"UN To Review Japan’s Plan To Release Fukushima Water Into Pacific"

"Taskforce will ‘listen to local people’s concerns’, as government plans to release more than 1m tonnes"

"TOKYO -- A UN nuclear taskforce has promised to prioritise safety as it launches a review of controversial plans by Japan to release more than 1m tonnes of contaminated water into the ocean from the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Japan’s government announced last April that it had decided to release the water over several decades into the Pacific Ocean, despite strong opposition from local fishers and neighbouring China and South Korea.

Lydie Evrard, the deputy director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA], speaking after a team of experts visited the plant to collect water samples, said on Friday: “We listen very carefully to local people’s concerns and the inspection is designed to provide answers about safety in a transparent manner.” ."

Justin McCurry reports for the Guardian February 18, 2022.

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"‘Not A Dumping Ground’: Pacific Condemns Fukushima Water Plan" (Aljazeera)

Source: Guardian, 02/18/2022