Silviase/jgov_v1.4_full_ann huggingface dataset:
Stop Global Warming

Team minus 6%

THE WORLD IN TRANSITION, AND JAPAN'S EFFORTS TO ESTABLISH A SOUND MATERIAL-CYCLE SOCIETY

reduce

reuse

recycle
## CONTENTS

THE WORLD HAS REACHED A TURNING POINT IN THE

CREATION OF A SOUND MATERIAL-CYCLE SOCIETY, AND JAPAN'S EFFORTS

Executive Summary

Introduction

Section 1 : THE WORLD IN TRANSITION, AND JAPAN'S EFFORTS TO ESTABLISH A SOUND MATERIAL-CYCLE SOCIETY 5
1 The international situation related to waste management 5
(1) International recycling of waste 7
(2) Efforts by the international community and Japan 9
2 Japan's efforts directed towards establishing a SMC Society 12
(1) The outline of the Fundamental Plan for Establishing of a SMC Society 12
(2) Indicators and numerical targets for establishing a SMC Society 16
Section 2 : HISTORY OF JAPAN'S SOUND MATERIAL-CYCLE SOCIETY 24
1 The Edo era and its systems for a sustainable society 24
(1) Edo's sanitary material-cycle system 24
(2) Systems for appropriate waste disposal 30
2 Japan's history of responsible disposal of waste, from the Meiji to Heisei eras 35
(1) From the Meiji to early Showa eras 35
(2) The Post-World War II period (before the period of high economic growth) 36
(3) The post-high economic growth period 38
(4) The Heisei period (from 1989 to the present) 42
Section 3 : COMMUNITY-LOCAL-BLOCKS-NATIONAL-INTERNATIONAL-BASED SMC ESTABLISHMENT 47
1 Establishment of SMC blocks 47
(1) Significance of SMC blocks 47
(2) A vision for SMC blocks 48
2 Resource circulation in SMC blocks
~Examples that have led to successful revitalization of local communities 53
(1) Community-based and local resource cycles 53
(2) Wide-area resource circulation at the block, national and international levels 57
3 Implementing more effective measures 64
(1) Organic combination of institutional frameworks and support measures 64
(2) Advances in technologies and systems 64
(3) Development of basic infrastructure 64
Section 4 : PROSPECTS FOR ESTABLISHING A SMC SOCIETY IN EAST ASIA, AND JAPAN'S COOPERATION 72
1 Formulating an East Asia Sound Material-Cycle Society Vision 72
2 Establishing a SMC Society in Asia and provision of cooperation tailored to the needs 73
(1) Support for the formulation of national 3R plans and strategies 76
(2) Policy dialogue 76
(3) Construction of information centers and research networks for the 3Rs 78
(4) Technology cooperation and infrastructure development for the 3Rs and waste management 78
(5) International promotion of 3R and waste disposal technologies 79
(6) Measures taken to address specific issues (using sanitation improvement as an example) 80
3 Efforts to prevent illegal waste imports and exports 82
(1) Trends in waste imports and exports 82
(2) Efforts to prevent illegal imports and exports 82
4 Establishing an East Asian SMC block 87

## Column

Safe and sanitary night soil reservoirs in Japan 28
Night soil prices 29
"Kudaranai" and SMC blocks for local production for local consumption 30
The Edo era and people's own efforts 33
The history of composting 37
Introduction of sorted waste collection (Hiroshima City) 39
The semi-aerobic landfill structure (the Fukuoka method) 39
The hexavalent chromium problem and the amendment of the Waste Management Law 40
Past initiatives 41
The PCB waste problem 43
Rate of food losses 56
Promoting the collection of mobile handsets 66
Waste water treatment in mountainous areas 82
# THE WORLD HAS REACHED A TURNING POINT IN THE CREATION OF A SOUND MATERIAL-CYCLE SOCIETY, AND JAPAN'S EFFORTS

## Executive Summary

Rapid economic growth associates the generation of huge amount of wastes and short supply of resources. We overview the Japanese efforts to establish a sound material-cycle (SMC) society about both the Fundamental Plan for establishing a SMC Society in Japan and 3Rs Initiative in the world.

Evidence from the Edo era strongly suggests that a sustainable society can be established through comprehensive promotion of a Low Carbon society, a society in harmony with nature and a SMC Society. Because Japan’s historical experience such as hygiene recycling system of night soil and raw garbage is very beneficial for modern developing countries, we review the history of establishing a SMC Society in Japan.

SMC blocks have been established at various levels these days. Cooperation and Collaboration among the different entities play a very important role to build up SMC blocks.

Japan has been making efforts to establish a SMC Society not only in East-Asia but also in the whole world aggressively. It is overviewed that Japan is assessing the needs in East-Asia countries and trying to make well-organized and comprehensive transfer of its technologies and systems to them.
blocks, (iii) the achievement of newly set numerical targets such as material flow indicators and effort indices, and (iv) international contributions that take account of growing resource consumption and waste generation in Asian countries.

Chapter 2, titled “History of Japan’s sound material-cycle society,” examines the SMC Society from a historical perspective. Japanese society in the Edo era is believed to have been a SMC Society based on community activities. People in those days were engaged in social activities involving lower carbon emissions and lived their lives with a deeper awareness of being in harmony with nature. Efforts taken during this period clearly suggest that a sustainable society can be established through the comprehensive promotion of a low-carbon society, a society in harmony with nature and a sound material-cycle society. (For example, Edo possessed a safe and sanitary night soil recycling system in which night soil stored in night soil reservoirs was carried to villages around the Musashi no Kuni region in order to be bartered for farmers’ agricultural produce.)

Chapter 3 focuses on the establishment of Spheres of SMCs. In recent years, efforts have been made towards establishing a SMC Society by means of various levels of SMC blocks. This chapter describes and examines the concept of SMC blocks, as spelled out in the Second Fundamental Plan for Establishing a SMC Society, and discusses issues from the perspective of the integrated establishment of a low-carbon society, a society in harmony with nature and a SMC Society. By citing specific examples, this chapter illustrates how collaborations among different entities play a critical role in establishing successful SMC blocks.

Chapter 4 examines the prospects for establishing a SMC Society in East Asia, involving Japan's cooperation. This chapter describes how active Japan is in promoting the establishment of a SMC Society with not only East Asia but also the entire international society. Japan has an important role to play in creating a SMC Society in East Asia. Specifically, Japan should understand the detailed needs of East Asian countries, consider country-specific situations, such as the status of economic infrastructure, and determine which of its technologies, systems and experiences are suitable for each country before transferring them in a manner that ensures the protection of intellectual property rights. By highlighting past cooperation results and future prospects, this chapter also outlines Japan's efforts to transfer such technologies and systems in a well-planned manner.
## Section 1 THE WORLD IN TRANSITION, AND JAPAN'S EFFORTS TO ESTABLISH A SOUND MATERIAL-CYCLE SOCIETY

The 20th century saw the world move toward economic growth and the emergence of a mass-production and mass-consumption society in developed countries. However, developments in the 20th century also caused the collapse of the primitive sound material-cycle (SMC) society and produced major environmental problems, including pollution and dioxin problems. Japan, which achieved rapid economic growth in the latter half of the century, also faced pollution and other serious environmental problems and sought ways to solve them. In recent years, Japan has dedicated itself to the solution of the waste management problems which followed the previous environmental problems and has been creating a new SMC Society. The nation's new challenge is to take an integrated approach to the establishment of a low-carbon society in order to counter the major problem of global warming, to create a society in harmony with nature that helps conserve ecosystems and will allow people to enjoy the blessings of nature for many years to come, and to establish a SMC Society.

On the other hand, the 21st century, which has been called the century of the environment, is seeing rapid economic growth in developing countries, especially in Asia, and the associated generation of huge amounts of wastes. As waste management problems become more serious, there is a growing need to address problems such as global warming and the security of resources, which are expected to be in short supply as demand increases.

With these developments in mind, we reevaluates the primitive SMC Society that Japan created in the Edo era and examines the process that has been underway since about 2000 to establish a new SMC Society in Japan. The experience gained by Japan has involved the creation of many technologies, frameworks and systems which should have the potential to make a major contribution not only to Japan's future ability to establish a SMC Society but also to its integrated efforts to create a low-carbon society and a society in harmony with nature, in keeping with the mottoinai spirit (not being wasteful with goods), and will assist the formulation of future policy measures by other countries, including developing countries.

## 1 The international situation related to waste management

The amount of global waste generation is increasing as the economy and population continue to grow, all around the world, especially in Asia (Figure4-1-1).
Figure 4-1-1 Future Prospects of World Waste Generation [2000-2050]

A forecast on municipal solid waste generation in the member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (OECD Environmental Outlook to 2030) estimates that the total waste generation in the OECD member states in 2005 was about 1.7 times the amount in 1980, and that the 2025 amount will be about 2.2 times the 1980 figure (Figure4-1-2).

Figure 4-1-2 Per capita daily municipal solid waste generation in OECD countries (2005)

Source : Created by the Ministry of the Environment, based on OECD data

A wider variety of wastes is also emerging, including medical wastes and so-called e-wastes, or electrical and electronic wastes such as TVs, personal computers and refrigerators after which become unusable. Some of these wastes contain hazardous substances or cause infection and must be treated with special care.

In January 2008, a serious incident related to waste management occurred in Naples, Italy. The city’s final disposal site reached full capacity and the wastes that had no other “outlet” were left on street corners (Figure4-1-3).
Figure 4-1-3 OECD Country municipal waste generation (1980-2030)

Source : Prepared by the Ministry of the Environment, based on OECD data

## (1) International recycling of waste

Meanwhile, the prices of natural resources are soaring due to increasing demand for natural resources, especially in China. Demand is also growing for certain circulative resources (CRs) distributed for commercial gain, such as metal scrap, used paper and waste plastic, as the economies of China and other East Asian countries develop. As a result, imports of such CRs into these countries have surged recently. For example, steel scrap exports from Japan almost tripled from approximately 2.81 million tons in 2000 to approximately 7.63 million tons in 2006 (Figure4-1-4).

Figure 4-1-4 CR prices and exports

Note : The scrap iron (scrap steel) prices are H2 scrap cash prices (including delivery) for every December.

Source : Japan Iron and Steel Recycling Institute

Source : Ministry of the Environment

Such increases in the international movement of CRs, especially those from developed countries to developing ones, can be attributed to the following factors: (i) recycling laws enacted in developed countries have helped increase the amount of CRs recovered, establishing new supply sources for CRs; (ii) as many companies in developed countries have moved their production to developing countries in Asia and other regions, developing countries are finding that the amounts of CRs collected domestically are too great for them to use by themselves; (iii) as a result of economic growth in importing countries, demand for resources has increased so much that the amounts of CRs generated within the country are no longer large enough to meet demand $ ^{1} $ .
Such transboundary movements of CRs can, as long as they are environmentally sound, enable resources to be reused and recycled more efficiently and inexpensively. They can also foster the development and growth of the recycling industry and can therefore contribute to not only employment creation but also the establishment of a sustainable society in developing countries.

On the other hand, there are several important challenges associated with the transboundary movement of CRs. One of these challenges is that an outflow of resources from a country (in the form of exports of CRs, based on market principles) can lead to a slowdown or a hollowing out of the domestic recycling industry. Some point out that this may hinder Japan's ability to steadily maintain and strengthen its waste management and recycling structures that have been built up over the years. In addition, it is known that some CR importing countries have yet to fully establish a mechanism for responsible waste management and are therefore posing a risk of environmental pollution. Another consideration is that imports of secondhand products and recycled products can be regarded as transboundary movements of potential wastes because these products can turn into wastes after a short time of use, offsetting their availability at low prices in the importing countries and the fact that this allows effective use to be made of resources. Initiatives to establish an international SMC Society should take account of disadvantages such as these (Figure4-1-5).

Figure 4-1-5 Global resource extraction, by region and type of resource (1980, 2002, 2020)

* BRIICS (Brazil, Russia, India, Indonesia, China, and South Africa)

Source : Prepared by the Ministry of the Environment, based on OECD data
Figure 4-1-6 Examples of material flow information and their relation to policy targets

Source : Prepared by the Ministry of the Environment, based on OECD data

To provide guidelines for Japan’s contribution to building a future framework for the world, the Cabinet endorsed “Becoming a Leading Environmental Nation Strategy in the 21st Century ~ Japan’s Strategy for a Sustainable Society” in June 2007, setting out the direction of the environmental policies that Japan should implement in cooperation with other countries. This document cites “the construction of a sound material-cycle society through 3R activities” as one of the eight priority strategies to be rolled out within the next year or two. Specifically, this centers on two goals: efforts to construct a SMC Society in Asia and the promotion of the 3R Initiative, proposed by Japan, within the G8. In order to achieve the first goal, the national strategy stipulates that Japan should carry out the following actions: disseminate Japan’s 3R systems, technologies and experience to the international community and establish an international information center on the 3Rs along with common rules on the 3Rs; integrate Japan’s accomplishments on sustainable resource circulation with the formulation of the East Asia Sound Material-Cycle Society Vision, which spells out the basic concept and targets for establishing an East Asia SMC Society, and thereby seek to create a sound and smoothly functioning resource cycle across East Asia.

With respect to the Asian region, Japan has been supporting Asian countries' activities since the launch of the 3R Initiative, in line with Japan's Action Plan to Promote Global Zero-Waste Societies. This support includes assisting counties in developing a 3R plan or strategy and providing information on 3R systems, technologies and experience. Such activities have laid the groundwork for the establishment of an East Asia SMC Society.

In addition, the Asia 3R Conference was held in Tokyo in October 2006. This was the first conference that brought together policymakers from Asian countries to discuss waste management and 3R promotion. The participants agreed on the importance of promoting the 3Rs. The conference convened for the second time in March 2008 in order to share updates on the recent progress of each country’s 3R policies and exchange opinions on effective measures for promotion, directed towards future expansion. The results of the conference have provided valuable input to etc, G8 Environment Ministers Meetings, held in Kobe in May 2008.

Japan has made up Kobe 3R Action Plan as a chair at G8 Environment Ministers Meetings. This is very significant because it is going to promote each country set some targets such as Resource Productivity matched to particular each circumstance.
chronization of development agencies' activities in this field were called for. Furthermore, it was noted that effective capacity development requires a multi-stakeholder approach, involving the private sector, local governments and NGOs.

Agreement on Kobe 3R Action Plan

38. G8 Ministers agreed on the Kobe 3R Action Plan and to report the progress in 2011. Finally, Japan observed that it has launched its “New Action Plan towards a Global Zero Waste Society,” which it hopes will stimulate further international co-operation in the spirit of the Kobe 3R Action Plan.

## 2 Japan’s efforts directed towards establishing a SMC Society

## (1) The outline of the Fundamental Plan for Establishing of a SMC Society

The Fundamental Plan for Establishing a SMC Society approved by the Cabinet in March 2003 (hereinafter referred to as “the First Fundamental Plan”) was modified, and the revision (hereinafter referred to as “the Second Fundamental Plan”) was approved by the Cabinet in March 2008.

A major event related to Japan’s environmental policy since the formulation of the First Fundamental Plan was the establishment of the Third Basic Environment Plan (approved by the Cabinet on April 7, 2006) and the 21st Century Environment Nation Strategy (approved by the Cabinet on June 1, 2007). The previous three reviews of the First Fundamental Plan’s progress had highlighted the need for a more accurate assessment of material flows; a greater effort to raise public awareness; the promotion of SMC-based community development; and stronger measures to incorporate international perspectives in order to address the situation in which international movements of materials are increasing and waste generation and demand for resources are expanding, worldwide.

This was also the time when Japan was expected to take the initiative in rolling out 3R activities across the international community, with the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit scheduled for the following year.

In light of these developments, the Central Environment Council released, on August 24, 2007, a document titled “Detailed Guidelines for the Formulation of a New Fundamental Plan for Establishing a SMC Society.” This document spelled out priority considerations to be addressed when developing specific measures needed for the formation of a SMC Society.

The guidelines suggested four issues on which further discussion should take place and specific measures should be set forth : (i) integrated efforts toward a SMC Society, a low-carbon society and a society in harmony with nature, to assist the creation of a sustainable society ; (ii) formulation of the quantitative vision for a SMC Society, including the redefinition of target levels and introduction of new supplementary indicators, as needed ; (iii) establishment of SMC
blocks, in which resource cycles of optimal size are formed in accordance with the region's characteristics and the properties of the CRs available, and the waging of a national campaign to promote the 3Rs involving increased efforts to reduce and reuse waste; (iv) dissemination of Japan's systems, technologies and experience related to 3R promotion to the international community and the implementation of measures to ensure correct resource circulation in East Asia, from an international viewpoint.

The Second Fundamental Plan, which was formulated in line with the above guidelines, sets out the basic direction of the national efforts. Since the natural material cycle, and the material cycles in socioeconomic systems that are part of it, are inseparable, the government will need to take both into account in order to ensure an environmentally sound water cycle and foster the appropriate cycling of nitrogen and other materials in nature. The plan’s details are described below (Figures4-1-7, 4-1-8, 4-1-9, 4-1-10).

Pursuant to this Second Fundamental Plan, the government will comprehensively implement various other related measures.

Figure 4-1-7 Deployment of Integrated Efforts toward A Sustainable Society

Source : Ministry of the Environment
Figure 4-1-8 Overview of the 2nd Fundamental Plan for Establishing a Sound Material Cycle Society (decided by the Cabinet on March, 2008)

Current situation and Issues

All three indicators ;"resource productivity", "cyclical use rate" and "final disposal amount" improves towards year 2010 targets set by the 1 $ ^{st} $ fundamental plan and are expected to achieve the targets. However, reduction of household waste progresses rather slowly.

➢ Need to respond to global environmental issues such as worldwide resource limitation as well as global warming

Thus, it is necessary to further develop sound material cycle societies both domestically and internationally by implementing the 3Rs thoroughly

Mid-to-long term image of SMS

Realize "Sustainable Society" by integrating with activities to realize "low carbon society" and "nature harmonious society"

Realize "Stock-based Society" by stocking and utilizing goods to achieve wealthy society

Regionally-characteristic SMS (Spheres of sound material cycle), Lifestyle along the concept of Mottainai, Collaboration and partnership between stakeholders, and dissemination of the 3Rs into economic activities including manufacturing

Activities of stakeholders

## ○ Partnership and Collaboration

Mutual collaboration of every stakeholders to establish sound material cycle society

Citizens

• Campaign of life style change such as "my chopsticks" and "my bag"

Businesses

• Prevention of illegal dumping and implementation of the 3Rs

• Advanced waste management, inter-industrial collaboration

Ongo/NPO and Universities and others

O-Local governments

• Interface of collaboration and partnership

• Accumulation of knowledge and reliable information

• Partnership with stakeholders and implementation of nation-wide activities

○National government

• Partnership among stakeholders and implementation of nation-wide activities

①Integrated efforts with low carbon and nature-harmonious society (waste power generation and biomass utilization),

②Establishment of "spheres of sound material cycle", ③National campaign on the 3Rs, ④Promotion of sound material cycle business through various measures such as green purchasing, ⑤Development of 3R mechanisms focusing on reduction, ⑥Advanced 3R technology and system, ⑦Information gathering and development of human resources,

⑧Establishment of international sound material cycle society based on action plan to promote global zero waste societies, East Asia vision of sound material cycle society, or improving resource productivity

Source : Ministry of the Environment