ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES IN NAGANO
Nagano has enough water for us to use, most from springs and from underground, and some from rivers or dams. According to the homepage of the Saku Water Department, all of the water served in the Saku area is from underground or from springs. (I didn't know that.) So, there is no purification tank except one in Miyota. They just add chlorine to disinfect the water. ( We sometimes smell it! ) Here in Nagano we are blessed with clean water, but there are many places or families without good sewer systems. We should be more careful not to pollute
the water as it goes to the other cities and seas! Farm chemicals, industrial wastes and detergent pollute the water. I use soap for laundry and my dishwasher uses salt instead of detergent. When we see huge piles of detergents in stores and shops, our small effort doesn't seem to make a difference, but more people care about it than before and the rivers are getting cleaner than before. Around my house, we can see a lot of fireflies, which disappeared some thirty years ago...They came back as the river running near my house got clean again.
As you know, we buy plastic bags for garbage. In other words, we are charged a fee for garbage disposal. We separate garbage according to the type. Some are burnt, some are recycled, and some are buried. The system seems to be working well, but I'm not sure if things are really recycled, if the buried wastes don't pollute the ground and water, or if the smoke and ash from the incinerators are safe. We can be happy when dirty things disappear from our houses, but they can't disappear from the Earth...We usually don't know where (and how) they go. I once watched a TV show that said the waste or used machines brought from other countries were taken apart and recycled in developing countries in Asia. People were working without knowing how dangerous it was. I feel guilty that other people are suffering while we are enjoying life using a lot of things and throwing away those we don't want. It is difficult to opt-out of this system, but I'm trying some small things.
When Abby used her own chopsticks at a restaurant, I felt so ashamed. Yes, in Japan buy and use too much wood. I have heard that Japanese companies go and cut too many trees in developing countries. How can we reduce the use of waribashi? I have been to a restaurant that uses bamboo waribashi, which is better.
Nagano-ken is a place people visit to enjoy nature. We have mountains, lakes, rivers, and forests, as you know. When I was young, urban life looked so cool to me, but now I feel happy to live in Nagano--except for the cold in winter. Whenever I go to Tokyo I feel dizzy and get tired from the crowds. However, we still have environmental problems in Nagano. Around Sakudaira Station you find a lot of buildings like cardboard boxes. It was a beautiful rice field ten years ago, but now it's an ugly town. Artificial things like buildings, streets, ad boards, and electric wires are increasing like spider's webs and are disturbing the views. Of course, it's not only a problem of the view, but also a big problem for the environment. Rice paddies work as dams that control water. Rice fields moderate the climate. And, of course, they produce our basic food. Abby said that many of you are interested in environmental problems and want to get information about these issues. I don't think I know enough, but I'll try to report some environmental problems here in Nagano.
WATER
Nagano has enough water for us to use, most from springs and from underground, and some from rivers or dams. According to the homepage of the Saku Water Department, all of the water served in the Saku area is from underground or from springs. (I didn't know that.) So, there is no purification tank except one in Miyota. They just add chlorine to disinfect the water. ( We sometimes smell it! ) Here in Nagano we are blessed with clean water, but there are many places or families without good sewer systems. We should be more careful not to pollute
the water as it goes to the other cities and seas! Farm chemicals, industrial wastes and detergent pollute the water. I use soap for laundry and my dishwasher uses salt instead of detergent. When we see huge piles of detergents in stores and shops, our small effort doesn't seem to make a difference, but more people care about it than before and the rivers are getting cleaner than before. Around my house, we can see a lot of fireflies, which disappeared some thirty years ago...They came back as the river running near my house got clean again.REFUSE or GARBAGE
As you know, we buy plastic bags for garbage. In other words, we are charged a fee for garbage disposal. We separate garbage according to the type. Some are burnt, some are recycled, and some are buried. The system seems to be working well, but I'm not sure if things are really recycled, if the buried wastes don't pollute the ground and water, or if the smoke and ash from the incinerators are safe. We can be happy when dirty things disappear from our houses, but they can't disappear from the Earth...We usually don't know where (and how) they go. I once watched a TV show that said the waste or used machines brought from other countries were taken apart and recycled in developing countries in Asia. People were working without knowing how dangerous it was. I feel guilty that other people are suffering while we are enjoying life using a lot of things and throwing away those we don't want. It is difficult to opt-out of this system, but I'm trying some small things.
1. Composting the garbage from our kitchen. We throw the garbage into a composting bucket in the yard. You can't do it in your apartment house, but you can dry the garbage in the sun, then it weighs much less.
2. Shopping with my own bag. Some supermarkets discount two or three yen when we don't use plastic bags.
3. Not going shopping. (This is difficult, but if I won't go shopping, I won't buy useless things. haha...)
4. Use things as long as I can. (This is also difficult. I bought a new car though my old car had no problems. )
5. Repairing and reusing. My husband often repairs furniture himself, and we use many things that he repaired. (He bought many different kinds of machines and tools for the work and I don't know how much they cost!!)
6. Refuse too much wrapping while shopping. But as you know, we wrap too much and when we buy one orange, we have to buy one plastic bag...Oh, how difficult to reduce our trash!
FOOD
As you know, we have every kind of food from all over the world in the supermarkets. However, only 30% of our food is the product of our country. Most of the feed for cows and chickens is imported. It is a very dangerous condition, I think. Japan had the ability to feed all of its people, but the government has not protected our agriculture and fisheries. Consumers have welcomed cheaper food. You know the problem about food made in China, don't you? These days more and more people want safer food, and some farmers also want to grow safer vegetables. I know a farmer in my town who has tried organic farming and sends a box of his vegetables with a letter to his costumers every week. Some people think it's good to use local products so we can know about it better and we don't have to use the energy to bring it from far away. Where can we get local products? There are some small shops that sell them. If you can't find one, go to a JA (Japan Agricultural co-op) shop, which probably sells its members' products. I am a member of a group that makes miso from local soybeans and rice. Families in the villages worked together to make miso before, but now most families buy it. Most of the soybeans we eat in Japan now are from abroad, and so it is difficult to find miso or tofu made from locally-produced beans.
WARIBASHI and WOOD
When Abby used her own chopsticks at a restaurant, I felt so ashamed. Yes, in Japan buy and use too much wood. I have heard that Japanese companies go and cut too many trees in developing countries. How can we reduce the use of waribashi? I have been to a restaurant that uses bamboo waribashi, which is better.
ENERGY PROBLEM
Big cities use a lot of energy, but we, the people in Nagano, probably use more as individuals. They use public transport i
n Tokyo, but here in Nagano we can't live without cars. We tried to reduce our cars in my family, but we couldn't. We have four cars, one for each adult! We usually have bigger houses and have to warm them during the cold winter. Every family has a big bathtub and we have a custom to take a bath every day. How can we reduce our energy usage? Some houses have machines to warm water using solar heat on the roof. We also have a solar power station on our roof. In Japan, much of the electricity is from nuclear power plants, and it is a very dangerous way to get energy, I think.
n Tokyo, but here in Nagano we can't live without cars. We tried to reduce our cars in my family, but we couldn't. We have four cars, one for each adult! We usually have bigger houses and have to warm them during the cold winter. Every family has a big bathtub and we have a custom to take a bath every day. How can we reduce our energy usage? Some houses have machines to warm water using solar heat on the roof. We also have a solar power station on our roof. In Japan, much of the electricity is from nuclear power plants, and it is a very dangerous way to get energy, I think.I watched the movie "The Earth" today. It shows us how beautiful and wonderful the Earth is and warns us that we are destroying it. Shall we think about it together?
