SCORERSane
#
from the Secretary of State to the Ambassador,
this information to Dr, Kobayoshi on April 7.
I transmitted
ne
(4) I offered to arrange for animal studies which would.
provide useful information on absorption and metabolism of the
various radiochemical components of the ash,
ACTION: The Japanese reported the extent of the total
amount of ash recovered as 50 millecuries, They now deny that
this much is available and have no inventory of the material.
Except for the small amount of ash turned over to me by Dr.
lakaizumi and a similar amount which I recovered on a subsequent visit to the Fukuryu Maru, no ash has been made available
to us,
(5) In response to Japanese requests, ‘I agreed to recom~
mend monitoring procedures for the tuna inspectors.
_ ACTION: Monitoring procedure was devised put I deferred
7
the question of maximum permissable contamination: until more information became available on the extent and type of contamination, I agreed to stand by until the first contaminated tuna
were found by inspection, at which time I would go to the scene
of inspection and recommend specifically on the basis of my
-
own observations whether the catch should be accepted or rejected,-
~
+e
As noted elsewhere in some detail, the Japanese never permitted 2
me to examine tuna which was allegedly contaminated.
ee
The mishap to the Fukuryn Maru created a number of separate,
but interrelated problems. Of these, the most urgent was the
clinical status of the 23 fishermen, a subject with which Dr.
Morton is exclusively concerned and about which he will report
eeparately.
r~
’
Other problems which require attention were:
(1) Contaminated Tuna,
,
oo
- (2) Apprehension of long-range contamination of Japan
end its fishing grounds.
we
(3) Radiological factors affecting the fishermens
{a) Estimating the whole body dose.
es
(ov) Estimated dose from internal emitters.
Contaminated Tuna
o.-
Some of the Japanese Government officials are already referring to the latter half of March as the ��great tuna panic,
The
origin of this panic both in the United States and Japan is
worthy of careful study, The extent to which the tuna consumption in the United States and Japan declined during the second
nalf of March is not known to me at this time. For a day prior
o my Geparture from New York on March 19, and for 2 weeks following my arrival in Tokyo on March 22 the subject of radioactive
tuna was a subject of popular conversation,
When one considers .
a)
SPECIAL PROBLEMS ARISING OUT OF ‘THE INCIDENT