"The issue of discharging water treated in the ALPS [Advanced Liquid Processing System] system cannot be postponed. We have reached the final stage, when the state must make a decision after a comprehensive review, including from the point of view of the maximum containment of the impact that this may have on fisheries," Kishida told reporters following the trilateral US-Japan-South Korea summit in Camp David, adding that he intends to visit the NPP on Sunday.
The prime minister also said he is planning to discuss the relevant issues with employees of the NPP operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO).
"As a responsible person on behalf of the government, I want to make sure that all measures are taken, that all those involved are acting with a sense of serious responsibility, that the top management of ТЕРСО is working with the firm intention of dismantling the reactor and rebuilding [Fukushima Prefecture], as well as to express my own thoughts directly on this account," Kishida was quoted as saying by the Japanese broadcaster.
The Japanese cabinet is set to meet to discuss the water release plan on August 22, media reported, citing sources.
Earlier this month, media reported that Japan is planning to release the treated water into the sea between late August and early September. Japan initially planned to begin discharging water purified of all radionuclides except tritium into the ocean 0.6 miles from the station this spring. However, the deadline was pushed back to the summer of 2023 due to adverse weather conditions and other factors.
The Fukushima nuclear disaster occurred on March 11, 2011. The plant was severely damaged by a magnitude 9 earthquake in the Pacific Ocean. This triggered a massive tsunami that hit the plant and caused three nuclear reactors to melt down. The accident is considered the worst nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl accident in 1986 and has resulted in widespread contamination of local soil and water. The disaster left 22,200 people dead or missing.