History of Water Environmental Policy

Although it is believed that water pollution was an issue in Japan before its industrial
modernization, the first major recorded case of water pollution affecting the population occurred
at the turn of the century, during Japan's Meiji Period (1868-1912), when waste dumped into the
Watarase River by the Ashio Copper Mine poisoned local residents. Subsequently, the
environmental impact of Japan's continued industrialization made water pollution an increasingly
serious issue, with a many incidents of water pollution affecting areas throughout Japan.

During the postwar reconstruction following WWII, water pollution became a more serious issue,
due especially to urbanization. Toward the mid-1950s, water pollution began creating ecological
disasters, including the infamous Minamata Disease, which was a case of mercury poisoning in
southwestern Kyushu.

Local governments began responding to the issue by establishing their own water-pollution
regulations. The national government also began to act, in 1958 establishing two laws regulating
water pollution: the Water Quality Control Law and the Industrial Effluent Control Law. But these
two laws didn't do enough to curb water pollution, and further were restricted in scope to specific
regions. They were thus unable to answer the demand for environmental protection of Japan's
water.

Japan's rapid economic growth during the 1960s was accompanied by water pollution of increasing
severity and scope. This period saw one ecological disaster after another, including Minamata
Disease, caused by mercury contamination in the Agano River, and Itai-Itai Disease, caused by
cadmium contamination in the Jinzu River. Itai-Itai Disease was so called because the cadmium
made patients' bones so brittle that just touching them would cause them to cry out "Itai! Itai!" (It
hurts! It hurts!) This prompted the national government to take stronger measures to curb water
pollution. In 1967, it enacted the Basic Law for Environmental Pollution Control, and then in 1970,
the Parliament passed a number of pioneering anti-pollution laws. In fact, it passed so many such
laws that it was nicknamed the "Environmental Pollution Diet." The Parliament unified the Water
Quality Control Law and the Industrial Effluent Control Law into a new and strengthened law, the
Water Pollution Control Law. Then the following year, in 1971, the Environment Agency was
established, which took over water-environment policy in order to provide centralized oversight
for environmental conservation.
Vast numbers of young yellowtail are killed off by red tide Nevertheless, during the 1970s
environmental pollution became an increasingly serious issue around the Seto Inland Sea, due to
overpopulation and growing concentration of industry. One consequence of this pollution was
increasingly frequent red tides. The government responded with tougher measures to curb water
pollution. In 1973, the Interim Law for Conservation of the Environment of the Seto Inland Sea
was enacted, and in 1978, the law was made permanent and the term "Interim" dropped. Also in
1978, a comprehensive and far-reaching series of laws was enacted to regulate levels of pollutants
in the Seto Inland Sea, Tokyo Bay, Ise Bay, and other bodies of water, where organic pollutants
were a recurring issue. Then in 1984, the Law Concerning Special Measures for the Preservation
of Lake Water Quality was enacted to combat water pollution in freshwater bodies, where
measures to date had failed to show results.

In recent years, pollution has failed to show improvement in closed bodies of water such as bays,
inland seas, and lakes and reservoirs. Further, chemical pollution is becoming an increasingly
serious issue. In response, in 1989 the Water Pollution Control Law was revised to prevent the
pollution of the water tables by toxic substances, and in 1990, it was revised again to strengthen
measures against pollution from sewage. Then in 1993, a series of standards was enacted to prevent
further chemical pollution of public waters. Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) relating to
human health were greatly enhanced and strengthened, and additionally environmental quality and
wastewater standards were enacted to prevent eutrophication and nitrification of sea and coastal
areas, with 23 substances specified for monitoring. Then in 1996, the Water Pollution Control Law
was again amended, incorporating measures to clean up groundwater pollution, and the following
year (1997), Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) were established for groundwater pollution.

Emissions of dioxins from waste incinerators became a major public issue in 1998. In response to
the problem, the Law Concerning Special Measures Against Dioxins was enacted in July 1999,
and environmental quality and effluent control standards were established based on the new law.
Regulations controlling dioxin emissions in wastewater became effective in January of the
following year (2000), and water quality (including groundwater) and soils have been observed
regularly since April 2000.
By 2002, there was an increasing movement toward regulating soil pollution. The attitude of the
public toward ground pollution was changing, as awareness of the need for regulation grew as a
result of increasing discoveries of soil pollution and soil pollution countermeasures. Based on these
circumstances, the government planned out a strategy for combating soil pollution, and in February
2002, the Prime Minister's cabinet approved a new policy. In May of that year, the Soil Pollution
Control Law was passed by the Parliament, and went into effect on February 15, 2003.

Today, the issues affecting the water environment are more serious than ever, and as we have seen
here, the measures to combat them go back many years. In January 2001, the Environment Agency
was reorganized in to the Ministry of the Environment. This represents one more step in Japan's
long battle against water pollution.

Summary of How Water Pollution affects Japan

Only about 36 percent of Japanese household are hooked up to sewers, compared to 97 in the
United Kingdom and 65 percent in France.

Emissions of organic pollutants into water (millions of pounds a day): 11.7 in China; 5.5 in the
United States; 3.4 in Japan; 2.3 in Germany; 3.2 in India; 0.6 in South Africa; and 0.4 in Mexico.

In the 1960s rivers in Japan were fouled by sewage, household wastewater and other pollutants.
Some of the rivers in the Tokyo area were comprised of black water with white foam floating in
thick layers at the top. Around some rivers children came down with bone diseases that deformed
their limbs. In the 1970s the bay outside Kitakyushu was called the "Sea of Death." Its brownish-
green water looked like waste from a crankcase. Rules and regulations imposed in the 1970s on
sewage systems and drainage water greatly improved water quality. Some urban rivers in Japan
are nw surprisingly clean.

Many urban rivers are polluted with high concentrations of E. Coli bacteria and people who swim
in them risk getting sick.

The Sea of Japan between Japan and Korea is slowly dying. Fish catches are growing smaller every
year. The problem is blamed on overfishing, exacerbated by competition between Japan, Korea,
Russia and China, pollution and an increase in sea temperatures, caused perhaps by global
warming.

Salmon returning to Japanese rivers have been found to have high levels of DDT and other highly
toxic chemicals. DDT and the other chemicals have not been used in Japan for some time but are
still used in southern Asia and may have contaminated waters off Japan.

Combatng Water Pollution in Japan

Freshwater mussels are being used to clean up dirty rivers in Japan. Capable of cleaning 180 liters
of water a day, the Ikechogai mussels clean the water by consuming diatoms and other
phytoplankton that feed on nitrogen and phosphorus. Although the water quality of some very dirty
rivers’ such as the Dotonborigawa River in downtown Osaka, where the mussels have been used-
--has improved the water is still not clean enough to swim in. Some of the mussels produce pearls.

In March 2008, clams were taken from Tokyo Bay for the first time in 40 years. The restoration
of the clamming industry which ceased in 1969 because of water pollution and other reasons is a
sign that the water quality in Tokyo Bay is improving.

The Kyu-Otagawa River, which flows through central Hiroshima, for a long time was mainly
known for its contaminated water, sludge and foul smell. That is, until a few years ago when the
river was dramatically cleaned up using “infiltration pillars” made from used coal ash from power
plants which decomposes noxious sludge, gets rid of bad smells and makes the water clean enough
to be inhabited by a variety of water creatures such as crabs and freshwater clams.

Marine Pollution in Japan

Major pollution problems in Japan have been manifested in outbreaks of mercury and cadmium
poisoning in humans and in nationwide occurrences of large fish kills, and fishes with offensive
odor or skeletal anomalies. At first, concerns about chronic effects of water-borne toxic chemicals
on aquatic life (fish neoplasms, for example) were relatively minimal, because these other acute
problems had been so severe. Because of the strong Japanese dietary preference for fish and
shellfish, however, more attention is being given to potential chronic effects and their causes.
Removal of contaminated sediments from Udono Harbor and Shingu River Estuary, for example,
appears to have reduced tumor incidence in fish from 40–50% prior to 1983 to about 20% in 1984–
1985. Japan still faces coastal water pollution caused by petroleum hydrocarbons, pesticides,
dioxins and dibenzofurans, and the integrated circuit industry (trichloroethylene, etc.), and many
semi-enclosed estuaries remain severely polluted.

Hitachi’s Method of Dealing with Water Pollution

Contributing to safe and reliable water resources

A total solution for the water environment that supports your day-to-day life

Hitachi has always supported the everyday lives of people. In a wide range of fields, including
water resource conservation, water supply and sewage development, flood control and water
utilization, we have continuously provided the most advanced technology and products to
maximize our contribution to society.

Today, we provide total support for water supply and sewage infrastructure, such as water
processing equipment that uses the latest technology, maintenance management and control
systems, and advanced simulation technology.

Access to safe and reliable water for everyone in the world. This is the objective of the Hitachi
Group's total solution for the water environment.

Total support for water circulation processes

Flood Control

The water flowing around us every day sometimes causes floods or high tides, or sediment damage.
Controlling this water to ensure a stable water supply for everyone is very important.

In the fields of flood control and water utilization, we offer total solutions that address specific
needs from water level measurement and facility management to comprehensive wide-area
systems. Our other developments include wide-area flood control support tools, sensor networks,
and a forecasting system for water quality incidents that uses downstream simulations.
Water Delivery

The Earth has been called the water planet, and the majority of water is seawater. The worldwide
distribution of water resources is uneven on earth. The key issue is how to collect water from
abundant regions and supply them to regions with water shortages.

Large-scale irrigation and water delivery projects are being developed worldwide to address these
global problems of water shortage and water resource instability. The Hitachi Group has gained
extensive knowledge of technology such as pumps for water purification, rainwater and sewage
water conveyance, and we are utilizing this expertise as we participate proactively in large-scale
overseas projects.

Clean Water

Fresh water is steadily decreasing in the world. Today, advanced processing is required for various
types of water to produce safe and drinkable water. In other words, technology for refining water
has become an absolute necessity.

The Hitachi Group has developed advanced water processing technology, such as organic matter
processing, and processing for nitrogen, phosphorus, heavy metals, and toxic substances that is
difficult to decompose. In addition, we are attempting to reduce power consumption in highly-
developed water treatment systems.

Water Distribution

Water can be used without difficulty in Japan owing to high coverage of tap water system. Since
the Japanese population is forecast to decline in the future, the business focus will be shifted from
expantion of water treatment capacity to maintenance and conservation. We will also need to
address the issues of aging water treatment facilities and technology succession.

Hitachi will work to achieve sustainable water circulation by taking into account environmental
problems and the declining birthrate. We have achieved numerous successes in the water sector,
including technological developments, product supply and after-sales services. On this basis, the
Hitachi Group provides comprehensive maintenance, management and service solutions through
public-private partnerships.
Monitoring

As the importance of water resources has increased, water pollution has become a more serious
problem. Water quality monitoring is a life-or-death matter. Water safety is required to monitor
over a wide area, from the water treatment plants and distribution reservoirs to the water supply
tap in ordinary homes.

The water supply and sewage system in Japan is well developed, and tap water can be drunk with
peace of mind. The Hitachi Group's monitoring and control system is one of the technologies that
supports this water environment. Using information technology, we provide an integrated data
surveillance system. We have delivered our surveillance and control systems for water supply and
sewage to local governments and organizations both in Japan and overseas.

Purification

Our water resources are precious. To avoid wasting them, we can clean and reuse our dirty water.
And if we clean our water and return it to nature, then we can maintain a healthy water circulation
and protect our ecosystem.

In the treatment of sewage and sludge, Hitachi is encouraging the reuse of water by improving the
water quality. We are also developing better technology for reducing the CO2 emissions in these
processes.

Reuse

As water resources are limited, we will reclaim wastewater. The reclaimed water is important
countermeasures to water shortage. Today there is a demand for reusing water, and technology is
being developed for recirculating and reusing sewage and wastewater.

The Hitachi Groups provides ozone microbubble technology for reusing sewage. We are also
participating in the "Water Plaza" project to create advanced water circulation systems. This
project reclaims water through an integrated system of seawater desalination, sewage reuse and
industrial wastewater treatment. In the Maldives, we are involved in a business that operates the
water supply and sewage system. And through our activities in the Limited Liability Partnership
Global Water Recycling and Reuse System Association, Japan, we aim to provide total solutions
specific to the needs of each country and region.
*2General Incorporated Association, Global Water Recycling and Reuse System Association,
Japan: An association that was established to bring together companies in Japan that are involved
in the water sector, and to build partnerships with government and academia. It aims to utilize the
technology and know-how available in Japan to develop water circulation systems and expand
such systems overseas.