In Japan, dozens of protesters rallied outside the government building in Tokyo.
They oppose the authorities’ decision to dump purified water from the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant into the ocean.
On July 4th, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report stating that Japan’s water release plan was in line with international safety standards.
“The controlled, gradual release of treated water, as currently planned and assessed by TEPCO, will have a negligible radiation impact on the public and the environment,” said Rafael Grossi, head of the IAEA.
More than a million tons of water accumulated in tanks at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant, which was used to cool reactors damaged by the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.
The Japanese government assures that the water is free of radioactive substances and contains only the hydrogen isotope tritium.
Cleanup is done using the ALPS system to remove almost all radioactive material other than tritium. Before discharging the water, Japan will dilute it to bring the tritium concentration below the regulatory level.
The decision to dump a significant amount of this water into the ocean was made by the Japanese authorities in April 2021.
Some of Japan’s neighboring countries opposed Tokyo’s plan. Chinese authorities on July 7 banned the import of products from ten Japanese prefectures after an IAEA announcement that the water release plan was in line with relevant international safety standards.