are holidays)
Measurement Fee
1,500 yen per specimen
Measurement time takes 30 minutes for general specimen.
Water may take up to 16 hours.
Instrument in use
Berthold LB2045
Measures gammas rays from iodine 131, cesium 134/137, and potassium 40.
Before You Make an Appointment
We measure liquids, foodstuff, and soil.
We do not do measurements on urine.
The measuring device is equipped to handle 350cc capacity, so please prepare an ample amount of sample accordingly in a clean, flexible vinyl bag (20cm~25cm wide, 25cm~30cm high), and close it tightly to keep air out of the bag as much as possible.
Liquids: Put liquids in a thoroughly cleaned pet bottle.
Vegetables and other solids: Put in a food processor or blender ahead of time to grind them into small, fine pieces.
Soil: Bring soil that has been dehydrated in sunlight or on an iron plate. Furthermore, when collecting a soil sample, please only collect soil from one defined depth (5cm deep, 10cm deep, etc).
Make sure to arrive 10 minutes before your appointment time so as not to run late into the next appointment. We appreciate your cooperation.
Currently we measure the combined values of cesium 134 and 137, and the natural radioactivity of potassium 40 (we are not currently measuring iodine 131 at our center).
Potassium 40 occurs in nature, so even before the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant I accident it was something we consumed on an everyday basis. However, we measure it so that we can account for the influence of the gamma rays from potassium 40 and thereby get a more accurate measure on the radioactivity from the cesium.
We do the everyday calibration on the device, thoroughly clean the lead containers that hold the specimens and the containers used for measurements, and do maintenance to ensure accurate measurements. However, there may be discrepancies in the measurements based on the measurement time and other conditions, so please understand that the results are best used a point of reference. We encourage those of you who have time to be present during the measurement process.
The German-made LB2045 that the ARI Becquerel Center uses is a device that can accurately measure the radioactivity levels of foodstuff and soil by measuring the gamma ray energy that radionuclides emit. It is used in many other prefectures’ becquerel centers, such as the one in Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture. However, because it is not a device certified by the Japanese government or other public organizations, we can inform you of the measured values of the specimens but cannot publish certified results.
