The Japanese government hopes that the visit of the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mariano Grossi, will give credibility to the discharge plan. Local fishing groups, as well as the governments of South Korea, China and some Pacific island nations, have voiced their strong opposition for security reasons.
Grossi will be in Japan from July 4 to 7, Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said. He hopes to meet Hayashi, Industry Minister Yasutoshi Mishimura and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and visit the Fukushima plant, damaged by a strong earthquake and tsunami in 2011.
“Japan attaches great importance to the efforts of the IAEA, which plays an important role in promoting nuclear non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. We hope to further strengthen Japan’s ties with the IAEA through this visit,” Hayashi said.
The plant’s operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, has completed construction of the equipment needed for offloading, and Japanese regulators were due for a final inspection on Friday. If all goes well, TEPCO expects to receive permission to start unloading within a week, for which no date has yet been set, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Authority.
Environmental activists in Seoul, South Korea, protested against the plan on Friday outside the Japanese embassy.
The IAEA is expected to issue its final report on the sewage discharge plan during the visit to Japan, after which Grossi will go to South Korea, New Zealand and the Cook Islands to address their concerns.
Japan has asked the IAEA for support to give the plan credibility and ensure that security measures conform to international standards. IAEA has sent several missions to Japan since the beginning of 2022.
FUENTE: Associated Press
