Legal NoticeThis document is a tentative translation by the Foundation for Promoting Personal Mobility andEcological Transportation (Eco-Mo Foundation) of "Transport and Environment in Japan 2015",
published in March 2015 by the Eco-Mo Foundation under the editorial supervision of theEnvironmental Policy Division, Policy Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism(MLIT).
Initial translation was performed by a translation company, with necessary revisions madeafterwards. Unique terminology and phrases which cannot be understood without knowledge of thesocietal background and conditions involved in the Japanese transport environment have been replacedwith appropriate English expressions without being constrained by the original Japanese expressions.
However, no additional explanations or additional text has been inserted, and, wherever possible, thetentative translation is faithful to the original text.
This document is published on the Eco-Mo Foundation website (http://www.ecomo.or.jp/) andavailable for download. We hope that it may serve of assistance with the implementation of transport
environment measures in the reader's own country.

Table of Contents
Ⅰ．Developments Related to Environmental Issues in 2014 …………………

1

Ⅱ．Current Status of Major Environmental Problems of the Transport
Sector …………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2

Current Status of Global Environmental Problems ……………………………………… 2（１）Current status of global warming …………………………………………………………………… 2（２）The（２）
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol, and new legal frameworks … 5（３）Current（３）
Current status of global warming issues in Japan …………………………………………… 8（４）Current（４）
Current status of global warming issues in the transport sector ………………………… 10（Column:（
Column: Automobile ownership rates around the world）
world） …………………………………… 14

Current status of automobile gas emissions ………………………………………………… 15
Current status of waste and recycling ………………………………………………………… 17

Ⅲ．Measures
Ⅲ．
Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of
the Transport Sector………………………………………………………………………………… 20

Promotion of global warming countermeasures …………………………………………… 20（１）Transport（１）
Transport sector countermeasures…………………………………………………………………
countermeasures………………………………………………………………… 20（Column:（
Column: EV / PHV town concept）
concept） ………………………………………………………………… 25（Column:（
Column: Ecological and safe driving support services which use truck drive data）
data）… 27（Column:（
Column: Eco-tires）
Eco-tires） ……………………………………………………………………………………… 28（Column:（
Column: Near future eco-ship concept）
concept）…………………………………………………………… 32（Column:（
Column: Eﬀectiveness of car sharing in reducing environmental impact）
impact）……………… 47（２）Energy（２）Energy Saving Act-based measures ……………………………………………………………… 48（３）Emissions（３）
Emissions trading system measures ……………………………………………………………… 50

Promotion of emissions gas measures for trucks and busses (diesel vehicles), etc. … 51
（１）Promotion（１）
Promotion of emissions gas measures for diesel vehicles ………………………………… 51（２）Appropriately（２）
Appropriately maintained vehicle usage and appropriate fuel usage guidance ……… 53

Environmentally friendly vehicle promotion measures (vehicle taxation reevaluation) …… 53
Creation of a recycling-oriented society ……………………………………………………… 55（１）Creation（１）
Creation of recyclable resource distribution systems ………………………………………… 55（２）Creation（２）
Creation of vehicle recycling system ……………………………………………………………… 56（３）FRP（３）
FRP ship recycling ……………………………………………………………………………………… 57

Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc. ……………… 58（１）Measures（１）
Measures by local governments …………………………………………………………………… 58（２）Measures（２）
Measures by companies in the transport sector ……………………………………………… 62（３）Measures（３）
Measures by citizens' group ………………………………………………………………………… 69（４）Measures（４）
Measures by the Eco-Mo Foundation ……………………………………………………………… 70

Ⅳ．Measures
Ⅳ．
Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues ……………………… 79
Noise related measures ………………………………………………………………………………… 79（１）Automobile（１）
Automobile noise countermeasures ……………………………………………………………… 79（２）Rail（２）
Rail noise countermeasures ………………………………………………………………………… 80（３）Airplane（３）
Airplane noise countermeasures …………………………………………………………………… 80

Sea pollution countermeasures …………………………………………………………………… 81（１）Large（１）
Large scale oil spill countermeasures …………………………………………………………… 81（２）Countermeasures（２）
Countermeasures against harmful aquatic organisms in ballast water ………………… 81

Ship exhaust gas countermeasures ……………………………………………………………… 82（Column:（
Column: Promoting the turning oﬀ of ships engines when stopped!）
stopped!）…………………… 83

Chemical matters countermeasures …………………………………………………………… 84（１）Dioxin,（１）
Dioxin, etc. countermeasures ……………………………………………………………………… 84（２）Endocrine（２）
Endocrine distruptors countermeasures ………………………………………………………… 84（３）Asbestos（３）
Asbestos countermeasures ………………………………………………………………………… 85（４）PRTR（４）PRTR (Pollutant Release and Transfer Register) system …………………………………… 85

Ozone layer destruction prevention ……………………………………………………………… 86
Global environmental observation and monitoring ………………………………………… 89（１）Climate（１）
Climate change observation and monitoring …………………………………………………… 89（２）Himawari（２）
Himawari 8 and 9 ……………………………………………………………………………………… 90（３）Sea（３）
Sea observation and monitoring …………………………………………………………………… 90（４）Ozone（４）
Ozone layer observation and monitoring ………………………………………………………… 91（５）Promotion（５）
Promotion of steady observation at the south pole……………………………………………
pole…………………………………………… 91

Ⅰ．Developments Related to Environmental Issues in 2014
There were a great deal of developments in 2014, both inside Japan and overseas, related toenvironmental issues. Below are some of the developments in global warming, automobiles and theenvironment, and waste.

■Global warming related developments
The ﬁrst commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, which went into eﬀect in 2008, ended in 2012.
Japan met its greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. International talks aimed at creating aframework for 2013 and beyond (post-Kyoto) began with the COP13/MOP3 talks held in Bali,
Indonesia. In the COP18/CMP8 talks held in Doha, Qatar in December 2012 it was announced thatnegotiations would take place regarding establishing a new legal framework which would apply to all
countries from 2020 and beyond, with a consensus to be reached by 2015. The eight year period from2013 to 2020 is the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, but Japan decided not toparticipate in the second commitment period, instead choosing to implement voluntary measures. Dueto the energy problems resulting from the Great East Japan Earthquake and nuclear power plant
disaster (2011), the government revised Japan's 2020 emissions reductions target (25% reduction
compared to 1990), submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) Secretariat in 2010, from the ground up. At COP19, held in November 2013, Japanannounced a tentative post-Kyoto Protocol reduction target of 3.8% compared to 2005 by 2020.

■Automobile and the environment related developments
According to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and the Japan Mini Vehicle Association, theﬁrst place and the ﬁfth to tenth place best-selling automobiles were mini vehicles, and the second andfourth place best-selling vehicles were hybrids. Environmentally conscious vehicles such as minivehicles and hybrids accounted for the majority of the top-selling automobiles. From the perspective ofimproved automobile safety and harmonization of international standards, testing methods for the UN's
Global Technical Regulations on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Vehicles and Regulations on CNG/LNG
Vehicles were introduced into domestic standards, the mandatory installation of vehicle stability
control devices was expanded, standards were tightened for collision avoidance systems, andmandatory installation of these systems was also expanded. In order to accomplish this, the"Announcement that Prescribes Details of Safety Regulations for Road Vehicles (MLIT Announcement
No.619 of 2002)" was revised, issued, and enacted.

■Waste related developments
Waste disposal remains a major societal problem, but the Waste Disposal System Expert Committee,
established in September 2008 by the Central Environment Council, released a report concerning
waste disposal systems in January 2010. Key revision points included strengthening and thoroughly
enforcing the responsibilities of waste disposal operators, maintaining a licensing system for waste
disposal work, promoting improvements in the field, strengthening and thoroughly enforcing illegal
waste disposal countermeasures, etc., promoting and thoroughly implementing waste reductions andreuse measures, and aligning regulations with those of a low-carbon society.

1Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector

Ⅱ．Current Status of Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector
Current Status of Global Environmental Problems
Our globe is facing severe environmental problems, ●Mechanism of the greenhouse eﬀectModerate greenhouse
Greenhouse eﬀect
such as global warming and the destruction of theeﬀect

ozone layer. For the next generation to receive awith high concentrationof greenhouse gasses

Radiation into spaceplanet in which they can live in security, ourgeneration must rapidly implement countermeasures

Greenhousegas

to these problems.
Sunlight（1）Current status of global warming

Sunlight
Infraredlight

Infraredlight■ The mechanism behind and impact of
global warming
In order to produce energy, we burn fossil fuelssuch as petroleum, coal, and natural gas, generating
gasses such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and releasing them into the atmosphere.
Atmospheric gasses such as carbon dioxide absorb a great deal of the light from the sun, as well as
infrared radiation released from the earth's surface. This results in a warming of the atmosphere.
They act like the glass in a greenhouse, raising the earth's temperature. These gasses, which have
kept temperatures in the range suited for life on earth, are called greenhouse gasses.
However, factors such as the rise of industry have increased the amount of daily activity, producing a
rapid rise in the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted into the atmosphere. This has intensiﬁed thegreenhouse eﬀect, producing a commensurate increase in climate temperature. This is called global
warming. The 5th assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),
published between 2013 and 2014, states that the average global temperature rose 0.85 °C between
1880 and 2012, and that the temperatures of every ten year period of the past 30 years have been
warmer than any of the preceding ten year periods since 1850. Furthermore, it states that there is no
doubt that the climate system is growing warmer, and that it is highly likely that the main cause of
the warming which has occurred since the mid-20th century is human activity. Without measures toprevent global warming to counter the global growth in fossil fuel consumption, the concentration ofgreenhouse gasses in the atmosphere will continue to rising, resulting in further global warming. The
IPCC report says it is highly likely that the average global temperature at the end of the 21st century
will have risen by 0.3 to 4.8°C, and that the average sea level will have risen by 0.26 to 0.82m. Risks
resulting from climate change include droughts, flooding, rainfall changes, food shortages, negative
impacts on health, and reductions in biodiversity.

21 Current Status of Global Environmental Problems●Forecast of increase in average global surface temperature
RCP8.5: Unrestrained CO2 andother emissions resulting in large
temperature increase
Past period
model results

Largest amount of
global warming
Avg. for 2081
to 2100* Shaded area
indicates
degree ofSmallest
amount ofglobal warming* RCP2.6: Little temperature increaseas the result of constrained emissionsof CO2, etc.

Fig. Change in average annual ground temperature(Diﬀerence versus 1986 to 2005 average)
2081 to 2100 RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenario CMIP 5 multiple model
average distribution diagram(IPCC AR5 WG I SPM Fig. SPM. P.20, lines 21 to 22)
The north pole area will warm faster than the global average, and theaverage increase in tempertature will be greater for land areas than sea areas.
(IPCC AR5 WG I SPM Fig. SPM. P.20, lines 21 to 22)

Fig. Change in average global ground temperature
between 1986 and 2005
CMIP5 simulated timeline based on multiple models (1950 to 2100)
Source: Figure: IPCC AR5 WG I SPM Fig. SPM.7(a)Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Ministry of Environment (MOE) "Overview of IPCC 5th assessment"■Impact of individual greenhouse gasses on global warming
In addition to carbon dioxide, greenhouse gasses which cause global warming include methane,
dinitrogen monoxide, and chloroﬂuorocarbon. According to the IPCC, the greenhouse eﬀects per unitof volume of methane, dinitrogen monoxide, and chloroﬂuorocarbon, etc., are far stronger than those ofcarbon dioxide, but the amount of carbon dioxide being emitted is tremendous, so carbon dioxide
emissions worldwide since the industrial revolution account for roughly 60% of all greenhouse gas
contributions to global warming. For Japan, in 2012 carbon dioxide accounted for 95% of all greenhousegas contributions to global warming, an extremely high ﬁgure.
●Greenhouse gas and global warming potential (100 year period)(*1)

Global warming potential（100 year cumulative period）*1: Global warming potential*2: HFC*3: PFC

CarbondioxideMethaneDinitrogenmonoxide

HFC（*2）

PFC（*3）

SF6

1

25

298

1,430

9,300

22,800Warming eﬀect of greenhouse gasses over a 100 year period(using carbon dioxide as a baseline with a value of 1)
Calculated for HFC-134a, a typical HFC used as a coolant
Calculated for PFC-5-1-14, a typical PFC used in rectiﬁers● Contributions to global warming by greenhousegasses emitted by Japan(for 2012)● Contributions to global warming by greenhousegasses emitted due to human activity since theindustrial revolution
Chloroﬂuorocarbons
which destroy theozone layer(CFCs and HCFCs)

14%

and
halon

Source: IPCC（2007）

Chloroﬂuorocarbon
alternatives which do not
destroy the ozone layer,etc.
(HFCs, PFCs, SF₆)

Hydroﬂuorocarbons（HFCS）

1.7%

Dinitrogen monoxide（N₂O）

0.5% or lessPerﬂuorocarbons（PFCS）

0.2%

1.5%

Sulfur hexaﬂuoride
（SF₆）

0.1%

Methane（CH₄）

1.5%

Dinitrogenmonoxide(N₂O)

6%Methane (CH₄)

20%

Carbon dioxide
(CO₂)

60%

Carbon dioxide（CO₂）

95.0%

Source: IPCC 4th assessment report 1st working groupmaterials (2007)

Source: GIO "Greenhouse Gas Inventory"3

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector■Trends in concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere varies cyclically every year due to factors
such as plant photosynthesis. The amount of change also depends on the location, due to diﬀerences inlocal vegetation, etc. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere remained roughly stable
at 280ppm (ppm: parts per million) before the industrial revolution in the latter 18th century, but the
rapid increase in manufacturing and production activities following the industrial revolution has beenaccompanied by an increase in the carbon dioxide concentration. According to IPCC's 5th assessment
report the carbon dioxide concentration in 2011 was 390.5ppm, significantly higher than theconcentration before the industrial revolution.

Carbon dioxide concentration（ppm）●Change in carbon dioxide concentration at typical global observation points
Mauna Loa（Hawaii）
Ryori（Japan）
South Pole

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) "Climate Change Monitoring
Report 2013"■Carbon dioxide emission volume by country
Carbon dioxide emission volume by country is as follows: China 26.9%, America 16.6%, India 5.7%,
Russia 5.3%, followed by Japan at 3.7%. In terms of per capita emissions by country, Japan is number
9.

● Share of carbon dioxide emission volume bycountry (2011)
Hong Kong 0.1%
Peru 0.1%
New Zealand 0.1%
Chile 0.2%
Singapore 0.2%
Philippines 0.2%
Vietnam 0.4%
Malaysia 0.6%
Thailand 0.7%
Taiwan 0.8%
Ukraine 0.9%
France 1.0%
Italy 1.2%
Australia 1.2%
Brazil 1.3%
Indonesia 1.3%
Mexico 1.4%

● Per capita carbon dioxide emission volume bycountry (2011)
BruneiU.S.
Australia
CanadaSingapore
RussiaSouth Korea
TaiwanJapan
Germany
UK
Hong Kong
New Zealand
Malaysia
UkraineChina
Italy
FranceChile
MexicoThailandBrazilIndonesia
Vietnam
India
Peru
Philippines

China

26.9%

Other

23.2%

Global average
CO₂ emissions

31.8 billion tons
U.S.

16.6%
Russia
Japan

3.7%

5.3%

India

5.7%

UK 1.4%Germany 2.2%
Canada 1.4%
South Korea 1.8%

0

2.0
1.6
1.5
1.5
1.5
0.8

5.0
4.5
3.8
3.4

5

7.2
6.7
6.7
6.6
6.5
6.4
6.2

9.2
8.7

10

13.2
11.9
11.7
11.6
11.3

15

23.1

16.9
16.4

20

25

tCO₂/person

Source: EDMC "Handbook of Energy & Economic Statistics in Japan 2014"4

1 Current Status of Global Environmental Problems（2）The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, theKyoto Protocol, and new legal frameworks■UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol
UNFCCC was formulated with the objective of stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations at a levelthat would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. It was adopted in
May 1992, and after being signed by the heads of states at the June 1992 United Nations Conference
on Environment and Development (held in Rio de Janeiro), it went into eﬀect in March 1994. As of
March 2013 the European Union (EU) and 194 countries, including Japan, are signatories. In December
1997 the third Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC (COP3) was held in Kyoto, and the Kyoto
Protocol for achieving the convention's objectives was adopted. The Kyoto Protocol specifies thepercentage by which average annual greenhouse gas emissions by developed countries are to be
reduced versus a reference year (in principle 1990) during the period from 2008 to 2012 (the firstcommitment period). Japan was to have reduced emissions by 6%, America by 7%, and the EU by 8%.
No binding targets were set for developing countries. The November 2004 ratification by Russia
satisﬁed the Kyoto Protocol's requirements for coming into force, and the treaty became eﬀective on
February 16, 2005. The U.S. did not ratify the Kyoto Protocol.

■New legal frameworks
In order to further accelerate global warming countermeasures and achieve treaty objectives, it isessential that there be a fair and eﬀective new framework in which all countries, including the largest
emissions producing countries, such as the U.S., China, and India, participate responsibly. At COP18/
CMP8, held in December 2012 in Doha, Qatar, it was announced that negotiations were underway
aimed at achieving a consensus in 2015 regarding the establishment of a new legal framework which
would apply to all countries from 2020 onwards. These negotiations are currently underway.
The results of the December 2014 COP20/CMP10 are shown below.
The 20th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (COP20)
December 15, 2014
1. Overall Overview and Evaluation（1）The 20th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 20) and the 10th
session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP10) took place from December 1 to 14
in Lima, Peru. Mr. Yoshio Mochizuki, Minister of the Environment, and oﬃcials from the Ministry of Foreign Aﬀairs, Ministry of Economy,
Trade and Industry, Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Ministryof Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism attended from Japan.
（2）Following working-level negotiations at the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP) and two Subsidiary
Body sessions, further discussions took place between ministers during the high-level segment from December 9, which ultimately resulted in
the adoption of COP and CMP decisions etc., including a decision on intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) that each Party willcommunicate toward a post 2020 framework.
（3）Regarding the post 2020 framework, Parties adopted a COP Decision, the “Lima Call for Climate Action”, that sets out the information to beprovided by all Parties communicating their intended nationally determined contributions in accordance with the invitation to do so well inadvance of the twenty-ﬁrst session of the Conference of the Parties (by the ﬁrst quarter of 2015 by those Parties ready to do so). The Decisionalso contains “elements for a draft negotiating text” in its annex and decides that the ADP will intensify its work with a view to making
available a negotiating text for a protocol, another legal instrument or an agreed outcome with legal force under the Convention applicable to all
Parties before May 2015.
（4）A COP20 decision was adopted welcoming with appreciation contributions toward the initial mobilization of the Green Climate Fund thatexceeded 10 billion U.S. dollars during the COP20 period.
2. The Government of Japanʼs activities（1）Japan emphasized that mitigation contributions should be put at the center of INDCs, and upfront information and ex-ante consultation should
ensure the clarity, transparency, understanding and comparability of the INDCs communicated by the Parties. In addition, Japan emphasizedthat in the new framework, all Parties are obliged to: 1) submit their quantiﬁable INDCs; 2) take measures aiming to achieve their NDCs; and 3)

5

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector

be reviewed on the implementation of their NDCs. With regard to adaptation, Japan emphasized that the core agreement should encourage
Parties to integrate adaptation into their national strategies and program processes.
（2）At the high-level segment, Minister Mochizuki gave an address as Japanʼs representative, and once again advocated the goal to reduce emissions
by 50 percent at the global level and by 80 percent in the developed world by 2050, along with noting that Japan will aim to submit its INDC as
early as possible, contribute to reducing emissions by utilizing Japanese technologies, and advance support for mitigation actions and adaptation
by developing countries in addition to ﬁnancial assistance. Furthermore, Minister Mochizuki attended the Ministerial Dialogue on the ADP andemphasized that the 2015 agreement must be applicable to all Parties rather than taking a bifurcated approach of diﬀerentiating developed anddeveloping countries, and quantiﬁable mitigation contributions should be put at the center of Partiesʼ INDCs.
（3）Additionally, during the conference period Minister Mochizuki met with ministers of seven countries and regions, including Peru (COP20
Presidency), France (COP21 Presidency), the EU, the U.K. and China, and the heads of international organizations, including Mr. Ban Ki-moon,
Secretary-General of the United Nations, and conﬁrmed the importance of cooperating to reach an agreement on a new framework. SecretaryGeneral Ban said that he was requesting all countries to communicate their INDCs in the ﬁrst quarter of next year. The EU indicated its
expectation that Japanʼs INDC will be communicated promptly, and France, the U.K. and other countries indicated their expectation that Japan
will take the lead in combating climate change.
（4）In addition, the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) High-level Roundtable was held bringing together the 12 signatory countries to the JCM,
where a joint statement welcoming the development of the JCM and expressing the shared will to make further progress in its implementation
was announced.
（5）Japan communicated its pledge to contribute up to 1.5 billion U.S. dollars to the Green Climate Fund (GCF), subject to the approval by the Diet.
The Government also proactively introduced Japanʼs initiatives in the adaptation ﬁeld, which is of particular importance to developing countries,
and assistance for vulnerable nations, including announcing a concrete examples of the “Adaptation Initiative” launched by Prime Minister Abeat the UN Climate Summit last September.
（6）The Government of Japan set up an event space, “the Japan Pavilion”, where it held a large number of events to introduce and discuss theefforts of the Government and various institutions, organizations and researchers, and showcased Japanʼs contributions to climate change
measures.
3. Outcomes of the conference（1）a. With regard to the post 2020 framework, previous decisions required that the information that Parties will provide when putting forward their
INDCs to the Secretariat well in advance of the COP21 in 2015 be identiﬁed at the COP20; and that elements for a draft negotiating text ofthe new framework be considered in COP20 with a view to making available a negotiating text before May 2015.
b. At this conference it was decided that INDCs will be communicated toward achieving the objective of the Convention as set out in its Article
2 (to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere) and the content will represent a progression beyond current undertakings;
that Parties will consider communicating their undertakings in adaptation planning or consider including an adaptation component in their
INDCs; and that the information to be included in INDCs, may include the reference point (a base year etc.) , time frames and/or periods,
scope, coverage etc. In addition, it was decided that the Secretariat will publish on the UNFCCC website the INDCs as communicated byParties, and prepare by November 1, 2015 a synthesis report on the aggregate eﬀect of the INDCs communicated by Parties. Furthermore,with regard to enhancing ambition in the pre-2020 period, it was decided that Technical Expert Meetings (TEMs) will continue in order tocontinue the technical examination of opportunities with high mitigation potential. (Lima Call for Climate Action)c. Where the elements for a draft negotiating text are concerned, the discussion was based on a non-paper presented by the Co-Chairs providing
an overview of each partyʼs arguments on the respective elements of mitigation, adaptation, ﬁnance, technology development and transfer,transparency of action and support, and capacity- building mentioned in the COP17 decisions. The “Elements for a draft negotiating text”
updating the non-paper was annexed to the above-mentioned COP decision, and it was decided that further discussion of this will be carriedout in the future.
（2）There was a diﬀerence of views over the issue of climate ﬁnance, including a request by developing Parties that developed Parties further
articulate the path towards the goal of mobilizing 100 billion U.S. dollars by 2020, but as a result of negotiations, a COP decision was adopted toenhance information on the support that developed Parties list in the biennial submissions, and to welcome with appreciation the contributions(10.2 billion U.S. dollars) toward the initial mobilization of the Green Climate Fund.
（3）The ﬁrst Multilateral Assessment (MA) of the progress made by developed country Parties in implementation towards the achievement ofemission reduction targets in 2020 was held. 17 Parties, including the EU and the U.S., made presentations, and questions and answers took place
within a constructive atmosphere.
（4）On market mechanisms, views were exchanged on, among other issues, the prevention of double-counting at the Subsidiary Body sessions, and it
was decided that the discussions would continue at the Subsidiary Body sessions in June next year.
（5）With regard to technology development and transfer, a decision on the joint annual report of the Technology Executive Committee (TEC) andthe Climate Technology and Center Network (CTCN) was adopted that, among other things, welcomed the progress in both entitiesʼ activities.
（6）Concerning loss and damage associated with climate change impacts, an agreement was reached on the initial two-year work plan as well as thecomposition of and procedures for the Executive Committee of the ʻWarsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damageʼ that the COP
established at COP19 in 2013.
（7）With regard to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD +), it was decided to establish the“Lima Information Hub for REDD +” on the web platform on the UNFCCC website for publishing information based on the “Warsaw
Framework for REDD +” that was agreed upon at COP19.
（8）COP21 will be held in Paris, France. Additionally, Morocco expressed its interest in relation to hosting COP22

Source: Ministry of Foreign Aﬀairs of Japan website

6

1 Current Status of Global Environmental Problems■Medium-term greenhouse gas reduction targets
At the G8 summit held in Italy in July 2009 participants reaffirmed their commitment a global
reduction in emissions of at least 50% by 2050, and for developed countries as a whole to cut theiremissions by at least 80% in order to achieve this. The G8 countries also reached a consensus
regarding their understanding of scientiﬁc ﬁndings regarding keeping the global average temperaturefrom rising more than two degrees. The 5th assessment report of the IPCC found that the highest
likelihood scenario for keeping the global average temperature from rising more than two degrees
above pre-industrial revolution levels would require emissions in 2050 to be reduced by 40 to 70%
compared to 2010 levels, and for emissions by 2100 to be roughly zero or even negative. In January2010 Japan announced its intent to agree to the Copenhagen Consensus, and submitted its emissions
reductions target to the UNFCCC secretariat, namely a 25% reduction in comparison to 1990, with theprerequisite that all main participating companies establish a fair and eﬀective international framework
and agree to ambitious goals. However, due to the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 and theresulting energy problems, and the transfer of power from the Democratic Party of Japan to thecoalition government of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, the government reevaluated the2020 emissions reductions target from the ground up. At COP19, held in November 2013, a tentative
post-Kyoto Protocol target of reducing emissions in 2020 by 3.8% in comparison to 2005 wasannounced.

7

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector（3）Current status of global warming issues in Japan①Current status of carbon dioxide emissions in Japan
Japan is the world's 5th largest producer of carbon dioxide emissions, so it plays an extremely
important role in solving the problem of global warming.

■Trends in carbon dioxide emissions in Japan
In 2012 Japan emitted approximately 1.276 billion tons of carbon dioxide, roughly 11.5% more than it
did in 1990. The per capita emissions volume in 2012 was approximately 10.00 tons.
●Trends in carbon dioxide emissions in Japan

CO₂ emissions volume(bar graph: million tons of CO₂)

9.82 9.76
9.68 9.75
1,400

1,200

9.27 9.31 9.22

1,211 1,224

1,237 1,232

1,150 1,159 1,151

9.46

1,196

9.72

1,231

9.86

9.71

1,252 1,236

9.99 10.02 10.01 10.04 9.88

10.12

10.00
9.47

1,274 1,279 1,278 1,282 1,263

9.30 9.71
8.92

1,296

1,241

1,213

1,276

9

1,191
1,142

1,000

0

10

8

7

1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Per capita CO₂ emissions(line graph: tons of CO₂/person)

Per capita CO₂ emissions (total CO₂ emissions)

1,600

0

（Year）

Source: GIO "Greenhouse Gas Inventory"■Ratio of carbon dioxide emissions in Japan by sector
The industrial sector accounts for 32.7% of Japan's carbon dioxide emissions, the transport sector for
17.7%, business and other sectors account for 21.3%, and the home sector accounts for 15.9%.
●Amount of carbon dioxide emissions in Japan (by sector) 2012
Waste
（incineration of waste plastic, waste oil, etc.）
Industrial processes（limestone consumption, etc.）

2%

Fuel leakage

0.003%

Energy conversion sector（power plants, etc.）

3%

7%

Home
sector16%

Industrial sector（plants, etc.）

33%

Business and other sectors（Commerce, services, oﬃces, etc.）

21%

Transport
sector（automobiles, ships, etc.）

18%

Total carbon dioxide
emissions in 2012
1,276 million tons

Source: GIO "Greenhouse Gas Inventory"8

1 Current Status of Global Environmental Problems②Energy consumption in JapanThe rapid increase in fossil fuel consumption since the industrial revolution is considered to be oneof the main causes of global warming. Global warming is inextricably linked to energy consumption.

■Final energy consumption in Japan
Japan's energy consumption grew faster than its gross domestic product during the period of rapid
economic growth which lasted into the 1970s. However, the two oil crises in the 1970s led to increased
eﬀorts to reduce energy consumption by the industrial sector, and the development of energy saving
products. These eﬀorts made it possible to restrain energy consumption while still achieving economic
growth. Throughout the 1990s the rate of increase in energy consumption by the transport sector
remained low, but low crude oil prices and the spread of lifestyles focused on comfort and convenience
led to an increase in energy consumption by the consumer sector (the home sector and the businesssector).
Looking at energy consumption trends by individual sectors, since the oil crises energy consumption
by the industrial sector has remained roughly level, while it has roughly doubled for the consumer(home sector and business sector) and transport sectors. As a result, while the industrial, consumer,
and transport sectors accounted, respectively, for 65.5%, 18.1%, and 16.4% of total energy consumption
in 1973, in 2012 these ratios had changed to 42.6%, 34.3%, and 23.1% respectively. From 1973 to 2012energy consumption for the industrial sector fell by 20%, but grew 2.4-fold for the consumer sector(2.1-fold for the home sector and 2.8-fold for the business sector) and 1.8-fold for the transport sector.
From 2008 to 2009 the economic decline caused a drop in manufacturing and mining production,
which in turn produced a drop in final energy consumption due to major reductions in energy
consumption by the industrial sector. In 2010 the economic recovery, together with temperature
conditions, produced a major increase in final energy consumption. In 2011 the focus on energy
conservation following the Great East Japan Earthquake brought about another decline in ﬁnal energy
consumption.Final energy consumption in 2012 was 3.3% more than it was in 1990.

■Dependence on petroleum for energy consumed in Japan
Japan's supply of petroleum as a primary energy source fell as the result of petroleum replacement
policies and energy saving measures implemented in response to the oil crises, but began rising fromthe late 1980s due to falling crude oil prices. From the mid-1990s
onwards the development of alternative energy sources, etc. caused●Crude oil imports by supplying
country (2011)
Sudan 1.2% Australia 0.8% Malaysia 0.7%

petroleum use to decline.
In 2012 Japan supplied 0.4% of the crude oil it used. Japan's major

Vietnam 1.7%
Oman 2.3%

oil fields are located in Niigata Prefecture, Akita Prefecture, andIndonesia

Hokkaido. Because of this low level of self-suﬃciency, in 2012 Japan

Russiarelied on foreign imports for 99.6% of its crude oil, with over 80%
coming from the Middle East. Japan is far more dependent on the
Middle East for its oil than other countries

̶ in 2012 the U.S.

depended on the Middle East for 25.1% of its crude oil, and

Other

4.9%

Iraq 2.2%

3.5%
Saudi Arabia

4.1%

31.1%

Kuwait 7.0%
Iran 7.8%
Qatar

10.2%

UAE

22.5%

European OECD countries depended on the Middle East for 16.7%of their crude oil. In 2012 Saudi Arabia was Japan's largest supplierof crude oil, supplying 30.4%, followed by the UAE (22.1%), Qatar(11.4%), and Kuwait (7.4%).

Source: Tentative Translated by EcoMo Foundation of METI "Yearbook of
Mineral Resources and Petroleum
Products Statistics"(Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) "Energy White Paper 2014")

9

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector（4）Current status of global warming issues in the transport sector①Current status of carbon dioxide emissions by the transport sector■Trends in carbon dioxide emissions by the transport sector
From 1990 to 1996 the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by the transport sector rose by 21.0%, but
the rise in emissions then slowed, and began falling from 2001 onwards. In 2012 the amount of carbon
dioxide emissions was approximately226 million tons, 4.1% more than in 1990.
●Trends in carbon dioxide emissions by the transport sector
300

Carbon dioxide emissions(million tons CO₂)

＋21.0

2010 target*
240 million tons CO₂
＋1.6%

263

%

−15.3%

267

Finalized 2012 value

250

226

217
200
＋12.7%

Private
cars

＋36.4

Other
transport＋12.0%−2.4%＋10.8%

−8.9%

%

−12.9

%

150

100

50

0

Truck

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

−9.6%

−21.1%

2000

2001

Other transport : Busses, taxis, rail, ships, airplanes

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

* 2010 targets are upper level measure scenario ﬁgures
based on the Kyoto Protocol Target Achievement Plan
(approved by the Cabinet on March 28, 2008)

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT website

Carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles accounts for 86.8% of total carbon dioxide emissions
produced by the transport sector. 50.2% of these carbon dioxide emissions are produced by private
cars.

■Carbon dioxide emission basic units by the transport sector
Comparing passenger transport carbon dioxide emission basic units (the amount of carbon dioxide
emitted in transporting a person for 1km), private cars emit 7.6 times more carbon dioxide than railtransport. Therefore in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the use of public transportation,
which has smaller carbon dioxide emission rates than private vehicles, must be promoted. For freighttransport carbon dioxide emission rates (the amount of carbon dioxide emitted in transporting one tonof freight for 1km), private Truck emit 34 times more carbon dioxide than trains, 21 times more thanships, and 4 times more than commercial Truck. There must be a modal shift, moving to eﬃcient useof commercial Truck, ships, and trains, improving distribution eﬃciency.

10

1 Current Status of Global Environmental Problems●Amount of carbon dioxide emissions from the transport sector (by means of transportation) 2012
Aviation 4.2%

Railway 4.2%
Shipping 4.8%
Taxi 1.5%
Bus 1.8%

Commercial
Trucks

Passenger cars

50.2%

16.3%

PrivateTrucks

16.9%
Source: GIO "Greenhouse Gas Inventory"●Carbon dioxide emission rates by passenger transport mode (2012)
168

Passenger cars
104

Aviation
60

Bus
22

Railway
0

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

200

g-CO₂/person/kilometer●Carbon dioxide emission rates by freight transport mode (2012)
854

Private Trucks
205

Commercial Trucks

Shipping

41

Railway

25
0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT website

11

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector● Rates by passenger transport mode used for domestic passenger transport (per person perkilometer) 2009
Private Trucks 16.3%
Domestic shipping 0.2%
Aviation (domestic route) 5.5%

JR

17.8%
Private railway

10.9%
Commercial busses 5.2%

Passenger cars

42.2%

Private busses 1.2%
Commercial passenger vehicles 0.7%

●Rates by freight transport mode used for domestic freight transport (per ton per kilometer) 2009
Aviation（domestic route）0.2%

Railway 3.9%

Domestic
shipping

32.0%
Commercial
Trucks56.0%

Private Trucks 7.9%
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT "White Paper on Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
in Japan 2011"②Energy consumption by the transport sector
Within the transport sector, automobiles account for the largest amount of energy consumption, roughly
87% of the sector's total energy consumption. The majority of this is energy consumption is by cars andtrucks. In terms of consumption by oil type, gasoline and diesel oil account for 87% of the transport sector
total.

12

1 Current Status of Global Environmental Problems●Ratios of energy consumption type and volume of oil used by means of transport (2009)(Unit: 1,000kl)

Total: 95,059,000kl crude oil equivalent
Note: Does not include oversea ocean shipping or international aviation
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT "Transportation Statistics Collection"

Over the past few years automobile fuel efficiency improvements and increased shift from in-house or
private operation to commercial truck operation has brought about a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by
the transport sector. Emissions in 2012 were 226 million tons, below the 240 to 243 million tons of carbon
dioxide emissions speciﬁed in the Kyoto Protocol Target Achievement Plan as the target for the transport
sector. Eﬀorts must continue to be made to achieve further reductions in the amount of energy consumed byautomobiles.
●Automobile ownership trends
10,000vehicles
8,000
7,000

Other
OmniBusSpecial vehicle
Motorcycle

6,000
5,000
4,000

Truck

3,000
2,000
Passenger car

1,000
0
１９６６

Year
１９６９

１９７２

１９７５

１９７８

１９８１

１９８４

１９８７

１９９０

１９９３

１９９６

１９９９

２００２

２００５

２００８

２０１１

1: Passenger vehicles include mini-vehicles.
2: Number of vehicles as of end of March of each year.
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Automobile Inspection & Registration Information Association
website13

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector

ColumnAutomobile ownership Rates Around the WorldIn terms of automobile ownership per thousand people, the U.S. has the world's largest automobiles
ownership rate, at 786 automobiles per thousand people. Automobile ownership rates are low for
developing countries. In recent years developing countries such as China and India have experienced
dramatic upswells in automobile ownership led by their rapid economic growth. The number of cars
owned per thousand people grew by 3.3% globally in 2011, but in China it grew by 19.4%, and in India
by 4.4%. Automobiles ownership in these countries, with their enormous populations, is expected tohave some impact on global warming, and is an area where attention is being increasingly focused.

●Automobile ownership rates in individual countries 2011
（automobiles ownership per 1,000 persons）

900

600

World

Vietnam

India

Philippines

Peru

Indonesia

China

Hong Kong

Singapore

ThailandBrazilChile

UkraineMexicoRussiaTaiwanSouth Korea

U.K.

Malaysia

FranceJapan

CanadaBruneiGermany

Italy

Australia

New Zealand

0

U.S.

300

Source: EDMC "Handbook of Energy & Economic Statistics in Japan 2014"14

2 Current status of automobile gas emissions

Current status of automobile gas emissions
Road transportation related environmental problems involving the transport sector include atmosphericpollution produced by suspended particulate matter (SPM) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) such as nitrogen dioxide(NO2) emitted from automobiles. NOx is not only a cause of acid rain and photochemical smog, but also has
negative health eﬀects (on respiratory organs). SPM is also said to harm respiratory organs by adhering to thelungs and bronchi. In recent years all air pollution monitoring stations have met 2012 environmental standard
achievement rates for NO2, with 100% achievement rates for seven consecutive years since 2006. Automobile
exhaust gas monitoring stations have seen a slight decline in target achievement, at 99.3% compared to 2011.
For automobile exhaust gas monitoring stations in areas implementing Automobile NOx/PM Act measures
the achievement rate was 98.6%. For SPMs, nationwide environmental standard achievement rates were
99.7% for air pollution monitoring stations and 99.7% for automobile exhaust gas monitoring stations. These
are major improvements, for both types of stations, in comparison to 2011 (air pollution monitoring station:
69.2%, automobile exhaust gas monitoring station: 72.9%).
SPM 2012 environmental standard achievement rates for areas implementing Automobile NOx/PM Act
measures were 100% for both air pollution monitoring stations and automobile exhaust gas monitoring
stations, dramatic improvements.

※ 1 Air pollution monitoring station:
Monitoring stations performing regular monitoring of general atmospheric pollution conditions.
(Nationwide: 1,889 stations)※ 2 Automobile exhaust gas monitoring station:
Monitoring stations performing regular monitoring of atmospheric pollution conditions near intersections,roads, and the nearby areas in which emissions from automobiles are believed to be sources of air
pollution. (Nationwide: 421 stations)15

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector● NO2 environmental standard achievement rates in regions implementing Automobile NOx/PM Act
measures (2003 to 2012)（Air pollution monitoring stations）（Automobile exhaust gas monitoring stations）

Achievement rate（％）

100

Achievement rate（％）

100

80 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Achievement
99.8％
rate
No. of eﬀective
452
stations
No. of achieving451
stations

80
60
40
20
0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Achievement
76.4％ 81.1％ 85.1％ 83.7％ 90.6％ 92.0％ 92.9％ 95.7％ 99.1％ 98.6％
rate
No. of eﬀective
212 217 222 227 224 225 226 207 219 216
stations
No. of achieving
162 176 189 190 203 207 210 198 217 213
stations

100％ 99.8％ 100％ 100％ 100％ 100％ 100％ 100％ 100％
447 448 441 436 436 438 411 425 418
447 447 441 436 436 438 411 425 418

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website● SPM environmental standard achievement rates in regions implementing Automobile NOx/PM Act
measures (2003 to 2012)（Air pollution monitoring stations）（Automobile exhaust gas monitoring stations）

100
Achievement rate（％）

Achievement rate（％）

100
80
60
40
20

60
40
20
0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Achievement
83.0%
rate
No. of eﬀective
459
stations
No. of achieving381
stations

80

Achievement
61.9%
rate
No. of eﬀective
197
stations
No. of achieving
122
stations

99.1% 96.0% 96.7% 93.2% 99.8% 100% 100% 72.7% 100%
452 452 448 443 440 439 415 429 421
448 434 433 413 439 439 415 312 421

96.1% 92.8% 92.1% 92.5% 99.5% 100% 99.0% 75.6% 100%
206 209 215 212 213 214 197 209 207
198 194 198 196 212 214 195 158 207

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website

16

3 Current status of waste and recycling

Current status of waste and recycling①Trends in general waste volume
Total waste volume and per capita daily waste volume fell slightly after the second oil crisis in 1979, butbegan rising rapidly from roughly 1985. From 1990 they leveled oﬀ or increased slightly, but began fallingfrom 2001. In 2012 the total amount of waste was 45.23 million tons. The total amount of recycled waste in2012 was 9.26 million tons. The ratio of total waste which was recycled has grown tremendously, from 5.3% in1990 to 20.5% in 2012 (an increase of 0.1% over the previous year).

Total waste volume (10,000 tons/year)

6,000

1,200
1,180

5,500

5,468

1,166

1,163
5,427

5,420

Total waste volume

1,146

5,338

1,131

5,273

Per capita daily waste

1,115

1,089

1,100
1,033

5,202

5,000

5,082

994
4,811
4,625

4,500

4,000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

976

976

979

4,536

4,539

4,523

2010

2011

1,000

900

800

Per capita daily waste volume (grams/person/day)●Total waste volume and per capita daily waste volume

2012（Year）

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website②Trends in industrial waste volume
The amount of industrial waste produced has stayed roughly level since the 1990s at approximately 400
million tons.
●Industrial waste volume
Total industrial waste volume (million tons)

450

426
＊1

400 397

405

394

405

415
＊2

408
＊2

400 406
＊2

＊2

400
＊2

422 418 419
412 417＊2 ＊2 ＊2 ＊2 404
393
＊2

＊2

＊2

390 386 381 379
＊2
＊2

＊2

＊2

350

300

250

200

1993 1994 1995 1996（1996）1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
（Year）
Note: Waste discharge volume estimation methods were partially revised in 1996.
＊1:Indicates 1996 waste disposal volume for the waste reduction target volume (established in September 2009) set by thegovernment as the target for 2010, based on the dioxin countermeasures basic policy (Ministerial Conference on Dioxin Policy
decision).
＊2:Waste volume from 1997 onwards is calculated based on the same conditions used in calculating the waste volume for ＊1.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website

17

Ⅱ．Current status of major environmental problems of the transport sector③ Remaining lifespans and remaining capacities of general and industrial waste
ﬁnal disposal sites
As of the end of 2012 there were 1,742 general waste ﬁnal disposal sites in Japan with a remaining capacityof 122.55 million m³. The average remaining lifespan was 19.7 years. The remaining capacity is shrinking,while the remaining lifespan is increasing.
The remaining capacity of industrial waste ﬁnal disposal sites as of the end of 2011 was 186.06 million m³,
8.46 million m³ less than the previous year. The average nationwide remaining lifespan is 14.9 years. Slight
improvements are being made, but the remaining lifespan in the Tokyo area is 5.3 years, and remaining
capacities are particularly low for major metropolitan areas.

●Remaining lifespans and remaining capacities of ﬁnal disposal sites (general waste)

300

21

Remaining capacity (million m³)

250
200

12.8

13.2

165

160

150

13.8
153

14.0

14.0

145

138

15.6

14.8

18.9

19.7

15.7
14

133

130

122

122

116

114

100

111

112

2011

2012

7

Remaining lifespan (years)

18.7

18.0

19.3

50
0

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

0

（Year）

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website●Remaining lifespans and remaining capacities of ﬁnal disposal sites (industrial waste)15
14.9 14
13.2

Remaining capacity
Remaining lifespan

200
7.2

150

7.7

8.2

9
8

8.5

7
6

6.1

100
3.0

3.1

3.1

3.3

12
10

10.6

2.7

13
11

250

50

13.6

3.7

3.9

4.3

5
4

4.5

3

Remaining lifespan (years)

Remaining capacity (million m³)

300

2
1

0

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

0

2011 （Year）

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website

18

3 Current status of waste and recycling④Trends in number of incidents of illegal dumping, etc., and amount dumped
159 incidents of illegal dumping of industrial waste, a total of 29,000 tons of waste, were discovered in 2013,
along with 90 incidents of improper disposal (63,000 tons). The number of incidents, and volume of waste
involved, has decreased yearly in conjunction with enhanced enforcement of the Waste Management andPublic Cleansing Act.

●Number of incidents of illegal dumping of industrial waste and amount dumped
120

1,400

1,150
1,049

No. of dumping incidents

Amount dumped
Number of incidents

100

1,027
934

1,000

894

80

74.5

800

673

60

Gifu City incident

600
42.4

43.3

558
56.7

40.3
31.8

400

41.1

Numazu City
incident

17.2

200
17.8
1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

20.7
2005

308

Kuwana City 20.3
incident

13.1

10.2

12.0
2004

40

382

20.4 Chiba City incident
1.1 Tado-cho,

24.2

0

554

2006

2007

279

216 192
Hino-cho,
5.8 Shiga
Prefecture
incident 1.4 0.6
5.3
6.2
14.4 5.7
4.8
4.8

187

159

4.4

2.9

2008

2012

2013
（Year）

2009

2010

2011

Amount dumped (10,000 tons)

1,200

1,197

20

0

Note)
1. The number of incidents of illegal dumping and the amount of illegally dumped waste were calculated based on incidents of illegal dumping of 10t or moreof industrial waste per incident identified by the governments of prefectures and designated cities (as well as all incidents of illegal dumping of special
controlled industrial waste).
2. With regards to the white areas of the bar graph, the incidents discovered in Gifu City in 2003 and in Numazu City in 2004 took place over multiple
preceding years, resulting in the discoveries of major volumes of illegally dumped waste in the respective years. The white area of the bar graphcorresponding to the 2006 Chiba City incident indicates an incident which was discovered in 1998 but was reported in 2006. The white area of the bar
graph corresponding to the 2008 Tado-cho, Kuwana City incident indicates an incident which was discovered in 2006 but was reported in 2008. The
white area of the bar graph corresponding to the 2010 Hino-cho, Shiga Prefecture incident indicates an incident which was discovered in 2009 but wasreported in 2010.
3. The sulfate acid pitch and Ferosilt dumping incidents were not included in this study, and are covered separately. 720,000 tons of Ferosilt were sold andused as backfilling material since August 2001, but it was later discovered that the manufacturer and seller of Ferosilt had mixed in toxic waste liquid,
making this an illegal industrial waste dumping incident. Illegal dumping was confirmed in 45 locations in 4 prefectures, and Ferosilt removal has been
completed in 42 of these locations (as of February 15, 2010).
* Amounts are rounded, so totals may not match.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOE website

19

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector
Promotion of global warming countermeasures（1）Transport sector countermeasures
The amount of carbon dioxide emitted by the transport sector in 2012 was 4.1% greater than theamount emitted in 1990, but emissions volume has been decreasing in recent years. In order to ensurethat this decrease continues steadily, the MLIT is promoting comprehensive measures such as
automobile and road traﬃc measures, distribution eﬃciency improvements, and promoting the use of
public transportation.

●Global warming countermeasures of MLIT
Transport Sector* Promotion of next-generation
vehicles (hybrid automobiles, etc.)* Regulatory review in relation to fuelcell vehicles* Promote dissemination of
ecological driving, etc.

* Development of grade separated
intersections, ring records, andarterial road network* Develop bicycle friendly environments* Promotion of ITS, etc.

Measures for individualvehiclesEnvironmental considerationin driving

Measures for traﬃc ﬂow

Vehicle and road traﬃc policies

Other

Enhancing energy
eﬃciency
in railroads,
shipping andaviation

Create transport systems
with minimal environmental impact

Optimizing
logistics

Promoting the useof publictransportation* Streamline truck transportation* Modal shift to railways and shipping* Reduce overland transportation distance ofinternationally shipped container cargo* Promote energy conservation in the port area, introductionof the facilitation and utilization of renewable energy* Improve the convenienceof railway and bus usage* Promote ecologicalcommutingSource: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT "White Paper on Land, Infrastructure,
Transport and Tourism in Japan 2013"20

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures

The Kyoto Protocol Target Achievement Plan was completely revised on March 28, 2008, andincludes the following transport sector related measures. The MLIT implemented transport sector
measures based on this plan, but the plan period ended in March 2013.

measures

Provisions for individual vehicles
and environmentally friendly formsof driving

Traﬃc ﬂow management(including the social infrastructure
and traﬃc regulation ﬁelds, etc.)

Improvement of distribution
eﬃciency

Promotion of usage of public
transportation

Other

Carbon dioxide emissions reductions
expected under reduction plan
(Unit: 10,000 t-CO2)

Speciﬁc measures

2760 to 2960

・Automobile fuel efficiency
improvement through Top RunnerStandards
・ Promoting clean energy vehicles
・ Promoting “eco-driving” (building
and promoting EMS, etc.)
・ Large truck drive speed restrictions
・ Biomass fuels, etc.

Over 550

・ Diverse and flexible pricing
measures for expressway
・ Vehicle traﬃc demand adjustment
・ ITS promotion
・ Reduction of road works
・ Countermeasures for bottleneck
rail crossings, etc.

1750 to 1860

・Promotion of rail and sea transportuse
・Improvement of vehicle transport
eﬃciency(Increased vehicle sizes, shift fromin-house to commercial operation,load eﬃciency improvement)
・Reduction in land transportdistances for international sea
container cargo

270 to 380

・Development of new rail, etc.
lines and promotion of usage ofexisting rail lines and busses
・Commuter traffic management,
etc.

280

・Improvement of train energy
eﬃciency
・Improvement of airplane energy
eﬃciency
・Promotion of telecommuting** Asterisks indicate areas addressed by the Ministry of Internal Aﬀairs and Communications
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

21

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector①Promotion of individual automobile measures
The automobile sector accounts for a large share of the energy consumed by the transport sector, so
individual automobile measures have been implemented, including further improving fuel eﬃciency throughthe world's leading fuel eﬃciency technologies and measures to promote the use of automobiles with superiorfuel eﬃciency and the use of clean energy vehicles.

■Fuel efficiency improvements through Top Runner Standards○The Energy Saving Act and fuel eﬃciency standards (Top Runner Standards)
Improving automobile fuel efficiency is extremely important to reduce automobile CO2 emissions andpromote global warming countermeasures. In order to promote the improvement of automobile fuel eﬃciency,
fuel eﬃciency standards (Top Runner Standards*) have been established based the Act on the Rational Use ofEnergy (Energy Saving Act). As a result, automobile manufacturing industry members (automobile
manufacturers and importers) are required to improve fuel eﬃciency performance such that the average fueleﬃciency of vehicles sold (determined by taking the weighted harmonic average of automobile fuel eﬃciency
values) does not fall below standards set for each company based on their vehicle sales composition.
Furthermore, it requires that they post speciﬁc items regarding fuel eﬃciency values so that automobile users
can select automobiles with superior fuel eﬃciency, and that fuel eﬃciency ﬁgures be listed in the productcatalogs of individual automobiles.
* Top Runner Standards: Standards based on the currently commercially available automobiles with thehighest fuel eﬃciencies, taking into consideration future technological advances○Fuel eﬃciency standards
In March 1999 fuel eﬃciency standards for 2010 were formulated for passenger and small cargo vehicles,
based on the Top Runner Standards concept. In March 2006 the world's ﬁrst heavy vehicle (truck, bus, etc.)
fuel efficiency standards were formulated, with a target year of 2015. In July 2007 new fuel efficiency
standards were formulated for passenger vehicles. These new standards aimed for a 23.5% improvement infuel eﬃciency (versus 2004) for passenger vehicles by 2015. In March 2011 new fuel eﬃciency standards werecreated for passenger vehicles, aimed at 2020, requiring fuel eﬃciency to be improved by 24.1% versus actual2009 ﬁgures, assuming a shipped vehicle composition equivalent to that of 2009.
○New fuel eﬃciency test method
In conjunction with the new 2015 fuel eﬃciency standards, the method for testing fuel eﬃciency was revised
to more closely approximate actual driving conditions. In the past, 10-15 mode driving was used to test fuelefficiency, but this was changed to JC08 mode. Under JC08 mode, driving is performed using a greaternumber of speed changes to reﬂect actual driving conditions. It also includes measurement methods underwhich vehicles are started with cold engines, in addition to starting with warmed up engines.

22

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures●Heavy vehicle (truck, etc.) fuel eﬃciency standards(2015 targets)Category

Total vehicle
weight range(t)Maximum carrying
capacity range(t)Fuel eﬃciency
standard(km/L)

up to 1.5

10.83

1.5 to 2

10.35

2 to 3

9.51

1
2
3

3.5 to 7.5

45

3 and over
7.5 to 8

8.12
7.24

6

8 to 106.52

7

10 to 126.00

8

12 to 145.69

9

14 to 16

4.97

10

16 to 204.15

11

20 and over

4.04

●New passenger vehicle (gasoline and diesel vehicle) fuel eﬃciency standards(2015 targets)Category

Total vehicle weight range(kg)

Fuel eﬃciency
standard(km/L)

1

up to

600

22.5

2

601 to

740

21.8

3

741 to

855

21.0

4

856 to

970

20.8

5

971 to 1,080

20.5

6

1,081 to 1,195

18.7

7

1,196 to 1,310

17.2

8

1,311 to 1,420

15.8

9

1,421 to 1,530

14.4

10

1,531 to 1,650

13.2

11

1,651 to 1,760

12.2

12

1,761 to 1,870

11.1

13

1,871 to 1,990

10.2

14

1,991 to 2,100

9.4

15

2,101 to 2,270

8.7

16

2,271 to over

7.4

●New passenger vehicle fuel eﬃciency standards(2020 targets)

Vehicle type

Actual 2009
value*1

Estimated
2020 value*2

Amt. ofimprovementfrom actual2009 value

Passenger
vehicle16.3（km/L）

20.3（km/L）

24.1％*1: JC08 mode fuel eﬃciency value*2: Calculated assuming shipment composition of vehicle weights
in target year (2020) is comparable to that of 2009.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

23

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector■ Measures for developing and popularizing energy-saving vehicles and lowemission vehicles
The increasingly severe global warming situation, together with the rise of CO2 emissions, air pollution, andcrude oil prices resulting from the rapid increase in energy consumption by developing countries, has led togreater usage of energy-saving and low-emission vehicles such as compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles,
hybrid vehicles, and electric vehicles. Vehicles with functions such as automatically stopping idling engines
when stopped, or which promote eco-friendly driving awareness by indicating with signal lamps when drivers
are performing high fuel eﬃciency driving, are also becoming more popular. Research is also taking place for
new energy-saving vehicles, aimed at the commercialization of hybrid busses with contactless charging
capabilities. These vehicles can be rapidly charged using electrical induction from electricity supply embeddedin the pavement, without the need for electrical charging cords. The government, academia, andmanufacturers are working together on veriﬁcation testing for electrical full ﬂat-ﬂoored busses, with testing
being performed in Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture in August 2011. From the perspective of improved
automobile safety and harmonization of international standards, testing methods for the UN's Global TechnicalRegulations on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Vehicles and Regulations on CNG/LNG Vehicles were introduced into
domestic standards, the mandatory installation of vehicle stability control devices was expanded, standards
were tightened for collision avoidance systems, and mandatory installation of these systems was also
expanded. In order to accomplish this, the "Announcement that Prescribes Details of Safety Regulations forRoad Vehicles (MLIT Announcement No.619 of 2002)" was revised, issued, and enacted.
The "Global Technical Regulations on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Vehicles" were established in June 2013
based on a proposal made by Japan. They have great potential for contributing to the adoption of fuel cellvehicles outlined in the "Regulatory Reform Implementation Plan" (approved by the Cabinet in June 2013).
○ They add requirements concerning the concentration of hydrogen leaked into the vehicle interior
following fuel cell vehicle related collision testing, as well as requirements concerning the securing of gas
containers to the vehicle, bringing the regulations into agreement with the Global Technical Regulations.
○They change the method used for testing the strength of the attachment of gas containers to compressed
natural gas vehicles from vibration testing to acceleration testing, bringing them into agreement with theRegulations on CNG/LNG Vehicles.
○ They expand requirements for vehicle stability control device and collision avoidance braking system
related vehicle stability control devices, making them mandatory for all busses, trucks, and trailers. They
also strengthen collision avoidance braking system control related performance requirements, and makethem mandatory for all busses and medium- and large-sized trucks.

●Large electrical full ﬂat-ﬂoored bus●Contactless charging hybrid bus

24

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures

ColumnEV / PHV Town Concept
The METI has selected areas to serve as models for the popularization of next generation vehicles
through their local governments and companies working together to deploy next generation vehicles,
establish charging infrastructures, and take on the challenge of increasing awareness and adoption ofthese vehicles. These model regions have been designated as "EV/PHV Towns".
The local governments of the regions selected as "EV/PHV Towns" have created plans andincentives for increasing EV/PHV adoption. For example, some local governments and commercial
vehicle operators have introduced these vehicles as taxis, rental cars, car sharing vehicles, etc. inorder to create the initial demand. The preparation of a charging infrastructure is also important, andpower companies and local companies are collaborating in the installation of infrastructure such as
quick charging devices.

●List of selected areas as EV/PHV Towns
Niigata
Prefecture

AomoriPrefecture

Fukui
Prefecture
Tochigi
Prefecture
Kyoto
Prefecture

Gifu
Prefecture

SaitamaPrefecture
Tokyo
Prefecture

Tottori
Prefecture

Kanagawa
Prefecture

OkayamaPrefecture

ShizuokaPrefecture

NagasakiPrefecture

Aichi
Prefecture

Saga
Prefecture

Kumamoto
Prefecture

Osaka
Prefecture

Okinawa
Prefecture

Phase 1 EV / PHV Towns
Phase 2 EV / PHV Towns
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of METI website

25

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector②Promotion of environmentally friendly automobile usage"Eco-driving" has been positioned as an environmentally friendly automobile usage promotion measure. The
Eco-Drive Promotion Liaison Committee (National Police Agency (NPA), METI, MLIT, and MOE) formulated
the Eco-Driving Dissemination and Promotion Action Plan, and the Committee and related organizations areactively promoting these eﬀorts. In 2006 the committee created the "10 Recommendations for Eco-driving",
which outlined speciﬁc eco-driving eﬀorts. These recommendations were revised in 2012.

●10 Recommendations for Eco-driving

26

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures

ColumnEcological and safe driving support services which use truck drive data
The promotion of "eco-driving" by truck operators is an important environmental conservation
measure for the transport sector. Advances in ecological and safe driving support services which use
truck drive data, combined with the eﬀects of deploying digital tachometers, have produced services
which improve fuel eﬃciency by approximately 15%. In addition to their environmental beneﬁts, theyalso promote safer driving, contributing to reductions in the number of traﬃc accidents.

●Service example (TRIAS-TR-Saas Eco & Safety Benchmark Service)
DigitaltachographDigitaltachographDigitaltachograph

Drive data collected from digital tachographs
is collected and analyzed at the cloud centerto provide services which contribute to more
ecologically friendly and safe driving, as well
as reduced costs for transport companies.

Cloud center䛆Speed 䛇
Actual speed graphfrom sensory to quantitative䛆 Shifting
䛇evaluation of driving levels

Ideal speed graphAs shown at right, the diﬀerences in actual speed graphs andideal speed graphs are calculated at the cloud center for use
as quantitative (*) evaluations of driving levels.

䛆 Time䛇[Service Content]
Collecting E&S index data in acloud center makes it possible
compare eco-driving and safe
driving results against othercompanies, which was not possible
in the past.
(Nationwide rankings can becompared for various categories,
such as by company, by businesssite, and by driver.)Ranking by company

Company names can be conﬁgured to be shown or hidden

This produces healthy competition, increased ecological and safety awareness, and contributes tofurther improvements.
(*) "E&S (ecology & safety) indices" indicate the level of ecologically friendly and safe driving by individual
drivers, and make it possible to provide speciﬁc driving improvement guidance.

27

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

ColumnEco-tires
In the past "high fuel eﬃcient tires" publicized by tire manufacturers were tested by themselvesusing their own internal testing standards. This created a demand for a uniﬁed evaluation method andselectable indices which would be used to compare products. In December 2009 the JIS tire rolling
resistance testing method was established. Based on this standard, The Japan Automobile Tyre
Manufacturers Association formulated "High fuel eﬃcient tire promotion related labeling guidelines(labeling system)" in order to promote the use of these. This guideline went into effect in January
2010. The labeling system applies to passenger vehicle summer tires sold as replacement tires by tire
retailers, etc. Tires which fall within the following range are considered high fuel eﬃcient tires.
Tire grading system
Unit (%)

Unit (N/kN)
Rolling resistance coeﬃcient

Grade

Wet grip performance（G）

Grade

RRC≦6.5

AAA

155≦G

a

6.6≦RRC≦7.7

AA

140≦G≦154b

7.8≦RRC≦9.0

A

125≦G≦139c

9.1≦RRC≦10.5

B

110≦G≦124d10.6≦RRC≦12.0

CHigh fuel efficient tire performance requirements
Rolling resistance coeﬃcient:9.0 or less (Grade AAA to A)
Wet grip performance: 110 or greater (Grade a to d)●Service example
In the example below, the rolling resistance grade is AA and the wet grip performance grade isc, so the tire meets high fuel eﬃcient tire standards.

28

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures③Promotion of traﬃc ﬂow measures
Smoother traﬃc ﬂow increases driving speeds, which in turn produces greater eﬀective fuel eﬃciency andreduces carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles. In order to smooth traﬃc ﬂow, MLIT is engaging in eﬀorts
such as maintaining major road networks, such as ring road networks, developing environments conducive tobicycle usage, implementing Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), relieving bottlenecks, and installing LED
lighting.
ITS implementation (VICS)

LED lighting

Expre
oku
Toh

su ay
et w
n- essKa xprE

Ken-O Expressway

ssw

ay

Tokyo area ring road development

wa
n
ba ss
Jo xpre
E

Keiyo
R

sway

Port of Tokyo

Shin-Tomei
ay
Express
ei sw
way
m es
To xprE

Existing highpressuresodium light

to
an
-K ay
hi sw
s
a s
ig re
H xp
E
NaritaAirportTokyo Outer Ring Road

Central Circular
Route
Chuo Expres

Changed to
LED lighting

y

oad

Tokyo
Port of Chiba
BaynHaneda Airport Wa eo in ayky -L sw
Port ofTo qua res
Kawasaki
A xp
E
of

Port
Yokohama

In usePlannedUnder consideration

LED street light

VICS enabled car navigation system(displays traﬃc congestion)
Expansion of information provision area
through installation of radio beacons

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

■ Using ITS technology to achieve smoother traffic and safer, more secure roadtraffic
In addition to producing more advanced vehicle control technologies, the government is also using
coordination with road-side support, such as systems for communicating road structure data and road-tovehicle communications, in order to eventually achieve automated driving on expressway. Consideration iscurrently being given to using ITS spots, primarily concentrated on expressway, to collect drive route datafrom vehicles, using it to create new pricing systems which produce more eﬀective use of ring roads andprovide driving support for large vehicles. Positioning data obtained from the GPS functions of smartphones
and other devices can be used to conﬁrm the movement of people and goods with greater precision and agreater level of eﬃciency. This makes it possible to assess road usage patterns and means of transportationfrom overall traﬃc. Consideration is also being given to systems capable of using ITS technologies such as
ETC in facilities other than highways, such as parking lots.

■Guideline for the creation of safe and comfortable bicycle use environments
Bicycles play an important role as familiar and easy to use means of transportation, but bicycle accidents
are accounting for a growing share of overall traﬃc accidents. As health and environmental awareness grows,
usage needs for bicycles are on the rise. In 2007 the MLIT collaborated with the NPA on eﬀorts for creating
bicycle usage environments, designating 98 areas across Japan as "bicycle traﬃc environment model areas inorder to further develop and maintain bicycle paths and dedicated bicycle lanes. In 2011 the MLIT
collaborated with the NPA, holding exploratory committee meetings led by experts. In April 2012 thecommittee issued a recommendation for the prompt creation of guidelines across Japan focusing on both
physical infrastructure and policies. Based on this recommendation, in November 2012 the Japanese
government formulated guidelines to assist road management authorities and prefectural police departments
in creating and implementing bicycle network plans and thoroughly enforcing bicycle traﬃc rules.

29

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector④Improvement of freight distribution eﬃciency■ Reducing CO2 emissions through collaboration between freight owners andlogistics operators○Green Logistics Partnership Conference
Promoting the creation of agreener overall logistics system
requires greater collaboration
between freight owners andGreen Logistics Partnership Conference（Facilitator: Professor Sugiyama, Seijo University）Established April 2005

Organizers: JILS, Japan Federation of Freight Industries, METI, MLIT
Collaboration: Nippon Keidanren

logistics operators, and the
expansion of global warming
countermeasures.

Members:

Logistics operators, freight owners, industry organizations, think-tanks,
research organizations, local agencies of the central government,
municipalities, individuals, others

The Green Logistics
Partnership Conference,launched in 2004 and composedof companies and organizations
united by this goal, strives toimplement and promotelogistics improvement

Policy Planning Committee* Overall Green Logistics Partnership
Conference management* Planning and proposal of policies
related to corporate awarenessbuilding and PR strategy, etc.

Business Promotion Committee* Selection of good practice examples* Policy recommendations throughfollow-up on projects selected for
implementation

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Green Logistics Partnership
Conference

measures involving coordination between freight owners and logistics operators, with the support of the
MLIT, in order to bring about modal shifts and improve truck transport eﬃciency.
As part of these activities, the Joint Guidelines on the Method for Calculating CO2 Emissions by the
Logistics Segment (Ver. 3.0) (METI, MLIT) were formulated. These guidelines establish a uniﬁed method of
calculating carbon dioxide emissions by the logistics segment, and can be used by both freight owners andlogistics operators for smoother collaboration. They make it possible to objectively evaluate the eﬀectivenessof individual measures. Each year the organization
gathers proposals from its members regarding speciﬁc
Green Logistics Partnership implementation projects inorder to promote measures for reducing CO2 emissions.
Particularly successful good practice example projects
involving logistics operators and freight owners
engaging in partnerships to reduce CO2 emissions arerecognized by MLIT awards.

30

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures■Promotion of modal shift and increased efficiency of freight distribution○Increased coastal shipping competitiveness and modal shift to sea transport
The MLIT is engaged in efforts aimed at strengthening
the competitiveness of the coastal shipping industry andpromoting a modal shift to sea transport.
As part of these efforts it is implementing the Eco-Ship
Modal Shift Project, which promotes modal shift by selecting
companies which contribute to modal shift by using somedegree of sea transport, and permitting those companies to

平成26年度
エコシップ・モーダルシフト事業
優良事業者の募集
平成20年、モーダルシフトの推進を目的にスタートした「エコシップマーク
認定制度」は今年で7年目を迎えます。この間、170を超える事業者が エ
コシップマーク の認定を受け、環境にやさしい企業としてイメージアップに役立てています。
平成26年度も引き続きモーダルシフトに貢献する荷主企業および物流事業者を募集いたします。詳細は裏面をご覧ください。

use the Eco-Ship Mark. As part of this project, the Eco-Ship
Modal Shift Project Executive Committee has implemented
an Eco-Ship Mark certification system (the Eco-Ship Mark
indicates that a company is contributing to environmental
efforts by using sea transport). Since the end of 2014, 206
companies (94 cargo owners and 112 logistics operators)
have received Eco-Ship Mark certification. Eco-Ship Markcertified companies are also selected to receive MLIT
平成26年度募集期間

Maritime Bureau Chief awards.

7月1日〜9月30日

2014年
国土交通省海事局

エコシップ・モーダルシフト事業実行委員会
http://www.ecoship.jp

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundationof Committee for Implementation of Eco-Ship Modal
Shift Operations

31

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

ColumnNear future eco-ship concept
The MLIT is developing and promoting next-generation Super Eco-Ships (SES) for domestic sea
routes. At the same time, Japanese marine transport companies are deploying ocean-going eco-ships
for use in international sea transportation, employing cutting edge energy saving technologies suchas solar power generation and designs which reduce wind and water resistance. Near-future eco-ship
concepts, which dramatically reduce energy consumption or emit no carbon dioxide, have also beenannounced. Below are some examples.
The "NYK Super Eco-Ship 2030" will ●NYK Super Eco-Ship 2030
reduce the amount of propulsive
force it needs through its lightweight
design and reduced friction resistance.
It will use fuel cells powered by LNG,
solar power, and wind power, withthe aim of cutting CO2 emissions
per container by 69% compared tocurrent levels.

Source: NYK

The "ISHIN-I" car carrier will further ●"ISHIN-I" ﬁrst next-generation car carrier
develop the natural energy usage
technologies used in existing car

Use ofrenewable energy Rechargeable
battery=> 3%

carriers, employing large-capacity
solar power panels and rechargeable
batteries to achieve zero-emissions
during in-port navigation, loading, andunloading. It also aims to cut CO2

Optimization ofengine system
=> 4%

Solar
panelsOptimum voyage
support system=> 5%
Reductionof windresistance=> 10%

emissions during open sea navigation
Optimizationof hull design=> 3%

by 50%, combining multiple newtechnologies to dramatically reduce

Reductionof friction
drag=> 10%

Optimizationof propulsion
eﬃciency=> 17%

Reduce CO₂
emissions by 41%

its environmental impact.

As needs for larger vessels arise in the future...
Compatibility with new Panama Canal(allows further improvement inpropulsion eﬃciency) => 15%

Reduce CO₂
emissions by 50%

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MOL

32

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures○Eco Rail Line Project
Railroads are essential parts of the daily lives ●Overview of the Eco Rail Line Projectand economic activities of the people of Japan. It is
Promoting systematic eﬀorts to reduce energy usage and carbon production,
vital that they be capable of maintaining regular
operation even in the event of emergency
situations such as power restrictions. Implementing

making entire rail lines environmentally friendly
Electricity generated
through regenerative
braking is returned to theoverhead power lines andfed to nearby trains,providing their drive

Power line

cutting edge eﬀorts to reduce energy consumption
by and carbon emissions from rail lines, which areused by 60 million people a day, contributes togreater societal energy conservation andTrain A

Excess poweris saved

Train B

Train carriages
Low carbon production bytrain carriages
Interior LED lighting
VVVF control devices, etc.

environmental awareness. The MLIT is

LED lighting andlow power
consumption air
conditioing areused in stations to
reduce power
consumption

Examples of rail measures (concept)
Renewable energy generation facilities such as
solar panels generate electricity which is used forlighting, air conditioning, etc. in stations. Surplus
electricity is stored in batteries, eliminating waste
OﬀpeakPeak

Transformer

Rail facilties (bateries, etc.)
Power storage devices
Regenerative inverter
devicesHigh eﬃciency transformers, etc.

Train station

Rail facilities (stations)
Low carbon production by train stations
Installation of solar and wind power generation equipment
Station interior LED lighting
Installation of low energy consumption air conditioners, etc.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

implementing the Eco Rail Line Project, supporting
rail operators who are implementing systematic eﬀorts to reduce power consumption and carbon emissions
for entire lines by using renewable energy in train stations and train control centers and installing energy
saving facilities for eﬃcient energy usage. Through this support, the project promotes reductions in energy
usage by rail lines and the adoption of carbon emissions reducing technologies.
○"Eco Rail Mark" system promotion and expansion
The "Eco Rail Mark" was established in 2005 to certify
companies and products which are proactively working
to achieve low environmental impact rail freighttransport. Supporting companies and products certified
with the "Eco Rail Mark" increases awareness amongcargo owner companies such as manufacturers, as well as
consumers, of environmental impact reduction efforts,
with the goal of promoting a corresponding modal shift torail freight transport. The MLIT and Railway Freight
Association are striving to further promote and expand
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation ofRailway Freight Associationthe "Eco Rail Mark". As of February 2015 there are 150"Eco Rail Mark" product certiﬁcations for 190 products,

87 certiﬁed companies, and 23 certiﬁed supporting companies.
○Promotion of zero emission port measures
In order to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions
produced by port activities, zero emission port
activities, such as reducing energy usage by cargohandling equipment and other equipment, using
renewable energy, and expanding CO2 sinks, are

Energy consumption reductions
for cargo handling equipmentusedin port activities Energy saving
chilled container facilities

usage of land power supply facilities for providing

Seaweed bed - tidal wetland

Electricity produced through wind and solar power generation
are used for port activities.
Large scale batteries are installed to ensure power supply stability
Power company

Flow ofelectricity

Seaweed beds, tidal wetlands
green spaces

Electrical transfer
Hybridcrane
straddle carrier

Large-scalebattery facilities

Facilities for supplying electrical
power from land to ships
Ship sideconnection
panel

Specifically, these include promoting the greater

Expansion of CO₂ sinks

Large scalebattery facilities

Green space

Energy saving cargohandling equipment

CO₂, etc.

being implemented.

Renewable energy usage
Wind power
Solar power
generation facilities generation facilities

Solar power generation facilities

Land sideconnection
panel
Land
power
supply

Cable
ࢣ࣮ࣈ ࣝ

Vehicle charging
facilities࠙⯪⯧∧࢔࢖ࢻࣜࣥࢢࢫࢺࢵࣉ
ࡢ࢖࣓࣮ࢪࠚ

ElectricalcablePower send/
receive facilities

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

energy to docked ships, promoting the greater usageof energy-saving cargo handling equipment, promoting the greater usage of energy-saving refrigerated
container facilities, promoting the utilization of renewable energy such as solar and wind power in oceanic andcoastal areas, and promoting the further development of green spaces and seaweed beds.
33

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector○The Act on Advancement of Integration and Streamlining of Distribution Business
For freight distribution, which is the backbone of economic activity, it is becoming increasingly important toachieve greater international competitiveness through cost reductions, to provide services which meet theneeds of increasingly diverse customers, and to create environmentally conscious distribution systems which
help prevent global warming. Distribution must appropriately respond to changing social and economic
conditions.
Overview
Overview ofof thethe Act
Act onon Advancement
Advancement ofof Integration
Integration
andand Streamlining
Streamlining ofof Distribution
Distribution BusinessBusiness
Background
It is urgent that a integrated andstreamlines distribution system becreated in order to stop the hollowing
out of industry and improve Japan's
international competitiveness

The Kyoto Protocol went into eﬀect
in February, and reducing
greenhouse gas (carbon dioxide
emissions) is an urgent issue for thetransport sector

Legal Overview

Increased need for distribution
site maintenance from theperspective of vitalizing regional
economies through functional
utilization of land, etc.

Eﬃcient, minimal environmental
impact distribution

Ineﬃcient distribution<Basic Policy>

Factory* Comprehensively perform
delivery, storage, anddistribution processing* Aggregate distribution sites andpromote their positioning near
highways, ports, etc.
* Rationalize delivery networks
through use of joint delivery, etc.

Conventional
warehouses

Distribution
processing sites

Distribution
site
facilities

Retailer

Importing
Factory

Cargo handlingstoreroom

Retailer

Plan creation

Certiﬁcation

EﬀectsSupport measures
Promotion of
integrated
distribution
operations* Batch acquisition ofoperation permissions,etc.
Warehouse operations
permissions, cargovehicle transportation
permissions, cargo
usage transportation
permissions, etc.

Maintenance of distribution
site facilities in tandemwith social capital

Promotion of
distribution reforms* Improve international
competitiveness throughintegrated distribution
operations* Reduce costs by 20% by
aggregating distribution sites
and rationalizing
transportation networks

Support for small andmedium-sized businesses* Special tax exemptions for distribution sitefacilities
Corporate tax, real estate tax, etc.
exemptions(commercial warehouses, etc.)

Financial, etc. support
Raising of insurance limits on credit insurnace
for small and medium-sized businesses
Debt guarantees through exemptions to the
Act for Promoting Improvement of the Food
Marketing Structure, etc.

Special consideration with regard to location
restrictions
Special consideration regarding permission
to perform development in order to constructfacilities inurbanization-restricted areas

Policy ﬁnance
Low interest loans through the Japan FinanceCorporation for Small Business, etc.
Personnel development (implemented since 2014)

Reduction ofenvironmental impact* Cut CO2 emissions by 20%* Contribute to reduced CO2
emissions by the distributionsectorRegional
vitalization* Utilization of unused andunderused land (industrial
parks, distribution operationparks)* Create regional employment at
distribution site facilities

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

To promote the integration and streamlining of distribution operations, the Act on Advancement ofIntegration and Streamlining of Distribution Business was enacted in 2005. This act deﬁnes support measuresand business plan certification procedures in order to promote the creation of distribution operation
streamlining and integration businesses which perform comprehensive, eﬃcient distribution operations suchas transportation, storage, handling, and distribution processing, and the creation of distribution facilities
which serve as the core of these business activities.
In order to promote the utilization of this act, a system of indicating companies which have received
integration and streamlining plan certiﬁcation (a certiﬁcation mark system) was established. Of the end of
December 2014 244 said plans had“ јྙႎư࿢‫ؾ‬᝟ᒵƷ‫ݱ‬ƞƍཋ්” ǛƓᎋƑƷཋ්ʙಅᎍƷႏಮǁbeen certified. An "Act on࠯ ঺ Ძ Ჳ ࠰ Ძ Ძ உ Წ Ჳ ଐ૎ሊወਙ‫˄ܫ‬Ӌʙ‫ܫ‬Ტཋ්଀ᚨᲣܴ

Advancement of Integration andStreamlining of Distribution Business/ Distribution Business Integrationand Streamlining Plan Certificationཋ්ዮӳјྙ҄ඥƷžᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſƕᛓဃƠǇƠƨᲛᲛཋ්ዮӳјྙ҄ඥƷžᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſƕᛓဃƠǇƠƨཋ්ዮӳјྙ҄ඥƷžᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſƕᛓဃƠǇƠƨᲛ᳸ȁȣȬȳǸƠǇƠǐƏŵཋ්ȀǤǨȃȈ᳸᳸ȁȣȬȳǸƠǇƠǐƏŵཋ්ȀǤǨȃȈ᳸ʻᑍŴཋ්ዮӳјྙ҄ඥƷ୼Ƴǔ෇ဇ̟ᡶǛ‫׋‬ǔƨǊƷӕǓኵǈƱƠƯŴዮӳјྙ҄ᚘဒƷᛐ‫ܭ‬ǛӖƚƨƜƱǛᅆƢᘙᅆᲢᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯᲣǛоᚨƠǇƠƨŵ ƜǕƴǑǓŴᛐ‫ܭ‬ǛӖƚƨʙಅᎍƷ˖ಅǤȡȸǸӼɥŴ්ᡫಅѦƷዮӳ҄ӏƼјྙ҄ƴ᧙ƢǔӕኵॖഒƷӼɥሁƕ‫׋‬ǒǕǔƜƱǛ஖ࢳƠƯƍǇƢŵ

Application Guide" was released,䊶ੑ䈧䈱ᵹ䉏䈏੤Ꮕ䈚䇮䉻䉟䊅䊚䉾䉪䈮ዷ㐿䈜䉎‛ᵹ䈱ᆫ䉕⴫䈚䉁䈜䇯
䊶੐ᬺ⠪ห჻䈏⣨䉕⚵䉖䈣ᆫ䋨දജ䉇ද⺞䋩䉅฽䉂䇮㕍䈫✛䈲䇮ⓨ䋨䈐䉏䈇䈭ⓨ᳇䋩䇮⥄ὼ䋨ⅣႺ䈻䈱㈩ᘦ䋩䉕⴫䈚䉁䈜䇯

and providing information on subjectsјྙႎư࿢‫ؾ‬᝟ᒵƷ‫ݱ‬ƞƍཋ්ƷǤȡȸǸŪžᛐ‫ܭ‬Ȟȸǯſʩ˄ȕȭȸ

Source: Tentative Translated by
Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

Ĭ ᛐ‫ܭ‬ဎᛪ

engaged in operation integration andⅤዮӳјྙ҄ᚘဒⅥᛐ‫ܭ‬ဎᛪ↝৖ࡽⅼⅤዮӳјྙ҄ᚘဒⅥᛐ‫ܭ‬ဎᛪ↝৖ࡽⅼ䊶㪮䈲㪮㫀㫅㪄㪮㫀㫅䉕࿑᩺ൻ䈚䇮⩄ਥ䈫‛ᵹ੐ᬺ⠪䈏ᄢ䈐䈒ዷ㐿䈚䈩䈇䈒䈖䈫䉕⴫䈚䉁䈜䇯

describing the beneﬁts of certiﬁcation,

procedures, for use by businessesཋ්ዮӳјྙ҄ඥ‛ᵹ✚วല₸ൻᴺ䇸⹺ቯ䊙䊷䉪䇹‛ᵹ✚วല₸ൻᴺ䇸⹺ቯ䊙䊷䉪䇹

containing explanations of the law,such as certification applicationʙЭแͳẦỤဎᛪ୿᫏˺঺ộỂỉỴỸἚἻỶὅửắకϋዮӳјྙ҄ᚘဒᛐ‫ܭ‬ƷȡȪȃȈ
ဎᛪ୿᫏Ʒ˺঺૾ඥ ƳƲႻᛩᆸӝɟᚁᘙ˄ĭ ᛐ ‫ܭ‬ᛐ ‫ܭ‬ᛐ ‫ܭ‬žᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſǛʩ˄žᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſǛʩ˄

streamlining.

‫ ם ׎‬ʩ ᡫ ႾĮ ᘙ ᅆžᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſƕᘙᅆưƖǔžᛐ‫ܭ‬ȞȸǯſƕᘙᅆưƖǔ34䂾 ડᬺ䉟䊜䊷䉳䈱ะ਄䂾 ‛ᵹ✚วല₸ൻᴺ䈱䌐䌒‛ᵹ✚วല₸ൻᴺ䈱ᦝ䈭䉎ᵴ↪ଦㅴ

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures■Promotion of the Green Management Certification System
In recent years there has been an increasing focus on environmental problems such as global warming andair pollution. Satisfying both environmental and economic concerns and creating a sustainable economic
society has become an urgent challenge. The Eco-Mo Foundation has created and distributed green
management promotion manuals containing checklists for self-assessment in order to promote environmental
conservation activities by transportation related companies. This manual, based on the concepts of ISO14031(an international environmental performance evaluation standard), contains checklist items for environmental
conservation items to be addressed, and descriptions of speciﬁc corresponding environmental eﬀorts. This
makes it easy to set and evaluate environmental targets, thereby achieving greener management. Green
management consists of companies assessing their own environmental conservation eﬀorts, using promotion
manuals as references in considering improvement measures based on the results of these environmental
conservation efforts, creating action plans which include these improvement measures, and implementing
them in order to achieve the improvements. This cycle makes it possible to implement autonomous, ongoingenvironmental conservation activities.
The MLIT is striving to promote this green management as a countermeasure against environmental
problems. In order to promote green management, the Green Management Certification System wasestablished in 2003. The Eco-Mo Foundation acts as the certification body under this system, objectively
certifying and publicizing environmental improvement eﬀorts by companies, based on the green management
promotion manual. This produces greater motivation, as well as fostering understanding of and cooperation
with certified businesses by other companies and users, with the ultimate objective of reducing theenvironmental impact of the transportation industry.

35

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector⑤Promotion of usage of public transportation
Creating new railroad lines and new transportation systems, and making rail and bus transportation moreconvenient, contribute a shift in passenger transportation from private cars to public transportation, which
has less of an environmental impact. This leads to reductions in automobile CO2 emissions, so various
measures are being implemented in order to achieve this shift.

■Establishment of the Basic Act on Transport Policy
The Basic Act on Transport Policy was enacted on ● Overview of the Basic Act on Transport
PolicyDecember 4, 2013. This act deﬁnes the basic philosophy
Increasing international competition / Creation of disaster-resistant
Shrinking andunderpinning transport related measures in order topromote measures necessary for the national government
to coordinate closely with local governments andtransport companies in implementing comprehensive andJapan's economic slump

ensuring preparedness for large-scale disasters. This act

aging population

Transport measures play an extremely important role in tackling Japan's pressing issues
For example

Strengthening of international transport networks, ports, airports, etc. inorder to provide Japan with greater international
competitiveness
Securing and improving of public transportation in crisis areas
Securing of passenger and logistics networks in the event of large-scaledisasters, rapid recovery, etc.

systematic measures from the perspectives of increasing
international competitiveness and regional vitality, andcountry / communities

The following are essential intackling these issues:* Systematic measures based on long-term perspectives* Coordination and collaboration between diverse parties (related
ministries, transportation
operators, local governments, residents, etc.)

applies to the international transport, core transport, andFormulation of transportation policy basic laws

regional transport which acts as the infrastructure

Clarify basic concepts and responsibilities
of individual parties, etc.

supporting Japan's economic and social activities. The act
clearly specifies the responsibilities of involved parties,
and mandates that the Cabinet approve a Basic Plan on

Narita Airport

Toyama LRT

Cabinet decisions and Diet reports on transportation policy basic plans
Measures required to strengtheninternational competitivenessResponse to large scale disasters
Measures required to reduce
environmental impact

Transport Policy and present it to the Diet. The Cabinet
approved the first Basic Plan on Transport Policy on
February 13, 2015.

Measures required to improve regional vitality
Securing transport lifelines andimplementing barrier free transport
Measures focused on regional renovation andestablishment of Japan as a tourist destination

Required support measures(legal and ﬁscal, etc.)
Annual reporting to the Diet("White Paper on Transport Policy")

Kyushu Shinkansen

Remote island sea routes

Creation of a framework enabling the government and related parties
to work as one to powerfully promotetransportation policies in order to tackle Japan's pressing issues

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

●Overview of the Basic Plan on Transport Policy
Overview of the Basic Plan on Transport Policy[Social and economic changes addressed by this plan]

Measure objectives

National measures
stipulated
Basic approachin the Act（1）Highly unique regional regeneration amidst Japan's rapidly shrinking and aging population （2）Increasing globalization（3）Imminent
large-scale disasters and deteriorating infrastructure（4）Global environmental problems（5）Developments in technological innovationsuch as dramatic advances in ICT（6）Recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake（7）2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics

A. Creation of easy to use
transportation which contributes
to the rich lives of citizens

B. Creation of international and inter-

Securing Means of Transport Indispensable for Daily
Lives（Article 16）
Policies for Smooth Movement of Elderly Persons,
Persons with Disabilities, Pregnant Women（Article 17）
Improvement of Convenience, Smoothing and Eﬃciency
of Transport Services（Article 18）
Promotion of Policies from the Viewpoint of Town
Planning（Article 25）

Policies Necessary to Enhance International
Competitiveness（Article 19）
Policies Necessary to Improve Vitality in Local Areas（Article 20）
Promotion of Policies from the Viewpoint of
Achievement of a Tourism Nation（Article 26）①Preparation for large-scale disasters andresponse to infrastructure deterioration②Additional support for diverse
transportation services based on regional
conditions③Greater implementation of barrier-free
eﬀorts④Further improvement of passenger andtransport service levels

National measures stipulated in the Act

Responsibilities of and coordination between
parties involved（Articles 8 to 12, 27）
Development of Comprehensive
Transport System（Article 24）
Research and Study（Article 28）
Development and Dissemination ofTechnology（Article 29）
Measures to Implement Policies from theViewpoint of Citizens, etc.（Article 31）

regional passenger transport anddistribution networks which can serve as
infrastructure for growth and prosperity

C. Creation of sustainable,safe, secure transport
infrastructure

Promotion of Security of International Coordination andInternational Cooperation（Article 30）

Sound Development of Transport Undertakings andOther Transport Related Undertakings（Article 21）
Policies Necessary to Mitigate Deterioration of
the Functions of Transport and the Quick
Recovery from the Deterioration in the Event of a
Large-Scale Disaster（Article 22）
Policies Necessary to Reduce the Environmental
Load Associated with Traﬃc（Article 23）①Enhancement of the competitiveness ofJapan's international transport network②Expansion of ﬂow of people and goods
between regions③Enhancement of eﬀorts in conjunction
with tourist facilities with aim ofreaching 20 million international tourists④Global deployment of transport
infrastructure and services utilizing
Japanese technologies and expertise①Preparation for large-scale disasters andresponse to infrastructure deterioration②Strengthening of the infrastructuresof transport related businesses andensuring of stable and safe operation③Securing and training of transportpersonnel④Greater implementation of environmental
measures such as further reductions incarbon emissions and energy usage

Items of special note when implementing measures①Provide appropriate follow-up and implement measures focused on perspectives of citizens
and users②The national government, local governments, businesses, users, community residents, andother related parties bear their own individual roles and responsibilities, and must
coordinate and collaborate with each other③Use technological advances to achieve innovation, such as leveraging data by utilizing ICT, etc.
④Implement eﬀorts with focus on 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Paralympics, and beyond

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

36

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures■Measures for promoting rail use
The MLIT provides support for eﬀorts by●Service and conveniencerail operators to promote the use of urban◆Arterial railroad, etc. vitalization projects
・Conversion of cargo rail lines to passenger rail lines,
Osaka outer loop line (Shin-Osaka to Hanate)◆Rail station comprehensive improvement projects
Keikyu Corporation Keikyu Kamata Station, Seibu Railway
Shiinamachi Station, Hanshin Electric Railway Koshien Station, JR
East Kannai Station◆City railroad convenience promotion projects
・Speed improvements - Sotetsu / JR through line (Nishiya Station Yokohama Hazawa Station area), Sotetsu / Tokyu through line
(Yokohama Hazawa area - Hiyoshi)
・Transport interchange function advancement - Hanshin Sannomiya
Stationrail, achieve greater speeds on existingarterial railroads, achieve greater speeds on
freight rail lines, convert freight rail lines
into passenger rail lines, smoothinterconnections, make comprehensive
improvements to railway stations, implement
barrier-free measures in railway stations,etc.

It is also collaborating with rail operators in the "Eco Rail Campaign",
promoting the use of rail transportation as an easy for of environmental action.
Support for the establishment of next generation streetcar systems (LRTs*),
which are increasingly in the spotlight, is being provided as part of the
Ministry's regional public transportation provision, maintenance, andimprovement project.
* LRT: Short for "Light Rail Transit", these next generation streetcar
transportation systems use low-floor trams (LRVs), track and stop

Source: Tentative Translated
by Eco-Mo Foundation ofMLIT

improvements to provide easy boarding and unboarding, punctuality,
travel speed, comfort, and other features.

●Overview of LRT systems

Overview of LRT systems
What is LRT（Light Rail Transit）?

Features

LRT is an improvement on the driving areas, carriages, and other aspects of conventional streetcars, eﬀectively
utilizing existing road, rail, and other infrastructure. It is a public transportation system which is friendly to people
and to the environment, providing greater speeds, punctuality, and transport capabilities. It is gaining greaterattention for its barrier free access and environmental friendliness, contributing to the restoration of urban andregional areas by vitalizing central urban districts.

●High speeds and punctuality levels●Town planning eﬀorts* LRT oﬀers high speeds and high levels of punctuality through rail carriage
performance advances, the use of dedicated tracks, partial grade separation,
signal prioritization, fare payment system improvements, and more.

Driving area

* Installation of LRT as a town symbol to create lively center* Can be installed in conjunction with other town planning measures
such as development of station plaza and conversion of adjacentstreets into transit malls, creation of park & ride parking lots,
development of public facilities along the line, etc.

Toyama Light Rail Toyama Ekikita area
Tracks and road are separated by a curb divider

Uniﬁedappearance
Automobil
es canphysicallyenter thetrack area䋻* Tracks
and road
areseparated* Priority
signals
are used

Conventional
designscenery●Environmentally-friendly●Suﬃcient transport capacity* In addition to providing the environmentally friendly streetcar feature of
producing CO₂ emissions less than automobiles, LRT systems also reducenoise and vibration through the use of resilient wheels and vibration control
Fukui Railway city tracks,
tracks* High freguency and articulated bus are combined appropriately to ensure
suﬃcient transport capacity

Normaltrack

Approx. 150
people（Five-car:
Hiroshima
Electric
Railway train）

Vibration

䋻 control
track

87dB 䋻 76dB

䋻[Noise comparison]
Measured at a distance of 7.5m
from the center line between tracks,
䚸 ground,at a height of 1.2m above
for an LRT travelling at 40km/h●People-friendly* Low carriage ﬂoors, boarding and disboarding slopes, etc., eliminate height diﬀerencesand ensure ease in transferring to other means of transportation

Height diﬀerence makes
steps necessary

Fukui Ekimae area
Uses embedded tracks
to reduce noise and vibration

Track structure

Train transport capacity（maximum capacity）
Approx. 90
people（Single-car:
Hiroshima
Electric Railway
train）

Train

эdesigned
to match
local

CO₂ emissions
CO2 emissions per person㍺㏦ே䜻䝻䛒䛯䜚䛾䠟㻻㻞᤼ฟ㔞䠄䡃䠅
㍺㏦ே䜻䝻䛒䛯䜚䛾䠟㻻㻞᤼ฟ㔞䠄䡃䠅perkilometer transported（g）

Floor heightPrivately
owned car

780mm 䋻 330mm

Minibus
LRT
streetcar

㻝㻤㻤
㻥㻠
㻟㻢

Train can be boarded directly fromplatform, with no height diﬀerence

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

37

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector■ Revised Act on Vitalization and Rehabilitation of Local Public Transportation
Systems
In May 2014 a revision to the Basic Act on Transport Policy was drafted, and enacted in November of thesame year.
● Overview of the Revised Act on Vitalization and Rehabilitation of Local Public
Transportation Systems
Detailing of Basic Act on Transport Policy(enacted and promulgated December 4, 2013)
Promotion of coordinationand collaboration between
involved parties

Promotion of transportmeasures from the perspectiveof town planning

Securing of meansof transportation essential fordaily life, etc.

Objectives
Maintain and improve regional societal
vigor in the face of full-ﬂedged population
reductions

Basic scheme of the Revised Act on Revitalization
and Rehabilitation of Local Public Transportation Systems
Basic policy

National government formulates policy,
taking coordination with town planning
into consideration

Key Points①Rebuild with a focus on
local public agencies②coordinated with town planning,③recreating an areawide
public transportation network

Local public agencies holdcoordination council upon consultation
with operators and formulate plan

Local public transportation
network formation plan

■Coordinated with town planning in order to produce compact cities■Rebuilding of areawide public transportation networks for entire regions

Local public transport reorganization projects
Operators, etc., implement with thesupport of local public agencies inorder to rebuild an areawide public
transportation network
Local public agencies formulate withthe consensus of operators, etc.
* The Revised Act on Revitalization and Rehabilitationof Local Public Transportation Systems was enacted
on November 20, 2014

Local public transport
reorganization projects

Tramway
Rail businessinprovement
restructuring
project
project(LRT development) (vertical separation) 䡡䡡䡡

Local public transport
reorganization
implementation projects

Implementation
plan

Implementation
plan

䡡䡡䡡

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport certiﬁes plansand provides support for plan implementation

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

● Conceptual image of reconstruction of public transportation integrated withcompact town planning
Restructuring of public transportation
coupled with community development

Current situation
Every bus route has
a only low-frequency
rate of service
Diﬀusedurban zones

Private cars are theprimary transport mode

Formation of a circulatory
public transportation
network in the base area

Attraction of
medical welfare
and other urban
䠶 to thefacilities
base area

Enhancement oftransportation
services that link bases

Attraction of
housing to areas
along public
transportation lines

Centralstation

Hospital

Feeder transportationby community buses
Welfarefacilities

Base area

Town oﬃce

Developmentof transfer sites
Development ofpedestrianspaces and bicycle
usage environments

Areas clear of
public transportation

Measures concerning
community development
Measures concerning
local public transportation

Introduction ofdemand-responsive
shared taxis

Collaboration

Successful
cycle

Source: Prepared by the MLIT based on the approaches taken in Toyama City,
Kumamoto City, Toyooka City, Sanjo City and elsewhere.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

38

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures■Promotion of eco-commuting
There is a growing demand for a shift in means of transportation, from the use of private cars to low
carbon dioxide emissions public transportations, by promoting the use of public transportation. In order topromote highly effective measures which match both user side and transportation operator side efforts, aConference on Promotion of Public Transportation was held in March 2005, involving transportation operators,
members of the business sector, and members of the government. In November 2007 the "Eco-commuting
Pilot Program through the Mobility Management Project" was adopted to promote conversion from the use ofprivate cars to public transportation, bicycles and on foot for commuting. From June 2009 thereby promoting
eco-commuting. the "Excellent Eco-Commuting Business Site Certiﬁcation System" was launched to certify
businesses which voluntarily and actively promoted eco-commuting. As of the end of December 2014, 645
business sites have been registered.

What is "Eco-commuting"?
"Eco-commuting" is an approach that encourage company
workers to change their means of commuting from private
cars to public transportation, bicycles and on footConceptual image
BeforeAfter
Rail stations,
etc.

Home,
company housing,dorm, etc.

Home,company housing,dorm, etc.

Commutertrains

Traﬃc jams
Deterioration insurrounding
environment
Traﬃc accidents"Eco-commuting"Commuter
buses

Home,
company
housing,
dorm, etc.

Ride sharing

Homes, etc.

Oﬃces, factories, etc.

Oﬃces,
factories,etc.
Bicycles

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

39

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector■Eco-Model Cities and Future Eco-Cities
The Future Eco-Cities initiative being implemented by the government has selected 11 cities and areas in2011 led by the basic concept of human-focused cities creating new value in order to respond to environmental
needs and the needs of the aging society, with the goal of promoting highly sustainable cities with excellent
environmental, social, and economic value. The Eco-Model City initiative being advanced by the government
sets high goals for the creation of low carbon societies, such as dramatic greenhouse gas emissions reductions,as low carbon cities which form the foundation of the Future Eco-Cities concept. The government selected 13
Eco-Model Cities in 2008, 7 in 2012, and 3 in 2013, for a total of 23 cities.

Future Eco-Cities Initiative
Selection Criteria

Support fromnational government[Handling of environmental,
ultra-aging society,and unique regional issues]（1）Evaluation of past Eco-Model Cityeﬀorts（additional criteria）（2）Evaluation of FutureCity plans①Future vision（allure, necessity,
appropriate issue and objective selection,and value creation）②Contents of eﬀorts（comprehensiveness,strategy, business viability, maturity,
dedication）③System（eﬀectiveness, maturity, steady
implementation of project management,
coordination between cities, eﬀective
network utilization）[Greenhouse gas reductions]①Major greenhouse gas
emissions reductions②Advanced nature,eﬀectiveness as a model③Regional adaptivity④Feasibility⑤Sustainability

Future Eco-Cities
Currently 11
FutureCities/Areas（5 non-disaster cities and6 disaster cities/areas）* Eﬀort evaluation andpublic announcementby the national
government* Close local support byexperts（promotion ofinternational forum）

Rigorous selection
from pool of
Eco-Model Cities

Eco model cities
Currently 23 cities（13 cities selected in 2008, 7 cities in 2012,
and 3 cities in 2013）* Eﬀort evaluation andpublic announcementby the national
government

Rigorous selection（Maximum of 40 to 50 cities in future）

All Japanese cities, wards, towns, and villages

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Oﬃce for Promotion of Overcoming Population Decline andVitalizing Local Economy in Japan, Cabinet Oﬃce, Government of Japan40

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures

Cities selected as Eco-Model Cities【Cities selected in 2008】【Cities selected in 2013】
䉰City/Town

Population

A low-carbon model society in symbiosis with the northern forest, Shimokawa

21

Niseko Town
(Hokkaido)㻠㻘㻤㻜㻜㻌

㻝㻢㻤㻘㻜㻜㻜

Countryside environmental model city, Obihiro

22

Ikoma City
(Nara Prefecture)㻝㻞㻝㻘㻜㻜㻜㻌

㻡㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜

Energy-eﬃcient urban development, better energy eﬃciency

23

Oguni Town
(Kumamoto Prefecture)㻣㻘㻥㻜㻜㻌

䉰

City/Town

Population

ĬShimokawa Town
(Hokkaido)

㻟㻘㻢㻜㻜

ĭ

Obihiro City
(Hokkaido)

Į

Chiyoda Ward
(Tokyo)į

Yokohama City
(Kanagawa Prefecture)㻟㻘㻢㻥㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜

Yokohama Smart City Projectİ

Iida City(Nagano Prefecture)㻝㻜㻟㻘㻜㻜㻜Natural energy through citizen participation and low-carbon urban development

ıToyama City
(Toyama Prefecture)㻠㻞㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜

A CO2 reduction plan - part of Toyama's "Compact City Strategy"

Ĳ

Toyota City
(Aichi Prefecture)㻠㻞㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜

Low-carbon urban development utilizing mobility and next-generation energy

ĳ

Kyoto City
(Kyoto Prefecture)㻝㻘㻠㻣㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜An attractive, people-friendly city, Planning low-carbon activities through“regional power”

ĴSakai City
(Osaka Prefecture)㻤㻠㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜

ĵYusuhara Town
(Kochi Prefecture)

㻟㻘㻤㻜㻜

Ķ

Kitakyushu City
(Fukuoka Prefecture)㻥㻣㻜㻘㻜㻜㻜

Environmental frontier city of Asia, Kitakyushu

ķMinamata City
(Kumamoto Prefecture)㻞㻣㻘㻜㻜㻜

Building a sustainable small-scale local government model in harmony withboth environment and economyĸMiyakojima City
(Okinawa Prefecture)㻡㻞㻘㻜㻜㻜

Island-type low-carbon society system, "Eco-Island Miyakojima"

Project Name

Project Name
International environmental resort city Niseko Smart Challenge 86
The most livable and eco-friendly town in Japan, Ikoma
A town design incorporating agriculture & forestry, biomass, and geothermalenergyĬĭद

A low-carbon city where "urban vitality" and "comfortable lifestyles" persis
side-by-side
Woody biomass regional circulation model project【Cities selected in 2012】
䉰City/Town

Population

ĹNiigata City
(Niigata Prefecture)㻤㻜㻤㻘㻜㻜㻜㻌

Niigata - a city with a "countryside-type environment" 〜Circulating Rich value
nurtured by the region 〜ĺTsukuba City
(Ibaraki Prefecture)㻞㻝㻣㻘㻜㻜㻜㻌

Tsukuba Environmental Style "SMILe" 〜Evoking smiles through technology andlocal wisdom〜ĻMitake Town
(Gifu Prefecture)㻝㻥㻘㻜㻜㻜㻌

Mitake, a low-carbon community achieved by using local resources - forests,
public transport, renewable energy, etc.

ļAmagasaki City
(Hyogo Prefecture)㻠㻡㻝㻘㻜㻜㻜㻌

Challenge to the "Future ECO city Amagasaki"ĽKobe City(Hyogo Prefecture)㻝㻘㻡㻠㻞㻘㻜㻜㻜

Nishiawaguri Village㻝㻘㻢㻜㻜Matsuyama City
(Aichi Prefecture)㻡㻝㻟㻘㻜㻜㻜ľ (Okayama Prefecture)ĿĹ

Project NameĶनķ

Kobe environmental model city
Creating a low-carbon model for high-quality country life
Matsuyama - a city to be proud of, striving to be a model for both environment
and economy

Ŀ
ĵ

ľĽ ĳ
ļध
Ĵ

ı
ĺ
Į
Ļİ
į
Ĳ

ĸ

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Oﬃce for Promotion of Overcoming Population Decline andVitalizing Local Economy in Japan, Cabinet Oﬃce, Government of Japan

Cities selected as Future Eco-City
Higashi-Matsushima City,
Miyagi Prefecture（Population: 40,000）

Shimokawa City, Hokkaido（Population: 3,645）
Creation of a self-supporting forestry industry utilizing abundant forest
resources
Creation of a self-sustained community through collective living

Creation of autonomous, distributed power supply
by using renewable energy
Promotion of health housing using CASSBEE
health checklists

Kamaishi City, Iwate Prefecture（Population: 38,000）
Iwanuma City, Miyagi Prefecture

Usage of local energy
Creation of an industrial welfare society through the integration ofhealth, medicine, welfare, and nursing functions in support centers（Population: 44,000）
Creation of disaster-reduction Sennen Kibou No
Oka using waste from the earthquake
International welfare city utilizing its location as a
traﬃc hubOfunato City, Rikuzentakata City, Sumita Town
（Iwate Prefecture）（Population: Total of 67,000）
Creation of a consolidated compact city that supports aging residents
and uses elevated land to produce an eco-friendly, disaster-resistantfuture city

Shinchi Town, Fukushima Prefecture（Population: 8,110）
Creation of an information telecommunications
infrastructure using ICT
Use of the "soft" infrastructure of the local
community

Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture（Population: 417,000）
A compact city with public transportation system
based on LRTCreation of a Toyama-style day service that provides
cross-spectrum support for the elderly, people withdisabilities, and children

Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture（Population: 66,000）
Overcoming the earthquake and creating cyclical local industries withprimary industries as its core and unique processing and distribution
channels

Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture（Population: 405,000）
Leveraging of cutting edge knowledge of universities and otherinstitutions at the Kashiwa Campus
Eﬀorts to achieve autonomous urban management throughcollaboration between the government, private industry, and academia

Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture（Population: 970,000）
Uses its experience with tackling pollution problems
and engaging in international environmental
collaboration, together with manufacturing
technologies, as an infrastructure for eﬀorts
focusing on coordination between residents,
companies, and the government, and on communityties

Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture（Population: 3,692,000）
Eﬀorts to tackle issues faced by major metropolises by leveraging local strengths
and the drive of companies and citizens, such as citizens' groups, supporting a wide
range of needs, from environmental needs to the needs of an aging society

Disaster area
Non-disaster area

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Oﬃce for Promotion of Overcoming Population Decline andVitalizing Local Economy in Japan, Cabinet Oﬃce, Government of Japan

41

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector■Low Carbon City Act
It is important to build up a collection of success cases of rationalization of energy usage and urban andtransportation carbon emissions reductions, promoting greater adoption and vitalizing the housing market andlocal economies, by promoting private investment in urbanization areas, etc. based on changes in energy
supply and demand triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake and increasing energy and global warming
awareness among citizens. The Low Carbon City Act was passed by the Diet in September 2012 and went
into eﬀect in 2012 of the same year. As of November 2014, 16 cities have created low carbon town plans.
These plans are listed on the MLIT website.

● Formulation of Low Carbon Town Plans (Cities, Towns, and Villages)* Low carbon town planning councils (local public agencies, private businesses, etc.) are established to perform consultation and coordination

Aggregation of urban functions○Aggregation of hospitals, welfare facilities, collective housing,etc.
Creation of private business certiﬁcation systems○Creation of consolidated parking facilities by private industry,etc.
Special provisions regarding mandatory provision of parking
facilities when building new buildings○Pedestrian-friendly town planning(Improvement of sidewalks and bicycle paths, barrier freedesign, etc.)

Promotion of usage of public transportation○Improvement of bus routes, LRT, etc., implementation ofcooperative delivery
Special provisions for business laws covering buses, trains,etc.
○Automobile CO2 emissions reductions

Promotion of comprehensive green /energy management and utilization
Low carbon buildings○Advanced low carbon buildings /residences by private industry○Promotion of green space conservation and expansion by NPOs, etc.
Expansion of management agreement systems for forested areas, etc.
○Utilization of untapped sewage heatSpecial permission for sewage water intake by private industry○Installation of solar power generators, batteries, etc., in urban parks andportside areas
Special occupancy permissions

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

42

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures⑥Promotion of Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST)In order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by the passenger transport sector, it is important to implement
measures to reduce the excess reliance on private vehicles, which account for the majority of the sector's
emissions, and promote the use of public transportation, etc. It is essential, when doing so, to employ measures
which reﬂect the local area's features, and for measures to be driven by the community with the collaborationof related parties. In order to achieve this, the MLIT has implemented an "EST Model Project", in which areas
which are implementing leading efforts at achieving Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) areselected, and related ministries and agencies collaborate to ●MLIT website "EST Database"provide support in the areas such as promoting the use of public
transportation, implementing measures to smooth automobile
traffic flow, promoting the use of low-emission vehicles, andpromotion and awareness raising. Over the three year period
from 2004 to 2006, 27 areas were selected as EST Model Project
areas, and each area has implemented three year model projects.
related ministries and agencies are coordinating with each other,
providing support and making information regarding the resultsof these projects available in order to expand EST to anationwide scale. As part of these efforts, the MLIT website
provides an EST Database with the results of these model
projects, sharing information about how to eﬀectively implement
EST activities.
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of
MLIT website●Promotion of Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST)

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of white Paper on Land, Infrastructure,
Transport and Tourism in Japan43

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector■Regional EST Forum in Asia
The Regional EST Forum in Asia is a high level governmental policy discussion forum, jointly created by
the MOE and the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) with the aim of achieving
Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) in the Asian region. Members include government oﬃcials incharge of environmental and transport issues from Japan and other like-minded countries in Asia, as well as
environmental and transport experts. The ﬁrst Forum was held in Nagoya in August 2005. It was attended by
13 countries ̶ 10 ASEAN countries, China, Japan, and Mongolia, and resulted in the adoption of the Aichi
Statement. The Aichi Statement speciﬁes that the Forum is to be held as a regular event, outlines the basic
approach to EST in Asia, and states that the UNCRD will play a central role, assisting with the formulationand implementation of strategic plans and action plans for individual countries. In April 2013 the 7th Forum
was held in Bali, Republic of Indonesia. Representatives from 23 Asian countries and regions participated,sharing information regarding EST policies and success cases. The Bali Declaration was adopted, aﬃrming
further promotion of EST and complementing the Bangkok Declaration for 2020, formulated at the 5th Forum,
held in 2010, specifying EST targets. At the 8th Forum, held in November 2014, the Colombo Statement was
adopted aiming to promote low-carbon transportation in Asia. The Special Session for city mayors in Asia wasconvened, reviving interest in the Kyoto Statement adopted in 2007 to promote environmentally sustainabletransport in Asia, and issuing a supplementary note to strengthen such actions in this regard.

●8th Forum opening ceremony●8th Forum plenary meeting 844

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures■ Comprehensive support for energy creation, storage and saving in towns,
residences and transport
Japan is facing unprecedented challenges, such as a shrinking and aging population, ﬁnancial constraints,
intensifying international competition, and energy restrictions prompted by the increasingly severe global
environmental situation and Japan's earthquake and nuclear power plant disaster. In order to overcome thesechallenges and create a brighter future for Japan, the MLIT is working as one to carry out sustainable,energetic national and regional planning. The creation of a low carbon, recycling-oriented society is one new
direction of policy development, and is an essential part of creating a sustainable society. In disaster-aﬀectedareas, Future Cities, and comprehensive special zones, regional local governments, private businesses, andothers are taking the lead in considering how to create a low carbon, recycling-oriented society. The MLIT is
engaged in a wide range of ﬁelds closely tied to the economy and the lives of citizens. In these ﬁelds, theMinistry is providing comprehensive support for leading eﬀorts by regions and businesses to create, store, andsave energy in towns, residences, and transport by leveraging local strengths, responsive capabilities, andcomprehensive capabilities. The Ministry is also supporting the formation of advanced concepts by local
governments and private businesses for the creation of models tailored to city scales and local features, etc.,
in order to create, store, and save energy in towns, residences, and transport.

● Planning supports for comprehensive support model creation for energy creation, storage andsaving in towns, residences and transport
2012
RegionHakodate City,
Hokkaido

Hirosaki City,
AomoriPrefecture

Sponsor( R e p r e s e n t a t i v e
Organization)

TO Ogasawara Co., Ltd.

Cosponsor

Title

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries,
Ltd.
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation
JTB Corporate Sales Inc.
Hakodate Jikoh

Hakodate excursion network concept based on
new energy and EV mobility- Striving to create a self-sufficient region byleveraging diverse forms of energy
Town planning concept for local energy
production and consumption using Hirosaki's
local resources- "Creating", "Moving", and "Storing" by convertingto green hydrogen energy

Hirosaki City

Daiwa House Industry Co., N T T U r b a n D e v e l o p m e n t Realizing the Tsukuba Environment Style "SMILe"
Tsukuba City,
Ltd.
Corporation
Citizen-led sustainable community model
Ibaraki Prefecture
Tsukuba Branch
Placemaking Institute Inc..
concept

Kurashiki City,
OkayamaPrefecture

JFE Shoji Corporation,
Okayama Branch

Sumitomo Mitsui Auto Service
Co., Ltd
Kurashikijisho Co., Ltd.
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation
Nishinihon Mitsubishi Motors
Corporation
Marugo Rubber Industries, Ltd.
Kurashiki Machidukuri Co.
Kurashiki Seibou Co., Ltd.
Inoue
Kamoi Kakoshi Co., Ltd.
Kurashiki Ivy Square
Marubun Corporation
Hagihara Industries, Inc.
Kurashiki chamber ofcommerce

EV / PV-centered corporate community-led
Kurashiki vitalization and greening concept- Implementing a regionally-based energy
creation, storage, and saving model

Striving to create a town led by the model
concept of promoting tourism and exchange
between residents by using Satsumasendai's
local diversity- A city, supported by energy, where people want
to go, share, and live

Satsumasendai
City, Kagoshima Satsumasendai City
Prefecture

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

45

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector
2013
RegionUrayasu City,
Chiba Prefecture

Sponsor( R e p r e s e n t a t i v e
Organization)

Cosponsor

Title
Urayasu City urban waste heat utilization model
concept- Highly sustainable heat utilization system thatleverages existing urban sewer infrastructure

Urayasu City

Osaka City,
TAIKA logistics Solution LLC
Osaka Prefecture

Anjo City, Aichi
Prefecture

Denso Corporation

Takaoka City,
ToyamaPrefecture

Takaoka City

Limited lease low carbon industrial and logistics
park concept for the Osaka Bay Yumeshima
District
Sakishima-Asia Smart- Model for creating a low carbon, low cost port
Community Alliancedistrict using infrastructure for mutual sharing ofelectricity and heat and a joint freight
distribution system
C o n c e p t f o r c i t y v it ali z a t i o n t h r o u g h t h edeployment of low carbon mobility and creation ofan "Anjo Model" through harmonious coexistencewith industry- Striving to turn Anjo into an environmental capitalthat grows with its residents

Anjo City
Anjo Style Company
Toyota Tsusho Corporation

Concept for achieving low carbon mobility byleveraging Takaoka's trams- Striving for local public transport intimately tied
to residents' activities and awarenessHewlett-Packard Development
Yanagawa City,
Company, L.P.
Nishitetsu Information
F u k u o k a
Nishimu Electronics Industries
System Co., Ltd.
PrefectureCo., Ltd.
KCS Corporation

Yanagawa area tourism promotion concept- Creating a dynamic tourist town of interaction
and interchange of people and goods byleveraging energy creation, storage, and saving

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

2014
Implementing Region

Sponsor(Representative
Organization)

Odawara - Nakazato district(Kanagawa Prefecture)

Odawara City

Matsumoto City - Shiga district(Nagano Prefecture)

Matsumoto City

Osaka City - Umekita Phase 2
district(Osaka Prefecture)

Osaka City

Kobe City - Chuo-ku Sannomiya
district(Hyogo Prefecture)

Kobe City

Yakushima Town
(Kagoshima Prefecture)

Energy Efficient Construction
Institute

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

46

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures

ColumnEﬀectiveness of car sharing in reducing environmental impact
Car sharing, in which people can use cars when they need them, without owning the cars, isgrowing in popularity worldwide. Over 460,000 people in Japan engage in car sharing (according toJanuary 2014 research by the Eco-Mo Foundation). In 2012 the Eco-Mo Foundation performed anevaluation of the effectiveness of car sharing at reducing environmental impact. A survey of car
sharers was carried out with the cooperation of ﬁve major car sharing operators. The survey found a
decrease of over 60% in the number of cars owned per household after joining a car sharing scheme,a decrease of just under 40% in average annual miles driven, and an average annual reduction in
automobile CO2 emissions of 0.34t (45%). A report containing detailed survey results and measures for
popularizing car sharing in the future can be found on the Eco-Mo Foundation website.

●Change in average number of automobiles owned per household

0.5

0.45

N=489

0.4
0.3

0.17

0.2
0.1
0

Before car sharing

Present●Changes in annual total distance driven(km/year/household)
N=491

5,000

4,048

■ Car sharing■ Own car■ Rental car

4,000
3,000
2,000

2,563
586

3,445

1,377

1,000
0

602

600

Before car sharing

Present●Change in annual CO2 emissions from automobile use(t-CO2/year/household)
1.2
1
0.8

▲52.8%▲44.9%＋16.1%▲52.9%▲44.1%

0.6
0.4
0.2
0

Overall

Central
Tokyo

Other
Tokyo

Osaka,etc.

Other

Beforecar
sharing

Note 1) Central Tokyo: Chiyoda ward, Minato ward,

Present

Chuo ward, Shibuya ward, Shinjuku ward,
Bunkyo ward, Toshima ward
Note 2) O s a k a , e t c : O s a k a P r e f e c t u r e , H y o g oPrefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture,

N=491

N=112

N=194

N=140

N=42

Kanagawa Prefecture47

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector（2）Energy Saving Act-based measures
The steady implementation of energy saving measures is an important challenge in tackling global
warming.
The Act on the Rational Use of Energy (the Energy Saving Act) seeks to rationalize the use ofenergy based on operator determination criteria defined by the national government. Operators(speciﬁed operators) using a speciﬁed amount of energy or more are required to report on their energy
usage yearly, and formulate plans (medium to long term plan) (3-5 years) for rationalization of energy
use. The transport sector was added in the April 2006 revision to the Act. In order to ensure energy
reductions within freight distribution sector, the Act applies not only to carriers but freight owners as
well.

Transport sector scope<Freight transport and passenger transport>

Freight transport

Carrier ＋ cargo owner

Passenger transport

Carrier

Carriers(Freight, passengers)
Operators whose business istransporting cargo and / or passengers(including in-house transport)

Freight owners

Truck delivery, buses and taxis, railroads, airlines,
coastal shipping, passenger ships, waste collection
and transport, etc.

Businesses which transport theirfreight by carriers(including in-house transport)

Speciﬁed carriers(570 as of end of April 2014)

Speciﬁed freight owners

Must create and reporton energy saving plans(839 as of end of June 2014)

Must create and reporton energy saving plans

Speciﬁcation conditions
On a company unit (single company total)
basis:
200 or more trucks and/or buses
350 or more taxis
20,000 tons or more of passenger ship and/or
coastal shipping total tonnage
300 or more railroad carriages
9,000 tons or more of maximum takeoﬀ weight
for aircraftSpeciﬁcation conditions
30,000,000 ton-kms of annual transportof own freight (freight transported in-houseand transport consigned to otheroperators)

Speciﬁed carrier designation status (total of 570 companies as of end of April 2014)
Freight
RailwayNo. ofcarriers

1

Passengers

Commercial P r i v a t e
Shipping
trackstracks283

90

33

Railway

Buses

Taxis

Shipping

26

94

29

12

48

Aviation

Total

2

570

1 Promotion of global warming countermeasures[Overview of determination criteria for carriers with respect to energy usage rationalization,
etc.]
The following items are speciﬁed.
（1）From a medium- and long-term perspective, each carrier must set as a target an annual
reduction of 1% or more in energy consumption rates or electrical demand equalization
evaluation rates.
（2）Carriers must formulate policies indicating their energy saving efforts, and appoint
energy saving measure administrators and establish promotion systems for energy
saving measures.
（3）Carriers must strive to perform the following.
Measures to be Taken
Shared・Enhance collaboration with freight owners and other carriers

Rail・Introduce energy saving trains
・Introduce freight trains capable of carrying large containers
・Secure a transport capacity which accurately matches transport demand by
adjusting the number of trains operated, etc.
・Perform appropriate train inspections and maintenance

Automobiles

・Introduce low-emission vehicles
・Promote eco-driving through driver education and use of digital drive records,
etc.
・Promote increases in truck and trailer sizes in accordance with freight
volume・Perform cooperative delivery and improve loading rates through use of returncargo, etc.

Ships

・Introduce high fuel eﬃciency ships
・Implement reduced energy consumption operation, such as economical
speed operation
・Promote increases in ship sizes in accordance with freight volum・Perform cooperative delivery to improve loading rates

Airplanes

・Introduce airplanes with superior energy usage eﬃciency
・Rationalize ground operation energy usage
・Promote appropriate equipment selection in accordance with freight volume
・Coordinate aircraft operation, such as by reducing ferry ﬂight distances【Freight owner decision criteria】
From a medium- and long-term perspective, freight owners will aim for an annual reduction of
1% in energy consumption rates or electrical demand equalization evaluation rates byimplementing measures such as those below.
・Appointing energy saving measure administrators
・Providing in-house training
・Selecting environmentally-friendly cargo carriers (carriers who have obtained ISO14001 or
green management certiﬁcations)・Promoting modal shifts
・Shifting from the use of private tracks to commercial tracks
・Performing cooperative delivery with other companies
etc.

49

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector（3）Emissions trading system measures
The Japanese government has proposed a Joint Credit Mechanism (JCM) for international emissions
trading. With the end of the adjustment period for the ﬁrst commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol(starting from mid-2015), countries not participating in the second commitment period cannot
internationally transfer or acquire Kyoto Mechanism credits.
Japan is operating and promoting the J-Credit Scheme for domestic emissions trading.

■Joint Credit Mechanism (JCM)
Japan has proposed the Joint Credit Mechanism (JCM) as a system for ﬂexibly and rapidly transferring
technologies and implementing countermeasures in accordance with conditions in developing countries inorder to contribute to global emissions reductions and absorption. This mechanism quantitatively evaluates
Japan's contributions to greenhouse gas emission reductions and absorption through usage and implementationof greenhouse gas reduction technologies, products, systems, services, infrastructure, and the like. This is used
to help Japan achieve its emission reduction targets. With the collaboration of host countries, the design of themechanism will be further accelerated in the future, the mechanism will be put into effect soon, specific,
concrete projects will be implemented, and the mechanism will provide transparency in order to contribute to
UN discussions.

Japan

Host country

Leading low carbon technologies,
etc. and implementation of
mitigation actions

JCM Project

MRV methodologies
will be developedby the Joint
Committee

MRV
Greenhouse gas emission
reductions/removals

Credits

Used to achieve Japan's
emission reduction target

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of New Mechanisms Information Platform■J-Credit Scheme
The J-Credit Scheme is system in which reductions and absorption of greenhouse gasses such as CO2
through measures such as the deployment of energy-saving devices and forest management are certiﬁed by
the national government as "credits". This system is an extension and merging of the domestic credit systemand oﬀset credit system (J-VER), and is operated by the national government. The credits produced by thissystem can be used for various purposes, such as achieving low carbon society implementation plan targets
and for use as carbon oﬀsets.
●Outline of the J-Credit Scheme

J-Credit Scheme

Users of credits

Application for project registration
Application for certiﬁcation

CapitalLow carbon
society
implementation
plans

Carbonoﬀsetting

Project
participant
Credits

Promotion of
Global WarmingCountermeasures

Centralgovernment
Credits
Discussion

EnergySaving Act

Steering
committee

Certiﬁcationcommittee

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of J-Credit Scheme website

50

2 Promotion of emissions gas measures for trucks and busses (diesel vehicles), etc.

Promotion of emissions gas measures for trucks
and busses (diesel vehicles), etc.
The problem of vehicle exhaust gas became a serious social problem with the rapid urbanization
which began in the mid-1960s and the increase in vehicle traffic. The government strengthened
exhaust gas regulations by enacting vehicle composition regulations and repeatedly revising roadvehicle safety standards. In 1992 the Automobile NOx Reduction Law (now the Automobile NOx PM
Control Law) was enacted. In urban areas which have difficulty achieving environmental standard
targets, local governments, starting with Tokyo's local government, have implemented operation
restrictions, primarily on diesel vehicles, which produce a great deal of PM emissions.

（1）Promotion of emissions gas measures for diesel vehicles①Restrictions on manufacturers
Post-new long term regulations, some of the strictest regulations in the world, went into eﬀect in 2009.
These regulations almost completely prohibit the emission of particulate matter (PM), carcinogenic matter
which is a cause of respiratory disorders. They also greatly reduce emissions of photochemical smog, also a
cause of respiratory disorders, and of nitrogen oxides (NO2, etc.), which are air pollutants which cause acidrain. These regulations have almost completely solved the long-standing problem of particulate matteremissions by diesel vehicles, with older diesel vehicles being gradually replaced by clean diesel vehicles withdramatically improved exhaust gas performance.

●Vehicle exhaust gas restrictions (diesel-powered heavy vehicles)100

1974 regulations 100％

Nitrogen oxide（NOX）

Particulate matter（PM） Short-term
regulations

100

1994 regulations 100％

80

Reduction（%）

Reduction（%）

1977 regulations 85％

1979 regulations 70％
1983 regulations 61％

60

1988 regulations 52％

Short-term regulations

40

1994 regulations 43％

Long-term regulations 1999 regulations 33％
New short-term regulations 2004 regulations
24％

20

New long-term regulations

0

1974

（S49）

1979

1984

1989

1994

1999

60
Long-term regulations

40

0

2009

1974

（H21）

（S49）

2004 regulations
26％

New long-term regulations

5％

2004

1999 regulations 36％

New short-term regulations

20

2005 regulations
15％

Post-new long-term regulations

80

Post-new long-term regulations

1979

1984

1989

1994

1999

2004

2005 regulations
4％
1％

2009

（H21）

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

51

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector②Restrictions on users
In urban areas where Automobile NOx/PM Law environmental targets standard had not met, nitrogenoxide countermeasure areas and particulate matter countermeasure areas were deﬁned and restrictions wereplaced on vehicle users with the aim of achieving atmospheric environmental standards in the areas byroughly 2010. Speciﬁcally, for areas speciﬁed in the regulations, users are prohibited from registering vehicles
which do not meet speciﬁc exhaust standards (model regulations) and mandate the submission of exhaust gas
regulation plans by speciﬁed operators. Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture,
Hyogo Prefecture, and Osaka Prefecture have also deﬁned ordinances restricting the inﬂow of non-conformant
vehicles from other regions, for futher reducing nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions. In order todiﬀerentiate between vehicles which do and do not meet these standards, conformant vehicles are issued withstickers, preventing the inﬂux of illegal vehicles. Despite the leveraging of restrictions aﬀecting users in areas
implementing these measures, non-conformant vehicles from other areas pass through high-trafficintersections, resulting in areas not meeting atmospheric environmental standards. In response to thissituation, the Automobile NOx/PM Law was partially revised in 2008 to apply to users outside regulationspecified areas as well. Furthermore, in March 2011 the Automobile NOx/PM Law enforcement andministerial orders were revised, extending the application of the regulations to users in order to achieveatmospheric environmental standard targets in urban areas by 2020.

Category

Automobile NOx/PM Law

Tokyo, Saitama
Prefecture, Chiba
Prefecture, Kanagawa
Prefecture

Hyogo Prefecture
ordinance

Osaka Prefecture
ordinance

National law

Ordinance

Ordinance

Ordinance

Regulatedmaterial

Nitrogen oxide (NOx),
Particulate matter (PM)particulate matter (PM)

Nitrogen oxide (NOx), Nitrogen oxide (NOx),particulate matter (PM)particulate matter (PM)Contents ofregulation

Prohibits registration ofvehicles which do notconform with exhauststandards (vehicles do
not pass ongoing vehicle
inspections)

Prohibits driving ofvehicles which do notconform with exhauststandards

Vehiclesaﬀected

Vehicles which arrive at
Vehicles whose use is
Diesel vehicles driving in Diesel vehicles driving in o r d e p a r t f r o m t h ebased in specified
the area covered by the the area covered by the restricted area (does notmeasure implementation
ordinanceordinance
apply to vehicles passing
areas
through the area)

Vehiclemodels
aﬀectedDiesel passenger
vehicles, trucks, buses,
special purpose vehicles(not including minivehicles, special vehicles,
and passenger vehicles
which use gasoline or
LPG as fuel)Prohibits driving ofvehicles which do notconform with exhauststandards

Diesel vehicles withlicense plate numbers 1-,
2-, 4-, 6-, or 8- (except forpassenger vehicles with
8- license plate numbers)

52

Vehicles with total
weights of 8t or morewhich cannot beregistered due to theiruse being based in nonregulated areas speciﬁedby the Automobile NOx
PM Control Law (forbuses, buses withcapacities of 30 people
or more)Prohibits driving ofvehicles which do notconform with exhauststandards

All trucks, buses, andspecial vehicles otherthan passenger vehicles
c o v e r e d b y t h e
Automobile NOx/PM Law

2 Promotion of emissions gas measures for trucks and busses (diesel vehicles), etc.

（2）Appropriately maintained vehicle usage and appropriate fuel usage
guidance①Appropriately maintained vehicle usage
In order to reduce the environmental impact of vehicles, it is essential that they be properly maintained andthat they consistently maintain exhaust gas performance during operation. Insuﬃciently maintained vehicles
emit greater amounts of NOx and PM than properly maintained vehicles, creating major environmental
problems. A study of reductions in emissions of black smoke before and after maintenance on diesel vehicles
brought in for maintenance found that black smoke concentration was reduced by 10% or more for 36% of all
the vehicles studied. This conﬁrmed that inspection and maintenance signiﬁcantly reduces diesel black smoke
emissions.
● Reduction in black smoke emissions as theresult of inspection and maintenance / Numberof vehicles brought in for maintenance in October
2011(According to study by the Japan Automobile
Service Promotion Association)
VehiclesMeasured

Reduction of
20% or more
and less
Percent
than 30%age

25,92464%

Reduction of 10%
or more and less than 20%

6,703

17%

Reduction of 20%
or more and less than 30%

Reduction of
10% or more
and lessthan 20%

4,142

10%

17%

3,789

9%

Total

40,558

100%

9%

10%

Reduction of less than 10%

Reduction of 30% or more

Reductionof 30%or moreVehiclesmeasured
40,558(100%)

Reductionof less
than 10%64%(Breakdown of reductions in black smoke
emissions as the result of inspection andmaintenance)②Appropriate fuel usage guidance

Since 2005 the MLIT has conducted street inspections to study fuel sulfur content. When incidents of use ofillegal diesel oil with high sulfur content are discovered, warnings or orders to switch to proper fuel areissued, with the goal of eliminating the use of illegal diesel oil.
● Illegally dumped sulfate pitch
which has leaked out of its
Illegal diesel oil refers to diesel oil mixed with kerosene or fuel oil, containers<Illegal diesel oil>and to manufactured diesel oil which has been produced by adding
sulfuric acid, etc. to fuel oil. Industrial waste such as sulfate pitch,which is discharged during the production of illegal diesel oil, is mostly
disposed of by illegal dumping, creating environmental problems
nationwide. Using illegal diesel fuel in diesel vehicles also increases theamount of air pollutants PM and NOx in their exhaust.
An illegal diesel fuel mix of equal parts diesel oil and A-type huel oil
increases diesel vehicle exhaust gas PM levels by 14 to 17% and NOx levels by 7 to 8%.

Environmentally friendly vehicle promotion
measures (vehicle taxation reevaluation)
In the area of car body taxation, automobile acquisition tax and motor vehicle tonnage tax eco-car
tax reductions are being revised and extended, and special mini-vehicle tax, green tax provisions (taxreductions) are being initiated.
53

Local tax

National tax

Automobile acquisition tax

䕦㻢㻜䠂Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard

䕦㻢㻜䠂
䕦㻠㻜䠂
䕦㻞㻜䠂

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 10%

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 5%

䕦㻤㻜䠂

Not
taxed

Content

Achieved 2020
fuel eﬃciency standard

Achieved 2020
fuel eﬃciency standard + 10%

Achieved 2020
fuel eﬃciency standard + 20%

Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected

54

䕦㻡㻜䠂

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 5%

Achieved 2020
fuel eﬃciency standard

Achieved 2020
fuel eﬃciency standard + 10%

Achieved 2020
fuel eﬃciency standard + 20%

Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected

䕦㻞㻡䠂

䕦㻡㻜䠂

䕦㻣㻡䠂

exemptTax *First vehicle
inspection【Passenger vehicle example】

2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction

䠉

䕦㻢㻜䠂

䕦㻤㻜䠂

Not
taxed

Content

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +5%

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +10%2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction

Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected

䠉

䕦㻡㻜䠂

䕦㻣㻡䠂

Tax *
exemptContent【Heavy vehicle example】

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +5%

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +10%Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected【Heavy vehicle example】* In conjunction with the introduction of environmental performance discounts introduced when the consumption tax is raised to 10%, the eco-car tax
reduction scope will be readjusted from the perspective of restoring policy incentive functions, using 2020 fuel eﬃciency standards, and the basic
eco-car tax reduction system will be made permanent* In accordance with the 2013 and 2014 Outline for Tax Reform compiled by the ruling parties, a polluter-pays and beneﬁciary-pays approach, etc. will
be used* In the case of initial vehicle inspection tax exemption, the tax exemption also applies to the second
vehicle inspection

䕦㻣㻡䠂

Tax *
exemptFirst vehicle
inspection

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 10%

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 20%

Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected○May 2015 onwards<Eco-car tax reduction readjustment>（May 2015 to April 2017）

Motor vehicle tonnage tax* Maintain and strengthen environmental improvement functions of automobile acquisition tax* Tax rate varies from 0% to 3% depending on achievement of fuel eﬃciency standards in accordancewith Energy Saving Act* Reach concrete conclusions regarding tax system revisions from 2016 onwards○When consumption tax is raised to 10%<Elimination of automobile acquisition tax>
<Introduction of environmental performance
discount>

䕦㻤㻜䠂

Not
taxed

Content

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 10%

Achieved 2015
fuel eﬃciency standard + 20%

Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected○April 2015 onwards<Eco-car tax reduction readjustment>（April 2015 to March 2017）【Passenger vehicle example】
Vehicle aﬀected2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +5%

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +10%

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +15%2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction2009 exhaustgas regulations

10% NOx /PM
reduction

Electric vehicle, etc.

Vehicle aﬀected

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +5%

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +10%

Achieved2015 fueleﬃciency
standard +15%

Electric vehicle, etc.

䠉

䕦㻞㻡䠂

䕦㻡㻜䠂

䕦㻣㻡䠂

Tax *
exemptContent

䠉

䕦㻠㻜䠂

䕦㻢㻜䠂

䕦㻤㻜䠂

Not
taxed

Content

Mini-vehicle tax

Content（*2）

㻭㼜㼜㼞㼛㼤㻚㻌㻙㻞㻡㻑㻭㼜㼜㼞㼛㼤㻚㻌㻙㻡㻜㻑㻭㼜㼜㼞㼛㼤㻚㻌㻙㻣㻡㻑䚷

* 2005 exhaust gas regulation 75% NOx, etc.
reduction* Vehicles achieving 2015
fuel eﬃciency standards（new vehicles only）** Vehicles qualifying
for eco-car tax reductions

Vehicle aﬀected

Vehicles qualifying
for eco-car tax reductions

Vehicle aﬀected（April 2015 to March 2017）<Revision to vehicles towhich these tax rates㻌 apply>* Automobile tax green tax provisions（taxreductions）will be revised when automobile tax
and mini-vehicle tax environmental performance
discounts are introduced*1 Newly acquired four-wheeled mini-vehicles, etc.
（applies only to mini-vehicles with three or more
wheels）*2 Tax reduction for 2016
*3 2009 exhaust gas regulation 10% NOx reduction*4 2005 exhaust gas regulation 75% NOx, etc.
reduction

Achieved 2020 fueleﬃciency standard（*4）

Achieved 2020 fueleﬃciency standard + 20%（*4）

Electric vehicles
Natural gas vehicles（*3）

Vehicle aﬀected（*1）

【Passenger vehicle example】<Introduction of green tax provisions（tax reductions）>（April 2015 to March 2017）○April 2015 onwards

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector〈Automobile acquisition tax, mini-vehicle tax, motor vehicle tonnage tax, etc.〉

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

4 Creation of a recycling-oriented society

Creation of a recycling-oriented society（1）Creation of recyclable resource distribution systems①Formation of a recyclable resource distribution system using sea transport
The Basic Plan for Establishing a Recycling-Based Society puts forth the concept of building a port-centeredcomprehensive reverse logistics system in order to create a recyclable resource environment for achieving a
recycling-oriented society. Based on this plan, Recycle Ports, recyclable resource distribution ports which
support wide-area recycling sites, are being established. 22 of these ports have been designated as of January
2011. In conjunction with this, additional measures have been implemented such as securing quays speciﬁcallyfor handling recyclable resources, maintaining recyclable resource distribution support facilities such asenhancing the functionality of drainage ditches and protective fences, promoting collaboration between
government and private industry through the Recycle Ports Promotion Council, and formulating the
Guidelines on the Handling of Recyclable Resources by Ports (2004) for smooth recycling distribution and the
Policy on the Handling of Recyclable Resources by Ports (2010) for eﬃcient port operation and recyclable
resource handling. These eﬀorts have advanced the formation of a domestic recyclable resource distribution
network which utilizes sea transport.
●Recycle Port locations and Recycle Port concept○Ports are speciﬁed as Recycle Ports to serve as centers of wide-area circulation of recyclable resources.
○The following eﬀorts have been implemented as part of Recycle Port measure implementation.
（1）Securing port facilities such as quays,（2）Providing support for the maintenance of shipment transfer and storage facilities, etc.
（subsidized with subsidy rate of 1/3）
（3）Improvement of operations related to recyclable resource handling,（4）Promotion of coordination between the government and private
industry（use of the Recycle Ports Promotion Council, etc.）

Recycle Port Image

Designated Recycle
Ports（22 ports）

Providesrecycling-related
information

Ishikari Bay New Port
Tomakomai Port
5/2002
Designated ports（5 ports）
4/2003
Designated ports（13 ports）
Noshiro12/2006
Port
Designated ports（3 ports）
1/2011
SakataDesignated port（1 port）

Muroran Port

Aggregatedrecycling facilities

Port road

Other ports

Storagefacility
Recyclable
resources

Storageshed

Hachinohe Port

Quay

Kamaishi Port

Cargo handlingequipment

Port

Quay

Stockyard

Himekawa PortTokyo Port

Maizuru Port
Kobe Port
HimejiPort
TokuyamakudamatsuPort

Sea surface waste
disposal yard

Green
space

Kisarazu Port

Recycled
articlesResidue, etc.

Sakai Port

Future land use* Recycling facilities* Large-scale green space

Other ports

Kawasaki Port

Ube Port

Beneﬁts of creation of a networkof recyclable resource logistics sites

Mikawa Port
Kitakyushu
Port
Miike Port

Mishimakawanoe
Port
Nakagusukuwan Port

○Support for the creation of a recycling-oriented society by promoting
nationwide material recycling○Reduction of environmental impact through use of sea transport○Recycle cost reduction through recycling facility aggregation and useof sea transport○Vitalization of port area industry through promotion of use of locations
for recycling facilities

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

55

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector②Systematic securing of sea surface waste disposal yards
In order to respond to the pressing problem of waste disposal, The Basic Plan for Establishing a RecyclingBased Society puts forth the concept of building a port-centered ﬁnal waste disposal is being performed ofgeneral waste which must be disposed of in landﬁlls after appropriate recycling and waste volume reduction.
This is being performed at sea surface waste disposal yards in ports across the country, while ensuring
sufficient consistency with appropriate port development, usage, and conservation. In particular, based on
Osaka Bay Phoenix Plan, a wide area disposal yard improvement project, general waste is being accepted andprocessed for cities, towns, and villages within designated areas in the Osaka Bay area. Soil produced byconstruction in the Tokyo area, which the area is having diﬃculty disposing of, is being eﬀectively used over awide area as a construction material in ports across the country as part of the Super Phoenix Project.
●Osaka Bay Phoenix Plan

Source: Osaka Bay Regional Oﬀshore Environmental Improvement Center（2）Creation of vehicle recycling system
Every year between 4 and 5 million used vehicles are disposed of.
Landﬁll space is running out, making it urgent to further increase the recycling rate, which is current roughly
80%. As of 2004, over 195,000 automobiles were improperly stored on roads, etc. each year. And over 20,000
automobiles were illegally dumped. These have a negative impact on living environments and disposal
involves tremendous social costs, making it urgent to implement
countermeasures. In response to this situation, the Act on Recycling,● Act on Recycling, etc. of Endof-Life Vehicles system

conﬁrming that vehicles were disassembled as speciﬁed in the Act on
Recycling, etc. of End-of-Life Vehicles, and a motor vehicle tonnage tax
reimbursement system was instituted for end-of-life vehicles. The aimsof these eﬀorts were the promotion of appropriate processing of end-oflife vehicles and the prevention of illegal dumping.

Automobile manufacturer / importer

Act mandating that vehicle registration be deleted only after

Used automobile

CFC
reclamation
fee

CFCs
Airbagreclamation
fee

Automobile
receiver

CFC reclaimer

Disassembler
Airbags

Shredderdust

CrusherJapan Automobile Recycling Promotion Center

Recycling fee payment

in end-of-life vehicle disposal, focusing on automobile manufacturers. At
the same time revisions were made to the Road Transport Vehicles

Recycling fee deposit

Information management center

Final automobile
owner

Reportmandated appropriate divisions of duties between the parties involved

Moneymanagementcompany

etc. of End-of-Life Vehicles was enacted in January 2005. This law

As a result of these eﬀorts the nationwide number of improperly
stored vehicles was 6,742 at the end of 2010 (a decrease of 96.6%
versus the number in 2004), and the number of illegally dumped
56

Source: Tentative Translated by
Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

4 Creation of a recycling-oriented society

vehicles was 2,893 (a decrease of 87.1% versus the number in 2004), both dramatic reductions（3）FRP ship recycling
Fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) boats and ships are distributed widely across Japan. They are sturdy, withlifespans of over 30 years. This makes them difficult to dispose of, and this, together with the lack ofappropriate disposal routes, is one of the reasons that they are illegally dumped. Ship and boat manufacturers,
led by the MLIT, have collaborated together to create procedures for appropriately disposing of FRP ships,
promoting the establishment of a recycling-oriented society, by establishing appropriate and eﬃcient recycling
technologies. Based on these technologies the Japan Marine Industry Association FRP Ship Recycling Centerhas led the way in using the recycling and reuse operator wide area accreditation system (a system which
exempts manufacturers from requiring waste processing permits to reclaim and recycle used products, etc.)of the Wastes Disposal and Public Cleansing Act to promote FRP ships recycling, starting in 2005 with alimited number of areas, and extending nationwide from 2007.

●FRP ship recycling system
Illegalabandonment

Storage site
Boat owner

Owner
unknown

Commissioned
transporter

Registration andsales site

Commissioned marina,
commisioned sales site

Processing andtemporarystorageMarine areaadministrator,
local government

Commissioned
transporter

Speciﬁed
receiver

Receiving, rough crushing
Intermediate processing（other than FRP）

Registeredwork site
Scrap FRP
Commissioned transporter
Sorting

Scrap FRP
intermediate
processing site

Crush
MixingCommissioned
disposal operator

Comissioned transporter

Final
disposalCommissioned
cement plant

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation ofJapan Marine Industry Association
FRP Ship Recycling Center
Source: MLIT Chugoku District Transport Bureau

57

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

Measures by local governments, companies,
citizens' groups, etc.
（1）Measures by local governments
Local governments are implementing global warming countermeasures, tailored to their local
features, in the transport and traffic sectors. This section looks at efforts by Matsuyama City
(population: 520,000), Gifu City (population: 410,000), and Toyama City (population: 420,000).

■Matsuyama City

- Pedestrian-friendly town planning -In order to create a sustainable city with convenient transport that is people-friendly, community-friendly,and environmentally-friendly, Matsuyama City has formulated a comprehensive transport strategy whose goal
is to shift from the current automobile-centric transport system to one which oﬀers convenient access via
public transportation and bicycles. Eﬀorts have included promoting the use of public transportation throughan omnibus town plan, etc., and promoting the use of bicycles through the formation of a bicycle path network,etc., as well as soft measures implemented through mobility management and social ﬁeld tests of the Dogo
Mobility Center, which enables residents to choose from a diverse range of means of mobility.

chibancho Dori (2011 one-way
traﬃc recommendation pilot test
for bicycle traﬃc on bicycle andpedestrian paths) [L=880m]

Bicycle and pedestrian path

Bicycle and pedestrian path

National Route 196 (2009 National
Route 196 bicycle traﬃc spacesocietal pilot test) [L=250m]

Heiwa Dori (2007 bicycle traﬃcdivision) [L=1,820m]

Ropeway Road (2003 transit mallsocietal pilot test) [L=500m]

Bicycle and pedestrian path

Bicycle and pedestrian path

Bicycle and pedestrian path
Hanazono Dori (2010 bicycle
traﬃc network formation societal
pilot test) [L=300m]

Chifunemachi Dori (2010 bicycle
traﬃc network formation societal
pilot test) [L=800m]

Sanbancho Dori (2002 lane
reduction societal pilot test)

Social ﬁeld tests have been carried out using various methods to study bicycle path networks
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Shikoku EST Emergence Seminar Matsuyama City materials

58

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

Source: Dogo Mobility Center website■Gifu City

- Public transportation-centered town planning -Gifu City is striving to develop a bus network which combines central lines, branch lines, and community
buses in order to create a healthy city of healthy people. In particular, it is implementing the Gifu City BRT toprovide greater convenience by enhancing central bus routes.

■The concepts of BRT development in Gifu City
【Basic policy of urban transport measures】
Create a transport environment which provides everyone with freedom of mobility in order to create aconsolidated city structure【Public transportation service targets】
1. Establish a bus network which combines central lines, branch lines, and community buses
2. Improve central bus route service, making it possible to reach areas up to roughly 10km away from
Gifu Station within 30 minutes via extended bus routes【Gifu City BRT implementation policy】
1. Implement BRT for central bus routes to reorganize bus routes
2. Flexibly select routes when implementing BRT, taking demand and road maintenance conditions
into consideration
3. Fully leverage the features of BRT, taking a phased approach to introducing bus lanes, improving
bus stops and bus transfer sites, and introducing articulated buses

59

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Gifu City

■Toyama City

- Low carbon traffic town planning based on Toyama City LRT -Toyama City has identiﬁed population shrinkage, the super-graying of society, excessive dependence on
automobiles, hollowing out and stagnation of central city areas, excessive urban management administration
costs, and increasing CO2 emissions as challenges the city must face. In order to resolve these problems, it isstriving to revitalize public transportation, such as its rail routes, and consolidate residential, commercial,industrial, and cultural city functions along public transportation routes, thereby producing a compact,
centralized city with public transportation as its core.

Yokata Iwase<3 Pillars of Implementation>

Mizuhashi

Kureha①Vitalization of public transportation

Key
ToyamaFujikoshi

Fuchu②Promotion of residential use ofareas along public transportation routes

Rail / streetcar /bus service
Rail service
Bus service

MinamitoyamaUrban center
Regional life site

③Vitalization of the central cityarea

OhyamaYamadaPosition public transportation as a core axis of town
planning in major plans such as the urban master
plan, and actively communicate this to residents

Yao

Ohsawano

Hosoiri

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Hokuriku Shinetsu EST Emergence Seminar Toyama
City materials

60

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

In Toyama City the Toyama Light Rail was opened in 2006, and the city loop line was opened in 2009.
The city's creation of the LRT network has contributed to increased rail usage and greater opportunities for
elderly residents to venture out of their homes. These eﬀorts are causing people to reexamine lifestyles which
depend excessively on automobiles, creating a city which is highly livable for pedestrians.

Toyama Light Rail

Iwasehama

OpenedApril 2006

Hasu
machi

ht Rail
ToyamaToyama Lig

Streetcar
N-S connection

Future of the LRT Network

Loop Line

OpenedDecember 2009

ᵦᵐᵏᵌᵏᵐᴾ᧏ಅ㻣㻚㻢䡇䡉

Chitetsu city train㻢㻚㻠䡇䡉

Loop line extension 㻜㻚㻥䡇䡉N-S connection

Toyama Daigaku Mae
Inner-City Line

Toyama Light Rail

Inner City Lineloop line construction

Rail (single line section)
dual line expansion㻜㻚㻟䡇䡉

Kamidaki Lineextension㻝㻜㻚㻝䡇䡉

Total

㻞㻡㻚㻟䡇䡉

Minami Toyama

Chitetsu city train

City train
Kamidaki Line extension

Kamidaki Line

K

am

ak
id

iL

in

e

ᵦᵐᵐᵌᵒᵌᵐᵖᴾᵪᵰᵴᾀዻ঺‫ݰ‬λKamidaki

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Hokuriku Shinetsu EST Emergence Seminar Toyama City materials

Toyama City is promoting living along public transportation routes, and the share of the city's population
choosing to live in midtown districts or public transportation route residential promotion districts is steadilyrising.
The number of people selecting "midtown districts"
and "public transportation route residential promotion
districts" is gradually increasing (2.7 point increase between 2005 and 2010)【Distribution of new housing of moving residents (2011)】
Rail

Graph: Changes in percentages of residential districts selected when moving

Toyama Light
















































Midtown
district



































Public transportation route
Route district
residential promotion district(non-use)

ToyamaStation




Cit
yt
rai
n

Other

Changes in social dynamic by district
Since 2008 there has been net growth in the numberof people moving into midtown districts
Graph: Changes in social dynamic (moving in - moving out) in midtown districts
㸦3HRSOH㸧

Midtownᣃ࣎‫ע‬ғ
district





㻶㻾

Takayama
Main Line














‫ڸ‬‫ڸ‬











‫ڸ‬Since 2012 there has been net growth in the numberof people moving into public transportation routeresidential promotion districts

Public transportation routeπσʩᡫඝዴ‫˰އ‬ਖ਼ᡶ‫ע‬ғ

residential promotion district

Graph: Changes in social dynamic (moving in - moving out) in public transportation route residential promotion districts
㸦3HRSOH㸧

㻞㻜㻜

㻠㻞
㻜












䕦㻌㻞㻜㻜
䕦㻌㻞㻟㻜

䕦㻌㻠㻜㻜

䕦㻌㻝㻤㻡

䕦㻌㻝㻢㻣

䕦㻌㻝㻠㻣



䕦㻌㻞㻢

䕦㻌㻢㻜㻜
䕦㻌㻤㻜㻜

City train loop line





‫ڸ‬

JR Hokuriku Line

䕦㻌㻣㻝㻤

To
Fu ya
Ka jiko ma
mi sh Chda i / iho
ki
Ra
Lin
i lw
e
a

y

Rail network
High frequency bus route
Midtown district
Route residential promotion district
Route district (non-use)
Use district
Municipal area
Moves into / within the city (move destinations)Less than 50 people
50 to 100 people
100 to 150 people
150 to 200 people
200 or more people

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Hokuriku Shinetsu EST Emergence Seminar Toyama City materials

61

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector（2）Measures by companies in the transport sector①Aviation companies
The Scheduled Airlines Association of Japan, a Japanese association of air transport operators, has
implemented environmental measures such as the following principal measures.
○Global warming prevention targets:
Reduce energy consumption base units in 2020 by 21% in comparison to 2005
CO2 emission basic units: 0.00095t-CO2/RTK (revenue ton kilometers)Contents of measures:
・Introduce new high fuel efficiency airplanes (consuming approximately 20 to 40% less fuel thanconventional airplanes)
・Using new area navigation, a high-precision navigation method, to reduce ﬂight distances and times
・Select optimal ﬂight altitudes, speeds, and routes which require the least amount of fuel by factoring inmeteorological conditions and air traﬃc control
・Reduce weight of loaded articles (reduce weights of cargo containers and in-ﬂight meal facilities, optimize
amounts of fuel and drinking water)
・Recover engine performance and improve fuel eﬃciency by cleaning engines
・Prioritize use of ground power units with low CO2 emissions for electricity, air conditioning, and engine
startup when parked at airports
Reducing ﬂight distances and times through new operation methods
RNAV / area navigation / route and conventional route image

Departure route

Aerial route

Arrival route

Approach

Terrestrial
radio facility
RunwayRunwayTerrestrial
radio facility

Terrestrial
radio facility

Terrestrial radio facility (old) route
RNAV / area navigation / (new) route

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of The Scheduled Airlines Association of Japan○Support for the creation of a recycling-oriented society
Target: Lower industrial waste ﬁnal disposal rate to 3.6% or below for 2015
Contents of measures: Promote garbage separation and reclamation, promote reuse and recycling,and select waste processing companies with resource recycling technologies, etc.
○Environmental awareness raising activities
・Close window shades when parked to prevent temperatures inside airplanes from rising (make inflight announcements requesting that passengers lower the window shades when leaving theplane, reducing the amount by which the interior of the airplane warms up while the airplane isparked, shortening air conditioner usage times and thereby reducing CO2 emissions)・Oﬀer eco-tours, teaching tour participants about the environment
62

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

②Railway companies
The Association of Japanese Private Railways, a Japanese association of railway operators, has formulated a
low carbon society implementation plan and carried out the following principal measures as part of this plan.
Target: Reduce power usage base units in 2020 by 5.7% in comparison to 2010
Contents of primary measures:○Introduction of energy saving cars
Energy saving trains such as VVVF controlled trains, which consume little power, and regenerative brakeequipped trains, which eﬃciently use power, are being introduced.
(as of March 31, 2014)●Rates of introduction of energy saving cars by 16 major private rail companies

No. of cars Owned

Control Method

10,456 trains*

8,657 trains

Chopper control

3,097 trains*

1,649 trains

Resistance control, other631 trains*

237 trains

Resistance control, other

2,960 trains

330 trains*

17,144 trains (A)10,873 trains

cars with regenerative brakes

cars without regenerative brakes

Number of Reduced Weight cars

VVVF control

Total number of cars owned
Number of energy saving cars (trains with regenerative brakes or reduced weight cars)

14,514 trains (B)(total of trains indicated with a *)Share of energy saving cars

84.7％（B/A）

Note 1: As a general rule, only commercially used cars are included (funicular lines and new transportation lines are
not included)Note 2: "Reduced weight cars" are cars made with stainless steel or aluminum.

○ Usage of energy saving systems (regenerative brakes,
regenerated power storage devices)Power generated
by braking

Trains with regenerative brakes, which generate power whenbraking and return the power to the overhead power lines for
re-use, are being actively introduced.
○Noise and vibration reduction
Eﬀorts to reduce noise and vibration include the introductionof reduced noise trains, the use of long rails to reduce theReducednoise trains

Long rails

number of rail joints, the use of synthetic crossties, and theTrack
improvement

installation of elastic material such as rubber between
concrete railbeds and crossties.
○Use of natural energy
Solar panels and wind power generators are being installed on
the roofs of stations, using sunlight and wind to generate theSolar power
generation
Wind power
generation

power used by the station.
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of
The Association of Japanese Private Railways

63Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector②Truck, bus, and taxi companies
As operators which transport freight and passengers via automobiles, truck, bus, and taxi industry
associations have formulated voluntary action plans as environmental measures, striving to popularize green
management certiﬁcation and promote eco-driving, etc.

■Japan Trucking Association
Target: Reduce CO2 emission basic units per ton kilometer from commercial trucks in 2020 by 22% incomparison to 2005.

●CO2 emission basic unit index
1.00

0.80

0.60

0.40

1

0.87

0.81

0.75

0.74

0.72

0.72

0.71

0.63

0.63

0.67

1996

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

0.20

0.00

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Japan Trucking Association

Contents of measures:
・Promote introduction of low-emission vehicles◇Provide aid for the introduction of CNG vehicles and diesel hybrid vehicles◇Distribute pamphlets, etc. which raise awareness of replacing vehicles with low-emission vehicles
・Promote eco-driving◇Hold eco-driving training sessions and promote attendance at said sessions◇ Create and distribute energy saving driving manuals, energy saving driving recommendations,eco-driving promotion notebooks, eco-driving promotion manuals, "I practice eco-driving" stickers,and "Safe eco-driving" videos and DVDs
◇Promote eco-driving management systems, etc.
Provide aid for the introduction of vehicles with eco-driving management systems and/or drive
recorders, which are eﬀective at ensuring eco-driving◇Provide aid for the introduction of devices which support the shutting oﬀ of engines when parked
Provide aid for the acquisition of vehicle-mounted heating and cooling devices (air heater, truck
battery driven coolers) which can be used continuously for long periods of time when engines are
stopped during truck driver breaks, when waiting for cargo to be loaded, etc.

64

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

■Measures by companies: Tamura, Ltd.
Tamura is engaging in comprehensive environmental management, such as implementing management
systems which make it easy for drivers to create daily reports and perform vehicle maintenance, introducing
aluminum wheels and high fuel eﬃciency tires, and introducing various systems and devices such as nitrogenﬁlling devices.

(Comments from the company)<Ensuring activity continuity by creating easy to use management systems>
In 2004 the company installed digital tachographs in all vehicles and switched to digital daily reports.
Drive data (loading and unloading, driving, breaks, idling, rapid acceleration, rapid braking, etc.) is printed
on a single page daily report making it possible to assess driving conditions, as well as reducing thedriver workload involved in ﬁlling out daily reports and the oﬃce workload involved in carrying out oﬃce
management work. The management system can be used to input vehicle inspection records and announce
vehicle inspection timing, reducing workloads while helping to prevent missed inspections.
<Fuel eﬃciency improvement>
We manage highly granular timeline data for individual vehicles. This detailed management data showsthe eﬀects of the various measures we have implemented, and serves as important information for use
in future activities. Managed fuel efficiency data is graphed and posted each month, helping improveawareness among drivers and other employees.
<Introduction of nitrogen ﬁlling devices and high fuel eﬃciency tires>
In 2006 we introduced nitrogen filling devices which stabilize tire air pressure. This was followed upby the introduction of high performance compressors, which reduce air filling time, and of automatic
air ﬁlling devices and safety frames to automate and ensure the safety of tire ﬁlling. These eﬀorts havecontributed to improved tire lifespans, reduced incidence of tire bursting, and improved tire retreading
quality. We have also introduced high fuel eﬃciency tires. While they provide some degree of fuel eﬃciency
improvement, they also have drawbacks, such as being somewhat expensive and having poor abrasion
resistance. Recently a large number of new products have been launched, and performance appears to be
improving. These high fuel eﬃciency tires are being reused through regrooving and retreading, which also
reduces resource usage and costs. We have also begun using caps with valve capabilities, manufactured inGermany, for our valve caps, reducing the workload involved in performing monthly air inspections.
<Vehicle weight reduction>
We have introduced aluminum wheels to reduce vehicle
weights and improve fuel eﬃciency. Tightening torquemanagement is easy for ISO compliant wheels, and theirnuts remain tight, improving safety performance. We
are also using air suspension and wide single tires toreduce the weights of trailers.
The introduction of these systems and devices is improving our fuel eﬃciency ﬁgures.
<Workshops and meetings>
Hands-on training sessions led by drivers and workshops using projectors are held at regular Friday

65

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

meetings each week in order to share information on a variety of topics
Regular workshops led by outside lecturers, such as representatives from tire manufacturers, are also
held, so that our personnel can learn new information. Other environmental activities include replacing
workplace lighting with LED lights, conserving electricity, and carrying out annual cleaning of nearby
roads. Our cleaning of nearby roads, which is in a sense one of our workplaces, is an expression of our
gratitude to members of the local community.

■Nihon Bus Association- Bus business low carbon society implementation plan Objectives（1）Cut CO2 emission rates in 2020 by 6% in comparison to 2010.
（2）Promote shift from use of private vehicles to buses.
Speciﬁc activity contents（1）CO2 emission rates reduction measures①Nationwide promotion of eco-driving
Member companies are striving to ensure drivers thoroughly engage in eco-driving, such as by stopping
their engines when idle, and avoiding sudden acceleration and sudden braking. During Eco-Driving
Promotion Month, of which the Nihon Bus Association is a leading advocate, the association takes evenmore intensive measures, such as carrying out checks of eco-driving implementation. The association is also
actively equipping buses with devices which contribute to eco-driving, such as start-stop (idling-stop) devices
and digital drive recording devices.
②Promotion of introduction of high fuel eﬃciency buses
When purchasing new vehicles, national, local government, and Nihon Bus Association subsidy systems
are used to actively strive to deploy hybrid buses and high fuel eﬃciency buses.
③Enforcement of detailed inspections and maintenance which help maintain fuel eﬃciency performance
The association strives to maintain fuel efficiency performance by establishing voluntary inspection
standards, as necessary, for components which aﬀect fuel eﬃciency (tires, air cleaners, air conditioners, etc.).
（2）Measures for promoting shifting from use of private vehicles to buses①Bus usage promotion
The association is implementing the following measures in order to improve omnibus convenience andpromote bus usage.
・Popularization of non-step buses and pleasant, comfortable buses
・Promotion of installation and improvement of shared card systems and IC card systems
・Popularization of information systems such as bus location systems
・Popularization of environmental bus passes, etc.
・Active participation in regional measures such as bus park and rides and omnibus town systems
・Maintenance and expansion of high grade bus stops, clear bus route information, etc.
②Driving environment improvement
・Issuing of requests to related organizations whenever possible regarding the creation of bus-only andbus-priority lanes, bus-prioritizing traﬃc signals, the removal of illegally parked vehicles in streets usedby buses, etc.
・Utilization of various subsidization systems to maintain and improve systems for improving bus driving
environments through the use of ITS such as PTPS.
The Nihon Bus Association gathers information and considers various potential measures, led by its"Environmental Measure Council", which implements the implementation plan described above.

66

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

The association also issues requests to the MLIT, NPA, and other related government agencies
regarding the further enrichment of subsidy systems, tax systems, and the like, and improvements todriving environments.

■Japan Federation of Hire-Taxi Associations- Hire-taxi industry low carbon society implementation plan (voluntary action plan) Objectives
2020 target (cumulative target)
Reduce CO2 emissions by 20% in comparison to 2010. Speciﬁc plans（1）Global warming countermeasures①Switchover to environmentally friendly taxi vehicles
・By 2020 30% of taxis will consist of HVs, EVs, or other environmentally friendly vehicles, and thefederation will encourage automobile manufacturers to speedily launch HV vehicles which use LP gas.
②Optimization of the number of taxi vehicles
・Based on the "Act on Special Measures Concerning the Rectiﬁcation and Vitalization of the General
Passenger Vehicle Transportation Business in Specific Regions", revised in November 2013, theassociation is promoting the elimination and suspension of vehicles in order to eliminate excess supply.
③Taxi usage promotion
・The association is promoting universal driver training and cultivating high quality drivers.
・The association is striving to improve user convenience and promote taxi usage by improving taxi
stands and promoting the deployment of advanced technologies such as smartphone-based technologies.
・The association is working to expand shared taxi use and reduce the amount of private vehicle usage.
④Enrichment of and PR for sightseeing taxis
・The association is striving to enrich and engage in PR for sightseeing taxis in order to reduce theusage of private vehicles on freeways and at destinations, cut exhaust gas emissions, alleviate traﬃccongestion and parking space shortages, and reduce the number of traﬃc accidents.
・Foreign language sheets which can be used by pointing at phrases are being prepared and supplied inorder to enable taxi drivers to accommodate foreign passengers.
⑤Improvement of operation eﬃciency
・The association is promoting the use of GPS-AVM-based taxi assignment systems and advanced
technologies such as smartphone-based technologies in order to improve operation eﬃciency and reduce
exhaust gas emissions.
・Requests are being issued to related organizations to establish and improve taxi pools in order toreduce the amount of unoccupied taxi operation.
⑥Eco-driving
・The association is working to ensure thorough stopping of engines when vehicles are stopped,
prevention of excess vehicle cooling and heating, and prevention of sudden acceleration and braking.
・Engines are to be stopped when taking breaks, naps, and when washing vehicles.
・Green management is being promoted through measures such as expanding the number of operatorswith green management accreditation.
・The association is promoting the stopping of engines when vehicles are stopped and the deployment of
EMS (digital tachographs) in order to support eco-driving.
⑦Oﬃce and business site measures
・Air conditioner thermostats in offices and business site are set to 28 degrees or higher during thesummer and 20 degrees or lower during the winter.

67

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector

・Training regarding environmental measures and fuel efficiency improvements are provided tomechanics and drivers through maintenance managers and driving managers.
⑧Improvement of environmental issue related implementation systems
・Environmental measure related policies such as carbon oﬀset policies are considered by committees
such as technical and environmental committees.
⑨PR regarding global warming countermeasures
・The association will use websites, posters, stickers applied to taxis, and other means to publicize thetaxi industry's efforts to reduce CO2 emissions and increase awareness among the general publicregarding the prevention of global warming.
（2）Creation of a recycling-oriented economic society① ELVs will be processed appropriately in accordance with the Act on Recycling, etc. of End-of-Life
Vehicles.
②End-of-life tires, etc. will be appropriately processed as industrial waste.
③Recycling will be promoted through measures such as the proactive purchasing of recycled products.

④Warehouse operators
The Japan Association of Refrigerated Warehouses is continuing its eﬀorts to reduce CO2 emissions andenergy usage in 2014 as well, through measures such as:① promoting the introduction of energy saving

devices through active use of the assistance project for energy usage rationalization operators (subsidizing 1/3
of project costs) and the popularization promotion project for energy saving natural cooling devices using
advanced technologies (subsidizing 1/2 of project costs), ② carrying out energy usage fact-ﬁnding studies andcoolant studies to collect basic data related to CO2 emissions reductions, and ③ promoting the acquisition ofgreen management certifications (subsidizing part of the cost of acquiring new green management
certiﬁcations).

68

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

（3）Measures by citizens' group
The expansion of lifestyles which are dependent on the use of personal vehicles has resulted in chronic
traﬃc congestion and the waning of public transportation. In order to create a shift from the use of private
cars to public transportation, citizens' groups are creating and publishing bus maps and other materials.
In the past, these were created by individual citizens' groups, but in recent years they have been createdthrough collaboration with local governments, or on consignment from local governments, due to their highquality and strong reputation. They are also used as mobility management tools for promoting the use of
public transportation.
●List of bus maps
City

Map Name

Creator

Sapporo City, Hokkaido

Super Convenient Bus Map

Yuran

Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture

Niigata City Transportation Map

Niigata Environment and Transportation ResearchSociety

Fukui Prefecture (entire prefecture)

Fukui Norinori Map

Railway, Omnibus, Bicycle ＆ wAlk machizukuri
association (ROBA)

Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture

Gifu City Bus Map

Public Transportation Usage Promotion Network

Hyogo Prefecture(Amagasaki City, Nishinomiya City,
Ashiya City, Itami City, Takarazuka
City, Kawanishi City, Inagawa Town,
Mita City)

Hanshin Area Station Bus Map

Hanshin Urban Area Public Transportation Usage
Promotion Council

Wakayama City, Wakayama Prefecture wap (Wakayama Urban Area Public(and surrounding cities and towns)
Transportation Route Map)

Wakayama City Planning Council - Wakayama Komachi

Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture

Doko Demo Bus Book

Project Yuai

Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture

Bus Supermap

Hiroshima BRT Research Society

Okinawa Prefecture (entire prefecture) Bus Map Okinawa

Bus Map Okinawa

Every year over 200 cities around the world take part in Mobility Week (September 16 to September 22) &Car-Free Day (September 22), initiatives in which residents refrain from using their own personal vehicles incentral city areas and consider the issues of traﬃc and its eﬀects on the environment, and urban life and how
to best use vehicles. In 2014 11 cities in Japan participated. (Sendai City, Saitama City, Yokohama City, Zushi
City, Matsumoto City, Fukui City, Toyohashi City, Osaka City, Kyoto City, Takamatsu City, Naha City)
During Mobility Week & Car-Free Day 2014, Car-Free Day Japan selected and announced winners ofawards such as the Town Planning Contribution Award, Event Project Award, and Citizens' Appeal Award
as part of the "Mobility Week & Car-Free Day Japan Awards 2014" (chief judge: University of Tokyo
Professor Emeritus Katsutoshi Ohta) in order to provide city residents with opportunities to consider mobility
related problems and to contribute to the development of new urban transportation policies.

●2014 Mobility Week & Car-Free Day Japan Awards main award results
Award

Recipient
Saitama Car-Free Day Planning Committee

Town Planning Contribution Award
Naha Mobility Week & Car-Free Day Planning Committee
Matsumoto City No Private Vehicle Day Promotion Residents' Council
Event Project Award
Kyoto Car-Free Day Planning Committee
Citizens' Appeal Award

Naha Mobility Week & Car-Free Day Planning Committee

69

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector（4）Measures by the Eco-Mo Foundation①Implementation of the transport business Green Management (low environmental
impact business management) Certification System
The Green Management Certiﬁcation System, which objectively certiﬁes the eﬀorts of companies to makeenvironmental improvements, strives to encourage companies to engage in environmental efforts, andcontributes to reductions in the environmental impact of industry by fostering understanding and cooperation
between certiﬁed companies, society, and users. The system, with the Eco-Mo Foundation as its certifying
body, certiﬁes transport operators whose environmental activities meet or exceed levels deﬁned in the GreenManagement Promotion Manual*. The system was launched for the truck industry in October 2003, for thebus and taxi industry in April 2004, and for the passenger ship, coastal shipping, port transport, andwarehouse industries in July 2005. As of the end of 2014 there are 3,715 certiﬁed businesses and 7,286 certiﬁedbusiness sites. These are indicated as "Environmentally-friendly transport operators" on the Eco-Mo
Foundation website, and each month press releases are issued to newspaper companies containing newly
certiﬁed businesses. Vehicles owned by certiﬁed truck, bus, and taxi operators account for between 12.6% and16.1% of the vehicles owned by companies within Japan.
※ The Green Management Promotion Manual contains specific measures for individual environmental
conservation items, based on the concepts of ISO14031 (an international standard for environmental
performance evaluation). They make it easy to establish targets and carry out evaluations, which in turnmake it easy to implement environmental management on an ongoing basis.
●Number of vehicles owned
Certiﬁed Companies asof December 31, 2014

Companies
Nationwide

Percentage
Owned byCertiﬁed
Companies

Notes(Note 1): Number of vehicles owned as of end of March 2012. This
includes the number of commercial trucks (excluding trailers)

Trucks152,794

1,213,315(Note 1)and the number of commercial special purpose vehicles as

12.6%

indicated in the "Transportation Statistics Collection" (from the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism). It does
not include the number of registered light trucks.

Buses

Taxis

15,27833,137

108,544(Note 2)
205,683(Note 3)(Note 2): Number of vehicles owned as of end of March 2012. Based on

14.1%

the "Transportation Statistics Collection" (from the Ministry ofLand, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism).
(Note 3): Number of corporate taxis owned as of end of March 2012.

16.1%

Based on information on the Japan Federation of Hire-Taxi
Associations website

70

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

■Evaluations of Green Management Certification
The results of various green management efforts have been tested and verified, and this certification
system has come to be evaluated highly, even being included as an element in government measures.
○Cargo owner considerations required by notices based on the Energy Saving Act
One of the energy saving measures required of cargo owners under the Energy Saving Act (enacted in
April 2006) is the selection of environmentally-friendly cargo carriers (carriers who have obtained ISO14001 or
green management certiﬁcations).
○Addition of transportation and delivery, chartered buses, and taxis to the procurement items speciﬁed in
the Act on Promoting Green Purchasing
The 2007 basic policy on the Act on Promoting Green Purchasing (Act on Promotion of Procurement of
Eco-Friendly Goods and Services by the State and Other Entities) was approved by the Cabinet on February
2, 2007. It added【transportation and delivery】※ to the list of speciﬁed procurement items. The 2008 basic
policy was approved by the Cabinet on February 5, 2008, and added【chartered buses and taxis】to the list.
The decision criteria are the "neutral evaluation by a third party" of measures such as "implementing
measures for promoting eco-driving". Generally speaking, this corresponds with green management certiﬁed
companies.
※Transportation and delivery operations within green procurement scope: Domestic correspondence, parcel
delivery, parcel post, mail express○Express inclusion in the "Community Bus Deployment Guidelines" as speciﬁed in the notice regarding therevision of the Road Transportation Act【Notice: MLIT Notice 633, April 10, 2013 "Concerning the Approach of the MLIT to Regional Public
Transportation Councils"】
The notice clearly states that the perspective of "environmentally consciousness" is to be included by cities,
towns, or villages, etc. when selecting community bus operators, and specifies "acquisition of Eco-Mo
Foundation green management certification or ISO14001 certification" as a means of evaluating thisenvironmental consciousness.
○ Express inclusion in the "Guidelines for the Selection and Use of Chartered Buses in Order to Ensure
Transportation Safety"【Published: June 29, 2012】
The MLIT has formulated and issued guidelines which clearly explain the key points involved when travelcompanies, local governments, educational institutions, etc. select and use chartered bus operators.
These guidelines clearly specify "green management certification" as one of the "evaluation items andevaluation elements involved in comprehensive evaluation" indicated in the guidelines' "key points regarding
the selection of chartered bus operators" and "key points regarding bidding, etc., for chartered bus
procurement".
○Relaxation requirements for natural gas vehicle and hybrid vehicle deployment subsidy systems
In order to promote the greater use of low-emission vehicles, the MLIT provides systems for partial
subsidization of the difference in prices between low-emission vehicles and standard vehicles. Subsidy
requirements such as ﬂeet size limitations are relaxed for truck transport operators who have received green
management certiﬁcation.
71

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector○Certiﬁcation acquisition subsidy systems
Local governments:
8 organizations (Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Katsushika-ku, Tokyo; Sumida-ku, Tokyo; Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; Matsudo
City, Chiba Prefecture; Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture; Kameyama City, Mie Prefecture; Fukuyama
City, Hiroshima Prefecture)
Industry groups:
Japan Association of Refrigerated Warehouses and 36 prefectural Trucking Association(Hokkaido, Aomori Prefecture, Iwate Prefecture, Akita Prefecture, Fukushima Prefecture, Ibaraki
Prefecture, Tochigi Prefecture, Gunma Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Tokyo Prefecture,
Kanagawa Prefecture, Niigata Prefecture, Yamanashi Prefecture, Nagano Prefecture, Gifu Prefecture,
Shizuoka Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture, Mie Prefecture, Shiga Prefecture, Osaka Prefecture, Hyogo
Prefecture, Nara Prefecture, Tottori Prefecture, Okayama Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, Tokushima
Prefecture, Kagawa Prefecture, Ehime Prefecture, Kochi Prefecture, Fukushima Prefecture, Nagasaki
Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Oita Prefecture, Miyazaki Prefecture, Kagoshima Prefecture)② Implementation of the Excellent Eco-Commuting Business Site Certification
SystemThe Excellent Eco-Commuting Business Site Certiﬁcation System has been implemented since June 2009 tocertify business sites which actively promote eco-commuting, widely sharing information on their eﬀorts inorder to promote greater adoption of eco-commuting.
The Conference on Promotion of Public Transportation, consist of various transport operator organizations,
economic organizations, related government bureaus, and other organizations, acts as its certiﬁcation body.
The MLIT and the Eco-Mo Foundation jointly operate the certiﬁcation system as the secretariat. By the endof December 2014 645 business sites have been certiﬁed. Certiﬁed business sites implementing Best measures
may also be recommended for MLIT awards. In 2014 Toyohashi City was selected as the winner of the "2014
Minister's Award for Excellent Business Implementing Traﬃc-Related Environmental Conservation Eﬀorts"●Measures implemented by Toyohashi City, Aichi Prefecture72

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

③Promotion of eco-driving
The Eco-Mo Foundation acts as the secretariat of the Eco-Drive Promotion Implementation Council (consistof 16 transport related organizations), established based on the results of the "3rd Conference of Parties to the
UNFCCC" held in Kyoto in 1997. It also carried out various unique eco-driving promotion activities. Since
April 2007 it has offered truck eco-driving training certification, and then passenger vehicle eco-driving
training from September 2008, and presents students who have successfully completed training at certiﬁedorganizations with completion certiﬁcates.
Since 2011 it has also held the "Eco-Drive Activity Contest" with the support of the Eco-Drive Promotion
Liaison Committee (consist of the NPA, METI, MLIT, and MOE) and the Eco-Drive Promotion Implementation
Council. Since 2014 MLIT Award (transportation business category) and MOE Award (general category) havebeen conferred, and the award ceremony for top winners was held as part of the "2014 Eco-Drive Symposium"on November 19.

●Accumulated number of completed certiﬁcates issued

Truck
Passenger vehicle

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

●2014 Eco-Drive Activity Contest award ceremony

73

2012

2013

●Contest leaﬂetⅢ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector④Promotion of Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST)The OECD has proposed Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) (see page 43), and organizations
such as Japan's MLIT have implemented EST model projects. In order to achieve greater use of EST by local
governments and transport operators, since 2006 the Eco-Mo Foundation has worked with academic experts,
related groups, EST related ministries and agencies, and other organizations to promote EST.
In 2014 the Eco-Mo Foundation collaborated with the Regional Transport Bureau in holding workshops for
local governments and transport operators (EST Emergence Seminars) in Takamatsu City, Utsunomiya City,
Okayama City, and Sendai City. In addition to these workshops, tours and review sessions were also held aspart of a three day personnel development training session (the 4th such session) in Toyama City. The 6th
EST transport Environment Awards, recognizing exceptional regional transport environment eﬀorts, werealso held. In 2014 Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd. received the MLIT Award, and Fujisawa City received the MOEAward. Isuzu Motors Ltd., Enoshima Electric Railway Co., Ltd., and Kanagawa Chuo Kotsu Co., Ltd. also
received awards. An awards ceremony was held as part of the 8th EST Promotion Forum, a symposium, inTokyo, and the awards were also publicized on the EST portal site (http://www.estfukyu.jp/), email
newsletters, and Twitter (https://twitter.com/#!/oﬃceEST).

●6th EST Transport Environment Award results
Award
Grand Prize【MLIT Award】
Grand Prize【MOE Award】

Recipient

Name of Main Project○Tokyo Metro Co., Ltd.

Everybody ECO.

○ Fujisawa City, Isuzu Motors Ltd., Enoshima
Fujisawa City traffic system implementation
Electric Railway Co., Ltd, Kanagawa Chuo
program for achieving a low carbon society
Kotsu Co., Ltd.

Outstanding
PerformanceAward○Tobetsu Town

Tobetsu Town community bus project

Incentive Award○Michinori Holdings, Inc.

Michinori Group efforts for creating andmaintaining a sustainable public transportation
network

Incentive Award○Akita EV Bus Trial Consortium

Trial Operation of Akita's Own Original "ElemoAkita" EV Bus● Award-winners Tokyo Metro's Ginza 1000 series train and Fujisawa City articulated bus (TwinLiner / Kanagawa Chuo Kotsu)

74

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

⑤Promotion of mobility management education (transport environment education)
In order to promote transport environment education, the Eco-Mo Foundation provides support to local
governments and elementary and junior high schools, creates centers for ongoing education, publishes
educational manifestos to serve as guidelines, publishes textbooks, and engages in other education promotion
activities.
Since 2014 educational support has been oﬀered to the local governments of Obihiro City, Hokkaido andFujisawa City, Kanagawa prefecture.
<Measures by supported local governments>
Obihiro City:
The prior educational program is being reviewed, the program's position within the school curriculum
guidelines is being clarified, and the program is being overhauled to make it easier for educators to
implement and more closely tied to coursework. The local government is also considering how to tailor the
program to Obihiro City, such as reﬂecting actual traﬃc conditions in Obihiro City itself and covering theuse of biodiesel fuel.
Fujisawa City:
Transport environment education is being performed in model schools, a Fujisawa City-tailored transport
environment education program is being created, and deliberations are underway regarding sustainable
implementation and promotion methods, materials, and the like in order to ﬁrmly establish the educational
program.
Furthermore, the local governments supported in the years leading up to 2013 have reached the stage
where educational eﬀorts are being extended throughout their areas, so seminars have been held in Sapporo
City, Hokkaido and Toyama City, Toyama prefecture.
Obihiro City

Fujisawa City

In 2014 support has also been provided to the following two elementary schools.

●Names of supported schools and educational themes
Supported school

Subject

ClassesYear

Elementary school TFP

Integrated studies

5 classes

5th graders

Fukuyama City Municipal
Asahigaoka Elementary Elementary school TFP
SchoolIntegrated studies

5 classes

5th graders

Fukuyama City Municipal
Ekinishi Elementary
School

Educational Theme75

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector⑥Eco-Products 2014 Exhibition
The Eco-Products Exhibition, held annually since 1999 in order to promote environmentally-friendly
products and services, is a comprehensive environmental exhibition held at Tokyo Big Sight. It is one of thelargest-scale exhibitions in Japan, attended by business persons, members of the government, and general
consumers.
The Eco-Mo Foundation has operated booths at the exhibition featuring videos and panels explaining thecurrent state of the global warming issues related to the transport sector, global warming countermeasures,and the activities of the foundation.
(Eco-Products 2014 data: Exhibitors: 747 companies and organizations. Visitors: Approx. 160,000. Eco-Mo
Foundation booth visitors: Approx. 4,500)

76

5 Measures by local governments, companies, citizens' groups, etc.

⑦11th Eco-Products Awards
The Eco-Products Awards are held by the Eco-Products Awards Promotion Council (consist of Global
Environmental Forum, Japan Environmental Management Association for Industry, Eco-Mo Foundation, andJapan Organics Recycling Association). It was established in order to encourage the spread of eco-friendly
products by awarding excellent products and services reduced environmental load.
In 2014 Mazda Motor Corporation won the product category MLIT Award for its "SKYACTIV-D1.5 small
Displacement Clean Diesel Engine," and Central Japan Railway Company won the service category MLIT
Award for its "Development and Deployment of the Energy Saving N700A Shinkansen Train, Oﬀering HighLevels of Environmental Performance." The winners were presented with their awards at the Eco-Products2014 Exhibition, held in December.

●11th MLIT Award (product category)SKYACTIV-D1.5 small Displacement Clean Diesel Engine●11th MLIT Award (service category)
Development and Deployment of the Energy Saving N700A Shinkansen Train,Oﬀering High Levels of Environmental Performance77

Ⅲ．Measures in Response to Major Environmental Problems of the Transport Sector⑧Promotion of usage of carbon offsets in the transportation and tourism sectors
One global warming countermeasure is the use of "carbon oﬀsets", which eliminate or absorb greenhousegasses to compensate for emissions made elsewhere as the result of the usage of products or services.
Product or service users or providers bear the costs of purchasing emissions rights produced elsewhere tocompensate for their emissions. In the transport and transportation sector, carbon oﬀsets are already being
used by airlines, rail operators, bus operators, taxi operators, truck operators, and travel companies.
Not only to carbon oﬀsets highlight the eﬀorts being made by the companies which use them to combat global
warming, but they can also promote voluntary greenhouse gas reductions across a wide spectrum of users,
including individuals. They also serve to provide funding to projects for reducing or absorbing greenhousegasses.
In order to promote greater usage of carbon oﬀsets by the transportation and tourism sector, in December
2009 the Eco-Mo Foundation established the "Transportation and Tourism Carbon Oﬀset Support System."This system reduces the burden placed on companies in introducing carbon oﬀsets for transport and tourism
related services, and makes it possible to calculate CO2 emissions and purchase emissions rights via the web.
The system is already being used by local government transportation bureaus and a wide range of companies,
including major private rail operators, bus companies, taxi companies, truck companies, and tourism
companies.

●Example of carbon oﬀsets using support systems

Implementing company: Kokusai Motorcars
Name: Environmentally-friendly taxi standOverview: A taxi stand exclusively for taxis from Kokusai Motorcars, part of the km Group,
was set up at the main Isetan location in Shinjuku, and the CO2 emissions for thebase fare distance (2km) of each taxi trip departing from the taxi stand was oﬀset
by the company

Taxi standLeaflet78

1 Noise related measures

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues
Noise related measures（1）Automobile noise countermeasures
A study of motor vehicle noise environmental standard attainment status conducted in 2012 foundthat of the 6,645,000 homes studied, 494,000 (7%) had motor vehicle noise levels which exceeded
environmental standards either during the day (6:00 a.m. to 10 p.m.), at night (10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.), or
both. 238,000 of the homes (4%) exceeded environmental noise standards both during the day and atnight.
Of the 2,784,000 homes in areas along major arterial road, 344,000 (12%) exceeded environmental
noise standards during the day, at night, or both. Of those, 162,000 (6%) exceeded environmental noise
standards both during the day and at night.
Changes in the attainment of environmental noise standards must take into consideration changes in
the homes studied each year, but within the reported scope there appears to have been a gradualimprovement over time.
Broken down by road type, the largest share of homes in areas exceeding environmental noise
standards either during the day, at night, or both were located near urban expressways. Of the 52,000
homes located in these areas, 7,000 homes (14%) exceeded environmental noise standards.
This information is provided together with corresponding maps on the Nationwide Motor Vehicle
Noise Map (Environmental GIS Motor Vehicle Noise Survey Report) website, operated by the National
Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES).
●Nationwide Motor Vehicle Noise Map

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of NIES

79

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues（2）Rail noise countermeasures
With regard to Shinkansen noise, relevant administrative authorities and companies have
implemented so-called "75 decibel measures" in order to bring noise levels in dense residential areas
along Shinkansen lines to or below environmental noise standards (primarily residential areas: 70
decibels or below, primarily commercial or industrial areas: 75 decibels or below).
Four stages of 75 decibel measures have been implemented. The stage 4 study found that only oneof the measurement sites in the areas where the measures were implemented had a noise level which
exceeded 75 decibels. Some of the areas where the measures were not implemented still do not meetthe 75 decibel standard, so "75 decibel measures" will continue to be implemented in order to achieveenvironmental noise standards.
Shinkansen noise countermeasures include raising noise barriers, installing pantograph covers, andre-proﬁling rails to prevent the actual production of noise. When these measures are insuﬃcient tomeet environmental noise standards, subsidies are provided for performing soundprooﬁng on existinghomes.
In the case of conventional railway line noise countermeasures, in accordance with the "NoiseCountermeasure Guidelines Regarding the New Installation or Large Scale Modification ofConventional Railway Lines", railway operators are instructed to implement measures to ensure thatnoise levels do not exceed speciﬁed values for newly installed lines, and to ensure that noise levels are
reduced when performing large scale modiﬁcation of existing lines.

（3）Airplane noise countermeasures
The most effective measure for reducing airplanenoise levels is the introduction of low noise airplanes.
When comparing the 80dB(A)(adjusted based on●Eco-airport conceptual diagram
Surrounding environment measures and countermeasures
In order to reduce or eliminate the eﬀects of noise, soundprooﬁng construction, etc., is implemented for homes and schools, etc.,
and green space improvements are made to both improve living environments and act as global warming countermeasures. Eﬀorts
are also made to establish and maintain new noise auditing facilities and to promote the use of relocation compensation sites
Airfront Oasis

Distribution
facilities and stores

Noise berm

human hearing characteristics) noise levels, the noise
impact scope of the current B767 is roughly 90%

City planninggreen space

Water quality
management

smaller than that of the previously used DC8. In areasin which noise is still a problem soundprooﬁng, etc. isbeing performed on homes. For the most part, this

Improvement ofsilencing facilities

Introduction of
low-emission
vehiclesPromotionof GPU use
Promotion of the green
government buildings
Promotion of installationof rooftop gardens

Introduction ofalternative energy
sourcessoundproofing work has been completed, except forfollow-up maintenance. Improvements are being madein the area of airplane noise, and noise countermeasureareas are being reviewed and readjusted in airports

Airport environment countermeasures◆Local environmental and global environmental measures are carried out, including measures for reducing the impacts of air pollutants, waste
water, and waste produced by airport operation, improvement of energy eﬃciency, and installation of roof gardens.

Source: Tentative Translated by
Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

such as Osaka International Airport. Nevertheless, measures for further reducing noise will remain
important for achieving harmony between airports and their surrounding areas.
In 2003 the Eco-Airport Guidelines were established in order to assist with environmental
preservation and creation for airports and their surrounding communities. Based on these guidelines,
eco-airport design is being implemented in airports through measures such as the creation ofenvironmental plans for airports and their surrounding areas, and through support for the installationof Ground Power Units (GPUS).

80

2 Sea pollution countermeasures

Sea pollution countermeasures（1）Large scale oil spill countermeasures● Coverage scope of system of 3
large dredging and oil reclamation
ships

One of the major factors behind the large scale oil spills ofrecent years is the existence of ships which do not meet the

3 ship oil recovery
areas

standards set forth in marine safety and sea environmental

HakusanSeiryu Maru
Kaisho Maruconservation treaties (sub-standard ships). In order to eliminate

Hakusanthese ships, Japan is participating in international eﬀorts such as
Niigata
Nagoyathe creation of an international ship database (EQUASIS), as well
Kitakyushu

as enhancing port state control (PSC) by performing onboard

Seiryu Maru

inspections of foreign vessels stopping in Japanese ports
Kaisho Maru

conﬁrming that they meet treaty standards.
"Hakusan" can start oil recovery operation within 24 hours
in the Japan Sea area, and even in the Hokkaido sea area
can start operation within 2 days. Together with the "Seiryu
Maru" and the "Kaisho Maru", it helps further enhance
Japan's ability to respond to oil spills around Japan.

Japan maintains three large dredging and oil reclamation ships
to quickly reach and clean up oil spills in the seas around Japan.

Source: Tentative Translated by
Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

Furthermore, Japan, China, the Republic of Korea, and Russia★NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Emergency Plans

cleaning up large spills of oil or hazardous substances in theDeveloped country（country requesting assistance）（South Korea）
Large scale oil spill

Sea of Japan, the Sakhalin area, and the Sea of Okhotsk. The

Situations exceedingnation's own response
capabilities, necessitating assistance

Environment of the Northwest Pacific Region (NOWPAP)
Regional Oil and Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS)
Spill Contingency Plan" (2008).

NOWPAP regional oil spill emergency plan initiation
Information sharing

Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal

National action liason
National action liason
Accident（Republic of Korea Coast Guard）notiﬁcation（Japan Coast Guard）

National emergency plan-based response

system of international collaboration and coordination is being
strengthened through the "Action Plan for the Protection,* Items in red correspond to
Korean incident scenario
Supporting country（Japan）

Authority withjurisdication（none）
Authority deciding
on support provision（Korean Ministry ofForeign Aﬀairs）
National action liason（Republic of Korea
Coast Guard）

Coordination of which country is leading
country in situations where incident aﬀects
interests of multiple countries

Authority withjurisdication（none）

Support request

Authority decidng
on support provision

Support decision notiﬁcation（Japanese Ministryof Foreign Aﬀairs）

24 hour contact system

National action
liason（Japan Coast Guard）* Plan initiation notiﬁcation* Notiﬁcation of person chosen as chief site director* Information regarding pollution incidents

Implementation of joint operations

Information sharing

have established a collaborative rapid response system for

Personnel andresource support
Dispatch of teamsof experts Supply ofoil absorption materials

Distribution of reports, etc.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation ofJapan Coast Guard（2）Countermeasures against harmful aquatic organisms in ballast water
Organisms such as plankton in ship ballast water (sea water used to weigh empty ships for greater
safety) can contaminate areas where they are not normally found when ballast water is purged,
harming the local ecosystem as well as having negative eﬀects on human health and economic activity.
In February 2004 the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted the Ballast Water
Management Convention in order to regulate ballast water countermeasures using a consistent global
standard. Japan became a party to the convention in October 2014.
As of November 2013 nine ballast water management systems have been approved. The ﬁrst unit ofthe "JFE Ballast Ace", a ballast water processing system developed by JFE Engineering Corporationand commercially released after being the ﬁrst system to receive model approval by the MLIT, wasinstalled in August 2010 in the Emerald Leader, a vehicle carrier owned by Nippon Yusen Kabushiki
Kaisha. Other ballast water countermeasures are also being earnestly implemented. These include the
FineBallast®OZ ozone-based ballast water processing system, jointly developed by Mitsui Engineering& Shipbuilding, the Japan Association of Marine Safety, and five other companies, which received
approval by the MLIT in June 2011.

81

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues

Ship exhaust gas countermeasures
Ships oﬀer superior energy consumption eﬃciency, but they account for a large share of Japan's
total nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. In order to respond to this problem and maintain compliancewith regulations stipulated in international marine pollution prevention conventions Japan is developing
technologies for use in ship emissions gas aftertreatment devices capable of signiﬁcantly reducing theamount of NOx in exhaust gas, and researching and developing environmentally friendly diesel engines
for ships, including methods for improving the combustion of engines themselves. For example, thecompact high speed auxiliary engine SCR denitrification device, an aftertreatment device whose
development began in 2007, was installed in a bulk carrier (95,000D/W) in 2010 and has successfully
reduced NOx emissions. In March 2011 pilot testing began using an actual ship in order to meet NOx
Tier 3 regulations (80% reduction from Tier 1) which the International Maritime Organization (IMO)plans to put into eﬀect from 2016. A ship SCR denitriﬁcation device was installed in the main engine(1,491kW output) of an in-service cargo ship, and as a result the ship has achieved conformance with
Tier 3 regulation standards. Also, to reduce the amount of emissions of gasses such as CO2, NOx, andSOx from berthing ships, efforts are also underway to have ships shut down their engines whileberthed and use electrical power supplied from the land instead of power generated onboard the ship.
Furthermore, development is underway of an index (a 10 mode index for ships) for evaluatingenergy saving performance during the design phase of ship construction, with the aim of promoting
the development and use of high fuel eﬃciency ships. Some of the results of this development havebeen used since July 2009 by the Nippon Kaiji Kyokai to provide environmental performance appraisal
services for container ships. Expectations are high for the contributions of these services to thedevelopment and greater usage of high performance ships. Ships travel between countries, so ensuring
the eﬀectiveness of exhaust gas countermeasures requires the application of regulations arrived at byinternational consensus. Japan has revised laws such as the Act on Prevention of Marine Pollution andMaritime Disaster in response to revisions to the MARPOL Convention. Since July 2010 restrictions on
the emissions of NOx from engines have been strengthened, and based on these new restrictions
engine NOx emissions are being conﬁrmed and regular ship inspections are being performed. Japan is
also actively participating in IMO discussions on further exhaust gas restrictions.
●The development of environmentally friendly marine diesel engines

NOx reduction technology for marine engines
Exhaust gas after-treatment devices

Combustion improvement technology
for marine engines

Exhaust gas 㻌䠄SCR⬺◪⿦⨨䠅Urea
water㻌

㻌
Catalyst
Exhaust 㻌
gas

Urea injection nozzle

SCR denitration device

Improvement to injection systems

Shop test & onboard test
Goal: 80% reduction in NOx emission
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

82

3 Ship exhaust gas countermeasures

ColumnPromoting the turning oﬀ of ships' engines when stopped!
- Program launched in Hokkaido The turning oﬀ of ship engines when stopped is ●Ship idling reduction image
being promoted to improve the air environment by

CO₂, etc.

cutting emissions of gasses such as carbon dioxide(CO2), nitrogen oxide (NOx), and sulfur oxide (Sox)in port areas. Instead of generating power onboard when berthed, ships use power supplied byfacilities on land.

Ship sideconnection panel
Land sideconnection panel

Cable

According to calculations by the MLIT Portsand Harbours Bureau, if all domestic vessels inPower send /receive facilities

Japan turned off their engines when stopped, it
could reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1 million
tons per year, enough to fill the Tokyo DomeLand power
supplySource: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation ofMLIT

roughly 400 times.
The MLIT has worked together with the MOE on projects such as local power supply pilot tests atsites such as Takeshiba Pier since October 2006, and has conﬁrmed their usability, electrical stability,
and safety.
Engine shutdown experiments were carried out in 2009

●Supplying of power to large ferries insnowy and cold regions

at ﬁve ports across Japan, including Kushiro Port. BasedContainer

on the results of these experiments, a project aimed athaving ships shut down their engines when stopped has

Connector
Ship power
High-voltage transformer
distribution
Land power incoming board
deviceHigh voltage
power supply cablebeen implemented in Kushiro Port (Kushiro City) since
Land side receiving andpower distribution facilities

May 2010.
This makes it the ﬁrst public port in Japan to do this.
This approach will be gradually extended to other ports

Low voltage
cable

ChassisHigh voltage incoming board
High voltage feeder board
Frequency converter
High voltage connecting board

in the future.

●Highly versatile power supplies using
chassis(A chassis containing powerincoming boards and transformers is
performed at the Tomakomai West Port Ferry Terminal
placed in a container (tow trailer),of loading power receiving equipment mounted inloaded onto the ferry, and installed)

In December 2010 and February 2011 testing wascontainers onto large ferries in cold and snowy areas,making it possible to supply the ferries with power
without requiring large scale modifications of the ships
themselves. This testing went extremely well, conﬁrming
the stability and operability of this approach.
The West Port Ferry Terminal is used by over 40
voyages per week, so according to the Tomakomai PortsOﬃce, if all of these ferries were to turn oﬀ their engines
while stopped, carbon dioxide emissions could be reducedby 2,000 tons per year.

83

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo
Foundation of The Tomakomaimimpo Co., Ltd.

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues

Chemical matters countermeasures（1）Dioxin, etc. countermeasures
Dioxins are produced when garbage and other ●Dioxin, etc. countermeasuresmatter is incinerated. There are concerns about theDredging

harm these chemicals cause to the human body.

Dredgedsediment（slurry）

Cycloneseparator

The MLIT is studying dioxins and implementing

Vibratingstrainercountermeasures, monitoring marine pollution
conditions, and carrying out other measures bySand andstonesfor Rivers, Lakes, etc." (the River Manual) and the"Technical Guidelines Regarding Sediment Dioxin

Mechanicaldehydration

Mud Slurrytank tank

Dehydrated
soil

Reduction of volume of dredged sediment
Dried polluted
soil

MeltingHarmless slag

Melting
1400℃

sediment in ports with dioxin levels exceedingthe "Manual of Sediment Dioxin Countermeasures

Dehydrating
assistant

Sediment which exceeds environmental
standards is removed by dredging, etc.

technical guidelines concerning the removal ofenvironmental standards for sediment, and revisingIntermediate
processing
Mechanicaldehydrator

Eﬀective use of separated sandestablishing a Fundamental Policy Regarding
Countermeasures Against Sediment Dioxins,

Fine particles

Slag
Melting method
Polluted dredged sediment isbroken down and rendered harmless

Eﬀective use as soil material（Note） The ﬁgure above shows an overview of the processing and disposal process.
Speciﬁc methods in actual use may vary.

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of
MLIT

Countermeasures for Ports" (the Port Guidelines).

（2）Endocrine disruptors countermeasures
Endocrine disruptors (environmental hormones) ●Endocrine disruptor website
disrupt the endocrine systems of people and wild
animals, producing a number of adverse eﬀects suchas reducing sperm counts. The need forcountermeasures in response to these endocrine
disruptors is growing year by year. In September
2008 the International Convention on the Control ofHarmful Anti-fouling Systems in Ships (AFS
Convention) went into eﬀect. This global convention
completely prohibits the use of ship hull antifouling
paint containing tributyltin (TBT), an endocrine
disruptor. The convention prohibits new application

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

of TBT paint, and requires ship owners tocompletely remove all TBT paint already applied to ships, or to coat painted portions with a protective
layer which prevents leaching of TBT into seawater. All foreign ships entering Japanese ports areprohibited from using TBT hull antifouling paint, so when the MLIT actively includes monitoring for
TBT hull antifouling paint usage as part of its port state control (PSC) monitoring of whether arriving
foreign ships are in conformance with international conventions regarding marine safety and marine
environmental conservation, with the aim of eliminating foreign ships on which toxic hull paint has
been used.

84

4 Chemical countermeasures（3）Asbestos countermeasures● Asbestos countermeasurepamphletAsbestos, used in various facilities, such as warehouses andstorage sheds, present a life-threatening hazard. The buildings
constructed in the 1970s and onwards, when large amounts ofasbestos were imported, are reaching the ends of their lifespans andwill be dismantled, so it is important to implement preemptive
measures to prevent this work from causing public harm.
The MLIT is following up on the status of asbestos removal andscatter prevention measures for facilities under its jurisdiction inorder to advance the removal of asbestos from existing buildings. In
addition, measures for removing spray-applied asbestos insulation inexisting buildings are being promoted though activities such as
subsidies for residence and building safety stock formation
operations and local housing subsidies.
In conjunction with revisions to the Building Standards Act the use

Source: Tentative Translated by EcoMo Foundation of MLITof spray-applied asbestos insulation etc. in buildings has been prohibited, and Japan is disseminating
information in the form of asbestos removal work reference estimates, documents which assist withthe process of identifying building materials containing asbestos (visually identiﬁable building materials
containing asbestos), by compiling databases of information regarding building materials containing
asbestos, and preparing pamphlets regarding building asbestos countermeasures. Japan is also
implementing measures for thoroughly ensuring the prevention of asbestos scattering or exposure
during building dismantling.

（4）PRTR(Pollutant Release and Transfer Register) system●PRTR pamphlet

There is growing interest around the world in environmental
pollutants such as environmental hormones and new chemical
substances produced by high-tech industry. In 1992 the UN
Conference on Environment and Development (Earth Summit)
indicated the need for a system for managing the discharge andmovement of hazardous chemicals in order to reduce their inherent
risks.
In response, in 1999 Japan formulated the Act on Conﬁrmation,etc. of Release Amounts of Specific Chemical Substances in theEnvironment and Promotion of Improvements to the Management
Thereof (PRTR Law). This act defines a system for confirming,
tabulating, and publicly releasing data on which of a wide range ofhazardous chemicals have been produced, by whom they were
produced, how much of the chemicals have been released into theSource: Tentative Translated by EcoMo Foundation of METI and MOE

environment, and how much of the chemicals have been taken oﬀ of company premises in the form ofwaste products. This system has been in eﬀect since 2001.
Under this act, warehouse operators (limited to warehousing to store farm products or to store gas
or liquid in storage tanks) and automobile maintenance operators are also required to report transfersof speciﬁed chemical substances.
85

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues

Ozone layer destruction prevention
The ozone layer which envelops the earth plays an important role in protecting life on earth byabsorbing harmful ultraviolet radiation. When this ozone layer is damaged, it allows a greater amountof hazardous ultraviolet radiation to pass through, increasing the incidence of skin cancer and cataracts
and impairing immunity in humans as well as aﬀecting animal and plant ecosystems.
Fluorocarbons (CFCs and HCFCs), used as coolants in devices such as refrigerators and air
conditioners, are known to damage the ozone layer. Fluorocarbons are greenhouse gasses that are
hundreds to tens of thousands of times stronger than carbon dioxide, so it is important to prevent
ﬂuorocarbons used in devices (CFCs, HCFCs, and HFCs) from being discharged into the atmosphere inorder to protect the ozone layer and prevent global warming.
The Act for Protection of the Ozone Layer through Regulation of Designated Substances, etc.,
passed in 1995, prohibited the manufacturing of specified fluorocarbons (CFCs), and the Act for
Recycling of Specified Kinds of Home Appliances (the Appliance Recycling Act), passed in 2001,
mandated the reclamation of ﬂuorocarbons from domestic refrigerators and air conditioners. In 2002
the Act Concerning the Recovery and Destruction of Fluorocarbons (the Fluorocarbon Recovery and
Destruction Act) mandated the reclamation of fluorocarbons from industrial air conditioning andrefrigeration equipment and vehicle air conditioners.
With regard to the reclamation of fluorocarbons from vehicle air conditioners and subsequent
destruction, due to the fact that vehicle air conditioners are constituent components of automobiles, inJanuary 2005 they were excluded from the scope of the Fluorocarbon Recovery and Destruction Act,and regulated together with the disposal of vehicle bodies and engines under the Act on Recycling, etc.
of End-of-Life Vehicles, which regulates the appropriate processing and disposal of end-of-life vehicles.
In response to a rapid increase in emissions of fluorocarbons (HFCs) with particularly strong
greenhouse eﬀects, particularly those used as coolants in air conditioning and refrigeration equipment,
in June 2013 the Fluorocarbon Recovery and Destruction Act was revised to require that the
manufacturers of ﬂuorocarbons and devices which use ﬂuorocarbons, and the users of industrial air
conditioning and refrigeration equipment, rationalize fluorocarbon use and appropriately manage
fluorocarbons. It also established mechanisms such as a fluorocarbon filling operator registration
system and a recycling operator licensing system, and the name of the law was changed to the Act on
the Rational Use and Management of Fluorocarbons (Fluorocarbon Discharge Prevention Act).
●Changes in global amount of ozone over timeAmount of ozone worldwide
Except for low latitudes, the average amount of ozone worldwide, as measured terrestrially and from satellites, fell signiﬁcantly from the
1980s to the early 1990s. Since the late 1990s it has remained constant or increased slightly, but the total amount of ozone remains
low.
Satellite observation data

Deviation

Terrestrial observation data

（Year）

This graph shows the percentage of increase or decrease in the average amount of ozone worldwide compared to the average amountfor the 1970 to 1980 period. These value changes have been adjusted to eliminate the inﬂuence of seasonal variation, solar activity, andquasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) (cyclical stratospheric circulation changes which occur in a roughly two year period). The solid lines
indicate data from terrestrial observation sites, and the dots indicate averaged satellite observation data between N70 and S70 degrees
latitude. The terrestrial observation site data was supplied by the World Ozone and Ultraviolet Radiation Data Centre. The satellite
observation data was obtained from TOMS and OMI data supplied by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

86

5 Ozone layer destruction prevention●Overview of the Fluorocarbon Discharge Prevention Act（1）Reduce amount of new chloroﬂuorocarbon
produced through conversion and reuse ofexisting chloroﬂuorocarbons（Strict observation of evaluation criteria）（2）Promotion of coolant conversion（switchover to chloroﬂuorocarbon-freeand low GWP chloroﬂuorocarbon
Product manufacturer
products）（Strict observation of evaluation criteria）

Chloroﬂuorocarbon
manufacturer

Low GWP /Natural cooling
products

Low GWP /Natural cooling

Chloroﬂuorocarbons

Partial recycling
and reuse（3）Proper management ofcommercial device coolant（Reduction of leakage during usage）（Strict observation of evaluation criteria,leak reporting）
Regularinspection（5）Recycling and destruction optimization（operation licensing system, strict observanceof recycling and destruction criteria, issuing ofcertiﬁcations, recording and reporting, etc.）

User

Leakage volume
calculation andreportingRepairs whennecessary

Filling and reclamation
operator（ﬁlling）（4）Filling optimization andreclamation obligation

Destruction
obligation

Destruction operator,
recycling operator

Filling and reclamation
operator（reclamation）（operation licensing system,
strict observance of ﬁlling andreclamation criteria, issuing ofcertiﬁcations, recording andreporting, etc.）

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of METI and MOE●Fluorocarbon Discharge Prevention Act pamphlet

Fluorocarbons must be reclaimed
whenever performing disassembly work!
Under the Act on the Rational Use and Proper Management of
Fluorocarbons (Fluorocarbon Release Prevention Act), ﬂuorocarbons
must be reclaimed when disposing of commercial air conditioners,
refrigerators, or freezers which use ﬂuorocarbons (CFC, HCFC, and HFC).
It is against the law to allow ﬂuorocarbons to bereleased into the atmosphere when performing disassembly work.

Examples of devices which use ﬂuorocarbons(commercial refrigerators, freezers, and air conditioners)
In oﬃce buildings

In dining establishments

Package A/C
Commercial freezers
and refrigerators

Water coolers

In supermarkets
GHP package A/C

In town
Package A/C

Spot A/C(gas heat pump A/C)

Transport freezer andrefrigerator units

Package A/C

Vending machines
Chilled showcases
Turbo freezers

Icemakers

Beer servers

Freezer showcases

Transport A/C

Water
coolers
Air handling units(chiller secondary units)

The penalty for reckless releasing of
ﬂuorocarbons is incarceration for up
to 1 year or a ﬁne of up to 500,000 yen.
Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of METI and MOE

87

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues●Overview of the Act on Recycling, etc. of End-of-Life Vehicles process

Recycling fund manager
JARC

Payment

Three category item
receipt manifests
Deposit ofrecycling fees

Automobile
manufacturers /importers

OwnersPayment
for recovery
Fluorocarbons

Airbags

Deliverymanifests

Shredderresidue

ELVs

ELVs

ELV
collectors

Payment
for recovery

Dismantled
vehiclesELVsReceipt
manifests

Designatedrecyclingorganization
JARC

Fluorocarbon
recoveryoperators
Receipt
manifests

Dismantlers

Deliverymanifests

Receipt
manifests

Deliverymanifests

ShredderShredderoperators
Receipt
manifests

Deliverymanifests

Information management center
JARC

ELV ﬂow

Information
ﬂow

Payment ﬂow

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of Japan Automobile Recycling Promotion Center88

6 Global environmental observation and monitoring

Global environmental observation and monitoring
Implementing precise environmental problem countermeasures in the transport sector requires theaccurate assessment of air and sea changes through steady, long-term observation and monitoring.
Diverse air, sea, and other observation and monitoring are being implemented by global monitoring
networks.

（1）Climate change observation and monitoring
International efforts aimed at tackling global ●Atmospheric environment monitoring network
environmental issues such as global warming areGreenhouse gas, etc.
observation

being intensiﬁed. In addition to its previous ongoing

Navigation routes ofobservation ships
Ozone layer / ultraviolet
sunlight observation

efforts, the JMA is implementing the following
measures in accordance with the "Strategic Policy
Regarding Future Global Environmental Operations",(Showa Station (Antarctica) only
performs terrestrial ozone observation)

Sapporo(Minamitorishima Island only performs
ozone layer observation)

Observation of chemicalcomposition of precipitation

Ryori

Showa Station(Antarctica)

Tsukuba

Fukuokaformulated and announced in 2008.

Ryofumaru
Yonaguni

In order to assess greenhouse gas conditions, theMinamitorishima

Naha

Ishigakijima
Keifumaru

amount of CO2 in the atmosphere is being measured
at three locations in Japan and the amount of CO2 in

Source: Tentative Translated by
Eco-Mo Foundation of JMA

the surface sea water and the air above thenorthwest Paciﬁc Ocean is being measured by marine weather observation vessels. Furthermore, since2009 precise sunlight and infrared radiation measurements have been performed at ﬁve locations inJapan.
Increases in sea levels caused by global warming are also being monitored, and information is being
released regarding long-term sea level changes along the coast of Japan.
In order to achieve more accurate climate change monitoring and seasonal forecasts, a Long Term
Re-Analysis Project is being carried out in conjunction with the Central Research Institute of ElectricPower Industry. This project analyzes past global atmosphere conditions using consistent methodology,
and the ﬁndings of the project are being released to research organizations in Japan and abroad.
Climate change monitoring reports and anomalous weather reports are created based on observation
results, and views on annual climate changes, anomalous weather, and global warming conditions andchanges are also released.

Carbon dioxide concentration●Changes in carbon dioxide concentrations inJapan and global concentration distributionof carbon dioxide (3 measurement points)
Ryori

Minamitorijima●Climate change monitoring report
気候変動監視レポート

Yonaguni

2013
世界と日本の気候変動および温室効果ガスとオゾン層等の状況について（Year）

Planetary CO₂ concentration distribution
April 1987

April 1997

Low

April 2007

High

Changes in carbon dioxide concentration over time at Ryori, Minamitorijima, and Yonaguni (top)Changes in planetary carbon dioxide concentrations calculated from observation results (bottom)

平成２６年６月

気Source: Tentative Translated by
Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT

象

庁

Source: JMA

89

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues（2）Himawari 8 and 9
Himawari 8 and 9 are the successors to the ● M o n i t o r i n g c a p a b i l i t y i m p r o v e m e n t sprovided by Himawari 8/9

Himawari 7 (MTSAT-2) satellite, a multipurpose

Doubled horizontal resolution

transportation satellite currently in operation.
Himawari 8 was launched in 2014, and after performing
conﬁrmation testing of its functionality while it orbit, it

Himawari 6/7

Himawari 8/9

Visible1km

VisibleInfrared 4km

InfraredHigh resolution

is scheduled to be put into operation in 2015. Himawari

0.5-1km Visible
2km

Himawari 6/7

Himawari 8/9

1 band（B/W）

2 bands（Color）

None

3 bands

4 bands

10 bands

Development of
new perspectives

Reduced full disk observation timeNear

9 will be launched in 2016, and will remain in orbit in

10 min infrared
30 minstandby until 2022. Himawari 8 and 9 have radiometers

10 min10 min Infrared

High frequency observation(AHI) which use cutting edge observation technologies,

Every 2.5 min inarea around Japanand their deployment ahead of other US and European
next generation still imaging satellites has drawn

Increased number of bands（channels）

High frequency

Phenomena
analysis innovation

5 channels
Increased range of
observation types

16 channels
More advanced
satellite products

international attention.

（3）Sea observation and monitoring
The sea absorbs CO2, a greenhouse gas, and retains heat, moderating global warming. Sea changes
are intrinsically linked to typhoons and anomalous weather conditions, so accurately assessing sea
conditions is an important part of responding to global environmental problems.
In order to immediately monitor and assess sea changes throughout the world the MLIT iscoordinating with other related ministries and agencies, engaging in international collaboration withorganizations such as the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to carry out the Argo project,
deploying devices (Argo ﬂoats) around the world to automatically observe conditions within the sea.

●Overview of Argo project monitoring and Argo ﬂoat distribution
30'W
90'N

0'

30'E

60'E

90'E 120'E 150'E 180' 150'W 120'W 90'W 60'W 30'W
90'N

60'N

60'N

30'N

30'N

0'

0'

30'S

30'S

60'S

60'S

Surface
Deployed

1000m

Sinks to 1000m and dts

Middle layer

2000m
Sinks to 2000m once every 10 days,
measures water temperature and salinity, and rises

Argo ﬂoats deployed at sea by marine weather
observation vessels or other vessels sink to a depthof approximately 2,000m every 10 days and thenrise again, obtaining vertical water temperature andsalinity data and automatically reporting it bytransmitting it via satellite.

90'S
30'W

0'

30'E

60'E

90'S
90'E 120'E 150'E 180' 150'W 120'W 90'W 60'W 30'W

Worldwide distribution of Argo ﬂoats reporting data
within the past month（3,922 ﬂoats as of February
6, 2015. 200 of these ﬂoats are Japanese,
indicated with a（●）.）

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of MLIT and Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology

90

6 Global environmental observation and monitoring

The JMA collects and analyzes data from various sources, ●"Marine Health Diagnosis Table"
such as observation vessels, Argo floats, and satellites, andreleases Marine Health Diagnosis Tables, comprehensive

Yearly average sea surface
temperature (global average)
anomaly trend

diagnoses and future predictions regarding sea change
conditions related to the global environment.
The Japan Coast Guard constantly monitors and assesses
Japan Current changes in the area around the Izu Islands
using marine short-wave radar. It publishes observation data
to supplement the data obtained from Argo ﬂoats. The Japan
Oceanographic Data Center collects and manages sea datafrom Japanese oceanic research organizations, and provides it
to related organizations and the general public.

（4）Ozone layer observation and monitoring

Source: JMA

In order to protect the ozone layer, which absorbs harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun, theproduction, use, and trading of fluorocarbons and other ozone layer destroying substances isinternationally regulated by the Montreal Protocol and other agreements and conventions. The JMA
releases the results of ozone and ultraviolet radiation observation on a yearly basis. It also provides
daily data regarding ultraviolet radiation in the form of a UV index, easy-to-understand numerical data
indicating the strength of ultraviolet radiation.

（5）Promotion of steady observation at the south pole
The Geospatial Information Authority creates topographical and●UV index (peak daily values)

other maps based on reference point measurements, gravitic
measurements, continuous GPS observation, exposed rock areachange measurements, and photographic measurements. The results
contribute to research regarding global environmental changes in thesouth pole area, etc., and international activities focusing on landmeasurement and geographical information.
Since 1992 it has, with the collaboration of other countries aroundthe world, compiled a database (global map data) of fundamental
global geographical information needed when performing monitoring

Source: JMA

or analysis of global environmental problems, etc. In 2008 it completed and released the ﬁrst version ofits global map database, which includes land data for the entire world. It has since released the second
version of its database, which covers land coverage and woodland coverage rates.
At the Showa Station the JMA is performing continuous sunlight, radiation, and land and highaltitude meteorological observation. This observation is eﬀectively utilized in international measures,contributing to climate change research and monitoring of the south pole ozone hole.
The Japan Coast Guard carries out sea ﬂoor topological surveys. It also performs tidal observation,
which contributes to monitoring of sea level changes, which are intricately tied to global warming.

91

Ⅳ．Measures in Response to Other Environmental Issues●Changes in the Antarctica ozone hole (1979 to 2009)
Distribution of average ozone levels in October in the southern hemisphere in 1979, before the southern hemisphere ozone hole appeared, and in
2014.
The region with a concentration of 220m atm-cm or less is the ozone hole.
Created by the Japan Meteorological Agency based on satellite data provided by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

October 1979

October 2009

Created by the Japan Meteorological Agency based on satellite data provided
by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Source: Tentative Translated by Eco-Mo Foundation of JMA and NASA

●World map (woodland coverage layer)●World map

Source: "Global Map Project"
Website Management Committee

92

Transport and Environment in Japan 2015
Published October 2015

Publisher
Foundation for Promoting Personal Mobility and Ecological Transportation(Goban-cho KU Bldg.)10, Goban-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0076, JapanTEL+81-3-3221-7636

FAX+81-3-3221-6674

URL

http://www.ecomo.or.jp/