Figure 1-2-25 Amount of Input of Domestic and Imported Natural Resources, Etc. by Type

Figure 1-2-26 Amount of Biomass Resources Input

Source: Created by the Ministry of the Environment, based on statistics on trade, resources, and energy

in 2008 (Figure 1-2-25). In detail, although the amount of imports of fossil resources and products was gradually increasing, the amount of input of biomass resources such as timber (excluding waste) was decreasing (Figure 1-2-26). Japan's resource productivity (amount of resources input per unit GDP), which is an indicator that shows the level of efficient use of resources in people's daily lives and in industry, is increasing, and changes can be seen in the way that natural resources are consumed in Japan's society and economy (Figure 1-2-27).

Next, we will take a look at the emissions of greenhouse gases, using as an example the environmental impact associated with economic activities. The total emissions of greenhouse gases (final figure) in 2009 was 1.209 billion tons* (note: hereinafter the “” indicates $ CO_{2} $ equivalent). That was 4.1% less than the total emissions of 1.261 billion tons in the base year stipulated by the Kyoto Protocol (1990; however, HFCs, PFCs, and SF6 are based on 1995). Compared with the total emissions in 2008, there was a 5.7% reduction, as the emissions from the industrial and other sectors declined. One of the reasons behind the reduction in emissions from 2008 to 2009 is that in 2009 there was continuous decline in

Source: Created by the Ministry of the Environment, based on statistics on trade, resources, and energy

demand for energy in the industrial and other sectors due to the economic recession that followed the financial crisis that started in October 2008. (Figure 1-2-28).

Lastly, we will take a look at the status of biodiversity, from the perspective of Japan’s stock of natural resources. According to the National Biodiversity Strategy 2010, which was approved by the Cabinet in March 2010, Japan’s biodiversity now faces the “3 types of crises” discussed below and a “crisis due to global warming.”

The first type of crisis (crisis caused by human activity and development) is environmental damage associated with the economic growth that Japan experienced after World War II, specifically in coastal and inland water areas where revetments were built along river banks and coastlines for developing industrial zones and implementing disaster prevention. For example, tidal flats, which made up 841 km $ ^{2} $ around 1945 right after the War, had decreased by 34% to 553 km $ ^{2} $ around 1978, and decreased to 496 km $ ^{2} $ around 1996. This means that compared with 1945, 41% of tidal flats had disappeared. Approximately 61% of wetlands such as inland water areas disappeared from 1900 to 1996 (Figure 1-2-29).

The second type of crisis (crisis due to lack of human activities) is changes in the quality of the environment and the status of wildlife's habitats, caused by the decline or withdrawal of human activities and involvement with nature, due to changes in lifestyles and industrial structures and socio-economic changes such as population decline. For example, the area of abandoned agricultural land increased by approximately 2.9 times from 1985 to 2005 (Figure 1-2-30). Many areas where interactions between humans and nature have been well maintained, represented by satochi-satoyama (community-based forest areas and the surrounding countryside), are now undergoing major environmental changes, with a reduction of cyclical use of natural resources through satoyama forests and secondary grasslands, due to population decline, aging populations, and industrial structure change.

The third type of crisis (a crisis caused by species brought in by humans) is the problem of alien species. In recent years aggressive invasive species are continuously being introduced and established in Japan’s natural environment, and there is growing concern about their influence on Japan’s indigenous ecosystem (Figure 1-2-31).

We have thus far made a cursory review of the current