## (4) Law for the Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources

The Law for the Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources came into force in April 2001. It requires enterprises to 1) design eco-friendly products (design lightweight products or products that are easy to dismantle) and 2) reduce and recycle by-products generated in the manufacturing process and independently collect and recycle used products, further accelerating efforts.

Specifically, enterprises that fall under a designated resource-saving industry type (an industry type that should control the generation of by-products and conduct material recycling) must promote the control of the generation of by-products and material recycling according to the “judgment standards” defined by the competent minister. For example, for the automobile manufacturing industry, which is one of the designated resource-saving industry types, the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, who is the competent minister, defined “judgment standards” stipulating that manufacturers must systematically prepare equipment necessary to control the generation of scrap metal, etc. and work to improve the following technologies:

- Enhancement of manufacturing methods to improve the manufacturing yield for metal parts and to control the generation of scrap metal in other ways

- Improvement of technology to use molding sand for a long period of time by enhancing methods to use waste molding sand

- Development of new applications for the use of waste molding sand, for example, as material for civil engineering or soil improvement

In this way, concrete measures are defined to improve technologies related to promoting the control of the generation of by-products and used products, etc. and the use of regenerated resources or regenerated components, and this leads to the development and introduction of related technologies.

## (5) Laws and ordinances related to pollution

To treat waste properly, it is necessary to prevent secondary pollution from waste management facilities. The treatment of waste must therefore comply with the emission standards and waste water standards, etc. defined in the Air Pollution Control Law or the Water Pollution Control Law. Specifically, the Air Pollution Control Law defines emission standards, etc. for air polluting substances emitted from fixed sources by substance type and by type and volume of the emitting facility. Waste incinerators (with a fire grate area of $ 2 \, m^{2} $ or more or an incineration capacity of $ 200 \, kg/hour $ or more) also must, as facilities which emit soot and smoke, comply with the emission standards related to dust, nitrogen oxide and others.

Meanwhile, the Water Pollution Control Law specifies a part of incineration facilities for general waste or treatment facilities for industrial waste as designated facilities, putting them under the obligation to comply with the waste water standards. To comply with these pollution regulations, the development and introduction of various technologies for preventing pollution in waste management facilities was accelerated.

With the enforcement of the “Law Concerning Special Measures Against Dioxins” in January