In Seoul... Demands for Protection Against Fukushima Water Release

Protesters gathered in Seoul today, Saturday, to urge the South Korean government to take measures to avoid what they fear could be a "disaster looming on the horizon, resulting from Japan's discharge of treated water contaminated with radioactive materials from the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea." Japan began discharging water from the Fukushima plant north of Tokyo into the sea on Thursday, despite objections from within and outside the country from fishing communities and others due to concerns about the environmental implications. Choi Kyung-sook from the Korea Radiation Monitoring Group stated, "We will not immediately witness disasters like the discovery of radioactive materials in seafood, but this discharge seems likely to ultimately pose a risk to the local fishing industry, and the government must come up with solutions."