Japan for releasing radioactive water to sea or air
TOKYO: Japan’s economy and industry ministry proposed on Monday the gradual release or evaporation of massive amounts of treated but still radioactive water being stored at the Fukushima nuclear plant, wrecked by a tsunami
The proposal to a group of experts is the first time the ministry has narrowed down the various options available to those choices
It is meant to solve a growing problem for the plant’s operator as storage space for the water runs out, despite fears of a backlash from the public The draft proposal will be discussed further
Nearly nine years after the 2011 meltdowns of three reactor cores at the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Plant, radioactive water continues to accumulate as water used to keep the cores cool leaks from the damaged reactors and is stored in tanks so it won’t escape into the ocean or elsewhere For years, a government panel has been discussing ways to handle the crisis and to reassure fishermen and residents who fear possible health effects from releasing the radioactive water as well as harm to the region’s image and fishing industry
Fukushima fishermen and the National Federation of Fisheries Co-operative Associations have strongly opposed past suggestions by government officials that the water be released to the sea, warning of an “immeasurable impact on the future of the Japanese fishing industry” Fishermen are still unable to resume full operations