Woo Won-sik "IAEA Report Designed to Serve Japan's Interests"

Woo Won-sik, Democratic Party Lawmaker, CBS Radio Interview
"IAEA Recommended Ocean Discharge to Japan in 2015"

Regarding the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s final report on the safety review of Japan's Fukushima contaminated water, which evaluated the plan for ocean discharge as compliant with international safety standards, Woo Won-sik, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized it as a "report designed solely to benefit Japan."

Woo, who serves as an advisor to the party's Countermeasures Committee to Stop the Ocean Dumping of Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Contaminated Water, appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' on the 5th and said, "There has been no verification whatsoever regarding the accumulation of radionuclides and radioactivity in the marine ecosystem over more than 30 years."

Woo Won-sik, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, continues his hunger strike on the afternoon of the 2nd in front of the National Assembly main building in Yeouido, Seoul, to stop the discharge of contaminated water from Fukushima. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Woo stated, "The IAEA is not an international organization that rigorously monitors radiation safety on behalf of the international community," adding, "The IAEA is a nuclear promotion agency that prevents nuclear proliferation and promotes the peaceful use of nuclear energy."

He continued, "Therefore, it is an organization that guides how to use nuclear power with minimal harm and how to properly handle accidents in the respective countries," and diagnosed, "The problem is that the IAEA is not an organization that reviews what is the most appropriate way to safely treat contaminated water."

He pointed out, "In 2015, the IAEA already recommended to Japan that since radioactive contaminated water generated by the Fukushima nuclear power plant explosion could contaminate the surroundings, it would be better to discharge it into the sea in a controlled manner," adding, "So the IAEA has already recommended the ocean discharge plan to Japan, which amounts to self-verification."

Woo also criticized, "The biggest problem is that the IAEA reviewed the contaminated water dumping plan on the premise of ocean discharge rather than seeking safer alternatives."

He said, "Japan proposed alternatives in 2018, including geological injection, solidification with concrete, hydrogen release after removing water, and steam release. The last option was ocean discharge," adding, "These four alternatives would not harm other countries, and in fact, the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in the U.S. used the steam release method, but such options were not reviewed at all."

He added, "For the IAEA to properly fulfill its role as an international organization, it should have recommended using methods that do not pollute the oceans shared by the world or harm other countries," and criticized, "The decision to discharge and the responsibility for the discharge lie with the Japanese government and Tokyo Electric Power Company, so the IAEA is evading responsibility."

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