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Hailed as a miracle product in the last century, plastic has
become something of an environmental bête noire in the 21st.
Production has multiplied 200-fold since 1950 and too little
is recycled. About 150 million tonnes of plastic items bob on
the planet’s oceans, ensnaring thousands of birds and marine
animals every year. One alarming estimate suggests there will
be more plastic than fi sh in the sea by 2050.
Governments have been jolted into action. In May 2019,Japan and Norway were among the 180 nations that agreed
to slash the amount of plastic reaching the sea— an upgrade
of the so-called Basel Convention. At last year’s G20 Summit
in Osaka, Japan pledged to drive the global fi ght to end
plastic waste. Some countries have since outlawed non-
degradable bags and straws. Businesses and governments
are increasingly working together to share data on the source
of plastic waste and clean it up.
Fighting against the tide of marine pollution
The “Osaka Blue Ocean Vision”, unveiled at the G20
Summit, is a sign that Japan means business. The initiative
aims to reduce marine litter to zero by 2050. Southeast Asia
is one of the world’s largest sources of plastic pollution,
LEVERAGING JAPAN’S
SUSTAINABLE PAST TO BUILD
A BETTER FUTURE
An island nation, Japan has always had a symbiotic relationship with both
land and sea. As pollution becomes an urgent global problem, the country is
taking the lead to keep the world’s oceans clean.
notes Kakuko Nagatani-Yoshida, regional coordinator for
chemicals, waste and air quality at the United Nations
Environment Programme. “If we want to solve the problem
globally, we have to solve it in this region,” she says.
Tackling marine pollution has been on Japan’s radar for
some time. The government promoted “zero-waste societies”
as early as 2005, which included plans to cooperate with
international bodies and developing countries. Japanese
waste management and recycling technologies have been
exported to Asian countries for years. To achieve this, Japan
is rolling out a raft of new
initiatives. In January 2020,
the Ministry of Economy
Trade and Industry pulled
together hundreds of
companies in the chemical
and retail industries to
work on the sustainable
development and use of new biodegradable materials. This
Clean Ocean Material Alliance aims to close the lifecycle of
plastic products and reduce their environmental load.
The Japanese government is also leveraging its foreign
aid to promote waste management and the circular economy
across Asia—and has already pledged to train 10,000 offi cials
in waste management techniques all over the world by 2025.Saving the blue economy
The health and wellbeing of the oceans is a key issue for
Japan given the explosive growth in tourism and the fact that
so much of the nation’s food comes from the sea. Too much“Chemical recycling is the best way
to achieve the circular economy,”
Kenji Fuma, founder and CEO, Neural