Tokyo Gives Infants Water Warning

The New York Times reports:

TOKYO — Infants in Tokyo and surrounding areas should not drink tap water, a Tokyo official said Wednesday, after radioactive iodine from a crippled nuclear power plant was detected in the capital’s water supply.

Ei Yoshida, head of water purification for the Tokyo water department, made the announcement at a televised news conference. He said iodine-131 had been detected in water samples at a level of 210 becquerels. The recommended limit for infants is 100 becquerels.

For adults, the recommended limit is 300 becquerels.

The Health Ministry said in a statement that it was unlikely that there would be negative consequences to infants who did drink the water, but said it should be avoided if possible and that it should not be used to make infant formula.

The warning applies to the 23 wards of Tokyo, as well as the towns of Mitaka, Tama, Musashino, Machida and Inagi to the west of the city.

The announcement about the water added to the growing anxiety about public safety posed by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station which was severely damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Earlier Wednesday, Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the public should avoid additional farm produce from areas near the power station because of contamination, according to Japanese media.

The government found radioactive materials at levels exceeding legal limits in 11 vegetables in Fukushima Prefecture, the Kyodo news agency reported. Shipments of the affected vegetables from Fukushima Prefecture ended on Monday.

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