China, Japan Agree on Terms for Fukushima Discharge

China announced Friday that it has reached an agreement with Japan on the discharge of radioactive water from the ruined Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, a dispute that had been going on for more than two years. The deal calls for Japan to establish a long-term international monitoring arrangement and allow independent sampling, NBC News reports. The plant began discharging treated radioactive water a year ago, which China called "a major nuclear safety issue with cross-border implications." The plant was hit by an earthquake and tsunami in 2011.

The International Atomic Energy Agency had said beforehand that the planned discharge met international standards and would have a "negligible" impact on people and the environment. China also banned importation of aquatic products from Japan, which accused China at the time of spreading "scientifically unfounded claims." A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said the consensus, reached last month, "does not mean that China will immediately resume imports of Japanese aquatic products." (More Fukushima Daiichi stories.)