The International Atomic Energy Agency has approved Japan’s plan to discharge treated water from the Fukushima nuclear disaster site into the Pacific Ocean.
While Japan insists that the release is safe, an assessment with which the nuclear watchdog agrees, some other countries, China most vocally, complain that the proposal is a danger and threatening to the marine life that populates regional waters and to dependent industries.
IAEA approval is important but Japan must work harder still to win public support for its plan, both at home and abroad. Trust is vital to the success of this effort. A bureaucratic process will not deliver that outcome.