The Science Behind Japan's Plan to Empty Nuclear Wastewater Into Pacific

Treated water from the wrecked Fukushima plant will be discharged into the sea from this week, a proposal that’s prompted alarm from nations including China.

Twisted sections of a reactor unit remain exposed at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant and a crushed metal tank lies near the coastline, reminders of one of the world’s worst atomic disasters in 2011 and a response that’s already cost about 12 trillion yen ($83 billion).

Huge cranes are stationed across the site of Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s wrecked facility, while some areas have been covered with giant dome-like structures as work continues to manage the removal of dangerous fuel debris.