VLADIVOSTOK, February 8. /TASS/. Radioactive water from the Fukushima-1 Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) will not turn into ice nor accumulate in a frozen state in the Pacific Ocean, the press service of the Far Eastern Primorye Meteorological Center told TASS, citing oceanographic researchers.
On February 7, employees of the Fukushima NPP detected a radioactive water leak on the premises of the nuclear facility. According to the Asahi newspaper, 5.5 tons of water leaked out. The concentration of radioactive substances in the leaked water amounts to 22 bln becquerels, which is 14 bln times above the norm, with 1,500 becquerels being the maximum allowable limit.
"The Fukushima-1 power plant is located near the town of Okuma on Japan’s east coast, where, thanks to the warm Kuroshio current, among other things, the average annual temperature is above 12 degrees Centigrade. Even during January, the coldest month, it does not drop below one degree above zero. Therefore, according to our ocean scientists, no ice is being formed there at all. As for the currents, the water from that area does not flow north, which also rules out its accumulation in the ice," the press service said, replying to a question from TASS.
The agency added that following the leak, it did not bolster radiation controls. Specialists have not registered any increases in radiation background, which is measured automatically once every hour.
Earlier, Russia’s consumer rights watchdog reported that no instances of the allowable limits of radioactive substances being exceeded following the Fukushima leak had been detected. The agency’s experts continuously screen every batch of fish and other seafood products brought into Russia for radiation safety.