Hoyoon Min, “Is Our Ocean Safe?”
Mentor: Nan Kim, Anthropology
Poster #130

Twelve years after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami crippled the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, the Japanese government announced in April 2021 its decision to discharge 1.25 million tons of treated wastewater, also called nuclear contaminated water, into the Pacific Ocean. That would continue in stages over several decades for an estimated 30-40 years. And began releasing it despite considerable global opposition. In March 2011, an earthquake with a 9.1 scale magnitude hit Japan. The disaster caused an immense tsunami, which caused the meltdown of the nuclear power plant. Two years later, Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) approved the pumping and filtration system, the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS), introduced by the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). It began its operation in April 2013. This project aims to inform the public about the issue and make it easy to access relevant information. This research analyzes the reaction of South Korean society to the decision and process of discharging nuclear wastewater by the Japanese government. The project addresses Koreans’ past efforts related to the issue to track how Korea has dealt with the issue. Around 85% of South Korean people tend to object to the discharge of water into the ocean, while the Korean government backs the opinion of the Japanese government. Instead, the current Korean administration seems to be motivated by strengthening the South Korea-Japan relationship, in contrast to the prior Moon Jae-in Administration which pressured Japan not to discharge the water. Korean civic organizations have also been among the most active in the world in organizing events that bring attention to prominent scientific voices that are skeptical or critical regarding TEPCO’s plan for ocean discharge. The study is expected to raise the importance of the role of Korea in global society to deal with transnational environmental issues.