Tokyo Electric Power Company "Discharge of 31,200 Tons of Contaminated Water by March Next Year" (Comprehensive)

2.3% of the Total
"Discharge Start Time to Be Decided on the Morning of the 24th"

Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) announced on the 22nd that it expects to discharge 31,200 tons of contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the sea by March next year.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

TEPCO, the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plant, held a press conference following a government ministerial meeting that decided to start the ocean discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima plant as early as the 24th. They explained that this amount corresponds to 3% of the total contaminated water. However, the actual proportion is estimated to be around 2.3%. Since the explosion accident caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011, contaminated water has been generated at the Fukushima plant, and currently about 1.34 million tons are stored.

Kyodo News reported that achieving this target could reduce about 10 contaminated water storage tanks. If TEPCO discharges approximately 31,000 tons into the sea this year, about 5 trillion becquerels (Bq) of tritium will flow into the ocean. Tritium is a radioactive substance that is not purified by the Fukushima plant’s Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS).

The Japanese government and TEPCO plan to dilute the tritium concentration in the contaminated water to less than 1,500 Bq per liter, which is 1/40th of the national regulatory standard, before discharging it into the sea near the plant.

According to TEPCO, the discharge will be conducted in two stages. In the first stage, the contaminated water diluted with seawater will be transferred to a tank to directly check the tritium concentration. In the second stage, discharge will be carried out to verify equipment safety and operational procedures.

Of the approximately 7,800 tons of contaminated water to be first sent to the sea, 1 ton will be mixed with 1,200 tons of seawater and transferred to a large tank to measure the concentration of radioactive substances. The measurement results are expected before the 24th. If no problems are found, about 460 tons of contaminated water will be discharged daily for 17 days.

TEPCO stated that if any abnormalities occur in the contaminated water facilities, emergency shut-off valves will operate automatically. If variables such as earthquakes of intensity 5 lower on the Japanese seismic scale or higher, or tsunamis occur, the ocean discharge will be suspended. Intensity 5 lower causes most people to feel fear, and dishes or books on shelves to fall due to shaking.

TEPCO said it plans to decide on the morning of the 24th whether a monitoring vessel can depart at the time the discharge begins.

According to Kyodo News, TEPCO has started preparations for the ocean discharge of contaminated water, including transferring the first batch of contaminated water to pipes, following the ministerial meeting.

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