Present Conditions and Problems Surrounding Recycling of Debris from the Great East Japan Earthquake

Abstract

Almost two years have been passed since Japan faced the many criticalities brought on by the Great East Japan Earthquake. During this time, although much discussion on restoration, post-disaster reconstruction, etc. has taken place, there are still many areas that have yet to be incorporated into the dialogue.
The media tends to be publicizing the delay in properly disposing of the earthquake/tsunami debris by making comparisons to clean-ups after the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995. On the other hand, the need to process all the debris by March, 2015 has created an extremely severe situation for Japan.
Based on these viewpoints, this report looks into the present conditions, including problems related to disposal techniques for disaster debris and its effective utilization (recycling).