"日정부, 후쿠시마 오염수 바다 방류 방침 굳혀"

Ending over seven years of debate on how to dispose of the radioactive water from Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant,... Tokyo is reported to have finally admitted that it plans to release the water into the sea.
Kim Hyo-sun has more.
The Japanese government will most likely to release radioactive water from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant into the ocean,... amid growing concerns over its environmental impact.
Citing government officials, Japan's Mainichi Shimbun reported Thursday that the Japanese government will convene a Cabinet meeting on the matter this month to reach a final decision.
A massive amount of underground water has seeped in to cool the reactors that suffered core meltdowns in the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
The space, however, is expected to run out by the summer of 2022,... with contaminated water increasing by about 170 tons per day.
The stored water has totaled 1-point-23 million tons,... filling up over 1-thousand tanks as of last month.
In September, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Tokyo wants to "make a decision as soon as possible,"... on how to deal with the increasing water,... during his visit to the Fukushima plant.
According to Mainichi,... it would take at least two years until the water is actually discharged into the sea following the government's final decision to do so,... as a new system as well as an approval by Tokyo's Nuclear Regulation Authority are required.
Until then, the Japanese government will most likely try and persuade local fishing communities and residents who are widely opposed to the idea.
It's also expected to face increasing opposition from neighboring countries like South Korea.
Kim Hyo-sun, Arirang News.