The Japanese Ministry of the Environment released, on April 16, 2007, the results of a survey on general (non-industrial) waste disposal nationwide during fiscal 2005. This survey, targeting 1,844 local municipalities and 644 related local associations, shows that the total amount disposed was 52.73 million tons, a decrease of 1.2 percent from 53.38 million tons the previous fiscal year. The amount of waste per capita per day was 1,131 grams, down 1.3 percent from 1,146 grams.

The volume of waste recycled rose to 10.02 million tons, an increase of 6.6 percent, and the recycling rate rose to 19.0 percent, a 1.4 percentage point increase. The amount of final disposal to landfills decreased to 7.34 million tons, down 9.3 percent.

The number of incineration plants decreased to 1,319 from 1,374 due to the consolidation of existing plants, while the daily handling capacity increased to 144 tons from 143 tons. The number of plants with power generating facilities increased by five, bringing the total to 286, or 21.7 percent of all incineration plants in the country. The total power generation capacity increased to 1,515 megawatts (MW), up 1.6 percent from 1,491 MW in fiscal 2004.

The remaining capacity of final disposal (landfill) sites has been declining for seven years, since fiscal 1998, and the number of sites has also been falling for nine years, since fiscal 1996. It is still difficult to maintain the number of disposal sites or build new ones, but the remaining lifespan of existing sites has been growing, thanks to the shrinking volume of waste being sent to final disposal sites. In fiscal 2005, the remaining capacity decreased to 133.03 million cubic meters, down 3.8 percent from 138.26 million cubic meters in fiscal 2004, while the remaining lifespan increased by 0.8 years to 14.8.


- Japan's General Waste Volume in 2001 Remains Unchanged (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/647-e
- Volumes of Waste in Japan Decreased Slightly in FY 2002 (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1075-e
- Ministry Releases Japanese Waste Statistics for FY2003 (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1288-e
- Japan's Waste Volume Falls in FY2004 (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1485-e

Posted: 2007/09/10 12:07:11 PM
Japanese version

TAG Government , Material reduction