A group of South Korean lawmakers from the main opposition Democratic Party visited Japan to discuss their concerns over the upcoming nuclear wastewater release with the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) on Friday.

The South Korean opposition lawmakers met with some Japanese nuclear safety experts on the issue after their arrival. They requested a face-to-face meeting with representatives from TEPCO for more details and data on the release plan, but their request was denied. Later they handed in their opinions in paper to the company.

They held a press conference in front of TEPCO headquarters in Tokyo Thursday as they are against Japanese government's decision to release treated radioactive water from Fukushima into the sea, according to Kyodo News.

The Korean lawmakers also plan to meet with local residents and workers at the facility during their three-day trip to assess the impact of the wastewater discharge.

As a neighboring country to Japan, South Korea has ruled out lifting a ban on imported Japanese seafood from the area close to Fukushima nuclear plant in late March.

"With regard to the import of Japanese seafood products, the government's stance remains unchanged that the health and safety of the people are the top priority,”said the South Korean presidential office in a statement.

Growing risks

The Japanese government announced in January the country will start to dump over 1 million tonnes of irradiated water into the Pacific Ocean in spring or summer this year regardless of the opposition from the public in the country as well as neighboring countries and global communities.

Last month, some equipment used for the dumping plan of the nuclear-contaminated wastewater started operation, preparing the wastewater for the final discharge.

The crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant has made a substantial impact on its neighboring area as well. According to an exclusive report by the Mainichi Shimbun on Friday, about 34,200 tonnes of sewage mud containing radioactive material coming from the nuclear power plant accident has gathered in five prefectures in Japan's Kanto region. The radioactive cesium was mixed in the mud.

Moreover, on Tuesday TEPCO said the internal wall of a cylindrical foundation supporting the reactor pressure vessel of the nuclear power plant Unit 1 may be badly damaged, which shows potential risks for the plant to resist earthquakes. About 880 tonnes of highly radioactive melted nuclear fuel remain inside the three reactors. 

Struck by a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and ensuing tsunami that hit Japan's northeast on March 11, 2011, the No. 1, 2 and 3 nuclear reactors at the Fukushima plant suffered core meltdowns, resulting in a level-7 nuclear accident, the highest on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale.

Lack of support

A recent poll in Japan shows more than half of the respondents believe that "the discharge of nuclear wastewater into the sea has not received the support of the people in the country."

Japanese experts said that Japan pushing for the dumping plan runs counter to its international obligations as the project plan is in doubt as well as not transparent.

Kenichi Oshima, a professor at Ryukoku University, said "We believe it is impossible to accurately predict the ecological effects of ocean discharges over the next several decades."

He said the Japanese government and TEPCO vowed that they would never discharge the contaminated water into the ocean without the understanding from the fishermen and the public. Yet the local residents and fishermen haven't consent to such action.

"We must persistently demand that the [Japanese] government and TEPCO stop discharging ALPS-treated water."