Japan's Plans to Dump Nuclear Waste into the Pacific Ocean
Many things are set to take place in 2023, one of them being Japan’s release of nuclear waste into the Pacific Ocean.[1]
Nuclear reactors work by controlling nuclear fission to create heat.[2] The heat is then used to produce steam that spins the turbine to generate electricity.[3] To maintain a consistent chain reaction and control the heat created in the nuclear reactors, the fuel rods inside of the reactor are submerged in water.[4] In 2011, Japan experienced a catastrophic meltdown of the nuclear plant at Fukushima Daiichi due to a tsunami.[5] Although the factory was shut down, the corroded reactors have remained hot due to the occurrence of long-term nuclear fission.[6] To cool the reactors, Japan has continuously used large quantities of water for the past decade, which has led to an accumulation of radioactive wastewater.[7]
Japan has been storing this highly radioactive water in containers near the nuclear reactor, accumulating 1.2 million tons of wastewater since the Fukushima meltdown.[8] Recently, Japan passed legislation indicating that once the 1.2 million tons of wastewater are treated, they will be dumped into the Pacific Ocean over a period of 30 years.[9] Although nuclear wastewater has been disposed of in this way before,[10] 1.2 million tons has never been disposed of in this manner and the unknown environmental effects could be detrimental to human and marine animal health. [11]
The material to be disposed of is radioactive waste that will be treated by the time of disposal.[12] However, treating the waste will not remove all radioactive components from the water it is dumped into.[13] Radionuclides will remain and inevitably interact with the environment. [14] Japan has stated they will remove as much as possible, but the government acknowledged that some particles they deemed to be low-risk will be distributed into the Pacific Ocean.[15]
The dumping of nuclear wastewater into the ocean is not authorized by international tribunals.[16] The London Convention and the London Protocol effectively ban the uncontrolled disposal of waste into the ocean[17] by prohibiting the dumping of waste with more than a de minimis amount of radioactivity.[18] Japan is planning to dispose of waste into the ocean slowly over time to appear to acquiesce to the de minimis standard.[19] However, Japan will dump 1.2 million tons of radioactive waste into the Pacific Ocean and over time, this will aggressively exceed the de minimis standard.[20]
Widely known and accepted safe methods of disposal involve the containment of the nuclear waste in different capacities.[21] The most respected methods involve geological containment underground with engineered and natural barriers to isolate the waste from the environment, in order to avoid any potential catastrophe.[22] Low-level waste is most often disposed of at ground level or below ground level.[23] The long-lived radioactive decay of the waste encourages deeper disposal sites that reach up to 5000 meters into the Earth’s surface for maximum isolation and deprivation of oxygen for maximum safety.[24] Temporary disposal techniques include storage ponds at reactors, dry storage in casks or vaults, and storage canisters.[25]
These accepted storage techniques all have one thing in common: they isolate radioactive material from humans and the environment.[26] Sea disposal does not do this. And 1.2 million tons of unregulated and unrestricted radioactive waste has the potential for global devastation. [27] Disposal into the ocean will create hazards for other countries in the region and potentially the entire world. [28] Marine life could have their DNA altered or damaged, which could severely impact the fishing industry, an industry people rely on for their livelihoods. [29] The exposure to toxicity could also increase cancers in humans. [30]
A better plan would involve the good faith cooperation of the international community in a comprehensive effort to handle the waste using a proven method involving containment and isolation.
Julia Wanamaker is a staff member of Fordham International Law Journal Volume XLVI.
[1]Pete McKenzie, In the Pacific, Outcry Over Japan’s Plan to Release Fukushima Wastewater, N,Y. Times (Dec. 30, 2022), https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/30/world/asia/japan-fukushima-wastewater-pacific-radiation.html.
[2]Nuclear 101: How Does a Nuclear Reactor Work?, Office of Nuclear Energy (Mar. 29, 2021), https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/nuclear-101-how-does-nuclear-reactor-work#:~:text=Inside%20the%20reactor%20vessel%2C%20the,to%20sustain%20the%20chain%20reaction.
[3]Id.
[4]Id.
[5] McKenzie, supra note 1.
[6]Awadhesh Jha, Nuclear power: how might radioactive waste water affect the environment?, The Conversation (Apr. 30, 2021, 9:25 AM), https://theconversation.com/nuclear-power-how-might-radioactive-waste-water-affect-the-environment-159483.
[7]Id.
[8]Shaun Burnie, The Japanese government and the Fukushima nuclear disaster – History repeating itself?, Greenpeace (Nov. 17, 2021), https://www.greenpeace.org/international/story/50827/japanese-government-fukushima-nuclear-disaster-history/.
[9]Id.
[10]Jha, supra note 6.
[11]Id.
[12]Id.
[13]Jha, supra note 6.
[14]Id.
[15]McKenzie, supra note 1.
[16] Ocean Dumping: International Treaties, Environmental Protection Agency, https://www.epa.gov/ocean-dumping/ocean-dumping-international-treaties#:~:text=The%20London%20Convention%20and%20London%20Protocol%20prohibit%20the%20dumping%20of,de%20minimis%20levels%20of%20radionuclides (last updated Mar. 8, 2022).
[17]Id.
[18]Id.
[19]Id.
[20]Id.
[21]Storage and Disposal of Radioactive Waste, World Nuclear Organization, https://world-nuclear.org/information-library/nuclear-fuel-cycle/nuclear-waste/storage-and-disposal-of-radioactive-waste.aspx#:~:text=Storage%20of%20used%20fuel%20is,the%20most%20radioactive%20waste%20produced (last updated May 2021).
[22]Id.
[23]Id.
[24]Id.
[25]Id.
[26]Id.
[27]Jha, supra note 6.
[28]Id.
[29]Id.
[30]Id.
This is a student blog post and in no way represents the views of the Fordham International Law Journal.