Arab News Japan

TOKYO: Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has announced the completion of the fourth discharge of treated water this year from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and says the water was discharged “safely.”

The water is treated using the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) and discharged into the Pacific Ocean. TEPCO says the system is safe, while some environmental groups believe the discharged water affects the ecosystem in the area.

The fourth discharge of ALPS-treated water in FY2025 began on September 11. TEPCO says it analyzed the tritium concentration in the water after dilution with seawater and confirmed that the analysis values were “approximately equal to calculated concentrations” and below 1,500 becquerels per liter.

Seawater samples were taken from 10 locations within a 3-km radius and four locations within 10 sq. km of the power station.

TEPCO says the results were below both the discharge suspension level (700 Bq/liter or 30 Bq/liter) and the investigation level (350 Bq/liter or 20 Bq/liter).

During the fourth discharge, the amount of ALPS-treated water released remained constant at approximately 460m³/day. The discharge process was completed on Monday.

For FY2025, TEPCO has planned seven discharges, with each discharge releasing approximately 7,800m³ for an annual discharge of approximately 54,600m³. The annual tritium discharge volume will be approximately 15 trillion Bq.