Plastics have become an indispensable part of our lives as they are light, strong and cheap. However, they are currently becoming a major problem: for example, when they flow into the seas and elsewhere as waste they do not decompose, and negatively affect marine life. What can be done to resolve this “plastic waste problem”?
We have made this webpage with a text summary of the exhibition panels as a viewing assistance for those who need it.


Zone 1 title: This much plastic trash!?

Whether it’s for PET bottles, disposable shopping bags or something else, plastics are used in large quantities for wrapping or packaging, and are then thrown away. Japanese people generate about 32 kg of plastic waste per person per year, in the form of containers and packaging. This object was created by assembling 32 kilograms of that waste.
After the exhibition ends it will be recycled; some of it will be used to generate energy.


Zone 2 title: Plastic everywhere!?

Why are plastics used in such large quantities in the first place? Where does plastic waste come from? What sort of impact does it have on the environment and on us? Let’s delve into the reasons for and background to why plastic waste is now becoming a major problem worldwide.
Content assembled with the assistance of Department of Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology Professor Dr. Hideshige Takada


Zone 2 - Panel 1: How plastics support our society

Plastics are used in a variety of lifestyle settings. Plastics are materials that are artificially produced, primarily from petroleum. Generally, their characteristics include being lightweight, strong and water-repellant. Plastics can be made into many shapes and a range of qualities can be added to them. This is why they are used in a variety of lifestyle settings.
Plastics are very adaptable materials, and the secret to this ability to change their characteristics lies in their structure, in which molecules are strung together like a chain.

Panel 1 - Column: If we take a look at plastics at the molecular level...

Plastics possess an entwined structure where identically shaped molecules are linked together in a regular pattern, like a chain. By changing the shape of the linked molecules, it is possible to create plastics with various properties.


Zone 2 - Panel 2: How lots of plastic become environmental pollution

Plastics are produced in large quantities and discarded in large quantities. Those quantities continue to increase every year – 400 million tons of plastic were produced worldwide in 2015, and 300 million tons were discarded. Plastics that wind up as waste and are not disposed of correctly flow from the human society into the seas, rivers and elsewhere. Much of that waste does not degrade, and as it continues to build up, it is triggering environmental problems.


Zone 2 - Panel3: How plastics threaten marine life

Plastic bags and nets entangle turtles, seabirds and other living things and hinder their movement, causing them to suffocate and die. They may also mistakenly eat plastic waste and then die from clogged digestive tracts and starvation.
Plastics are disintegrating into tiny pieces known as microplastics, which are dispersing everywhere. These microplastics are having a negative impact on all living things, even down to small organisms like plankton. According to one report, two-thirds of the marine fish species investigated thus far were found to have ingested plastic debris.


Zone 2 - Panel4 : How plastics may affect our health

Microplastics are entering our bodies through breathing, eating and drinking. Plastics are being found not only in feces but also in blood and internal organs. The health impacts of these microplastics on our bodies are currently being studied. Furthermore, one noted problem is that in addition to the plastics themselves, the chemical additives they contain include substances that are harmful to the human body.
It is being reported that these chemical substances are building up within the bodies of marine life via microplastics through the food chain. Plus, eating those sea and fresh water life are a potential health risk.


Zone 2 - Panel5: How to solve plastic problems: lots of “R’s”

What can we do to get rid of plastic waste? As long as the plastics that we have been using and discarding in large quantities remain in the natural environment without degrading, the problem will not be resolved. Many “R’s” are being proposed as ways of dealing with the problem going forward.
It is important to “reduce” the volume of newly made plastics so we can reduce plastic waste. One way to do that is halting the use of single-use plastics, and “reusing” a single plastic product repeatedly for a long time. Another way is “replacing” plastics by making products with materials that can be safely released the natural environment. There are also other options, including “refusing” to use plastic products in situations where we do not need them.
Additionally, exercising ingenuity when producing plastics to ensure that the smallest quantities possible are produced, and “recycling” by collecting used plastics and reusing them, will also help to ensure the overall volume of plastics decreases.


Zone 3 title: A plastic waste free Earth!?

Some people have begun working toward resolving the plastic problem. Here, we introduce five people working on the front lines of businesses that are connected to all of us through products and services. Join them in considering ways to resolve the problem of plastic waste too!


Zone 3 - Panel 1: Towards a circular economy for all resources, beginning with clothes!

Approximately 70% of the textile fibers we use are composed of plastics known as synthetic fibers. Many discarded clothes are incinerated or landfilled, but if mechanisms such as recycling are put in place they can be made into resources again.

Michihiko Iwamoto (JEPLAN, INC.)

We are undertaking a project known as BRING, in which we collect used and discarded clothes and turn them into resources. Currently we are collecting clothes at more than 4,000 locations nationwide. Of the clothes we gather, those that can still be worn are reused, and those that are no longer wearable are separated according to the material and recycled. We use a special chemical recycling technology we developed ourselves to recycle 100% polyester clothing. We break the polyester down on a molecular level, remove any contaminations and then regenerate polyester using the resulting material. This recycled polyester is almost the same quality as polyester made from petroleum. We use this recycled polyester to make clothes that that will last for a long time.
Our collection boxes have pictures of bees on them. This evokes image of creating new resources by collecting clothes, just as bees gather nectar. We want to make this an opportunity for people to consider “the ways we interact with clothes” and “clothes’ (resources’) lifecycle,” through a mechanism in which “clothes are collected and recycled, and return as new clothes again.”

Question

What things would you want to keep in circulation? Why?


Zone 3 - Panel 2: Towards a “waste-free future” with a fun style of shopping!

Products come with a large amount of plastic containers or packaging. It is possible to realize a lifestyle that reduces plastic waste by changing how we sell things and how we buy them.

Yukiko Takahashi (Package-free shop Nono)

We run a package-free shop in Mitaka City, Tokyo where consumers can buy local food ingredients and everyday goods, in the quantities they actually need. At mainstream supermarkets, rice is sold in fixed weights such as 5 kilograms or 10 kilograms, wrapped in plastic or other material. At our store, we sell rice by having our customers bring along their own containers to fill them with only the amount of rice they want. We also recommend package-free shops to, for example, people who live alone and cannot use up a whole bottle of soy sauce. We aim to be a store that is kind to both people and the environment, by reducing not only plastic waste, but also waste of food and money.
In addition to rice and seasonings, the store also handles a variety of ingredients, including dry goods and spices. When we explain to customers about the products and how to weigh them to determine the price, it often turns into a lively conversation. We explain how we choose the foods and ingredients, and talk about how it is indeed more convenient to use plastics, at times. It is our hope that through those conversations, we can search for a new lifestyle together.

Question

What kind of things would you (not) like to buy in a package-free shop?


Zone 3 - Panel 3: Towards a circular economy for plastics so they do not end up as waste!

You can reduce plastic waste by using refill packs, but not to zero. Reducing waste further requires development of new technologies and new mechanisms.

Keiji Seto (Kao Corporation)

We are a chemical company that makes detergents, shampoos and similar products. We have reduced a lot of plastic waste by selling refill packs that consume fewer materials compared, to bottles, so customers can just refill bottles they already have. Currently, we are studying whether it is possible to recycle these refill packs. Refill packs can also be made into raw material for plastics – known as pellets – by washing them and finely breaking them down, then melting and solidifying them. If the resulting material is melted once again and thinly stretched out, it can be made into the new refill packs.
However, there are also challenges. Refill packs are made by combining various types of plastics to make them resistant to moisture, light, and other factors. Refill packs that have been remade by melting and then solidifying all these plastics together end up providing reduced performance. Additionally, because the original colors are blended together during the melting phase the recycled packs end up taking up an overall greenish color. And the problems are not just technical – will it be an issue to convince customers to separate their refill packs for collection as an extra waste stream?

Question

What do you think can be done to collect lots of things that tend to be thrown away?


Zone 3 - Panel 4: Towards a future where all plastic waste is removed from the environment!

A large amount of discarded plastic waste remains in the natural environment, including the oceans. It is not enough just to reduce waste – the problem will not end until this discarded waste has also been recovered.

Akiko Tsuchiya (Pirika, Inc.)

We are a company that was set up to attempt to resolve environmental problems with science and technology. Our aim is a world in which more waste is collected from, than leached into nature by 2040. We have created a system that utilizes A.I. to study where waste is ending up and in what quantities, thus making it possible to plan cleanup actions efficiently. We have studied how microplastics are actually leaching into the environment, leading to action to reduce plastic waste by identifying its causes.
Pirika, a litter collection social media platform, was created with the goal of making picking up litter enjoyable. Through a smartphone app, users can post records of the litter they have picked up themselves, or send “thank you” messages to other users. Doing something because it is fun is more likely to engage a larger number of people than doing something just because it should be done. Already, a cumulative total of more than 200 million pieces of litter has been picked up in over 100 countries and regions.

Question

What kind of litter collection would you enjoy?


Zone 3 - Panel5 : Towards a future where biodegradable materials are commonplace!

One problem with plastic waste is that it does not decompose and stays around forever. It may be possible to reduce impacts on living things if biodegradable materials, that can serve as an alternative to plastics, become widely adopted.

Kazushi Nakatani (KANEKA CORPORATION)

We have developed a plant-based, biodegradable material that replaces plastics. Like plastics, it is a material whose shape can be changed by applying heat, to make it into various products. “Biodegradable” means that microorganisms in the soil can break down this material to carbon dioxide and water over time, just as wood rots when left in the soil for a long time. Normally, plastics do not biodegrade in the natural world, which is a problem. The biodegradable material that we have created will break down naturally, not only in the soil, but in the sea as well.
My job is to adjust the hardness and other qualities of this material according to the purpose, to make spoons and straws. There are undoubtedly many situations where the global environment could be prioritized by using our biodegradable material, but I think there are also situations where the priority is on ease of use, so other plastics should be used. Good for the environment, or ease of use? We want to consider what should have priority, together with our customers.

Question

What do you think are things that pose problems if they are not made of plastic? Why?