By: Sean Mueck
After numerous months of expectancy and concern, Japan started releasing ALPS (Advanced Liquid Processing System) treated wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant on August 24th. The first of four planned releases spaced out until March 2024. This comes after the approval from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the UN’s Atomic watchdog group.
The entire plan is projected to take 30 years. Approximately 1.34 million tonnes of radioactive waste water have sat dormant since the 2011 tsunami and partial meltdown of reactors 1, 2, and 3.
Plant managers Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) say the disposal of water is mandatory as tanks on site are filling up and are projected to be full by 2024. The building of new tanks will not be possible as space will be needed to further decommission the plant. Water is still pumped into the radioactive core every day as a means to prevent overheating. The water is then stored in over 1,000 tanks or about 500 Olympic-sized swimming pools which fill the premises of the plant.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged that the treated water would be released safely and would be monitored closely. Concern and question from activist groups is high despite approval from the UN, stating that the release meets international standards and would have negligible impact on the environment and health.
China, which is Japan’s main importer of seafood, has implemented a complete ban on all Japanese seafood. The Chinese foreign ministry stated that the release would “pass on the risks to the whole world and extend the pain to future generations of humankind.”
The move has escalated an already tense relationship between the two countries. Beijing has pushed state-funded disinformation over the release. False claims and fake or doctored videos and images have floated around popular Chinese social media apps such as Douyin and Weibo.
Protests have ensued in China with some supporting a “full ban on Japanese products”. The Japanese government has asked its citizens living in China to stay low after Beijing’s public disapproval. Japan went on to ask their citizens “not to speak Japanese loudly” in public as it may attract unwanted attention as well as stating to “pay close attention to the surroundings of the embassy” if planning to visit mainland China.
Korean activists have held multiple protests in Seoul recently. This comes after Conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol’s government expressed support for Japan after their own research found no issues with Japan’s plan. South Gyeongsang has pledged to livestream their testing of seafood. Numerous other local governments in South Korea have stated they will increase radiation testing on seafood to ease public worry.
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