The Ministry of the Environment on Jan. 26 announced a schedule for decontamination work covering 26,700 hectares of "special decontamination areas" tainted with radioactive materials from the damaged Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.

The schedule eyes completion of decontamination work in areas where the yearly radiation dosage is below 50 millisieverts per year by the end of March 2014. However, the effectiveness of decontamination efforts is still unclear and there are a host of issues to deal with after the decontamination work is finished, including the building of infrastructure for each community. It remains unknown whether residents will be able to return to their homes.

The government's schedule does not clarify the targets for reducing radiation levels. The results of model decontamination work that the Cabinet Office is handling are expected to be released in February or March, and the Ministry of the Environment plans to wait for those results before deciding on targets.