In a recent development, approximately 25 tonnes of radioactive water have leaked within the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, as reported by the plant's operator. This incident occurred just a week after the latest round of ocean discharge commenced.
The leaked water originated from a surge tank connected to the Unit 2 reactor building. Intended to be contained in a tank receiving overflow from the spent nuclear fuel pool, the contamination has now accumulated on the first basement level of the reactor building. TEPCO confirmed that the contaminated water has not escaped outside the reactor building.
The leak was first detected last Friday when a decrease in the surge tank's water level was observed. Further investigation revealed water flowing into a drain on the third floor of the reactor building. In response, TEPCO plans to deploy a remotely operated robot by Friday to measure radiation levels in the affected room, aiming to pinpoint the exact location and cause of the leak. Meanwhile, the cooling pump for the pool has been temporarily shut down as part of the investigation.
The Fukushima plant, which was severely impacted by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami on March 11, 2011, suffered core meltdowns that released significant radiation, marking it as a level-7 nuclear accident on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale. Since then, the plant has been managing vast amounts of contaminated water used to cool the nuclear fuel in reactor buildings, storing it in tanks on-site.
Despite substantial opposition both domestically and internationally, the ocean discharge of Fukushima’s nuclear-contaminated water began in August 2023. The recent leak marks the eighth round of ocean discharge. TEPCO plans to release a total of 54,600 tonnes of contaminated water in seven rounds during fiscal 2024, containing approximately 14 trillion becquerels of tritium.
The Japanese public's trust in TEPCO and the government has been eroding due to a series of mishandling incidents at the plant. A global opinion poll conducted by CGTN Think Tank revealed that 93.21% of respondents strongly oppose Japan's plan to dump nuclear-contaminated water into the sea. Additionally, 90.28% of participants expressed distrust toward TEPCO and the Japanese government, while 86.45% criticized the handling of the contaminated water as lacking scientific basis, openness, and transparency.
Reference(s):
Radioactive water leaks reported at Japan's Fukushima power plant
cgtn.com
