Shizuoka, Gunma and Saitama Prefecture, test incineration was carried out to prepare for disaster waste acceptance. So far, the movement is consistently spreading throughout the country, and many prefectural governors explained his position to local residents. The Ministry of the Environment will continue to devote its utmost efforts towards establish nationwide consent for broad-area disposal.

The disaster waste targeted in the broad-area disposal project is limited to that produced in the coastal areas of Iwate and Miyagi prefectures. The measurement results for radiation air dose rates in the target area are almost the

Table 2-1-2 Air Dose Rate in Areas Targeted for Broad-Area Disposal Project

Air doses (measured 1 meter above the ground)

same as those in other areas, including the Kanto region (Table 2-1-2). Furthermore, looking at the results of actual measurements of radiation levels in the disaster waste in the target areas shows insignificant or zero concentrations of radioactivity, meaning that the disaster waste in these areas is basically the same as normal general waste.

In line with the above efforts, carrying-out of waste, transportation, on-site management, incineration, landfill disposal, and other actions have been undertaken based on procedures determined by local governments and guidelines for promoting broad-area disposal (Figure 2-14). At the same time, radioactive concentrations or radiation at critical points (carrying-out and incineration of waste are measured) and the results of the survey are made public. For test melting and other such operations, safety is ensured by allowing local residents to measure the dose themselves.

Prefecture	Name of municipality	Air radiation dose Unit: $ \mu $ Sv/hour
Tohoku coastal area	Iwate Prefecture	Kuji City	0.06
Noda Village	0.06
Miyako City	0.10
Rikuzentakata City	0.05
Miyagi Prefecture	Kesennuma City	0.10
Ishinomaki City	0.09
Natori City	0.08
Kanto region	Ibaraki Prefecture	Mito City	0.09
Tochigi Prefecture	Utsunomiya City	0.11
Gunma Prefecture	Maebashi City	0.09
Saitama Prefecture	Saitama City	0.05
Tokyo Metropolitan Area	Shinjuku City	0.07
Other regions	Aichi Prefecture	Nagoya City	0.04
Osaka Prefecture	Osaka City	0.06

Kanto region: Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology website: radiation monitoring information, measurement results for November 30, 2011.

Iwate Prefecture: Iwate Prefecture website: Measurement results of radiation dose rate near land surface.

Ordinary incineration facilities are equipped with high-end exhaust-gas treatment equipment, such as a bag filters to prevent dioxin leaks.

Regarding cesium in incineration ash, which becomes concentrated with the incineration of combustibles, it has been determined that if the radioactive cesium concentration in combustibles is 240-480 Bq/kg or less, the radioactive cesium concentration in the ash should be less than 8,000 Bq/kg even when only disaster wastes are incinerated. Regarding cesium in exhaust gas, the following have been confirmed: at least 99.9% of the cesium is eliminated by incinerators with bag filters; and at least 96.6% of the cesium is eliminated by incinerators with electric precipitators. With these kinds of high-end exhaust-gas treatment equipment that can eliminate tiny particles of ash in exhaust gas, radioactive cesium discharge can be prevented.

Miyako City, Rikuzentakata City: Measurement results on November 4-11, 2011

Kuji City, Noda Village: Measurement results on November 2-11, 2011.

Miyagi Prefecture: Miyagi Prefecture radiation information website: November 30, 2011.

Source: Ministry of the Environment

Measurements have demonstrated that radioactive cesium is eliminated through the actual incineration

Table 2-1-3 Status of Accepting Disaster Waste at Local Government

Tokyo Metropolitan Area
Decided to accept 500,000 tons of disaster waste from Iwate and Miyagi prefectures within three years	Iwate Prefecture	☐ September 28, 2011: Announced that it would accept disaster waste from Iwate Prefecture (1,000 tons for initial disposal and another 10,000 tons for full-scale disposal). First case of full-scale broad-area disposal.
☐ November 2-30, 2011: Transported and disposed of about 920 tons of disaster waste from Miyako City (Iwate Prefecture) as an initial disposal effort.
☐ December 21, 2011: Transported 10,000 tons of disaster waste from Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture to Tokyo as part of full-scale disposal.
Miyagi Prefecture	☐ November 24, 2011: Announced that it would accept disaster waste from Miyagi Prefecture. Plans to accept 100,000 tons of disaster waste from Onagawa Town by March 2013.
☐ December 7-19, 2011: Transported and disposed of disaster waste from Onagawa Town, Miyagi Prefecture to Tokyo as a trial. On January 31, trial incineration results were announced (the radioactive material concentration of the incineration ash was below the national criteria). After a meeting to explain the efforts to local residents in February 2012, full-scale disposal began in March 2012.
Yamagata Prefecture
☐ On August 2011, “the Basic Concept for Accepting Disaster Waste to Yamagata Prefecture” was announced.
☐ Accepted disaster waste from Kesennuma City at a private facility in Yamagata Prefecture (about 50,000 tons).
Aomori Prefecture
☐ The disaster waste from Kesennuma City and Ishinomaki City has been disposed since February 17, 2012.
Akita Prefecture
☐ Full-scale acceptance of wood waste in Miyako City started in May 2012.

Source: Ministry of the Environment

Figure 2-1-4 Processing Disaster Waste (Procedure)

(1) Primary temporary storage spaces	Check safety by measuring radioactivity concentration (radioactivity concentration measurement using data on the kind and composition of the radioactivity).
(2) Secondary temporary storage spaces	Measure air dose rate for disaster waste as a whole and in peripheral areas using a dosimeter to check for air dose rates significantly higher than background radiation.
(3) Transportation	Preventing leaking while transporting disaster waste.
(4) Management at destination	(1) Recycling for reuse	Measure radioactivity concentration after processing, in exhaust gas, in incineration ash, in products (monthly basis).
(2) Landfill of non-combustibles	Measure radioactivity concentration after sorting and shredding (monthly basis).
(3) Incineration process	Measure radioactivity concentration in exhaust gas and incineration ashes (monthly basis).
(5) Incineration	Remove ash microparticles in exhaust gas using high-end exhaust-gas treatment equipment (e.g., bag filters) to prevent radioactive cesium discharge into the air.
(6) Transportation	Transport incineration ash in airtight containers to prevent leaking.
(7) Landfill disposal	Considering the radioactive concentration level in disaster waste over a broad area disposal and mixed combustion ratio with waste excluding disaster waste at the incineration facilities, the disaster waste can be disposed at landfill sites without additional measures. That is why the concentration of incineration ash has proved to be considerably low when compared with the level of 8000Bq/kg is allowed in normal waste disposal at controlled landfill sites.

Note: Clearance level for recycling

Consider a clearance level of 100 Bq/kg for radioactive cesium in products made from recycled disaster waste. Also, target is not for disaster waste itself but for products.

Measuring radioactivity concentration to ensure safety, and implement monitoring

Figure 2-1-5 Measures for Incineration and Landfill Disposal

Source: Ministry of the Environment, broad-area disposal information

(Landfill disposal of incineration ash)

procedures implemented in Tokyo and other prefectures. The incineration ash is disposed of in landfills at landfill sites for ordinary waste (controlled landfill sites) using the same procedure as for normal waste. After covering the ash with soil under 50cm deep to prevent scattering, radiation exposure doses to local residents drop to a minor level of below 0.01 mSv per year, which is considered harmless to health. Actually, this is about 1/150 of the radiation dose that the average Japanese person is exposed to in nature (1.48 mSv per year).

In order to ensure smooth restoration and reconstruction, a certain level of broad-area disposal of disaster waste is imperative, as are independent efforts made in affected areas. From the perspective of having the nation as a whole support affected areas, it is essential to build consensus for broad-area disposal and to look at mechanisms for mutually accepting disaster waste even during ordinary times in the years to come, now that we know that disasters can happen to anyone at any time.