- The head of the UN atomic agency, Rafael Grossi, assured Japanese representatives in Fukushima that the discharge of radioactive wastewater treated at the ruined nuclear plant meets safety standards.
- Grossi visited Fukushima for the first time since unloading began last August and inspected the unloading and sampling facilities.
- It said the spills have no adverse impact on the environment, water, fish or sediments, according to international safety standards.
The head of the UN atomic agency told local Japanese representatives at a meeting in Fukushima on Wednesday that the current discharge of treated radioactive wastewater at the ruined nuclear power plant has met safety standards and that any restrictions about the region's products “is not scientific. “
The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, joined local officials and representatives of fishing and business groups and assured them that the discharges are being carried out “without impact on the environment, water, fish and sediments”.
Grossi, who arrived in Japan on Tuesday, visited Fukushima for the first time since the release of treated water began in August.
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Grossi examined the discharge and sampling facilities on Wednesday, accompanied by Tomoaki Kobayakawa, president of the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings. He last visited the plant in July after issuing an IAEA review that predicted the impact of the discharges would be only negligible. A comprehensive IAEA report later concluded that the downloads meet international safety standards.
International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi speaks at a news conference on March 6, 2023 in Vienna, Austria. Grossi told Japanese representatives on Wednesday that the discharge of treated radioactive wastewater at the ruined nuclear power plant met safety standards. (Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images)
The 2011 disaster damaged the Fukushima plant's power supply and reactor cooling functions, causing three reactors to melt down and causing large amounts of radioactive wastewater to accumulate. After more than a decade of cleanup work, the plant began discharging the water after treating and diluting it with large amounts of seawater on August 24, beginning a process that is expected to take decades.
The releases have been opposed by fishing groups and neighboring countries including China, which banned all imports of Japanese seafood immediately after the release began.
“There is no scientific reason to impose any restrictions on products that come from us,” Grossi said at the meeting in Iwaki, south of the Fukushima Daiichi plant.
“It's very important to say this in particular in this forum here in Fukushima,” he said. He noted a “political dimension to this activity as…some neighboring countries are also raising concerns.”
Despite earlier fears that the water release would further harm Fukushima's hard-hit fishing industry, it has not damaged its reputation domestically. China's ban on Japanese seafood mainly affected scallop exporters in Hokkaido. Tokyo has set aside a fund of more than 100 billion yen ($680 million) that includes compensation and other support, including measures to help find other export destinations.
The registrations are the beginning of a long process, Grossi said, highlighting the importance of “transparency, technical precision and open and honest dialogue and consultation.” He noted that the IAEA has its own office and laboratory at the Fukushima plant to independently monitor the process.
Grossi said he met with residents not only to highlight key points about the discharges but also “to learn from you.” He said that he would continue to return to Fukushima and that he is open to listening to residents' concerns and needs.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government has reversed earlier plans for a nuclear phase-out and is accelerating the use of nuclear power in response to rising fuel costs related to Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine and pressure to meet decarbonization objectives.
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On Tuesday, Grossi expressed support for increasing Japan's nuclear capacity, as the country views it as a stable and clean source of energy.
Grossi, in a meeting with Economy and Industry Minister Ken Saito, offered technical assistance to Japan to upgrade the idled Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Japan's north central region of Niigata, run by operator Fukushima Daiichi, to Address concerns about your past problems with safeguarding. measures. Both he and the government are keen to restart it soon.
The IAEA will send a team of experts to the plant later this month to assist Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings in its efforts to gain public trust.
Resumption remains uncertain because it is subject to the consent of the host community. The January 1 earthquake in the nearby Noto region revived safety concerns.
