A €380 million plan to contain and decontaminate radioactive waters in the Fukushima power plant was announced by the Japanese government on September 3.
Authorities will attempt to build a subterranean ice wall in an effort to stop leaks of radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant after repeated failures by the plant’s operator.
Another measure will include upgraded water treatment units that are supposed to remove all radioactive elements but tritium.
Both projects of the plan are untested and unseen, and results are unpredictable.
“The world is waiting to see if we can carry out the decommissioning of the Fukushima nuclear power plant, including addressing the contaminated water issues,” said Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe.
These measures were revealed only a couple of days before the International Olympic Committee announced that the chosen location for the 2020 Olympics would be either Tokyo, Istanbul or Madrid.
Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco), the company in charge of the plant, has been struggling to prevent leaks into the Pacific Ocean, and to find a way to contain and treat the huge volume of water that has accumulated at the site since it was hit by a tsunami in March 2011.
Abe said the government would take a more active role in the biggest nuclear cleanup in history, due to fear and concern that Tepco cannot handle the issue on its own anymore.
