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reThe Japanese government is aimed at draining the water stored at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, but which is still contaminated with traces of tritium in the Pacific in the coming years. According to Japanese media reports, the government made the decision internally.
Patrick Welter
Business and political correspondent in Japan, based in Tokyo.
An official decision is expected shortly. Industry Minister Hiroshi Kajiyama told reporters that no decision had been made at the moment. The emphasis was on today. But new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is pushing for a quick decision. Cities near the power plant are also calling for a quick decision to clarify.
This is the end of a discussion that has been going on for years. As it stands, it is approximately 1.23 million tons of rain and cooling water that has been pumped from the reactor buildings and stored in more than 1,000 tanks at the power plant site.
South Korean protests and Japanese fishermen
The amount would be enough to fill around 500 Olympic 50-meter pools. In the Pacific, which makes up more than half of Earth’s water, it would only be a very small fraction. The water has been purified of radioactive substances except for traces of tritium. Tritium has a half-life of approximately 12.3 years. Almost ten years after the disaster, the radioactivity of tritium in the oldest stored waters has already been reduced by almost half.
Under the plan, the water would not be re-purified until at least 2022 and would be discharged into the Pacific in such a way that it meets international standards. The Japanese government, like the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), emphasizes that water that is slightly polluted with tritium is also drained from nuclear power plants in other countries. The process would take many years.
Protests against the Fukushima water drainage are still expected. Already strained relations with neighboring South Korea would be further strained. Previously, the Seoul government had been extremely sensitive to the plans. South Korea bans the import of shellfish from the region. The fear of radiation is great among South Koreans.
The government had even planned to bring its own food for the athletes for the postponed Olympics in order to protect them from food that could be contaminated by radiation from the vicinity of the nuclear power plant.
In Japan, resistance and protests come from environmental groups and the fishermen’s association. For years, coastal fishermen in the region have tried to polish the damaged power plant to polish the damaged reputation. But even within Japan, this has only been partially successful. So far, only a few fishing grounds near the power plant have been released for fishing. All fish are tested for radioactivity before being sold.
Much of the fishery is still conducted as a non-commercial trial. Fishermen worry that if the water is drained, consumers will give up more local seafood, regardless of whether there is a serious radiation hazard or not. The government appears to be planning to counter that damage to its reputation with awareness campaigns.
Time is running out
The time to decide what to do with the water is pressing. Power plant operator Tokio Elektro Power (Tepco) has announced that the on-site storage capacities of the power plant will be complete by mid-2022. Around 180 cubic meters of irradiated water is still pumped from the buildings of the reactor every day. These are cooling water and underground or rain water, which despite all efforts still penetrate the buildings. The water goes through a cleaning system called “Advanced Liquid Processing System (Alps)” and is then stored in tanks. The Alps system can filter out all radioactive elements except tritium.
Water dilution and drainage require structural preparations on site and approval from the nuclear supervisory authority. These preparations are believed to take about two years. In February, a committee from the Department of Industry recommended that the water be drained or evaporated in the Pacific.
