A local civil group held a press conference in Tokyo on Monday on the issue of excessive levels of synthetic chemicals found in rivers and groundwater in various areas of Japan, questioning the standards set by Japan's Food Safety Commission and calling on authorities to conduct a thorough investigation. Last June, the Food Safety Commission announced the tolerable daily intake standards for organic fluorine compounds and released a risk assessment report on the chemicals. However, local civil groups believe that the commission did not give sufficient consideration to the impact on human health when formulating these standards and assessment reports, and say the data used is relatively outdated. The concerns center around the large volume of synthetic chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which are commonly used across society but may be deemed harmful to the environment, while some are thought to carry negative health effects. In recent years, excessive levels of organic fluorine compounds have been reported in water bodies in Okinawa, Osaka, and Tokyo, with abnormal blood test results being found among nearby residents. The U.S. military bases in Japan and Japan Self-Defense Forces bases near these areas are considered to be possible sources of pollution. As questions remain, the civil group is now calling on the Japanese government to request an investigation into U.S. military bases over the issue. Shotlist: Tokyo, Japan - March 3, 2025: 1. Various of press conference in progress, attendees, slides showing report on PFAS (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances); 2. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Harada Kouji, associate professor, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University (ending with shot 3): "The papers evaluating the impact of organic fluorine compounds on human health have almost never been referenced [by the Food Safety Commission of Japan]. I believe that the Japanese government's disregard for such papers is inappropriate."; 3. Attendees at press conference; 4. Representative speaking at conference; 5. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Terada Ryoichi, emeritus professor, Meiji University (ending with shot 6): "[Japan's Ministry of the Environment] currently follows the U.S. standard from 2016, which sets a provisional national standard for organic fluorine compounds at 50 nanograms per liter of water. But the U.S. has upgraded this standard to 4 nanograms per liter of water two to three years ago. Why is Japan still sticking to a standard that is nearly a decade old? This is questionable."; 6. Attendee taking notes; 7. Screen showing slides; 8. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Nakashita Yuko, lawyer: "Regarding the issue of organic fluorine compound pollution, a comprehensive investigation of pollution levels across Japan should be conducted. In the polluted areas, countermeasures that really tackle this problem need to be formulated. The most important step in this process is to get to the bottom of the issue. Without understanding the causes, how can effective remediation plans be formulated? Given that this is a health-related issue, there needs to be an agreement on an investigation inside U.S. military bases in Japan."; 9. Attendees looking through report; 10. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Terada Ryoichi, emeritus professor, Meiji University: "The Japanese government has yet to make a clear request to the U.S. armed forces for a thorough investigation. It is essential to have the U.S. side thoroughly address the pollution issue. Unfortunately, this has not been achieved so far."; 11. Attendees looking through report. [Restriction - No access Chinese mainland]