Federal Government takes precautionary measures to protect Germany from nuclear radiation The disastrous events in Japan are not expected to pose any threat to the health of the German population. Nonetheless, the Federal Government has initiated the following measures for precautionary reasons:
- Since radioactive contamination of the exterior of aircraft coming directly from Japan cannot be ruled out, preparations are being made to measure and, if necessary, decontaminate aircraft. The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) is currently drawing up an emergency regulation for the specification of limit values against which planes arriving from Japan can be measured.
At present, the Federal Environment Ministry does not foresee any concrete danger of contamination from aircraft travelling from Japan.
- It cannot be ruled out that passengers who have been in a contaminated area in Japan may be contaminated with radioactive material on their arrival in Germany. The Federal Environment Ministry supports the offers made by individual Federal Länder and is advising the competent Land authorities to allow passengers arriving from Japan to undergo testing for external radioactive contamination at the airport. If any such radioactive contamination is found, the Federal Environment Ministry recommends that the persons concerned be given the opportunity to have a possible internal contamination of the body determined at a nearby screening centre. The available screening centres are listed on the websites of the Federal Environment Ministry and of the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz - BfS).
- The Directorate-General for Health and Consumers of the European Commission has recommended that food and feed imports from Japan be tested for radioactivity. The Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (BMELV) has passed this recommendation on to the Federal Länder with the request that this be taken into account. It has also requested that the Directorate-General be notified immediately of any abnormal levels of radioactivity found.
- Random testing for radioactivity will be carried out on goods such as motor vehicles and consumer electronics imported to Germany from Japan. The Federal Ministry of Finance has issued instructions to this effect to customs authorities.
- In order to protect ship crews, the Commission on Radiological Protection (Strahlenschutzkommission - SSK) has recommended that vessels steer clear of the Fukushima area as much as possible (by ca. 50 nautical miles or ca. 100km).
N.B.: The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety is responsible within the Federal Government for all issues relating to radiation protection and preventive radiation protection. Enforcement issues in this field are dealt with by the Federal Länder. If there is any overlapping of ministerial competencies, for instance, regarding aviation, customs or foodstuff monitoring, the competent ministries will decide on the measures to take in close cooperation.