Protests grow over Japan’s nuclear wastewater dump plan

Seoul, April 16 (RHC)-- The Japanese government announced this week that more than a million tons of contaminated water generated by the Fukushima nuclear disaster would be discharged into the Pacific Ocean over a span of decades, beginning in two years.  Regional capitals were quick to respond. 

Demonstrators called Tokyo’s move ‘nuclear terror’ as Japan’s announcement triggered protests outside the Japanese Embassy in the South Korean capital, Seoul.

Following the nuclear disaster in Japan, South Korea banned seafood from the Fukushima region, a decision upheld by the World Trade Organization. South Koreans now consume more seafood per capita than almost any country in the world, which is why people here are so concerned about the effects this discharge of wastewater could have on the country’s economy and public health.

Global fish stocks are already depleted, and the COVID-19 pandemic has also struck the South Korean seafood industry.  Environmentalists warn about the potential wider impact the discharge could involve.

Despite assurances from the International Atomic Energy Agency, which will monitor the release of the nuclear wastewater, activists plan to ramp up activities to force the Japanese government to abandon the discharge.