Japan: "Fukushima Contaminated Water Discharge Scheduled as Planned This Summer"

Korea-Japan Director-General Meeting on Fukushima Nuclear Plant Contaminated Water to be Held on the 12th
Discharge Proceeded Despite Delay in Filling Contaminated Water Storage Tanks

The Japanese government reaffirmed on the 11th its plan to proceed with the ocean discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant as scheduled around summer. Although it had previously stated its intention to explain the status of the contaminated water to the South Korean government, it maintains that there will be no changes to the discharge plan.

Matsuno Hirokazu, Chief Cabinet Secretary and spokesperson for the Japanese government, stated at a regular press conference that despite the delay in the tanks storing contaminated water at the Fukushima nuclear plant reaching full capacity, the timing for the ocean discharge of the contaminated water treated by the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) remains set from this spring to around summer, with no changes to the schedule. This reiterated the existing discharge plan ahead of the bureau-level working talks between South Korea and Japan scheduled for the 12th.

Earlier, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), which operates the Fukushima nuclear plant, announced on the 27th of last month that the tanks storing contaminated water are expected to reach full capacity later than initially anticipated, shifting from this summer or fall to around February to June next year. This led to speculation that the discharge timing might be delayed, but Minister Matsuno denied this.

Minister Matsuno repeated the fundamental stance that "the Japanese government has held several explanatory meetings, including at the bureau level, transparently explaining to the South Korean government based on scientific evidence," and regarding the Korea-Japan working talks to be held in Seoul on the 12th, he said, "We will explain the recent situation of the Fukushima nuclear plant ALPS-treated water (contaminated water), including the agreements reached at the Korea-Japan summit." He added, "As Prime Minister Kishida Fumio stated at the Korea-Japan summit, the Japanese government will continue to provide transparent and sincere explanations based on scientific evidence while undergoing verification by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)."

In this context, the governments of South Korea and Japan will hold a bureau-level meeting on the 12th regarding the Fukushima nuclear plant contaminated water to implement the agreements made at the Korea-Japan summit held on the 7th. They plan to specifically coordinate the schedule and facilities to be inspected by the South Korean expert inspection team, which will conduct an on-site inspection of the Fukushima nuclear plant contaminated water from the 23rd to 24th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.