TEPCO reveals scale of tritium leak into Pacific

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) has announced to the public the amount of radioactive tritium that has leaked into the Pacific Ocean since its Fukushima nuclear power plant was crippled by an earthquake-triggered tsunami more than two years ago.

Local media reported Monday that TEPCO admitted that between 20 trillion to 40 trillion becquerels of the highly-radioactive material likely leaked into the sea following the crisis in March 2011, at the nuclear facility in Japan's northeast.

The reports are in contrary to TEPCO's original claims that they had managed to contain the toxic water within the confines of the crippled plant.

Following probes from Japan's nuclear watchdog and claims by overseas regulatory bodies about TEPCO's ineptitude and lack of transparency regarding the severity of the nuclear leakage, the embattled utility finally conceded the scale of the radioactive tritium leak.

Media reports on Monday quoted a TEPCO spokesperson as saying that between May 2011 and July 2013, around 22 trillion becquerels annually of toxic water had been released into the Pacific Ocean from the stricken six-reactor plant.

The spokesperson went on to say the company would also conduct tests to estimate the amount of cancer-causing strontium which may also have leaked into the Pacific Ocean during the same period.

TEPCO's ambiguity and lack of transparency has consistently drawn the ire of foreign nuclear experts and regulatory bodies.

Foreign nuclear experts last month blasted TEPCO's lack of transparency over radioactive leaks.

"These actions indicate that you (TEPCO) don't know what you are doing.. you do not have a plan and that you are not doing all you can to protect the environment and the people," Dale Klein, former head of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, told a panel in Tokyo.

The utility has been plagued with a series of problems of late as they struggle to deal with huge amounts of radioactive water accumulating that has to be constantly kept cool by injecting water into the reactors.

Reports on Monday have also confirmed that radioactive groundwater at the plant is rising above a protective barrier built specifically to contain it.

Experts say that this is adding to the risk that yet more contaminated material will leak into the Pacific Ocean, as 400 metric tons of fresh groundwater is poured into the plant daily.

As the utility is fast approaching its capacity to store contaminated water, the Asahi Shimbun newspaper said that no one at TEPCO or the Nuclear Regulation Authority, could be reached for comment.

Along with its ongoing battle to limit radioactive leaks into the ground and ocean, TEPCO is also facing a massive, costly clean up operation and compensation costs that will likely force the company into permanent receivership.