Japan has been told that if the radiation levels in the treated nuclear wastewater from its disabled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant exceed safety standards in waters around Taiwan, it should stop the release of the water, a Taiwanese diplomat said on Thursday.
The diplomat, who asked to be identified only as an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Taiwan-Japan Relations Association, said that Taiwan’s conditions were put forth to the Japanese government by the association and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan.
Taiwan has also asked to put the issue on the regular agendas of the annual Taiwan-Japan dialogue on oceanic affairs and the annual discussions between the Atomic Energy Council (AEC) and its Japanese counterpart, the diplomat said.
Photo: Reuters
The aim of that suggestion is to devise the best ways to monitor the safety levels of the treated radioactive wastewater being released, the diplomat said.
JAPAN ACKNOWLEDGES
The Japanese representative to whom that proposal was presented has agreed to forward it to the country’s government and would inform Taiwan of the response in due course, they said.
The terms Taiwan has put forth for stopping the discharge of the treated radioactive water have been acknowledged by the Japanese government, which has said only that it understands Taiwan’s position on the issue, they added.
The diplomat was commenting on the government’s response to a protest held on Wednesday in front of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association by Taiwanese non-governmental organizations against the release of the nuclear wastewater.
The Cabinet on Wednesday said the nuclear wastewater would take a year or two before it reaches the Taiwan Strait.
The radioactive substance tritium is projected to reach its maximum concentration in nearby waters in four years, Cabinet spokesman Lin Tze-luen (林子倫) said, adding the expected maximum level is lower than the usual concentration of tritium in the waters around Taiwan.
As such, the impact on radiation-related safety near Taiwan is expected to be “negligible,” he said.
The AEC said the government had a plan to protect the public from radioactive ocean contamination by taking measures such as monitoring changes in the ocean flow and checking more frequently for radioactive residues in aquatic products.
The Fisheries Agency also said that a cross-ministerial task force in Taiwan had been monitoring food safety since the meltdown at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in the wake of the 2011 tsunami in Japan.
In preparation for Japan’s release of the treated nuclear wastewater, government agencies have expanded their testing of marine products, the agency said.
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