Municipal Solid Waste Management in Japan - Present Situation and Characteristics

In Japan, more than 50 million tons of municipal solid waste were generated annually, but the rate has been in a downward trend in recent years. This paper has three objectives. First, it aims to explain the present situation of municipal solid waste management in Japan using concrete data. Second, it aims to highlight the challenges faced by individual municipalities by presenting case studies. Third, it aims to identify the characteristics of municipal solid waste management in Japan. To illustrate the municipal solid waste management situation in individual cities, two case studies have been included. The challenges that individual cities have traditionally faced include the development of waste incineration plants, aimed at maintaining a 100% incineration capacity in the face of ever increasing municipal solid waste, provision of community welfare services designed to drum up community support for waste management facilities, and dioxin control. Newer challenges include the development of incineration ash melting facilities and private-sector outsourcing of various operations. Three main characteristic can be identified in the Japanese approach to municipal solid waste management as a whole. First, the service is mostly funded on tax revenue. Second, incineration plays a central role in waste management. Third, all waste generated within an administrative district is incinerated and disposed of through landfill, in principle, within the same administrative district.