Japan Pushes Forward with Radioactive Wastewater Ocean Discharge... Domestic Civic Groups Also "Oppose"

Japanese Civic Group Issuing an Urgent Statement Opposing the Discharge of Fukushima Contaminated Water into the Ocean
[Image Source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-seop] Local civic groups have expressed opposition ahead of the Japanese government's decision to discharge radioactive contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean.

According to major foreign media on the 12th, Japanese civic groups such as the "Citizens' Group for Nuclear Regulation Watch" and the international environmental organization "FoE Japan" held an emergency press conference at the Tokyo House of Councillors on the same day, urging that the ocean discharge decision should not be made.

The "Nuclear Citizens' Committee," which delivered the statement, pointed out that it is problematic that the Japanese government proposed ocean discharge as a likely disposal method for the contaminated water but did not hold a public hearing attended by ordinary citizens. They advised that since it would take 40 years to dispose of all the contaminated water currently stored through ocean discharge, "it is preferable to continue on-land storage while seeking effective alternatives."

They rebutted the claims by the Japanese government and Tokyo Electric Power Company that ocean discharge is inevitable due to a lack of space for expanding storage tanks caused by the increase in contaminated water, stating that storage capacity can be increased by installing large tanks similar to oil reserve facilities.

These groups also revealed the results of a signature campaign opposing ocean discharge initiated by 311 organizations from 24 countries including South Korea, the United States, and Japan. According to this, 64,431 people from 88 countries (regions) participated in the online signature campaign that began on January 28.