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June 22, 2026
 

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POLLUTION

In the fiscal year that began in April, Tepco plans to release a total of about 62,400 tons of treated water in eight rounds.
BUSINESS
Jun 20, 2026
Tepco ends second round of fiscal 2026 treated water release
In the just ended round, about 7,900 tons of water containing small amounts of radioactive tritium was discharged.
International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Grossi will visit the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings nuclear plant in Fukushima Prefecture to conduct additional monitoring of treated water being discharged into the ocean.
JAPAN
Jun 17, 2026
Nuclear watchdog chief to visit Japan to monitor Fukushima treated water
International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Grossi will monitor the discharge of water containing small amounts of radioactive tritium.
Fishing boats are docked along the Mekong River in Chiang Saen, northern Thailand's Chiang Rai province on June 4. Thailand's pollution control department said in April it had found arsenic concentrations of up to 296 milligrams per kilogram in sediment near Chiang Saen ¡ª more than nine times the level considered dangerous for aquatic life.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 16, 2026
Poorest on front line as arsenic hits nine times danger level in Mekong River
Doctors have found elevated levels of toxic arsenic in those who work on the river, which passes through China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Critics argue the Trump administration is using foreign pollution as a justification to relax smog regulations, potentially worsening air quality and public health in U.S. cities.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 3, 2026
Blaming Asia and Mexico for U.S. pollution is absurd
President Donald Trump¡¯s ¡°Environmental Protection Agency,¡± a name growing more ironic by the day, is giving polluters some wiggle room.
Royal Australian Air Force firefighters extinguish a demonstration fire using fluorine-free foam at RAAF Base Amberley in 2021. The Australian government said on May 28 that it had launched a $1.43 billion legal action against U.S. consumer goods giant 3M over the contamination of military bases that used firefighting foam containing so-called forever chemicals.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 28, 2026
Australia sues 3M over ¡®forever chemical¡¯ contamination near military bases
Canberra is seeking damages to recover the cost of managing environmental contamination at 28 military bases from per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
A production line at a Nippon Steel plate rolling mill in Kimitsu, Chiba Prefecture, in May 2025.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
May 17, 2026
Japan¡¯s new emissions trading program: Key climate tool or paper tiger?
While climate advocates welcome emissions trading in Japan, there are concerns that the program lacks ambition.
Dumplings at Hung Ming-he¡¯s food stall at the Xizhou Public Market, one of the oldest traditional food markets in Taipei, on April 8.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 11, 2026
Taiwan¡¯s plastic habit collides with shortages caused by a faraway war
Some producers have turned to the U.S., while others have sourced plastic goods from China, where many Taiwanese manufacturers have long-standing relationships.
A man collects waste at the Suwung landfill in Denpasar, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, on April 17.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 6, 2026
Bali drowning in trash after landfill closed
The government aims to set up several waste-to-energy projects, including one in Bali that could process about 1,200 tons of waste daily, but these could take years to come online.
Environment Minister Hirotaka Ishihara speaks during a meeting with members of the Minamata disease victims organization held Thursday in Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture.
JAPAN
May 1, 2026
Decades later, the dispute over Minamata disease remains unresolved
Victims urge the government and the chemical firm whose wastewater discharges caused the neurological disorder to properly take responsibility.
Yoshihiro Yamashita (second from the right), head of the Minamata Disease Victims and Supporters' Association, speaks at a meeting with Environment Minister Hirotaka Ishihara on Thursday in the city of Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture.
JAPAN
Apr 30, 2026
Japan to begin Minamata disease survey as early as this year
The survey on residents of the Shiranui Sea coast in Kumamoto and Kagoshima prefectures will be conducted for the first time under a special law that took effect in 2009.
While climate-change skeptics downplay the issue, earlier blooming cherry trees in Washington and Kyoto serve as visible indicators of the climate crisis, driven by global warming.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 28, 2026
Cherry blossoms are proof of a planet going awry
It was the seventh consecutive year in which the trees flowered earlier than their 20-year average.
Dunes of low-grade coal are seen near a coal mine in Ruzhou, in China's Henan province, in 2021.
BUSINESS
Apr 20, 2026
China revives coal-to-gas projects as energy security frays
The government is looking to tap cheap domestic coal to limit its exposure to natural gas imports.
Farmers separate wheat grains from husks at a farm on the outskirts of Varanasi, India, on Tuesday.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Apr 15, 2026
India¡¯s green fuel plans collide with farmers¡¯ water fears
India, which imports 80% of its oil and gas, has made ethanol central to its clean energy plans and, as war in the Mideast impacts the price and supply of oil, its energy security.
Beth Gutzler views air quality data on the AirWatchSTL website on a laptop in Florissant, Missouri, in February. Last year, metro St. Louis residents had "good" air to breathe during only one-third of the days of the year.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Apr 10, 2026
How the AI boom derailed clean?air efforts in one of America¡¯s most polluted cities
Trump¡¯s environmental rollbacks in support of AI mark ?a reversal in U.S. policy and have proven painful for America¡¯s clean air activists.
A heavily polluted day in Pai, Thailand, on Wednesday. Seasonal agricultural burning, forest fires and weather patterns produce an annual pollution season across much of Southeast Asia, but parts of northern Thailand are seeing haze that even hardened locals say is exceptional.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Apr 3, 2026
Blood clots and burning eyes as pollution chokes north Thailand
The city of Chiang Mai has regularly topped the IQAir monitor website¡¯s most polluted big cities list this week, with the situation even worse in the backpacker destination of Pai.
Scientists look at footage of old munitions on the seabed near northern Germany's Kiel Bay, aboard the scientific research vessel Alkor, belonging to the Kiel-based GEOMAR oceanographic research center.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 30, 2026
Germany¡¯s WWII munitions a toxic legacy on Baltic Sea floor
Scientists warn that rockets, artillery shells and bombs will release contaminants into the marine environment as salt water corrodes their metal casings.
Air pollution shrouds electricity towers in New Delhi, India.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Mar 28, 2026
A decade of global climate caution is sealed by India¡¯s wary goals
India¡¯s new plans extend the nation¡¯s focus on lowering emissions intensity rather than prescribe absolute cuts in greenhouse gases.
Water utilities will be required to conduct PFAS tests every three months in principle under new tap water quality standards that will take effect next month.
JAPAN
Mar 23, 2026
Japan to mandate inspections for PFAS in water from April
The Environment Ministry aims to assess PFAS concentrations in water supplies nationwide.
The U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air station in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture. Unidentified white foam has appeared from maintenance holes near the base.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 16, 2026
Unidentified foam near U.S. military bases in Okinawa raises PFAS concerns
A civic group has asked for on-site investigations of U.S. bases for possible leaks but the U.S. military has turned down the request.
Smoke rises from the direction of an energy installation in the Gulf emirate of Fujairah on Saturday.
ENVIRONMENT
Mar 15, 2026
Toxic pollution from Iran war will spread and last for decades
Missiles and bombs contain heavy metals and other toxic pollutants, which are released into the air, soil and water lingering often for decades and posing health risks.
Japan to raise visa fees for foreign nationals in first revision in 48 years
Tourists from abroad wearing kimonos pose for a souvenir photo with cherry blossoms in the city of Kyoto in March.
Japan to allow local governments to ban private lodging
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in March. Various cities around the world have cracked down on private lodgings, such as in Barcelona where the city is attempting to eradicate all short-stay apartments by 2028.
Beyond crabs and dinos: Japan¡¯s least-touristed region rethinks its appeal
Fukui Prefecture is home to 80% of Japan¡¯s dinosaur fossil discoveries, yet it is routinely one of the least-visited regions in the country.
Japan¡¯s AI goldrush faces backlash as data centers sprout up in urban areas
Erin and Munekazu Tanikawa look out from their balcony at the construction site of a planned 52-meter-tall data center that would dominate their surroundings, in the city of Inzai, Chiba Prefecture, last month.
Japanese mother sues state over teen¡¯s ¡®hostage justice¡¯ death
A lawyer representing the mother (left, blurred for privacy reasons) of a girl who died after being detained speaks during a news conference in Kobe on Wednesday.
Japan¡¯s AI goldrush faces backlash as data centers sprout up in urban areas
Erin and Munekazu Tanikawa look out from their balcony at the construction site of a planned 52-meter-tall data center that would dominate their surroundings, in the city of Inzai, Chiba Prefecture, last month.
Distracted walkers in Japan are a real safety risk. My mother knows firsthand.
In Tokyo and other major Japanese cities, <i>aruki-sumaho</i> ¡ª walking while using a smartphone ¡ª has become a persistent safety concern as commuters navigate crowded stations and sidewalks while focused on their devices.
Japan¡¯s World Cup picture comes into focus after rout of Tunisia
Japan&#039;s Ko Itakura clears the ball during the first half against Tunisia during a Group F match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Monterrey, Mexico, on Saturday.
Can automation offset Japan¡¯s military manpower shortage?
A Ground Self-Defense Force uncrewed ground vehicle takes part in a live-fire military exercise at the Higashi Fuji Training Field in Shizuoka Prefecture on May 7.
Heading into its second year, AUBL aims to get Japan more involved
Hakuoh University&#039;s Rento Saito attempts a shot during an Asian University Basketball League contest.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Social camouflaging can help neurodivergent people navigate social situations, but researchers say the effort often comes with significant emotional and mental strain.
The challenge of being neurodivergent in Japan¡¯s culture of conformity
By Tomoko Otake

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