Presidential office demands apology from DP for 'false' claims about Fukushima water risk

The presidential office on Friday criticized the liberal Democratic Party (DP) for spreading false claims about the risks associated with the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, demanding a public apology.

Presidential spokesperson Jeong Hye-jeon speaks in a press briefing at the presidential office in central Seoul on Friday. [NEWS1]

The presidential office on Friday criticized the liberal Democratic Party (DP) for spreading false claims about the risks associated with the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, demanding a public apology.

“The absurd rumors made without any scientific evidence regarding the radioactive water release from the Fukushima power plant were proven false, yet the DP continues its irresponsible actions without offering an apology to the public,” presidential spokesperson Jeong Hye-jeon said during a press briefing.

"We hope that the DP will stop its divisive instigation and offer an apology now.”

Saturday marks one year since Japan’s Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) began its first round of treated radioactive water releases from the Fukushima Daiichi plant.

Tepco began its eighth round of releasing treated radioactive water from the plant on Aug. 7, which is scheduled to continue through Sunday. A total of 7,800 tons of radioactive water, generated during the process of cooling the reactors at the plant after it experienced a meltdown in 2011, is set to be discharged into the Pacific Ocean during the period.

“The government has conducted tests on approximately 49,600 samples collected from the country's waters over the past year, and not a single result has exceeded the safety standard,” Jeong said.

“The number of areas inspected for marine radioactivity was expanded from 92 to 243, with [the government] verifying the place of origin for every imported marine product.”

The presidential spokesperson stressed that some 1.6 trillion won ($1.2 billion) was spent on the inspection, calling it a "wasteful tax expenditure" that could have been used to support the socially vulnerable instead.

“Thankfully, the public has trusted the scientific evidence and the government,” Jeong said, noting that the consumption of marine products is on the rise.

Customers shop in the seafood section of a discount store in Seoul, where a notice is displayed saying that the store does not sell marine products from Japan, on Wednesday. [NEWS1]

The conservative People Power Party (PPP) also called on the DP to apologize to the public whom it says have been misled by the DP's myths.

PPP Secretary General Suh Bum-soo cited remarks made by DP lawmakers during the party’s floor meeting on Friday, including DP leader Lee Jae-myung referring to the processed radioactive water as “nuclear-contaminated water.”

“Words carry weight and come with responsibility,” Suh said.

On the same day, the DP criticized the presidential office for its attacks over the issue.

“On what evidence is the presidential office claiming that Japan’s release of radioactive water is safe?” DP chief spokesperson Jo Seoung-lae asked in a statement.

“The Japanese government has not provided any information on radioactivity since February, while its Environment Ministry revealed that the concentration of tritium rose tenfold in the area where the radioactive water was released.”

Tritium is a radioactive form of hydrogen that cannot be processed by the Advanced Liquid Processing System used to treat the radioactive water discharged from the Fukushima power plant.

Members of civic environmental groups hold a press conference in front of the Japanese Embassy in central Seoul to protest Japan's discharge of the treated radioactive water from the ruined Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. [NEWS1]

The Korean Federation for Environmental Movements (KFEM) on Friday disclosed a public poll regarding the discharge of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima power plant. According to its results, 76.2 percent of the 1,000 respondents oppose the discharge. This figure was down 9.2 percentage points compared to the survey result conducted in May last year.

The latest survey, which was conducted by Research View from Aug. 15 to Aug. 18, polled 1,000 respondents over the age of 18. It had a confidence interval of 95 percent and a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

On Wednesday, civic groups, including the KFEM, held a press conference in central Seoul demanding a halt to the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima power plant. They called on the Japanese government to conduct a transparent disclosure of the related data.

"The Japanese government and Tepco have irresponsibly begun dumping radioactive water from Fukushima into the ocean, disregarding numerous warnings from the international community," KFEM Secretary-General Lee Dong-yi was quoted as saying.

"The Japanese government must immediately halt ocean dumping, and the Yoon Suk Yeol government should engage in diplomacy that prioritizes the lives and safety of its citizens."

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]