Japan To Implement Compensation Rules For Losses Due To Rumors Of Fukushima Nuclear Plant

Illustration of the Fukushima NPP. (Wikimedia Commons/IAEA Imagebank)

JAKARTA - The Japanese government on Tuesday decided to set a standard within one year of compensation for businesses that suffer losses due to rumors that may arise when Japan begins dumping treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea.

As neighboring countries such as China and South Korea have expressed concerns over the release of treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi plant slated for spring 2023, the action plan includes having the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) evaluate water safety to ensure transparency.

Quoting Kyodo News on December 28, the Government will also set up a 30 billion yen (IDR 3,716,955,465,000) fund allocated in the 2021 fiscal supplementary budget, to purchase seafood products when demand falls and promote online sales of products by fishing groups.

During a cabinet meeting on the topic, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno called on members to "implement measures quickly and steadily and make as many consumers aware of (treated water) safety as possible to create an environment where people in the society can continue to operate and expand their business."

The action plan was formed when the government decided in April to allow Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. (TEPCO) to release significantly contaminated water into the ocean in a step-by-step operation.

More than 1 million tonnes of treated water had accumulated at the plant site after the massive earthquake and tsunami, triggering threefold devastation at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in March 2011.

The water is treated using an advanced liquid treatment system. The process removes most of the radioactive material except for tritium, which is said to pose a little health risk.

Based on the action plan, the government will establish a compensation plan for each industry such as fishing, agriculture, trade, and tourism and decide which period to compare when calculating losses before the operator of the Fukushima plant, TEPCO, establishes a compensation standard.

Meanwhile, the IAEA will send a survey team to the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, to compile a medium-term safety evaluation report in 2022 and will have a long-term involvement with the water discharge, according to the plan.

To note, the plan also includes conducting online surveys targeting consumers in South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and elsewhere starting in January to understand their perceptions of treated water and food products from Fukushima Prefecture.