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October 24, 2025
 

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WATER

A resident of Kibichuo in Okayama Prefecture takes a blood test in the town on Monday.
JAPAN
Nov 25, 2024
PFAS blood tests start in Okayama Prefecture town
About 800 residents are expected to take a blood test under the program, which runs through Dec. 8.
The National Consumer Affairs Center reported 1,997 consultations about water dispensers nationwide last fiscal year — an increase 1.4 times that of the previous year.
JAPAN
Nov 20, 2024
Misleading water dispenser contracts in Japan lead to surge in inquiries
The National Consumer Affairs Center reported 1,997 consultations nationwide last fiscal year — an increase 1.4 times that of the previous year.
Rice fields in the town of Ozu, Kumamoto Prefecture. The water-filled paddies glistening under the sun is a symbol of a long-running effort to preserve the prefecture’s groundwater.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Nov 17, 2024
Japan's chipmaking rush pressures Kumamoto's special water supply
TSMC and others hope that support for existing projects and proper wastewater management can avoid undermining water development efforts lauded by the U.N.
Water supply support is provided in January in areas affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake in Ishikawa Prefecture, where residents are facing water outages.
JAPAN
Nov 1, 2024
Seismic upgrading done for only 14.6% of key facility water pipelines
The findings suggest there are challenges to ensuring a stable water supply in the event of a disaster.
The Champayan Lagoon in Altamira, Tamaulipas, Mexico. A new report finds that nearly 3 billion people and more than half of the world’s food production are in areas experiencing a worsening water shortage.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Oct 17, 2024
Water crisis endangers 8% of GDP in high-income countries, report warns
The report finds that nearly 3 billion people and more than half of the world’s food production are in areas experiencing a worsening water shortage.
A child holds a water container in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday.
WORLD
Jul 31, 2024
Destruction of Gaza water wells deepens Palestinian misery
The Israeli military did not respond to the allegations that its soldiers had torched the wells.
Experts are advising students to drink plenty of water, as a survey revealed more than half of them are not sufficiently hydrated during the day.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 24, 2024
Over half of students in Japan are not well hydrated, study finds
Urine osmolality, which goes up as water intake declines, was at levels considered to indicate insufficient hydration.
The government has a provisional target of keeping PFAS levels in tap water at 50 nanograms or lower per liter.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 24, 2024
Government instigates nationwide survey on PFAS in Japan's tap water
Some 12,000 water providers have been given until the end of September to report on potential water contamination with PFAS.
A Ground Self-Defense Force member welcomes a local resident at a bathing facility set up on the grounds of an elementary school serving as an evacuation shelter in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, in March.
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2024
Noto mission becomes SDF's longest quake response project
The record 175-day mission has highlighted the time-consuming work of restoring water supplies and sewerage systems.
An Israeli tank maneuvers inside the Gaza Strip on Thursday. Gaza's environment was already suffering from recurring conflicts, rapid urban growth, and high population density, before the most recent conflict began on Oct. 7.
WORLD / Society
Jun 18, 2024
Gaza conflict has caused major environmental damage, U.N. says
Water, sanitation, and hygiene systems are now almost entirely defunct, the report found, with Gaza's five wastewater treatment plants shut down.
Snow and ice on the Himalayas are a crucial water source for around 240 million people in the mountainous regions, as well as for another 1.65 billion people in the river valleys below.
ENVIRONMENT
Jun 17, 2024
Low snow on the Himalayas threatens water security
Millions of people dependent on snowmelt for water face a "very serious" risk of shortages this year after one of the lowest rates of snowfall.
Water tanks used to cultivate seaweed on land by Three Lines in Uwajima, Ehime Prefecture
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Jun 3, 2024
Poor seaweed harvest prompts Kyushu University team to look toward land
The team has found some success with on-land farming, although increasing production yields for commercialization remains a challenge.
Hiroaki Okano, a resident in the town of Uchinada, Ishikawa Prefecture, explains how his home shifted sideways by about a meter as a result of the 7.6-magnitude quake that hit Ishikawa Prefecture on Jan. 1.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 2, 2024
Liquefaction-hit Ishikawa town's future unclear, five months after quake
Around 3,500 cases of liquefaction damage from the 7.6 magnitude quake that struck the Noto Peninsula on Jan. 1 have been confirmed.
Work is underway to restore water supply pipes in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, in February.
JAPAN / FOCUS
May 16, 2024
Japan centralizes water supply and sewage administration
The infrastructure ministry aims to advance integrated initiatives covering both water supply and sewage systems in addressing aging infrastructure.
The U.S. military’s Kawakami Ammunition Depot in Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture. High levels of PFAS have been detected in well water around the facility.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Apr 15, 2024
U.S.-Japan pact hampers PFAS survey at U.S. facility in Hiroshima
The bilateral Status of Forces Agreement gives exclusive authority to the U.S. forces over the management of their facilities in Japan.
3M’s Cottage Grove, Minnesota factory had been churning out varieties of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS since the 1950s.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Apr 9, 2024
PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ pervasive in water worldwide, study finds
The study of over 45,000 water samples worldwide found that about 31% of groundwater had levels of the chemicals considered harmful to human health.
People wait to collect drinking water on March 14 amid an ongoing water crisis in Bengaluru, which has been hit by drought.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 2, 2024
India’s most innovative cities are running out of water
Drought is crippling India's tech hubs of Bengaluru and Hyderabad, casting a dark shadow on these cities' attractiveness in the era of climate change.
Children wash their hands with a new public pump installed as part of a climate resilient water system in Inn Chey in Kratie Province.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Mar 31, 2024
Japan sits at the forefront of climate resilient infrastructure in Southeast Asia
Japanese businesses and government agencies are pouring billions of yen into various programs across Cambodia and Southeast Asia to reduce climate risks.
The Monrovia NSU Challenger bulk carrier transits the expanded canal through the Cocoli Locks of the Panama Canal in April 2023.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Mar 22, 2024
'We all need water': Panama's canal, and people, thirst for more
A severe drought last year caused water levels in Gatun Lake, which provides drinking water and is the main reservoir for the canal, to fall.
Mercian's vineyard in Koshu, Yamanashi Prefecture
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Mar 18, 2024
Major Japanese beverage groups focusing more on sustainability
Initiatives have diversified to include water source preservation as well as winery tours under the theme of the U.N.'s Sustainable Development Goals.
For three key Cabinet posts, Takaichi turns to an eclectic trio
Shinjiro Koizumi — son of a former prime minister and rival to the current one — was appointed defense chief after falling short in his bid for the Liberal Democratic Party presidency earlier this month.
Rare female yakuza walks path to redemption in Japan
Retired yakuza Mako Nishimura sorts fallen leaves during a clean-up activity at the Gifu Gokoku shrine in Gifu Prefecture on Sept. 28.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.
The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
New ‘immigration minister’ post signals Takaichi Cabinet’s priorities
Kimi Onoda, economic security minister and minister for harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, arrives at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Japan's first female PM promised more women in her Cabinet. She picked two.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi poses with members of the newly formed Cabinet on Tuesday night.
AI-optimized cybercrime increasingly targeting Japan
A recent cyberattack on brewer Asahi Group Holdings resulted in the company suspending shipments.
K-pop idol Chanyeol does J-pop his own way on ‘Hibi’
South Korean singer Chanyeol made his Japanese-language solo debut with the EP “Hibi,” which features six tracks inspired by his love of Japanese music.
In pictures: The day Japan’s glass ceiling finally cracked
Takaichi, surrounded by LDP influencers
London exhibition perhaps sumo's most successful trip abroad
With the recent sumo jaunt to London being essentially a goodwill exercise, <i>rikishi</i> were far more outgoing and relaxed than normal.
Nakatsu keeps its cool as gentrification looms
Shunsuke Takahashi, owner of the cafe Hood by Vargas, says the Osaka neighborhood of Nakatsu feels brighter and calmer with the influx of new businesses.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.
By Thu-Huong Ha and Mike Fu

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo
Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

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