The history of the environment of Japan

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Japanese governor halts entry of British nuclear ship
Reuters, The Nando Times 9 March 1998. A Japanese regional governor barred a British freighter carrying nuclear waste from France from entering a port in his prefecture. Japan, lacking sufficient facilities to reprocess most of its spent nuclear fuel, relies on Britain and France to reprocess the hazardous material, which is then returned to Japan.
Pollution victims seek cleaner growth
By Suvendrini Kakuchi, IPS, Asia Times, 3 July 1999. More and more Japanese are putting pressure on local governments and Tokyo to limit—if not stop altogether—activities that damage not only the environment but also pose health risks. Demand that the government promise environment and health assessment checks prior to any road construction.
US base toxic trash returns
Editorial, Mainichi Shimbun, Wednesday 19 April 2000. A ship loaded with toxic waste materials generated by the U.S. military in Japan returned here Tuesday despite protests by angry demonstrators. Its attempts to berth in Canada and the U.S. were quashed.
Vending machines ‘a menace to Earth’
The Straits Times, 5 August 2000. According to a Kanagawa Prefecture-based NGO, the Japan Association of Environment and Society for the 21st Century (JAES 21), the five million beverage machines in Japan destroy city aesthetics and use massive amounts of energy resulting in the release of carbon dioxide.
Govt planting scheme ‘a mistake’
Reuters, The Straits Times, Monday 19 March 2001. The government's cedar-planting program is accused of causing hay fever, and call for help with medical bills. The program rationale: After the war, much of the land was devastated and a lot of trees had been cut down for materials to build homes. Cedars grow quickly and they already existed all over Japan (brief).