IAEA chief says no internal disagreement reported during process of producing Fukushima report

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at a hotel in Seoul, July 8. Yonhap

The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Saturday that there was no internal disagreement behind the IAEA's published comprehensive report on Japan's plan to discharge contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant.

"There is no disagreement. This is the final comprehensive report by the IAEA and no expert has come to me saying that he or she disagrees on the contents," Rafael Mariano Grossi said in an exclusive interview with Yonhap News Agency in Seoul.

He said that his recent interview with Reuters that said he "hinted" at discord among the team was "misinterpreted."

"What I can tell you is that we are very confident, as I said, with the way in which this (review) was conducted with the interpretation of the norms and the standards. So it is not a matter of a report that comes in spite of disagreements," Grossi said.

Grossi arrived in Korea late Friday for a three-day visit to explain the analysis of the U.N. watchdog's safety review of Japan's planned release of treated radioactive water from the Japanese plant

He was met by a group of angry protesters at Seoul's Gimpo airport late Friday.

Grossi flew in from Japan following the agency's conclusion that its plan to release treated radioactive wastewater from the plant into the sea was consistent with international safety standards.

While in Japan, Grossi delivered the IAEA's report on the wastewater release plan to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

The report was seen as a blessing for Japan's planned water discharge, expected to begin in August.

Grossi said he came to Korea to address "technical doubts" skeptics may have about Japan's water release plan using technology of the plant's custom purification system, known as ALPS.

He plans to brief details of the IAEA's report in meetings with Nuclear Safety and Security Commission Chairperson Yoo Guk-hee and Foreign Minister Park Jin later in the day. Grossi also plans to meet Korean opposition politicians on Sunday to explain to them the safety of Japan's plan.

Grossi said the report was not produced to "a Japanese taste or a Japanese convenience."

He said results would be the same in the case Korea commissions a review on the effects the water release would have on neighboring countries. "The science is one. The process that is going to take place is one."

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International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency at a hotel in Seoul on July 8. Yonhap

The director general noted that the comprehensive report is an "important piece" of the entire process but stressed that the IAEA's planned operation in assessing Japan's pledged implementations is "far more important" than the report.

On the timing of the report release, Grossi said the two-year study for him personally was "quite a long time."

"I must admit I was always asking my experts, 'Can you do it faster?' But it was a very thorough process. There were five interim reports you may be familiar with. So this is not a blueprint coming out of you know, a single exercise."

Grossi said the World Health Organization was not involved in the report but that the IAEA team followed safety parameters set by the U.N. health organization.

When asked whether the discharge is the only or best option for Japan, Grossi said he "shouldn't judge a political decision." "What I should do is to see whether as a result of a decision there is going to be a violation of a nuclear safety measure."

"And if that is the case, then I have the competence and I can say this is not in conformity, this is offside."

Grossi, however, said he also understood the people's anxiety surrounding Japan's discharge plan.

"This is why I go and meet with people who are frustrated, angry, do not understand and do not agree. I could say, 'This is my scientific report and deal with it.' But I understand that there are concerned mothers, fathers as well."

He also raised concerns about "inflammatory rhetoric" surrounding the IAEA's report.

"I fear that there is some inflammatory rhetoric that contributes to destabilize people and to instill fear."

On concerns surrounding Japan's transparency regarding compliance during the discharge process, Grossi said it was important for the IAEA to take responsibility of monitoring the process that is expected to take place over several decades.

"I told the Japanese government very respectfully. I said to them, 'If you do it yourself, people might not believe.' You need an international neutral authority, the only one that exists when it comes to nuclear is the IAEA that can support you in this to provide the necessary transparency." (Yonhap)