TOKYO (AP) — Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency have urged the operator of Japan’s tsunami-wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant to urgently come up with a plan to dispose of massive amounts of radioactive water stored in tanks on the compound.
The 13-member IAEA team, concluding their weeklong review, said Tuesday that managing nearly 1 million tons of radioactive water is critical to the plant’s decommissioning.
The plant suffered triple meltdowns following the 2011 tsunami and quake that devastated northeastern Japan.
IAEA mission leader Christophe Xerri told reporters that whether all of the melted fuel can ever be successfully removed is uncertain because too little is known about damaged fuel inside each of the three reactors.
Plant operator TEPCO and government officials plan to start removing the melted fuel in 2021.
