VIENNA, January 30. /TASS/. Japan’s discharge of treated water into the ocean from the Fukushima NPP meets international standards, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a press statement.

"The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Task Force conducting a safety review of Japan’s discharge of treated water into the sea at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS) today issued its first full report since the water discharge began last year. In its observations, the Task Force found the discharge to be consistent with international safety standards and reaffirmed the conclusions from the Agency’s comprehensive safety report issued on 4 July last year," it said.

According to the agency, the results of interlaboratory comparisons of radionuclides analyses in samples of seawater, sediment, fish and seaweed "provide confidence in Japan’s capability for undertaking accurate and precise measurements related to the discharge of ALPS (Advanced Liquid Processing System - TASS) treated water."

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 mln 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, which is expected to take 30 to 40 years, caused tensions with a number of countries, namely China, despite being approved by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

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.