The expert explained why tritium from Fukushima is dangerous in small doses

The risk of developing cancer increases by more than five times even with a low concentration of tritium in water, said Sergei Mukhametov, senior lecturer in the Department of Oceanology at the Faculty of Geography of Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov.

Earlier, the discharge of water into the ocean from the emergency Japanese nuclear power plant Fukushima-1 began. Later, tritium was found in the water off the Japanese coast at a concentration of 10 becquerels per liter.

In an interview with RIA Novosti, Mukhametov noted that it is still unknown how tritium affects the body in small doses.

“The risk of cancer when drinking water, even with a low concentration of tritium, increases,” the expert said, citing data from a study by scientists from the United States. Thus, according to studies, the average risk of skin cancer for both sexes increases by 5 times when tritium enters drinking water at the level of the maximum permissible concentration.

The expert also pointed out that the requirements for the maximum content of tritium in water differ in different countries, and in Russia they are significantly higher than in Western countries.

Russia and China also expressed concern over the decision of the Japanese authorities to start dumping radioactive water from Fukushima into the ocean, China completely banned the import of Japanese seafood, in Russia they were banned even earlier.