South Korea endorses safety of Japanese plans to release treated wastewater from Fukushima plant
The Hindu
South Korea’s government on July 7 formally endorsed the safety of Japanese plans to release treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into sea as it tried to calm people’s fears about food contamination.
South Korea’s government on July 7 formally endorsed the safety of Japanese plans to release treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into sea as it tried to calm people’s fears about food contamination.
Seoul’s assessment was based on a 22-month review by government-funded scientists and aligned with the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) views. The agency greenlit the Japanese discharge plans this week, saying the treated wastewater would meet international safety standards and that its environmental and health impact would be negligible.
Even before Friday’s announcement, South Korean officials have been actively campaigning to dissolve the public’s unease about the wastewater release, holding daily briefings to address what they describe as “excessive fears” and tightening radiation tests on seafood imported from Japan.
Conservative lawmakers from President Yoon Suk Yeol’s ruling party have even toured seafood markets to drink sea water fetched from fish tanks in a bizarre gesture to certify food safety, although no wastewater has been pumped out from Fukushima yet.
Public concerns persist as retailers report an increase in sea salt sales, apparently driven by consumers looking to stock up ahead of the release.
Liberal opposition lawmakers, who control the majority in South Korea's Parliament, have vowed an all-out fight against the Japanese discharge plans. In a fiery speech on Friday, Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 Presidential election, attacked the credibility of the IAEA assessment and accused Yoon’s government of putting the nation’s health at risk by desperately trying to improve relations with Tokyo.
During their news conference in Seoul, South Korean government officials and scientists repeatedly insisted the contamination levels of the Fukushima plant’s wastewater would be within acceptable safety standards as long as the Japanese treatment systems work as designed.
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