In an interesting development, a professor from China raised serious concerns about Japan’s decision to discharge nuclear water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station during the 54th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council held on Tuesday. The concerns were voiced in a dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights, Li Shouping, who is a respected law professor at the Beijing Institute of Technology and also represents the China Society for Human Rights Studies.
Shouping extensively emphasized the fundamental belief that the environmental rights which all humans receive are essentially a collective human right that transcends national borders. This discussion further underscored the argument that managing and disposing of hazardous substances should not be the concern of one country alone. He further pointed out that Japan’s decision to discharge contaminated water validated his criticism, as it portrays a potential risk to the global community, future generations, and the marine environment.
This criticism is not the first of its kind. Just a month earlier, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had issued a working paper outlining their grievances with the Fukushima nuclear water discharge. It accused Japan of failing to meet its international obligations by discharging the contaminated water. The document referred to set international laws and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), stressing Japan’s obligation to protect the marine environment. It underscored that Japan, while disposing of nuclear-contaminated water, must take all necessary actions to avert any possible pollution damages to other states and environments.
The working paper also brought to light the London Convention of 1972, which categorically bans dumping of radioactive waste into the sea via man-made structures. It asserted that Japan’s decision to discharge nuclear water via submarine pipelines clearly violates this convention.
Earlier, prior to Japan’s announcement of the discharge, UN experts had raised concerns about the suspected presence of radioactive isotopes, including carbon-14, and its potential implications on human health and the environment. In response to this decision, hundreds of South Korean activists joined hands in August to protest against Japan’s move. Even China reacted by continuing its ban on importing food from specific regions of Japan, in an effort to prevent any potential radioactive contamination.
These developments indicate a rising global concern regarding the handling of nuclear contaminants and their potential long-term effects on human health and the environment. This report was first published on JURIST – News.