Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant Sunday as the Japanese government prepares to release treated radioactive water stored at the facility into the sea, amid opposition from fishermen and some neighboring countries.
The visit comes before Kishida meets with his ministers Tuesday to discuss when to begin releasing the water. Government sources earlier said the process will start possibly between late August and early September.
The government is in "the final stage" of procedures before deciding on the timing of the water release, Kishida told reporters in Washington on Friday after he attended a trilateral summit with the United States and South Korea.
A massive amount of contaminated water has been generated in the process of cooling melted reactor fuel at the Fukushima Daiichi plant since it was devastated by an earthquake and ensuing tsunami in 2011.
The water has been kept in tanks after going through an advanced liquid processing system that removes most radionuclides except tritium, but the storage vessels are nearing maximum capacity. Tritium is known to be less harmful than other radioactive materials, such as cesium and strontium.
The treated water, which contains trace amounts of tritium, will be diluted to one-40th of the concentration permitted under Japanese safety standards before being released via an underwater tunnel 1 kilometer from the power plant.
Kishida is scheduled to inspect the facilities during the visit.
Fishermen and some neighboring countries remain opposed to the plan, with China introducing blanket radiation testing on Japanese seafood imports.
Kishida also plans to meet with the head of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations, possibly on Monday, according to government sources.
The government has been considering when to release the water since the International Atomic Energy Agency said in its final report last month that the planned discharge would comply with global safety standards.
