A Decade After Fukushima Nuclear Disaster, Alaska Expands Seafood Monitoring

State environmental regulators announced Monday they’re expanding radiation testing of commercially harvested Alaska seafood using a gamma radiation detector at a state laboratory in Anchorage, according to APM.

A devastating earthquake and tsunami off the coast of Japan in 2011 crippled the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, which released radioactive material into the air and ocean.

That led to global concern about the safety of Pacific seafood. Alaska began screening fish samples in 2014. It now routinely tests prime export products to reassure consumers that Alaska seafood is safe.

State Department of Environmental Conservation Chief Veterinarian Bob Gerlach told CoastAlaska that the screening has “not detected any elevated levels that are deemed harmful for consumption or for the health of the animal.”