Tritium Contained in Fukushima Contaminated Water After Japan... Causes Genetic Mutation and Other Human Body Damage

Seoul Youth Climate Action, Cheongnyeon Darak, and Seoul Youth Progressive Party held a press conference on the 13th in front of the Embassy of Japan in Jongno-gu, Seoul, condemning the Japanese government's decision to discharge contaminated water from Fukushima. / Photo by Mo Honam munonam@

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] As the Japanese government has decided to discharge radioactive contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident into the ocean, concerns about internal exposure from consuming seafood exposed to the contaminated water are growing. Tritium contained in the contaminated water discharged into the sea can cause exposure inside the human body, which may lead to genetic mutations and other damage to the human body.

The contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant contains radioactive nuclides such as tritium, cesium-134, cesium-137, and strontium-90. Among these, tritium can cause exposure inside the human body. This is because consuming seafood exposed to contaminated water containing radioactive substances can lead to the accumulation of radioactive materials inside the body, increasing the likelihood of internal exposure.

Unlike stable hydrogen or deuterium, tritium is unstable and emits radiation as it decays, transforming into helium-3. Tritium undergoes 'nuclide transmutation' inside the human body, turning into helium. If nuclide transmutation occurs in DNA, it can cause genetic mutations or cell death, and may damage the human body, including reduced reproductive function.

Tritium has a half-life of 12.3 years, meaning its amount is halved after this period, but it takes at least several decades for tritium in the ocean to completely disappear. Moreover, tritium has the same physical properties as ordinary hydrogen or deuterium and exists in the form of water combined with oxygen. When mixed in seawater, it is physically and chemically difficult to remove.

Japan plans to lower the contamination concentration of tritium to about 1/40 of the standard level before discharging it. However, tritium cannot be removed even by the multi-nuclide removal equipment, so tritium is still known to remain in the contaminated water.