The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant finished releasing its sixth batch of treated radioactive water from the facility into the sea on Tuesday, with the next round possibly starting later this month.

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. released about 7,800 tons of processed water as planned in its latest round which began on May 17. No abnormal tritium levels were detected in nearby waters during the period, TEPCO said.

On May 22, the utility detected 7.7 becquerels of tritium per liter from seawater collected on the south side of the outlet. The amount was far below the World Health Organization's limit of 10,000 becquerels for drinking water, as well as TEPCO's limit of 700 becquerels that if reached would lead to the discharge being halted.

The company will continue to disclose the tritium levels detected in nearby seawater for a week.

TEPCO plans to discharge about 54,600 tons in seven rounds in fiscal 2024. The release of the water began last August as a key step in the ongoing decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi plant, which suffered fuel meltdowns in three reactors following a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011.

China and Russia, which oppose the water release due to safety concerns, have banned Japanese seafood imports in response to the discharges.

The wastewater, generated in cooling melted reactor fuel, has gone through a liquid processing system that removes most radionuclides except tritium, which is considered less harmful than other radioactive materials.

==Kyodo

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