Workers at the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan pumped less radioactive water from storage tanks into the Pacific Ocean in order to free up space for more highly radioactive water, despite the water being up to 500 times the legal limit for radiation levels. This was done while Japan works to decontaminate the nuclear complex and obtain a Russian ship used to dispose of liquid nuclear waste. There are concerns from some about the environmental effects of dumping the radioactive water into the ocean, though others believe the ocean can dilute it given its size.

1. Japan Nuke Plant Dumps Radioactive Water into Sea By Jim Chang

2. Background Information

3. On March 11 a devastating earthquake and a massive tsunami hit Japan

4. This destroyed the power plant’s cooling system and caused a nuclear meltdown

5. Workers pumped water from the ocean into the reactors in order to keep them cool and prevent further meltdown Water pumped into the reactors became radioactive

6. The container which stored the radioactive water was filled up and could store no more

7. The Actual Event

8. Engineers pumped less radioactive water in the water storage back into the Pacific Ocean In order to save the storage space in the container for more radioactive water

9. It’s better to have the less radioactive water in the ocean than the more radioactive water which must be kept in a container

10. The less radioactive water being dumped into the ocean is up to 500 times the legal limit for radiation Times 500

11. The government has asked Russia for a ship that is used to dispose of liquid nuclear waste as it tries to decontaminate the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex

12. The dumping of the less radioactive water shouldn’t be a problem because the ocean is very large

13. Hopefully people will learn from this disaster and prepare for any future disaster before it’s too late