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Tepco to build underwater tunnel for Fukushima water release

Dec 21 (Reuters) - The operator of Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant intends to build an underwater tunnel to release water from the plant into the sea, it said on Tuesday, as part of a project to treat and dispose of contaminated water.

A decade after a massive earthquake and tsunami ravaged the northeastern coast, disabling the plant and causing the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, nearly 1.3 million tonnes of contaminated water has accumulated at the site.

The water, enough to fill about 500 Olympic-sized swimming pools, is stored in huge tanks at an annual cost of about 100 billion yen ($880 million), and space is running out.

This year, Tokyo Electric Power (9501.T) (Tepco) outlined plans to discharge more than 1 million tonnes of the water, after treatment and dilution, from a point about 1 km (0.6 miles) offshore from the power station.

Tepco submitted detailed plans on Tuesday to the nuclear regulation authority for approval, Junichi Matsumoto, a company official, told reporters.

Pumps would move the treated water from the tanks to the seashore and through a seabed tunnel to release it at a depth of 12 metres (40 ft), and about 1 km out at sea, the firm said.

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Emperor Naruhito met with former U.S. President Donald Trump for the first time in six years at the Imperial Palace on October 27th. The two exchanged greetings in English, with the Emperor saying, "I’m pleased to see you again," as he welcomed Trump to the Imperial residence around 6:30 p.m.

An elderly woman was found dead in a roadside ditch in Akita City on October 27th, with police investigating the possibility that she was attacked by a bear. A local resident discovered the woman lying face down in a drainage channel around 11 a.m. and called emergency services.

The Defense Ministry is considering deploying the Self-Defense Forces to Akita Prefecture following a series of bear attacks that have injured residents in recent weeks.

The Nikkei Stock Average closed at 50,512 yen on October 27th, surpassing the 50,000 mark for the first time in history and setting a new all-time high. The benchmark index rose 1,212 yen from the previous trading day, driven by strong gains across sectors.

McDonald's Japan announced it will phase out the use of paper straws and introduce new lids that allow customers to drink directly from the cup without a straw starting on November 19th.

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A memorial service marking 80 years since the end of World War II was held in Shari, a town in Hokkaido’s Shiretoko region, on October 22nd to honor those who perished in the Northern Territories and other areas.

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