Present Status of
Water Pollution Control in Japan
ISAMU HORASAWA, Director
Japan Public Nuisance Laboratory
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan
ADMINISTRATION OF WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ACT
In Japan, the proper act concerning water pollution control was put in force at
the end of 1958, which included four main items: 1) Appointment of areas to be
controlled; 2) Providing the water quality standard; 3) Organization of the water
pollution control committee; and 4) Reconciliation concerning troubles caused by
water pollution.
The government has appointed already many areas to be controlled from pollution (Figure 1). Factories, municipalities, and others in the area should not discharge
the effluent exceeding the water quality standard indicated by the act.
The water pollution control act, general in character, is able to put into practice
only in cooperation with the other acts, such as the ones concerning discharges of
industrial wastes, coal washing wastes and municipal sewages.
The principal attitude of this general act is to improve and maintain good water
qualities without giving deep damages to the industry and the other within the limit
which does not disturb the human life and others markedly. At the start, therefore, it
was somewhat negative in providing the water quality standard for each area. However, recently the public opinion tends to grow more positive and wants more strict
standards. This change in attitude is attributable to a rapid growth of industries
(insufficient in waste treatment facilities) which increase and concentrate the local
pollution loads, resulting in significant damage to the water supply, agriculture,
fisheries and to the industry.
It also is attributable to some of the important diseases such as minamataand
ita-ita disease. Occurring endemically, they have recently been caused by contamination with industrial wastes.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES
The area shown in Figure 2 is an example of the one to be adopted by the
Water Pollution Control Act in the near future. Vast rice fields, over 21,000 hectares,
are irrigated by many rivers and channels. The periphery of the land is rich in production of sea foods, such as seaweeds, fish and shellfish amounting to more than
9,000 metric tons in a year.
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