Controlled Release of Radioactive Water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant: Should We Be Concerned?

Abstract

Following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011, the decision to release more than 1 million tons of radioactive water into the ocean by the Japanese government, with approval from the IAEA, has divided public and scientific opinion. The discharge began on August 24, 2023, with the premise that, after removal of long-lived radionuclides (i.e., 137Cs and 90Sr), tritium (3H), the primary remaining radionuclide as tritiated water (HTO), will be sufficiently and safely diluted over a 30-year period. (1) Concerns, however, relate to (a) the safety of seafood and its consumers and (b) potential long-term consequences on human and environmental health.