Tokyo, Aug 25 (EFE).- Japan on Friday slammed China’s decision to suspend imports of all its aquatic products following the start of the release of treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
An aerial picture of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, 24 August 2023. EFE-EPA/JIJI PRESS JAPAN OUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY
Speaking at a press conference, Japanese Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said that the Chinese government’s decision was unacceptable.
An aerial picture of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and its tanks containing radioactive water in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, 24 August 2023. EFE-EPA/JIJI PRESS JAPAN OUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY
China, which has strongly opposed the release of the water, announced a ban on the import of all aquatic products from Japan to “prevent the risk of radioactive contamination” by the wastewater from the damaged nuclear power plant.
Nishimura said that the results of the seawater analysis done the previous day, when treated wastewater from the plant began to be released in the Pacific Ocean, would be made public on Friday.
This data will be published on a daily basis both by the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), which operates the plant, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (OEIA), which carries out its own analyzes in water, marine organisms and sediments around the plant.
Independent laboratories from several countries and Japanese fishing cooperatives are also taking samples and will publish their results in the coming days.
The Japanese minister added that the plan for the discharge of the water was science-based therefore demanded that Beijing lift what he described as its illogical restrictions.
Hong Kong has also banned seafood imports from a dozen Japanese prefectures, including Fukushima.
Other neighboring countries, including South Korea, the Philippines and other Pacific island nations have also expressed concern about the discharge of the water although they have stopped short of imposing restrictive measures. EFE
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