Tsunami debris disposal completed on schedule in Miyagi, Iwate

The Environment Ministry said Tuesday that the disposal of tsunami debris from Miyagi and Iwate prefectures was completed on schedule on Monday, but has fallen behind in Fukushima Prefecture.

According to the ministry, about 18.77 million tons of debris from Miyagi and 5.74 million tons from Iwate were disposed of by March 31, Fuji TV reported. Eighteen prefectures helped with disposal of 630,000 tons of debris from the two prefectures.

However, work to dispose of debris from Fukushima has been hampered by the nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Only 71% of the 1.74 million tons of debris from the prefecture has been disposed of, the ministry said.

The government has been unable to find prefectures willing to help store and dispose of radioactive soil and other waste, and has only just settled on two sites for interim storage facilities in Fukushima.

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