Significant Progress in Decommissioning of Fukushima N-Plant: IAEA

Tokyo, Feb. 17 (Jiji Press)--The International Atomic Energy Agency noted significant progress in the decommissioning of the Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s <9501> disaster-crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in a report compiled after the completion of its nine-day safety assessment Tuesday. "Japan made significant progress since our previous missions (conducted in April and December 2013)," Juan Carlos Lentijo, IAEA director of nuclear fuel cycle and waste technology, who headed the 15-member team, said in a statement. The IAEA team submitted a preliminary report to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry the same day. The final report will be delivered by the end of March. In the report, the IAEA pointed to some accomplishments made to improve the situation at the power plant, which suffered a triple meltdown after being hit by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and ensuing tsunami in March 2011, including the completion of the removal of spent fuel from the No. 4 reactor and the expansion of systems to clean contaminated water. At a press conference, Lentijo mentioned the possible release of low-level radioactive water from the plant into the ocean, a step likely to be strongly opposed by local fishermen. Lentijo stressed that the release of low-level radioactive water, after necessary treatment to remove high-level radioactive materials, has been practiced at nuclear plants globally, while noting that the IAEA is not in the position of recommending immediate implementation of the method. END