Sartayev Yesbol, Hayashida Naomi
Research Center for Global Risk, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Department of Health Society and Statistics, Atomic Bomb Disease Institute, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
Research Center for Global Risk, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Department of Health Society and Statistics, Atomic Bomb Disease Institute, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
J Environ Radioact. 2025 Nov;290:107814. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107814. Epub 2025 Sep 13.
The Fukushima disaster is the first major nuclear accident to occur along a coastline. It sparked concern about the global dispersion of radionuclides via oceanic currents. The decision to discharge Fukushima tritiated water into the Pacific Ocean further intensified concern and criticism, despite endorsement by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The discharged water contains tritium concentrations well below international drinking water standards. The IAEA has verified the safety of the water and continues to oversee the discharge process to minimize potential harm to human health and marine ecosystems. Tritium, by contrast, is a naturally occurring radionuclide, and its controlled release from nuclear facilities is a globally accepted and long-standing practice. Alongside natural and controlled emissions, a massive amount of tritium was released into the environment during nuclear weapons testing in the 20th century-hundreds of times greater than the current global residual inventory. As a result, both human populations and ecosystems have historically been exposed to substantial levels of tritium without definitive evidence of adverse effects. This study reviews the risks of tritiated water in the context of major nuclear events and emphasizes its significantly lower internal dose contribution than naturally occurring radionuclides such as carbon-14 and potassium-40. It compares tritium's physical characteristics, biological behavior, and effects on human health with those of key radionuclides. Drawing on scientific evidence and empirical data from widespread nuclear testings, the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters, and regions with naturally high background radiation, this study finds no discernible risk at the current FDNPP discharge rate and argues that the controlled release of tritiated water poses negligible-possibly non-existent-risk to human health and the environment.
福岛核灾难是发生在沿海地区的首例重大核事故。它引发了人们对放射性核素通过洋流在全球扩散的担忧。尽管得到了国际原子能机构（IAEA）的认可，但将福岛氚水排入太平洋的决定进一步加剧了人们的担忧和批评。排放的水中氚浓度远低于国际饮用水标准。国际原子能机构已核实了该水的安全性，并继续监督排放过程，以尽量减少对人类健康和海洋生态系统的潜在危害。相比之下，氚是一种天然存在的放射性核素，从核设施中对其进行受控释放是全球公认的长期做法。除了自然排放和受控排放外，20世纪核武器试验期间大量的氚被释放到环境中，这一数量比目前全球剩余存量高出数百倍。因此，历史上人类和生态系统都曾接触到大量的氚，但没有确凿证据表明存在不良影响。本研究回顾了重大核事件背景下氚水的风险，并强调其内部剂量贡献比碳 - 14和钾 - 40等天然存在的放射性核素要低得多。它将氚的物理特性、生物学行为以及对人类健康的影响与关键放射性核素进行了比较。本研究借鉴了广泛的核试验、切尔诺贝利和福岛核灾难以及天然背景辐射高的地区的科学证据和经验数据，发现在当前福岛第一核电站的排放率下不存在明显风险，并认为氚水的受控释放对人类健康和环境造成的风险可以忽略不计——甚至可能不存在。
