Japan full cycle waste processing plant. Recycling solid waste in Japan. Green tokens as a sign of rejection of the package

Today I would like to talk about how to deal with garbage in Japan, as this is one of the important aspects of life in Japan that you need to know about.

In Japan, there are many ways to recycle waste. To do this, the Japanese sort the garbage at home before taking it to a certain place. How should garbage be sorted? And what happens if you don't?

Partly to solve the problem of the lack of minerals on the islands, Japan manages to solve thanks to the large number of secondary industries in which they process garbage.

For example, the Japanese know how to make stationery, furniture, some clothes from plastic bottles ( school uniform, uniforms, sportswear) and much more. During the recycling process, plastic bottles are washed, then crushed and melted. There are also glass and clay processing plants. For example, there is a factory that produces tiles for wall cladding and street paving from recycled glass.

In every electronics store, as well as a store selling mobile phones, you can see special baskets or boxes into which you can (and should) bring old mobile phones and cameras. Such products are disassembled into parts and used to manufacture new equipment. There are also baskets for batteries.

Separately collected and processed food waste, cans, waste paper. Fertilizers are made from food waste. There are factories for processing used sunflower oil, which is collected from restaurants and cafes, school canteens and other similar places. Also, housewives can bring and return oil from their kitchen and even receive a small reward for this. The oil is then processed. Most often, soap is made from it. They say it is very soapy and fragrant.

Thus, in Japan, there really is a cycle between the beds and food, between the production and processing of other products.

But what do ordinary Japanese do every day for such a cycle? Right! Sorting trash before throwing it in the trash. Careful sorting of garbage often becomes a culture shock for international students, especially those who come from Russia. We are not used to this yet. But in vain.

The waste recycling law was actually passed not so long ago, in the 1990s. It was then that the Japanese realized that in order to make waste easier to recycle, it must be sorted in a timely manner. Garbage sorting rules may vary slightly depending on the prefecture. But the basic rules are the same throughout Japan.

The most important rule is to separate combustible waste 燃えるごみ (moeru gomi) and fireproof waste 燃えないごみ (moenai gomi). Combustible waste includes: paper (small pieces), food waste, vacuum cleaner dust, fabric waste, wood waste, etc.

This does not include cardboard and very thick paper, magazines and newspapers, and other printed materials. Cardboard and cardboard boxes should be folded flat, tied up and thrown away separately. The same with the rest of the waste paper, it is collected in boxes, or bandaged, and thrown away separately from other combustible waste. Such garbage is called 紙ごみ (kami gomi).

In some prefectures, cities or districts, there is a rule to separate food waste. This type of garbage is called 生ごみ (nama gomi). Literally translated as "raw garbage".

Non-combustible waste includes: polyethylene, batteries, plastic items, as well as items made of rubber, metal, glass, ceramics, etc. But even non-combustible waste is divided into separate categories, that is, the following must also be separated: polyethylene is thrown into containers with the inscription プラ (pura), jars from the type of drinks 缶 (kan), and plastic bottles from drinks ペットボトル (petto) are also thrown away separately. botoru), glass drinks びん (bin) are also separated.

Those who have already been to Japan, I think they noticed that there are vending machines selling all kinds of drinks on every corner. In cans, plastic and glass bottles. There is also a lot of garbage accumulating. Therefore, next to each such device, which, by the way, is called 自動販売機 (jido: hanbaiki), there are special garbage cans with round holes. Moreover, for cans separately, for plastic bottles separately, and one more, respectively, for glass.

It is customary to wash paper bags from under juice or milk from the inside, cut and fold them in the form of cartons. Some prefectures require separate collection and disposal of plastic bottle caps. And gently remove the labels from the bottles themselves and also throw them away separately.

There is also bulky waste, which also needs to be disposed of separately. Such garbage includes: furniture, electrical appliances, equipment, etc. This kind of garbage should not be taken to the landfill. In order to get rid of such a large garbage, you need to call a special service. Moreover, this service is paid, it can cost you up to 5,000 yen.

However, trucks can come to your rescue, which often drive around the streets with a loudspeaker and recorded text. These trucks collect broken equipment and sometimes furniture.

If your things or equipment are still usable, then you can try to take them to a thrift store リサイクルショップ or try to arrange a farewell sale さようならセール (I already wrote about this in one of my notes on home improvement). There is also the option to donate your belongings to those in need. There are special centers and people who are ready to take your clothes, bedding, dishes. They distribute it either in Japan to the poor or send it to countries like Africa and so on to help people there.

While living in Japan, I tried all the ways, both before moving from one city to another, and before leaving Japan, and just when I came to the conclusion that there were already a lot of things that I no longer use. especially a lot of things, including furniture, household appliances and a bicycle, I gave, gave away, gave away, sent to the center for the poor before leaving Japan. Distributed to students, friends, sent to the poor. Didn't sell anything. I just gave it, especially to students, knowing how expensive it is sometimes when you need to equip your life in a completely new place.

Let's get back to sorting. I think many people, having read how much to sort and separate, were shocked. Yes, it is the shock that happens to everyone who comes to Japan from Russia. We are not used to this order. And when we have to follow these rules, then everyone is in a state of shock or despondency, because they don’t know at first what to grab onto and how to properly separate, and in general where to put it all in tiny Japanese apartments.

But it's still half the trouble. There is also a schedule for taking out the trash. Combustible on one day, fireproof on other days, waste paper on a separate day of the week, etc. Near each residential building, such a schedule is required to hang. Moreover, it must be strictly observed so as not to make problems.

Of course, the prefecture is different from prefecture, and in some places, for example, in Osaka, it is not so strict with garbage. However, for example, in Nagoya and nearby cities, where I studied, the rules for separating garbage are quite strict. Due to inexperience at the beginning of my stay there, I did not know exactly what to trim from what and where and when to put it. Often stuffed everything into one big package. taken to a designated area. BUT! A day later, this package was under my door with a bright sticker on which it was not clear what was written. I didn't know the language well then.

What surprised me most in this situation was HOW they figured out that it was my garbage? Later, one day, walking past the fence, where all the residents of the house were taking out the garbage, I noticed an old grandfather who was sorting through the packages. No, he was not a bum, as it turned out, the garbage inspector. It was he who, in some mysterious way to me, understood where which package should be taken. Well, I mean the violators of the rules carried packages under their doors. It's still a mystery to me...

In general, in the beginning I think you will have a hard time. It is necessary to throw out the garbage, and do not break the rules. But gradually you get used to it. Moreover, over time, you will come to understand that this is right! This is how it should be done in a civilized society! Waste recycling is good for everyone.

And if you stay in Japan for a long time, then it will gradually become easy for you to separate and distribute garbage in general. And if you have to go to Russia, you will want to separate the trash for yourself.

I remember when I visited my parents, I kept trying to find another trash can in the kitchen to throw plastic in there. Mom could not understand why I was circling around the kitchen with a plastic bottle and asking her "Where to throw it away?". And I was sincerely perplexed, could not understand why no one separates the garbage ....

Although sometimes the excessive scrupulousness of the Japanese is also annoying. For example, about washing paper bags from milk or juice, or picking out all paper clips and springs from notebooks. Or the separation of plastic bottles into bottles themselves, labels and caps from them.

The most inconvenient thing about the Japanese rules for sorting garbage is that certain types of garbage are taken out only on set days. That is, you will have to put up with the fact that some bags of garbage will stand at your place for 2-3 days, until the day of the week corresponding to this garbage arrives.

For example, it is not supposed to take out glass bottles on Wednesday if the removal of such garbage is scheduled for Friday. And if you are late, then such a package will stand at your house for another week. Because, depending on the prefecture, city, and district, violators are reprimanded, or, as was the case with me in the early days of life in Japan, they simply bring a package right to the door. (By the way, I lived then on the 4th floor. All the same, my grandfather brought my "wrong" package).

In general, sorting garbage in Japan is somewhat troublesome, and maybe not the most pleasant thing, but just think how useful it is! You not only help recycling, but also care about the environment!

Therefore, I would really like that people in Russia finally begin to think more about the need to learn how to sort garbage and take it out into the garbage cans intended for this. After all, even our vast territories may someday just get bogged down in millions of tons of garbage. I don't want to live in a landfill.

People who have been to Japan are surprised by the clean streets in a densely populated country. Half a century ago, there was a lot of garbage in the cities of the land of the rising sun, but now everything has changed. Today it is clean and comfortable. How is waste recycling in Japan? How do the authorities deal with garbage and keep the streets clean?

Features of waste recycling in Japan

In Japan, recycling occurs according to certain parameters. The processing of industrial waste is assigned to industrial institutions, and the fight against household waste is the responsibility of the authorities. Unused furniture and appliances are also disposed of according to the prescribed scheme. An appeal to the manufacturer's company is envisaged, and they are already dealing with this problem.

Self-disposal of waste requires the payment of tax. It is understood that if a person wants to throw away a non-working refrigerator, they will need to pay a fee and take the equipment to a specially designated place. Otherwise, without payment, a fine is provided.

Waste incineration plants

Japan provides for the disposal of only 5% of household waste, the rest is sent for recycling. In this country, a large amount of MSW, about 70 percent, is subject to incineration. Not all paper is recycled either, but only 65 percent. Everything else is sent to a waste processing plant, where it is also sorted depending on the type. Incineration plants are built using modern technologies, and combustion occurs at very high temperature. As a result, they fight against air pollution. And harmful substances are practically not emitted into the air, since there is a powerful filtration system. In addition to the fact that the plant destroys unnecessary products, it is also an electricity producer.

garbage islands

Another method by which waste is disposed of is artificial islands. Such islands are relevant for Japan, since the country is small and the population is large. Therefore, some areas of the country, including prestigious ones, are built on ash residue after combustion.

landfills

Places for burial in Japan are becoming less and less every year. Garbage is taken to neighboring municipalities. But even in provincial towns there is not much space for landfills. Therefore, the Japanese are trying to burn more garbage.

Waste classification

The classification of junk goods in Japan varies by region and administration requirements. Basically, they are distributed in containers of three or four types. For non-combustible and combustible waste requiring secondary treatment and bulky. Separate collection simplifies further distribution and disposal of waste.

incinerated waste

The following types of waste are incinerated:

1. Food.
2. Wrappers from Japanese snacks.
3. Paper.
4. Dirty clothes.
5. Woody.
6. Rubber products.
7. Video cassettes, audio cassettes.

Non-combustible waste

Garbage cans for non-combustible items "collect" the following:

1. Items of metallic origin.
2. Ceramic waste.
3. Glass.
4. Electrical devices.

Waste for recycling

The following types are subject to secondary processing:

1. Metal cans.
2. Plastic bottles.
3. Glass bottles.
4. Packages.
5. Corrugated cardboard.
6. Magazines.
7. Newspapers.

Waste sorting

Before MSW is processed, it is sorted according to the established parameters. In many areas of Japan, garbage collection is practiced by color. A certain type is in a package of a specially specified color. Until recently, this method of sorting was also practiced in the capital of the country of the rising sun. But now you can throw away products in transparent bags so that you can see what is where.

Waste packaging rules

The packaging of the discarded product, depending on the place of residence, is different. It is set by the local government. But there are rules that will be the same for everyone.

Incinerable waste packaging

Products to be incinerated are packed in transparent bags. There must be no foreign liquid inside.

Packaging of non-combustible waste

Non-combustible products should also be packed in a transparent bag. It should not contain organic contamination.

Recyclable packaging

Recyclable goods include bottles and cans, which should be washed before being thrown away. In some cities, jars made of aluminum and glass are packaged separately.

Paper is also sorted by a person: separately newspapers, cardboard and other types of waste paper.

Sometimes it is also observed that caps from plastic bottles and the bottles themselves are packaged separately.

Bulky waste

Bulky goods include: household appliances, bicycles, furniture. There are rules for this type. Supermarkets sell special labels that should be stuck on the discarded product.

Where and when to throw away?

In Japan, there are no bins where you can throw garbage at a time when a person wants to. Garbage is removed on certain days at a specially allotted time. It is at such intervals that a person can get rid of damaged goods. The schedule for the removal is set by the district administration. Waste that is considered incinerable can be thrown out twice a week. Non-burnable and recyclable waste is collected once every seven days. You can get rid of paper once every two weeks.

V holidays Waste removal can take place according to a different schedule that is not familiar to people. Therefore, on New Year's and other holidays, you should check with the administration how waste will be removed.

Waste recycling

Non-combustible species are reused to produce other goods. Through recycling plants, old plastic bottles are made into new ones. They are also used for the production sportswear, stationery, polyethylene. Fabric waste is used to make new clothes. The same goes for glass and metal.

Parts that were in household and other appliances can be "reanimated" and used for new products.

Non-combustible waste that is toxic to environment, are exported to neighboring Philippines. There they are subsequently buried.

Conclusion

The issue of recycling in Japan is taken seriously. There are practically no problems with the pollution of the country at the moment. Decisions on export, processing, export are decided at the state level. For non-compliance with the rules of waste management, the Japanese are fined. In each region there may be differences in the removal and sorting of garbage, so this issue should be clarified when changing the place of residence.

The attitude of the Japanese to the collection and recycling of garbage is admirable. Few people in the world so carefully approaches this issue. The Japanese can be understood: on the territory of less than 400 thousand square meters a careless approach to waste disposal will cost the country's population dearly. In this country, the critical situation with garbage in the 70-80s of the last century is well remembered. In addition, the plight in the Lebanese capital Beirut, where rivers have formed from waste bags, is in plain sight.

Waste sorting

Every day, at least 1.5 million tons of household waste is produced in the Land of the Rising Sun.

Residents of Japanese cities take out the garbage early in the morning, before the arrival of a special service. Waste is sorted according to its origin. Glass bottles and glass objects, cans, cardboard, plastic bottles, etc. are stacked separately from each other.

A certain type of waste is taken out only on specific days of the week: for example, such items that are no longer suitable for everyday life, such as irons, incandescent lamps, kitchen utensils, can be taken outside on the first and third Monday, packaging plastic on Thursday (in various districts of a particular city set their own days for the removal of a particular type of garbage).

Due to non-compliance with the rules of "garbage" etiquette, you can not only quarrel with your neighbors, but also get a fine. If the employees of the disposal service notice too many violations, a fine is imposed on the housing cooperative.

“Hi-tech” waste processing plants

Anything that can be recycled returns to the economy as goods. For example, plastic bottles are used to make polyester fibers suitable for textile production. Used household appliances at special sites are carefully disassembled into plastic, glass, metal, which are reused.

The rest of the waste goes to waste processing plants. The largest plant is located on the shores of Tokyo Bay. Garbage is melted down in the furnaces of this plant at a temperature of about 1850 degrees. The smoke above the plant is almost invisible: the cleaning system occupies one of the central places in the production cycle.

Waste recycling is a profitable business: steam from water heated by furnaces rotates a turbine that generates electricity. The daily rate of incinerated waste is 2,000 tons. Roads are built from waste processed in furnaces, embankments and artificial islands are poured.

In Japan, the problem of waste disposal is especially relevant, since the islands do not have much space for their disposal. Largely for this reason, the Japanese have long developed a system for sorting and recycling garbage, and also came up with a special “waste-free” philosophy.

Four types of garbage

Payment for old equipment

Waste sorters

waste incineration

Islands of trash

Philosophy "mottainai"

Green tokens as a sign of rejection of the package

Japan, due to its geographic location, began to solve the problem of waste recycling very first and a very long time ago, back in the 11th century. In 1031, they began to collect paper and recycle it into a new one. By the way, the European world came to this only at the end of the 17th century, when in 1690 industrial processing of paper waste was started near Philadelphia (USA).

Today, Japan creates islands from recycled garbage, and the very issue of its collection and disposal has become a philosophy based on love for nature, and is regulated at the legal level. And, of course, there are uniform requirements throughout the country, but each municipality has its own characteristics and develops its own requirements for the collection, sorting and processing of solid waste.

Of the uniform requirements - of course, first of all, it is worth mentioning 4 categories of garbage: combustible, fireproof, recyclable and bulky waste. By the way, large-sized garbage, on which special stickers are stuck, is taken out by special order and for a fee. To do this, you need to call the garbage collection company, make an application, after which you will be informed when the garbage truck arrives. By the way, household appliances do not belong to bulky waste. Basically, this only applies to old furniture. And household appliances must be disposed of separately and also paid for this either to the store where you bought the appliances, or to the manufacturing company that disposes of this equipment. As a result, recycling household appliances gives the country more than 1 million tons of iron and 50 thousand tons of non-ferrous metal per year .

There are also general rules to all kinds of garbage packed in a transparent or translucent bag so that the debris is clearly visible . Garbage is thrown out before 8.30 am, the day of garbage collection is different for each municipality and each district of the city. Moreover, for example, only combustible garbage is taken out on Thursday, and fireproof - on Friday.

In particular, in the city of Kita-Kyushu, for example, packaging plastic is taken out on Thursday, combustible garbage on Friday, cans and bottles on Wednesday. And if you suddenly want to take out other garbage outside the schedule, then the workers serving the garbage truck will not accept it, and if you leave the packages at the garbage truck, then the entire housing cooperative will be fined. Fines in Japan are high - up to several hundred dollars.

Also in Japan, there are garbage sorters in the cities. This, first of all, teaches the guests of Japan to order: the holes in such trash cans are made in such a way that strictly defined garbage can be thrown into each sorter. If the sorter is designed for tetrapacks, then plastic bottle just don't fit in there. And to make it easier to understand which container to throw garbage in, all the goods that you purchase in stores in Japan have a hint label that helps you understand where to throw your garbage. For example, on a jar of yogurt it is indicated that the lid should be thrown into plastic trash, and the cup should be thrown into combustible waste, which gets a lot. By the way, 80% of paper the Japanese today hand over for processing, but only a little more than 60% of them are recycled. The rest is incinerated, that is, 2/3 of Japan's garbage ends up in incinerators. And although MSW incineration is considered non-environmental all over the world, Japan, along with the United States, is an exception, since these countries use the most modern incineration technology - plasma gasification, in which tar is not formed by a plasma stream with a temperature of 1200 ° C and above, and toxic waste is destroyed. From 30 tons of garbage, as a result, 6 tons of ash remain, says EcoNet, which is then cleaned and used in construction. At the same time, the plant not only destroys garbage, but also generates electricity, which is supplied to city houses, baths, and swimming pools.

When we talk about the garbage philosophy in Japan, we certainly mean that for the Japanese, recycling has become part of the fun. There are always parks near the waste processing plants, excursions are given to the enterprises, and lectures for Japanese schoolchildren are given in specially equipped halls of the factories.

In addition, there are rehabilitation centers for the disabled.

After the garbage is burned, slag remains, which the Japanese use in construction. The slag is pressed into huge briquettes, from which houses and entire islands are built. The most famous of them is the artificial island of Odaiba in Tokyo Bay, on which an elite residential complex is located.

The Japanese also borrowed the idea of ​​creation from the United Arab Emirates, as a result, Chubu International Airport and Kansai International Airport were built on artificial islands. In Tokyo Bay near Tokyo, where land prices are astronomical, 249 square kilometers of land has been artificially filled in.

But not all garbage is burned - 17-18% is recycled. Bottles and even wall cladding are made of glass, sports uniforms, overalls and carpets are made of plastic.

And although Japan has solved the garbage problem by 90%, it still worries the inhabitants of a small island nation. According to statistics, each Japanese produces about 1 kg of garbage daily. Therefore, the Japanese are also learning from those who are promoting the so-called “zero waste” program in the world, the essence of which is not only to reduce waste as much as possible, but also the materials used.

In modern Japanese society, the idea of ​​"mottainai" is spreading, the essence of which is: "Do not throw away until you have completely used it." The word itself has ancient roots and is translated into Russian either as "waste" or as "not good."

So, writes EcoNet, in the town of Kamikatsu, the government is introducing the idea of ​​a complete rejection of disposable goods. In 2003, the municipality began to actively pursue a special structural reform aimed at reducing the number of disposable goods. The ultimate goal is to make the city completely waste-free by 2020. Now, 60% of the Kamikatsu population has opted for reusable products, which has significantly reduced the amount of waste. By the way, each merchant is obliged to report annually what he personally did to make his customers less likely to purchase, for example, plastic bags.

The Japanese love packaging, more than 30 billion bags are used in the country every year. But now the government has begun to promote their economical use: at the store at the entrance you can take a green token, which will make it clear to the seller that the buyer does not need the bag.

The “mottainai” principle applies not only to packaging, but to all household products, continues EcoNet. It also follows the principles of Shintoism, the main religion of Japan. According to the concept of "mottainai", all earthly blessings are granted from above and to waste something without need, to lose or throw away is a sin . So those Japanese who do not want to spoil their karma try to be careful with goods and teach the younger generation to do this.

Japan also took up the processing of foreign garbage, which brings them ... the sea. This is about 150 thousand tons of garbage annually. The Ministry of Ecology, which requested additional funds for the capture and recycling of garbage (mainly plastic from Korea and China). While this is a budget expenditure item, Tsushima, for example, spends about 70 thousand dollars annually on this.

Of course, not everything is so rosy in Japan with garbage. The law on the disposal of solid waste was adopted in the 90s of the XX century, before that time, as elsewhere in the world, the Japanese polluted their own island Teshima with toxic waste so much that they still do not know what to do with it. In 1999, Japan was caught trying to ship highly toxic waste under the guise of waste paper to the Philippines. The result was a scandal, the companies were supposed to take out the garbage back, but did not have time, so they got into large fines: 280 million yen (about $ 2.5 million) down the drain.

Large cities, like Tokyo and Nagoya, still cannot solve the problem of ecology, because even after burning garbage, it is not known where to take the ashes. While it is being transported across the country to the north and northeast of Honshu and Hokkaido.

There is another problem - there are more than 2 thousand waste recycling plants in the country, but the Japanese themselves do not really want to work for them, despite the fact that most of the processes are automated and robotic there, the walls of many factories are made transparent so that the recycling process can be seen , and the factories are designed by the most famous architects of Japan.

Island states solve waste disposal issues in their own way. Of course, Japan, which is faced with a lack of land, has solved its garbage problem by 90%, but when it comes to the level of recycling, Japan (20.8%) pales in comparison to other industrialized countries, for example, the Netherlands (51%) and Great Britain (39%), which we will tell you more about.