South Korean Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Cho Seung-hwan told a news conference that more coastal measurement points will be added for this purpose.

We chose the points where the released waters are expected to arrive first, given the ocean currents. We will add more locations to the list, especially in the East Sea, to ensure safety further, he said.

Cho explained that in addition to the 75 spots in territorial waters, radiation tests are conducted in 33 more distant areas, and the ministry plans to increase the number to nearly 250 by next year.

South Korea began conducting emergency radiation tests in July on samples from 75 coastal points in the east, west and south of the country, as well as in the waters off the southern island of Jeju.

The monitoring began about a month before Tokyo began discharging treated radioactive water into the sea.

In 2011, Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant was severely damaged by a strong earthquake and a subsequent tsunami.

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