Japan Information Japan Handbook 2 -Disposal of Garbage in Japan

One of the problems that foreigners have when they come to travel or start living in Japan is how to dispose of garbage.

The way to dispose of garbage in Japan is basically to separate and dispose of it.

The 3Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

When you come to Japan on a trip, most tourist spots and hotels have garbage bins, so please separate your garbage into bottles, cans, PET bottles, and burnable garbage and dispose of them separately.

If you live in Japan, the method of sorting garbage differs depending on the municipality, so ask your apartment management company when you sign a contract for an apartment.

Also, please inquire at your local municipal office for posters and pamphlets written in foreign languages on how to dispose of garbage.

There are two types of places to throw away .

If your apartment has a garbage disposal area, you can dispose of your garbage at your apartment's garbage disposal area.

If there is no garbage disposal area in the apartment building, the location is determined by each district.

・Place to throw away garbage

・Day of the week to throw away

・Method of sorting garbage

The photo shows a garbage dumping site designated by each district. The trash is protected by nets to prevent birds and other predators from destroying the trash. This prevents the garbage dump from becoming dirty.

Japanese are also worried that foreigners do not get information on how to separate garbage, so they put bottles, cans, and PET bottles in the same bag and throw them away.

What will happen if they do not separate garbage?

Garbage trucks will not take your garbage if you do not separate it.

It will be left there.

First of all, it is unsanitary. There is also a stench problem.

When it rains heavily, it flows into rivers and may eventually end up in the ocean.

So, local people volunteer to sort garbage.

Garbage disposal manners can be a problem for the community.

Japan is an island country. It is surrounded by the sea.

We are concerned about marine pollution, which is also a problem in the world.

People living near the sea are working to prevent marine pollution by picking up trash along the coast.

If you are staying in Japan and do not know how to separate and dispose of garbage, ask someone nearby. They will kindly tell you.