Japan’s plan to release treated radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean has moved forward another step.
The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, damaged in a magnitude 9 earthquake in 2011, has been a point of tension as Japanese officials grapple over how to deal with millions of tons of radioactive water.
Most of the radioactive water has come from treating the damaged power plant: since the disaster, water has been pumped through to help cool the fuel rods of three nuclear reactors. The water has been treated and filtered, then stored in massive tanks. More than 1.3 million tonnes of water sits in these tanks but space is running out.
In 2021, the Japanese government announced a plan to deal with the waste: over the course of decades, it would dilute and release the treated water into the Pacific Ocean.
The plan has been divisive. While Japan officials have maintained the water released would be safe, local communities in Japan and across the Pacific have raised concerns about potential contamination and environmental risks.
Since the 2021 announcement, UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) began working on a report looking at the viability of releasing treated water in accordance with safety standards.
Last week, the IAEA released its report – and in doing so, found in favour of Japan’s plan.
According to the report, any impact on people or the environment will be “negligible” if Japan’s proposal is followed.
This didn’t calm all doubts. Since releasing the report in Japan, IAEA director general Rafael Grossi has been travelling within the Asia Pacific region – including to South Korea and New Zealand – to meet with key leaders and discuss the report.
During Grossi’s stop in New Zealand on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced the government supports the IAEA report.
In South Korea, Grossi was met with protests. Elsewhere, members of the Pacific Island Forum have been critical of the report after its own independent scientific panel found issues with it.
So far, there has been no firm date on when the treated water will be released, but it’s expected to start before the end of the year.
Banner image: Greg Webb / IAEA
- Asia Media Centre
