Environmental and fishing groups oppose the idea but many scientists say the risk it would pose is low.

The government says no final decision has been made.

The release of more than a million tonnes of water, which has been filtered to reduce radioactivity, would start in 2022 at the earliest, according to Japanese media outlets including national dailies the Nikkei and the Yomiuri Shimbun.

The water would be diluted inside the plant before release so it is 40 times less concentrated, the Yomiuri Shimbun said, with the whole process taking 30 years.

I don't see how the scientists who say that "the risk it would pose is low" could possibly know the real risks that 30 years of releasing radioactive water into the ocean would entail. I do know, however, that the ocean doesn't belong to Japan, and I really don't think they should be allowed to release such water without at least consulting with other nations around the Pacific rim.