Number of waste incineration facilities Japan FY 2013-2022

In the fiscal year 2022, there were approximately 1.16 thousand waste incineration plants in Japan. Even though the number of waste incineration plants has decreased continuously since fiscal 2013, incineration remains the most widely used waste treatment method. 

Waste management in Japan

Most of the waste collected in Japan is processed in incineration or recycling facilities or is disposed of at landfills. Plastic, paper, PET bottles, aluminum, and glass are collected separately to be recycled. While the rate of recycled plastic waste increased up to over 80 percent, the recycling rate of Japan's total waste has remained at around 20 percent throughout the past decade. Despite the decreasing amount of municipal waste disposed at landfills, Japan is facing a shortage of landfill sites as the remaining capacity of landfill sites for final waste disposal is shrinking.

Waste incineration in Japan

With an incineration rate of municipal waste of over 70 percent, incineration is the leading waste treatment method in Japan, as it can easily reduce the volume of waste. Thermal recycling was the main method to recycle plastic waste. With this method, the waste is incinerated to generate energy. Despite the filtering technologies, which avoids the release of huge amounts of fumes, the incineration process produces greenhouse gases that contribute to air pollution and climate change.