Japan's nuclear wastewater discharge plan widely opposed

Cartoon by Ma Hongliang

On June 12, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the operator of Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, started trialing the equipment that will be used to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the Pacific to confirm that it can operate reliably. The trial operation will last for two weeks.

According to Japanese media reports, the Japanese government plans to complete all facility-related preparations by the end of this month and officially start discharging nuclear-contaminated water into the Pacific after the task force of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) releases a final safety analysis report.

Once the radioactive wastewater is dumped into the sea, it will pose considerable risks on the global maritime environment. This approach is extremely irresponsible and violates Japan's international obligations to protect maritime environment as established in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Japan's selfish act will transfer the risk of pollution to the whole world.

Japanese society and the international community have voiced strong opposition to Japan's willful decision to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the sea. However, the Japanese government still clings obstinately to its own course and ignores this opposition. It is hoped that the Japanese side can faithfully fulfill its international obligations, stop its plan to dump nuclear waste into the Pacific, and abandon an approach that hurts the interests of all of entire humanity without benefiting itself.