No.8 Regarding the Acceptance of Disaster Waste from Onagawa Town, Miyagi Prefecture

(Inagi Newsletter, June 15, 2012 issue)

The clear blue sky and the cries of seabirds, the distant sound of heavy machinery processing debris, and the building lying on its side in front of me... it was an empty place, swept away by the tsunami, with nothing left.
On May 8, 2012, as the administrator of the Tamagawa Sanitation Association, I visited the waste sorting and processing facility in Onagawa Town with the deputy administrator, the Mayor of Inagi City, the chair and vice-chair of the association council, and the representative council members.
Onagawa Town, a fishing port surrounded by mountains on three sides, has very little flat land and could not secure a temporary storage site for debris on public land, so it was forced to stack it on private land.
The waste generated by the tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake amounts to about 11 years' worth in Iwate Prefecture and about 19 years' worth in Miyagi Prefecture. In contrast, Onagawa Town is estimated to have 444,000 tons, which is more than 100 years' worth, and without processing this massive amount of debris, the town's reconstruction plan cannot proceed.
The sorting for proper waste disposal was more thorough than we could have imagined. After primary sorting of metals and concrete debris using heavy machinery, the separation of metal items with magnets, and re-sorting using a trommel machine, the waste is sent to the final manual sorting line. Non-combustible waste such as bottles, glass, concrete debris, stones, ceramics, metals, combustible waste such as wood, plastic waste, paper scraps, textile scraps, tatami mats, leather, rubber, and hazardous materials like asbestos and batteries were meticulously sorted.
Additionally, the radiation levels of the sorted waste and the combustible waste being transported were measured and published on the website as needed.
The waste piled up at the temporary storage site was indeed debris itself, but after sorting and processing, it consisted only of combustible waste mainly made of wood, which was at a level that was not concerning even when touched by hand.
Regarding the wide-area processing of Onagawa Town, a basic agreement was concluded last November between the Tokyo Mayors' Association, the Special Ward Mayors' Association, Onagawa Town, Miyagi Prefecture, and Tokyo to ensure smooth processing at cleaning plants in the city.
The Tamagawa Sanitation Association, to which Inagi City belongs, has been involved in this process.

1. It is in accordance with the framework of projects in Tokyo.
2. Ensuring safety,
3. Implementation of explanatory meetings for local residents,
4. To respond as a whole in the Tama region,

We have established the acceptance of such matters as a prerequisite.
At the end of January this year, we received a formal request for acceptance from the Tokyo Municipal Cleaning Council, composed of municipalities in the Tama region, for seven facilities in the Tama area that meet facility standards (Hachioji City Tobuki Cleaning Plant, Machida Recycling Cultural Center, Hino City Clean Center, Ryusen-en Union, Nishitama Sanitation Union, Tamagawa Sanitation Union, and Tama New Town Environmental Union). Therefore, we have been proceeding with the necessary steps for safety confirmation through on-site inspections and holding resident briefing sessions.
From now on, regarding the acceptance of incineration ash discharged from these cleaning plants, we have reached an agreement with Hinode Town, where the final disposal site is located, and we will begin this process in the Tama region, following the 23 wards where processing has already been implemented.
I have heard that Onagawa Town plans to process all debris by the end of this fiscal year. Unlike surrounding cities such as Ishinomaki, Onagawa Town, which cannot secure a temporary storage site on public land, finds that time is a crucial factor for the success of recovery. We appreciate your understanding.