This study analyzed the regional difference in municipal solid waste generation and its temporal changes in Osaka City at five points in time from 1980 to 2000. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) was applied to determine the factors influencing the volume of municipal solid waste generated per capita per year (municipal solid waste generation unit per year). Further, 24 or 26 wards in Osaka City were classified into different regional types by means of cluster analysis. These regional types showed the relationship between a municipal solid waste generation unit and regional characteristics influencing municipal solid waste generation. Finally, this study considered the spatial structure of municipal solid waste generation and its temporal changes by comparing the results obtained for the five points in time. The results of this study are summarized as follows. First, a concentric structure composed of three regional types, namely central business districts (CBDs) of Osaka City, inner areas surrounding the CBDs, and peripheral areas of the city, was found to be the main spatial structure of municipal solid waste generation. The municipal solid waste generation unit was the highest in the CBDs, lower in the inner area, and generally average in the peripheral areas. In addition, the peripheral areas of the city was found to be divided into the eastern sector, the northern and southern sectors, and the other areas. Moreover, Nishinari ward was found to be a specific regional type at all points in time. This regional differentiation is considered to be partly caused by the mixing of a portion of business and commercial wastes into household waste collection, which increased the municipal solid waste generation unit, especially in the CBDs that consisted of many establishments such as shops and restaurants and in the eastern residential sector in the peripheral areas of the city where many small factories existed. The other reason for regional differentiation is considered that a portion of the household waste (and potential household waste) was treated as business and commercial waste, which reduced the municipal solid waste generation unit. This reduction appeared due to the following reasons. The tendency to eat outside had increased and this in turn generated less kitchen garbage, especially in areas that consisted of many single households and residences of employees of commercial and service industries. Another reason was the disposal of household waste from the inner areas that consisted of high-rise condominiums. A portion of the household waste was collected by private waste collection services for the purpose of sanitary management and convenience. Second, the spatial structure of municipal solid waste generation has changed since 1980. The municipal solid waste generation unit in the CBDs has decreased since 1995 due to a decline in the number of establishments and population recovery, which has increased the number of single households and residents of high-rise condominiums. These changes have reduced the difference in the municipal solid waste generation unit between the CBDs and other areas. On the other hand, sectoral differentiation in the peripheral areas of the city has been reclassified into residential areas where many small factories exist, the areas that consist of a number of single households, and average residential area. This seems to be due to the decline in manufacture, changes in residential development, and increase in single households in the city. These changes have increased the difference in the municipal solid waste generation unit among the three regional types in the peripheral areas of the city.

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The aim of this study is to clarify the changes in the crude drug distribution industry in China, and to contribute to the discussions about the system of agricultural products distribution. An investigation and analysis was made of the changes in the crude drug distribution industry and the development process of distribution entities operated by farm households (distribution entities of farm households) in Anguo City, Hebei Province. Anguo City is a traditional producer of medicinal crops and an entrepot of crude drug distribution. Crude drugs within the distribution process include medicinal crops, medicinal wild plants, medicinal animals, medicinal minerals, and the processed products made from them. In China, a state monopoly on crude drugs was in force from 1953 to 1984. In that time period, the trade of crude drugs by individuals was prohibited. After the abolition of the state monopoly, some crude drug exchange markets were established where individuals were able to carry out trade of crude drugs. After the first market was established in Anguo City, farm households started to sell medicinal crops there. Later, to make higher profits, some farm households actively started trading and processing crude drugs, thus appeared a large group of distribution entities of farm households in Anguo City. Due to the active business activities of distribution entities of farm households, the crude drug exchange market in Anguo City has become an entrepot market of crude drugs in China. In addition, with the progress of Opening and Reforms, more and more crude drugs were exported through the crude drug exchange market in Anguo City. In this way, the trading areas of distribution entities of farm households were expanded. In the time period 2002 to 2003, market demand for crude drugs rapidly increased because of the spread of SARS in China, and the crude drug exchange market in Anguo City reached a record transaction volume in 2003. After China's entry into the WTO, Chinese government strengthened quality management to the crude drug industry. An admission system was applied to business of crude drug processing and distribution. In order to ensure a supply of high quality raw materials, as the main consumer of crude drugs, some pharmaceutical enterprises started concluding supply agreements directly with farm households or establishing some self-managed medicinal crop cultivation bases. Consequently, the role of the crude drug exchange market in Anguo City was weakened in the system of crude drug distribution. Also, after SARS was effectively controlled, market demand for crude drugs lessened, which cause rapid reduction in the transaction volumes of the crude drug exchange market in Anguo City. The admission system to the distribution industry brought some significant influences to distribution entities of farm households. Only small portion of them with abundant capital support managed to smoothly expand distribution business. The others had to give up trading some highly profitable processed products because they were not able to meet the strict admission requirements. Therefore, the differentiation of business type and the polarization of business revenue both occurred among distribution entities of farm households in Anguo City.

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Since the 1990s, economic geography has been actively studied to research industrial areas from viewpoints including institutional and customary practices. This paper also discusses the resurgence of industrial areas from the perspective of institutional change. To maintain the vitality of industrial areas, it is necessary to create knowledge using novel sources. So current industrial geography literature tends to take notice of industrial areas with radical innovations (i.e. Information Technology, Biotechnology). In contrast, the resurgence of old industrial areas with gradual innovation has been paid less attention. Old industrial areas in Japan, for example, coastal heavy industrial areas have declined in the last quarter of the 20th century. However, the construction of new factories is increasing. That why, old industrial areas manage to preserve competitive technology. And it is important to make efforts to comprehend the resurgence of old industrial areas. So this paper focuses on the resurgence of old industrial areas from perspective of the diachronic structure in economic institutions. The resurgence of old industrial areas requires brisk knowledge creation. Nevertheless, many old industrial areas have fallen into negative 'lock-in' that is caused by a lack of openness and inadequate flexibility in the phase of adjustment to change. To promote the structural adaptation beyond negative lock-in, there are following 3 important things : (1) reconsidering the foundation and method of R & D, (2) to make a diversity of interactions between parties in the region, and (3) improvement of social norms. However, as bounded rational agents need to learn the efficacy of novel sources and to adapt them, these 3 topics tend to be promoted gradually.

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[in Japanese]

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