Decontamination — financed with government money — of areas contaminated with radioactive substances released by Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant will start this year. As a preparatory step, the government has designated 102 municipalities in Fukushima and seven other prefectures in the Tohoku and Kanto regions as places for studying contamination situations.
After such studies, the municipalities will pick specific areas for decontamination and write detailed work plans. Areas with radiation levels of at least 1 millisievert per year (minus background radiation) will be subject to decontamination. In 11 municipalities of Fukushima Prefecture, the government will be directly involved in decontamination and disposal of radioactive waste.
Even if decontamination is done, it does not mean that evacuees can come back to their homes immediately. Many such people feel ill at ease about their future, which will increase as time goes by.