Tokyo Metropolitan Government officials on Friday played down flooding beneath a proposed flagship food market in Toyosu as the result of heavy rain that will be pumped out or will seep away.
The water is of concern because the market stands on land that was polluted with toxic chemicals during its previous life as an industrial site. If the flooding is groundwater that has welled up, it may have brought contaminants.
In November, the complex was supposed to receive the fish and vegetable traders who currently operate at Tokyo’s historic Tsukiji market. Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike has postponed the move indefinitely.
In a bid to dispel fears, officials on Friday took reporters to see the space, beneath one of three buildings that will serve as a seafood wholesalers’ and fruit and vegetable wholesalers’ market.
In some areas the water was observed to be about 20 cm deep.
The officials said the problem will be fixed when construction is completed in mid-October. Pumps are currently being test-run at half strength and will shift the water more quickly in future.
They rejected suggestions that the water may be toxic, saying the level of benzene in the soil is within national safety standards and poses no hazard to health.
The land was previously owned by Tokyo Gas Co. It was found to contain residues of benzene, cyanogens and other toxic substances, prompting remediation work to remove the most polluted soil. Questions have been asked about the efficacy of the work.
The existence of the flooding problem was revealed by a group of Japanese Communist Party members from the Tokyo assembly. They have accused the Tokyo Metropolitan Government of slipshod handling of the matter from start to finish.
Source: Japan Times
