CAR-RECYCLING DRIVE:
Targets Set for Makers, Dealers, Wreckers
DECEMBER 20, 1996
The government has established voluntary targets for automakers, dealers, and wreckers to promote the recycling of the more than 5 million automobiles that are discarded each year in Japan.
A timetable for raising the share of scrapyard-bound cars that is recycled has been created based on a report by the Industrial Structure Council, an advisory panel to the minister of international trade and industry.
Currently, the share in weight terms is around 75%. The government hopes to see the level raised to 85% by 2002 and 95% by 2015. It will ask automakers to employ materials and specifications that will allow at least 90% of an automobile to be recycled on all models starting in 2002.
At present, reusable parts and other items are removed from discarded cars, and the remainder is fed into an industrial shredder. After pulverization and extraction of reusable resources, such as iron, the shredder dust is disposed of at landfills.
The total volume of shredder dust that is taken to landfills in Japan is approximately 1 million to 1.2 million tons annually. Of this total, scrapped cars account for 800,000 to 850,000 tons, and the remainder comes largely from domestic appliances, vending machines, and other worn-out machinery. Advocates of stepped-up recycling for cars not only cite gains from more efficient use of resources and energy but also express concern about the shortage and environmental hazards of landfills.
If the targets are met, the total volume of shredder dust can be lowered to about three-fifths of current levels by 2002 and to one-fifth of current levels by 2015.
The targets are not legally binding, but from 2000 the government will conduct surveys on attainment levels and publish the results every year. If the surveys show that progress is slow, the government will consider introducing enforceable regulations.
Turning Waste into Fuel
In response to the government initiative, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association--an industry umbrella group--will soon begin experimenting with new technology for the disposal of discarded cars. One project calls for sorting shredder dust more finely, subjecting it to heat treatment and solidifying it to reduce volume. The dust is then reprocessed into fuel gas, making it possible to reuse it as an energy resource.
The association plans further research, principally into the technology of turning discarded materials that do not readily yield recyclable parts and resources into hydrocarbon-type gases that can be used as fuel.