Japan brushed aside local and regional protests Thursday to start releasing treated radioactive water from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.
Approved two years ago by the Japanese government and greenlighted by the U.N. nuclear watchdog last month, the discharge is a key step in a dauntingly long and difficult process of decommissioning the Fukushima Daiichi plant, including the removal of molten fuel after it was destroyed by a tsunami.
Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco) said the release began at 1:03 p.m. local time (4:03 a.m. GMT) and it had not identified any abnormalities with the seawater pump or surrounding facilities.
The polarising move drew fresh and fierce criticism from China as being "selfish and irresponsible." Beijing reiterated Thursday its firm opposition to the plan and said the Japanese government had not proved the legitimacy of the water discharge.
"The Japanese side should not cause secondary harm to the local people and even the people of the world out of its own selfish interests," China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
China has said it would also take measures to protect the marine environment and public health and would step up monitoring of radiation levels in its waters following the discharge.
Tokyo has in turn criticised China for spreading "scientifically unfounded claims."
It maintains the water release is safe, noting that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has also concluded that the impact it would have on people and the environment was "negligible."
The Fukushima Daiichi plant was destroyed in March 2011 after a massive 9.0 magnitude earthquake generated powerful tsunami waves that caused the meltdowns of three of its reactors.
The release of the wastewater has unsettled other countries in the region, with Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown saying that while science supported Japan's decision, the region may not agree on the "complex" issue.
Japanese fishing groups, hit with years of reputational damage from radiation fears, have long opposed the plan. They fear it will lead to a loss of sales, including from export restrictions to major markets.
Hong Kong and Macau – both Chinese-ruled regions – are set to implement a ban on Japanese seafood from regions including the capital Tokyo and Fukushima starting Thursday.
South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said import bans on Fukushima fisheries and food products will stay in place until public concerns eased.
The water will be released in smaller portions initially and with extra checks. The first discharge totaling 7,800 cubic meters – the equivalent of about three Olympic swimming pools of water – will take place over about 17 days.
According to Tepco test results released Thursday, that water contains about up to 63 becquerels of tritium per liter, below the World Health Organization (WHO) drinking water limit of 10,000 becquerels per liter. A becquerel is a unit of radioactivity.
Japan will conduct monitoring around the water release area and publish results weekly, the environment minister said.
Tepco expects the process of releasing the wastewater – currently a total of more than 1.3 million metric tons – to take about 30 years.
Civic groups have launched protests in Japan and South Korea, although South Korea's government has said its own assessment found no problems with the scientific and technical aspects of the release.
South Korean police arrested at least 14 protesters who entered the Japanese embassy in Seoul, according to an organizer and a Reuters witness.
Ahead of the release, a few dozen protesters gathered in front of Tepco's headquarters in Tokyo holding signs reading "Don't throw contaminated water into the sea!" The rally was over in about an hour.
"The Fukushima nuclear disaster is not over. This time only around 1% of the water will be released," 71-year-old Jun Iizuka, who attended the protest, told Reuters. "From now on, we will keep fighting for a long time to stop the long-term discharge of contaminated water."
