Reuters is also underselling the latest revelation. Here is a traslation of the source video from japanese TV. TEPCO doesn't just say "its an emergency" The head of TEPCO is actually saying "the discharge is now beyond our control" and a nuclear engineer adds "it is already beyond what TEPCO can handle". That is to say, they are powerless to stop it.

They also neglect to mention that TEPCO have now been nationalised to stop them going bankrupt, so they are pretty much flat broke as it is. They quite literally have no idea what to do about it, because building a sarcophagus that big would be a national project on a scale that Japan can't or won't pay for. Japan is just not in a position to house anything for thousands and thousands of years, let alone four entire reactors, on a fault line, next to the ocean. They don't even know where all the leaks are coming from, the ground is just saturated in every direction and it goes down deep.

Its worth pointing out that the "underground barrier" everyone keeps talking about, is made of chemicals they sprayed into the dirt, which they hope will keep the radioactivity out. Those chemicals require dry soil to set, but the soil is not dry. This means the radioactive water has likely been leaking out the entire time, they are only mentioning it now because its about to breach the surface.

You just ruined my evening.

Holy fuck.

I don't know what the full situation on the ground is: I dont think anyone posting online, be it a blogger, journalist, or crackpot reading both and drawing their own conclusions based on scary numbers and words does. Radioactive material leaks are bad, but "bad" means anything from "it injured the bark of a tree" to "japan is a radioactive wasteland forever" depending on the type of materials, the quantity, and where it is released. Not all radiation is created equal. There's just too much disinformation spreading around from ALL sides, and the OP's post is a textbook example of this. I'm gonna attempt to dispell some of the fearmongering with hard scientific facts:

Becquerels is really a worthless measure for this, since that is just "disentegrations per second". Which depending on what type of disentegrations they are, can be either nothing or something incredibly bad. Its especially silly to have a "cumulative" measure of becquerels. It's like saying "ive driven a cumulative 5,000,000 miles per hour". No, really, its that stupid.

Doing a little bit of research, Tritium undergoes Beta Decay, which means it releases beta particles. "Beta particles from tritium can penetrate only about 6.0 mm of air, and they are incapable of passing through the dead outermost layer of human skin" (wikipedia). They could be potentially dangerous if you went swimming in HIGHLY irradiated water, but I would estimate that the amount released vs the size of the ocean or the containment area means there's not much more than a small potential regional risk.

tl;dr: Don't go swimming right next to the plant anymore you could get sick for a week or two. I'm all for skepticism and this is definitely a disaster with global impacts, but more as an important lesson or step in making Nuclear Power safer for regions rather than an apocalyptic scenario.

Source: Mechanical Engineering degree with a technical focus on Nuclear Power, and these two simple links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritium#Decay

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritiated_water

Nothing about bio-accumulation in aquatic life? That's what I'm more interested in.

That I'm definitely not an expert in--though the wikipedia link to tritiated water says it typically passes through a human body in a week or two. I can't really extrapolate that to fish, but it looks like it is not considered a 'permanent' or heavily damaging accumulation compared to some other, nastier isotopes, like the cesium they are supposedly dealing with elsewhere in the plant (though I think that isn't part of this leak)

Radioactive material leaks are bad, but "bad" means anything from "it injured the bark of a tree" to "japan is a radioactive wasteland forever"

It's the "Japan is a radioactive wasteland forever" variety. And then the US Mainland West Coast. And then on and on, over the world. For thousands of years.

If humanity doesn't band together to come up with a solution and soon, that's it. Game over for all life on the planet.

Why do you think the rich have been building and investing in underground bunkers? They knew that there was no way to stop massive ecological damage WHEN things got out of control, so they're going to try and save their own sorry asses and leave the rest of us to rot.

Won't be long now.

"Human sacrifice! Dogs and cats, living together! Mass hysteria!"

Yes. Laugh now.

Here is at least part of the conspiracy.

US Regulator: We’ve got to stop labs from testing for Fukushima radiation — “Tell them to back off” — Worried about them talking to press about ‘consequences’

http://enformable.com/2012/07/march-16th-2011-no-matter-what-it-is-vital-that-everyone-stays-on-same-page-regarding-the-facts-even-as-the-situation-worsens-in-japan/

"No, You don't know the scenario"

March 16th, 2011 – No matter what, it is vital that everyone stays on same page regarding the facts, even as the situation worsens in Japan

http://enenews.com/nrc-weve-stop-labs-testing-fukushima-radiation-directors-knock-doe-cool-worried-about-talking-press-about-consequences

Its official: TSHTF moment is happening RIGHT NOW!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv8nMfL-VRE

If someone could forward this, please do.

Presidents, prime ministers, people of the world. As the Prime Minister of Japan, I ask you to hear my message.

I seek immediate International assistance with the ongoing nuclear disaster in Fukushima. The situation has deteriorated. Irradiated seawater is being released into the pacific ocean at very high, uncontrolled rates. This will eventually contaminate the entire Pacific. The size and scope of this disaster necessitates a unified International response.

The problem cannot be fixed by Tepco. The problem cannot be fixed by Japan. The situation is largely beyond our control. The scope of the problem is larger than anything we have ever contemplated. It is possible that even the finest scientists and engineers from around the globe cannot fix the problems we face. There may be nothing we can do to improve the situation, even with the best efforts of the entire world.

I implore every country that is able, to send an emergency delegation to:

GLOBAL FUKUSHIMA RESPONSE GENEVA, SWITZERLAND AUGUST 20th, 2012

We ask that you send two scientists, two engineers, and one senior political representative.

On August 20th, a briefing will be held. Broadcast live to the world, Japan will provide an uncensored and expanded overview of the situation in Fukushima. From that point forward, on a collaborative basis, an International effort will begin to put an end to the crisis at Fukushima.

On behalf of Japan, I ask for your immediate assistance and support. If we cannot get the situation under control, we face the gravest of consequences. It falls to us, as leaders of the world, and as members of the human race, to face this problem. We must rise now, together, if we are to have any hope. For the love of earth, and for the sake of your fellow man, please help us.

Are you claiming to speak for the Prime Minster of Japan, you pipsqueak?

No, it's a suggested speech. I should have said "forward it to Japan" for better clarity. My small attempt at suggesting something.