Tokyo: Fumio Kishida, the prime minister of Japan, paid a brief visit to the tsunami-damaged Fukushima nuclear plant on Sunday to emphasise the safety of a contentious plan to release treated radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean as soon as possible despite opposition at home and abroad.
His trip comes shortly after he arrived home on Saturday from a summit with the leaders of the US and South Korea at Camp David, the retreat of the American president. It's time to decide when the treated water will be released, Kishida said before departing Washington on Friday. This has not been decided because of the controversy surrounding the plan.
Japanese fishing organisations have been strongly opposed to the government's release plan since it was first announced two years ago. They are concerned that this will further harm the reputation of their seafood as they work to recover from the accident. Concerns have also been expressed by organisations in China and South Korea, turning this into a political and diplomatic problem.
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The majority of the water is still contaminated and requires additional treatment, according to the government and the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., so it must be removed to make room for the plant's decommissioning and to prevent unintentional leaks from the tanks.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has backed Japan in its efforts to increase accountability and credibility and ensure that TEPCO's plan complies with global safety standards. Additionally, the government has intensified its campaign to advocate for the plan's security abroad and through diplomatic channels.
The IAEA advised Japan to proceed after determining that the TEPCO plan, if carried out strictly as intended, will have little effect on the environment and human health.
After Sunday's visit to the plant, Kishida told reporters he hoped to meet with the head of the national fisheries organisation on Monday before his ministers decide the time at a meeting the following week, according to the Kyodo News agency. The beginning of the water release, which is anticipated to begin at the end of August, was not mentioned by Kishida.
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Kishida met with TEPCO president Tomoaki Kobayakawa and other top officials during his visit on Sunday, during which he also saw wastewater filtering and dilution facilities. According to Kyodo, he pleaded with the authorities to put safety first in the release in order to protect the local fisheries' reputation.
To prevent the matter from interfering with their efforts to build relationships, the government has worked to explain the plan to South Korea while also seeking understanding from the fishing community. In response to growing Chinese and North Korean threats, Japan, South Korea, and the US are working to strengthen their trilateral relations.
The government of South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol recently expressed support for the Japanese plan, but he is under fire at home. Yoon backed the IAEA's assessment of the plan's safety during a joint press conference at Camp David, but he emphasised the importance of open inspection by the international community.
The outreach initiatives have advanced, according to Kishida, who also stated that the decision will take into account safety precautions and steps to prevent potential harm to the fisheries' reputation.
Three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant melted down as a result of a powerful earthquake and tsunami that struck on March 11, 2011, contaminating their cooling water. Around 1,000 tanks are used to collect, filter, and store the water. These tanks will be full by the beginning of 2024.
With the exception of tritium, which the government and TEPCO claim is safe for humans to consume in small amounts, the water is being treated with something known as an Advanced Liquid Processing System, which can lower the amounts of more than 60 selected radionuclides to levels set by the government for release.
Although most scientists concur that the treated wastewater would have little to no environmental impact, some urge greater attention due to the numerous low-dose radionuclides that are still present
