More efficient use of resources and better waste policies could boost the economy as well as reaping manifold environmental benefits, according to an inaugural white paper on waste-reduction approved by the Cabinet on Tuesday.
The report features new research suggesting that more efficient use of energy and resources, allied to a jump in the rate of recycling, will lead to a drop in the aggregate amount of waste produced by the nation.
This would reduce waste processing fees by a quarter, trim greenhouse gas emissions and could ultimately boost gross domestic product by 6 trillion yen beyond business-as-usual projections to 637 trillion yen in 2010, according to the document.