Marine Ecosystems and Global Citizens Threatened by Fukushima Polluted Water

Recently, concerns have risen regarding Japan’s discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. There is a speculation that the radioactively contaminated water can not only destroy the marine ecosystem but also threaten the health and safety of the people who consume seafood. Nevertheless, Japan released contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the Pacific Ocean on August 24th, 2023. Although Japan is promoting the safe consumption of marine products, it is factual that the radiation will pollute the marine environment and threaten the safety of global citizens. Influenced by this, it is expected to cause a significant impact on the demand in the seafood market. Therefore, the Dongguk Post would like to find out how the discharge will affect the marine ecosystem and what citizens should be wary of for one’s own safety about the release of radioactively contaminated water.

Learn about the situation by looking sewage discharge in Japan

Japan began discharging contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant on August 24th. In addition, a second discharge is planned to take place on October 5th. Tokyo Electric Power plans to dilute and discharge approximately 460 tons of contaminated water per day, using seawater for 17 days, releasing a total of 7,800 tons of contaminated water into the sea. After this release, a total of 31,200 tons will be discharged three more releases by March next year using the same method. Experts and reporters from around the world were dispatched to inspect the radioactivity levels of marine products, but Japan responded negatively to the intervention of third-party organizations, such as environmental groups, saying the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is participating in monitoring work. In addition, the Japanese government claims to dilute contaminated water by discharging it into the sea, but radioactive materials are not diluted; therefore, this claim avoids Japan’s responsibility, passing it on to neighboring countries.

Discharge of Fukushima’s polluted water threatens marine ecosystems and public health

Experts predict the timing of tritium’s inflow into Korea in four to five years, but the inflow from seafood consumption is unpredictable and should be more alert. Then, what are the demages caused by the inflow of the contaminaed water? The discharge of pollutants accelerates the degradation of the marine environment and adversely affects coastal fish and marine traffic, which has a fatal impact on fishing resources and ecosystems. In addition, the plan to discharge nuclear power plant-contaminated water for a period of 30 to 40 years could pose a real threat to biodiversity and the ecosystem, which are sources that humanity must strive to preserve and use together. Last year, a cooperative research report released by four state-run research institutes, including the Korea Maritime Institute, warned that “Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant discharge plan could threaten the marine ecosystem and damage Korea’s public health and safety.” This affects not only the health and safety of the people, but also the fisheries and marine tourism industries, which can negatively impact and damage the environment and pose socioeconomic risks to neighbor countries. In addition, if a large amount of tritium is released over long periods of time, there is a risk of it entering the human body through aquatic products and causing internal exposure. This is a concern as it may cause genetic modification, resulting in cell destruction, cancer, and decreased reproductive functioning.

Let us look at Korea’s response policy

Korea is conducting a thorough inspection of imported marine products and posts a daily briefing on the discharge of Fukushima-contaminated water on a policy information site. It operates a review team of the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety and Technology. In a daily briefing held on September 4th, the government expressed its position that “taking strategic ambiguity is helpful to the national interest” as to whether the discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant constitutes “waste marine pollution.” In addition, research reports from Japan’s national water pollution research institutes have been closed to the public due to their potential of causing confusion regarding the politicies. The government is promoting awareness by increasing the discount rate of marine products to boost consumption of marine products, injecting an additional 80 billion won in reserve funds, and holding fish market festivals. However, public opinions are still negative. Various response policies have also been presented at the local government level. For example, Gyeonggi-do Province proposed an “East Asian Nuclear Safety Regime” at the level of urban diplomacy as an international cooperation plan, and emphasized the importance of establishing a private international network that focuses on the importance of nuclear safety.

In conclusion, on August 24th, Japan began discharging contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Japan confirmed that they would dilute and discharge a total of 31,200 tons of contaminated water following the IAEA’s safety evaluation. However, there is no solution to the lack of trust in the safety evaluation. Moreover, the global community has a vested interest in this matter. The radioactive contamination has the potential to spread internationally, affecting not only the Pacific region but also potentially impacting the health of people worldwide. This underscores the need for rigorous monitoring, transparency, and collaboration on a global scale. We should pay attention to the destruction of the marine ecosystem, the health and safety of global citizens, and the harm to the survival of mankind due to the discharge of contaminated water. Additionaly, as there will be a second discharge of contaminated water soon, we must be more alert and look at the government’s daily briefing on contaminated water. Therefore, the Dongguk Post encourages Donggukians to look for more data related to this topic, and to gain an objective view regarding this is