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Japan's plan to dump Fukushima water into sea raises alarm

Local fishermen fear release will raise concerns and devastate industry

Tokyo Electric Power Co. Holdings expects the wastewater storage tanks at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to run out of capacity around 2022. (Photo by Akira Kodaka)

TOKYO -- As the Japanese government considers releasing contaminated water from the disaster-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the environment, it is reckoning with safety fears that could hamstring local fishers and farmers who have struggled since the 2011 meltdowns.

A Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry committee came out with a draft report Monday including three proposals for disposing of the water: discharging it into the Pacific Ocean, evaporating it into the atmosphere, or a combination of both. The water has been filtered to remove much of the radioactive content and would undergo further treatment before release.

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