In spite of protests from its neighbors, Japan is going ahead with plans to begin releasing radioactive water that has been treated from the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear facility into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday.
The decision was reached some weeks after the nuclear inspector of the UN gave its approval to the scheme.
Since the facility was wrecked by the tsunami in 2011, around 1.34 million metric tons of water have accumulated. This amount of water is sufficient to fill 500 pools of Olympic size.
Following filtration and diluting, the water will be made available to the public after a period of thirty years.
After a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated that the authorities will make a request for the plant's operator to "promptly prepare" for the disposal to begin on August 24 if the weather and sea conditions are suitable.
After Mr. Kishida's visit to the plant on Sunday, rumors began to circulate that the release was about to take place.
The plant is located on the east coast of the country, roughly 220 kilometers (137 miles) north-east of the capital city of Tokyo. According to the government, releasing the water is a vital step in the lengthy and expensive process of decommissioning the plant, which is located on the east coast.
Since more than a decade ago, Japan has been collecting and storing the contaminated water in tanks, but there is a limited amount of room in the tanks.
In 2011, a tsunami that was brought on by an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale flooded three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Since the nuclear accident at Chernobyl in 1986, this event is considered to be the worst nuclear tragedy in the world.
Soon after that, the authorities established an exclusion zone, which continued to be increased as radiation spilled from the facility. As a result, almost 150,000 people were had to evacuate the region.
Concern and rage have been expressed regarding the Fukushima nuclear waste plan.
Since the plan to release water from the plant was approved by the Japanese government two years ago, it has created worry across Asia and the Pacific.
In July, it was given the go light by the nuclear watchdog of the United Nations, which came to the conclusion that the effects on both people and the environment would be insignificant.
However, a large number of people, notably fisherman in the area, are concerned that dumping the treated water will have a negative impact on their means of subsistence.
In addition, on Tuesday, a large group of demonstrators gathered in front of the official residence of the prime minister in Tokyo. They demanded that the government put a halt to the release.
Operators of the plant Even though Tepco has been filtering the water to remove more than 60 radioactive compounds, the water will not be completely free of radiation since it will still contain radioactive isotopes of hydrogen and carbon that cannot be easily removed from water. These are radioactive isotopes of tritium and carbon-14.
However, because to the extremely low levels of radiation that they release, specialists agree that they pose no threat to human health unless they are taken in very large quantities.
According to Professor Jim Smith, who teaches environmental science at the University of Portsmouth, "as long as the discharge is carried out as planned, radiation doses to people will be vanishingly small - more than a thousand times less than doses we all get from natural radiation every year." This statement was made by Professor Jim Smith.
The tainted water is also being released into a large body of water, namely the Pacific Ocean, which is another concern brought up by the experts.
According to Professor Gerry Thomas, who teaches molecular pathology at Imperial College London, "Anything released from the site will therefore be massively diluted" because of the surrounding environment.
Presented for your consideration: the frantic struggle to avert 2011's catastrophe
The city of Tokyo has stated in the past that the water that is going to be released into the Pacific Ocean, which has been mixed with saltwater, contains levels of tritium and carbon 14 that are acceptable for human consumption.
It is common practice for nuclear power stations all around the world to discharge waste water that contains levels of tritium that are higher than those found in the water that was treated at Fukushima.
However, the idea has been met with outrage from the countries that are nearby, with China being the country that has voiced its opposition the most. It made the accusation that Japan was using the water as its "private sewer."
On Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wang Wenbin, repeated Beijing's protest to the proposal and said that China would take "necessary measures to safeguard the marine environment, food safety, and public health."
According to Mr. Wang, Japan is "putting its own self-interest over the long-term well-being of all humankind" by allowing waste water to be released into the environment.
Hong Kong announced that it would "immediately activate" import restrictions on a number of food products manufactured in Japan.
Fish imports from the Fukushima region have already been prohibited in South Korea and China respectively.
However, the government of South Korea has given its approval to the scheme and has accused the demonstrators of engaging in scaremongering.
The decision was reached some weeks after the nuclear inspector of the UN gave its approval to the scheme.
Since the facility was wrecked by the tsunami in 2011, around 1.34 million metric tons of water have accumulated. This amount of water is sufficient to fill 500 pools of Olympic size.
Following filtration and diluting, the water will be made available to the public after a period of thirty years.
After a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida stated that the authorities will make a request for the plant's operator to "promptly prepare" for the disposal to begin on August 24 if the weather and sea conditions are suitable.
After Mr. Kishida's visit to the plant on Sunday, rumors began to circulate that the release was about to take place.
The plant is located on the east coast of the country, roughly 220 kilometers (137 miles) north-east of the capital city of Tokyo. According to the government, releasing the water is a vital step in the lengthy and expensive process of decommissioning the plant, which is located on the east coast.
Since more than a decade ago, Japan has been collecting and storing the contaminated water in tanks, but there is a limited amount of room in the tanks.
In 2011, a tsunami that was brought on by an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale flooded three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Since the nuclear accident at Chernobyl in 1986, this event is considered to be the worst nuclear tragedy in the world.
Soon after that, the authorities established an exclusion zone, which continued to be increased as radiation spilled from the facility. As a result, almost 150,000 people were had to evacuate the region.
Concern and rage have been expressed regarding the Fukushima nuclear waste plan.
Since the plan to release water from the plant was approved by the Japanese government two years ago, it has created worry across Asia and the Pacific.
In July, it was given the go light by the nuclear watchdog of the United Nations, which came to the conclusion that the effects on both people and the environment would be insignificant.
However, a large number of people, notably fisherman in the area, are concerned that dumping the treated water will have a negative impact on their means of subsistence.
In addition, on Tuesday, a large group of demonstrators gathered in front of the official residence of the prime minister in Tokyo. They demanded that the government put a halt to the release.
Operators of the plant Even though Tepco has been filtering the water to remove more than 60 radioactive compounds, the water will not be completely free of radiation since it will still contain radioactive isotopes of hydrogen and carbon that cannot be easily removed from water. These are radioactive isotopes of tritium and carbon-14.
However, because to the extremely low levels of radiation that they release, specialists agree that they pose no threat to human health unless they are taken in very large quantities.
According to Professor Jim Smith, who teaches environmental science at the University of Portsmouth, "as long as the discharge is carried out as planned, radiation doses to people will be vanishingly small - more than a thousand times less than doses we all get from natural radiation every year." This statement was made by Professor Jim Smith.
The tainted water is also being released into a large body of water, namely the Pacific Ocean, which is another concern brought up by the experts.
According to Professor Gerry Thomas, who teaches molecular pathology at Imperial College London, "Anything released from the site will therefore be massively diluted" because of the surrounding environment.
Presented for your consideration: the frantic struggle to avert 2011's catastrophe
The city of Tokyo has stated in the past that the water that is going to be released into the Pacific Ocean, which has been mixed with saltwater, contains levels of tritium and carbon 14 that are acceptable for human consumption.
It is common practice for nuclear power stations all around the world to discharge waste water that contains levels of tritium that are higher than those found in the water that was treated at Fukushima.
However, the idea has been met with outrage from the countries that are nearby, with China being the country that has voiced its opposition the most. It made the accusation that Japan was using the water as its "private sewer."
On Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wang Wenbin, repeated Beijing's protest to the proposal and said that China would take "necessary measures to safeguard the marine environment, food safety, and public health."
According to Mr. Wang, Japan is "putting its own self-interest over the long-term well-being of all humankind" by allowing waste water to be released into the environment.
Hong Kong announced that it would "immediately activate" import restrictions on a number of food products manufactured in Japan.
Fish imports from the Fukushima region have already been prohibited in South Korea and China respectively.
However, the government of South Korea has given its approval to the scheme and has accused the demonstrators of engaging in scaremongering.
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