TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will on Monday meet fishing industry representatives in a bid to convince them of the safety of treated water due to beThe government is expected to decide soon when to start releasing the water, equivalent to 500 Olympic-size swimming pools, despite objections at home and abroad to the plan.
The water has been treated to remove most radioactive elements except for tritium, a hydrogen isotope that must be diluted because it is difficult to filter. The International Atomic Energy Agency last month approved the government’s plan for the water, which it says it can no longer store on site. China, in particular, has criticised it and banned some seafood imports. Citizens’ groups in Japan and South Korea are also up in arms.