Soil From Decontamination Work Kept In Communities
Nine years after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident, more than half of the waste created by decontamination work is still kept near residents' homes.
About 14 million cubic meters of soil and vegetation has been collected in clean-up operations in areas affected by the nuclear accident in Fukushima Prefecture, except for heavily contaminated off-limit areas.
The environment ministry plans to transfer all such waste to intermediate storage facilities near the crippled nuclear power plant by March 2022.
As of the end of February, only about 6.3 million cubic meters, or around 45 percent of the total waste, had been transferred to the facilities.
The rest was stored at school compounds, parks, and temporary storage sites.
Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters on Friday that the waste needs to be removed from the locations as quickly as possible so that local residents can feel secure.
