Another Negative Legacy--The Ishihara Sangyo Incident and the Silence of Yokkaichi (April 1995)

Another Negative Legacy--The Ishihara Sangyo Incident and the Silence of Yokkaichi (April 1995)

The "unregistered waste burial incident" by Ishihara Sangyo in Yokkaichi City, Mie Prefecture, symbolized the "negative legacy" lurking in the shadows of Japan's postwar industrialization: In 1995, it was discovered that the company had illegally buried toxic waste near the coast for many years, despite its local roots as a Mie Prefecture company. The waste contained lead, hexavalent chromium, and other toxic substances, and there were concerns about contamination of groundwater and surrounding soil. The incident was brought to light by a tip-off from a former employee, and the subsequent continuous pursuit of the case by citizen groups and the press.

At the time, Yokkaichi was a victim of air pollution, formerly known as Yokkaichi asthma, and it was thought that pollution control measures had achieved a certain degree of success. However, this incident showed that "invisible pollution" still existed, and that it had been covered up by collusion between corporations and the government and by the silence of the local community. At the residents' explanatory meeting, some expressed anger that the lessons of the past had not been learned, and a growing movement demanded measures to prevent recurrence and to hold the company accountable. Ishihara Sangyo would later bear the cost of soil removal and cleanup, but this did not restore confidence in the company.

This incident challenged society on the importance of "memory" and "monitoring" in environmental preservation, and the power of local residents' voices. The weight of silence and the unearthing of unrecorded damage shook the foundations of environmental policy.