Japan has decided to release its accumulated radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima nuclear plant. This decision has sparked significant public outrage. But where does this wastewater come from?

Japan was forced to use hundreds of thousands of tons of water to cool the out-of-control nuclear reactor following the 2011 accident at the Fukushima nuclear plant. So, what were they going to do with this contaminated water? The only option at the time was to store it. Over 1,000 water tanks were constructed for this purpose, storing more than a million tons of water.

Today, Japan aims to completely shut down this nuclear plant, but the presence of thousands of water tanks makes it incredibly challenging. Therefore, they need to get rid of this stored water, and the most practical way to do so is by removing the radioactive isotopes from it and then releasing it into the ocean. While it's possible to remove some radioactive isotopes in this process, unfortunately, tritium isotope is practically impossible to separate with current technology. Another solution is to store tritium-containing water for decades, considering its half-life is 12.3 years, but during this time, the water used to cool existing nuclear reactors would generate more waste. Therefore, Japan has opted for the "dilution method" to get rid of these radioactive wastewater.

In this process, Japan plans to mix the wastewater with water from the ocean, reducing the radioactivity in the water to 1,500 becquerels per liter, well below the 10,000 becquerels per liter limit recognized as safe for human consumption by the World Health Organization.

It's worth noting that Japan is not the first country to release Tritiated water into the ocean. Several countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and South Korea, have been doing this for years.

In summary, Japan's actions are unlikely to have a significantly unusual impact on human and environmental health.

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