Fukushima Radioactive Water Release: The Danger Of Tritium
Recent release of Fukushima’s radiation-contaminated water is facing full resentment from countless nations for its life-threatening impacts on human society
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(People are protesting about how the recent Fukushima water release would influence them harshly in multiple ways that threaten one’s lives)
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It is the biggest crisis of our generation
The world is shaking after the shock of Japan’s first release of radioactive water in Fukushima. Countless people, including experts, have warned the public that it would have catastrophic consequences and would impact all of us without exception. However, many people still do not recognize the severity or understand what is really “bad” about this situation. So, why are people so angry about Japan’s radioactive water release? What do they know, or what do they not know?
What is Tritium?
In chemistry, there is a concept called “isotopes”. Isotopes are versions of the same element with varying numbers of neutrons (a neutrally charged atom). Tritium is an isotope of hydrogen differing by having two neutrons in its nucleus, unlike regular hydrogen, which contains no neutrons. The big difference between the number of neutrons in hydrogen and tritium makes tritium unstable. No elements want to stay unstable; they rather want a stable composition. To achieve such stability, tritium, like other isotopes, tries to lose its energy by undergoing spontaneous nuclear decay, emitting energy known as radiation.
Tritium’s most common form is found in water ( H2O). Tritium atoms are capable of replacing hydrogen, forming HTO (hydrogen tritium oxide). Even in water, tritium’s radioactive property is maintained, which can be dangerous to anyone exposed to it. However, HTO’s chemical properties are the same as those of ordinary water, with no smell or color, making it harder for people to distinguish between safe water and unsafe HTO.
With that being said, the cause for tritium becoming a major concern lies in its reaction with seawater. Tritium does not dissolve or disappear at all, the only possible way to “get rid of it” is to dilute it by adding a large amount of water. However, even when diluted, tritium is still able to emit radiation. This means that tritium would remain for an extended period of time, possibly enduring for generations to come. What is even more concerning is that marine life from the very bottom of the food chain could potentially consume tritium. Eventually, tritium would reach us humans, who are at the top of the food chain.
Inside our foods, tritium possesses greater health risks, emitting radiation through decomposition inside our bodies. The radiation may cause damage to our body as well as lead to the growth of cancer cells. Many scientists are concerned that the internal radiation emission from the consumed tritium would not only influence the victims but also the next generation. Radiation may damage embryonic stem cells inside the mother’s body, causing deformities and even miscarriages.
Tritium does not stop
It may seem like tritium would only influence our physical health, but there are many more impacts that the exposure to tritium could cause to our society.
First, the fishing industry would fall apart. Although radioactive water would be released in Japan, the current in the ocean would carry the contamination. This means that marine businesses would inevitably suffer from customers’ fear and rejection of anything related to the ocean and tritium.
Second, people would boycott products from Japan. Japan’s action to release radioactive water waste has provoked rage and fear against them and already resulted in political tension between nations. China and Russia have already banned the importation of Japanese marine products, and anti-Japanese sentiments are on the rise globally. This could possibly cause serious diplomatic problems between multiple nations, impacting the economy.
The general public may think that the impact of tritium would just stop at a two-dimensional problem of “hurting the oceans”, but the conflict is actually much more complex. It is important for people to understand the situation clearly to prevent further damage to the world we live in.
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