# 3 Relationship between a Low Carbon Society, a Sound Material-Cycle Society, and a Society in Harmony with Nature .....

As mentioned in Chapter 1, for the realization of sustainable development, the international community today is facing an urgent call to build a low carbon society and to drastically cut GHG emissions.

However, sustainable development is achieved not just by means of a low carbon society, it must be pursued in conjunction with the realization of a sound material-cycle society through the 3R resource management and a society in harmony with nature, which enjoys and passes on nature’s blessings.

## (1) Low Carbon Society and Sound Material-Cycle Society

Through the 3Rs, measures to build a sound material-cycle society will also help mitigate global warming. In March 2008, the Fundamental Plan for Establishing a Sound Material-Cycle Society was revised pursuant to the Fundamental Law for Establishing a Sound Material-Cycle Society (Law No. 110 of 2000). Since measures for building a sound material-cycle society and a low carbon society both necessitate changes to the socio-economic system and lifestyle, it is called for the implementation of interdisciplinary measures to optimize synergetic effect. To this end, efforts shall be made to observe the material cycle as much as possible by first reducing waste (Reduce), and then by reusing (Reuse) and recycling (Recycle) through prevention of improper waste treatment to reduce the impact of waste on the environment. Finally, the remainder of waste shall be used for generating electricity through heat recovery to aid the reduction of GHG emissions.

In the reduction of waste, municipal solid waste decreased by approximately 2.8% in the two years from FY 2003 to FY 2005. In terms of reuse, the used products market had expanded steadily to almost 3.7 trillion yen in FY 2004. On the other hand, recycling has been on a gradual rise in recent years. In FY 2005, the recycling rate of municipal solid waste was 19% and the recycling rate of industrial waste was 52%. In the use of waste for power generation, electricity generated in FY 2005 at incineration facilities for municipal solid waste amounted to 7,050 GWh.

## (2) Low Carbon Society and Society in Harmony with Nature

As global warming advances, more damage will be done to biodiversity, making the realization of a society in harmony with nature more difficult. The loss and deterioration of forests and wetlands also harm biodiversity. As a result, carbon dioxide retained by their ecosystems will be released into the atmosphere, aggravating global warming. In other words, there is a close link between a low

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## Let's Reduce "Wood Mileage" Using Local Timber!

Kyoto Prefectural Kitakuwada High School is promoting efforts focused on reducing $ CO_{2} $ emissions by consuming locally produced timber. This reduces the “wood mileage” (i.e., the distance the timber is transported), and results in far less $ CO_{2} $ emissions when compared to using imported timber. Specifically, with the slogan of “Let’s reduce ‘Wood Mileage’ Using Local Timber!” the school, in collaboration with research institutes, manufactures and provides log houses and furniture made of locally-grown Japanese cedar/Japanese cypress.

This effort has been highly praised as maintaining a good balance between the application of the silvicultural technology that has a long history of over 1200 years in the Kyoto Kitayama area and has supported the world-class architectural culture in Kyoto, and measures to reduce global warming. Their effort was rewarded with the grand prize for the “Stop Global Warming–One Village, One Product Project” launched by the Ministry of the Environment of Japan in FY 2007 to recognize excellence in local measures to counter global warming.

A made-to-order log house (bus stop) built by Kitakuwada High School (Photo: courtesy of Japan Center for Climate Change Actions (JCCCA))