AEMS: AEMS Database

Many developing countries in Asia face challenges in providing clean drinking water and safe sanitation to all their people. Japan experienced similar situation when it rushed into economic development four decades ago. Untreated discharges from factories and homes polluted the rivers and lakes became so contaminated that even mosquito could not survive. The Minamata Disease and other illnesses caused by polluted water were major topics in the 1960s and 1970s, which raised awareness among the people and companies.

Stricter regulation and penalties on industrial waste water discharges forced Japanese industry to treat and purify waste water. These also spurred development of water disposal technologies. Meanwhile, households started using soap instead of chemical detergents. This originated in the Biwa Lake area, Japan's largest lake, to prevent the lake from eutrophication.

Both people and factories learned that controlling pollution at the sources is the best way of cleaning water. Freshwater fish slowly returned to the Tama river in the Tokyo Metropolitan area. But there are still problems like eutrophication of lakes, which shows how hard it is to restore aquatic ecosystems once polluted.