A UK–Japan research project is being scaled up to help clean water contaminated with radioactive material at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, according to a press release issued on 16 March.
The technology—initially developed in the UK—uses a bacterium to produce hydroxyapatite, a mineral that captures radioactive elements in contaminated seawater, surface water and groundwater.
The work is being undertaken in collaboration with the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, with funding from the UK’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Natural Environment Research Council.