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In 1996, groundwater contamination occurred in Kiryu City, Gunma Prefecture, due to illegally dumped waste. The waste contained cadmium (10 times the standard limit), hexavalent chromium (5 times the standard limit), and trichloroethylene (15 times the standard limit). Contamination was also confirmed in the water supply system of an elementary school, and approximately 150 students reported health problems. Kiryu City launched a cleanup project with an annual budget of 2.5 billion yen, planning to treat 75 percent of the contaminated water within three years. Additionally, through a residents’ campaign, the company responsible for the illegal dumping was identified and ordered to pay a 300 million yen fine and cover 1 billion yen in cleanup costs. Although this incident led to strengthened monitoring systems and the introduction of a waste tracking system, it is estimated that complete remediation will take approximately 20 years.