Japan Land Ministry to Disclose Soil Pollution Data

Tokyo, April 12 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism plans to disclose data on soil
pollution levels in specific areas on its Web site as early as this year,
according to ministry sources.
The move is designed to preempt trouble and make land transactions
smoother, the sources said. Individuals and real estate companies will be
able to know the contamination risks of the land they plan to buy.
The ministry will set up a database containing various land-related
information gathered by the national and local governments in the areas
designated by law or ordinance as needing measures against soil
contamination, the sources said.
It will make public land use histories on a national map based on
data, such as those of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan. The
information will show whether a factory previously sat on the land in
question.
The ministry is also considering disclosing such information as
arsenic and other toxic substances that are naturally contained in layers of
earth as well as groundwater conditions on surveys.
Social interest in soil pollution has been increasing. The revised
Soil Contamination Countermeasures Act, designed to enhance measures against
health-related problems, took effect on April 1.

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