Fukushima nuclear disaster: Japan will pour 1.3 million tonnes of radioactive water into the sea on August 24, why is it being opposed
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Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said after a cabinet meeting that authorities would immediately prepare for the plant’s operator to begin disposal on August 24 if weather and sea conditions were suitable.
Japan will start releasing treated radioactive water from the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean on August 24, despite protests from its neighbors. The decision comes weeks after the plan was approved by the UN’s nuclear watchdog. After filtering and diluting the water will be released over 30 years. Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said after a cabinet meeting that authorities would immediately prepare for the plant’s operator to begin disposal on August 24 if weather and sea conditions were suitable. Kishida had visited the plant on Sunday itself, following which there was speculation about the release of water.
The government has said releasing the water is a necessary step in a long and costly process to shut down the plant, which is located on the country’s east coast, about 220 km (137 miles) northeast of the capital Tokyo. Japan has been collecting and storing contaminated water in tanks for more than a decade, but is running out of space.
Japan government wants to throw radioactive waste in the Pacific Ocean
The Japanese government wanted to dump radioactive waste from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean. But this was not possible due to the opposition of the people. The International Unit of the United Nations (IAEA) started an investigation regarding this matter. After two years of investigation, now this agency has given permission to the government of Japan to throw radioactive waste.
Where is the waste water coming from?
In 2011 a 9.0 magnitude earthquake caused a tsunami, flooding three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The tsunami damaged electrical and cooling systems at the nuclear plant. It became the world’s worst nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl explosion. According to Al Jazeera, most of the water comes from cooling of the three destroyed reactors. The rest is from rain and groundwater at the contaminated site. According to the BBC report, the nuclear plant produces 100 cubic meters of waste water every day.
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