August 31, 2018

Fukushima fishermen are opposed to the central government's plan to discharge tritium-contaminated water into the ocean.

A government subcommittee discussing ways to dispose of an increasing amount of radioactive water held a public hearing in Fukushima's Tomioka Town on August 30 concerning the plan to dump tainted water into the sea as the government proposed in 2016.

After the nuclear meltdown accident at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in 2011, heavily concentrated tritium continues to be produced.

Many speakers criticized the government for not reviewing the plan despite the fact that other residual radioactive substances exceeding the national safety standard in addition to tritium have been detected in contaminated water.

Nozaki Satoshi who heads the Fukushima Prefectural Federation of Fisheries Co-operative Associations said, "To dispel reputational damage after the accident, we Fukushima fishermen had to undergo unimaginably heavy suffering both emotionally and physically."

Nozaki added, "By conducting trial fishing, we have little by little been able to regain public trust in Fukushima's fisheries products. The government plan will not only undermine our efforts but also bring about a sharp fall in fish prices and will discourage us from engaging in fishing. The plan will deal a fatal blow to the local fishing industry.

Ono Haruo, a fisherman, said, "Full-fledged fishing operations in Fukushima have been stopped for years since the accident. I'm worried we may lose our unique skills to catch fish."

Past related articles:
> JCP Fukushima lawmakers protest against TEPCO’s plan to discharge tritium-tainted water into ocean [July 20, 2017]
> NRA OK’s discharge of radioactive water into ocean [January 22, 2015]