Recently, Japan announced that it would discharge the treated Fukushima nuclear sewage into the sea, causing an uproar in the international public opinion.

What's even more exaggerated is that the Japanese government actually launched the "radioactive tritium" mascot, which caused netizens to denounce!

So what exactly is the "tritium" in the Fukushima nuclear wastewater?

Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. It is radioactive and will undergo beta decay. It emits electrons and becomes helium-3 with a half-life of 12.43 years.

There are very few in nature, mainly produced by neutron irradiation in nuclear reactors using metallic lithium-6 or its alloys.

Wang Yi, a professor at the School of Environment of Tsinghua University and director of the Institute of Nuclear Environmental Engineering, said in an interview with the media that at present, the concentration of the radioactive substance "tritium" in nuclear waste water is still too high.

Although the radioactivity per liter or cubic meter will be reduced after being diluted by seawater in the sea, it is best in Japan to collect the radioactive waste water first, and then attenuate two to three radiation periods, preferably four. Radiation period.

In other words, it is safer to store it for another 30 to 50 years and then discharge it into the sea.

In addition, Professor Wang also said that it has been 10 years since the nuclear accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. According to media reports, Japan has collected a total of 1.37 million cubic meters of waste water. It can be imagined that in another 10 years, it will only collect more than 137 million cubic meters of waste water. Ten thousand cubic meters are less, so Japan is fully capable of collecting waste water and storing it separately.

Therefore, this current practice is extremely irresponsible and will seriously damage international public health and safety and the vital interests of the people of neighboring countries.

Copywriting & Creative Comics: Li Xueyao

Source: Popular Science China, CCTV News