Abstract
With the aim of promoting the recycling of small, end-of-life electronic appliances, a draft act was submitted to the Japanese Diet on 9 March, and enacted at the Diet on 3 August, 2012. The recycling scheme outlined in this draft bill was conceptually designed based on a report submitted by Japan′s Central Environmental Council on 31 January, 2012. It intends to give birth to new recycling flows, currently still not being normally tapped. The scheme can be made economically feasible through efficient collection and transport on the regional and/or national basis through the facilitation of collaborative actions among multi-stakeholders using several assistance measures, including an easing of certain regulations.
This paper describes the outline of the proposed recycling scheme and points out actions that will be needed to ensure continued and environmentally sound recycling.
