Garbage Day...

"Japan to go fishing ... for space debris"

Image borrowed from MSNBC.

Recently my students have remarked how clean Japan seems to be (as a first impression) yet also expressed confusion/frustration about the lack of trash cans in public. Here's some more garbage news about Japan from MSNBC:

Japan's space agency is reportedly teaming up with a fishing net manufacturer to catch and remove debris from Earth orbit, where it poses a threat to spacecraft, astronauts and satellites.

The space fishing net would span several kilometers and be made of thin metal wires. As it scoops up space debris, it will be charged with electricity, allowing Earth's magnetic field to reel in the haul and eventually burn it up in Earth's atmosphere...

See the whole story: http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/02/08/6012105-japan-to-go-fishing-for-space-debris?GT1=43001

X-mas is over...

Yes, folks, X-mas is over in Japan. No one keeps their decorations up until New Years (or march/April as the case may be for some...). And to heck with storing X-mas decorations - much better to throw them away - more casualties of "cute trash" - and buy new, better ones next year... This one is dedicated to my former communist friend in Germany who hates X-mas. Happy Holidays from VAOJ.

Cute Trash: Not Enough Tots for Toys?

It's burnable trash day here in Kadoma City, Osaka, Japan. It is a challenge to figure out exactly what garbage is considered to be burnable, what is plastic, and what falls into other special categories. It is said that 80% of Japan's garbage is burned, so the separation of various types of trash is especially important, and complicated. Japan is moving towards more recycling, simply because it needs to. Luckily, the separation of garbage/recyclables in Kadoma is not as complicated as it is in Yokohama. See the following story and be sure to view the accompanying slide show as well.

Link to How Do Japanese Dump Trash? Let Us Count the Myriad Ways
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/12/international/asia/12garbage.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

In Kadoma, we put out bottles and cans on Mondays, burnable trash on Tuesdays and Fridays and plastic trash on Thursdays. Wednesday changes every week; sometimes it is for PET bottles, sometimes newspapers and cardboard, sometimes glass, sometimes large items. See the rules in detail below.

Link to Kadoma City Garbage/Recycling Schedule (in Japanese)
http://www.city.kadoma.osaka.jp/service/gomi0.html



But which day does one dispose of toys? How sad to see toys being tossed. Is this a consequence of the declining birthrate? Not enough kids to play with toys? As the society grays, is there no longer a need for toys? See the sources below for information about Japan's population.

Link to Japan child numbers at record low
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6624049.stm

Link to Statistical Handbook of Japan, Chapter 2, Population
http://www.stat.go.jp/English/data/handbook/c02cont.htm#cha2_2



Is there a cute trash day? Cute is more than a "boom" (passing fad), some have argued that Japan has a "culture of cuteness." But with less children, even cute things need to be tossed. Is it only me, or isn't it heartbreaking to see such a stuffed animal (Pooh-chan!) get thrown away?

Link to Cute sells in Japan
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13320352/

This post went off in many tangents - all this caused by mere observations of garbage... It goes to show that you really can tell a lot about a people by the things they throw away.

Post Script: As mentioned above, 80% of Japan's garbage gets burned. What happens to the rest? It gets buried and/or exported to poor South-East Asian countries. For more information on garbage disposal in Japan see the following sources:

Link to "Free Trade Cannot Include Toxic Waste" on the Basel Action Network webpage (2007)
http://www.ban.org/ban_news/2007/070216_toxic_waste.html

Link to "Garbage Disposal in Japan" on the Trade and Environment Database website (2001)
http://www.american.edu/TED/japan-garbage.htm