Tokyo Embraces Renewable Energy

Renewable energy has a bright future in Japan’s largest city. On Monday, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government issued its Renewable Energy Strategy in an attempt to go beyond the level of pilot projects and increase renewable energy use in the city to 20 percent of all energy supplies by the year 2020.

Tokyo’s Bureau of Environment says this target is proposed “from the view point of being in line with other advanced countries and regions on renewable energy use to avoid serious future effects of global warming.”

..The government has installed several pilot projects – wind generators in the Tokyo waterfront area, and a water treatment plant that uses one of Japan’s largest solar generators.

..Solar energy’s installed capacity is expected to reach 5,000 megawatt (MW) by 2010 in Japan as a whole, while the targets for wind power and geothermal energy are 300 MW and 1,000 MW, respectively. As a volcanic island country, Japan has significant potential for geothermal electricity generation. However, potential sites are difficult to develop, because almost all are located in National Parks.

ENS