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TEPCO to Start 4th Round of Fukushima Water Release in Feb.

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
The Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant is seen on Aug. 24 after the release of diluted treated water started.

Jiji Press

12:46 JST, December 22, 2023

Tokyo, Dec. 21 (Jiji Press)—Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. said Thursday it will start in late February the fourth round of releasing treated water into the sea from its crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan.

As in the previous three rounds, TEPCO will release about 7,800 tons of tritium-containing treated water from a point about 1 kilometer off the coast via an undersea tunnel after diluting the treated water with seawater.

TEPCO also plans to release 7,800 tons of treated water each in the fifth and sixth rounds, which are expected as early as April. The company will announce its water release schedule for the next fiscal year by March.

Since August this year, TEPCO has discharged a total of 23,400 tons of the treated water into the sea. Tests of seawater and fishery products by the company and others have found tritium levels far below the state-set safety standards.