Groups from South Korea, China and some Pacific island states oppose it due to security concerns and for political reasons. Local fishing organizations fear damage to their reputations even if their product is not contaminated.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi, presented his final assessment of the plan to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Tuesday.
The report “is a comprehensive, neutral, objective and scientifically sound assessment,” Grossi said. “We have a lot of confidence in him.”
The IAEA acknowledges that the discharge “has raised social, political, and environmental concerns associated with radiological aspects.” But his conclusion is that the discharge of water as planned “will have a negligible radiological impact on people and the environment.”
The unloading plan and equipment are “in accordance with agreed international standards and their application,” Grossi said.
He said that the dilution of processed but slightly radioactive wastewater for gradual discharge into the sea is commonly used in other countries such as China, South Korea, the United States and France to dispose of water containing certain radionucleotides from nuclear plants.
Japan has sought IAEA support to give the plan credibility. Experts from the UN body and 11 countries have traveled to Japan several times since early 2022 to inspect preparations by the government and the plant’s operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings.
Some scientists argue that the impact of long-term exposure to nucleotides is still unknown. Others say the discharge plan is harmless, but are calling for more transparency in sampling and monitoring.
Kishida said after his meeting with Grossi that Japan will continue to provide “detailed explanations based on scientific evidence with a high degree of transparency both internally and externally.”
FUENTE: Associated Press
