Dow leads first study on plastic waste in Japan

Against the backdrop of changing climate realities, and the rising consumption of plastic, Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics (P&SP), a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, has launched of one of the world’s first 24-hour video research studies to quantify the impact of plastic waste and debris on the Edogawa and Ohori rivers in the Kanto region of Japan.  The Edogawa and Ohori River Study is part of Dow’s September 2016 commitment to spend $2.8 million over two years to drive solutions that address global marine debris and litter. 

 

Conducted together with the Tokyo University of Science (TUS) and the Japan Plastics Industry Federation (JPIF), the study titled Assessment of River Waste Utilising an Unmanned Monitoring Method, examines the impact of waste management solutions surrounding the Edogawa and Ohori rivers. It aims to provide critical data about waste volume passing through the river to help the community and government improve upon existing systems. 

 

“Plastics help extend the shelf-life of food which in turn reduce carbon footprints and improve energy efficiency. They also prove invaluable to developers of life-saving innovations in the medical field. We work actively with our value partners in Japan to correct the commonly held negative stereotype that plastics are polluting the environment due to waste management issues. Together with industry trade associations and academia, we strive for solutions to create sustainable communities and economic development,” said Dr. Han Zhang, Asia Pacific Sustainability and Advocacy Leader for Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics. 

 

According to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), up to 8 million tons of plastic are dumped into the world’s oceans annually. While Japan has one of the world’s most progressive plastic recycling program, it is also arguably the highest plastic consumer in Asia Pacific. 

 

“Plastic is one of the most important inventions and offers many advancements that improve our daily lives. However, not all plastic waste ends up where it should be, and this is why we want to work with our value chain partners to develop best practices to mitigate issues such as marine debris,” said Bambang Candra, Asia Pacific Commercial Vice President for Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics. “At Dow, we advocate for resource recovery technologies. This study represents our commitment in finding viable science-based solutions to keep our oceans clean.”

 

Launched in July 2017, the study will involve the installation of autonomous video surveillance instruments along the river’s drainage pipelines to continually record the amount of debris flowing in the river over the course of the year, and to analyse the current waste management system. Piloted by Dow together with researchers from the Tokyo University of Science’s Department of Civil Engineering; Professor Yasuo Nihei and Assistant Professor Tomoya Kataoka, the study employs the Automatic Unmanned Continuous Observation Method (AUCOM).