The Japanese government acknowledges: delayed reporting of harmful substance leaks by the US military for up to 4 years, perfluorinated | requirement | event
Japanese government officials admitted on the 28th that the US military stationed in Japan informed Yokota Base in 2019 of fire extinguishing agent leaks containing perfluorinated and perfluoroalkyl substances from 2010 to 2012, but the Japanese Ministry of Defense only released the relevant information this year. This means that Japanese people have been unknowingly drinking potentially contaminated water for over a decade.
On the 28th, Japanese Defense Minister Yasuhiro Hamada said at a press conference that it took the Ministry of Defense four years to convey the contents of the report to local governments such as Tokyo after receiving reports of fire extinguishing agent leaks from the US military. He apologized and stated that "the information obtained should be promptly provided to the relevant local governments.".
The Japanese Ministry of Defense claims that multiple reasons have led to delayed reporting of the leak incident
According to the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the main reasons for the delayed reporting of up to 4 years include the need for coordination with the US military, personnel changes in the Ministry of Defense, and inadequate handover between responsible persons.
![The Japanese government acknowledges: delayed reporting of harmful substance leaks by the US military for up to 4 years, perfluorinated | requirement | event](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/6386d39f5b453df3c02aba285da4312f.jpg)
The Governor of Tokyo criticized the central government for perfunctory handling of matters
At first, the Japanese Ministry of Defense only provided an overview of the fire extinguishing agent leakage incident, which caused dissatisfaction from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike criticized the central government for being perfunctory, demanding the specific location of the incident, the amount of leakage, and investigating, analyzing, and evaluating its impact on groundwater.
The Japanese Defense Ministry said on the 21st that there were three foam fire extinguishing agent leakage incidents in Yokota base of the US military from 2010 to 2012, with a total leakage of about 3200 liters.
Suspected to be affected by the leakage incident at the US military base, groundwater in 17 areas of Tokyo has been found to exceed the standard for perfluorinated and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and more than half of the residents in Tama have abnormal blood test results.
![The Japanese government acknowledges: delayed reporting of harmful substance leaks by the US military for up to 4 years, perfluorinated | requirement | event](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/278c7d4ece91cdacca3f8bc41ca6157a.jpg)
Perfluorinated and perfluoroalkyl substances are difficult to degrade and accumulate in the environment and human body, hence they are called "permanent chemicals". Some experts pointed out that if a large amount of water polluted by this substance is drunk for a long time, it may affect reproductive health and children's growth and development, and even cause diseases such as breast cancer and prostate cancer.