Fukushima unloaded hardened Japan … “We also have citizens, we do not do bad things”

Large water tanks containing contaminated water are lined up on the site of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. [연합뉴스]

The Japanese embassy in Korea held a briefing on the treatment and discharge of contaminated water at the Fukushima nuclear power plant on the 20th and argued that if the water from the nuclear power plant was purified and diluted according to standards international, there would be no problem unloading it at sea.

On this day, the briefing was held for about an hour for the Korean media. It appears that the Japanese government is trying to appease negative public opinion in neighboring countries, including Korea, while the Japanese government has virtually solidified its position to release contaminated water from nuclear power plants.

A senior embassy official said, “We are fully aware of the concerns of our neighboring country, Korea,” and said: “Radioactive materials will be reorganized to meet regulatory standards, and tritium (tritium) will be diluted to comply with regulatory standards and will be exported. ” said.

“As a result of the (self) assessment using the United Nations Scientific Committee (UNSCEAR) method, even if the treated water currently stored in the storage tank is discharged every year, it is less than one thousandth of the effect of the natural radiation in Japan (2.1 mSv / year). It was, ”he insisted.

According to the Japanese government, there is still contaminated water at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant due to groundwater and rainwater. After installing a shield so that it does not flow into the sea or groundwater, the contaminated water is first extracted and purified in a method called Alps (ALPS) and collected in 979 storage tanks.

The Alpine treatment process is said to have met the criteria for draining it into a storage tank. According to Japanese claims, radioactive materials such as cesium-137, strontium-90, and carbon-14 are “nearly removed” and tritium remains undeleted. For natural release, such as ocean discharge or water vapor discharge, additional radioactive materials need to be purified and approximately 70% of the treated Alps water is diluted.

Regarding tritium, which cannot be eliminated, an embassy official emphasized the position that “tritium is also present in the human body and is a substance released by all nuclear facilities in the world,” and that dilution according to International standards will be less than the scientifically safe standard. He said, “We also have Japanese, and there is no way we can take a method that is harmful to people’s health or lives.”

When asked, “Isn’t the Japanese government reducing the long-term emission of tritium?”, An embassy official said, “This is a scientifically dealt with and is not a question of over-politicization.” In this regard, the ocean is released naturally and the Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant (in Korea) is also discharging it. “However, some point out that it is not reasonable to simply compare the water discharged from the Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant that is operating normally and contaminated water generated by the Fukushima nuclear power plant where a large-scale radioactive leak accident occurred.

A press conference against the decision to release radioactive water from Fukushima into the sea was held in front of the statue of General Jeong Bal in Busan on the morning of 22 last month. Representatives of the Yeongnam Area Environmental Movement Association are holding a performance of discharging polluted water into the sea after a press conference. Reporter Song Bong-geun

The Japanese government plans to expand the Alpine treated water storage tank to 1.37 million by the end of this year, and the time when the storage tanks are full is said to be around the summer of 2022. Before That is, a decision has to be made, be it an ocean release or a distillation release, and the ocean discharge is seen to be promising.

In this regard, neighboring countries such as Korea and China, and environmental groups such as Greenpeace are expressing concern about the Japanese government’s release plans. Since the Japanese government has to announce its launch plan before the Tokyo Olympics in July next year, it is actively promoting public opinion. It is an obstacle that must be overcome in order to successfully play the Olympic Games.

In October last year, at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan, an official from the Tokyo Electric Company explained the internal situation of the Korean media who participated in a press tour. [연합뉴스]

At the briefing that day, the embassy said that Japan is receiving support from the international community. “The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) assessed that ‘Japan is following international practices.’ At the IAEA general meeting in September this year, Korean delegates criticized Japan, but other countries have no problem.” .

In this regard, an embassy official also mentioned Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-hwa’s statements to the National Assembly. Earlier, Minister Kang made a comment on the 26th of last month in the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Transportation Affairs of the National Assembly, saying, “The decision to release contaminated water is a matter of Japan’s sovereignty, but because it affects the safety of our people, we are requesting information to be shared on the one hand Some of the passports also disagreed with Minister Kang’s “sovereignty marks”.

Reporter Lee Yoo-jung [email protected]