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☆ Rice into low-carbon plastic: bringing hope to a struggling Fukushima town
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Elaine Lies | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Last November, Tokyo-based firm Biomass Resin opened a factory in Namie to turn locally-grown rice into pellets. "Even now, we can't sell it as Fukushima rice. The same wave slammed into the nuclear plant, setting off meltdowns and explosions. "Namie was hit by four disasters - the quake, the tsunami, the reactor accident and then rumours about radiation danger," said Takemitsu Imazu, president of Biomass Resin Fukushima. The plastic isn't biodegradable, Imazu said, but using rice cuts the petroleum products involved - and growing more rice in Namie reduces overall atmospheric CO2.

☆ Japan's new rocket fails after engine issue, in blow to space ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Tim Kelly | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] An H3 rocket carrying a land observation satellite lifts off from the launching pad at Tanegashima Space Center on the southwestern island of Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan March 7, 2023, in this photo taken by Kyodo. The 57-metre (187 ft) tall H3 rocket lifted off without a hitch from the Tanegashima space port, a live-streamed broadcast by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) showed. But upon reaching space, the rocket's second-stage engine failed to ignite, forcing mission officials to manually destroy the vehicle. "This will have a serious impact on Japan's future space policy, space business and technological competitiveness," he added. A successful launch on Tuesday would have put the Japanese rocket into space ahead of the planned launch later this year of the European Space Agency's new lower-cost Ariane 6 vehicle.

☆ South Korea, Japan near landmark deal on wartime labour dispute - media
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The labour dispute and one over women forced into Japanese military brothels have bedevilled ties between the two pivotal U.S. allies for years. South Korea's foreign ministry, asked about the reported agreement, said negotiations were ongoing. The row spilled over into a trade dispute. 'VOLUNTARY' FUND, SUMMITSeoul unveiled a plan in January to compensate former forced labourers through a South Korean public foundation. The fund would be jointly formed by the Federation of Korean Industries, South Korea's big business lobby, and its Japanese counterpart, Keidanren, the report said.

☆ Japan's H3 flagship rocket fails to lift off after booster engine glitch
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] An aerial view shows an H3 rocket carrying a land observation satellite fails to lift off after apparent engine failure at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan February 17, 2023, in this photo taken by Kyodo. Mandatory credit Kyodo via REUTERSTOKYO, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Japan's H3 rocket, the country's first new medium-lift launcher in three decades, failed to lift off on Friday because two secondary booster engines strapped to the side of the space vehicle didn't ignite. It is designed to put government and commercial satellites into orbit and ferry supplies to the International Space Station. The United States has promised Japan a seat on one of its crewed lunar missions. "With the H3 we are aiming to halve the cost per launch," a Mitsubishi Heavy spokesperson said before the planned launch.

☆ Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop 'war' on poultry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Argentina found the virus in wild birds, while dead swans in Uruguay tested positive. The United States, Britain, France and Japan are among countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless. Poultry in the Northern Hemisphere were previously considered to be most at risk when wild birds are active during spring migration. Some experts suspect climate change may be contributing to the global spread by altering wild birds' habitats and migratory paths. Farmers are trying unusual tactics to protect poultry, with some using machines that make loud noises to scare off wild birds, experts said.

☆ Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop "war" on poultry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The United States, Britain, France and Japan are among countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless. Poultry in the Northern Hemisphere were previously considered to be most at risk when wild birds are active during spring migration. Some experts suspect climate change may be contributing to the global spread by altering wild birds' habitats and migratory paths. Farmers are trying unusual tactics to protect poultry, with some using machines that make loud noises to scare off wild birds, experts said. Berkowitz said he is bracing for March and April when migration season will pose an even greater risk to poultry.

☆ Heavy snow in Japan disrupts flights and trains, closes roads
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Heavy snow across much of Japan on Friday grounded 100 flights, blocked dozens of roads and disrupted train services, government authorities and operators said. Domestic airlines including ANA (9202.T), Japan Airlines (9201.T) and others cancelled a total of 100 flights due to the snow as of noon, according to the land ministry. Parts of 31 highways were closed in central and eastern Japan, while 54 central Tokyo expressway exits were blocked, the ministry said. Services on more than a dozen train routes in central and eastern Japan had suspended operations or were planning to do so, the land ministry said. East Japan Railway (9020.T), the country's biggest train operator, said a high-speed service between Tokyo and the northeastern prefecture of Yamagata would be suspended later on Friday.

☆ Japan says it has 'legal right' to destroy any foreign balloon in its airspace
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Julian Ryall | South China Morning Post | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Japan's defence minister says it would have the legal right to destroy any balloon that enters its domestic airspace. Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada said on Tuesday under existing laws, Japan would have the legal right to destroy any balloon that intrudes into its domestic airspace. "Intrusions into Japan's territorial airspace constitute a violation, even if it is a balloon," the Yomiuri newspaper quoted Isozaki as saying. In the future, it may be possible to use lasers or other technology to bring a balloon to earth, he suggested. Japan uses balloons for weather observations, but the prevailing winds mean that they typically travel east, over the Pacific, rather than over mainland Asia.

TOKYO, Feb 7 (Reuters) - The popularity of Japan's crisp powder snow among foreign skiers, surging back into the country, is luring more to seek the thrill of pristine backcountry slopes - sometimes with deadly impact. Japan's snow, prized among skiers for dryness caused by local atmospheric conditions, is a big draw. The head of Japan's National Governors Association last week said a national system of safety measures is now essential. BACKCOUNTRY CULTUREThe reputation of Japanese snow took off after the Nagano Olympics. Japan wants to welcome foreign skiers, but they need to know the reality of the risks involved, said Kenji Kubota, a researcher with the Japan Rescue Organization.

☆ U.S. freestyle skier dies in avalanche in Japan
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Chantal Da Silva | Chantal Da Silva Is A Breaking News Editor For Nbc News Digital Based In London. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

A U.S. freestyle skier has died after being caught in an avalanche in Japan on Sunday, his family confirmed. Weather authorities had issued an avalanche warning for the area after days of heavy snowfall. Police officers board a gondola heading to the site of an avalanche in the village of Otari, Japan on Sunday. "Such a bright light lost," wrote Marielle Thompson, a Canadian Olympic freestyle skier. “Wish we had more time to ski these past few years,” Joss Christensen, a U.S. freestyle skier from Park City, Utah, wrote.

☆ U.S. professional skier named as one victim of Japan avalanche
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Mandatory credit Kyodo via REUTERSTOKYO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - One of two foreign men swept up in an avalanche in Japan while back-country skiing in the central prefecture of Nagano and found without vital signs on Monday was U.S. professional skier Kyle Smaine, an outdoor magazine said. Police declined to confirm details about the men, whom media said were from Austria and the United States, but outdoor magazine "Mountain Gazette" said in its online edition that the U.S. skier was Kyle Smaine, 31. "It is with great sadness we report beloved South Lake Tahoe Professional Skier Kyle Smaine has died in an avalanche in Japan," the magazine wrote. Weather authorities had issued an avalanche warning for the area, following heavy snowfall in the past few days. Reporting by Mariko Katsumura; Editing by Bradley Perrett, Clarence Fernandez and Sharon SingletonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Sakamoto Kurozu, Inc. is a kurozu maker in the town of Fukuyama in Japan's Kagoshima Prefecture. It follows a 200-year-old method to ferment and age the black vinegar in 52,000 clay pots. It takes one year until the vinegar is ready, but the best batches take three to five years. It takes at least a year until it’s complete, with some of the best batches aging from three to five years. Sakamoto Kurozu, Inc. is one of eight vinegar makers that haven’t changed the process.

☆ Ship sinks between South Korea and Japan; 9 remain unconscious
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

South Korean officials said nine of them remain unconscious, but they did not immediately confirm any deaths. They said the crew members would be airlifted to Japan for treatment. AFP - Getty ImagesAccording to South Korean and Japanese officials, 14 crew members are Chinese and eight are from Myanmar. South Korean officials didn’t immediately say whether the nine who were unconscious were likely to survive their injuries if they weren’t already dead. The Japanese coast guard said the water in the area remained rough and its temperature was around 14 degrees Celsius.

☆ Heavy snow causes havoc in Japan as cold snap sweeps through Asia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Heavy snow blanketed wide swathes of Japan on Wednesday, snarling traffic, forcing hundreds of flight cancellations, disrupting train travel and leaving at least one person dead. An unusually cold weather front and extreme low pressure systems set snow falling and strong winds blowing across Japan from Tuesday after causing havoc in other Asia countries earlier this week. Some 3,000 people were stranded at two train stations in the western city of Kyoto after snow and high winds forced service to be suspended on Tuesday. Strong winds connected to the storm may have caused the sinking of a Hong Kong-registered cargo ship between western Japan and South Korea's Jeju island early on Wednesday. Reporting by Kaori Kaneko, Sugiyama Satoshi and Elaine Lies in Tokyo and Hyonhee Shin in Seoul, writing by Elaine Lies and Miyoung Kim Editing by Chang-Ran Kim, Kim Coghill and Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Asia markets fall as Japan's inflation data reaches highest since 1981
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

People walk down a street in the Chinatown section of Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture, south of Tokyo, on January 7, 2023. Markets in the Asia-Pacific were set to trade lower on Friday as investors digested Japan's core inflation print, which reached the fastest pace since December, 1981. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 26,360 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 26,320 against the Nikkei 225's last close at 26,405.23. The yield on the 10-year Japanese Government Bond rose to stand at 0.415%, slightly below the central bank's upper ceiling of its tolerance range. In Australia the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.11% in its first hour of trade.

According to official statistics, there were about five medical personnel and fewer than five hospital beds per 1,000 people in China’s rural areas in 2020, compared with more than 11 medical personnel and almost nine hospital beds in urban areas. Jiao Yahui, an official at the National Health Commission, said the government’s Covid strategy for rural areas had two main focuses. The lack of facilities means those with Covid are more likely to travel elsewhere for treatment or simply recover at home to avoid further exposure in hospitals. A local resident with the last name Li said he had attended five funerals since last December, all for people who died after contracting Covid. He said he had heard that at least 300 older people died this winter in the county, not including its administered villages or towns.

In a statement Tuesday, the agriculture ministry said 9.98 million animals had been killed this season, surpassing a previous record of 9.87 million that were slaughtered in fiscal 2020, during a previous bird flu crisis. The National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations, known as Zen-Noh, gave a higher tally, saying approximately 10.9 million birds had been killed as of Tuesday night. “The market price is expected to soar.”The spread of bird flu has already pushed up egg costs around the world in recent months. In Japan, wholesale prices for eggs reached a record high last month as shipments dropped, according to public broadcaster NHK. Avian flu is caused by infections that occur naturally among wild aquatic birds, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

☆ Jetstar flight makes emergency landing in Japan due to bomb threat
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - A Jetstar flight made an emergency landing at Chubu Centrair International Airport in central Japan on Saturday due to a bomb threat, though no device was found, officials said. Five sustained minor injuries while evacuating from the plane, an official at the Chubu airport police said. The flight was diverted to the Chubu airport, in Japan's industrial heartland of Aichi prefecture, after a potential security incident, and passengers disembarked via emergency slides, Jetstar Airways said in a statement. "Jetstar Japan is working closely with the Chubu airport and local authorities to investigate the situation," the company said, declining to comment further. A Narita spokesperson said there had been a bomb threat call for the flight but that details were unclear.

☆ Japanese Companies Reach Natural-Gas Deals With Oman, U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Peter Landers | Chieko Tsuneoka | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Jera, which has this LNG-fired power plant in Japan’s Chiba prefecture, and two other companies have agreed to purchase over two million tons of LNG annually from Oman. TOKYO—Japanese companies said they reached deals with Omani and U.S. producers for mid- to long-term natural-gas supplies, a move to lock up the fuel after turmoil this year caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The deals signal the renewed importance of relatively stable producers of liquefied natural gas or LNG, including the U.S. Japan is among the world’s largest importers of LNG, alongside China, and relies on the fuel for nearly 40% of its electricity production.

☆ Japan to deploy missile defence unit in Yonaguni, near Taiwan - Jiji
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Japan's Ministry of Defence will deploy a surface-to-air missile defence unit in Yonaguni Island, the country's westernmost island, near Taiwan, Jiji news reported on Tuesday. The instalment of missile troops is part of a plan to expand a Ground Self-Defense Force camp on the island, part of Okinawa prefecture, to reinforce defence of Japan's southwestern islands, Jiji quoted ministry spokesperson Takeshi Aoki as saying. Earlier this month, Japan unveiled its biggest military build-up since World War Two with a $320 billion plan that would buy missiles capable of striking China as regional tensions and Russia's Ukraine invasion stoke war fears. read moreReporting by Kantaro Komiya Editing by Chang-Ran KimOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Sony plans smartphone sensor factory in Japan - Nikkei
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 15 (Reuters) - Sony Group Corp (6758.T) is considering building a new factory to make smartphone image sensors in the Kumamoto prefecture of Japan, Nikkei reported on Thursday. The company plans to break ground on the plant as soon as 2024, and bring it online in fiscal 2025 at the earliest, the report said, adding the company expects the cost to run into the billions of dollars. Japan, which long ago lost its lead on chip manufacturing, particularly advanced semiconductors, is rushing to take advantage after Washington restricted Beijing's access to the technology and asked its allies to do the same. Sony plans to source chips from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (2330.TW) planned chip plant in the area, the report said. ($1 = 137.8500 yen)Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Solar sharing helps farmers in Japan adopt sustainable methods — and earn additional money
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Freya Graham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Solar sharing, or agrivoltaics, is a system where solar panels and farming are on the same land. His family business, Hattori Tea Farms, situated in the Shizuoka prefecture in Japan, had been growing sencha green tea for over a century. He landed on a solution: Rather than growing regular green tea, the farm would specialize in high-quality matcha. "Big solar farms can be very disruptive because the land use is only for harnessing solar energy. While the increased amount of shade can reduce a farm's productivity, solar panels can bring benefits to the crops, too.

☆ Ryuichi Sakamoto, fighting cancer, livestreams what may be final concert
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Elaine Lies | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Japan's Ryuichi Sakamoto, known for his electronic music, including the score for "The Last Emperor," on Monday finished streaming a concert that may be the last for the Academy-award winning composer, who is fighting stage 4 cancer. "My strength has really fallen, so a normal concert of about an hour to ninety minutes would be very difficult," he said. In 2014 he was diagnosed with throat cancer, which was cured after years of treatment. But in January 2021 he said he had been diagnosed with rectal cancer the previous year. In June 2022, he wrote in an essay that the cancer had spread despite multiple operations and was now Stage 4.

☆ With Tesla battery packs and largest hydrogen tank in Japan, Panasonic tests a factory of the future
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Tim Hornyak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

As a bullet train speeds by in the background, a liquid hydrogen tank towers over solar panels and hydrogen fuel cells at Panasonic's Kusatsu plant in Japan. Combined with a Tesla Megapack storage battery, the hydrogen and solar can deliver enough electricity to power the site's Ene-Farm fuel cell factory. As bullet trains whiz by at 285 kilometers per hour, Panasonic's Norihiko Kawamura looks over Japan's tallest hydrogen storage tank. The 14-meter structure looms over the Tokaido Shinkansen Line tracks outside the ancient capital of Kyoto, as well as a large array of solar panels, hydrogen fuel cells and Tesla Megapack storage batteries. The power sources can generate enough juice to run part of the manufacturing site using renewable energy only.

☆ Keeping up with the Morohoshis: Buying a bomb shelter in the Tokyo suburbs
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Rocky Swift | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/7] Megumi Morohoshi, a Japanese mother of three, poses for a photo inside her family's newly installed bomb shelter in Saitama, Japan December 5, 2022. But the invasion of Ukraine followed by a barrage of North Korean missiles convinced her the threat was urgent. And the following month an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) landed just 200 km (130 miles) from the northwestern coast. The shelters, custom-built at Nao's factory in Ibaraki prefecture, north of Tokyo, cost 6 million yen ($44,000) before installation expenses. Morohoshi's unit, delivered late last month, is an austere white box with "CRISIS-01" emblazoned on the side, with external cameras mounted on it.

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