Permalink : http://hdl.handle.net/2115/5399

KEYWORDS : Recycle;Cyclical Society;Cyclical Society Law;Waste;Illegal Dumping;Waste Disposal

In 2000 Japan enacted the Basic Law for Establishing a Cyclical Society (Cyclical Society Law), which was followed by several specific waste- and recycling-related laws created within the framework of the Cyclical Society Law. Among them are the Container and Packaging Waste Recycling Law, the Household Appliance Recycling Law, and the Automobile Recycling Law. Additionally, the Wastes Disposal and Public Cleansing Law has been amended a number of times. But investigation of whether waste is being reduced and whether recycling is making progress reveals many problems to be solved including illegal dumping and the export of waste to other countries. This analysis uses the material cycle and regime/actor analysis as the keys to understanding such problems. With global environmental problems in mind, this investigation therefore attempts to determine the basic conditions and challenges involved in creating a "cyclical society" in modern Japan based on the question of whether it is possible to realize human well-being while lowering our environmental burden. (JEL Classifi-cation: O13, Q24, Q27, Q28)