Expansion of the Soil Contamination Investigation Market in Shiga Prefecture - February 2003

Expansion of the Soil Contamination Investigation Market in Shiga Prefecture - February 2003

The Soil Contamination Countermeasures Law, which went into effect on February 15, 2003, made soil contamination surveys mandatory at the time of site conversion, and interest in the subject has grown nationwide. Shiga Prefecture has introduced simple diagnostic technology from the U.S., and is developing a low-cost soil contamination risk survey service for real estate agents and financial institutions.

In addition, Mitsubishi Materials Resources Development Corporation and Mitsui Real Estate Sales Co., Ltd. have partnered to strengthen investigations of commercial real estate. A company in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward also began offering simple surveys at around 40,000 yen per site, and the market is expanding. In addition, major general contractors are developing their purification business, and there is also a move toward alliances with financial institutions.

In the background is the introduction of an impairment accounting system starting in fiscal 2005, which has made the evaluation of land price decline risk more important. Banks and real estate companies nationwide are using Shiga Prefecture's technology to quickly assess risks, and the market is expected to expand further in the future.