Citizens' groups urged the government on Wednesday to revise a home appliances recycling law that will go into effect Saturday, and called for manufacturers to be compelled to include recycling costs in the prices of their products.
Just days before the legislation goes into effect, the Consumers Union of Japan and other nongovernment organizations slammed it as being riddled with loopholes and called for manufacturers to shoulder the financial burden of recycling appliances, instead of consumers.
"Only when manufacturers accept financial responsibility for the disposal and recycling of their products will they begin to consider how to make products that are more environmentally friendly and easier to recycle," said Keiko Mishima, of the Consumers Union of Japan.
Experts affiliated with municipalities and participating in the event took a more moderate approach, lauding the principles underlying the law.
They voiced concern, however, that forcing consumers to pay for the recycling of a product when they dispose of it would lead to a surge in illegal dumping.
NGO members who took part in Wednesday's gathering will petition the government today, calling for early revisions to the law in an effort to encourage reuse above and beyond recycling, as well as the inclusion of other electrical home appliances.
The Home Appliance Recycling Law, which will go into effect Saturday, covers televisions, refrigerators, air conditioners and washing machines.