TOKYO — October 10, 2013 — The head of the U.N. nuclear agency urged Japan on Thursday to work harder to address international concerns about leaks of contaminated water at its crippled Fukushima nuclear plant and said his agency will jointly monitor radiation levels in the nearby ocean.
International Atomic Energy Agency chief Yukiya Amano told Japan’s top nuclear regulator in talks in Tokyo that it is crucial that the country share data with the international community about the safety of Japanese waters and marine life. South Korea recently imposed a ban on fish from the area.
Japanese officials acknowledged in July that the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant has been leaking radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean since soon after its March 2011 meltdowns. Repeated leaks of contaminated water from storage tanks at the plant have added to the international concerns.
‘‘Ocean monitoring is extremely important, and the IAEA would very much like to provide as much support as possible,’’ Amano told Nuclear Regulation Authority Chairman Shinichi Tanaka at the start of the talks. Monitoring methods and other details will be discussed when a team of IAEA experts visits Japan next month, officials said.
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