Japan will today begin releasing tritium-laced water from the Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant into the ocean (weather permitting). Japan’s prime minister Fumio Kishida made the announcement on Tuesday after a meeting with relevant ministers. The Japanese government has stressed the necessity of the plan and its safety, but it has nonetheless escalated an international conflict over the issue. China has responded by imposing an immediate ban on all Japanese seafood imports.
The discharge has been sanctioned by a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency. It is part of a long-term decommissioning plan for the plant that suffered major damage from the March 2011 earthquake. Tritium is not damaging to the environment if kept within regulatory levels, or to people unless it enters the body in high concentrations. The government says the water being released contains one fourteenth of the acceptable standard. The discharge will be gradual, with the 1.34
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