Japanese Government Seeks Pan-Asian Recycling System

A pan-Asian recycling system that allows waste material to be transported easily across national borders should be developed, according to a plan being compiled by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

METI is expected to officially make the proposal this week at a subcommittee meeting of the Industrial Structure Council, an advisory panel to the ministry. The ministry believes that as Asian economies grow, the problem of what to do with waste materials will grow acute.

The proposal envisions the founding of recycling-based societies in individual Asian countries as the first step. To aid progress in this stage, the subcommittee is expected to recommend that the Japanese government promote the transfer of recycling technology to developing countries, as well as exchanges of people between Japan and other Asian countries.

It will also likely recommend extending loans through government-affiliated financial institutions to provide necessary funding.

As the next step, the subcommittee is expected to propose the creation of a pan-Asian recycling system that enables resources to be circulated efficiently throughout Asia.

It is not as effective as it once was to recycle resources in an individual country, because producer and consumer nations are different for many products today.

For example, the bulk of cathode-ray tubes are now recycled in Japan following the introduction of the consumer electronics recycling law. However, many of the televisions that use these tubes are made in China. Citizen Press