Visit a Japanese coastline to see how no-waste they are (so much garbage washed up).
The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
41–47 of 47 posts
Re: The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
Maybe we have more industrial plastic waste than Japan? My experiences in Japan are that they use many times more plastic packaging on products than we jse in the US. I find this data extremely hard to believe.
Although I agree that Japan uses lots of plastic everywhere, I can see how the sheer size of stuff in the US can easily offset for that. The average American man weighs 50% more than the average Japanese man (200 lbs vs. 135). The average househould trash container in the US is the size of a garbage truck in Japan (being dramatic with this one, but less than you'd think).
The trash cans I have seen in Japan are roughly the same size as the ones I see in the US. The garbage trucks are smaller (to fit on smaller roads).... but they have a lot more of them!
Re: The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
Maybe we have more industrial plastic waste than Japan? My experiences in Japan are that they use many times more plastic packaging on products than we jse in the US. I find this data extremely hard to believe.
Go to Costco in Texas and watch the literal pallets of bottled water the people cart into their trucks. They make up for entire Japanese towns probably.
People in Japan also drink a lot of bottled water (and other bottles products).
Re: The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
#44Everyone mention single use plastic and too many wraps. For those who don't live there, you may not know about gifting too. Everyone give gifts. I don't have the numbers, but I wouldn't be surprised if they give gifts 5-10x the rest of the world. Which are wrapped, boxed, with more wrappings and plastics inside. I think one way to reduce this may be for companies to start making reusable fancy gift boxes and have celebrities in commercials and posters show that it's the new cool thing to do.
Re: The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
#45I know these Japan stories for Americans might be awe-inspiring, but man if there isn't crap loads of waste from all the products they sell here. Yesterday during my grocery shopping each individual glass container product got its own separate paper bag, meat was given a plastic bag even thought it was already wrapped in plastic and my juices got another plastic bag. Even the wines I got were given this plastic wrap,…
It's a cultural perception issue, mainly. In the west, when we see plastic, we think of litter. And we should, because there's way too many coffee cups, cigarette butts, and fast food wrappers lying on the ground in our towns and cities. But in Japan people don't litter. So when they see plastic, it's associated with clean new products. The trash still ends up in the ocean, but they don't see it happen - out of sight…
> The trash still ends up in the ocean
Huh? As you say, Japan doesn't litter. And AFAIK Japan incinerates most/all of its plastic waste. They don't exactly have the land to landfill. So very little, if any, is ending up in the ocean.
Re: The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
Go to Costco in Texas and watch the literal pallets of bottled water the people cart into their trucks. They make up for entire Japanese towns probably.
People in Japan also drink a lot of bottled water (and other bottles products).
Maybe carbonated drink consumption is the diferentiator? The plastic of those tends to be thicker.
Re: The Japanese philosophy for a no-waste world
#47Visit a Japanese coastline to see how no-waste they are (so much garbage washed up).
Is that garbage from Japan or, say, China? When a cargo ship carrying "recyclables" from the US to China loses things into the ocean near Japan, does it not wash up on Japan's shores?