Dahr Jamail reports on Fukushima

Dahr Jamail | Fukushima Plant Is Releasing 770,000 Tons of Radioactive Water Into the Pacific Ocean

18 August, 2017



When Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant suffered a triple-core meltdown in March 2011 as the result of devastating earthquake, most people had no idea this was only the beginning of a nuclear disaster that has arguably become the single worst industrial accident in human history.



Keeping the three core meltdowns cool has been an ongoing challenge that has yet to be met. As fresh water is pumped over the cores, it is then stored on site in massive tanks. The Tokyo Electric Power company (TEPCO), the operator of the plant, then has to figure out what to do with that water.



Recently, TEPCO announced that it would dump 770,000 tons of radioactive tritium water into the Pacific Ocean.



The announcement infuriated local fishermen and environmental groups across Japan. According to Mozhgan Savabieasfahani, an environmental toxicologist and winner of the 2015 Rachel Carson prize, their outrage and alarm is not without merit.



"The release of thousands of tons of radioactive tritium by a giant utility company into our aquatic and natural environments is a blood-chilling prospect," Savabieasfahani told Truthout.



She questions why there is not more outrage from those in the Japanese government who are responsible for safeguarding the health and wellbeing of the general public.



"Where are the defenders of our public's health?" she asked. "If they could pull the plug out of their mouth, they could tell us that tritium is a toxic radioactive isotope of hydrogen, and that, once released, tritium cannot be removed from the environment. Let that sink in."




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