Japan May Have to Dump Radioactive Fukushima Water Into the Pacific Ocean
日本可能不得不将福岛核电站的放射性污水排入太平洋
A Japanese official has just publicly announced that they might end up dumping radioactive water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.
一名日本官员刚刚公开宣布,他们可能不得不将受损的福岛核电站的放射性污水排入太平洋中。
The disturbing pronouncement came from the environment minister of Japan himself, Yoshiaki Harada. According to Harada, Tokyo Electric (Tepco), the firm tasked with the cleanup is running out of room to store the liquid, MailOnline reports.
On March 11, 2011, a massive earthquake caused three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to meltdown, releasing radiation into the air and forcing the evacuation of more than 160,000 people from the area. Tepco has had to continually use fresh water to cool the reactors over the last eight years.
Through the process, the company has so far collected over 1 million metric tons of contaminated water stored in 900 tanks on the grounds at Daiichi. Harada says there would be no space left to contain the hazardous water by 2022.
“The only option will be to drain it into the sea and dilute it,” Harada was quoted as saying during a press briefing. “The whole of the government will discuss this, but I would like to offer my simple opinion.”
In a separate media briefing, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has distanced the government from Harada’s comments, describing it as “his personal opinion.”
Pushing through with the environment minister’s “simple opinion” could potentially cause tension in the Pacific region.
一旦推行环境大臣原田义昭的这种“个人观点”,可能会导致太平洋地区的局势变得紧张。
Just last month, South Korea summoned a senior Japanese embassy official to explain how Japan is hoping to address the Fukushima water situation. In a statement, South Korea’s foreign ministry shared that it advised Japan “to take a wise and prudent decision on the issue.”
Greenpeace has been urging Tepco to keep storing the water and continue developing water processing technology that could remove the radioactive elements.