SNA (Tokyo) — Over twelve years have passed since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, yet the human toll and financial burdens continue to grow.

Just last Wednesday, four workers involved in cleaning the piping at the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) found themselves accidentally sprayed with radioactive liquid, with two of them subsequently rushed to the hospital for treatment.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) was quick to emphasize that none of the affected workers have “shown any serious health problems.” Naturally, the health impacts of radiation wouldn’t manifest immediately unless the exposure reached extremely high levels.

Despite TEPCO and government regulators consistently assuring that all safety measures are rigorously followed, this incident serves as yet another reminder that this isn’t always the case. For the ALPS cleaning operation, the workers were expected to wear a waterproof outer layer, a precaution not followed by the two hospitalized individuals, which allowed the radioactive liquid to permeate their clothing.

In the face of this incident, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has been supporting the Japanese government, maintains that the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean is “progressing as planned and without any technical concerns.”

A survey conducted by the Board of Audit estimated that, as of FY2021, the total financial costs to taxpayers for managing the nuclear disaster had reached ¥12.1 trillion (US$81 billion). This price tag may even double in the coming years, and it doesn’t encompass factors like the damage caused to exports due to bans on Japanese seafood linked to the recent release of radioactive water into the ocean.

This article was originally published on October 30, 2023, in the “Japan and the World” newsletter. Become a Shingetsu News supporter on Patreon and receive the newsletter by email each Monday morning.