Soon after my arrival in Japan, I noticed that the trash cans here are very different from the ones in the United States. Trash cans are not as commonly available as they are at home and the trash is sorted into categories like combustibles, bottles, cans, and paper. Whenever I wanted to throw something away, I had to think about the next step for that piece of trash. Based on what each piece of trash was made from, there were different things that could happen to it as part of the trash removal process. When I first arrived in Japan, I thought having the public sort their trash in public trash cans was a tedious extra step. I was also surprised that the public was willing to do so. Americans are so accustomed to throwing everything away together and so impatient that I was doubtful that this type of system would work or be well accepted in the United States. It was surprising to me that trash removal systems demonstrated some of the geographical differences between the United States and Japan. Japan’s limited geographical space was clearly demonstrated in the trash removal process.
During our tour of the Suginami Incineration Plant, I learned that accurately sorting trash and efficiently getting rid of it is an essential part of Japan’s sanitation. Unlike the United States, Japan does not have a lot of empty space it can use for landfills, so trash removal is very important. At the Suginami Incineration Plant, trash trucks brought in combustible trash and emptied it into the big pit pictured above. There is an air curtain at the door the trucks enter to keep the smell of trash from exiting and there is also air circulation that keeps the area inside where the trucks empty the trash from smelling terrible due to the trash. This allowed the workers to exit their trucks and release their trash into the pit without having to deal with the smell of trash. The trash in the pit is mixed and then picked up by the giant yellow claw. After that, the claw drops the trash in a hole and the trash goes to be incinerated. It takes about two hours for the incinerator to completely burn the trash inside of it. The smoke and emissions from burning the trash go through giant white filters so that harmful chemicals from burning do not enter the environment around the plant. Additionally, the pressure created during the incineration process created enough electricity to power the plant and for the plant to sell.
This experience showed how community participation plays a big role in the cleanliness of Japan. Citizens must accurately sort their trash because if trash is inaccurately sorted and the wrong type of trash goes through the incineration process, it could damage the machinery and cause a pause in the process so repairs can be made. This would make trash pick-up pause and residents would have to store their trash for longer. The plant makes sure the residents are educated on how to sort their trash. One way they do this is by hosting tours and allowing residents to play the trash organization game. In the game, players are given images of articles of trash and must decide if they are in the right section or not. I liked seeing how everyone in the community works together to keep their community clean and the responsibility does not only fall on the government and trash companies.