Multiple foreign media outlets suspect that Japanese nuclear contaminated water has been discharged into the sea! British media: 44 fish found in Fukushima harbor with excessive cesium content | Japan | harbor

The plan of Japan to discharge contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea has been widely questioned. The Guardian reported on the 24th that the radioactive cesium content in the grouper caught by Tokyo Electric Power Company in the harbor of the Fukushima nuclear power plant in May this year exceeded Japan's safety limit by 180 times, which is not an isolated case. In the past year, 44 sea fish with excessive cesium content were found near the harbor of the Fukushima nuclear power plant, covering multiple species. The Associated Press reported in an interview in Fukushima that local fishermen generally oppose and question the government's plan to discharge nuclear contaminated water into the sea. A local fishing company executive said, "People don't trust the government and Tokyo Electric Power Company." In addition, although Tokyo Electric Power Company denies that there has been a leak in the nuclear reactor, 12 years of continuous sampling data from Japanese scholars indicate that radioactive material from the Fukushima nuclear power plant has been continuously leaking into groundwater and the harbor. In this situation, the Japanese government surprisingly increased its public relations efforts both domestically and internationally, while pointing its finger at China.

The Guardian: 44 fish found in the harbor of the Fukushima nuclear power plant have exceeded cesium levels

"On May 18th this year, a grouper living in the harbor of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant was caught. Testing found that its radioactive cesium content reached 18000 becquerels per kilogram, while Japan's safety limit was 100 becquerels per kilogram. According to Tokyo Electric Power Company, the cesium concentration in the seabed sediment in the harbor of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant exceeded 100000 becquerels per kilogram.".

On July 20th, multiple citizen groups in Japan held a rally in the center of Tokyo to protest against the Japanese government and Tokyo Electric Power Company's strong plan to discharge nuclear contaminated water into the sea.

In addition to this grouper, TEPCO confirmed that from May 2022 to May 2023, a total of 44 fish with excessive cesium content were found in the Fukushima nuclear power plant harbor, of which 90% were caught in or near the harbor. The report stated that other samples identified as having excessive cesium content were eel caught in June 2022 with a cesium content of 1700 becquerels per kilogram, and rock trout caught in April 2023 with a cesium content of 1200 becquerels per kilogram.

An official from TEPCO told The Guardian that Tokyo Electric Power plans to start discharging over 1.3 million tons of treated water next month, a process expected to take decades. "The plan has been criticized by the Chinese government and South Korean opposition parties, and has caused unease in some Pacific island countries."

Associated Press: "The good times in Fukushima are coming to an end."

"The beach season across Japan has begun, which means seafood for vacationers and good times for business owners. However, in Fukushima, this situation may soon come to an end." According to a report from Iwaki City, the largest city in Fukushima Prefecture, the Fukushima nuclear power plant will discharge treated radioactive wastewater into the sea within a few weeks, a controversial plan facing fierce protests both domestically and internationally. "Local people are concerned that the plan to discharge the sea 12 years after the nuclear disaster may once again damage Fukushima's image and severely impact their livelihoods."

"Without a healthy ocean, I cannot make a living," 70 year old local homestay owner Yukio Suzuki told Associated Press reporters. "If you ask me how to view nuclear wastewater discharge into the sea, I disagree. But I am powerless. The government has unilaterally formulated a plan that will be discharged no matter what." The report stated that Suzuki does not believe the Japanese government's propaganda, and he said, "We do not know if it is safe, we will only know it a long time later.".

According to reports, the local area is currently in the swimming season and is expected to continue until mid August. The Japanese government plans to start the process of discharging nuclear contaminated water into the sea as early as August. Suzuki stated that "it is completely non compliant for people to discharge nuclear wastewater at sea" and requested the government to wait at least until after August.

"Our plan is scientifically safe, and the most important thing is to firmly convey this and gain understanding," said Tepco officials to an Associated Press reporter who visited its factory. However, Fukushima local fishing company executive Takashi Yanagi, "People don't trust the government and Tokyo Electric Power Company. A sense of security can only come from trust."

In addition to opposition from fishermen, Japanese scholars have also questioned the way the Japanese government handles nuclear contaminated water. According to the Associated Press, Japanese officials have classified the main problem with the treated nuclear contaminated water as tritium, but the water also contains dozens of other radioactive isotopes. Since the disaster occurred, environmental science professor Katsuki Kodouchuan at the University of Tokyo has been regularly measuring the radioactivity of groundwater samples, fish, and plants near the Fukushima nuclear power plant. He said that his 12 year sampling work has shown that a small amount of radioactive material from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has been continuously leaking into groundwater and the harbor, and the potential impact of this issue on the ecosystem needs closer attention.

The Secretary General of the Liberal Democratic Party accused China of

The Guardian reported that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently countered China's decision to test Japanese seafood during his visit to the Middle East, stating that the Japanese government will urge "discussions based on scientific evidence.".

According to Kyodo News Agency, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Lin announced on the 25th that he will release a multilingual video introducing the "water treatment" plan to discharge into the sea. He has also posted an English video on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs homepage and video website YouTube, and will release Chinese and Korean versions in the future. On the 25th, Mao Mu Minchong, Secretary General of the Liberal Democratic Party, criticized China at a press conference, claiming that "the concentration of treated water discharged by China is higher.".

This is not the first time that Japanese officials have disregarded basic common sense, confused the public, and whitewashed themselves. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin previously stated that simply analogizing Japan's Fukushima nuclear contaminated water with the normal operation and drainage of nuclear power plants goes against scientific common sense. The contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan comes from the cooling water injected into the damaged reactor core after the accident, as well as the infiltration of groundwater and rainwater, including various radioactive isotopes released from the damaged core, which is completely different from the normal drainage of the nuclear power plant.