Abstract
At the end of the 17thCentury, a portion of municipal solid waste was being transported from central Tokyo (known then asEdo) out to the rural areas to be used as agricultural fertilizer. By the 19thCentury, much of the municipal solid waste was being transported to farmers in the Chiba district.
During the Meiji revolution (1868), the Tokyo population saw a drastic decrease in population. As a result, the price of waste materials rose higher and higher. From 1877 to 1880, a conflict occurred between the Tokyo government and the elder local leaders regarding who should benefit from the waste selling prices. However by 1884, due to extreme poverty among farmers, waste could no longer be sold, which resulted in a state of unsanitary conditions in central Tokyo. Further facts on the history of waste management are documented and made clear in this paper.
