A new commentary in the Japan Times by Ken Buesseler, highlights that the full extent of the radioactive isotopes in water in the tanks stored  at the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant require more study before the water is dumped into the ocean.

The Nuclear Regulatory Authority last month announced its approval for the discharge of more than 1 million tons of contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant directly into the ocean.

Japan’s nuclear regulator has stated that this can be done safely and the International Atomic Energy Agency has supported this position. We would argue that there is insufficient information to assess potential impacts on environmental and human health and issuing a permit at this time would be premature at best. READ MORE

A worker wearing a protective suit and mask looks at storage tanks for radioactive water under construction in the J-1 area at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s (Tepco) Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan, on Monday, March 10, 2014. Tepco’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant had three reactor core meltdowns after it was hit by an earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. Photographer: Toru Hanai/Pool via Bloomberg