国内英语新闻:Traces of radioactive iodine detected in Tokyo, not affecting human health: gov't

TOKYO, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Traces of radioactive iodine had been detected in Tokyo and the surrounding Kanto region, according to the results of an investigation of radioactivity in precipitation and dust conducted by the government, local media reported on Sunday.

Radioactive iodine was found in Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, Yamanashi, Tochigi and Gunma prefectures, the Kyodo News said, citing the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The ministry added that the levels detected in the investigation alone would not affect human health.

An employee of Yamagata city office holds a Geiger counter to detect radiation when evacuees from the vicinity of Fukushima nuclear plant wish to be screened upon their arrival at an evacuation centre set in a gymnasium in Yamagata, northern Japan March 19, 2011, eight days after Japan's devastating earthquake and tsunami.

The investigation was carried out following the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the government said Sunday.

The ministry said that a separate research has already shown that radioactive materials in the air and tap water in Tokyo and the five prefectures pose no threat to human health, according to Kyodo News report.