More than a decade ago, the facility was severely damaged after the impact of a powerful earthquake followed by a tsunami.

According to authorities, the sample must be studied in depth as it is essential to be able to design the decades-long decommissioning plan for the plant, taking into account the current radioactivity levels and the chemical structure of the waste generated there.

We hope this will further contribute to the accumulation of knowledge for debris removal, among other decommissioning work, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said during a press conference.

The process of removing fuel debris is considered the most difficult stage of the decommissioning work and Tepco – operator of the failed plant – had to suspend the complex sample collection operation several times over the past year due to various difficulties.

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