Fishermen concerned over IAEA saying Fukushima water release is safe

If the IAEA, set up for such purposes, approved it, then how can anyone argue with the science? Reputational damage will come from ignorance but, hey, that's the way the world works 90% of the time.

people, environment, safety, and jobs are major factors to consider before making the move. what is the purpose to release water into sea? any voting right from citizens? not sure about others but i will avoid to eat seafood in japan afterward.

People keep saying it safe, they don't really live there, don't really eating and drinking local delicacies at all.

Don't trust the data, don't trust the measurements. Always question everything.

Could IAEA people swim in the waters and eat marine products after the release? If they say they could, then it must be safe!

*Fishermen concerned over IAEA *saying Fukushima water release is safe

Weaselly phrasing from Kyodo.

He is worried about the danger to him and his livelihood.

They shouldn't be worried the government will choose one month in the year that the radioactive water won't be dumped into the ocean so the fishermans can have their fishing season!

Has any noticed how this whole CRIMINAL act is kept just between three parties TEPCO, the LDP, and the IAEA !!? NO independent parties are allowed anywhere near the site, NO investigative reporting what so ever.

IAEA is much more trustworthy than the Japanese government.

The IAEA Report

https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/iaea_comprehensive_alps_report.pdf

Finally, I would like to emphasise that the release of the treated water stored at Fukushima Daiichi Power

Station is a national decision by the Government of Japan and that this report is neither a recommendation nor

an endorsement of that policy. However, I hope that all who have an interest in this decision will welcome the

IAEA’s independent and transparent review, and I give an assurance, as I said right at the start of this process,

that the IAEA will be there before, during and after the discharge of ALPS treated water.

Rafael Mariano Grossi

Director General, IAEA

Man oh Man, if this was a third world country releasing Radioactive water into the sea !? boy oh boy, world war 3 will break out.

Kikuchi, 30, added, "No matter how much we try, we cannot prevent the Fukushima brand from being tarnished."

…..

The ‘brand’ will continue to be tarnished for thousands of years as radionuclides don’t suddenly stop emitting energy on the say so of humans

NO independent parties are allowed anywhere near the site, NO investigative reporting what so ever

Arrant claptrap and misinformation, the IAEA is independent.

Which would I give more credence to, the dispassionate assessment of a scientifically trained specialist in the subject or the emotional reaction of a seagoing labourer?

Will it have an impact on the perceptions of the uninformed, yes. So in this case as the problem stems from failures and deliberate decisions by TEPCO executives then they and the company should reimburse everyone financially adversely affected by the necessity of disposing of the stored water.

I'm against nuclear waste but what can be done really? All nuclear plants release wastewater into the ocean

if this was a third world country releasing Radioactive water into the sea

Every country with nuclear facilities does.

Oh , but the government pledged to " gain the local fishermen understanding" before release didnt it?

Ever had the feeling like you’ve been through this before? Deja vous all over again.

Who knows? Only God knows, so cross your fingers.

If the IAEA, set up for such purposes

IAEA is a corrupt NGO organization, just like the UN and most sports committees, especially the IOC.

Every country with nuclear facilities does.

But whatabout...?

Excuse me, but did anyone in their right mind really expect anything else? Even when it was announced that the IAEA was going to look into it, there were voices saying that if the IAEA didn't recommend it, our all-knowing government would say that they were taking it into consideration, but that we were unique and so the final decision was ours. And then there were voices saying that if the IAEA doesn't reject it, the water will be released again and if there are problems our omniscient government will say "it's their fault, they approved it".

If you'll forgive the sarcasm, given the way TEPCO has behaved over the last 10 years and their unique way of handling information and informing the public, you couldn't expect anything different again. That the water would be released one way or another was simply a given and a foregone conclusion. It was just necessary to let it "settle" a bit.

every human should be concerned not just fishermen.

I am positively clueless, and I wholeheartedly put my faith in the genius minds of the Japanese Government and TEPCO. They're absolute wizards, and everything they do is infused with an extraordinary level of brain power that I, sadly, lack. So, without a shred of doubt, I shall cheerfully embrace their actions and indulge in some nuclear-waste-flavored fish. No worries!

These fishermen should stop fuelling unfounded rumours. None of them are scientists, so what qualifications do they have?

The IAEA is a 100% independent watchdog, and has the responsibility of making sure the release of the filtered water is completely safe. They have given the green light - everyone needs to accept that and let all that clean water be released.

they are complaining about dumping nuclear waste water into the ocean? that's weird. (LOL)

"I'm extremely worried as I don't know to what extent the release of the treated water will affect my work and livelihood," said Eitatsu Kikuchi, a fisherman preparing his boat in Soma, Fukushima Prefecture.

Don't worry too much it's not just Fukushima but the whole eastern side that should be worrying. water is known to travel long distances. I won't be eating any seafood for at least 6 - 8 months that includes sushi and nori.

I would trust the IAEA if they would bathe in those waters, eat the seafood and live near those shores and nothing bad happens to them. Put their money where their mouth is, so to speak.

These fishermen should stop fuelling unfounded rumours. None of them are scientists, so what qualifications do they have?

The people who buy their catch and will likely not buy their catch after the water is released are not scientists, either.

And no amount of persuasion from scientists is likely to reassure them.

"No matter how much we try, we cannot prevent the Fukushima brand from being tarnished."

Yes, it's funny how that works. No matter how much they try to keep their unfounded rumors it in the news, the unfounded rumors just won't stay out of the news.

I wonder how long it will take them to notice the problem.

I would trust the IAEA if they would bathe in those waters, eat the seafood and live near those shores and nothing bad happens to them.

That's actually one of the really interesting parts of the IAEA report. On page 72 ff they calculate the additional annual exposure of a "representative person" living 3 kilometers from the outlet (basically as close as you can get without trespassing restricted area), bathing in the sea, eating fish that has been caught there. They even consider spray from the sea. Basically it describes a "worst case" situation of someone living right next to the outlet.

This person's additional annual exposure will be 0.008 mSv.

The radiation equivalent of a bite of a banana.

I won't be eating any seafood for at least 6 - 8 months that includes sushi and nori.

Why just 6 to 8 months though? The waste water release will go on for at least 40 years. You shouldn't eat seafood ever again.

The people who buy their catch and will likely not buy their catch after the water is released are not scientists, either.

And no amount of persuasion from scientists is likely to reassure them.

There will always be a small amount of flat-earthers out there who follow baseless rumours. They are welcome to import seafood from the Atlantic or Mediterranean if it concerns them.

The rest of us trust the scientists, the IAEA - and always follow the science.

We eat fish 4-5 times per week. We will continue to do so.

This person's additional annual exposure will be 0.008 mSv.

I have to correct myself: That should have been 0.008 µSv.

(0.008 mSv, while still not dangerous, would almost be noteworthy.)

The great thing about the ignorance and therefore resistance to buy seafood from the area is that maybe the ecosystems along the coast of Fukushima will become havens of life and eventually help re-populate the other fished-out areas of Japan.

There will always be a small amount of flat-earthers out there who follow baseless rumours. They are welcome to import seafood from the Atlantic or Mediterranean if it concerns them.

True enough. Though that doesn’t help the local fishermen.

Unless they get into the imported seafood industry, and I don’t imagine many of them are experienced in that area.

The distrust was caused by both TEPCO and the J-govt's mishandling of the Fukushima disaster and the subsequent cleanup management. They were unprepared, made things worse and tried to cut corners.

Oh, I think noone would argue to the contrary. TEPCO fumbled its response, hard.

But that was 12 years ago. They have been pushed hard to rectify their shortcomings, and certainly not out of their own volition. At some point enough must be enough, and we should really return to the bare facts. Otherwise we will be arguing with feelings forever, and that doesn't get us anywhere.

They allowed organized crime syndicates to manage the staff for the cleanup.

Some staff, day workers mostly, and only until TEPCO very publicly cut ties with the yakuza in 2012. (Which doesn't mean they didn't keep their foot in the door afterwards through shell companies and such.)

I can say this with confidence because I am friends with a few people -- engineers and construction workers -- who worked at the cleanup, hard hat and dosimeter. If you ever wondered why I'm so invested in the topic, that's why. Fukushima and its fallout is still a regular topic in our conversations.

Radiation map around Japan

https://jciv.iidj.net/map/

mtuffiziToday  07:04 am JST

people, environment, safety, and jobs are major factors to consider before making the move. what is the purpose to release water into sea? any voting right from citizens? not sure about others but i will avoid to eat seafood in japan afterward.

They can not just keep collecting this water and storing it! If so the entire country will end up with holding tanks. Also, I can imagine how much you would complain if there was another big earthquake in the area and all the tanks split and let the water out over land. Japan has no choice but to do something with that water. Experts have called the release into the ocean (over years by the way) to be the best resolve. Open the taps and get on with it already.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-fukushima-wastewater-release-safe-what-the-science-says/?changesetid=

Radiation in water from Fukushima will be diluted to almost background levels

Seems pretty clear to me.

I understand the fear, but the science is pretty clear on this. People are afraid because they are ignorant. There is a solution. Learn.

Do these Fisheries cooperatives have any alternative suggestions as to what should be done with this waste water? After all, it is their livelihood. They are fishermen, highly intelligent and very well educated with degrees and diplomas in science and biology from most prestigious universities in Japan.

This is not safe. The sun provides us with plenty of radiation. It's the major cause of aging.

The smallest part of any Uranium, Plutonium or any other derivative inside your body causes cancer. So eat a fish that consumed this (incredibly high probability in the near term) and you get cancer. One thing good is that all these materials are heavy and sink to the bottom. So in the long run, Grouper, Crab, Lobster etc will be dangerous and start coming to the surface with strange lesions etc. Fishermen will throw the deformed over board so it does not affect their income.

Half life of Uranium is over 5,000 years. The more dense the material the longer the half life. Nuclear power is the worst idea in the history of man.

Let's hope the Chinese get Fission to work.

They are fishermen, highly intelligent and very well educated with degrees and diplomas in science and biology from most prestigious universities in Japan.

I agree. What would they know. They are being selfish and not following the science.

This water cannot be stored forever. This slow release over the 40 years is the only solution.

People can believe whatever they want about the ‘benefits’ of releasing radioactive water into the sea and how it is all going to be fine

However,

Some points that never get raised in these articles are:

1.The problems with bioaccumulation

2.Japan is a country which has allowed workers to place radioactive materials in a bucket (Tokaimura) which has caused a fissionable reaction killing 2 and the criticality caused over a hundred to receive a high dose of radiation

3.People were advised to laugh after the Fukushima disaster to ward off the ill effects of radioactive poisoning-really?

4.High levels of radioactively contaminated car tyres, green tea and other contaminated foodstuffs have been purposely exported out of Japan

5.Japan is a country where corruption is endemic which gives companies the incentive to chase profits over moral considerations

6.Contaminated debris and earth have been dumped all over Fukushima and surrounding prefectures as Japan has no storage facilities for such waste

7.Tritium is not safe for ingestion.Sea life will absorb higher concentrations which will in turn be ingested by humans

8.It is known to oncologists that Japanese females in their twenties have a 1 in 9 chance of developing breast cancer. This cancer was uncommon in the previous generation, at the same ages

The reason is not known why this is

Even by the minutest degree, is the dumping of radioactive substances a risk that should be taken, bearing in mind the previous debacles and lack of safety with regard to nuclear matters?

Probably missing something but why couldn’t they use a closed loop system, water cools reactor, fed through ALPS, cooled down then fed back into the reactor and repeat?

Japan should release the tiny amount of the remaining contaminated water stored in the tanks without fanfare, unofficially and quietly to minimize economic damages to fishermen both in Japan and S. Korea. Japan should have already dumped it quietly as Russia did before the 1990s.

The weird response of the Japanese government on the accident is the ultimate cause of all the fusses in S. Korea and even in Japan. Japan already released 8-16 peta becquerel of cesium-137 force majeure during the first 3 months after the accident in 2011, which is greater by a factor 15,000-30,000 than the amount contained in the 1.3 million tonnes of water to be released this summer (534 billion becquerel).

The planned release of the water treated by the ALPS is just an international show by which the Japanese government wants to advertise that Japan is always a country abiding by the international law and treaty. However, owing to the inflexible responses of the Japanese government, most people both in Japan and Korea do not grasp that Japan had already released more than 99.999% of radioactive materials from the Fukushima accident in 2011, and just exaggerate and concern about the tiny 0.001% which remain in the tanks.

Please stop sounding the fanfare. Just dump it without any notice, quickly, quietly and unofficially to minimize the damages to the fisheries industry by rumors.

Genuinely feel bad for the people of this area, still trying to make it work by selling local products. Sadly Japan is king of two-faced bullying. The government will push these products into public venues like schools and more for lunch but the average consumer will never go for it in their private purchases. Heck I would not be surprised to see open comment against them.

Look at Japan’s COVID response. On the surface well and good but doctors and nurses constantly quoted as saying how awful it was for them to do simple daily things like grocery shopping because random busybodies would approach asking why they were in public spaces demanding they stay away from them etc. yes yes Japan. These people are going to be othered even more than before no matter what statements get made. It’s just how it works here

Some points that never get raised in these articles are

... not raised because they are unconnected to the waste water release.

7.Tritium is not safe for ingestion.

You ingest it every day. Luckily it doesn't bioaccumulate or biomagnify.

@Roy Sophveason

You fail to acknowledge the dangers of bioaccumulation

The ingestion of tritium which is (although weak) still produces ionizing radiation

The coastal areas around Fukushima and thus the fishing grounds are areas where many types of radioactive material have already been dispersed

Adding more radioactivity is not a logical decision

Great science lesson, Jim Dandy. Cleared at all up for me. Thanks.

It is known to oncologists that Japanese females in their twenties have a 1 in 9 chance of developing breast cancer. This cancer was uncommon in the previous generation, at the same ages

Is that a lifetime chance, kurisupisu? Or is it that one in nine women will get breast cancer in her 20s. It seems awfully high. And even if this is true, can we attribute it to Fukushima or any other radiation? There could be slightly more breast material now.

Adding more radioactivity is not a logical decision

So please enlighten everyone with the logical solution.

Oh, and stay out of the rain. Tritium can be absorbed through the skin. You can’t wash it off because tap water has it too. It’s excreted quickly and doesn’t accumulate in organs. You’ve been exposed your entire life. Now what?

I have this vision of a bunch of fishermen in an izakaya drinking and smoking cigarettes, talking about the dangers of tritium.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_disposal_of_radioactive_waste

we are doomed.

Maybe next time the LDP will lose.

"I'm extremely worried as I don't know to what extent the release of the treated water will affect my work and livelihood," said Eitatsu Kikuchi, a fisherman preparing his boat in Soma, Fukushima Prefecture.

Yes, of course you don't. But you have to remember you were all sitting there, lapping up that electricity back when that plant was running. To the extent that not everything possible was done, a portion of the monetary savings ended up in your electrical bill which is not as expensive as it might have been otherwise, and to be honest if they had proposed a safety renovation while telling how much of a bulge it'd make in your electrical bill you might well have refused yourself. Sometimes the dice doesn't roll your way, and everyone has to take some of the hit.

:: Radiation in water from Fukushima will be diluted to almost background levels

When referring to background levels, the 'background' needs to be better defined.

The IAEA report actually answers this in detail:

The tritium natural background level in the Pacific Ocean is in the range of 0.1-1 Bq/L. The ocean dispersion modelling conducted by TEPCO indicates that concentrations of tritium above natural background concentrations will be limited to within 3 km of the discharge point at FDNPS. The concentration is much lower than the natural background level at the boundary of the model simulation range (490 km x 270 km), the maximum value being 0.00026 Bq/L, which is three to four orders of magnitude lower than the natural background level.

The IAEA were not kidding when they called the report "comprehensive". It is rather brutal in its detailedness, it does not leave anything open to speculation. One has to read it, though, even skimming the roughly 130 pages of content is a bit of a workout.

Why just 6 to 8 months though? The waste water release will go on for at least 40 years. You shouldn't eat seafood ever again

Because ocean water travels in 6 -8 months it will be around China, Russia, US, and Korea we saw the debris wash up in these locations 6 - 8 months after the tsunami

The IAEA were not kidding when they called the report "comprehensive". It is rather brutal in its detailedness, it does not leave anything open to speculation. One has to read it, though, even skimming the roughly 130 pages of content is a bit of a workout.

The final report issued yesterday is this one. 140 pays. It superseded the previous one.

https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/iaea_comprehensive_alps_report.pdf

Because ocean water travels in 6 -8 months it will be around China, Russia, US, and Korea we saw the debris wash up in these locations 6 - 8 months after the tsunami

The meltdown was a one-time event, the waste water release will be continuous, for 40 years at least. It sucks, but you really can't eat seafood ever again. Sorry.

(I'm kidding, beyond a few kilometers around the outlet one won't even be able to measure any increase in radioactivity anymore, let alone at an overseas' shore. You're fine, you don't even have to wait 6 to 8 months.)

The length of time to locate the melted fuel or corium, and come up with a method for its removable is at this stage unknown and could easily be more than 50 years during which time it must be cooled.

one_consciousnessToday  12:54 pm JST

Peter NeilToday 12:26 pm JST

I have this vision of a bunch of fishermen in an izakaya drinking and smoking cigarettes, talking about the dangers of tritium.

“They are not worried about eating the fish themselves. They're worried that people won't buy it bright spark./“

I think my cartoon is better than yours.

What if it turns out that it isn't safe and cases of contamination show up. What then? Is there are Plan B?

So it looks like there's no stopping this. If contamination is found in the ocean and sealife a few years after its all released, the Central Gov., LDP, TEPCO and IAEA should not only generously compensate the fisheries but also the geneneral public and set up funds for other countries once that stuff floats their way.

What if it turns out that it isn't safe and cases of contamination show up.

You know how they limit the discharge to 22 TBq per year? That number is not arbitrary, it's what Fukushima Daiichi put into the sea every year for 40 years, from 1971 until the accident in 2011.

Knowing that, did any "contamination" show up in the last half century?

I doubt it is really safe. But we must do something.

I know that 11 years ago the water in Fukushima was affected by radiation from the earthquake. I was surprised that the effects of the earthquake were still causing problems and that I could not enter the water. I hope things will return to normal soon.

It would be interesting to know since most of the papers that I have managed to find suggest a figure around 0.05 Bq/L, and that was generally for the northern hemisphere, with the southern Pacific being lower.

It fluctuates, that's why the IAEA is already giving a range of "0.1-1 Bq/L" and the number you found is probably also correct. It depends on the natural production of radionuclides -- ³H, ¹⁴C, ¹²⁹I -- in the upper atmosphere. One of the reasons why they are confident in calling the discharge "negligible" is because the amount discharged is not nearly enough to offset even the natural fluctuations.

As for the TEPCO modelling, I would like to see that report if anyone knows where it is.

To quote the report: "The model is called Regional Ocean Modelling System (ROMS, www.myroms.org), and it was validated using environmental monitoring measurements for the caesium concentrations in seawater after the FDNPS accident."

Based on the information they have it is safe. However, this amount of tritium tainted water has never been released into the environment. This means that this is all 'best guess' science. There are no models to compare to. Nobody knows what effect releasing this water over the next forty to fifty years will have on the environment and fish populations. If they are wrong it will be be an environmental disaster on an unprecented scale.

However, this amount of tritium tainted water has never been released into the environment.

Except it has, for half a century up until right now, by pretty much every nuclear facility in the world including Fukushima Daiichi itself, and occasionally in much, much greater amounts.

We already have this "problem". We can't do anything about it because that's how it's done. Nuclear plant wastewater is discharged wherelse but to the seas. All nuclear plants discharge wastewater to the seas.

If we are opposed to discharging wastewater into the oceans then what we can do is lobby to stop the use of all existing nuclear power plants

Ignorance and FUD.

Life has risks. People drown in water every day, but that doesn't prevent people from swimming or taking baths. We look at the science, see what it says. Get lots of experts in the relevant fields to look over the studies, then make the best decision possible. Appears that Japan as done this and the best decision is to slowly release the treated water into the ocean to be diluted even further. Now it is time to follow the plan and get on living our lives. Of course, storing the water forever isn't an option. Those tanks leak and need repairs. The science is all in. The fear mongers have had their say. They will keep playing "what if" for the rest of their lives rather than actually doing something constructive.

 i will avoid to eat seafood in japan afterward.

Not good enough! You got to stop eating any seafood from anywhere in the world!!! But you can eat river-fish as long as there is nobody taking a dump upstream... You can't eat vegetables either as you don't know if the farmer use too many pesticides and weedkillers. Therefore you got to grow your own vegetables and slaughter the farm animals you brought up on clean filtered water and all natural feed.

Good luck!!!

It is safe, and these antinuclear fanatics should calm down.

kurisupisu

You fail to acknowledge the dangers of bioaccumulation

There is no "bioaccumulation" of Tritium, as it is chemically the same as hydrogen.

And it is produced naturally. This nuclear panic is getting old.

There are 440 Nuclear power plants operating in 34 countries. They have been around since 1957 and there have been two and a half major accidents in those 66 years. I don't see anything that warrants the constant hand ringing and sky is falling trope.

440 Nuclear power plants operating in 34 countries

It's 440 nuclear "reactors" operating in 34 countries.

@wallace,

Ok, gotta be specific to be terrific