Tokyo – Japan is known as a country with the strictest waste management policies in the world. The process of sorting waste in that country is quite complicated.
However, the city of Fukushima will implement stricter policies by announcing the names of those who violate waste regulations on the city government’s website.
Starting March 2025, sanitation officers in Fukushima will inspect garbage bags deemed to violate regulations, such as unsorted waste or oversized trash, and in some cases, publicly disclose the owners.
Last year, Fukushima reported more than 9,000 cases of non-compliant waste.
According to local media, Fukushima is believed to be the first city in Japan planning to disclose the names of individuals and businesses that violate waste regulations.
Most other cities in Japan generally only disclose violators among businesses, not individuals.
This new policy was enacted on Tuesday, December 17, amid Japan’s efforts to improve its waste management system.
Warnings and name disclosure on government websites
Before this new regulation was enacted, waste collection officers usually affixed stickers to trash bags as a marker of violations.
The owners of trash bags marked with stickers must sort the waste they intend to dispose of according to the regulations.
Meanwhile, the newly enacted regulation allows officers to trace the identities of violators who fail to sort their waste properly for a week.
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