Diplomat says minuscule fallout reaches Calif.

The fallout from the unfolding loss of nuclear control in Japan has reached the contiguous United States. So far, it’s not a radiological disaster…the distance involved has attenuated the effects quite a lot.

Initial readings are “about a billion times beneath levels that would be health threatening,” the diplomat told The Associated Press. He asked for anonymity because the CTBO does not make its findings public.

U.S. government experts also insist there’s no threat to public health from the plume.

“Radiation is one of those words that get everybody scared, like `plague,'” said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, director of public health for Los Angeles County. “But we’re 5,000 miles away.”

The amount of any fallout that wafts across the Pacific Ocean to the U.S. coast will be so diluted that it will not pose any health risk, officials say. Wind, rain and salt spray will help clean the air over the vast ocean between Japan and the United States. Read more…

To be honest, I would have been surprised if anything less than a total meltdown coupled with a gigantic steam explosion and a very strong easterly wind had sent any significant radiation over here. Considering all the atomic tests we did in Nevada, it would have to be a huge disaster over there to get over here. If you happen to be over there right now, though, well that’s a different story. It’s still probably less than what the people who lived near the Nevada tests went through. I’m not saying don’t be concerned…just don’t obsess.