Marine plastic collected from nearby Tomogashima Island is being used to repave a bus rotary in Wakayama City and raise awareness on recycling and the SDGs.
Nankai-Wakayama-Station-Bus-rotary-001

Bus rotary in front of Nankai-Wakayamashi Station in Wakayama City. (©Sankei by Yuko Kitano)

Read the full story on Japan 2 Earth - From Waste to Pavement: Using Marine Plastic for Station Front Rotary in Wakayama

The city of Wakayama will use marine plastic waste collected in the city to pave the bus rotary in front of Nankai Wakayamashi Station. An asphalt modifier manufactured by Tokyo-based Kao Corporation will incorporate the plastic waste to improve the durability of asphalt. The project is scheduled to be completed in December and is part of the city's efforts to promote the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The city has been working with Kao, which operates a plant in Wakayama, on the SDGs. 

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From Beach to Station Front

The waste to be utilized are plastic bottles that have washed ashore on Tomogashima, an island off Wakayama's coast. According to the city, the large amount of trash washed ashore on Tomogashima has been a problem for some time.

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Wakayama City staff and Kao employees collecting PET bottles on Tomogashima in June 2023. (Photo courtesy of Wakayama City)

Continue reading the full story on Japan 2 Earth to learn more about the issue of marine plastic waste.

And find more great articles on the environment and the challenges of achieving the SDGs on our new website Japan 2 Earth (J2E), sparking a transition to a sustainable future.

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(Read the article in Japanese.)

Author: The Sankei Shimbun

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