The equipment for discharging nuclear polluted water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan recently ended its trial operation, and the construction of submarine tunnels for discharging nuclear polluted water was also completed. The Japanese government and Tokyo Electric Power Company (hereinafter referred to as "TEPCO") have repeatedly pushed for the preparation of nuclear polluted water to be discharged into the sea, which has been continuously opposed and criticized by Japan and the international community. All parties urged Japan to face up to its concerns, effectively dispose of nuclear polluted water in a scientific, safe and transparent way, and accept strict international supervision.
"The sea is the common property of the world, and Japan cannot decide it alone."
On June 28th, Kobayakawa Zhi Ming, president of TEPCO, stressed at the general meeting of shareholders that the plan of discharging nuclear polluted water into the sea could not be postponed in order to promote the decommissioning of Fukushima nuclear power units, and sought the understanding of shareholders. Some shareholders immediately severely criticized this, saying that TEPCO forcibly completed the construction of the sea-discharging tunnel, trampling on the promise it had made to the fishing community and deceiving Japanese fishermen. The screen broadcast by TBS TV shows that some shareholders attending this shareholders’ meeting told the media outside the venue that they are resolutely opposed to discharging Fukushima nuclear polluted water into the sea. "Nuclear polluted water can be discharged into the sea at will if it is not diluted."
For a long time, TEPCO has a bad track record in the safe operation of nuclear power plants, and has repeatedly concealed failures of nuclear power units, tampered with technical data and submitted false reports. Recently, Japanese experts once again questioned whether the company can safely dispose of Fukushima nuclear polluted water. Katsumi Ogawa, a scholar at the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo, told Tokyo News that up to now, a third party still can’t confirm the radioactive data in the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, so we can only discuss it with the data unilaterally released by TEPCO. "Whenever I see all kinds of faults and problems of TEPCO, I can’t help but doubt whether the company can abide by the rules for a long time to dispose of nuclear polluted water."
Professor Suzuki, an honorary professor of Tokyo University who has been conducting fish investigation and research in the offshore of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant for a long time, once again warned the environmental impact of the sea discharge scheme. He said that if the nuclear polluted water containing radioactive tritium is continuously discharged for many years, it is unknown what kind of long-term impact it will have on marine life. Both the Japanese government and TEPCO just repeatedly stressed that "there is no short-term high-concentration pollution", obviously ignoring the long-term impact of radioactive pollution.
"The problem of nuclear pollution of water and the health hazards of radiation may not show further influence until 100 years later. The problem of nuclear polluted water must consider the impact after 500 years and 1000 years. " Fifty Lan Yilong, the representative director of the Japan-China Common Market Promotion Association, recently called on the Japanese government to strengthen cooperation with the international community on the disposal of nuclear polluted water and pool global wisdom to study better disposal schemes other than sea discharge. He said that the long-term harm of Fukushima nuclear polluted water has not been fully studied and verified, and the Japanese government and TEPCO have not done their best to dispose of nuclear polluted water. At present, the marine environment and human health can’t be protected from being damaged by the scheme of sea discharge. "The sea is the common property of the world, and it cannot be decided by Japan alone."
On June 27th, Nozaki Tetsuo, president of the Federation of Fishery Cooperation Associations in Fukushima Prefecture, once again expressed his opposition to the plan of discharging nuclear polluted water into the sea at a meeting with relevant officials of TEPCO — — No matter what happens, we will stick to the opposition position for the survival of fisheries. The coastal area of Iwate Prefecture, which is located in the northeast of Japan, is one of the important fishing areas of Japanese fisheries. On June 28th, Seiji Inoue, president of Iwate Fishery Association, reiterated his opposition to the plan of discharging the sea to the Japanese cabinet minister for revival, Hirofumi Watanabe. Osei Seiji told the media that the relevant explanations of the Japanese government are not sufficient and cannot be reassuring.
“排海计划既不具备正当性，也不具备安全性”
韩国正义党党首李贞味6月26日开始在日本驻韩国大使馆前举行抗议，要求日本撤回核污染水排海计划。李贞味表示，将通过抗议行动传达韩国民众反对日本核污染水排海的正当声音。同时，韩国首尔的多个团体也收集了市民关于反对核污染水排海计划的签名，在日本驻韩国大使馆前举行联合记者会，强烈谴责日本罔顾国内外众多反对声音强推核污染水排海的错误行为。
韩国市民团体“阻止日本放射性污染水排海全国行动”近日在首尔市政府附近举行今年5月以来第三次大规模集会，数千人参加。人们高举“保护太平洋”“向国际海洋法法庭起诉日本”等标语，要求日方采取在陆地上保管福岛核污染水的替代方案，呼吁各方尽全力阻止日本推进不负责任的核污染水排海行动。该市民团体代表在发言中指出，排海计划一旦启动，将持续至少30年，而处理核污染水的关键设备“多核素处理系统”的缺陷已经暴露出来，“严重冲击海洋生态环境的各种证据层出不穷，令人忧心”。
韩国水产业经营者联合会等渔业团体日前在全罗南道莞岛郡莞岛港的码头周边举行了抗议集会活动，200多艘船进行了海上示威，700多名渔民和水产业从业者手举抗议横幅，谴责日本推进核污染水排海计划，称此举势必严重损害韩国渔民和水产业从业者的生计，威胁民众身体健康和生命安全。
“日本推进核污染水排海计划既不具备正当性，也不具备安全性。”《韩民族日报》在报道中表示：“将最严重的核电站事故产生的放射性物质排放到既是众多生物家园、又是人类共同财产的海洋中，这一行为难道是正当的？”
“任何损害海洋健康的事情都值得严重关切”
6月26日，太平洋岛国论坛秘书长普那发表声明称，日本向太平洋排放放射性废物计划不仅是核安全问题，更事关海洋环境、渔业、民众健康以及子孙后代利益。日本核污染水排海计划具有明显跨国界、跨代际影响，可能构成人为故意向海洋排放核废物的国际先例，应寻求其他处置方式。
Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Malapei said that Papua New Guinea’s position against Japan’s nuclear polluted water discharging into the sea remains unchanged. Before Japan discharges nuclear polluted water, it should first prove that these treated nuclear polluted water has indeed removed radioactive elements and will not cause harm to countries along the Pacific Ocean.
Kashmir Makun, a scholar at Fiji’s South Pacific University, said that the recent trial operation of Japan’s nuclear polluted water discharge equipment was "regrettable". Pacific countries have repeatedly "explicitly opposed" that Japan should not discharge nuclear polluted water into the sea, which will do harm to the marine ecosystem and human health. "Anything that harms marine health deserves serious concern."
Joseph Villam, Dean of Asia Research Institute of South Pacific Island Countries in Fiji, told this reporter: "On the premise of not fully demonstrating other feasible disposal schemes, the plan of discharging nuclear polluted water into the sea was directly selected, and Japanese selfish behavior should be condemned by all mankind."
Kalinga Senaviratne, consultant of the news project of the University of the South Pacific, said that Japan should respect the Treaty on a Nuclear-Free Zone in the South Pacific and the wishes of the people of the Pacific island countries, and should not let nuclear pollution pollute the ocean. He believes that radioactive materials discharged into the ocean will spread with ocean currents and tides, and there is a risk of polluting marine life.
In an interview with this reporter, Bill Jaynes, editor-in-chief of Micronesia’s Hello Newsletter, said that Micronesia firmly opposes Japan’s irresponsible behavior of promoting the nuclear pollution water discharge plan. "Once Japan starts the nuclear pollution water discharge, it will also impact the sustainable development of fisheries and tourism in the South Pacific island countries in the future."
Mudahayo Makmoore, a marine radiation ecologist of the Nuclear Energy Bureau under the National Research and Innovation Bureau of Indonesia, said that with the massive discharge of nuclear polluted water, whether the content of tritium in seawater will increase significantly and whether it will have an impact on ecology is worrying. After the Fukushima nuclear polluted water is discharged into the sea, it will continue to spread under the drive of ocean currents, marine life will move with ocean currents, and marine fish will also migrate. If the tritium content in seawater and marine life is increasing, the whole Pacific coast including Indonesia will be affected.
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said recently that the international community has always strongly questioned and opposed the Japanese government’s unilateral wrong decision to discharge Fukushima nuclear polluted water into the sea, and is seriously concerned about the impact of this move on the marine environment and human health. Mao Ning said: "Discharging the sea is by no means the safest and most optimized disposal method, and the Japanese side’s choice is entirely based on the consideration of economic cost. The Japanese discharge from the sea violates the obligation to protect and preserve the marine environment stipulated by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international laws, and also violates the 1972 London Convention on Dumping of Wastes, which prohibits the dumping of radioactive wastes into the sea through artificial structures at sea. "
(Tokyo, Seoul, Canberra, Beijing, July 2)
