Abstract
Iwate Prefectural Government has drawn up a management plan for the treatment of 4350000 tons of disaster waste generated by the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. The plan was drafted following an investigation into the distribution of chlorine and radioactive substances in the incineration process for the treatment of disaster waste. The accumulated disaster waste currently being kept at several temporary storage sites will first be treated at sorting facilities set up in six locations along the coastal area. The waste will mainly be disposed of at Taiheiyo Cement Corporation′s Ofunato′s Factory, incinerators operated by local governments, a temporary incinerator, as well as private waste disposal and treatment facilities. In addition, due to the fact that Iwate Prefecture does not have the capacity to treat all the waste locally, disposal in other prefectures will also be required.
The Ofunato Factory of Taiheiyo Cement Corporation will begin treating the waste in a cement kiln from last December, all new sorting facilities will begin operations from December, and processing of disaster waste at the inland local government incinerators in Iwate Prefecture and the temporary incinerator will be in operation by March, 2012.
Tokyo is the only local government that has decided to accept waste from the disaster now. We hope the number of other local governments that agree to accept the disaster waste will increase upon understanding that processing disaster waste generated from the tsunami is not all that different from processing usual types of waste.
