carbon society and a society in harmony with nature, and it is important to implement policy measures that consider both.

Forests, wetlands, and plains store large volumes of carbon dioxide. Besides protecting and restoring them, utilizing recyclable biological resources in the community, such as lumber, biomass from the maintenance of countryside, and nature’s blessings, such as sunlight, as energy can make our daily lives sustainable. They can also serve as substitutes for non-renewable resources, including fossil fuels. These measures contribute to the establishment of both a low carbon society and a society in harmony with nature.

## 4 Promoting Policy Measures That Match Regional Characteristics

The scope of policy measures to facilitate the transition to a low carbon society is extremely wide, both from the fact that GHG emissions originate from activities involving the entire economic society and from the perspective that a low carbon society shall be realized in conjunction with the realization of a sound material-cycle society and a society in harmony with nature. We will introduce here specific examples of measures that have incorporated regional characteristics, including transportation measures that are effective in curbing carbon dioxide emissions and measures that utilize nature’s blessings such as green space, wind power, and sunlight.

## (1) Transportation Measures

Carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles are especially high in the transportation sector, accounting for 90% of the sector’s emissions. In the future transition to a low carbon society, while it is of course necessary to improve the fuel efficiency of individual automobile units and introduce clean energy vehicles, it is also desirable to reexamine the aspect of car dependency from a wider perspective of the movement of people and goods in relation to regional characteristics, to choose the appropriate public transport modes, including railways and buses, and to use them in an integrated manner. For this purpose, it is necessary to pursue policy measures for building compact cities that have short transport distances to minimize environmental impact and establishing sustainable regional transport systems with a long-term perspective.

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## Hottest Cities in Japan

The summer of 2007 saw a large number of hot days in Japan, with temperatures on August 16 rising to 40.9 °C, the highest temperature observed in Japanese history, in Tajimi City, Gifu Prefecture, and Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture.

Since 2006, Tajimi City has undertaken efforts to prevent heatstroke. They include displaying signboards in public areas and facilities and issuing precautions to pre-registered citizens by e-mails when the indices for temperature, humidity, etc. exceed a specified level. Also, the City has sponsored the “Acchicchi-Summit” (http://www.acchicchi-summit.com/) since FY 2003 under the concept of “Understanding Global Warming Prevention while Having Fun” in cooperation with other local governments of areas known for their extreme heat, and has raised public awareness through events and experiential activities on the theme of global warming.

Similarly, Kumagaya City initiated the “Project to Disseminate Preventive Information for Heat-related Illness such as Heatstroke” in cooperation with the Japan Weather Association to forecast the risk level for heatstroke occurrence. In addition, the City has implemented a variety of efforts, such as engaging communities to encourage citizens and businesses to create and carry out projects with the catchphrase of “VERY HOT! Kumagaya.”

A Signboard to draw public attention to heatstroke (Photo: courtesy of Tajimi City)