The Japanese government said it would start releasing radioactive water from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean in two years.
The announcement has already been met with derision from the public as well as the country’s fishing industry. Neighboring countries are not in favor of the idea either.
The Fukushima plant was damaged during an earthquake and subsequent tsunami in 2011, which caused the plant’s reactors to start leaking their cooling water. That water has been stored at the plant since but it is expected to reach capacity next year.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the ocean release was the most realistic option and was a necessary step to complete the decades-long decommissioning of the Fukushima plant. He said the government would work to make sure the water is safe and to help local agriculture, fisheries and tourism.
Experts are mixed over whether or not the release of radioactive water in such large amounts, even if the amount of radiation is small, will harm marine life. The current radiation levels in the “treated” water, however, are unknown.
Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the plant, said it needs the storage space being taken up by 1.37 million tons of water tanks to house debris from further decommissioning the physical structure of the Fukushima plant. The large tanks also risk being damaged or destroyed if another earthquake and tsunami hit the area.
Reports estimate that about 70% of the radioactive water in storage will need to be filtered and diluted with seawater before it can be released. According to a preliminary estimate, gradually and safely releasing the water will take nearly 40 years but will be completed before the plant is fully decommissioned.
Both South Korea and China have raised concerns about the plan, calling it “absolutely unacceptable” and “extremely irresponsible,” respectively.
With News Wire Services