Abstract
On March 11, 2011, a massive earthquake and the resultant gigantic tsunami struck the Tohoku area of Japan (the Great East Japan Earthquake) and damaged many fishing boats and fishing ports. The earthquake and the subsequent tsunami also seriously caused the damage to Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FNPP). Consequently, large amounts of radioactive cesium (Cs) were released into the atmosphere and ocean and subsequently polluted fishery products of Fukushima and adjacent prefectures. The Fukushima Prefectural Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Association (Fukushima FCA) has voluntarily stopped the fishing operations off Fukushima Prefecture since March 2011 due to the influence by the FNPP accident. The concentration of radioactive Cs in seawater rapidly decreased by ocean processes, and accordingly the concentration in fishery products did reduce. From April to June 2011, the proportion of inspected specimens off Fukushima exceeding the Japanese regulatory limit was 57.1%, but it decreased and continued to be 0% after April 2015. In addition, most of fishing industries in Fukushima Prefecture have been already restored from the damage by the earthquake and its aftermath. The Fukushima FCA started the trial fishing operation from June 2012.
Highlights
On March 11, 2011, a massive earthquake and a resultant gigantic tsunami struck the Tohoku area of Japan
According to the report by the Fisheries Agency of Japan (FAJ), the aftermath of the earthquake damaged around 29,000 fishing boats and 319 fishing ports, which were approximately 10% of each total number in Japan [1]
Not all fishing boats and fishing ports in Fukushima Prefecture were damaged by the aftermath of the earthquake
Summary
On March 11, 2011, a massive earthquake (moment magnitude 9.0) and a resultant gigantic tsunami struck the Tohoku area of Japan (the Great East Japan Earthquake). According to the report by the Fisheries Agency of Japan (FAJ), the aftermath of the earthquake damaged around 29,000 fishing boats and 319 fishing ports, which were approximately 10% of each total number in Japan [1]. The Fukushima FCA did not fully grasp the radioactive pollution of fishery products off Fukushima by the large amounts of radionuclides from FNPP in March 2011. Not all fishing boats and fishing ports in Fukushima Prefecture were damaged by the aftermath of the earthquake. The Fukushima FCA decided to voluntarily stop the fishing operations off Fukushima for the food safety on March 15, 2011 [10] This voluntary stop of the fishing operations has been continuing from March 2011 to the present (August, 2019), by the monthly update.
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