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WORLD NEWS Monday 28 august 2023

At Japanese nuclear plant, controversial treated

water release just the beginning of decommissioning

(AP) — At a small section inside the reactors makes
of the Fukushima Daiichi planning and develop-
nuclear plant's central ment of the necessary ro-
control room in northeast- botic technology and a
ern Japan, the treated facility for the melted fuel
water transfer switch is on. removal extremely difficult.
A graph on a computer "Removal of the melted
monitor nearby shows a fuel debris is not like we can
steady decrease of water just take it out and be fin-
levels as treated radioac- ished," he said. The project-
tive wastewater is diluted ed decades-long release
and released into the Pa- of treated water has been
cific Ocean. strongly opposed by fishing
In the coastal area of the groups and criticized by In this image made from video, South Korean lawmakers from left,
plant, two seawater pumps neighboring countries. Chi- Kang Eun-mi, Woo Wonshik and Yang Jung-suk, hold placards
are in action, gushing tor- na immediately banned which reads "Withdraw the discharge of the wastewater from
Fukushima nuclear power plant into the ocean" during a protest
rents of seawater through imports of seafood from Ja- in Iwaki, Fukushima prefecture, Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023. South
sky blue pipes into the big pan in response. In Seoul, Korean lawmakers attended a protest in Iwaki in Fukushima
header where the treated thousands of South Koreans prefecture against the release of treated radioactive wastewater
water, which comes down rallied over the weekend to from the region's crippled nuclear plant into the ocean.
through a much thinner condemn the release, de- (AP Photo)
black pipe from the hilltop manding Japan to keep it and TEPCO say releasing CO says it plans to release
tanks, gets diluted by hun- in tanks.For the wrecked Fu- the water is an unavoid- 31,200 tons of treated wa-
dreds of times before the kushima Daiichi, managing able step in the decommis- ter by the end of March
release. The sound of the the ever-growing volume sioning of the plant. 2024, which would empty
treated and diluted radio- of radioactive wastewa- The March 2011 earthquake only 10 tanks out of 1,000
active water flowing into ter held in more than 1,000 and tsunami destroyed the because of the continued
an underground second- tanks has been a safety plant's cooling systems, production of the radioac-
ary pool was heard from risk and a burden since the causing three reactors to tive water.
beneath the ground during meltdown in March 2011. Its melt. Highly contaminated The pace will later pick up
Sunday's first plant tour for release marks a milestone cooling water applied to and about 1/3 of the tanks
media, including The Asso- for the decommissioning of the damaged reactors will be removed over the
ciated Press, since the con- the plant, which is expect- has leaked continuously next 10 years, freeing up
troversial release began. ed to take decades. to building basements and space for the plant's de-
"The best way to eliminate They say the water is treat- mixed with groundwater. commissioning, said TEPCO
the contaminated water is ed and diluted to levels that The water is collected and executive Junichi Matsu-
to remove the melted fuel are safer than international partly recycled as cooling moto, who is in charge of
debris," said Tokyo Electric standards, and so far, test water after treatment, with the treated water release.
Power Company Hold- results by TEPCO and gov- the rest stored in around He says the water would
ings spokesperson Kenichi ernment agencies found 1,000 tanks, which are al- be released gradually over
Takahara, who escorted radioactivity in seawater ready filled to 98% of their the span of 30 years. But
Sunday's media tour for the and fish samples taken af- 1.37 million-ton capacity. as long as the melted fuel
foreign press. ter the release were below The release, which started stays in the reactors, it re-
But Takahara said the scar- detectable levels. at the daily pace of 460 quires cooling water under
city of information from The Japanese government tons, is moving slowly. TEP- the current prospect.q

Candidate who lost Guatemala’s presidential

election files complaint alleging voter fraud

By SONIA PÉREZ D. came to exemplify the po- electoral surprise in the first by the people through
Associated Press litical establishment in a round of the presidential vote."
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — country where many peo- contest, finishing second in He presented no initial evi-
The party of former first ple have grown tired of en- a field of 22 and advanc- dence to journalists to back
lady Sandra Torres, who lost demic corruption, has re- ing to the Aug. 20 runoff up his claims.
Guatemala's presidential mained silent since her loss with Torres. In comments to reporters,
election this week, filed a in Sunday's runoff election Carlos López, a lawyer for López alleged that there
complaint Friday alleging and has refused to accept Torres' National Unity of had been duplicate vote
fraud in the way the votes Sunday's results. Hope party, filed the com- tallies that called into ques-
were counted. While the Supreme Elector- plaint on behalf of the tion the country's vote-
The complaint is the latest al Tribunal recognized pro- party, citing irregularities counting system. Though
attempt to eradicate com- gressive Bernardo Arévalo in the vote counting. The according an official elec-
petition to Guatemala's of the Seed Movement complaint, read by The As- toral tribunal, in the 164
political elite in one of the party as the virtual winner sociated Press, said they voting stations called into
most tumultuous elections with a significant lead over amounted to "electoral question, two vote tallies
in the Central American Torres, final results have yet fraud that changed the – one for presidential elec-
nation's recent history. to be made official. true voting results, violating tions and another for mu-
Torres, a candidate who Arévalo emerged as the the popular will expressed nicipal – were expected. q