Tokyo: High levels of toxic chemicals were found in groundwater tests at a new facility scheduled to replace Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market -- the world's largest -- clouding the costly relocation plan, news reports said yesterday.
The controversial project has been delayed over fears about toxic contamination, which also impacted the 2020 Olympics to be hosted by the Japanese capital.
The megacity's new governor, Yuriko Koike, has said she would postpone the move originally set for November last year, as she awaits final groundwater testing results at the new site, a former gas plant.
The relocation plan has been marred by problems, including the discovery that contractors had inexplicably failed to fill in a basement at the new site with clean soil as a buffer against underground pollution.
Results of the final testing showed that levels of toxic materials, including benzene, detected in underground water at the new site were above nationally set limits, the Yomiuri Shimbun and Jiji Press said.
It came after the previous test also showed high levels of mercury were found inside the facility's basement.
Plans to uproot the more than 80-year-old market, a popular tourist attraction, have been in the works for years, with advocates citing the need for upgraded technology.
The local government paid a whopping $750m in cleanup costs.
But Koike, a former TV anchorwoman elected last year as Tokyo's first female governor, has pledged to reconsider the plan.
"What we have to uphold is food security," Koike said Saturday, according to Jiji Press. "We may have to study further."
