Dumping treated nuclear wastewater in Pacific Ocean not recommended
May 2, 2022
Japan has proposed discharging treated nuclear wastewater into the Pacific Ocean, and an independent panel of global experts on nuclear issues was developed to support Pacific nations in their consultations. Robert Richmond, a research professor at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) and director of the Kewalo Marine Laboratory, was one of five experts selected to join the panel.
In 2011, a massive earthquake and tsunami in Fukushima, Japan damaged the Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. To prevent further damage and overheating, workers pumped water through the remains. Last year, Japan announced its intentions to begin discharging the accumulated radioactively contaminated cooling water into the Pacific Ocean starting in 2023, claiming that after treatment, it is safe to do so. Some Pacific nations are concerned about whether that can be done safely.
The Pacific Islands Forum, made up of 18 independent Pacific Island countries, created the expert panel to provide independent technical advice as part of the ongoing dialogue with Japan officials and representatives of the nuclear power plant in Fukushima where the wastewater has accumulated since the tsunami.
“At this point, we’re unanimous in saying we don’t see enough information to support dumping the radioactively contaminated water into the ocean,” said Richmond, who has conducted marine conservation research in the Pacific for more than four decades. “Our first recommendation to the group is to take that option off the table for now.”
Trans-boundary issue
Through the movement of ocean currents and transport by pelagic fishes that can take up and accumulate radionuclides (a radioactive and unstable form of an element), more widespread distribution can and will take place.
“This is truly a trans-boundary issue,” said Richmond. “Fish don’t respect political lines, and neither do radionuclides or pollutants in the ocean. I really commend the members of the Pacific Islands Forum for recognizing that this is an issue that they need additional information on.”
In announcing the formation of the panel, Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Henry Puna emphasized, “Our ultimate goal is to safeguard the Blue Pacific—our ocean, our environment and our peoples—from any further nuclear contamination. This is the legacy we must leave for our children.”
Richmond has studied the uptake of radioactive Ru-106 in crayfish as an indicator of leakage from nuclear power plants while working at the Department of Radiation Biology and Biophysics at the University of Rochester Medical School and spent two years performing research on Enewetak Atoll, home to the U.S. nuclear testing program from 1948–58. He presented at the 7th Our Oceans Conference in Palau. This event, co-hosted by the Republic of Palau and the U.S., offered a key moment for countries, civil society and industry to commit to concrete and significant actions to protect the ocean. Richmond emphasized the need for adequate and accurate information for decision makers to make sound decisions to protect and conserve marine habitats and life, and all those who depend on ocean resources.
“This is not the first nuclear incident, and it won’t be the last,” said Richmond. “Perhaps this can be an opportunity to try different approaches that have never been tried before. Maybe this could be a learning opportunity to really set the bar for the future of not continuing to use our oceans as the dumping ground.”
Additional panel members are Ken Buesseler, senior scientist and oceanographer of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; Arjun Makhijani, president of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research; Antony Hooker, associate professor and director, Centre for Radiation Research, Education and Innovation, the University of Adelaide; Ferenc (Jacob Rolf) Dalnoki-Veress, scientist-in-residence and adjunct professor at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.
The panel recently shared a detailed set of initial recommendations to the Secretariat that will be available soon.
This research is an example of UH Mānoa’s goal of Excellence in Research: Advancing the Research and Creative Work Enterprise (PDF), one of four goals identified in the 2015–25 Strategic Plan (PDF), updated in December 2020.
IAEA sees ‘limited impact’ of water release at Fukushima nuclear plant
Another smooth propaganda article from the spin doctors…..
Apr 30, 2022
An International Atomic Energy Agency team expects only a limited impact on humans following the planned release into the sea of treated radioactive water from Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s crippled nuclear power plant.
Chemical substances in the treated water are “far below the Japanese regulatory limits,” said the first report by the IAEA task force reviewing Japan’s plans to discharge the water from the meltdown-stricken Fukushima No. 1 plant into the Pacific Ocean.
But the team stopped short of reaching a conclusion on the safety of the release. The team plans to continue its assessment and announce a final judgment before Tepco starts releasing the water.
The task force, comprising a group of independent and highly recognized experts with diverse technical backgrounds from various countries, said that Japan’s preparations for the planned discharge are proceeding largely in line with international safety standards. IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said that Japan has made “significant progress in its preparations” and the task force is satisfied that Tepco and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry have identified the appropriate next steps for the water discharge.
The task force visited Japan in February, inspecting the power plant and interviewing Tepco and government officials. In the report, the task force said that its review of the water release plans focuses on eight points including radiological environmental impact assessment, water quality monitoring and involvement of interested parties.
Water that has become contaminated after being pumped in to cool melted reactor fuel at the plant has been accumulating at the complex, also mixing with rainwater and groundwater at the site.
Tepco expects that its storage tanks for treated water will reach full capacity by around summer or autumn 2023.
The water is treated through an advanced liquid processing system that removes radionuclides except for tritium. The water will be released 1 kilometer off the coast of the power plant through an underwater tunnel.
Before the discharge, it will be diluted with seawater below 1/40 of the current regulations, according to the government.
In a statement issued Friday, industry minister Koichi Hagiuda said the government will continue its efforts to “ensure the safety of handling … treated water and to foster understanding both in Japan and abroad.”
China and South Korea have expressed concerns with Japan’s plan to release the treated water.
Local fishermen have been widely opposed to the release out of fear of reputational damage to the region’s seafood, although a recent survey showed that the release’s impact on consumer habits would be minimal.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/04/30/national/iaea-fukushima-water-release-safety/
Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, Study Continues – IAEA
April 29, 2022
Berlin, April 29, 2022 – The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced on April 29 that it will continue its investigation into the discharge into the ocean of treated water containing tritium from TEPCO’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. On April 29, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) compiled the first report by a team of investigators to verify the safety of the discharge of treated water containing tritium from TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The report noted that, based on TEPCO’s analysis of the impact of radiation on the human body if the treated water were to be released, “it has been confirmed that the level of radiation is significantly smaller than that set by the Japanese regulatory authorities. However, he also explained that a final decision on safety will be announced before the release of the water. He indicated that he would not draw any conclusions for the time being, but would continue his investigation.
The survey team visited Japan in February, inspected the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, and held hearings with related ministries and agencies and TEPCO. The report will be released two months after each survey that will be conducted before the release of the water in the future. TEPCO has set the timing of when the tanks storing the treated water will be full at around the summer or fall of 2023.
https://www.jiji.com/jc/article?k=2022042900719&g=soc&fbclid=IwAR0H-Z3MNHHCUoyzBkx3tRDUufnVKN3yB3eDhHoSde4y9ooHVFfhsbTP7Ys
IAEA Releases First Report on Safety of Planned Water Discharge from Fukushima Daiichi Site
April 298, 2022
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Task Force, which is reviewing Japan’s policy to discharge treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station against relevant international safety standards, today released its first report.
The report summarizes the overall progress in the technical preparations for the water discharge. It compiles the initial findings from the Task Force’s first review mission to Japan’s Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station operator, and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in February 2022.
Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi welcomed the initial findings. “Japan has made significant progress in its preparations and the Task Force is satisfied that TEPCO and METI have identified the appropriate next steps for the water discharge scheduled for 2023,” he said. “The work will continue so the Task Force can provide its conclusions before the discharge”.
The report includes a summary of the Task Force’s review and assessment activities across a range of topics such as the characteristics of the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) treated water, safety related aspects of the system built to discharge the water, the radiological environmental impact assessment, regulatory oversight, source and environmental monitoring programmes, occupational radiation protection, and the involvement of interested parties.
Preparing for the next steps in their review, the Task Force identified technical topics for further discussions and clarifications as Japan continues with its preparations. They also noted that TEPCO and METI put significant efforts into consulting with, and communicating to, interested parties and the public about the process to discharge the water. They look forward to seeing this continue as Japan approaches the 2023 water discharge.
“The Task Force highlighted the effective cooperation with the Japanese counterparts, which made it possible to clearly and promptly convey the results of the review mission to the international community” said Gustavo Caruso, Director, Department of Nuclear Safety and Security and Chair of the Task Force.”
The Task Force report is the first in a series of reports as the Task Force carries out more missions to Japan in the coming months and years to assess the water discharge against IAEA safety standards, which constitute the worldwide reference for protecting the public and the environment from harmful effects of ionizing radiation.
The report is available here.
TEPCO pushes back timeline for storage tanks at Fukushima plant
Tactics: one step backward to later jump two steps forward…
April 28, 2022
Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the tanks that store treated but still contaminated water at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant will reach full capacity later than expected.
It projected on April 27 they will be full in either the summer or fall of 2023, not its previous estimate of spring 2023.
The tanks store water treated through a filtration system, called ALPS (advanced liquid processing system), which is a multi-nuclide removal system that removes various radioactive materials from contaminated water.
TEPCO said on April 27 that the amount of contaminated water at the plant only increased by an average of 130 tons a day.
The amount of contaminated water was lower than what the company had expected because of its measures to prevent underground water or rainwater from coming into the buildings in which nuclear power reactors and other facilities are located, it said.
The estimate for when the storage tanks will be completely full has been modified several times before.
The government and TEPCO initially said the tanks could be full by sometime around summer 2022. That estimate was later amended to “by around the fall of 2022.”
When the company announced plans to add 23 storage tanks with a total capacity of about 30,000 tons at the plant in May 2021, it said the tanks would be full by around spring 2023.
TEPCO plans to dilute the tritium concentration in the ALPS treated water using seawater as the radioactive hydrogen atom cannot be removed through the filtration system. It then aims to discharge it into the sea in spring 2023.
Japan’s Toxic Dumping Faces Growing Protests
April 29, 2022 by Robert Hunziker
The Japanese government’s decision one year ago to dump radioactive water from Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant storage tanks into the Pacific Ocean, starting in the spring of 2023, is facing increasing pressure to back off, especially in light of the facts that not only is it illegal but also morally reprehensible as well as a despicable disregard for the lifeblood of the ocean.
Meanwhile, in a startling maneuver indicative of desperation to convince citizens of its true worthiness, the Japanese government is using mind control tactics reminiscent of Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World (Chatto & Windus, 1932), which depicts harmful effects that the expansion and development of a capitalist ideology can impose on a society.
To wit: Japanese citizens are outraged over a new government policy of brainwashing children by distributing flyers to primary school students claiming TEPCO’s “diluted, nuclear-contaminated water is safe.”
“The government sent a total of 2.3 million booklets directly to elementary, junior and senior high schools across the nation in December in an effort to prevent reputational damage caused by the planned water discharge. The school staffers say the leaflets are unilaterally imposing the central government’s views on children.” (Source: Booklets Touting Fukushima Plant Water Discharge Angers Schools, The Asahi Shimbun, March 7, 2022)
“A Fukushima resident surnamed Kataoka told the Global Times on Wednesday that the Japanese government’s move was a kind of mind control, and she was strongly opposed to it.” (Source: Japanese Groups Voice Growing Opposition, Organize Rallies Over Govt’s Nuclear-Contaminated Water Dumping Plan Decided One Year Before, Global Times, April 13, 2022)
Japanese citizens are fighting back as four separate civic organizations from Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures submitted a petition signed by 180,000 people to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and to Tokyo Electric Power Company on March 30th 2022 expressing opposition to the government’s plan.
Additionally, Japanese environmental protection groups have organized national rallies in Tokyo and Fukushima, stating they will continue to rally in the streets until the government revokes its decision: “Once the nuclear-contaminated water is discharged into the sea, the result is irreversible. It’s not only Fukushima. The ocean connects the whole world. We hope we don’t discharge toxic substances into the sea,” said protester Ayumu Aoyanagi. “I am angry. They completely ignored public opinion. I hope people understand that the danger may not appear soon but will definitely affect our health in the future,” said another protester named Makiyo Takahashi.” (Source: Fukushima Residents Oppose Government Dumping Radioactive Water Into Ocean, CGTN News, April 14, 2022)
Zhao Lijian of the Chinese Foreign Ministry claims the Japanese government has turned a deaf ear to any and all opposition, failing to provide any convincing evidence of the legitimacy of the discharge program, no reliable data on the contaminated water and effectiveness of purification devices, and no convincing evidence about environmental impact. (Source: Japan Severely Breaches Obligations Under International Law by Persisting in Discharge of Nuclear-contaminated Water Into Ocean, People’s Daily Online, April 15, 2022)
Moreover, “this water adds to the already nuclear polluted ocean. This threatens the lives and livelihoods of islanders heavily reliant on marine resources. These include inshore fisheries as well as pelagic fishes such as tuna. The former provides daily sustenance and food security, and the latter much needed foreign exchange via fishing licenses for distant water fishing nation fleets,” Vijay Naidu, adjunct professor at the School of Law and Social Sciences at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji, told Al Jazeera. (Source: ‘Not a Dumping Ground’: Pacific Condemns Fukushima Water Plan, Al Jazeera, Feb. 14, 2022)
The principal radioactive isotope to be released “tritium is a normal contaminant from the discharges, the cooling water from normal reactor operations, but this is the equivalent of several centuries worth of normal production of tritium that’s in this water, so it is a very large amount,” according to Tilman Ruff, a Nobel laureate and associate professor at the Institute for Global Health at the University of Melbourne in Australia, Ibid.
Japan claims the radioactive water dump will be safe, however: “Obviously, the higher the level of exposure [to radiation], the greater the risk, but there is no level below which there is no effect,” Ruff said. “That is now really fairly conclusively proven, because in the last decade or so there have been impressive very large studies of large numbers of people exposed to low doses of radiation. At levels even a fraction of those that we receive from normal background [radiation] exposure from the rocks, from cosmic radiation. At even those very low levels, harmful effects have been demonstrated,” Ibid.
Chang Yen-chiang, director of the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea Research Institute of Dalian Maritime University is urging the international community to stop the discharge by first requesting the International Court of Justice to issue an advisory opinion on the illegality of Japan’s dumping plan followed by motions to stop the process by China, South Korea, Russia, North Korea, and Pacific Island nations at the UN General Assembly.
Japan, as a signatory to: (1) the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (2) the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident (3) the Convention on Nuclear Safety (4) the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management, and (5) the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management has clearly and knowingly breached its obligations under international law.
According to the plan released by TEPCO for the disposal of nuclear-contaminated water generated by Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, the country will soon begin official preparations for the release of the contaminated water and plans to begin long-term discharge of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean in the spring of 2023.
However, according to an article in People’s Daily Online d/d April 15, 2022: “Data from TEPCO showed that the contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear accident still contains many kinds of radionuclides with a long half-life even after secondary treatment.”
Shaun Burnie, senior nuclear specialist at Greenpeace East Asia claims the toxic water dump risks additional nuclear debris into the Pacific Ocean whereas the discharge is not the only option as “ the Japanese government once admitted that there is enough space near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and areas around Fukushima prefecture to build more storage facilities for the water.” (Global Times)
The Citizens Committee on Nuclear Energy recommends proper storage on land in Japan similar to storage the country uses for its national oil and petroleum reserves. “The argument that they make… is that, if this water was stored not for an indeterminate period, but even for a period of about 50-60 years, then, by then, the tritium will have decayed to a tiny fraction of what it is today and hardly be an issue.” (Al Jazeera)
Even though the US boldly approves of the dumping plan, the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory with a population of over 50,000 people, has declared Japan’s plan as “unacceptable.” In December 2021, the US territory adopted a joint resolution opposing any nation disposing of nuclear waste in the Pacific Ocean as well as suggesting the only acceptable option is long-term storage and processing using the best technology available.
In all similar circumstances, historical events have a way of swinging back and forth in time and landing smack dab in the middle of new controversies, for example, when it comes to radioactivity in the Pacific, memories are long. More than 300 atmospheric and underwater nuclear tests by the US, UK, and France from the 1940s, especially in the Republic of the Marshall Islands and French Polynesia, left uninhabitable land in many locations as well as long-term health disorders throughout the region. Japan’s dumping plans bring back haunting memories.
“Satyendra Prasad, the Chair of Pacific Islands Forum Ambassadors at the United Nations, reminded the world in September last year of the Pacific’s “ongoing struggle with the legacy of nuclear testing from the trans boundary contamination of homes and habitats to higher numbers of birth defects and cancers.” (Al Jazeera)
Meantime, and especially over the past couple of decades, Japan increasingly and fearlessly adheres to, and puts into actual practice, the overriding theme as expressed in Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, which is “the dangers of state control” whilst the father of liberalism John Locke (1632-1704) not surprisingly spins in his grave.
For example, in December 2013 Japan passed the Protection of Specially Designated Secrets Act providing for whistleblowing civil servants to face up to 10 years in prison and the journalists who work with them could face up to five years for leaking state secrets.
Here’s a major twist to that law: The guidelines empower the heads of 19 ministries and agencies to subjectively “designate which documents and subjects comprise state secrets.” In short, subjective judgment by any given state official determines who goes to jail.
“The result is that while civil servants will be aware of a document’s classification, journalists cannot be sure just what comprises a state secret. Whistleblowing civil servants and journalists could face arrest even if they are convinced they are acting in the public’s interest.” (Source: Japan’s State Secrets Law, A Minefield for Journalist, Committee to Protect Journalists-NY, Nov. 4, 2014)
Since Japan appears to be adhering to the precepts of Brave New World, it’s interesting to note that thirty years following publication of Brave New World, Huxley wrote Brave New World Revisited: “If the first half of the twentieth century was the era of the technical engineers, the second half may well be the era of the social engineers— and the twenty-first century, I suppose, will be the era of World Controllers, the scientific caste system and Brave New World.” (Aldous Huxley, Brave New World Revisited, Harper & Brothers, 1958)
Huxley warned that a Brave New World type of order could be the “final” or “ultimate” revolution when people have their liberties taken from them, but “they will enjoy their servitude and so never question it, let alone rebel.”
Really?
TEPCO Reports Slowdown in Fukushima N-Plant Water Increase
Tokyo, April 27 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. on Wednesday reported a slowdown in the pace of increase in radioactive water at its meltdown-hit Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
As a result, TEPCO expects to reach the full storage capacity for water treated through water cleanup equipment by around summer or autumn 2023, later than the previously expected period of spring the same year.
In fiscal 2021 through last month, the daily increase of radioactive water at the northeastern Japan power plant averaged 130 tons, down from 140 tons in fiscal 2020.
At the plant, rainfall in fiscal 2021 was larger than usual years. But TEPCO said it managed to reduce the amount of contaminated water accumulating at the plant partly by repairing the damaged roof of a reactor building.
At the plant, radioactive water keeps increasing, because TEPCO uses water to cool damaged reactors while rainwater and groundwater flow into damaged buildings. The company treats the radioactive water to remove most of the radioactive substances.
Fukushima: The Curse of Groundwater
April 23, 2022
The decommissioning of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant continues to produce contaminated water. Filtered to remove much of its radioactive content, it is stored on the site as treated water, now filling 1,000 massive tanks. In April 2021, the Japanese government announced plans to dilute the water to contamination levels far below legal limits before discharging it into the sea. However, people in the local fishing industry continue to harbor deep distrust. Why has this problem become so entrenched? The program explores a plan that was proposed soon after the accident 11 years ago, to build an impermeable wall around the plant and prevent the buildup of contaminated water, and why this plan was abandoned.
Release of Fukushima water to have ‘limited’ impact on consumer habits, poll shows
What a smooth piece of propaganda by Japan’s spin doctors on behalf of the will to dump all that ‘treated’ radioactive water into OUR Pacific ocean!!!
Apr 27, 2022
The impact on consumers of the planned release into the ocean of treated water from the disaster-crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant is seen as limited both in Japan and abroad, a government survey has shown.
Among respondents from Japan in the online survey, the proportion of those who said they would refrain from buying food items produced in Fukushima Prefecture, where the nuclear plant is located, after the start of the water release came to 14.7%, against 13.3% who said they are already avoiding such items.
The two comparable figures among respondents from the United States stood at 38.3% against 32%, and at 41% against 41.3% among those from Taiwan.
Of respondents from South Korea, 77.7% said they are currently avoiding Fukushima food products while 76% said they would do so after the water release.
The survey polled 300 people from each of Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, the U.K., the United States and France and 150 from each of Australia and New Zealand in January and February.
The attitude survey by the Reconstruction Agency was the first to be conducted over the planned discharge of treated water, which contains radioactive tritium from the plant, run by Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc., that was the site of the 2011 triple reactor meltdown.
The survey also suggested that only 29% in Japan and only 16% in the United States know that tritium is released to rivers and the sea in many countries based on existing laws and regulations.
“We need to spread knowledge (about tritium) in and outside our country,” Reconstruction Minister Kosaburo Nishime told a meeting Tuesday, where the survey results were reported.
The government will strengthen measures to prevent reputational damage to food items due to the planned water release, he stressed.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/04/27/national/fukushima-water-consumer-impact-limited/
Scientists: Japan’s Plan To Dump Nuclear Waste Into The Pacific Ocean May Not Be Safe
April 25, 2022
A panel of scientists has identified critical gaps in the data supporting the safe discharge of wastewater into the Pacific.
Independent scientists are questioning Japan’s plans to dump just over 1 million tons of nuclear wastewater into the Pacific Ocean, following a review of the available evidence.
The panel of multi-disciplinary scientists, hired by the intergovernmental Pacific Islands Forum, has not found conclusive evidence that the discharge would be entirely safe, and one marine biologist fears contamination could affect the food system.
Last year Japan announced that wastewater from the Fukushima-Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, destroyed in March 2011 following the Tohoku Earthquake and tsunami, would be dropped into the Pacific in 2023.
The announcement triggered immediate concern from nations and territories in the Asia-Pacific region and led the Pacific Islands Forum to hire a panel of five independent experts to review the plan.
Previously, it was broadly believed that dropping the wastewater into the ocean would be safe, given it had been treated with “advanced liquid processing system” technology, which removes radioactive materials from contaminated water.
But panel scientist Robert Richmond, director of the University of Hawaii Kewalo Marine Laboratory, says the panel unanimously believes that critical gaps in information remain.
Previous discussions over the safety of Japan’s plans emphasized the chemistry of the discharge, but not how it could interact with marine life, he said.
“If the ocean were a sterile glass vessel, that would be one thing,” Richmond said. “But it’s not, you know, there’s lots of biology involved.”
Richmond has been particularly concerned about the potential for tritium – a key compound of concern – being absorbed into the food system because the radioactive isotope can bind to phytoplankton.
Through phytoplankton, Richmond says, the radioactive element could then find its way into the greater food system as the microscopic plants are consumed by mollusks and small fish, which are later consumed by other fish and eventually humans.
“Things like mercury in fish are now of an international concern. Radionuclides will be the same,” Richmond said.
The situation is dynamic too, as climate change affects the temperature of waters and weather patterns change.
“As temperatures go up, many chemicals become more interactive, they become a little bit different in terms of break down,” he said. “So these are all the things we need to consider.”
Confusing The Masses
The Pacific Islands Forum convened its panel of experts – specializing in policy and different scientific disciplines – because of the highly technical nature of Japan’s plan.
The PIF did not respond to a request for an interview for this story.
But Forum Secretary General Henry Puna has said that while Japan was open and frank in several information sessions held with the Forum, it wanted to bring on its own group of experts to look at the data and advise them.
“I just want to note that, for us, the issue is very urgent but also requires very careful thinking,” Puna said in September.
Since Japan announced it would release the treated water into the Pacific, it has been working with the International Atomic Energy Association to ensure its plans are safe. In February the IAEA made its first assessment and recently completed a second assessment at the end of March.
The IAEA is expected to deliver reports from its site visits in the next two months, according to its website, and would release a fully comprehensive report before any water is released.
Richmond said the panel wants to work with Japan and the IAEA to ensure the best outcome.
Nonetheless, the information seen by the panel showed less than 1% of the tanks of wastewater had been treated and less than 20% had been adequately sampled, Richmond says.
“Based on those numbers alone, we’re uncomfortable in making predictions of where things are going to end up,” Richmond said.
The Pacific Perspective
Community groups and environmental organizations were quick to respond to the news last year, raising concerns about the longterm effects to their region, with its legacy of nuclear testing and the fallout. And coastal communities and fishermen in Japan have also raised concerns.
The U.S. expressed its support for the plan in April last year, which has since been criticized by U.S. territories and affiliated states.
Rep. Sheila Babauta of the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands introduced a resolution to CNMI’s House of Representatives opposing any nuclear testing, storage or waste disposal in the Pacific.
It was passed in December, months after the U.S. stated its position and after other Pacific groups and governments condemned the move.
“I’m really disappointed in the lack of engagement, the lack of information and the lack of free, prior and informed consent,” Babauta, who chairs the Natural Resources Committee, said.
The mistrust that is harbored by many in the Pacific stems back to U.S nuclear testing in the Republic of Marshall Islands following World War II, British testing in Kiribati and the French in French Polynesia, which had flow-on effects to the environment and long term health of Pacific people. And in 1979, Japan provoked backlash when it revealed plans to dump 10,000 drums of nuclear waste in the Marianas Trench.
Babauta says she introduced the resolution as a show of solidarity for the rest of the Pacific.
“The ocean is our oldest ancestor. The ocean is our legacy,” Babauta said. “It’s what we’re going to leave for our children.”
Scientists: Japan’s Plan To Dump Nuclear Waste Into The Pacific Ocean May Not Be Safe
Shield machine to dig undersea tunnel to discharge ‘treated water’ has not yet been approved nor has the local government… Preparations are steadily underway at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.
April 25, 2022
On April 25, TEPCO installed a “shield machine” at the launch site to dig an undersea tunnel to the discharge port 1 km offshore over plans to discharge contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (Okuma and Futaba towns, Fukushima Prefecture) into the sea after purification treatment. The plan for the facilities to discharge the contaminated water has not been approved by the Nuclear Regulation Authority, and the local government has not yet given its approval for the start of construction. However, TEPCO explained at a press conference on the same day, “We are preparing for the construction work, and we will move ahead to the extent that there are no problems.
Contaminated water generated when cooling water injected into the reactors of Units 1-3 came into contact with nuclear fuel debris melted down in the accident and mixed with groundwater and rainwater that entered the buildings. Tritium, a radioactive substance that cannot be removed, remains in concentrations exceeding the national discharge standard. The government and TEPCO have been working on a plan to use large amounts of seawater to dilute the tritium concentration to less than 1/40th of the discharge standard and discharge the water into the sea.
TEPCO began preparatory work on the 24th, bringing a shield machine (about 3 meters in diameter and 7 meters in length) to the port of the power plant, and on the 25th, placed it at the bottom of a shaft (16 meters deep) where they will begin digging an undersea tunnel built in the port area. The tunnel is now ready for construction to begin immediately. The tunnel will connect the shaft, which will temporarily store water to be discharged, with the offshore water discharge port.
Preparations for the construction of the water discharge outlet will begin on the 25th, and excavation of the seafloor will begin on the 29th.
Although the regulatory commission has completed its review of the facility plan, TEPCO has yet to submit a revised plan to the regulatory commission based on the content of the review. The approval is expected to come after June, when the public will be invited to comment on the plan. The approval of Fukushima Prefecture and the towns of Okuma and Futaba must also be obtained before tunnel excavation can begin. (Kenta Onozawa)
https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/173859?fbclid=IwAR3gMcpXQMAGSFHMfpukggr2I_RPWcgqZifR2PCYgIdmtSOGRu72k9UYjcQ
Examination of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant for discharge of treated water to be finished; Regulatory Commission to solicit public opinion in May.
April 15, 2022
The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) held a meeting on April 15 to review TEPCO’s application for an implementation plan to discharge contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean after purification and treatment, and accepted TEPCO’s explanation. The discussion at the review meeting is over, and the NRA will prepare a draft review document summarizing the details of the review by the end of May, and begin the procedures for approval.
One Year After the Decision to Discharge Treated Water into the Sea, the Gulf Between the Government and Fishermen Remains Unbridgeable, and the Sense of Distrust in TEPCO Has Not Changed
In December of last year, TEPCO applied to the Regulatory Commission for a review of its implementation plan, which outlines the design of the facilities, the method of discharge, and the impact on the environment and people after the discharge. So far, 15 review meetings have been held, and discussions have ended without any major changes to the plan.
After compiling a draft of the review report, the Regulatory Commission will solicit opinions (public comments) from the public for 30 days before deciding whether to approve the plan. Normally, the review of an implementation plan is closed to the public and no public comments are solicited, but the committee took an unusual step.
The approval of Fukushima Prefecture, Okuma Town, and Futaba Town, the three municipalities where the plant is located, is required before TEPCO can begin construction of a new undersea tunnel and other facilities to be built in conjunction with the offshore discharge. TEPCO had indicated that it planned to start construction in June, but there is now a possibility of a delay.
According to TEPCO’s plan, the treated water, which mainly contains radioactive tritium, will be diluted with a large amount of seawater to reduce the tritium concentration to less than 1/40th of the national discharge standard, and then discharged through an undersea tunnel to an area about 1 km offshore. The project is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2023. (Kenta Onozawa)
https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/171995?fbclid=IwAR3Dg8jz8qJM3v9ZmAmupioeZ6Bi3c9emoP4mmp_FApNnuYKfl8h3fDGrgQ
Japan’s nuclear regulator to okay release of treated water from Fukushima plant
April 15, 2022
Japan’s nuclear regulator has largely approved a plan to release treated water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the ocean.
The plant suffered triple meltdowns in the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster. Water is used to cool molten nuclear fuel. It mixes with rain and groundwater that flows into damaged reactor buildings.
The water is treated to remove most of the radioactive materials, but still contains radioactive tritium.
The Japanese government plans to dilute treated water that continues to accumulate at the plant to levels below national regulations and start releasing it from around spring 2023.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority has been inspecting the plan drawn up by plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company.
In 13 meetings since December, the NRA discussed the safety of the new facility to be built for the water release and the maximum concentration of radioactive tritium when it is released. It also considered how to respond in natural disasters and other emergencies, and the effect of radiation exposure on the surrounding environment and people.
At Friday’s meeting, an official of the NRA secretariat said there are no issues left that have not been discussed enough.
The NRA plans to put together a draft inspection document as early as next month that effectively indicates the plan’s approval.
TEPCO plans to start construction on a facility for diluting treated water and an undersea tunnel once the NRA approves the plan and the utility obtains consent from Fukushima Prefecture and local communities. TEPCO aims to complete the construction work by mid-April next year.
TEPCO has yet to convince and gain understanding from local fishers who are concerned about reputational damage from the release of treated water into the sea.
Japan severely breaches obligations under international law by persisting in discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into ocean
April 15, 2022
Japan is being extremely selfish and irresponsible by willfully clinging to its decision to release nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean in disregard of the strong opposition of the international community.
Its despicable act constitutes gross infringement of the legitimate rights and interests of its neighboring countries, severe breach of international justice and its obligations under international law, and major threat to the marine environment and the right to health of people around the world.
On April 13, 2021, the Japanese government unilaterally decided to dump a massive amount of nuclear-contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant operated by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) into the ocean despite doubts and opposition from home and abroad.
One year has passed since Japan announced the erroneous decision and the country still hasn’t realized how terrible a mistake it is. According to a plan recently released by TEPCO for the disposal of nuclear-contaminated water generated by Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, the country will soon begin official preparations for the release of the contaminated water and plans to begin long-term discharge of radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean in the spring of 2023.
While Japan opted for the discharge of the contaminated water into the ocean, an option with the least economic cost to itself, it posed the biggest environmental health and safety risk to the world. What an act of selfish calculation!
Data from TEPCO showed that the contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear accident still contains many kinds of radionuclides with a long half-life even after secondary treatment.
Japan plans to release more than one million tons of nuclear-contaminated water over a period of 30 years. The amount it intends to discharge, the duration of the release, the sea area covered, and potential risks that can be generated by the activity are all unprecedented.
The decision has aroused deep concerns and strong opposition from all sectors of society even at home. About 180,000 people in Japan recently signed a petition against the decision to dump nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean. Several organizations in Japan, including the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations, have reiterated their opposition to the decision.
According to an article published on Fukushima Minpo, a newspaper based in Fukushima prefecture of Japan, the Japanese government should respect the opinions of its citizens, listen to the voices of local residents, and terminate the plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean.
As a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident, the Convention on Nuclear Safety, and the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management, Japan has knowingly breached its obligations under international law.
It didn’t conduct full consultation with its neighboring countries and other stakeholders before announcing its decision to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean. After its announcement of the decision, many countries, including China, South Korea, Russia, and the Philippines, as well as relevant international institutions, have expressed concerns over the issue and raised doubts and concerns with the Japanese side over the legitimacy of the discharge of the nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean, the rationality of the discharge plan, the credibility of data about the nuclear contaminated water and the reliability of the equipment to purify the nuclear-contaminated water.
However, to this day, Japan has yet to give a full and credible explanation for its decision and serious responses to relevant doubts and concerns.
People in Japan’s neighboring countries and countries on the Pacific Rim have rights to health and life as well as the environment. Japan, on the other hand, wants to make short-term money at the expense of these rights.
The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council released a report urging that the Japanese government should face up to its responsibility for the disposal of nuclear-contaminated water.
In a joint statement, U.N. human rights experts said that Japan’s decision to release contaminated water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear plant into the ocean is “particularly disappointing” and “very concerning”.
“The release of one million tons of contaminated water into the marine environment imposes considerable risks to the full enjoyment of human rights of concerned populations in and beyond the borders of Japan,” they said in the joint statement.
The international community has frequently expressed voices of justice, such as “The Pacific is not a dumping ground for radioactive waste water” and “keep our Pacific nuclear-free”. However, Japan has turned a deaf ear to all of them.
In this February, a technical working group of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visited Japan for the first time and raised many questions to the Japanese side about its controversial plan to release radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean. Evaluation of the disposal of the nuclear-contaminated water at the Fukushima nuclear power plant is still in progress.
Surprisingly, Japan has not only ignored the concerns of various parties over the discharge of its nuclear-contaminated wastewater, but preset results for the evaluation conducted by the IAEA technical working group. The country repeatedly concealed information and covered up the truth.
When doubts about its decision to dump radioactive water into the ocean poured in, the country made no attempt to reflect on the legitimacy of the decision and correct its mistake, but blamed those who doubted its decision for damaging its reputation.
The Japanese side should know that no matter what it does to whitewash the plan to release the nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean, it would only increase the international community’s concerns.
The disposal of the nuclear-contaminated water is never Japan’s private matter. Instead, it bears on the marine environment and public health of the whole world.
Japan should pay careful attention to and respond to the concerns of its neighboring countries and other members of the international community, stop pushing forward with preparations for the discharge of the nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean, and withdraw its erroneous decision, so as to avoid further damage to its credibility.
(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy and international affairs.)
Japan’s planned release of radioactive wastewater draws concern.
April 14, 2022
It’s been exactly one year since the Japanese government announced its decision to continuously release Fukushima’s radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean. Concerns and protests were heard in #Japan and beyond. #nuclear#environment
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