IAEA and Japan held a preparatory meeting for the review on the safety of ALPS treated water at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station

From 15 to 19 November, three IAEA officials and three international experts (France, Russia, Republic of Korea) visited Japan, led by Mr. Gustavo Caruso, Coordinating Director for the Fukushima ALPS project, in the Department of Nuclear Safety and Security of the IAEA.

The purpose of this visit was to hold a preparatory meeting with Japanese counterparts to discuss matters such as a schedule relating to the first mission of the safety review of ALPS treated water at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in December.
 
The summary of the meeting and the visit to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station is as follows.

1. Preparatory Meeting with METI and TEPCO

During the week of November 15, a preparatory meeting was held between the IAEA delegation, METI and TEPCO. At this meeting, technical discussions were held on the IAEA safety standards to be referred to in the upcoming and future missions, the status of TEPCO's handling of ALPS treated water including the result of the Radiological Impact Assessment on humans and the marine environment of the discharge into the sea.
Furthermore, it was agreed again that the IAEA review mission will visit Japan to review 1) the radiological characterization of the water to be discharged, 2) the safety-related aspects of the water discharge process, and 3) the assessment of the radiological environmental impact with regard to the protection of people and the environment, in mid-December this year.
 

2. Site Visit on the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station

On November 16, Mr. Caruso and five other IAEA delegation members visited the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station to see the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS), the tanks for storing the treated water, and the harbor area which is being
considered for the installation of facilities for discharging the treated water is considered, all of which are to be reviewed.
"It was a very meaningful visit”, an IAEA official commented, “Every time we come here, we learn something new. The insights from our visit will support the ongoing review."

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  Advanced Radionuclide Processing System (ALPS)
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  A sample of ALPS treated water in hand

 

Division in Charge

Nuclear Accident Response Office, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy