Italy recalls 'radioactive' wood pellets: report

[UpInArms]

Source: AFP

ROME (AFP) — An Italian court has ordered the recall of 10,000 tonnes of wood fuel pellets imported from Lithuania over fears that they could have dangerous levels of radioactivity, newspapers reported on Sunday.

The alarm was raised after someone in the northern Aosta Valley region, who had bought the pellets, sent them for analysis because they did not burn well.

The results showed that they contained caesium 137, a highly toxic radioactive substance normally produced by a nuclear explosion or from the combustion of a nuclear reactor.

The contaminated pellets themselves are not dangerous to humans, said Salvatore Aprile of the Aosta Valley court: the dangers comes from the ashes and the smoke produced when they are burned. The court ordered their recall on Saturday.

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5goYteynhsH7xwCovzDSezXKc7fvQ

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Gives "Hot" a whole new meaning :eyes:

[Liberation Angel]

1. This is a global problem

Trees have been absorbing the radiation from nuke plant emissions, nuke tests, waste etc for 60 + years and when we burn them they release this into the atmosphere.

The shit never goes away.

One more reason that nukes should be banned. ALL nukes.


www.radiation.org

[truthisfreedom]

3. Chernobyl! From Wiki:

Small amounts of Cs-134 and Cs-137 were released into the environment during nuclear weapon tests and some nuclear accidents, most notably the Chernobyl disaster. As of 2005, Cs-137 is the principal source of radiation in the zone of alienation around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Together with caesium-134, iodine-131, and strontium-90, it was among the isotopes with greatest health impact distributed by the reactor explosion.

The mean contamination of Cs-137 in Germany after Chernobyl was 2000-4000Bq/m², some parts in the south even 10 times higher. This correspond to a contamination of 1mg of Cs-137 per square kilometer or around 500g Cs-137 deposited all over Germany.

This wood was probably taken from somewhere in that region.

[dixiegrrrrl]

5. So during a brush/forest fire.....oops.

Another well conceived plan produces blowback.

[caraher]

2. Why the quotes around 'radioactive' in the original story headline?

Cs 137 is radioactive; weird choice to put the word in quotes as if to suggest the pellets were not "really" radioactive...

[Alameda]

4. OMG....this is serious! I wonder how many radioactive

pellets are around that we don't know of? A lot of people use them is heaters for small spaces, like boats.

[Downwinder]

6. Does not sound like they are any more dangerous than oleanders.

joist don't burn, eat or roast marshmallows.