Report on safety of planned water discharge from Fukushima Daiichi Site

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Task Force, which is reviewing Japan’s policy to discharge treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station against relevant international safety standards, has released its first report.

The report summarises the overall progress in technical preparations for the water discharge. It compiles the initial findings from the Task Force’s first review mission to Japan’s Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station operator, and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in February this year.

The report includes a summary of the Task Force’s review and assessment activities across topics such as the characteristics of the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) treated water, safety related aspects of the system built to discharge the water, the radiological environmental impact assessment, regulatory oversight, source and environmental monitoring programmes, occupational radiation protection, and the involvement of interested parties.

Preparing for the next steps in their review, the Task Force identified technical topics for further discussions and clarifications as Japan continues with its preparations. They also noted that TEPCO and METI put significant efforts into consulting with, and communicating to, interested parties and the public about the process to discharge the water. They look forward to seeing this continue as Japan approaches the 2023 water discharge.

The Task Force report is the first in a series as the Task Force carries out more missions to Japan in the coming months and years to assess the water discharge against IAEA safety standards.

The report is available here.