Japan Lifts Shipment Restrictions on All Fish Species off Fukushima

Fukushima, Feb. 25 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government has lifted shipment restrictions on all of its designated fish species caught off Fukushima Prefecture that were introduced due to the 2011 nuclear disaster, a panel said Tuesday. The government's Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters announced the lifting after fish of the one last remaining species of the 43 satisfied safety standards. The restrictions had covered the 43 fish species caught off Fukushima, which hosts the disaster-crippled Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.'s <9501> Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. The last one is a species of skate. In August 2016, the shipment restrictions on the fish were lifted. But in January 2019, the restrictions were reinstated after above-limit cesium was detected from skates caught off Fukushima. Currently, members of the Fukushima Prefectural Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations voluntarily refrain from fishing in waters within 10 kilometers of the TEPCO plant, which underwent a triple meltdown after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. According to preliminary data, fish catches off Fukushima in 2019 totaled some 3,600 tons, just 14 pct of the amount before the nuclear accident. "Inspections have proven the safety" of fish caught off Fukushima, said Tetsu Nozaki, who leads the prefectural federation. "We're hoping (the latest lifting) will lead to the resumption of full-fledged operations." END