Japan, China clash over Fukushima water release into Pacific Ocean

Japanese government as well as the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc., operator of the Fukushima plant, are planning to start releasing the water into the Pacific Ocean around the summer

Vienna: During an international nuclear nonproliferation meeting held in Vienna, Japan and China clashed over Tokyo’s plan to release treated water from the disaster-crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean, reported The Japan Times.

China shared its concern about the Japanese plan to release the contaminated water with the undertaking committee meeting for the 2026 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference on Monday. It further told them that Tokyo should withdraw the plan to release it. The Japan Times is Japan’s largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper.

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According to The Japan Times, Japan in response to China’s concern, said that the International Atomic Energy Agency has concluded that the water release plan is consistent with international safety standards and the discharge will have a negligible radiological impact.

China however questioned the legitimacy of the IAEAs review and said that it was unknown whether data on the treated water is accurate.

Last month, the IAEA submitted its review of the envisioned water discharge to Japan, concluding that the country’s plan aligns with global safety standards and would have “a negligible radiological impact on people and the environment”.

Japan further responded that China‘s claims were very dangerous as the IAEA’s authority would be undermined by inaccurate information, reported The Japan Times.

Moreover, Germany is in favour of Japan, and said that it was confident that safety standards were met through the IAEA’s independent review.

Earlier also, China has raised objections and urged Japan to halt the plan, stating that if Tokyo carries it out, Beijing too will strengthen the inspection of imported seafood to “ensure public health and food safety”, Kyodo News reported.

The Japanese government as well as the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc., operator of the Fukushima plant, are planning to start releasing the water into the Pacific Ocean around the summer after it undergoes processing to remove most of the radionuclides except tritium.