Vancouver, April 8 (RHC)-- A seawater sample collected near Canada’s west coast has revealed traces of radioactive contamination originating from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan in 2011.

Scientists for the first time discovered traces of Cesium 134 off North American coasts, the Integrated Fukushima Ocean Radionuclide Monitoring (InFORM) Network stated on its website. However, the sample contained levels of Cesium “well below internationally established levels that might represent a danger to human or environmental health,” InFORM said.

The Fukushima disaster took place on March 11, 2011 when the area was hit by a magnitude 9 earthquake that triggered a devastating tsunami, leaving more than 18,000 people dead or missing. The nuclear plant, located on Japan’s northeast coast, suffered multiple meltdowns following the disaster. The destroyed reactors have leaked radiation into air, soil and the Pacific Ocean ever since.