Fukushima water cannon plan gets first OK from Japanese regulatory agency

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Tokyo — Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRA) first on Wednesday about TEPCO’s plans to release water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant to the sea because of no safety issues. I gave approval.

The NRA will decide on final approval after a one-month public comment period, said NRA officials are addressing the issue.

In 2021, the Government of Japan approved the release of more than 1 million tons of irradiated water into the sea from the treated site from around the spring of 2023.

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The announcement raised concerns from local fishermen and opposition from neighboring China and South Korea.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, a UN oversight body, is tasked with conducting a planned emission safety review and received initial NRA approval when IAEA chief Rafael Grossi arrived in Japan. I did.

Mr. Grossi told Japan’s Minister of Industry Hagita that the IAEA review would give the world confidence that the water in question would not adversely affect public health.

TEPCO plans to filter contaminated water to remove isotopes, leaving only tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen that is difficult to separate from water. After that, TEPCO dilutes the water until the tritium level drops below the regulation limit of 1/40, and then pumps it into the sea.

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TEPCO plans to build a tunnel to the sea for the operation.

According to a TEPCO spokesman, even after the approval of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the consent of the local community, such as the governor, mayor, and fishermen, is required before the construction work begins.

The Government of Japan and TEPCO have announced that the new facility will be completed by mid-April next year and that emissions will begin around the spring of 2023.

Before getting the first approval, NRA has various factors such as the performance of the equipment for diluting water with seawater, how to stop the discharge of water in the event of an abnormality, measures against earthquakes and tsunamis, etc. Officials said they had considered. (Report by Yuka Obayashi and Kiyoshi Takenaka, edited by Rashmi Aich and Jason Neely)