State helping monitor radiation from Japan

The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality said last week  that bi-weekly monitoring data from the RadNet network that shows Japan's nuclear crisis has not affected radiation levels here.

The monitors show radiation levels at naturally occurring, or background levels, well below health risk levels. The levels have typically remained unchanged since the Japanese nuclear incident began, the agency said.

RadNet is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s nationwide radiation monitoring system. There are more than 100 fixed monitoring sites across the United States. Two of them are in Louisiana – one in Shreveport and one in Baton Rouge.

“The RadNet air monitors across the U.S. show typical fluctuations in background radiation levels. The levels detected are far below levels of concern. As the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has said, we do not expect to see radiation at harmful levels reaching the U.S. from damaged Japanese nuclear power plants,” according the EPA website providing information on the Japanese disaster.

The website has an abundance of information, such as frequently asked questions:

Frequently asked questions and data from all Radnet sites are available at http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/japan-faqs.html#public. RadNet data for the Louisiana sites are available at

http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/rert/radnet-batonrouge-bg.html.