February 22, 2022

On the 22nd, the progress of the interim storage facility for the waste from the decontamination of Fukushima Prefecture was shown to the press.
The delivery of waste from areas other than the difficult-to-return areas will be almost finished next month.

The Ministry of the Environment is storing decontamination waste from Fukushima Prefecture in an interim storage facility located in Okuma and Futaba towns, and the site was opened to the press on the 22nd.
One of the storage sites for soil from the decontamination process is 15 meters high and 900,000 cubic meters of soil is being piled up.

According to the Ministry of the Environment, 92% of the 1,400 cubic meters of decontamination waste generated in areas other than the difficult-to-return areas had been brought in as of November last year, and the Ministry expects to finish bringing in almost all of it by the end of next month.

In addition, waste generated in the areas where decontamination is being carried out in preparation for the lifting of evacuation orders will continue to be delivered.

It has been decided that the final disposal of the waste will be outside of Fukushima Prefecture by 2045, and the Ministry of the Environment hopes to reuse the soil from the decontamination for public projects.

Mr. Masanori Shoko, deputy director of the Fukushima Regional Environment Office, said, “It is important to gain nationwide understanding for the reuse of the soil, and we have been holding dialogue meetings, but we feel that the understanding of the younger generation is an issue. We would like to continue our efforts so that they will be interested in the final disposal outside of the prefecture.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/lnews/fukushima/20220222/6050017330.html?fbclid=IwAR1hiH53kc7RiR7wPIdX35SneWkjAqFeE0JVeH8rtNISyu4jRNoOtoIYnpo