Storage space for the water is running out, and the International Atomic Energy Agency has endorsed the release plan. The liquid is a combination of contaminated groundwater, seawater, rainwater, and water used for cooling, all filtered to remove various radioactive elements. More than a million tonnes of treated water is stored in tanks at the plant, where a tsunami triggered by an undersea earthquake on March 11, 2011, led to the world's worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl. That figure soared ten-fold in 2022, after official restrictions on fishing were lifted following extensive radiation testing.īut there are new worries for the community as the Fukushima Daiichi operator prepares to begin releasing treated wastewater into the sea this year. ![]() The increased catch is, however, mainly down to the employment of longline techniques learnt from fugu fishermen in southwestern Yamaguchi, which helped the region's fisheries bring in nearly three tonnes of tiger pufferfish in 2019. We can show them that fish from Fukushima is safe and delicious," he said.įive years ago, not much tiger pufferfish was caught off Fukushima, but local authorities say warmer-than-usual water temperatures may have helped the species thrive. "We're catching new, attractive species, and drawing attention from consumers. Now, each morning at Matsukawaura port, 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of Fukushima Daiichi, boat crews heave buckets overflowing with fat, dark-spotted tiger pufferfish into the arms of waiting family members.įor 43-year-old Ishibashi, the fish marketed as "fukutora" - meaning "lucky tiger" - lives up to its name. So when tiger pufferfish - an expensive variety of the notorious "fugu" - began to appear in their catch, they saw an opportunity.įugu is often served raw at high-end restaurants in Japan, where chefs must hold a licence proving they can safely slice around organs that contain a lethal poison. The cooperative he belongs to has faced tight fishing restrictions, and consumers have avoided produce from the region over radiation concerns.Īnd as the plant operator prepares to release wastewater treated to remove radioactive elements into the sea, the fishing community fears further reputational damage. In order to remember their efforts, there is a monument memorializing fugu in Ueno Onshi Park in Ueno, Tokyo.In the 12 years since the meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi plant caused by a deadly tsunami in northeastern Japan, "there hasn't been much good news", fisherman Masahiro Ishibashi told AFP. ![]() They publicized safe handling methods and lectures, which contributed to the spread of fugu consumption. Since then, further efforts were made to ensure the safe consumption of fugu, and in 1930, the Tokyo Fugu Ryori Renmei (Cooking Alliance) was formed. ![]() Ito Hirobumi, the prime minister at the time, praised the taste of fugu, and the prohibition law was repealed. Consumption became more widespread about 130 years ago. Then, in the 16th century, a law prohibiting the consumption of fugu was passed in response to an outbreak of deaths due to the fish's toxins. Fugu has a history within Japan that dates back many centuries, and though there are many different theories on its exact origin, fugu bones found in a kaizuka (a trash dump in ancient times, named for how mounds of kai, or clams were found there) dating back at least 2,800 years is evidence that fugu were already being fished and consumed at the time.
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