TOKYO – Japan has started releasing treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean, reported Xinhua.
According to plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), the water discharge started at around 1pm local time (12pm Malaysian time), while concerns and opposition persisted among local fishermen as well as in neighbouring countries and Pacific island nations.
Tepco said it plans to carry out the first round of release over 17 days to discharge 7,800 tonnes of the wastewater.
Yesterday, the Malaysian Health Ministry said it would impose a Level 4 inspection for radioactive materials at the entry points on high-risk food products imported from Japan.
Health Director-General Datuk Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan said this came after the notification that Japan would start releasing treated radioactive water from the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear plant.
Radzi said the monitoring of food products imported from Japan had been carried out by the ministry’s Food Safety and Quality Division from May 2011 until April 2012, after the nuclear plant explosion following an earthquake and tsunami in Fukushima in 2011.
According to local media reports, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safety review has concluded that Japan’s plans to release treated water stored at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station into the sea are consistent with IAEA Safety Standards. – August 24, 2023