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Tokyo Metropolitan

Environmental Master Plan

 

Tokyo has acclaimed the goal of becoming the leading city in terms of environmental standards. The city strives to fight against pollution in order to enhance sustainability in its metropolis. They have and still hold many campaigns to enforce the importance of reducing pollution and to tackle energy-saving tactics for a more sustainable city. In doing so, the Tokyo Metropolitan Environmental Master Plan provides some mechanisms for promoting sustainable urban planning:

 

  • Promote different types of projects that involve citizens and regional communities participation.

  • Collaborate with different cities around the world and in Asia to share information, knowledge, and technology to compose solutions to the environmental issues.

  • Develop human resources with experiences in a global perspective

  • Promote development of the latest technology

  • Strengthen surveys and research [1]

 

Aside from the environmental master plan, Tokyo has also established a few policy initiatives and plans that targets CO2 reduction and expanding renewable energy such as  the Carbon Minus Tokyo 10 Years Project (2007) and the Renewable Energy Strategy (2006). The ten years project set out a list of 8 goals to achieve in the next ten years. It aims to recover the beauty and greenery of Tokyo and to primarily put Tokyo in first place as the leading city with the least environmental load in the world. As Tokyo consumes more and more energy, Tokyo Metropolitan Government also developed The Renewable Energy Strategy to increase the ratio of renewable to the total energy consumed to about 20% by 2020 [2].

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Tokyo continues to hold campaigns to enhance sustainability. One case of this is the “No Diesel Strategy” Campaign Since 1999. This is one of the mechanisms to promoting sustainable planning by promoting projects that involves citizens.

 

Tokyo failed to meet the Environmental Quality Standards after the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG)  had already took measures to reduce significant amounts of carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide pollutants. This was a reaction to the impacts on health of the citizens. In order to meet these standards, the “No Diesel Strategy” campaign formed between residents and businesses in order to discuss ways to reduce more amounts of pollutants [2]. The collaboration of ideas between the residents and businesses formed the following five measures:

 

  • No diesel vehicles to be driven, sold, or bought in TMG jurisdiction

  • Obligation to replace commercial diesel vehicles with an alternative gasoline vehicle

  • Development of an exhaust gas purifying device and obligation to install it on diesel vehicles

  • Correction of the preferable tax rate on diesel fuel

  • Early development of vehicles meeting the new long-term regulations

References:

 

[1] "Tokyo Metropolitan Environmental Master Plan." March 1, 2008. Accessed February 21, 2015.

 

[2] Okata, Junichiro, and Murayama, Akito. "Tokyo's Urban Growth, Urban Form and Sustainability." Accessed February 11, 2015.

 

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