South Korea to issue assessment of Japan's Fukushima discharge plan on Friday

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FILE — A view of the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Okuma, in Fukushima State, Japan on Dec. 4, 2019. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s final report declared the treated water from the destroyed nuclear plant safe, but critics continue to demand more transparency. (Ko Sasaki/The New York Times)

The International Atomic Energy Agency has approved Japan’s plans to release treated radioactive water from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima plant into the ocean.

PHOTO: NYTIMES

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SEOUL – South Korea will announce on Friday its own assessment of

Japan’s plan to release treated radioactive water

from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima plant into the ocean, a senior government official said.

The International Atomic Energy Agency approved Japan’s plans on Tuesday, saying they were consistent with global safety standards and would have “negligible radiological impact to people and the environment”.

Mr Park Ku-yeon, a vice-ministerial official at South Korea’s Office for Government Policy Coordination, said: “We are currently at the final stage... and will be able to explain the results at (Friday’s) daily briefing.”

The administration of President Yoon Suk-yeol has faced a tricky line responding to the issue, given improving relations with Japan even as the risk of a broader consumer backlash persists.

Some consumers have been

snapping up sea salt

ahead of the planned release of the treated water. REUTERS

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