Despite persistent opposition at home and abroad, Japan on Thursday began its ninth round of discharging nuclear-contaminated wastewater into the Pacific Ocean from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.
Approximately 7,800 tonnes of wastewater will be released about a kilometer off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture via an underwater tunnel until October 14. This amount mirrors previous rounds of discharge.
The Fukushima nuclear plant suffered core meltdowns following a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a subsequent tsunami on March 11, 2011. The disaster released radiation, resulting in a level-7 nuclear accident, the highest on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale.
Since the catastrophe, the plant has been generating massive amounts of water tainted with radioactive substances used to cool down nuclear fuel in reactor buildings. The contaminated water has been stored in tanks at the nuclear plant.
Despite opposition from local fishermen, residents, and the international community, the ocean discharge of the Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water began in August 2023.
In the fiscal year 2024, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) plans to discharge a total of 54,600 tonnes of contaminated water in seven rounds, which contains approximately 14 trillion becquerels of tritium.
While competent departments of China and Japan recently reached an agreement on the discharge, China has reaffirmed its firm opposition to Japan’s unilateral move to start the discharge, maintaining that this position remains unchanged.
“The purpose of reaching the agreement with Japan is to urge Japan to earnestly fulfill its obligations under international law and its responsibility for safety oversight, to do its utmost to avoid leaving a negative impact on the environment and human health, and to effectively prevent the potential risk that may arise from the discharge,” said Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry.
The ongoing release continues to stir concern among neighboring countries and environmental groups, who fear the potential long-term impact on marine life and human health.
Reference(s):
Japan starts 9th ocean discharge of nuclear-tainted wastewater
cgtn.com
