Search - environment

 
 
BUSINESS
Jun 5, 2017

Facebook vows to be 'hostile environment' for terrorists; Twitter targets 'terrorist content'

Facebook said it wanted to make its social media platform a "hostile environment" for terrorists in a statement issued after attackers killed seven people in London and prompted Prime Minister Theresa May to demand action from internet firms.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 17, 2017

Toward a global treaty on plastic waste

Plastic pollution is a global scourge that is entirely of our making — and entirely within our power to solve as well.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 10, 2017

Invasive mini-deer breeding rapidly, destroying crops, as Chiba tries to keep up

At first glance, it's hard to believe a small, cute deer-like animal can do any harm.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Apr 21, 2017

China uncovers environmental breaches at two-thirds of firms

More than two-thirds of the companies investigated by China in its latest campaign against pollution have violated environmental rules, a environment ministry official told a briefing on Friday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 23, 2017

Wooden 'plyscrapers' challenge concrete and steel

High-rise wooden buildings, led by The Tree, a 52.8-meter (173-foot) apartment block in Norway, are claiming a place on city skylines as the timber industry challenges the supremacy of concrete and steel.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 17, 2017

Japanese protesters demand mega-banks end funding for Dakota pipeline project

Citizens groups deliver a petition to three of Japan's biggest banks demanding that they stop funding the Dakota oil pipeline project reactivated by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Feb 3, 2017

With U.S. retreat on climate change, EU looks to China

Faced with a U.S. retreat from international efforts to tackle climate change, European Union officials are looking to China, fearing a leadership vacuum will embolden those within the bloc seeking to slow the fight against global warming.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 29, 2017

Trump's stance on climate threaten to worsen relations with China

President Donald Trump's vow to pull back from climate-change efforts endangers one of the few areas where China and the U.S. have seen eye to eye, exacerbating tensions as he takes on more contentious subjects.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 16, 2017

Japanese law for endangered wildlife set for what critics call toothless revamp

The Law on Conservation of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is set to be revised once again to further improve government measures to prevent vulnerable animal and plant species from becoming extinct.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Nov 22, 2016

China likely to maintain climate goals

Beijing's air quality fell short of national standards on 179 days last year. That's one reason why the world's biggest coal consumer is likely to stick with its plan to clean up its energy supply — regardless of what President-elect Donald Trump does in the U.S.
JAPAN
Nov 17, 2016

Indian economist and Swiss zoologist win 2016 Blue Planet Prize for environmental work

Indian environmental economist Pavan Sukhdev and Swiss zoologist Markus Borner were named the winners Tuesday of this year's Blue Planet Prize for their contributions to helping solve global environment issues.
BUSINESS
Sep 28, 2016

Environment minister urges Eurus to scale back Hokkaido wind project

Environment minister Koichi Yamamoto is urging the planners of a wind development project on the northern island of Hokkaido to scale back the operation out of concern for how the plan would affect rare birds found in the area.
JAPAN
Sep 4, 2016

Seaweed farming, a sudden slimy success, needs greener rules, U.N. study finds

Seaweed farming needs tighter regulation to limit damage to the environment after booming into a $6.4 billion business with uses in everything from sushi to toothpaste, a United Nations study said Sunday.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2016

Seafloor gold rush could have alarming impact

The seafloor is home to priceless mineral deposits, but mining them could wreak havoc on the marine environment.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 3, 2016

Satellites find 39 unreported sources of major pollution

Researchers in the United States and Canada have located 39 unreported sources of major pollution using a new satellite-based method, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration said.
JAPAN / Politics
May 15, 2016

G-7 environment meeting in Toyama kicks off with call to action

Environment ministers and representatives from Group of Seven nations began a two-day meeting Sunday, with host and chair Japan calling for "concrete action" to implement the landmark climate deal reached in Paris last year.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Mar 1, 2016

Japan pushes ahead with Hokkaido carbon capture test despite quake concerns

Japan is preparing to test its biggest project yet for capturing and storing greenhouse gas pollution under the seabed despite concerns about cost and the safety of pursuing the technology in a region prone to earthquakes.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Jan 24, 2016

False emissions reporting undermines China's pollution fight

Widespread misreporting of harmful gas emissions by Chinese electricity firms is threatening the country's attempts to rein in pollution, with government policies aimed at generating cleaner power struggling to halt the practice.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 22, 2015

Greece is also running an ecological deficit

To enable lasting economic progress, countries need to break the link between GDP growth and overuse of the environment.
WORLD / Science & Health
Nov 27, 2015

Destruction of Brazil's Amazon jumps 16 percent in 2015

The destruction of Brazil's Amazon forest, the world's largest intact rain forest, increased by 16 percent in 2015 from a year ago as the government struggles to enforce legislation and stop illegal clearings.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / CABINET INTERVIEW
Oct 9, 2015

New environment chief vows to engage communities targeted for nuclear waste facility

Newly appointed Environment Minister Tamayo Marukawa says the ministry will continue to lobby Fukushima residents to back the construction of storage and disposal facilities for radioactive waste generated by the Fukushima nuclear crisis.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 30, 2015

Islam's important statement on climate change

The Islamic Declaration on Climate Change calls on the world's 1.6 billion Muslims be responsible activists for the welfare of the planet.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 8, 2015

Sincere climate pledge or 'sleight of hand'?

Last week, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet announced Japan would reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 26 percent by 2030, based on 2013 levels. The plan will be presented to delegates at a United Nations conference on climate change in Paris this December.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
May 15, 2015

Deepwater fish found to be warm-blooded

Move over, mammals and birds, and make room for a fish called the opah in the warm-blooded club.

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan