Court Dismisses Lawsuit to Ban Fukushima Nuclear Plant Contaminated Water Discharge

Court: "Plaintiff's Claim Grounds Are Improper"

An environmental civic group in the Busan area filed a lawsuit against Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) seeking to prohibit the discharge of radioactive contaminated water from Fukushima into the ocean, but the case was dismissed.

Earlier, in April 2021, 16 members of an environmental group in Busan filed a lawsuit against TEPCO to prohibit the ocean discharge of contaminated water from the nuclear power plant.

The Civil Division 6 of the Busan District Court (Presiding Judge Nam Jae-hyun) dismissed the plaintiff's claim at the hearing on the 17th.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) opened the facilities for releasing contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant to foreign journalists on the 21st of last month, and also showed the reactors 1 to 4, which are being decommissioned.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The court explained, "Since it is based on a treaty that cannot serve as a judicial norm, it is deemed improper due to lack of standing."

The court further stated, "Considering the provisions of the law and the Supreme Court's interpretative stance on precedents, it is difficult to recognize international jurisdiction under Article 217 of the Civil Act for this court."