Japan lifts radiation decontamination designation for Kawamata Town
Japan's Ministry of the Environment has lifted the contamination survey priority area designation for Kawamata Town in Fukushima Prefecture, effective October 30, 2026. The ministry acted because the town's average radiation level is now below 0.23 microsieverts per hour, the threshold that originally qualified it. Fukushima's governor and the town mayor both agreed to the lifting, which is the 46th such removal, leaving 58 municipalities designated.
Who is affected?
Residents of Kawamata Town and local officials who had been running radiation surveys and decontamination under the designation.
What changes?
Before, Kawamata Town was designated as a contaminated area needing radiation surveys and decontamination; now the designation has been lifted because radiation levels have fallen below the threshold.