TOKYO, August 7. /TASS/. Japanese experts have initiated the discharge of the eighth batch of treated water from its crippled Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant, Japan’s Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) company reported on Wednesday.
The volume of about 7,800 metric tons of liquid is planned to be discharged into the ocean between today and August 25. Preliminary analysis data shows that the content of radioactive components, such as tritium, are in line with the previously set standards and a discharge permit had been issued in this regard.
Tokyo Electric Power has conducted seven of such operations since August 2023, with the volume of treated water discharged reaching roughly 45,000 metric tons.
In March 2011, a tsunami knocked out power and cooling facilities at the Fukushima NPP, leading to a nuclear meltdown in three reactors, the destruction of their vessels, explosions and the release of large amounts of radioactive material.
To date, the plant and surrounding areas have been almost completely cleaned up. However, the water that is constantly poured into the destroyed reactors to cool down nuclear fuel fragments flows out through gaps highly contaminated with radioactive particles.
There are currently over 1.34 million tons of water at the NPP. That said, the Japanese government decided to gradually treat and then discharge this water into the sea.
The process is expected to take 30 to 40 years. The water is treated through the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) and is also diluted with seawater but still contains tritium that cannot be removed.
The maximum allowable concentration of tritium is 1,500 becquerels per liter, and the measurements that the Japanese officials and IAEA experts take in the ocean confirm that the treated water meets these parameters.