14 DAY TRIAL // Yesterday, Tokyo Electric Power Company, otherwise known as Tepco, announced that it had implemented a water management system at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan. The facility's operator explains that the end goal of this initiative is to keep contaminated water from reaching the nearby ocean.
On its website, Tepco details that this new management system targets groundwater that passes through the premises of the nuclear plant and that becomes contaminated after coming in contact with radioactive materials.
The plant's operator details that, due to the fact that Fukushima is located at the base of a hillside, groundwater originating from uphill travels through its premises while heading towards the ocean. On its journey, this water can be exposed either to nuclear fuel, or to other contaminants.
Unless this water is recovered and treated, there is a risk that it will carry contaminants all the way to the ocean. According to recent estimates, about 400 tons of groundwater visits the plant's premises on a daily basis. Currently, Tepco deals with this water by storing it on site and treating it.
However, the nuclear plant's operator says that doing so is a bit of a hassle, hence its decision to implement a new water management system that aims to reduce the amount of groundwater that must be collected and treated before being released.
As part of this management system, Tepco workers are to pump groundwater into tanks before it gets the chance to flow downhill and across the nuclear plant's premises. After being stored, the water is to be checked for traces of contamination.
The water that is safe will be released into the nearby ocean as such, whereas the one that might pose a threat to public health and natural ecosystems in the region is to have contaminants removed from it before being allowed to seep back into the environment.
“Diverting this groundwater will reduce the volume of water that becomes contaminated and then needs to be cleaned and stored on site. This, in turn, is expected to reduce the burdens on the storage facility by slowing the pace of contaminated water accumulation,” Tepco writes on its website.
The nuclear plant's operator expects that, once up and running at full capacity, this so-called groundwater bypass system will help reduce the amount of groundwater that visits Fukushima on a daily basis from 400 tons to 300 tons.
The company stresses that fishermen in the region are well aware of its plans to deal with groundwater in Fukushima's proximity in this manner, and that they have given their approval for Tepco to implement this water management system.