UN watchdog approves plan for Fukushima water release

A UN watchdog has approved plans for Japan to release up to a million tonnes of wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea, after finding the plan complies with international standards.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says the release will have a ‘negligible’ impact on the environment. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi released the findings of the two-year safety review on Tuesday (4 July 2023), describing it as impartial and scientific.

The wastewater is a mixture of groundwater, seawater and water used to keep the reactors cool. Each day, the plant produces around 100 cubic metres, which is filtered and stored in tanks. However, there are now over 1.3 million cubic metres of water on the site, and storage capacity is running out.

The only practical solutions ‘are discharge into the sea and vapour release, both of which have preceding practices,’ concluded a governmental advisory committee in 2020.

The majority of radioactive elements have already been filtered from the water, with the exception of radioactive forms of hydrogen and carbon — called tritium and carbon 14, respectively. These isotopes are difficult to separate from water.

The 2011 Fukushima disaster, caused by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami in north-eastern Japan, was the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

Nuclear power plants around the world regularly release wastewater with tritium levels above that of the treated water from Fukushima.

Japan’s plan has been opposed by neighbouring countries, including China and South Korea, as well as environmental groups and local fishermen, who say the release will damage their reputation. The Pacific Islands Forum has also criticised Japan for a ‘lack of transparency’.

It is reported that South Koreans have stocked up on sea salt ahead of the water’s release, amid food safety fears.

Tokyo has not announced a schedule for the release, and the plan still needs approval from a regulator.

The plant’s operator Tepco says that the levels of ‘most’ radioactive particles meet national standards, following treatment.