The Japan-China-South Korea environment ministers’ meeting held a plenary session on the 29th in Seogwipo, Jeju Island, southern South Korea. From Japan, Minister of the Environment Shintaro Ito attended. They discussed cooperation on environmental issues such as plastic waste pollution, which is becoming increasingly serious worldwide, and adopted a joint statement with China’s Ecology and Environment Minister Hwang Jun-chiu and South Korea’s Environment Minister Kim Wan-seop.

During the meeting, Mr. Hwang touched on the discharge of treated water from the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean and called for thorough monitoring. Ito expressed regret that China is still using the expression “nuclear contaminated water,” and countered that the treated water “has been sufficiently purified and diluted and has no impact on people or the environment.”

Regarding the issue of plastic waste, the two sides confirmed their cooperation in advance of the Intergovernmental Negotiations Committee to be held in South Korea in November and December, aiming to reach an agreement on a draft treaty to control pollution. Mr. Ito said, “We are aiming for an effective treaty in which many countries, including large consumer and emitter countries, will participate.”

We will also proceed with broad-based discussions toward revising the action plan for 2021-2025, which includes measures for Japan, China, and South Korea to address in eight areas, including plastic waste.