Environmental group protests Fukushima wastewater discharge plan

Green Korea United, a local environmental group, staged a protest in front of the Embassy of Japan in Seoul on Wednesday, condemning Japan's plan to discharge approximately 1.32 million tonnes of wastewater from the destroyed Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean.

The activists displayed a water purifier attached to a mock barrel of contaminated Fukushima wastewater, provided by Jeski Social Campaign, a research group that creates public service campaigns.

They criticized the Japanese government for its lack of transparency and trustworthiness, stating, “Japan's Advanced Liquid Processing System has already failed, as they haven’t provided clear answers regarding the number of times the contaminated wastewater needs to be filtered to measure up to safety standards.”

Green Korea United said that discharging the wastewater would be amount to an international crime for spreading the fallout of the Fukushima nuclear disaster -- in which a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami led to the meltdowns of three of the nuclear power plant's reactors in March 2011 -- around the world through the seawater.

"Japan’s irresponsible actions will set an immoral precedent for the rest of the world in terms of handling nuclear waste," they warned.

The group requested to meet with Koichi Aiboshi, Japan's ambassador to South Korea, to deliver the contaminated wastewater "purifier" to him, but received no response from the embassy. The activists later tried to enter the embassy building but were blocked by the police.