A science academy in Russia’s Far East says seawaters around Japan contain very low levels of radioactive substances after Japan’s release of treated and diluted water from a damaged nuclear power plant into the ocean.
On August 30, the Pacific Oceanological Institute, the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences released findings from its own examination of seawaters in the Pacific, the Sea of Okhotsk and the Sea of Japan.
The institute is located in the Far Eastern city of Vladivostok.
It has conducted the independent study of the waters since 2022 before Japan began to release the treated and diluted water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in August last year.
It says in a report that one liter of seawater contained about 0.12 becquerels of tritium on average, which is much lower than Russia’s safety standard of 7,700 becquerels per liter.
The Russian institute says the level of tritium does not pose a threat.
As for fish and shellfish varieties caught around Japan, it says they can be eaten without any doubt, adding that so far, there have been no grounds that suggest people should be concerned over such marine products.
Russia has been restricting imports of Japanese seafood since October last year following the release of treated water.
Officials at the Japanese embassy in Moscow told NHK that they acknowledge what are written in the Russian academy’s report.
The officials said that they had provided the Russian side with scientific data, and they welcome the move taken by Russian researchers to verify the safety of seawaters on their own.
The embassy officials also noted that they will continue to request Russia to lift its import restrictions on Japanese seafood.
The discharged water has been treated to remove most radioactive substances, but still contains traces of tritium. Before releasing the treated water into the ocean, the operator of the Fukushima plant dilutes it to reduce tritium levels to about one-seventh of the World Health Organization’s guidance level for drinking water.