Japan CP Supplement – GJPP 7wkjuniors
2014
Solvency
Algae Biofuels
Solvency
Japan already has the tech and funding as a result of the Fukushima disaster
FIS 12 (Fish Information & Services, recognized as the standard for global seafood industry information
on the Internet,“Govt will fund algae biofuels programme,”9/4/12,
http://www.fis.com/fis/worldnews/worldnews.asp?l=e&country=0&special=&monthyear=&day=&id=55
102&ndb=1&df=0)//KJZ
OriginOil, Inc has announced that its research partner in Japan will receive government funding for an
ambitious algae biofuel programme to provide renewable fuels and help eliminate radioactive materials,
for which it intends to use OriginOil algae harvesting technology. Dr Takaaki Maekawa, president of the Research
Institute of Tsukuba Bio-tech (RITB) and Professor Emeritus at Tsukuba University near Tokyo, has confirmed receiving the grant approval from
the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) to build 1-ac sites to prove biofuels production and toxic remediation using algae. Dr
Maekawa has made plans to employ OriginOil algae harvesting technology in programmes funded by this grant and by private investors,
potentially expanding to 100 sites or more. In
the wake of the Fukushima disaster, the Japanese government has
made the development of renewable energy a top budgetary priority. The Fiscal Year 2013 budget has
placed no limit on reconstruction expenses following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Algae
production has the unique potential to both provide renewable fuels and also help eliminate radioactive
materials from contaminated lands.
Private support in Japan for biofuels now
Deshimaru et al 14 (SACHIKO DESHIMARU, KOHEI FUJIMURA and OU NIINUMA, Nikkei Asian review
staff writers, “Research on algae-based biofuels takes off in Japan” June 27, 2014,
http://asia.nikkei.com/print/article/37882)
Japanese companies are racing to develop algae-based fuels as a way to help to curb greenhouse gas
emissions and to replace conventional biofuels made from corn and sugar cane. Isuzu Motors and the bioventure firm Euglena said on June 25 that they would start operating bus services using oil extracted from euglenophyceae. This will be
the first attempt in Japan at a continued use of the green algae-based biofuel, a step closer to
commercializing what can be called "cultivable resources." Japan's bio venture firm Euglena uses a strain
of green algae, euglenophyceae, to produce biofuel. "We would like to create a fuel that uses not even a
single drop of petroleum," Euglena President Mitsuru Izumo said at a joint press conference with Isuzu.
Next month, the two companies will begin to use this newly developed biofuel for a shuttle bus service
connecting Isuzu's Fujisawa plant and the nearest railway station, both in Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. The
fuel is unique in that it mixes light oil with up to 5% euglenophyceae-based oil. The two companies are aiming to develop a fuel fully made from
euglenophyceae by 2018. More companies on
board Biofuels made from plants and other materials absorb
carbon dioxide as they grow, so they do not increase the net total of CO2 in the air when they are
burned. As such, there has been growing demand for biofuels as a way to fight global warming.
Currently, corn and sugar cane are used as the main sources of biofuels, which could send grain prices
higher. To prevent the depletion of such food resources, green algae such as euglenophyceae are drawing
much attention from businesses as an alternative biofuel source. These companies extract oil content accumulated
from photosynthesis in the algae. Experts say that algae's oil production per unit area is as much as 700 times more than that of corn, so algaebased fuel is often characterized as a dream resource that can be cultured. Euglena was founded as a bioventure company in 2005. JX Nippon
Oil & Energy and Hitachi have done joint research with the venture firm to cultivate such biofuels. Moreover, the Japanese airline operator ANA
Holdings has extended financial assistance to Euglena, and as such, a number of big companies are placing high hopes on algae's potential.
Meanwhile, other companies are also making developments in biofuel production. Heavy electric machinery maker IHI is cultivating a minute
algae strain, called "Enomoto algae," at its dedicated facility next to its gigantic factory for nuclear power-related products in the Keihin
Industrial Zone in Kanagawa Prefecture. It is seen as a favored project by IHI President Tamotsu Saito, and the company has selected candidate
sites for cultivating this particular type of algae. Auto parts maker Denso is doing research on another strain of algae, while Electric Power
Development, better known as J-Power, and plant engineering firm JGC jointly started algae culture tests in April. IHI
estimates that
demand for algae-based fuels will likely be worth 800 billion yen ($7.78 billion) a year by 2020, and such
fuels will likely be used mainly for aircraft as other energy sources, such as battery and hydrogen fuel,
cannot easily replace jet fuel. Much to do Japan has the third-largest level of daily petroleum
consumption in the world, after the U.S. and China, according to data by the U.K. oil and gas company
BP. Even so, Japan's oil self-sufficiency rate is less than 1%. Should these companies succeed in
generating algae-based fuel, this would help boost Japan's self-sufficiency rate. However, there remain some
major challenges. At its shareholders meeting on June 19, Denso's Executive Vice President Masahiko Miyaki addressed a shareholder by
saying, "We are still far from being able to drive a single truck (using algae-based fuel), and it is not easy." The biggest bottleneck is high
production costs. It costs 500 yen to 600 yen per liter using current technology, much higher than the pump price of around 167 yen per liter
for conventional gasoline, according to estimates by several companies.
Japanese companies are beginning to venture into biofuels
Eco-Business 11 (Eco- Buisness, environmental reporting, “A new Japanese venture to pursue mass
production of algae biofuel” 12 July, 2011 http://www.eco-business.com/news/a-new-japaneseventure-to-pursue-mass-production-of-algae-biofuel/
Three Japanese companies of IHI Corporation, a biotechnology venture Gene and Gene Technology (G&GT) based in Osaka Prefecture,
and the Neo-Morgan Laboratory Incorporated (NML) based in Kawasaki City announced July 7 that they would
establish a joint company to be engaged in research and development (R&D) of biofuel production using
algae. The new company will pursue the development of a mass production system using an algal
species that offers the largest fuel production capacity in the world. In the course of their growth, some
varieties of algae produce oil that can be used as fuel. R&D for the practical application of related technologies have
recently been carried out extensively in the United States and other countries. The algal species owned by G&GT is called “Enomoto Alga,” a
variety improved by Professor Taira Enomoto of Kobe University and other researchers. It grows through photosynthesis absorbing carbon
dioxide. It has the highest growth rate among all algal varieties that produce fuel, and multiplies in a month to an amount about 1,000 times
more than that achieved by the original species before improvement. The
joint company will also incorporate NML’s
experience in the industrial application of microorganisms as well as IHI’s design and construction
technologies of bio-plants, and carry out R&D activities such as trial operation of a low-cost culture
system, development of oil content separation and extraction methods, and further improvement of the
Enomoto Alga variety. The company plans to begin with culturing algae in an extent of several dozen
liters in the short term, and expand to several cubic meters in two years. The new company will be
called IHI NeoG Algae, and be capitalized at 260 million yen. IHI plans to invest 400 million yen including
the capital during the first two years.
Arctic Mapping
Solvency
The CP solves and fosters international collaboration
OPRF 12, Proposed by the Arctic Conference Japan to the Government (“Developing a Japan Policy towards the Arctic Ocean”, March
2012, http://www.nccj.or.jp/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Developing-a-Japan-Policy-towards-the-Arctic-Ocean-OPRF.pdf)//dodo
The government should strengthen the National Polar Research Institute to become a national and
international core of Arctic research. - The Antarctic Research Vessel “Shirase” should play a role in
international polar research, including the Arctic, as a research platform. - Collaboration in scientific research with Russia under a
science and technology consultation agreement should be promoted. Collaboration with Arctic states is
essential for Japanese researchers to carry out studies on utilization of and environmental protection of the
Arctic Ocean. As seen in the establishment of the Japan Consortium for Arctic Research in 2011, there is a growing interest in Arctic
research. The National Polar Research Institute, which has been playing a leading role in Antarctic research,
is expected to do the same for the Arctic. The government should develop the institute as a core of
Japanese Arctic research and to be a focal point for international collaboration . A research vessel in the
ice-covered Arctic Ocean would be a powerful tool for Arctic study and would be able to promote research cooperation with Arctic states.
Although it would be ideal ¡f Japan could build such a vessel, it seems unlikely in the current situation of difficult finances. A possible
alternative is the Shirase, which has currently used for Antarctic research only. The Shirase’s high ice-going performance is
internationally recognized. Considering the fact that ice-breaking research vessels in other countries are commonly utilized in both polar regions, it
would be practicable for the Shirase to sail in the Arctic as well if a reasonable operation scheme and necessary budget are
provided. Japan’s relations with Russia are much more important In the days of the global warming. The Russian Arctic has significant impacts on the forecast and
understanding of the climate, agriculture and fisheries of Japan. Japan and Asian regions do the similar impacts on the Russian ones, especially in the Russian Far
East. Japan-Russia science and technology collaboration would be crucial.
Japan has advanced ocean exploration and research tech
Kashiwabara 11 (Yashiro, staff writer for the Nikkei Weekly, “Institute sets out to solve Earth's
mysteries with high-tech ships,” 10/28/11, accessed from Lexis Nexis)//KJZ
A huge white ship 105 meters long greets you when you pass through the gates of the Yokosuka Headquarters of the Japan Agency for MarineEarth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC). It is the Yokosuka, which functions as the support ship for surveys of the deep-sea bottom by the
manned submersible Shinkai 6500. Back from survey work in the Tohoku region of northeastern Japan, the Shinkai 6500 sits inside the giant
hangar of the Yokosuka, under maintenance. The
kinds of studies that can be carried out by JAMSTEC's entire fleet of
research vessels have only grown in importance since the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11. One
JAMSTEC institute now in the spotlight is the Institute for Research on Earth Evolution (IFREE), which
seeks to unravel the mysteries of hugely energetic earth phenomena and answer questions like why
earthquakes happen and volcanoes erupt. IFREE is investigating the behavior of the plates that comprise the outermost layer of
our planet, as well as the structure of the thick mantle below these plates. Like no other With its unique fleet of research vessels
and exploratory equipment, IFREE is a peerless research organization. Among the vessels at its disposal
is the deep-sea research ship Kairei, which is equipped with sounding machines for seafloor topography
and subbottom profiling in trenches. In one mission in the waters of Kumano Nada off the Kii Peninsula, the institute used the
Kairei to collect details about splay fault branching of the continental plate at its boundary with the subducting ocean-side Philippine Plate. A
number of previously unknown undersea fault lines were discovered. And using the deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu, the institute drilled more
than 10 times in the Kumano Nada waters to a depth of nearly 1,600m, piercing directly into faults and obtaining core samples. In these
samples the fault surfaces were clearly visible, and by dating the rock above and below the fault the institute was able to determine that the
fault first became active 2 million years ago. Analysis of
the samples also yielded information about the internal
pressures and temperatures to which the plate has been subjected. The institute was making progress in these studies
when the March 11 earthquake struck. "The earthquake hit just when we were beginning to get a handle on the mysteries of the fault zone,"
said IFREE Research Director Mitsuhiro Toriumi, who was saddened by the turn of events. But IFREE wasted no time dispatching the Kairei to
the epicentral area of the earthquake to conduct soundings from March 15-31. Back to Tohoku When that data were compared with the survey
results from 1999, the institute determined that the plate in the vicinity of the hypocenter had moved southeastward by approximately 50m.
"In just one earthquake event the crust moved so much it was discernible from the boat," recalled research scientist Toshiya Fujiwara. IFREE
also conducted surveys of the region in July and August using the Shinkai 6500 and captured clear images of seabed fissures believed to have
been formed by the earthquake. Now the institute is also planning to drill in the area with the Chikyu. "We hope within several years to
ascertain what happened there in Tohoku. Because we are the ones with the research vessels, we naturally feel it our duty," Toriumi explained.
The institute's studies will do more than help explain the earthquake mechanism: They will also help
Japan prepare for the next big jolt. In the holes being drilled by the Chikyu, the institute plans to insert sensors that can be used to
monitor earthquake activity. IFREE is already collecting data from strain gauges and thermometers that were successfully put inside boreholes
last December. The next step is to link these and other devices to wireless transmitters so the readings can be monitored in real time. It is
hoped that this can provide direct signs of earthquake activity in the plates below the ocean and allow Japan to issue earthquake and tsunami
warnings sooner. The plates lie right below our feet, but they are a mystery, and the truth is that an earthquake could happen at any time
without warning. But the study of plate subduction zones is only one of the research themes at IFREE. Another focus of its research is the
mantle, the thick layer of the planet on which the thin crust rides. The Earth is approximately 6,400km in radius. The rocky crust layer is just 530km thick. The mantle, on the other hand, is some 3,000km thick and exhibits slow but complex patterns of convection flow. Other than the
fact that these movements can trigger earthquakes and volcanoes, little is known still about the true nature of the mantle and its properties.
Mantle-bound In the research carried out to date, analysis of variations in traveling speed of seismic waves has indirectly exposed the interior
structure of the planet, and the process of crust sinking down into the mantle has been clarified in some detail. Also, the Japanese
supercomputer known as the Earth Simulator has been used to model mantle convection. But it is only now that scientists can begin to
seriously consider direct sampling of mantle materials. "The rocks you can collect from land and oceans are transformed substances from
Earth's interior. If we can gain access to actual mantle material, we can investigate the state of these substances before any such
transformation has happened," explained a hopeful Toriumi. The
institute's Chikyu is presently the world's only research
vessel able to pursue such studies of the mantle. The ship is equipped with a riser-drilling system that
can go as deep as 7,000m straight down, below the seabed, passing through even the hard bedrock and
withstand the high temperatures and pressures of the deep-Earth environment. IFREE's goal with the
Chikyu is to drill down and reach the mantle in 2013. Study of the mantle samples recovered by the
Chikyu promises to shed light on the cycling of water and carbon throughout the entire planet. And by
analyzing the composition of mantle rocks, scientists will gain a better understanding of how the crust is
formed. Chikyu means Earth in Japanese, so the research ship truly will live up to its name by helping to
illuminate Earth sciences. Floating labs The IFREE research team for mantle studies includes not only scientists studying earthquakes
and the deformation of the Earth's crust, but also many chemists involved in such fields as element analysis, noted Toriumi. The large
deep-sea research vessels are the grand tools that enable the institute to investigate the mysteries of
the Earth. But solving those mysteries also requires isotopic determinations, ultrahigh-pressure
experiments and other diligent bench work in the laboratories on these ships. And that is where the staff who
date back 40 years to the predecessor of JAMSTEC play such an important role. "We owe a lot to the dedicated boat technicians who have
created an environment in which we can conduct challenging research," acknowledged Masataka Kinoshita, principle investigator for drilling in
seismogenic layers. Research at sea is dangerous, but good results do not come from playing it safe. Safety is important, but sometimes bold
decisions must be made, and that is something of which the command team for the submersible is fully aware. "They understand how precious
each session at sea is and the scientists sense they're on their side," noted Kinoshita. With so many unknowns still to uncover in the deep sea
and in the depths below that, the schedules for the Chikyu, the Shinkai 6500 and the rest of the IFREE research fleet are always busy..
Japan solves – expertise and political will
Ohnishi 13, assistant professor with the College of International Relations at Nihon University in Japan. He was a research fellow for the Policy Research Department at the Ocean
Policy Research Foundation (OPRF), where he worked on several Arctic research projects. He was a visiting researcher at both the Barents Institute in Norway (2008–2009) and the Åland Peace
Institute in Finland (2004–2005). His current research interest ranges from regional cooperation in the Nordic contexts to international politics in the Arctic. (Fujio,
“East Asia-Arctic
Relations: Boundary, Security, And International Politics. The Process of Formulating Japan’s Arctic Policy: From Involvement to Engagement”
November 2013, http://www.cigionline.org/sites/default/files/no1a.pdf)//dodo
The impact of climate change on the Arctic and the speed at which the ice has been melting in summer seasons
have been repeatedly reported by media in Japan. An incident that caused some alarm was Russia planting its national flag on the
seabed of the North Pole in August 2007. One of Japan’s national newspapers reported the event as the beginning of a “resource race” (Komaki
and Mizuno 2007). In short, the
impact of climate change, causing rapid ice melting, also affected the Japanese policymaking community, which began looking more carefully at the Arctic. Several government ministries
began making their agendas relevant to Arctic development. Intensive efforts were prompted by the Ministry
of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). Faced with the increasing effects of climate change in
the Arctic Ocean and their potential impact on Arctic terrestrial environments — as already observed in the
repeated breaking of records of the minimum extent of the Arctic ice cap — MEXT revitalized its Arctic research programs. For
example, in May 2011, the Japan Consortium for Arctic Environmental Research was founded as a platform for coordinating the Arctic research
activities of Japan. In June 2011, in the course of a governmental initiative for facilitating green innovation and environmentally friendly
technologies, MEXT also initiated
the Green Network of Excellence, under which the five-year Arctic Climate
Change Research Project was funded, managed by the NIPR and JAMSTEC. One can also see efforts by the MoFA. In line with
increasing prospects for the Arctic Council as the most relevant body for Arctic governance, in April 2009, Japan’s then Senior Vice Minister for
Foreign Affairs Seiko Hashimoto attended the Antarctic Treaty-Arctic Council Joint Meeting in Washington, DC, officially announcing Japan’s
application for permanent observer status in the Arctic Council. Since then, the Japanese government has been attending Arctic Council
meetings as an ad hoc observer. In line with its efforts, the
MoFA established the Arctic Task Force in September 2010 to
help identify Japanese interests in the Arctic. Through several bilateral meetings, the Japanese government requested the
support of Arctic states for the approval of Japan’s application for permanent observer status to the Arctic Council. On November 6, 2012,
Japan’s former Senior Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Shuji Kira attended a meeting between the Arctic Council’s Swedish chair and the
council’s observers and ad hoc observers in Stockholm, Sweden. In his statement, Vice Minister Kira asserted that Japan deserved permanent
observer status because of its active contribution to the activities under the Arctic Council, and assured the council that Japan would respect
the sovereignty of the member states, their sovereign rights and jurisdiction (Kira 2012). A more recent effort by the MoFA is the appointment
of Masuo Nishibayashi, ambassador of cultural exchange, to be concurrently appointed in charge of Arctic affairs (MoFA 2013). As a result of
these efforts, Japan
was admitted as an observer to the Arctic Council’s 8th Ministerial Meeting in Kiruna, Sweden. At the
meeting, Japanese Ambassador Nishibayashi said that the melting Arctic ice opened opportunities in the
region for both researchers and businesses, which increased the awareness of Japanese people (Pedersen
2013). Owing mainly to the potential impact of the opening of the NSR as a commercially viable shipping route between
East Asia and Europe, in August 2012, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Tourism (MLIT) set up a board in order
to examine the route’s feasibility and logistics for Japanese shipping companies, including ports in the northern
part of Japan. The MLIT gathers relevant information through its internal and external channels. The National Institute for Defense Studies
(NIDS) also conducted work in this area. In its annual report, the NIDS explains that Japan cannot stand outside future Arctic development, and
recommends that Japan build reliable relationships with the Arctic states (NIDS 2011, 83–85). Additionally,
in July 2012, a nonpartisan group of parliamentarians on Arctic security was formed. The chair of the group, Shinzo Abe,
has now become Japan’s prime minister.
Japan Econ IL
CP boosts the Japanese economy
Ohnishi 13, assistant professor with the College of International Relations at Nihon University in Japan. He was a research fellow for the Policy Research Department at the Ocean
Policy Research Foundation (OPRF), where he worked on several Arctic research projects. He was a visiting researcher at both the Barents Institute in Norway (2008–2009) and the Åland Peace
Institute in Finland (2004–2005). His current research interest ranges from regional cooperation in the Nordic contexts to international politics in the Arctic. (Fujio,
“East Asia-Arctic
Relations: Boundary, Security, And International Politics. The Process of Formulating Japan’s Arctic Policy: From Involvement to Engagement”
November 2013, http://www.cigionline.org/sites/default/files/no1a.pdf)//dodo
The ice-melting Arctic is producing many global issues, such as the escalation of global warming, a rise of sea
levels and a drastic overall impact on the global climate. It is crucial for Japan to deal with these issues
through the facilitation of Arctic research. At the same time, however, the changing Arctic environment offers the
potential to invigorate the Japanese economy . This circumstance encourages the Japanese government to formulate its Arctic policy
with a long-term perspective focussing on both opportunities and challenges (Ohnishi 2013, 46–48). Toward the formulation of such an Arctic policy, the following
three considerations are beneficial. The first consideration concerns the
relationship between scientific findings and economic
interests. As this paper shows, since the beginning of the 1990s, the Japanese scientific community has devoted efforts toward a better understanding of the
Arctic environment and the impact of climate change. However, this research has been conducted without being connected to the potential economic interests that
it holds for Japanese society. When the government formulates its Arctic policy, the
data and knowledge obtained from scientific
research should be strategically used for planning and promoting the long- term perspectives on the
economic benefits that Japan can draw from the Arctic. The second consideration should be a close investigation of the regional order in the Arctic and
its possible linkages with East Asian countries. As the Arctic Ocean is integrated with the global market, non-Arctic East Asian states such as China, South Korea and
Japan will advance their commitments in the Arctic, thus becoming more involved in Arctic issues. This means that international relations in the Arctic will affect
those in East Asia. The government needs to pay attention to this linked side effect between the Arctic and East Asia. The third consideration is about the attitude of
the government toward indigenous people in the Arctic. indigenous people are substantial stakeholders in Arctic affairs and hold informal but significant influence
on decisions made by regional institutions and governments in the Arctic. Their influence will be more apparent under the Canadian chairmanship of the Arctic
Council. Thus the Japanese government should make diplomatic efforts not only toward the Arctic states but also toward subnational actors such as indigenous
groups in the Arctic.
CP key to Japan’s economic security – energy resources
OPRF 12, Proposed by the Arctic Conference Japan to the Government (“Developing a Japan Policy towards the Arctic Ocean”, March
2012, http://www.nccj.or.jp/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Developing-a-Japan-Policy-towards-the-Arctic-Ocean-OPRF.pdf)//dodo
Energy supply from the Middle East is vulnerable in many ways. Hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic Ocean
have large potential as an alternative energy supply. The Government should consider the possibility of
developing and transporting natural resources in the Arctic Ocean, in particular Russian ones, and implement
relevant measures. Japan’s energy strategy should include use of hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic Ocean
as a new and important energy source. Current energy supply from the Middle East cannot be
guaranteed in the long term due to the unstable politics and economies in the region. Japan’s economic security demands to
ensure a complementary and/or supplementary energy supply. Arctic hydrocarbon resources have the
potential to be such a supply, and Russian ones will probably become a main supply in future. Due to the
poor infrastructure for Arctic shipping, icebreakers escorting would provide safety sailings even in summer when thin
and weak first-year sea ice would occasionally be encountered. The Government should take necessary measures to
increase Japan’s presence in resource development in the Arctic in parallel with Arctic commercial shipping, through
appropriate ways including strengthening Japan’s relationship with Russia.
Japan Security IL
A presence in the arctic is key to Japanese security – sea-lane defense & maritime
domain awareness
OPRF 12, Proposed by the Arctic Conference Japan to the Government (“Developing a Japan Policy towards the Arctic Ocean”, March
2012, http://www.nccj.or.jp/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Developing-a-Japan-Policy-towards-the-Arctic-Ocean-OPRF.pdf)//dodo
The opening of international seaways in the Arctic Ocean would have far-reaching impacts on Japan’s
defense and security. The establishment of a new sea-lane defense program is needed. There is an
urgent need for the Ministry of Defense to establish a defense strategy against possible military
operations in the Arctic Ocean. The opening of international seaways to and from the north-east Asia region through the Arctic
Ocean would require the establishment of a new sea-lane defense plan. To this end, Maritime Domain Awareness is essential
to monitor ships, including warships, in the waters of the sea-lanes. Besides the sea-lane defense, the
opening of international seaways in the Arctic Ocean would naturally have far-reaching impacts on
Japan’s defense and security. The importance of the Maritime Self-Defense Force in the Sea of Japan and the North-West Pacific
would be increased. However, the defense capability cannot be improved overnight. Like the long-range Arctic plan by the US Department of
Defense for 2030 onward, the government should prepare for military strategies and foreign countries’ warship operations in the Arctic Ocean.
Russia SOI NB/Japan SP IL
Japan and Russia will cooperate in the Arctic – empirics prove – the CP results in
increased Japanese soft power without triggering the link to the disad
Pourzitakis 14 (Stratos Pourzitakis, Correspondent for the Diplomat, “Japan and Russia: Arctic
Friends”, 2/1/2014, http://thediplomat.com/2014/02/japan-and-russia-arctic-friends/)
The Arctic region has moved to the center of world politics in 2014, siting high on the energy security
agenda of most East Asian countries, including China and Japan. The latter has recently been stepping up its efforts
to build a stronger foothold in the area. Those efforts have been given a boost recently by Tokyo’s discovery of a new friend with a prominent
role on the Arctic chessboard: Russia. A successful Japan-Russia rapprochement has the potential to serve as a game changer for both countries.¶ In September
2012, Arctic sea ice reached its lowest point ever. This has of course triggered very real fears about climate change, but it has also transformed the region into an
The Arctic is believed to contain 30 percent of the world’s undiscovered gas and 13 percent of
its undiscovered oil. At the same time, the Northern Sea Route through the Arctic offers alternative
passage for energy transportation, offering both energy importers and exporters the opportunity to
reduce their dependence on unstable waterways such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Strait of
Malacca.¶ Not surprisingly, Arctic littoral states and East Asian countries have been fixated on the
geopolitical merits of the region. In May 2013, Japan, China and South Korea were admitted as
permanent observers to the Arctic Council, enabling them to sit in on meetings and promote their own
Arctic strategies. Of these three countries, China has been particularly active in pursuing economic, political and scientific initiatives.¶ Not
withstanding its early engagement in the region, Japan is considered a latecomer to the Arctic race.
Although its involvement in the region dates back to the early 20th century, only recently has it adopted
a more comprehensive strategy. That Japan would have an interest in the Arctic should come as no
surprise, given its scarce natural resources and its reliance on imports for about 84 percent of its energy
needs. Japan is currently the world’s third largest oil consumer and importer and the world’s largest importer of liquefied natural gas. This dependency on
energy imports has only grown in the aftermath of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. As a result, Tokyo simply cannot ignore the vast
energy resources of the Arctic. In parallel, with one of the world’s largest merchant fleets, Japan can
derive tremendous benefits from the Northern Sea Route — also called the Northeast Passage — which
cuts the travel time from Hamburg to Yokohama by about 40 percent compared to the Suez route, with
fuel savings of 20 percent.¶ While taking care not to challenge the sovereignty regime of the Arctic,
Japan has been trying to increase its presence in the region. For instance, it has held frequent bilateral
talks with Arctic littoral states, and most particularly with Russia. Japan’s relations with Russia reached their lowest ebb in years
energy hotspot.
in November 2010, when then-President Dmitry Medvedev visited the disputed Kunashiri Island, but began to thaw following the election of President Vladimir
Putin. Both
sides have found reason to be concerned about the rise of China and have been seeking ways
to hedge against it. When the icebreaker Xue Long (Snow Dragon) became the first Chinese vessel to navigate the Northern Sea Route in 2012,
Moscow strongly supported Japan’s candidacy for observer status at the Arctic Council, ignoring China’s
similar bid. Moreover, in May 2013 Japanese energy company Inpex Corporation reached a deal with Russian oil giant Rosneft to jointly explore two Russian
oil fields. The same year Moscow championed Tokyo’s candidacy for the 2020 Olympic Games. ¶ Japan and Russia have also benefited from frequent high-level
contacts, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meeting with Putin on multiple occasions, including a visit by Abe to Moscow in April 2013, the first by a Japanese prime
minister in a decade. Also last
year, Japan and Russia held their first-ever “2+2” meeting, at which their foreign
and defense ministers discussed security cooperation. Although the meeting failed to make headlines, it
was a significant step, given that Japan has held similar meetings only with the United States and
Australia. For Russia, this was its first “2+2” meeting with an Asian country.¶ To be sure, Japan and Russia could hardly be
considered natural security partners. Issues such as the status of the Kuril Islands (known as the Northern Territories in Japan), the U.S.-Japan security alliance and
the two wars in 1904-1905 and again in 1945 still pose significant challenges to their partnership. Still, both
sides appear willing to cooperate,
anticipating considerable benefits from this relationship.¶ But what exactly can this romance bring to both sides? Through its
warming ties with Russia, Japan seeks to exploit the Arctic’s potential and to win support in standing up
to what it regards as China’s assertive policies. ¶ Working with Russia is a great opportunity for
Japan to strengthen ties with the most important player in the Arctic and gain leverage within
the Arctic Council. It will also give Japanese energy and maritime corporations and scientific
institutions valuable Arctic access. That in turn would help Tokyo diversify its energy suppliers
and its transportation routes. Meanwhile, Japanese ports will have a competitive advantage compared with rivals such as Singapore, Shanghai
and Hong Kong. Finally, working with Russian sailors and infrastructure workers who have experience operating in harsh weather conditions will be of great
assistance for Japanese companies.¶ Closer relations also offer benefits for Russia. As its strategic interests have shifted from Europe to Asia, Russia feels compelled
to hedge against China and establish strong partnerships with other countries in Asia. Although Beijing is Russia’s most important customer in East Asia, Moscow is
still keen to diversify its energy sales in East Asia, especially as the balance of needs tilts in favor of China. While Beijing has developed a wide network of energy
suppliers in the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia and the Asia-Pacific, Russia has constructed extensive energy infrastructure that services only China. This gives it a
strong incentive to expand its customer base to encompass additional East Asian countries. ¶ Moreover, despite the dependency of the Russian economy on energy
exports, the country lags behind its main competitors in the technology that is considered necessary for Arctic operations. Japanese know-how in energy extraction
Sino-Japanese tensions and more recently Sino-Russian
relations have been grabbing the lion’s share of attention of late, while the growing warmth of
Japan’s ties with Russia has been very much under the radar. If Moscow and Tokyo manage to overcome the admittedly
and maritime operations could be a vital aid to Russian firms. ¶
considerable impediments to their dialogue, they could profit in both the Arctic and East Asia, and perhaps nudge the balance of power back into their favor.
Aquaculture
Solvency
CP solves – Japan has aquaculture expertise
Makino 06 - Head of the Fisheries Management Group at the National Research Institute of Fisheries Science of the Fisheries Research
Agency of Japan. He specializes in fisheries and marine policy analysis and is the author of “Fisheries management in Japan: its institutional
features and case studies”, published in 2011 by Springer. He holds a M.Phil from Cambridge University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Kyoto
University. (Mitsutaku, “FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department”, February 1, 2006,
http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_japan/en)//d0d0
Commercial aquaculture production in Japan has developed dramatically since the end of the 2nd World War and
today occupies an important place in the fisheries sector. Total aquaculture production in 2003 was estimated at 1 301
437 tonnes, worth US$ 4 199 million (FAO 2005), which corresponds to 22 percent of total national fisheries
production and 31 percent of the total value produced in Japan. Marine aquaculture accounts for 96 percent of total
aquaculture production and 90 percent of the total value produced. More than 60 species are included
in the aquaculture section of the annual fisheries statistics. Of these, the main species are Nori (27 percent of
total aquaculture production, and 18 percent of the value produced), yesso scallop (20 and 7 percent), oyster (17 and 8 percent),
Japanese amberjack (12 and 25 percent), red seabream (6 and 11 percent), and sea mustard (5 and 2 percent).
Aquaculture has contributed to bringing previously high-priced species within reach of the average
consumer and has helped to create a more varied dietary culture. It has also contributed to the economy
of remote areas by providing local employment. However, in recent years, overcrowded fish farms and excessive feeding have
led to environmental deterioration of coastal areas, thought to be a major cause of eutrophication, red tides and fish diseases. To better
manage these issues, additional
technological development and institutional efforts are underway.
Japan has a long history of sustainable fishing practices
Ministry of the Environment 11 (Japan’s agency for nature and soil conservation, air and water
quality management, biodiversity, and waste disposal, “Marine Biodiversity Conservation Strategy,”
March 11, http://www.env.go.jp/nature/biodic/kaiyo-hozen/pdf/pdf_eng_honbun.pdf)//KJZ
Surrounded entirely by the sea, Japan has actively used the ocean throughout its history. It has been used as a
place for transporting products and humans, necessary for the formation and development of industry in each area, and as a place for
harvesting marine resources which are an important component of the diet of the country. From such a historical background, especially in the
coastal areas, various actors utilize and manage the sea. Thus it is important to promote effective conservation and sustainable
use of marine biodiversity by incorporating such various measures taken by social bodies utilising or managing the sea. The simultaneous
conservation and utilization of marine biodiversity in a sustainable manner is the responsibility of any user of the sea. The
history of
fishery in coastal regions goes back an exceptionally long way in Japan. By the Edo period, fishing gear
and methods had been developed, and an order related to rights on exclusive use of fishing grounds,
which could be suggested to be a primitive form of the current fishery right and piscary, was created.
Coastal fishing villages were allowed the right to monopolize the use of site water surface. A system
where the management of coastal area was left to the responsibility of the local fishers and the village
was established. This background has led to the strict local management of fishery resources in Japan
today. For example, conserving the environment of fishing grounds, setting fish shelters, establishing notake areas and limiting operation waters are the major types of autonomous fishery management done
by entities such as fisheries cooperative associations 20 . Shiretoko was registered as a World Natural
Heritage site because of its unique marine ecosystem affected by the formation of sea ice and the
distinguished interaction between terrestrial and marine ecosystems. In 2007, Shiretoko developed The
Multiple Use Integrated Marine Management Plan, and under the idea of adaptive management, is aiming to
conserve the biodiversity of the marine area while sustaining fishing resources by the legal restrictions
as well as the local fishers’ autonomous regulations.
AT: No Regulation
Well-established regulatory framework for aquaculture already in place in Japan
Makino 06 - Head of the Fisheries Management Group at the National Research Institute of Fisheries Science of the Fisheries Research
Agency of Japan. He specializes in fisheries and marine policy analysis and is the author of “Fisheries management in Japan: its institutional
features and case studies”, published in 2011 by Springer. He holds a M.Phil from Cambridge University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Kyoto
University. (Mitsutaku, “FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department”, February 1, 2006,
http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_japan/en)//dodo
Fisheries activities in Japan are administered by the Fisheries Agency of the Ministry of Agriculture,
Forestry and Fisheries. The Fisheries Agency (FA) is responsible for preserving and managing marine
biological resources and fishery production activities, but in practice many tasks have been delegated to
prefectural governments and local Fisheries Cooperative Associations (FCAs). Aquaculture activities are
supervised mainly by the Fisheries Agency's Fish Ranching and Aquaculture division of the Resource Enhancement
Promotion Department. The principal law that regulates fishery activities is the Fisheries Law (1949, as revised in 1962) , which deals in
detail with several kinds of fishing rights and licenses for Japanese individuals and groups of persons. The Law is
administered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Within the MAFF, the Fisheries Agency (FA) is responsible for
preserving and managing marine biological resources and fishery production activities. The FA maintains
several research institutes, such as the National Research Institute of Aquaculture (NRIA). In Japan, the marine waters are divided into
a number of sea areas as administrative units for fisheries adjustment. With a few exceptions, essentially each sea area corresponds to
the maritime zone of a coastal prefecture. The Fisheries Law establishes Sea Area Fisheries Adjustment
Commissions and a Central Fisheries Adjustment Council to address matters of policy, implementation
and enforcement under the Law in each sea area and to ensure the coordination of prefectural fisheries
development within the overall national framework. The Sea Area Fishery Adjustment Commissions come under the joint
jurisdiction of the MAFF and the prefecture governments. The Fisheries Cooperative Association Law (1948, as amended) provides the legal
framework for local Fisheries Cooperative Associations (FCAs) who bear the responsibility for a particular geographical area and whose
membership are fishers from communities within this area. Within
the framework laid out by the prefectures, and as
local conditions dictate, each FCA establishes its own regulations for the control and operation of fishery
operations and the conservation and rational exploitation of fishery resources. In terms of day-to-day operations,
the Japanese fisheries sector, although subject to higher level regulation, is essentially self-managed by the FCAs or federations of FCAs. The
Law to Ensure Sustainable Aquaculture Production (1999) seeks to prevent the self-induced environmental deterioration around fish farms.
Pursuant to this law, the MAFF issued Basic Guidelines to Ensure Sustainable Aquaculture Production (1999) and the FCAs developed and
implemented "Aquaculture Ground Improvement Programmes", which can be developed individually by a single FCA or jointly by more than
one FCA, and which must be approved by the prefectural authorities.
AT: Can’t Solve bc X
Pollution and feed residue are being reduced --- safe practice underway
Makino 06 - Head of the Fisheries Management Group at the National Research Institute of Fisheries Science of the Fisheries Research
Agency of Japan. He specializes in fisheries and marine policy analysis and is the author of “Fisheries management in Japan: its institutional
features and case studies”, published in 2011 by Springer. He holds a M.Phil from Cambridge University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Kyoto
University. (Mitsutaku, “FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department”, February 1, 2006,
http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_japan/en)//dodo
In recent years, overcrowded
farming and excessive feeding have led to the environmental deterioration of
aquaculture sites and appear to have become a major cause of eutrophication, red tides and fish
disease. To reduce the pollution caused by aquaculture operations, improvement in feed practices from
use of live feed to dried pellets, and the development of automatic feeding machines which can limit
feed residues in water by using optical sensors have been under way. In response to growing environmental awareness, the Law
to Ensure Sustainable Aquaculture Production was enacted in 1999. In addition to these efforts to reduce organic loads, it is
essential to establish an integrated utilization/conservation system of coastal zones in a balanced manner from the viewpoint of the material circulation function of
natural ecosystems.
Overproduction not an issue --- new ways to use fish
Makino 06 - Head of the Fisheries Management Group at the National Research Institute of Fisheries Science of the Fisheries Research
Agency of Japan. He specializes in fisheries and marine policy analysis and is the author of “Fisheries management in Japan: its institutional
features and case studies”, published in 2011 by Springer. He holds a M.Phil from Cambridge University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Kyoto
University. (Mitsutaku, “FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department”, February 1, 2006,
http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_japan/en)//dodo
Another issue is a
decline in fish prices, mainly due to overproduction, increased fish imports and decreased
per capita fish consumption in Japan. As measures against this trend, various efforts have been made. For example, in
order to cope with the overproduction and over competition, many firms are trying to create branded
products identified by producing area and methods. Production traceability systems via internet are
under development to differentiate products and add the credibility for food safety. Fishermen's
organizations and government are also promoting the traditional Japanese food culture and seafood
consumption, as well as the creation of new seafood products or cooking recipe suitable for the modern cuisine.
AUV’s
Solvency
Japan has the latest AUV tech with a wide range of capabilities
Naval Technology 12 (a procurement and reference site providing a one-stop-shop for professionals
and decision makers within the global Defense industry, “Hydroid to supply REMUS 600 AUVs for
Japanese MoD,” 6/14/12, http://www.naval-technology.com/news/newshydroid-to-supply-remus-600auvs-japanese-mod)//KJZ
Kongsberg Maritime subsidiary Hydroid has been awarded a contract by the Japanese Ministry of
Defence (MoD) to supply one REMUS 600 autonomous undersea vehicle (AUV) for performing mine
countermeasure operations. The new order brings the Japanese MoD's AUV fleet to five vehicles, which include four
REMUS 100 systems procured earlier in the year. Hydroid president and co-founder Christopher von Alt said: "The REMUS 600 is
ideally suited for this application, as, when fully configured, its exceptional endurance allows it to
operate underwater for long periods of time in varying depths of water." The REMUS 600 AUVs feature
different types of sensors to aid in hydrographic surveys, debris field mapping, environmental
monitoring, fishery operations, scientific sampling and mapping, as well as search and salvage
operations. Specifically designed for operations requiring extended endurance, the REMUS 600 AUV also supports mine detection
operation, which includes locating explosive devices and other undetonated ordnances, as well as finding and classifying submerged objects.
"The REMUS 600’s endurance allows it to operate underwater for long periods of time in varying depths of water." The modular REMUS
AUV's, with increased payload capacity and greater operating depth, assist in harbour security
operations and many basic and applied research programmes. Designed with Office of Naval Research funding, the
REMUS 600 AUV is slightly buoyant and can operate up to depths of 600m, while enabling increased
operational scope. Capable of configuring for 1,500m or 3,000m operations, the highly versatile REMUS 600 system can
remain operational for up to 70 hours, while the increased size and power capacity allow it to carry large
payloads to meet mission requirements. The Japanese MoD currently uses REMUS 100 systems for conducting mine
countermeasure operations, as well as investigating and mapping sea floor dispersion of contaminants. More than 300 Hydroid REMUS AUVs
are currently operational around the world.
Biodiversity
Solvency
Japan solves bio-d
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan no date (a cabinet level ministry of Japan responsible for
the country's foreign relations, “Japan’s Initiatives to Cope with Global Environmental Problems,”
http://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/environment/pdfs/jp_initiative_pamph.pdf)//KJZ
The Convention on Biological Diversity was adopted in time for the UN Conference on Environment and Development (“Earth
Summit”) in 1992 and entered into force in 1993. It aims to (1) conserve diverse forms of life on the earth and their
habitats, (2) ensure the sustainable use of the components of biological diversity, and (3) ensure the fair
and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources. Parties to the Convention
are required to develop national strategy for attaining these objectives and periodically compile reports on measures taken to implement the
Convention and their effectiveness. Japan
formulated a national strategy for biodiversity and has revised it on a
regular basis. In addition, it established the Basic Act on Biodiversity in 2008, to conserve wild life and its
habitats in a comprehensive manner. Furthermore, in order to contribute to the conservation of biodiversity
and the sustainable use of resources in developing countries, Japan has provided support through
official development assistance (ODA) in such areas as the conservation and management of nature
reserves, forest preservation, the prevention of desertification, and the management of natural
resources.
Desalination
Solvency
Japan has advanced desalination tech
Masumi Suga 14 et.al. [April 9, 2014, Masumi Suga (Reporter at the Japan Times and Correspondent for Bloomberg), “Israel’s IDE in Japan Talks to Build Floating
Desalination Plant”, Obtained from Bloomberg, online, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-09/israel-s-ide-in-japan-talks-to-build-floating-desalination-plant.html, RaMan]
Israel’s IDE Technologies Ltd. is in talks with Japan’s shipbuilders and government to design and build
off-shore desalination plants, seeking to tap rising demand for alternate sources of short-term freshwater supply. The maker of
land-based desalination equipment wants to start delivering floating platforms to clients within three
years, Udi Tirosh, a business development director at the Kadima-based company, said in an interview. IDE’s
ship-based designs could supply water for a city of 850,000 people and Japan’s shipbuilders are among
potential partners, he said. The market for floating desalination plants may develop within a decade to as much as 400 billion yen
($3.9 billion) in annual sales as freshwater shortages and tighter environmental rules for land-based plants boost demand, according to a March
28 report by Deloitte Tohmatsu Consulting Co. IDE is in talks with companies from different countries, though the ones involving Japan are most
progressed, Tirosh said. “We’re
in early stages on the commercial side,” Tirosh said in phone interview on April 7, declining to
specify which Japanese companies are in talks with IDE. ’’We’re advanced in the technical side.’’ Japan’s major
shipbuilders include IHI Corp. (7013), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011) Ltd. andKawasaki Heavy
Industries (7012) Ltd. The Deloitte report was ordered by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, which
supports the talks between IDE and domestic shipbuilders. ‘Quite Big’ “We intend to coordinate a business match between IDE and any
Japanese company interested in the desalination ship project,” Naoto Nakagawa, a deputy director at the ministry’s maritime bureau, said by email. “From the research we’ve seen
the market for desalination ships is quite big.” As China and South Korea
push ahead of Japan in the mass shipbuilding markets, Asia’s second-largest economy is looking at new
niches. Japanese shipmakers last year unveiled plans to build a new kind of floating structure labeled a
“megafloat,” which may be used as an off-shore base for oil exploration. Some examples of floating desalination plants
exist today, such as in Saudi Arabia, though the technology up to now has been too expensive to implement widely, Tirosh said. The global
desalination market is forecast to more than double from last year’s $6 billion, or 6 million cubic meters per day, to $15 billion by 2018, as the
world population grows and water gets more scares, Deloitte said in the report. Water Tables While floating desalination plants will not replace
all conventional, land-based ones, they can become an alternative that does not sadle a country with the burden of maintenance once local
water tables improve, Tirosh said. The use of floating technology is spreading. Turkey’s Karadeniz Holding AS runs a fleet of
seven ‘Powerships’ that carry thermal power plants, while Russia’s Rosatom Corp. is building a prototype ship housing a nuclear generator. IDE
plans to create a fleet of ships that could service clients all over the world, with current designs for vessels drafted to produce about 50,000
cubic meters a day to 120,000 cubic meters a day, Tirosh said. “The
idea is to develop with our partners a multi-year,
multi-vessel plan that would eventually supply significant capacity in various places in the world,” Tirosh
said. IDE Technologies ranks just below the world’s top three suppliers Veolia Environment SA, General Electric Co. and Doosan Heavy (034020)
Industries & Construction Co. in the global desalination market by capacity, Deloitte said. IDE is jointly owned by Israel Chemicals (ICL) Ltd. and
theDelek Group. (DLEKG)
Disease
Solvency
Japan has the ability, tech, and money to develop medications against diseases
GHIT Fund 13 (an international non-profit organization that aims to advance the development of new
health technologies such as drugs, vaccines and diagnostics, for the developing world, “Japanese fund to
invest in promising technology against malaria, tuberculosis and Chagas disease,” 11/7/13,
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-11/bc-jft110613.php)//KJZ
TOKYO/NEW YORK (November 8, 2013)—The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund), a new public health
partnership that is bringing Japanese know-how and investment to the global fight against infectious
diseases, announced today grants of US$5.7 million to six global partnerships working on innovative drugs
and vaccines against malaria, tuberculosis and Chagas disease. “Our six new investments in potential treatments for malaria,
tuberculosis and Chagas disease, infections that afflict roughly one in seven of our world’s population, are a definitive step
forward for, and a clear exemplification of, Japanese innovation and its application to global health,” said
Dr. BT Slingsby, the CEO and executive director of the GHIT Fund. “By ending the vicious cycle of infections, poverty and destabilized communities, new drugs and
vaccines for the poorest people in the world can bring stability and build new markets around the world,” said Dr. Kiyoshi Kurokawa, the chair of the board of the
GHIT Fund. For malaria, a disease that sickens more than 200 million people each year and kills more than 650,000, the GHIT Fund will fund four new research and
development (R&D) investments. The first is with the Research Institute for Microbial Diseases (RIMD) at Osaka University, in partnership with the Medical Center
for Translational Research, Osaka University Hospital and Gulu University in Uganda, for roughly US$735,000 to test their newly formulated BK-SE36 malaria
vaccine. A recently published study revealed that the vaccine showed efficacy against severe malarial infections, making it a promising malaria vaccine candidate. In
the initial trials in a malaria-prone region of Uganda, however, many vaccinated adult individuals failed to generate a strong immune response to the original BKSE36. The research team will use the new grant to test whether adding CpG, a substance known as an adjuvant, can boost the subjects' response to the vaccine.
Researchers agree that a vaccine is desperately needed to check malaria's spread in the developing world, as part of a multipronged approach that includes other
tools like bednets, sprays and antimalarial drugs. The second investment will go to Japan's Ehime University and the biotech company CellFree Sciences, both
located in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, in partnership with PATH, based in Seattle, Washington, for work with its Malaria Vaccine Initiative. The Fund will invest
US$600,000 to identify novel targets of immunity and accelerate the development of malaria vaccines to support elimination and eradication. The project addresses
one of the main challenges in developing malaria vaccines, in that only a tiny percentage of potential targets on the parasite surface have been screened for their
vaccine potential. Scientists at Ehime University have developed an innovative wheat germ cell-free protein synthesis technology, which has proven to be highly
effective in producing large numbers of high quality Plasmodium proteins. Using this technology, the partnership will produce specific proteins for the purpose of
developing monoclonal antibodies that will be evaluated for their ability to block parasites from invading liver cells. This would enable prioritization of antigens for
future vaccine development. The third and largest award, of approximately US$2.6 million, was granted to Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) in partnership
with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda) to study a promising new anti-malarial compound, DSM265, to clinical proof-of-concept stage. New
compounds are urgently needed to fight malaria, as resistance to current medicines is growing. Artemisinin combination therapies are the current gold-standard
anti-malarial treatments that combine fast-acting artemisinin derivatives with a long-acting partner drug. The new drug candidate, DSM265, which kills the malaria
parasite through inhibition of an essential enzyme, is a compound with a long duration of action that could potentially be part of a new treatment for malaria, with
potential for being part of a single dose cure. The compound recently entered clinical phase I studies in healthy human volunteers. If the planned studies show that
it works safely and effectively, DSM265 could undergo later-stage development as a new option in the treatment of malaria. An additional award of approximately
US$575,000 was granted to MMV in partnership with Takeda for development and its formulation of ELQ300, an anti-malarial compound that is in earlier stages of
development. ELQ300 has the potential to be given once a month to treat and prevent malarial infections, which would make it an important tool in the control of
malaria. However, some additional work related to its formulation is needed before it can be tested in patients. The GHIT Fund will also invest in candidate products
for tuberculosis and Chagas disease. For tuberculosis, a disease that causes an estimated 8.6 million new cases and kills about 1.3 million people annually, the Fund
will invest US$720,000 for early work on a novel vaccine candidate against tuberculosis being co-developed by the National Institute of Biomedical Innovation,
Japan’s Create Vaccine Co., Ltd. and Aeras, an international non-profit biotech based in Washington, DC. The vaccine is the first to target the patient's mucous
membranes to keep TB from making an entry into the lungs. In mice, the vaccine added protection to BCG, the current vaccine against tuberculosis. BCG was
invented nearly 90 years ago and provides insufficient protection to teenagers and adults, the group with the highest TB burden. The sixth and final investment of
approximately US$510,000 will fund an innovative drug discovery initiative between Eisai Co., Ltd. and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard for Chagas disease, a
parasitic infection that afflicts poor communities in South and Central America. Currently there are no drugs against chronic Chagas infection, which affects an
estimated 8 million people worldwide. Chronic infection causes cardiovascular disorders that often lead to death and the loss of quality of life. The GHIT Fund is a
public-private partnership between five Japanese pharmaceutical companies (Astellas Pharma Inc.; Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited; Shionogi & Co., Ltd.; Eisai and
Takeda), two government ministries and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, launched in April 2013 with a potential five-year commitment of over US$100 million.
It is the first fund to involve a consortium of pharmaceutical companies, government and civil society working together to support research and development for
neglected diseases. The
combination of Japan's government and its pharmaceutical industry—the third largest
in the world—brings a powerful engine of knowledge and innovation to the development of medications
for the developing world.
Japan has the resources necessary to create tech that will solve infectious diseases
Neondo 3/20/14 (Henry, Science Editor at Africa Science News Service, “Japanese Fund Awards $12
Million to Develop Innovative Tools against neglected diseases,” 3/20/14,
http://www.africasciencenews.org/en/index.php?option=com_content&id=1135:japanese-fundawards-12-million-to-develop-innovative-tools-against-neglected-diseases&Itemid=114)//KZ
The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund), a new public health partnership that is bringing Japanese know-how and
investment to the global fight against infectious diseases has announced three grants worth a total of US$6.8 million to
speed the development of innovative drugs for some of the world’s most neglected diseases—
schistosomiasis, Chagas disease and parasitic roundworms. GHIT also announced a second round of funding of US$5.65
million for a novel vaccine candidate for tuberculosis and unveiled a new investment program that will
help researchers find the most promising new drug candidates to battle these and other infectious
diseases. “We're proud to support and push forward the development of three new technologies that
target diseases that afflict over a billion people in the world,” said Dr. BT Slingsby, the CEO and executive
director of the GHIT Fund. “The physical damage from these diseases is enormous, but that’s just the beginning. Victims are
stigmatized by their communities, and because of repeated bouts of serious illness, they can’t provide for their families. The result is a never
ending cycle of poverty that can and must be stopped.” One billion of the world’s poorest people are afflicted with neglected diseases—also
known as “the burden of the bottom billion”—and another three billion are at risk of being infected. Tropical disease infections, although not
always fatal, can lead to delayed growth in children, impaired cognition and memory, malnutrition, organ damage, blindness, disfigurement and
permanent disability. The first grant, for US$3.84 million, goes to Switzerland’s Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi ) and Eisai of Japan
for a new combination therapy for Chagas disease, a parasite-borne disease transmitted by insects known as “kissing bugs,” named for the
insects’ penchant for biting faces. Chagas kills more people in Latin America than any other parasitic disease. An estimated eight million people
are infected, many unknowingly, leading to lack of treatment and heart or intestinal damage that could lead to death. The current drugs for
Chagas (benznidazole and nifurtimox) are poorly tolerated in adults, hard to use and frequently fail to cure chronic infections, which can cause
cardiovascular disorders—including enlarged heart, heart failure, severely altered heart rhythm, and heart attack—that often lead to severe
disability and death. Experts have long believed a drug combination would work better, but the safety and efficacy of the combination have not
yet been proven. GHIT’s grant will enable DNDi and Eisai to develop a combination therapy consisting of benznidazole and an experimental
triazole compound known as E1224. Over the next two years, under the leadership of Dr. Isabela Ribeiro of DNDi, the collaborators will conduct
a Phase II proof-of-concept study of the efficacy and safety of the combination. They will use data from this trial to help shape a Phase III multicountry study. The group will also work toward the registration of E1224, including several required chemistry, manufacturing and controls
activities and nonclinical tests. A second GHIT grant awards US$1.86 million to a partnership involving Top Institute Pharma of the Netherlands,
Merck KGaA of Germany, Astellas Pharma Inc. of Japan and Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. The award will enable the development
and registration of a pediatric formulation of praziquantel, the gold standard treatment for schistosomiasis. The disease, also known as
bilharzia, is caused by parasitic worms that live in certain types of freshwater snails. Spread through contaminated freshwater, without
treatment, chronic infection with schistosomiasis can cause an enlarged liver, blood in the stool and urine, and can even lead to an increased
risk of bladder cancer. It’s endemic in 78 countries and affects more than 230 million people, including 100 million children—making it second
only to malaria in terms of impact of a parasitic disease. Praziquantel is currently recommended only for adults and children over the age of six;
the partnership aims to create a formulation suitable for babies and young children. Proper treatment of these younger children with
schistosomiasis is hampered due to missing clinical data and the fact that they cannot swallow these tablets because of their size and bitter
taste. The partnership, which is supported by many of the world's leading schistosomiasis experts, has produced test batches of two new
formulations, called racemate praziquantel and levo-praziquantel. Both formulations will be tested first in adults, with taste tests for children to
follow. The funding will also help the partnership prepare for Phase II studies with the new formulation that will be selected for further
development. The final grant, for US$1.09 million, is awarded to the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Liverpool's
collaboration with Eisai to investigate new drug compounds against Wolbachia bacteria. These bacteria work in concert with many parasitic
roundworms, or filaria, and thus play a role in parasitic diseases like elephantiasis and river blindness (onchocerciasis), which together afflict
more than 150 million people. Anti-Wolbachia therapy using the antibiotic doxycycline has proven safer and more effective than existing antifilarial drugs in field trials held in recent years. However, the doxycycline requires 4-6 weeks of daily treatment course, and it is potentially
harmful for young children and pregnant women. These barriers highlight the need for the development of new drugs targeted specifically
against Wolbachia. To date, the screening of more than 10,000 potential anti-Wolbachia compounds has revealed about 50 potential targets,
leading to identification of about six types of molecules with anti-infective potential. Researchers will focus on two of these proposed chemical
groups. The grantees plan a 12-month, head-to-head comparison of the two leading chemical types, with the goal of identifying a single
candidate for potential drug development within one to two years. Today, GHIT also announced additional funding of US$5.65 million for work
on a novel vaccine candidate to combat tuberculosis that is being co-developed by the National Institute of Biomedical Innovation, Japan’s
Create Vaccine Co., Ltd. and Aeras, an international non-profit biotech based in Washington, DC. GHIT provided the partnership an initial grant
of US$700,000 for this work in November, 2013. The additional funding will allow for further pre-clinical development to advance to a Phase I
clinical trial to test its safety and immunogenicity. The vaccine candidate is focused on enhancing mucosal immunity to act as the first line of
resistance against infection with tuberculosis, the first to target the patient's mucous membranes to keep TB from making an entry into the
lungs. In mice, the vaccine increased the level of protection conferred by protection to BCG (Bacillus Calmette–Guérin) alone, the current
vaccine against tuberculosis. BCG was invented nearly 90 years ago and provides insufficient protection to teenagers and adults, the group with
the highest TB burden. The
GHIT Fund's Hit-to-Lead Platform provides a budget of US$2.2 million over a period
of two years with the goal of converting drug “hits” from the compound libraries of Japanese
pharmaceutical companies into “lead compounds”—chemicals that show promise as anti-infectives but
likely require further chemical modification before they can be tested as human drugs. This new
program will help researchers find promising drug compounds that can fight deadly and debilitating
infectious diseases. “Japanese pharmaceutical companies and research institutes have considerable
resources—including compound libraries that have yet to be screened to see what they might have to
offer for infectious diseases like malaria, tuberculosis and neglected diseases,” said Dr. Kiyoshi
Kurokawa, chair of the board of the GHIT Fund. “The Hit-to-Lead Platform will expand the drug pipeline
for these diseases by bringing forward compounds that have not been previously screened or that are
known to target mechanisms of action in a new and more effective way.” The Hit-to-Lead Platform will essentially
provide a bridge from early drug discovery into GHIT's typical grant phase, which begins with the optimization of these lead compounds.
Environment
Japan Policies Modeled
Japanese environmental policies are modeled globally
Masters 08 - Online Media Reporter/Writer (Coco, “The Japanese Way” April 17, 2008,
http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1730759_1734222_1734215,00.htmlXCo)//dodo
Watching someone carefully rinsing out a spent mustard packet doesn't sound like entertainment, but in Japan it's big-time television. On a
recent segment of Tokyo's popular morning show Hanamaru Market, a waste-recycling expert submerged a flimsy plastic packet in a tub of
water, gently allowing water in and out to rinse it clean. A host of the segment stood by, watching intently, and asked if it was necessary to use
soap. No, said the expert, water and a little elbow grease are all it requires. That may sound obsessive, but sorting trash, Japanese-style, has
become a rite of passage for responsible Tokyo citizenry. Gaggles of housewives think that being environmentally conscious is a trendy way to
care for their families. Once
Japanese people embrace an idea, they do so wholeheartedly. Environmental
consciousness is no exception. Over the past 34 years, Japan has renewed a 25-yen ($0.25) per liter gasoline
tax — anathema in the U.S. — four times. A decade after hosting the conference that led to the Kyoto Protocol,
Japan will host the G-8 Summit on Hokkaido this year, which will focus on green issues. As an island
nation with few natural resources, Japan can't afford to be profligate. That means it has something to teach
other nations. The country is one of the most energy-efficient industrial countries in the world, and some of
Japan's leading companies, such as Toyota and Sharp, are known for technologies that foster greener lifestyles.
A conservation mind-set is ingrained into Japanese people from birth, and is apparent in little ways throughout
society.
Methane Hydrates
Solvency
Japan solves methane hydrate drilling best
Pfeifer 14 – Sylvia, January 17, Methane hydrates could be energy of future, http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/8925cbb4-7157-11e38f92-00144feabdc0.html#axzz37b3De4x9
Maria van der Hoeven, the IEA’s executive director, said in an interview last year: “There may be other surprises in store. For example, the
methane hydrates off the coasts of Japan and Canada ... This is still at a very early stage. But shale gas was in the same position 10 year ago. So
we cannot rule out that new revolutions may take place through technological developments.Ӧ Methane hydrates are deposits of natural gas
trapped with water in a crystalline structure that forms at low temperatures and moderate pressures. Although estimates of the resources vary
widely, experts agree they are extremely large. According to the IEA’s most recent World Energy Outlook published last autumn, even the lower
estimates give resources larger “than all other natural gas resources combined”.¶ Many estimates fall between 1,000tn and 5,000tn cubic
metres, or between 300 and 1,500 years of production at current rates. The US Geological Survey estimates that gas hydrates worldwide are
between 10 to 100 times as plentiful as US shale gas reserves.¶ However, although
several governments have investigated
methane hydrates since the early 1980s, no country has been especially focused on developing them.
Exploiting them has to make sense from a cost perspective. There have also been other sources of fossil fuels – notably conventional oil and gas
and more recently shale – that have been easier and cheaper to access.¶ Things
changed early last year. In March, Japan
became the first country to get gas flowing successfully from methane hydrate deposits under the
Pacific Ocean. The country has a big reason to pursue methane hydrates. After shutting down most of its
nuclear power stations three years ago after the crisis at its Fukushima nuclear plants, the country
has relied on expensive imports of liquefied natural gas from countries such as Qatar.¶ Before the Fukushima
disaster, nuclear provided about 30 per cent of Japan’s power generation, compared with LNG at 25 per cent. Since that time, LNG’s share has
soared to 45 per cent. The increasing energy imports have helped drive the country’s trade balance into deficit.¶ According to Paul Duerloo,
partner and managing director at Boston Consulting Group in Japan, the country tops
the list of those with an incentive to
develop their methane hydrate deposits. Japan, he says, is paying about $15 per million British thermal units (mBTU), compared
with the US Henry Hub price of just $4-$5.5 per mBTU and a price of well below $10 per mBTU in Europe.¶ The country, adds Mr Duerloo, has
few alternatives in terms of energy sources and is keen to become self-sufficient.¶ The resource could be enormous.
Japan Oil, Gas and
Metals National Corporation, the state oil group, estimated in 2008 that 1.1tn cubic metres of methane
hydrates lay beneath the eastern Nankai Trough, enough to offset at least a decade’s worth of foreign
gas imports.¶ Even so, huge challenges remain before natural gas can be produced from these reserves and the relevant extraction
technology is still in its infancy. Hydrates form under high pressure caused by the weight of the seawater or rock above them. That pressure
needs to be maintained when the sediment cores are analysed or else the hydrates within quickly dissociate into water and gas.¶ There are also
concerns about what the release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, could do to the atmosphere. ¶ To
extract the gas last March,
the Japanese team used conventional methods. These involved first lowering a drill about 1,000m to the bottom of the Nankai
Trough. They then had to drill another 300m into the rock, drain the water out of the hydrate layer to lower the pressure in the deposit and
free the methane gas which was then pumped to the surface.¶ Nevertheless, more work needs to be done. Researchers in Japan hope to
develop production technology that achieves controlled release of the methane from the ice into the production well, thereby minimising the
risk of gas escaping into the atmosphere.¶ According to the IEA, “the longer-term role of methane hydrates will depend on climate change
policies as well as technological advances, as meeting ambitious goals to reduce emissions could require a reduction in demand from all fossil
fuels, certainly in the longer term”.¶ Japan
has set itself the target of bringing methane hydrates into the
mainstream by the early 2020s. Despite the significant challenges, Mr Duerloo believes the world should not underestimate its
dedication, inventiveness and willingness. “I think the chances they pull it off are more than half.”
Nuclear Shipping
Solvency
Japan developed a nuclear ship in the 90s
Adams 95 (Rod Adams, Pro-nuclear advocate with small nuclear plant operating and design
experience, “Nuclear Research Ship: Japanese Learn Nuclear Techniques at Sea”, 7/1/1995,
http://atomicinsights.com/nuclear-research-ship-japanese-learn-nuclear-techniques-at-sea/)
The Japanese nuclear ship Mutsu is designed not for show, but for research. She is currently being used by the
Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) as a test bed to validate computer models of the behavior of pressurized water reactors in an
ocean environment.¶ The Mutsu has a 10,000 shaft horsepower nuclear engine. The heat source is a two-loop pressurized water reactor with a
rated core power level of 36 Megawatts (thermal). She is 130.5 meters long, with a breadth of 19 meters and a gross tonnage of 8240 tons. Her
maximum speed is 17.5 knots.¶ A Less Stable Environment¶ Although the Japanese have a significant number of pressurized water reactors
operating as land based central power stations, they do not have extensive experience in operating pressurized water reactors in the less stable
environment found at sea.¶ On land, one can always count on gravity to operate in a consistent direction relative to the nuclear reactor. Gravity
is not so predictable on a pitching and rolling ship.¶ JAERI
has designed a mini-computer based computer simulation of
a nuclear reactor with the ability to enter values for wave height, ship maneuvering characteristics and
reactor component specifications.¶ The components of the pressurized water reactor that are affected by ship motion are more
fully instrumented than usual in the Mutsu. Key parameters that are measured and compared to the computer model include steam generator
levels, pressurizer level, reactor power, average coolant temperature, steam flow rate and propeller shaft revolutions.¶ The
technical
literature describing the testing discusses some features of the Mutsu that are of interest to other
reactor plant operators and designers.¶ The engine has several modes of automatic control. In one
mode, a proportional-integral controller adjusts the steam turbine throttle valve to maintain a constant
propeller shaft rotation rate.¶ In this mode, when the ship is moving against the waves, the reactor
power level is higher than it is with a following sea. Because the ship motion serves to increase the frequency of the wave
action, control signals are closely spaced and of small amplitude. Parameters like reactor power and steam flow change quickly but in small
increments.¶ In a following sea, reactor power variations of 5 percent or more are common with a constant propeller rotation rate. The
changes that occur in a following sea are due to the effects of surfing and climbing waves. The reactor also has an automatic system to adjust
control rods to keep the average coolant temperature in a narrow control band of 273 +/-1.2 C. (523 +/- 2.2 F). The system will make small
adjustments in control rod position if average temperature leaves the band. This system also senses reactor power level to ensure that limits
are not exceeded for the particular flow condition in existence when the signal is sent to move the rods to raise temperature.¶ The
emphasis on automation shows that the Japanese intend for their nuclear commercial ships to operate
with a small engineering crew.¶ Following acceptance testing in 1992, JAERI determined that their
computer model adequately predicts the actual behavior of the ship well enough so that the model can
be used for designing advanced reactor systems. There are two such reactors undergoing conceptual design in Japan, the
MRX (Advanced Marine Reactor) and the DRX (Deep-Sea Reactor.)
More ev
Pike 12 (John Pike, Director of GlobalSecurity.org, which is focused on innovative approaches to
the emerging security challenges of the new millennium, “Nuclear Ship Mutsu - Operations”,
7/16/2012, http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/japan/ns-mutsu-ops.htm)
Mutsu underwent lengthy repairs since 1978 until 1982 at the port of Sasebo. The basic plan concerning the development of a nuclear ship by
JAERI was determined by the Japanese Government in March, 1985. The research and
development with "Mutsu"
proceeded on the schedule of construction of the new home port at Sekinehama, reactor inspection and
test, experimental voyage and decommissioning along the basic plan. The primary testing was commenced from
March, 1990, successively "Mutsu" left the Sekinehama port to conduct the secondary and third power ascension testing respectively in July
and October, 1990. The fourth power ascension testing which was the final one was comp1eted without trouble in December, 1990. In the third
and fourth power ascension testing the power of 36,000 KW at l00% of output was achieved. After the ship inspection certificate has been
delivered, the experimental voyage is scheduled to be conducted for a period of around one year.¶ ¶ After
overcoming various
difficulties, four successful experimental voyages in 1991 proved its reliable capability under severe
ocean circumstances. It is important for Japan as a worldwide trading country to assure constant energy sources for its ships. The
application of nuclear energy to generate electricity is still growing. In the future, nuclear energy may also be used widely for ocean
transportation, both to replace fuel oil and to allow sustained high-speed or under-sea voyages. Nuclear energy may contribute to advancedlevel sea transportation and the development and utilization of the oceans.¶ ¶ By
its four successful experimental voyages in
1991, the first Japanese nuclear ship "MUTSU" has obtained much knowledge and valuable data related
to the design, fabrication, and operation of a nuclear ship. Decommissioning work began in September 1992. Using
immediate total dismounting technology, the reactor compartment has been removed from the ship and transferred to the storage facility at
the vessel's mother port of Sekine-hama. This was completed in June 1995. The first nuclear ship of Japan, "MUTSU", experienced voyage of
about 82,000km.¶ ¶ Many data on the ship's motion and the power plant behavior were obtained under various meteorological conditions
during the voyage. These data were recorded on more than 500 rolls of magnetic tape (MT). The actual data of a nuclear ship in Japan can be
utilized in the development of the advanced marine reactor and in research for power reactors and ships. The nuclear ship database consists of
engineering data related to design basis, application documents for nuclear reactor construction permit, design and construction documents
related to nuclear and thermal hydraulic characteristics, reactor operation records, and experimental data in the power-up testing and the
voyages.¶ ¶ "Mutsu" navigated 81,860 km in total (about 2.2 turns around the earth) in eight test services from July, 1990 to December, 1991
using the atomic power, and recorded the total running time of 3,508 hours of its nuclear reactor, and 81.12 million kWh in the integrated
thermal output of the nuclear reactor. The maximum design thermal output of the nuclear reactor was 36 MW, the normal thermal output was
32 MW (the maximum continuous shaft output was 10,000 HP, the normal shaft output was 9,000 HP), and the recorded mean rate of
operation to the normal thermal output was as high as 83%. The burn up of the uranium 235 of about 3.2 kg (equivalent to about 4,000 tons in
terms of heavy oil) during this period is of about one ball for the baseball in volume. This experiment showed that the
marine nuclear
reactor can be stored in the space of the dimensions (130 m (length) x 19 m (breadth) and 13 m (depth))
of "Mutsu" without radiation exposure.
Ocean Exploration/Research
Solvency
Japan can successfully explore and research the ocean
Ryall 14 (Julian, Editor Shamil Shams, “Japan hopes seabed will yield data and resources,” 17.01.2014,
http://www.dw.de/japan-hopes-seabed-will-yield-data-and-resources/a-17369799)
With scant energy and mineral reserves of its own, and nuclear plants mothballed since the Fukushima nuclear disaster,
Japan is
investing heavily in exploring beneath the oceans for resources that will power its future. Seabed off coast of
Japan On the first day of 2014, the Japanese research ship Chikyu set a new record by drilling down to a point
3,000 meters beneath the seabed off southern Japan. It was an appropriate way to ring in the new year
and signals an increased commitment to learning more about the secrets that lay beneath the floor of
the ocean close to Japan. The research has two distinct but connected driving forces. As Japan prepares to mark the third anniversary
of the March 11 Great East Japan Earthquake, the Chikyu is undertaking the most extensive survey ever attempted of
the Nankai Trough, a geological fault that extends for several hundred kilometers parallel to the
southern coast of Japan and widely seen as the source of the next major earthquake that will affect this tremorprone nation. And with all of Japan's nuclear reactors presently mothballed in the aftermath of the disaster, which destroyed the Fukushima
Dai-Ichi nuclear plant, there
is a new sense of urgency in the search for sources of energy and other natural
resources close to Japan.
Japan has advanced exploration tech
Oda 13 (Makoto & Kazuo Teranishi of THE ASAHI SHIMBUN, “Japan seeks to make up for 'lost decade'
in marine development,” December 28, 2013, http://ajw.asahi.com/article/business/AJ201312280010
Japan has long lagged behind other countries in oceanic development of minerals and resources, despite
being one of the world's largest maritime states. Today, however, it is aggressively exploring the seabed
in search of natural riches. In early October, the Hakurei, a state-of-the-art marine resources survey ship, set off from Shimonoseki Port in
western Yamaguchi Prefecture for the Okinawa Trough, located in waters northwest of the main island of Okinawa. The ship’s mission was to
investigate oceanic resources that lie in the waters, which are within Japan’s 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone (EEZ), where the nation is
allowed to develop minerals and other resources. Having a total area of 4.47 million square kilometers, Japan’s
EEZ and territorial
waters are the sixth largest in the world. Experts believe a large amount of untouched natural resources rests beneath the
seabed. Between January and February, Hakurei surveyed the Okinawa Trough, a potential gold mine of offshore
resources, at a depth of 1,600 meters. Drilling about 40 meters down into the seafloor, the survey vessel discovered a largescale submarine hydrothermal deposit that contains various minerals, such as zinc, lead, copper and gold. The 118meter-long research vessel, which began operation in February 2012, is outfitted with 32-meter-high drilling equipment on its stern. The
equipment can submerge to a depth of up to 2,000 meters and drill a maximum of 400 meters down into the seabed--a major improvement
from the 20-meter limit of Hakurei’s predecessor, which started operation in 1980. The
survey vessel is operated by Japan Oil,
Gas and Metals National Corp. (JOGMEC), a government-affiliated organization, which has been playing
a leadership role in Japan’s marine resources exploration. “We have many problems to solve, but hope to establish a new
method in five years to mine seabed resources and raise them from the ocean,” said Nobuyuki Okamoto, the chief of JOGMEC’s abyssal floor
survey section. The
Hakurei is just one sign that Japan is increasing its presence in the area of oceanic
development. In March, the deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu successfully extracted natural gas from
offshore methane hydrate deposits for the first time in the world off Atsumi Peninsula in Aichi Prefecture.
Japan has one the best ocean exploration/research agencies in the world
Cizdziel ’14 (Paul E., Chair of the American Chamber of Commerce Japan, “Deep Sea Exploration by
the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC),” Posted Event for May 28,
Accessed May 15, 2014. http://www.accj.or.jp/en/events/details/21949-deep-sea-exploration-by-thejapan-agency-for-marine-earth-science-and-technology-jamstec)
JAMSTEC is one of the largest, most active and accomplished research agencies in the world. It
operates 7 research vessels, one manned deep-sea submersible, four autonomous underwater vehicles, and three remotely
operated underwater vehicles. In addition, the agency is operating a scientific drilling ship "Chikyu". The fleet is so
strong that sediments, rocks and organisms from water depths exceeding 7000 m or from depths more than 2000 m below the surface of the
ocean bottom have been collected so far. Based
on such high technologies, JAMSTEC have carried out a variety of
unique sciences , such as observation of fault rock that caused the Tohoku great earthquake, and
biological research of microbes living in the ultra-deep biosphere. Dr. Yoshihisa Shirayama, Executive Director for
Science of JAMSTEC, will provide updates on what is happening now, and what we can look forward to next, in the field of deep-sea exploration
carried out by JAMSTEC. Come join us for wine and finger foods, and an intellectually stimulating topic of importance to everyone.
Understanding the vast ocean biosphere and its critical role in the cycle of life on Earth is essential for
government and industry leaders to make smart choices. As a leading oceanographic research
institution, JAMSTEC contributes greatly to that knowledge.
Offshore Oil Drilling
Solvency
Japan is ambitiously expanding their oil drilling programs
Singh 13 (Gurdip Singh Contributing Editor Offshore magazine, “Japan Drilling embarks upon ambitious
expansion program,” Offshore magazine, 9/5/13, http://www.offshoremag.com/articles/2013/09/online-exclusive-japan-drilling-embarks-upon-ambitious-expansionprogram.html)
Japan Drilling Co. (JDC) and its president, Minoru Murata, recently launched a global marketing search
for a drilling contract to facilitate the construction of a newbuild drillship. Murata, also a representative
director at JDC, is confident of winning the contract, which would be the basis of the drillship design.
JDC, he said, is moving ahead with newbuild orders and would also invest in one semisubmersible rig
and a jackup rig. “We are marketing aggressively for drilling contracts to build new rigs,” Murata said.
“We will need a deep-sea semisubmersible rig. We are doing the marketing activity to get a suitable rig
contract. It will not necessarily be a harsh environment rig, but if we are going to the North Sea, then
yes.” Murata said the drillship would also be a globally deployable rig, but declined to discuss financial
details. He emphasized that the design would not be restricted to a specific market. An industry source
said JDC would invest in newbuilds in 2014-2015, given the shortage of new rigs. Currently, JDC has a
jackup under construction at Singapore’s PPL Shipyard that is scheduled for delivery in early 2015. “We
will utilize this rig under a leasing arrangement upon its delivery,” said Murata. Ambitious plans
Murata’s confidence endorses industry projections about JDC’s investment plans. The company has
renewed its drive to be among the major rig operators globally. “The drilling industry is about 50 years
old and most of the present rigs are about 30-40 years old. There are obsolete units in the fleet. That is
why these rigs are being built,” Murata stressed. “We have old rigs in the Middle East and the time will
come to replace them.” “We don’t upgrade jackups but we maintain these units,” added Murata,
pointing out that cost performance of an upgraded jackup was not good when compared to the newly
built unit. Murata brushed aside questions about JDC’s contract for a newly built and commissioned
jackup, Hakuryu-11, which was not renewed for optional drilling. Hakuryu-11, christened on May 25,
2013, at the Keppel FELS shipyard in Singapore, is committed to drill one well for Con Son joint operating
company of Vietnam. It was due on site in July 2013. “It is going to drill one well only. It is a result of
bidding and option, but the other side decided not to renew the option,” he said, while expressing
confidence that the rig would find work elsewhere in the region, “with focus on Indonesia.” JDC’s
subsidiary Japan Drilling Indonesia is already operating Hakuryu-10 in Indonesia. The Singapore-built
jackup began drilling off East Kalimantan for Total E&P in July 2013. It has a two-year contract with two
additional one-year options. There are additional opportunities to lease rigs to an Indonesian company,
said Murata, while downplaying questions about Indonesia’s new cabotage requirement. The new rule
regarding cabotage, or flagging of vessels, applies to ships but not drilling rigs, he pointed out. Indonesia
and Malaysia would be two of the main markets for JDC in the coming years, Murata said. In October
2012, JDC established a wholly-owned subsidiary in Kuala Lumpur, JDC Offshore Malaysia Sdn Bhd
(JOM). Malaysia will continue to provide important offshore drilling opportunities for both the shallow
and deepwater frontiers; given these perspectives, JOM would act as the local base to meet current and
future customers’ needs for safe and efficient drilling services, Murata said. Worldwide exploration In
July, JDC launched a series of new drilling programs. Deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu, owned by Japan
Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, started drilling offshore Sabah, East Malaysia. Chikyu
is chartered to the Kebabangan Petroleum Operating Co. (KPOC), a joint operating company of Petronas
Carigali Sdn Bhd, Shell Energy Asia Ltd., and ConocoPhillips Sabah Gas Ltd. JDC is a technical partner of
Petronnic Sdn Bhd (PSB) of Malaysia, which is providing the Chikyu service to KPOC. The Chikyu contract
is worth approximately $32 million for one firm well and one optional well. The company’s Etesco
Takatsugu J is drilling in the Franco SW block in water approximately 2,000 m (6,562 ft) deep about 200
km (124 mi) off Rio de Janeiro. The drillship is designed to drill in water depths of 10,000 ft (3,048 m)
and down to 30,000 ft (9,144 m) below the seabed. It is chartered to Petrobras for 20 years and has
been working in the presalt fields since February 2012. The ultra-deepwater rig is operated by a
partnership of JDC and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, Mitsui & Co. Ltd., and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd.
The four Japanese companies operate the rig through US-incorporated Etesco Drilling Services, LLC.
Hakuryu-11 is a KFELS Super B Class design with a drilling depth of 35,000 ft (10,668 m). The rig’s leg
structure is designed to provide enhanced robustness for operations in 425-ft (130-m) water depths. It
has accommodation for 150 people. The jackup is designed to handle a combined drilling load of up to
2,700 kips and a high capacity hook load of 1,000 tons. Meanwhile, JDC’s joint venture with Qatar
Petroleum, Gulf Drilling International (GDI), is also building two jackups at Keppel FELS. Keppel FELS
completed two KFELS B Class jackup rigs in 2006 and 2008 for GDI. JDC is operating the Hakuryu-5 and
Naga-1 semisubmersibles in Malaysia, and the Sagadrill-1 and Sagadrill-2 jackups in the Persian Gulf.
Japan is engaging in offshore oil drilling now
Hofilena, 13 (John Hofilena, Correspondent for the Japan Daily Press, “Japan starts testing on
potentially largest offshore oil, gas field”, 4/16/2013, http://japandailypress.com/japan-startstesting-on-potentially-largest-offshore-oil-gas-field-1627101/
In what is the first time in 10 years that the
Japanese government engaged in exploratory drilling for oil and gas,
tests have begun in an oil and natural gas field just off the island of Sado in Niigata Prefecture. Authorities
revealed on Monday that the field could potentially be the largest in Japan, big enough to rival a midsized oil field in the Middle
East and is 10 times the size of Narita International Airport. The test area off Sado Island spreads over 100 square kilometers and is
geologically favorable to oil and natural gas, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. This area, if it
produces enough oil and gas for commercial drilling, will be potentially larger than the largest landbased oilfield in the country – the 35-square-km Yufutsu field in Hokkaido. Working together on the test drills are JX
Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corp. and Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp., set to explore the area
for the next 3 months. The plan is to dig up to 2,700 meters deep into the seabed to see the potential quantity of oil and natural gas that could
be produced. The test drillers are utilizing the deep-sea vessel Chikyu, the same vessel that extracted another natural gas discovery off Aichi
Prefecture in March – an underwater layer of methane hydrate, commonly known as “fire ice”. In the wake of the Japan’s growing dependence
on imported fuel and the prohibitive costs it is imposing on energy utility companies, the
government has started to explore
rumored oil and natural gas preserves around the archipelago. The islands around Japan and the areas
just offshore are believed to hold large amounts of oil and natural gas, but the government has held off on
exploration because of the difficulties and the cost involved. It looks somehow that the decision to back off nuclear power has affected the
energy industry in as much as forcing the government to look into alternative sources to build up its oil and natural gas reserves.
Offshore Wind
Solvency
Japan is already developing offshore wind projects
GWEC 13 (Global Wind Energy Council, International Trade Association for the Wind Power
Industry, “Japan’s offshore wind development speeding off”, 9/19/2013,
http://www.gwec.net/japans-offshore-wind-development-speeding/)
A lot is happening on the offshore wind power front in Japan. In June Japan unveiled its first commercial
floating turbine in Asia and the 2-megawatt turbine off the coast of Fukushima will start operation on 7
October. The first project phase, which included the setting of the Hitachi downwind-type turbine with a rotor diameter of 80 meters on a
structure supported by a set of three 32-meter-hihg cylindrical iron floats, was completed this summer. The world’s first floating power
substation was installed two kilometres away from the floater.¶ The
turbine and substation were installed on the floater
at the dockyard at Tokyo Bay and then moved by a tugboat to the Pacific Ocean about 20 km offshore
from Fukushima. The electricity generated will be transferred through an undersea cable to the
seashore, and then transmitted to Tokyo by the existing grid lines. The Fukushima FORWARD project is
carried out by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.¶ Two further 7-megawatt floating offshore
turbines are planned to be constructed at the same location in 2014 and another 2 megawatt floating turbine is to be moored at Goto Island in
Nagasaki Prefecture this autumn.
This project is conducted by Japan’s Ministry of Environment. Additionally,
developers and local governments have announced new commercial offshore wind projects recently,
including the following:¶ ¶ The Kashima, Mutsuogawara and Omaezaki projects are all located at port
areas, which have several advantages for offshore development in Japan; ports are governed by only one office "Ports and Harbors Bureau"
making permission procedure much lighter; the fishing industry's rights are weaker at port areas, making developers freer from compensation;
and industrial infrastructures and grid lines already exist for port facilities.¶ Currently,
Japan has a total of 45.6MW of
offshore wind capacity spread over 24 turbines at 5 locations.
Japan solves offshore wind turbines
Kurtenbach 13 (Elaine Kurtenbach, Correspondent for the Sydney Morning Herald, “Japan
starts up offshore wind farm near Fukushima, 11/12/2013,
http://www.smh.com.au/world/japan-starts-up-offshore-wind-farm-near-fukushima20131112-2xct0.html)
Japan switched on the first turbine at a wind farm 20 kilometres off the coast of Fukushima on Monday,
feeding electricity to the grid tethered to the tsunami-crippled nuclear plant onshore.¶ The wind farm
near the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant is to eventually have a generation capacity of 1
gigawatt from 143 turbines, though its significance is not limited to the energy it will produce.¶ Symbolically, the turbines will help
restore the role of energy supplier to a region decimated by a population exodus following the multiple meltdowns triggered by the March
2011 earthquake and tsunami.¶ "Many people were victimised and hurt by the accident at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant, so it is
very meaningful to have a new source of energy — renewable energy — based here," said Kazuyoshi Akaba, a vice minister of economy, trade
and industry, after the turbine was turned on.¶ "It is the government's mission to ensure this project is a success," he said.¶ The project also
highlights Japan's aspirations to sell its advanced energy technology around the globe.¶ Trading
houses such as Marubeni
Corporation, which is leading the consortium building the offshore wind farm, are investing aggressively
in renewable energy as well as conventional sources, helped by government policies aimed at nurturing favoured industries.¶ All of
Japan's 50 viable nuclear reactors are offline for safety checks under new regulatory guidelines drawn up after the Fukushima disaster.¶ Utility
companies have applied to restart at least 14 reactors under those new guidelines, which include more stringent requirements for earthquake
and tsunami protections, among other precautions.¶ In Japan, the push to tap more renewable sources to help offset lost power capacity, and
reduce costs for imported natural gas and oil, also got a boost last year with the implementation of a higher wholesale tariff for energy
generated from non-conventional sources.¶
Japan, whose coast is mostly ringed by deep waters, is pioneering
floating wind turbine construction, required for seabed depths greater than 50 metres. The 2-megawatt
downwind floating turbine that began operation Monday was built at a dry dock near Tokyo and towed
to its location off the northeastern coast. Six huge chains anchor it to the seabed 120 meters (almost 400 feet) below.¶ The
turbine is linked to a 66 kilovolt floating power substation, the world's first according to the project operators, via an extra-high voltage
undersea cable.¶ As the government and Tokyo Electric Power Company struggle to clean up from the nuclear disaster and begin the decadeslong task of decommissioning Fukushima Dai-Ichi, Japan's energy industry is in the midst of a transition whose outcome remains uncertain.¶
Most leading members of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the powerful business lobbies such as Keidanren, and many experts,
argue that wind and other renewables alone simply cannot make up for the steady and huge baseload power produced by nuclear plants.¶ "I
favour renewables. But it would be irresponsible to create a pie-in-the-sky claim that renewables alone are the answer," said Paul Scalise, a
fellow at Tokyo University and expert on Japan's energy industry. "There is no such thing as a perfect power source."¶ He cites figures showing
wind power's average generating capacity at 2 watts per square meter versus 20 watts per square metre for solar power — and 1000 watts per
square metre for nuclear.¶ Eventually
there could be dozens of wind turbines off Fukushima's scenic but
deserted coast.¶ The project is meant to demonstrate the feasibility of locating these towering turbines
in offshore regions where the winds are more reliable and there are fewer "not in my backyard"
concerns.¶ Bigger turbines that might create noise problems onshore are not an issue so far offshore.¶ Yuhei Sato, the governor of
Fukushima Prefecture who has lobbied hard for support following the 2011 disasters, said he expected local businesses to benefit from the
wind farm.¶ A research centre is planned for Koriyama, a city further inland, and studies are underway on the impact of local fisheries from the
floating turbines.¶ "We are moving ahead one step at a time. This wind farm is a symbol of our future," Sato said.¶ In theory, Japan has the
potential for 1600 gigawatts of wind power, most of it offshore. About a dozen projects are already in the works, from Kyushu in the south to
Hokkaido in the north.¶ But wind power can be notoriously unstable: when the switch was pushed to "on" on Monday, the audience of VIP
officials watched tensely as the wind turbine's blades, displayed on a video screen at a tourist center onshore, appeared becalmed. Eventually,
though, the blades slowly began rotating.¶
Japan is building offshore wind turbines
RT 13 (RT, Russian English-language News Channel, “Japan to start building world's biggest
offshore wind farm this summer”, 1/18/2013, http://rt.com/news/japan-renewable-energyresource-290/)
Japan is to start building its ambitious wind farm project off the Fukushima coast in July. The farm is
expected to become the world’s largest and produce 1GW of power once completed in 2020.¶ The powergenerating facility will be built 16 kilometers off the coast of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which was critically damaged by an
earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. ¶ The 143
wind turbines, which are to be 200 meters in height, will be built
on buoyant steel frames stabilized with ballast and anchored to the continental shelf. ¶ Once completed
in 2020, the project will generate 1 gigawatt of renewable electrical power. ¶ The project is part of
Japan’s national plan to increase renewable energy resources following the nuclear disaster at
Fukushima. After the quake, Japan shut down its 54 nuclear reactors, but due to energy shortages it has had to restart two reactors. ¶ “This
project is important. I think it is impossible to use nuclear power in Fukushima again,” project manager Takeshi Ishihara of the University of
Tokyo told New Scientist weekly magazine. ¶ Ishihara
believes the area's seismic activity won't be a problem for the
turbines. His team has carried out lots of computer simulations and water tank tests in order to verify
the safety of the turbines in all possible extreme events, such as earthquakes, tsunamis and typhoons. ¶
"All extreme conditions have been taken into consideration in the design," he added.¶ There were some objections
to the project by local people, who expressed concerns, in particular, over possible impact on the fishing industry, which was also hit by the
nuclear disaster. But Ishihara is sure it’s possible to turn the farm into a ‘marine pasture’ that would attract fish.¶ The
project is also
part of the prefecture’s plan to become completely energy self-sufficient by 2040, using only renewable
sources. ¶ The Fukushima wind farm will produce double the amount of energy of the Greater Gabbard
array, currently the world’s biggest, off the coast of Suffolk in the United Kingdom, which generates 504
megawatts from its 140 turbines. Although the title of biggest will soon pass to the London Array in the Thames Estuary, where 175
turbines will produce 630 megawatts of power when it becomes operational later this year.¶ Scientists and researchers believe
Japan’s wind capacity could reach 7.6 gigawatts over the next three years.
Oil Spills
Solvency
Japan has new tech that will solve for oil spills
Urquhart 13 (James, Vice President of Product Strategy at Enstratius, “Mopping up oil spills with
marshmallows,” 1/22/13, http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2013/01/marshmallow-aerogel-mopsoil)//KJZ
Japanese researchers have developed a marshmallow-like material that can mop up hydrocarbons like a
sponge and can then be wrung out.1 The work could one day lead to a cheap and simple solution for
cleaning up large oil spills such as one that decimated the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Although similar materials have been
made before, they have had shortcomings for large-scale clean-up operations including a lack of
hydrophobicity, difficult or expensive production methods and an inability to be reused. Now, researchers
at Kyoto University have made marshmallow-like macroporous gels that are free from all of these
drawbacks. The team first reported their material in 2011 when they were looking at ways to make transparent and flexible porous
aerogels - which are typically solid and rigid - using dimethyldimethoxysilane (DMDMS) together with methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS).2
Unintentionally, they ended up with an opaque material but the team have since discovered that it has remarkable oil-absorbing properties and
a wide temperature stability. 'We first measured fundamental properties of the porous material, such as density, porosity, pore size and
volume, mechanical properties and the surface property,' says co-author Kazuyoshi Kanamori. 'During the course of these measurements, we
hit upon the idea of soaking up oils because the marshmallow is hydrophobic and flexible. We tested the separation of hexane and water first
and hexane was absorbed completely while the amount of water did not change at all.' Importantly, the
oil can be squeezed out
and the material reused. Experiments have also shown that it can work under harsh conditions ranging
from 300˚C to -196˚C. However, the team have yet to test the material's performance on highly viscous and complex crude oils.
OTEC
Solvency
Japan is implementing OTEC pilot plans now
Otecfoundation 12 (otecfoundation, otec news, July 27, 2012 “OTEC pilot plant to be built in
Okinawa Prefecture” http://www.otecnews.org/2012/07/otec-pilot-plant-to-be-built-in-okinawaprefecture/)
This month, Japanese engineering companies IHI Plant Construction Corporation, Xenesys Incorporated
and Yokogawa Electric Corporation announced their collaboration in building a 50kW OTEC
demonstration plant in the waters of Kumejima Island, located in the very south of Japan and part of the
Okinawa Islands. The OTEC plant will be integrated in the Okinawa Prefecture Deep Seawater Research
Center, which is the largest of four deep seawater pumping systems in Japan. The companies aim to have the OTEC plant up and running in
March 2013. Regarding the roles in this project: Xenesys will design and manufacture the power generation unit and the heat exchangers;
Yokogawa will design, manufacture and do the engineering of the monitoring and control system for the generation unit and the electronics for
the interconnected power schemes; and IHI will develop and construct the entire facility. Okinawa
Research Center is active in
deep seawater utilization for over 10 years. The center established several deep seawater projects,
including local area cooling services, water desalination, aquaculture and agriculture. Next year the
OTEC demonstration plant will be added and connected to the deep seawater infrastructure. The OTEC
plant will be used for practical testing and optimization of the output. It is an important step in the
commercialization following the 30kW demonstration unit at Saga University in Saga, Japan. The current
capacity of the Okinawa Research Center is about 13,000 tons of seawater per day, pumped up from a
depth of 612 meter where the water is between 6 and 8°C. The temperature of the surface seawater is
around 26°C annual average, providing stable production possibilities. Regarding future scale-ups,
Xenesys estimated that it is possible to increase the intake of deep seawater to 100,000 tons per day
and install 1.25MW OTEC power capacity. This would supply 10,600 MWh of electricity per year, which
accounts for 10% of Kumejima’s total annual consumption.The island of Kumejima, which entered into a Sister City
Relationship with the county of Hawaii last year, aims to become a self-sustaining community and model for other small islands in the Okinawa
Prefecture.
Japan has the best tech for OTEC
Sugimori 10 (Jun, Yomiuri Shimbun staff writer, “Power from the sea step closer,” 7/27/10, accessed
from Lexis Nexis)//KJZ
Technology developed in Japan is now able to generate electricity and produce fresh water from
seawater more efficiently and at a lower cost than before, edging the technology closer to practical use.
Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC although currently cost-ineffective--is expected to be not only a source of renewable energy, but a way
to collect lithium from the sea. Former
Saga University President Haruo Uehara, a pioneer in the OTEC field, has
created the Uehara cycle, a technological discovery that may have opened the door to practical use of
OTEC. The Uehara cycle generates energy by making use of the difference in temperature between deep and shallow seawater. Warm,
surface seawater about 25 C is used to vaporize a fluid with a low boiling point, often ammonia, which turns a turbine to generate electricity.
Then, cold seawater--about 5 C--from 800 meters below the surface is used to condense the vapor back into a liquid. The system was conceived
more than 130 years ago by a French scientist. Since then, a Japanese electricity company has succeeded in generating power using OTEC on a
small scale, but has found it difficult to commercialize due to inefficiency. Uehara, 70, has researched OTEC since 1973. "There're
places in the world with no water or electricity. I wanted to do something good for other people," Uehara said. After leaving the university in
2005, Uehara founded the nonprofit Organization for Promotion of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion to further pursue his studies. The
organization has collaborated with venture firm Xenesys Inc., hoping to improve the system's efficiency. Kiminao Satomi, president of a
company that manufactures equipment and facilities for sake breweries, founded Xenesys to help make the technology practical after being
moved by Uehara's passion. In
1994, Uehara's group developed the Uehara cycle, which is 50 percent to 70
percent more efficient than previous systems. The cycle makes use of a mixture of ammonia and water
to control the evaporation temperature, raising thermal efficiency higher than when pure ammonia is
used. The improvement in efficiency was confirmed by a test at a 30-kilowatt OTEC research plant at
Saga University. "OTEC is a perfect technology for resource-limited island nations like Japan. The system can provide a stable supply of
power, unlike solar- and wind-powered electricity that are often affected by the weather," Uehara said. In
February, the Uehara
cycle was chosen for use in a 10,000-kilowatt OTEC plant to be built in the South Pacific island of Tahiti.
According to an Xenesys estimate, the cost of power generation will be about 15 yen to 20 yen per kilowatt,
about the same as wind-powered electricity. Deep seawater used in OTEC can also produce desalinized water and eventually
hydrogen. Desalinized water is made when surface seawater is vaporized after its boiling point is lowered by reducing atmospheric pressure.
The steam is then condensed into pure water by using deep, cold seawater. Desalinized water can be made into hydrogen by electrolysis. It
might also be possible to collect lithium, a material used in batteries, while deep seawater can be used to enrich fishing grounds with nutrients.
Sometime this fiscal year, Kumejimacho in Okinawa Prefecture will conduct a feasibility study on the ways OTEC technology can be utilized. "At
first no one believed [practical OTEC] could be achieved. I can't give up on my research until OTEC plants
are built in oceans around the world," Uehara said.
Satellites
Solvency
Japan has already successfully launched earth observation satellites
Onuki, 14 (Misuzu Onuki, Correspondent for SpaceNews.com, “Japan Launches Newest Earth
Observing Satellite”, 5/26/2014, http://www.spacenews.com/article/launchreport/40689japan-launches-newest-earth-observing-satellite)
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Corp. successfully launched
the Advanced Land Observing Satellite-2 and four small secondary payloads May 24 from Tanegashima
Space Center aboard an H-2A rocket, JAXA said.¶ The launch, the 24th for Japan’s workhorse H-2A, deployed the satellite, now
called Daichi-2, into a 628-kilometer, near-polar orbit 15:47 minutes after liftoff. Daichi-2 is expected to make a significant
contribution to Earth observation, especially disaster monitoring and assessment.¶ Measuring 10 meters by 16.5
meters by 3.7 meters and weighing 2,200 kilograms, Daichi-2 is the successor to JAXA’s Advanced Land Observing Satellite that operated from
2006 to 2011. The satellite was built by Mitsubishi Electric Corp.¶ The
new satellite carries an L-band synthetic aperture
radar capable of collecting imagery at resolutions of 1 to 3 meters, compared with 10 meters for its predecessor. The
sensor’s maximum swath width is 2,320 kilometers, compared with 870 kilometers for Daichi-1’s main sensor.¶ Daichi-2 will be
used for applications including mapping, disaster management and environment, resource, pollution,
settlement and infrastructure monitoring.¶ The satellite is expected to be able to deliver imagery within one to two hours of
request, compared with three to five hours with the Daichi-1, thanks in part to its greater agility.¶ Daichi-2’s development cost was $210
million, with a total mission cost of $374 million including launch and five to seven years of operations. The satellite is expected to undergo six
months of testing before being declared operational.
Japan has the best satellites
Acache no date (Jose, Director of the Secretariat, Group on Earth Observations (GEO), “Japan
contributes to efforts to solve environmental problems,”
http://global.jaxa.jp/article/special/geo/achache_e.html)//KJZ
JAXA carries out impressive Earth observations satellite programmes. As a result, JAXA is currently leading
the world by performing forest observations with the Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR)
aboard the Advanced Land Observing Satellite DAICHI. This is a very critical instrument for measuring
forest area and estimating amounts of carbon stored in these forest. The Greenhouse Gases Observing
Satellite IBUKI is the only satellite in the world that specializes in measuring the amount of carbon in the
atmosphere. In addition to the observation data from IBUKI, which is very important, data from the Earth observation satellites of the
European Space Agency and NASA will also be used. Originally, data from NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO)
was supposed to be used as well, but unfortunately its launch ended in failure in 2009. Thus, until OCO-2 is
launched, the current observation data from IBUKI constitutes the most valuable carbon observation
statistics in the world.
Warming
Solvency
Japan solves climate change
Lomborg 13 (Dr. Bjorn, director of the Copenhagen Consensus Center and one of Time magazine’s 100
most influential people in the world, “Is Japan showing the right way to tackle global warming?,”
11/18/13, http://globe-net.com/japan-showing-right-way-tackle-global-warming/)//KJZ
UN Climate Summit should focus on green R&D, say Nobel Laureates. Japan has acknowledged that its
previous greenhouse gas reduction target of 25% below 1990 levels was unfeasible. It has stated a more
realistic estimate of its level of emissions is that it will increase some 3% by 2020. The government of
Japan has opted for a different approach, namely investing in low carbon technologies. “Japan’s decision
could be a break-through for smarter climate policies”, says Dr. Bjorn Lomborg, adjunct professor at the
Copenhagen Business School and director of the Copenhagen Consensus Center. “Japan has simply given up on the approach to climate
policy that has failed for the past twenty years. Instead it has promised to spend $110 billion over five years for
innovation in environmental and energy technologies.” “As it turns out, green R&D is the smartest approach
to tackle climate change, and it could particularly help poor countries that rely on cheap energy to
power their growth. Japan could – incredible as it sounds – actually end up showing the world to how
tackle global warming effectively”, Lomborg continues. “$100 billion per year invested worldwide in
green R&D would be hundreds of times more effective than the standard climate policies proposed. This
is the conclusion from a panel of economists, including three Nobel laureates, documented in the book “Smart
Solutions to Climate Change” (www.fixtheclimate.com). Lomborg points out that “despite all the international summits and
the hundreds of billions of dollars in subsidies to today’s hugely inefficient green technologies, CO2
emissions have increased some 57% since 1990. We need to look at a different approach instead of
backing the same wrong horse over and over again. The economics show that the smartest long-term
solution would be to focus on innovating green energy. This would push down the costs of future
generations of wind, solar and many other amazing possibilities. Everyone would switch to green
energy, not just a token number of well-meaning rich Westerners.” “Instead of criticizing Japan for
abandoning an approach that has repeatedly failed, we should applaud it for committing to a policy that
could actually meet the challenge of global warming,” Lomborg concludes.
Japan will be modeled
Nature Publishing Group no date (an international publishing company that publishes academic
journals, magazines, online databases, and services in science and medicine, “Climate Change: impacts
on Japan,” http://www.natureasia.com/ja-jp/advertising/sponsors/climate-change/policy)//KJZ
As the richest country in Asia, Japan finds itself in a unique position, both politically and geographically. It
lies between the world’s biggest polluter, the US, and the two biggest developing countries in the world. China and India currently have very
low CO2 emissions per person, but their populations are expected to almost double over the next century. And their economies are growing,
giving people more access to the ‘high-carbon’ lifestyles that richer nations have enjoyed for years. To ensure that developing countries can
access the money, technology and information to continue their development in a sustainable way, we need a transformation in the scale and
structure of support offered to developing countries. Some countries have already announced plans for new funds.. In 2007, for example, the
UK government announced a new GBP800 million (JPY160 billion) ‘Environmental Transformation Fund’ to help developing countries. Traffic in
Los Angeles Must reacess city planning Enlarge image Japan is following suit — Prime
Minister Yasuo Fukuda has unveiled a 5year, USD10 billion (JPY1,000 billion) fund to combat global warming in developing countries: the ‘Cool Earth
Partnership’. But there are lessons to be learned from past planning and policy mistakes, such as planning cities around cars and freeways,
to ensure that these funds are spent effectively to build a low-carbon society. As Nishioka’s catchphrase encapsulates, “Don’t export Los
Angeles!” Nishioka hopes
that with the correct input from richer countries, emissions from developing
countries could peak in the mid-twenty-first century. As such Japan is obliged to set a good example by
striving to meet its Kyoto targets. “We in Japan would like to show the world that a low-energy society is
possible,” he says. “If not, we will lose trust among developing countries.” Power and the people Changes in
people’s day-to-day behaviour are also crucial and awareness of the problem is the first step. Already,
Japanese people are highly concerned. Some 98% of respondents in a 2007 survey agreed that climate
change was either a “very serious problem” or a “somewhat serious problem”. The next step, however,
is crucial: translating awareness into a change in behaviour. In an initiative called ‘Team Minus 6%’, the
national government is encouraging individuals to take simple steps so they can help Japan achieve its
Kyoto emissions target. The steps, which are promoted through its website (http://www.team-6.jp), are as easy as
unplugging electrical appliances, turning off taps and using your own shopping bags instead of plastic
ones. Local government is also taking important initiatives. Last year, for example, the Tokyo
Metropolitan Government announced a ‘10-Year Project for a Carbon-Minus Tokyo’, which will impose
ambitious restrictions on emissions from businesses, households and transport in the world’s most
populous urban area. There are both challenges and opportunities ahead. Japan’s innovation, tenacity and
technological expertise provide a solid basis for the country to become a world leader in embracing the
challenges of climate change. Japan is in a strong position to take advantage of this potential. But rapid
and ambitious actions are needed — not only to fully realize this potential but also to tackle the changes already blowing Japan’s
way.
AFF Answers
Aquaculture
Can’t Solve
Japanese aquaculture fails --- technical constraints, disease, pollution
Fujiya no date (Masaru, “Fish Farming and the Constraints in Japan”, UJNR Aquaculture,
http://www.lib.noaa.gov/retiredsites/japan/aquaculture/report1/fujiya.html)//dodo
Although fish farming is in progress in Japan, some problems and constraints remain. Technical constraints
include problems concerning seedling production, nutrition of larvae, disease and parasite control, and
feeding. Among these, seedling production techniques are being developed rapidly, and experience with the successful culture of several
species should be applicable in the future to other species. Among other problems, however, fundamental research for the
advancement of techniques for nutrition of larvae and control of disease and parasites are the most
important. Aquatic organisms go through several larval stages with selective food habits, and the most
suitable food has to be found for each stage. At present, phytoplankton and zooplankton cultured and/or collected from
natural waters are fed to the larvae, but the supply frequently becomes the limiting factor for seedling production.
Thus, the development of a stable supply of foods for larval stages is necessary for the advancement of seedling production. The development
of artificial foods is especially needed. As
the history of aquaculture has shown us, disease and parasite control is
also significant. In fish farming, disease control for larval stage will have to be developed. Usually, larvae are
weaker than adults, and contagious diseases are most serious. It is not unusual to have several millions
of larvae killed during a short-time period in actual farming. In aquaculture, practical methods for treatment of diseases and
parasites have been developed. For instance, chemotherapy has assisted the treatment and prevention of fish diseases. These kinds of
advanced techniques should be applicable to fish farming, but some fundamental problems such
as resistant strains and
human public health considerations remain. As an effective method for preventing disease mortality, it may be possible to
breed resistant strains but little research has been done for this purpose. The most significant constraint concerning the utilization of
seedlings is the hypothesis that artificially reared seedlings are equal to those from natural reproduction. As mentioned before, the release of
seedlings is based on the results of preliminary investigations on the environmental conditions of planting area and the behavior of natural
organisms. In most cases, the suitability is estimated from the presence of natural larvae indicating a fundamental hypothesis that artificially
produced seedlings are equivalent to natural larvae. However,
the results of farming trials along the coast of the Inland
Sea and surrounding districts have been variable. Successful results have not always been obtained in
spite of the determination, based on preliminary investigations, that these places were suitable for
fanning. These circumstances raise doubts concerning the validity of this hypothesis. The larvae reared under the artificial
conditions are pampered. They are kept in optimal environmental conditions as far as possible, with
adequate food supply, and protected from competitors and predators. On the other hand, larvae in natural
waters must survive the fluctuation of environmental conditions, effects of competitors and predators,
and, in addition, they must find food for themselves. Thus, they are hardened in nature. Therefore, it is likely
that there are some differences in the biological characteristics of natural larvae and artificially produced
seedlings as diagrammed in Figure 4. In order to obtain more successful results of farming, evaluation of suitability of the receiving waters
should include consideration of biological characteristics of seedlings. There have been suggestions that comparative research should be carried
out to define the difference in biological characteristics between natural and artificially produced larvae. However, this is sometimes
impractical because of the difficulty in collecting samples of natural larvae. In some species, the natural larvae have not been observed and,
with the present state of knowledge, could not be identified even if some larvae could be found. The best method is to experimentally establish
expected environmental conditions and to observe the effect of these conditions on biological characteristics, such as, resistance to the
fluctuation of environments, physiological activity, avoidance reaction from predators, and ability of shrimp and crab to bury themselves in the
bottom sediments. Techniques for acclimating artificially produced seedlings should be varied with the species and the results desired. At
present, almost standardized facilities and methods are used for acclimation of seedlings without adequate consideration of objectives. These
include net enclosures and net cages for shrimp and crab and floating cages for fish, in which seedlings are kept with feed for several weeks.
Although this procedure is helpful for adaptation to natural water conditions, it does not train the seedlings to find natural foods or to avoid
predators. Conditioning and training, based on biological requirements to achieve the intended purpose, should be tried in the acclimation
facility; otherwise, successful acclimation cannot be expected. The
greatest problem connected with the future of fish
farming is the pollution of natural waters. Although water pollution is a matter of concern among the people and plans for
pollution control are being developed, the adverse effect on fish farming is not fully recognized. Some aspects of this biological problem have
been investigated to find ways to reduce the effects of pollutants on-fisheries, and water quality criteria and water quality standards have been
described for some aquatic organisms. However, most of the research data are on adult organisms. In fish farming, the situation is more severe.
For example,
the period of larval development is the weakest stage of the life history of organisms, and
even seedlings have lower resistance to pollution than adults. Brood stocks require a high quality of water to maintain
healthy adults which will produce active larvae. As the mass production of seedlings is possible, a limited number of hatcheries can supply the
demand for seedlings. Places chosen for hatching facilities should have the best environmental conditions in unpolluted regions. Farming,
especially of the stock recruitment type, requires extensive areas of unpolluted water for the production of large amounts of fish or shellfish.
Complete water pollution control will be needed to keep released organisms safe. For this purpose, the cooperative research will have to be
carried out by fishery biologists and specialists on pollution control. Without this cooperation the advancement and expansion of fish farming
will be hopeless.
Artic
Can’t Solve
Japan can’t develop the Arctic --- tech difficulties, maritime border disputes, etc.
Ohnishi 13, assistant professor with the College of International Relations at Nihon University in Japan. He was a research fellow for the Policy Research Department at the Ocean
Policy Research Foundation (OPRF), where he worked on several Arctic research projects. He was a visiting researcher at both the Barents Institute in Norway (2008–2009) and the Åland Peace
Institute in Finland (2004–2005). His current research interest ranges from regional cooperation in the Nordic contexts to international politics in the Arctic. (Fujio,
“East Asia-Arctic
Relations: Boundary, Security, And International Politics. The Process of Formulating Japan’s Arctic Policy: From Involvement to Engagement”
November 2013, http://www.cigionline.org/sites/default/files/no1a.pdf)//dodo
The second opportunity is in the development of oil and gas fields. Since 1989, the Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation
(JOGMEC) — formerly known as Japan National Oil Corporation — has
been a member of the Kalaallit Nunaat Marine Seismic
regional seismic program, including new data acquisition and preliminary studies for hydrocarbon
potential near offshore Greenland” (JOGMEC 2012).2 “In December 2011, the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum… of the Government
of Greenland announced the opening of the licensing rounds in the Greenland Sea, offshore Northeast Greenland”
(KANUMAS) project, “a
(ibid.). In an attempt to participate in the rounds, Greenland Petroleum Exploration Co., Ltd. was established by the JOGMEC (ibid.). Since the
Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011, the
demand for oil and gas as alternatives to nuclear power plants has
increased in Japan because the government suspended all 54 reactors, which accounted for 31 percent of the country’s energy supplies.
According to one estimate, crude oil imports were 4.38 million barrels per day in 2012 and will exceed 4.2 million barrels per day in 2013
(Nagatomi et al. 2012). Japan’s LNG import is estimated at 87.6 million tons in 2012 and will increase to 88.7 million tons in 2013 (ibid.).
However, there are also complications in this category. Technological difficulties as a result of harsh
Arctic weather make mining and exploitation difficult obstacles for investing in oil and gas. Furthermore, disputes
— over maritime borders between the United States and Canada, the dominion over Hans Island and
the interpretation of the Svalbard Treaty — also negatively affect the potential for the development of oil
and gas in the Arctic, as does the delimitation of the continental shelf adjacent to the North Pole. Finally, a formidable obstacle is
the relatively high price for oil and gas extracted from the Arctic seabed compared with that of shale gas
in North America.
Nuclear Shipping
Can’t Solve
Japanese nuclear ships are unreliable – radiation leak proves
Nakao no date (Masayuki Nakao, Professor in the School of Engineering at the University of
Tokyo), “Radiation Leaks from Nuclear Power Ship ‘Mutsu’”, no date,
http://www.sozogaku.com/fkd/en/hfen/HA1000615.pdf)
When the first Japanese nuclear power ship “Mutsu” was in its experimental voyage in 1974. At 800 km east of
the cape Shiriya in Aomori, it began leaking radiation when its crew brought the reactor power up to 1.4% of full
capacity. The alarm went off as it detected radiation leaks; fast neutrons made their ways out of the reactor shielding (streaming). This
incident made national headlines. Concerned about the dangers posed by the ship to the community and the
fishing industry, the locals at Ohminato harbor, where Mutsu was built, refused to let the ship return to
the harbor.¶
Offshore Wind
Can’t Solve
Japanese wind turbines are unpractical and expensive – coast waters too deep
Bullis, 13 (Kevin Bullis, Senior Editor for MIT Technology Review, “Japan’s Floating Wind
Turbines Show the Challenges of Renewables”, 10/28/2013,
http://www.technologyreview.com/view/520871/japans-floating-wind-turbines-show-thechallenges-of-renewables/)
There’s a huge amount of wind off the coast of Japan, but harnessing it will be fantastically expensive.¶
Here’s another glimpse of the challenges involved in attempts to run countries on renewable energy.¶ In theory, Japan has a huge offshore
wind resource—there’s enough to power Japan eight times over, according to an article in the New York Times. But in practice, that’s going to
be hard to take advantage of. Since
the disaster at Fukushima, Japan’s 50 nuclear reactors have been largely out
of commission. To replace just one of them, it needs to build 140 offshore wind turbines.¶ And these are no
ordinary wind turbines. Because Japan doesn’t have a lot of shallow coastal waters where wind turbines could
be secured to the sea floor, as it done in all big offshore wind farms now, the wind turbines have to
float, like deep sea oil platforms. The idea of floating turbines isn’t new (see “Wind Power That Floats”) but
they’re expensive. The wind turbines are expected to cost eight times as much as wind turbines built on
land.¶ According to the Times, these other challenges might reduce the practical wind resource to just
one-third of the country’s electricity needs.
Perm
Generic
Perm solves --- Japan and the U.S. can cooperate with each other in areas of ocean
development and exploration
OPRF 09 – Ocean Policy Research Foundation (Naoyuki Agawa, lawyer, diplomat, academic and author. He has been a professor of law at Keio University since
1999; and since 2009, he has served as the university's Vice President for International Collaboration and Education. Masahiro Akiyama, counselor in the Embassy of Japan in Canada,
budget examiner in MOF’s Budget Bureau, head of the Banking Investigation Division in MOF’s Banking Bureau, chief of the Nara Prefectural Police Headquarters, and director general of Tokyo
Customs. Moved to the Defense Agency in 1991, serving as director general of the Defense Policy Bureau and administrative vice-minister of defense before resigning from the agency in
November 1998. Was visiting scholar at the John F. Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University and the Asian Center in 1999, and was chairman of the Ocean Policy Research
Foundation from 2001 to June 2012. Has also been specially appointed professor at the Graduate School of Social Design Studies for the 21st Century, Rikkyo University, and, since 2008,
visiting professor at the Center for International and Strategic Studies, Peking University. Assumed his current position in June 2012. et.
al. “United States-Japan Seapower
Alliance for Stability and Prosperity on the Oceans” April 17, 2009, http://www.sof.or.jp/en/report/pdf/200906_seapower.pdf)//dodo
To provide against shortages of resources, energy, and food supplies likely to occur on a global scale, the major
seafaring nations of
the United States and Japan should play leading roles in the development of living and non-living resources
in the seabed and continental shelves, as well as in the development of ocean energy resources and
seawater potential. Both countries can and should help battle the global economic crisis by
demonstrating their commitment to a “Blue New Deal” policy based on these precepts and by promoting development
of the oceans on the condition of sound environmental stewardship in the maritime domain as well as increasing job
creation. ・The United States and Japan need to cooperate with each other where possible in the
development of technologies and funding for the exploration and exploitation of seabed resources and marine energy
development in order to bring these industries into active production. ・Research on the oceans, the accumulation of data, its use
and sharing, and human resource exchanges are important for the effective promotion and development of technology. To
facilitate this, the establishment of a joint data center and R&D center for research and development of
marine resources, as well as joint construction and use of a marine scientific survey ship and platform
for exploration and exploitation, are desirable. Furthermore, opportunities for the exchange and publicizing of technologies between
the two countries should be created in maritime industries, which support such research and development. ・As new marine technologies are
developed, transfer to developing countries should be considered. The United States and Japan should play a leading role in this area. ・We
recognize the fine work done by the “Marine Resources and Engineering Coordination Committee” (MRECC) of the U.S.-Japan Conference on
Development and Utilization of Natural Resources (UJNR), but further revitalization and the improvement of information sharing between the
United States and Japan should be considered in this area.
Perm solves best --- best demonstrates leadership --- empirics prove
OPRF 09 – Ocean Policy Research Foundation (Naoyuki Agawa, lawyer, diplomat, academic and author. He has been a professor of law at Keio University since
1999; and since 2009, he has served as the university's Vice President for International Collaboration and Education. Masahiro Akiyama, counselor in the Embassy of Japan in Canada,
budget examiner in MOF’s Budget Bureau, head of the Banking Investigation Division in MOF’s Banking Bureau, chief of the Nara Prefectural Police Headquarters, and director general of Tokyo
Customs. Moved to the Defense Agency in 1991, serving as director general of the Defense Policy Bureau and administrative vice-minister of defense before resigning from the agency in
November 1998. Was visiting scholar at the John F. Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University and the Asian Center in 1999, and was chairman of the Ocean Policy Research
Foundation from 2001 to June 2012. Has also been specially appointed professor at the Graduate School of Social Design Studies for the 21st Century, Rikkyo University, and, since 2008,
visiting professor at the Center for International and Strategic Studies, Peking University. Assumed his current position in June 2012. et.
al. “United States-Japan Seapower
Alliance for Stability and Prosperity on the Oceans” April 17, 2009, http://www.sof.or.jp/en/report/pdf/200906_seapower.pdf)//dodo
Given the pressing issues facing the oceans, along with efforts to conserve the marine environment and maintain biological diversity, the
maritime powers of the United States and Japan should demonstrate leadership in international
initiatives. While recognizing the achievements of the U.S.-Japan Common Agenda in this regard, we would like to see more steady progress
in these areas. ・The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP), a sophisticated ocean monitoring system with
a global development of temperature/salinity profiling floats (Argo Project), and the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI)
are highly regarded programs that have been developed at the initiative of the United States and Japan.
Further development of such marine science research projects is important for conservation of the marine
environment and ocean use. The activities of the U.S.-Japan joint research center, begun 10 years ago, hold similar promise.
・Development of ocean resources, including exploitation of seabed resources, requires environmental impact
assessments, formulation of manuals for environmental conservation, and development of conservation
technologies and methods. These are difficult but vital. U.S.-Japan cooperation and effective responses are
needed in these areas. ・U.S.-Japan initiatives are needed to investigate and promote an ocean version of the
“Green Revolution,” an energy revolution, CO2 capture and sequestration technologies, reduction in CO2 emissions from
ships, and development of responsive technologies to address global warming.
Aquaculture
Perm solves best
Helsley 01 - retired researcher at the University of Hawaii (Charles. E., “Open Ocean Aquaculture – a
Venue for Cooperative Research Between the Unites States and Japan” 2001,
http://www.lib.noaa.gov/retiredsites/japan/aquaculture/proceedings/report30/report30pdf/Helsley.pd
f)//dodo
The Role of the UJNR Aquaculture Panel Given the expected developments in research and commercial farms throughout the U.S.
over the next few years, it is imperative to address the issues summarized above as soon as possible. Many of these are
topics have been the subject of cooperative research and information exchange within UJNR in the past
and remain issues for future cooperative efforts. Hatchery technology advanced culture technologies, culture of
new species, identification and control of disease organisms are obvious examples. New areas of study might
include development of cages and husbandry technology for rough water environments, identification of
alternative food sources, understanding of nutrition requirements, definition of carrying capacity of coastal
and offshore waters, development and application of environmental monitoring technology,
consideration of regulatory and policy issues, and ocean ranching. Each of these topics would benefit from
multidisciplinary approaches to science and the exchange of ideas from diverse experience bases. The broad topics
mentioned would provide opportunities for scientific exchange particularly between young scientists with ideas and technologies at the borders
of the “tried and true” conventional methodologies. All
of these areas appear eminently suitable for future UJNR
efforts Cooperation between researchers in the U.S. and Japan is highly desirable to accomplish these
goals. The cooperative international scientific information exchange program fostered by the UJNR
Aquaculture program has enabled many U.S. scientists to become more aware of Japan’s extensive
experience and research base in marine aquaculture. The development of an active marine aquaculture
research program in the U.S. presents an opportunity to expand upon those ties and to provide information
useful to both countries as we attempt to make more utilization of the sea. Possible areas of further scientific research
and information exchange include: (1) establishment of culture protocol for additional species, such as cold
water, deep water, tropical and subtropical species, (2) establishing guidelines for the assessment of
carrying capacity of coastal and offshore waters; (3) identification of additional sources of high protein
fish food and development of additional additives and nutrition enhancers and (4) the development of
technologies that would assist in the growth of the aquaculture industry in more exposed locations.
Japan has very little and limited soft power
Jing Sun 12 [August 12, 2012, Jing Sun (Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Denver), “Japan’s decreasing ASEAN’s ‘Soft Power”, obtained online,
http://thediplomat.com/2012/08/japans-shrinking-asean-soft-power/?allpages=yes, RaMan]
While this number indicates
the term’s popularity in Japan, it tells us little about how successful Tokyo has been in employing soft
A recent Yahoo! Japan search for “sofuto pawa,” the Japanese translation for soft power, yielded nearly two and a half million entries.
power throughout the Western Pacific . As I discuss in my new book, Japan and China as Charm Rivals: Soft Power in Regional Diplomacy, while Japan’s soft
power in China and South Korea remains low it has been far more successful in boosting its image in Southeast Asia. Nonetheless, Japan’s soft power in the region
has been limited to economic issues, and as Japan’s economy has remained stagnate, so too has its soft power. Although China’s recent assertiveness presents an
opportunity for Japan to revamp its image among ASEAN members, it’s unlikely that Tokyo will successfully seize this opportunity. In the initial decades after WWII, Japan’s engagement with
Southeast Asia was limited, as Tokyo looked to South Asia for economic opportunities. It was only when those opportunities dried up that Japan found deeper engagement with Southeast Asia
While Japanese-ASEAN trade grew rapidly, local populations grew increasingly resentful of
Tokyo’s growing economic presence. Indeed, Southeast Asians nicknamed Japan the “economic animal.” The extent of the region’s grievances became evident in
unavoidable.
1974 when then-Prime Minster Tanaka Kakuei was greeted by numerous protesters during his visits to Bangkok and Jakarta. Although Tanaka himself dismissed the protesters as people trying
to scapegoat Tokyo for their local problems, his intra-party rival Fukuda Takeo disagreed. Upon becoming Prime Minister, Fukuda decided to change course, starting with a landmark speechto
Filipino parliament in 1977. Even today, this speech is seen as the beginning of Japan’s charm
offensive towards the region, and the principles outlined in the speech are known as the Fukuda Doctrine. Japanese leaders rarely give emotional speeches but Fukuda’s speech
was an exception. Admitting suspicions and hostilities on the ground, Fukuda passionately pledged that Japan would try and build a
“heart-to-heart” relationship with Southeast Asia. To that end, Fukuda pledged that Japan would mobilize all diplomatic resources – political, social,
the
. As foreign minister in 1972, for instance,
Fukuda recognized Japan’s policy toward Southeast Asia was skewed toward economic issues. He
therefore became a leading proponent of the Japan Foundation, a semi-governmental organization in charge of fostering cultural, social,
and academic exchanges, and Southeast Asia became a major target for the Foundation’s work. Fukuda’s 1977 trip also led to the founding of the ASEAN Cultural Fund, a Japanese
organization that offered 5 billion yen (US$63.6 million) to foster cultural exchanges within ASEAN as well as between ASEAN and others. The ASEAN Cultural
cultural, as well as economic. Even before the speech, however, Fukuda had begun courting the region
Fund signaled a new mode of Japanese diplomacy that may be termed as “embedded initiative” –Tokyo embeds its initiatives within a multilateral framework and presents them as collective
ASEAN members even have full jurisdiction over the operation of the fund.
Fukuda’s successors would follow his example with remarkable success. According to Japanese foreign ministry’s surveys conducted in five ASEAN memberwisdom. In the case of the Cultural Fund, for instance,
states (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines), the percentage of those who felt Japan’s war atrocities should never be forgotten fell from over 30 percent in 1978 to 20
percent. In addition, the vast majority
of respondents felt their countries’ relations with Japan are “good” or “generally good.” Roughly the same percentage
of respondents agreed that Japan could be “trusted” or “generally trusted.” Japan’s charm offensive was solid enough to embolden
Japanese Prime Minister Takeshita Noboru to openly call the region Japan’s “power base” in the late 1980’s.
Takeshita’s statement, however, greatly overstated Japan’s influence in ASEAN, which has declined ever since. The crux of Tokyo’s problems is that ASEAN members, while
attracted to Japan’s economic, scientific successes, and cultural vibrancy remain ambivalent about Tokyo’s
percent in 2008. During the same period those who felt that the past should be put to rest rose from 37 percent to 68
political influence. For example, a 2008 foreign ministry’s survey showed economic and technological cooperation was the top area that the public in six key ASEAN countries [Thailand,
more active in, with 66 percent choosing this
category. By contrast, only six percent of the ASEAN respondents were eager to see Japan enhance its military presence. This was a far cry
Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam] would like to see Japan become
from a power base for Tokyo. The one-dimensional nature of Japan’s image in the region is particularly detrimental because Japan’s economic performance has progressively worsened since
1980’s, while China’s economy has grown rapidly. Although Ch
the
ina didn’t begin trying to woo ASEAN members in earnest until the 1997
Asian Financial Crisis-when Beijing resisted the temptation to devalue its currency- it has outpaced Tokyo in this area for much of the period since. Indeed, even though Japan contributed far
than China in numerical terms to solve the financial crisis, the latter received more praise, including
from the U.S. Here lies the core dilemma for Japan’s charm offensive: Tokyo did not intensify its effort to propagate Japan’s soft
more
power until the country’s hard power was in relative decline. Seen from this perspective,
Japan’s soft power
offensive is based more on its dwindling grandeur and a lack of other viable policies. As Japan’s economic malaise is likely to continue and its politicians look incompetent. Tokyo would find it
hard to justify its relevance as a model to any international audience. Beijing’s growing assertiveness towards Southeast Asian countries seems to offer Japan a chance to present itself as an
. But this is partially undercut by an intra-ASEAN divide between attitudes towards China and
Japan. The aforementioned six-country survey shows a near-perfect intra-ASEAN divide: people in Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand saw China as the most important partner and
alternative to China
continued to believe it will be in the future. Meanwhile, people in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam saw Japan as the most important partner and also continued to believe so for the
future (henceforth the Japan Group). This intra-ASEAN schism was once again exposed earlier this month when Cambodia, as chair of ASEAN, blocked the Filipino and Vietnamese effort of
presenting a united front to Beijing on accepting a code of conduct in disputed waters. While neither China’s nor Japan’s charm was accepted unanimously,
Japan’s problem is
that its future importance declines across the board. The survey shows that citizens in five of the six countries felt Beijing’s importance would
grow in the years ahead (including all the Japan Group members). Even where China’s importance is expected to decline slightly in Singapore, this is due to Singaporeans believing that India’s
importance will grow from 2% as a “present partner” to 24% in the future. At a mere 4%, Japan’s importance among Singaporeans is negligible. Thus, while China’s growing assertiveness on
Tokyo’s ability to seize this opportunity is limited by its
dim economic outlook and by intra-ASEAN divide.
the South China Sea issue may suggest that Beijing is abandoning its charm offensive,
A2: Soft Power
Japanese soft power doesn’t solve their impact
Hyun-kyung 08 (Kang, staff writer for the Korea Times, “’Soft Power’ leads to Better Ties,” 8/13/08,
accessed through Lexis Nexis)//KJZ
In 1996, British consultant Simon Anholt coined the term of nation brand or nation branding referring to how countries are
perceived by others. Anholt's team released the so-called Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index which measures
the power of each country's brand image by combining six perspectives - exports; governance; culture
and heritage; people; tourism; investment and immigration. According to the index out in 2007, Korea ranked 28th,
following Poland and Egypt. The country is behind China, whose ranking stood at 22nd and Japan which ranked eighth. Given that the
economy is ranked some 13th largest one in the globe, its nation brand ostensibly falls far behind its economic status as the senior presidential
secretary put. The foreign ministry announced in March that it would sponsor cultural exchange programs with the Middle Eastern and Central
Asian countries and enlist more cultural sites and heritages to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's world
heritage. Along with the exchange programs, the government also plans to increase the budget for development assistance and send more
overseas volunteers to the underdeveloped world from the current 830 to more than 1,000 next year. In an effort to secure stable energy
supplies, the foreign ministry launched the Korea-Arab Society in July with Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The
society, aiming at promoting the nation brand as well as a better understanding of the nation among people in the Arab world through political,
cultural and economic exchange programs, grouped South Korea with governments, corporations and organizations from 22 Arab countries. As
to the role of government in fostering soft power, Prof. Nye said: "Governments can pursue policies that attract (or repel) others, and they can
take a number of steps to explain their positions and to promote culture and exchanges." Nye,
however, advised the government
to be careful not to be a dominant player in the cultural program, saying "If governments become too
heavy handed, their efforts are seen as propaganda and repel rather than attract others." Some local think
tank people say that China has increased its foreign aid to the underdeveloped world in Africa and Latin America where natural gas and energy
are abundant, in an attempt to secure energy supplies. China has provided the developing world in the regions access to cheap credit and
inexpensive consumer goods. According to the U.S. Congressional Research Service (CRS) in 2008, China has offered its "no strings attached"
foreign aid to the underdeveloped world and its ability to deploy state-owned assets to garner soft power advantages. China is different from
the United States or other Western governments in that the Chinese government did not require the less developed world to improve human
rights conditions, governance or environmental regulations in return for foreign aid. Despite the "unrestricted foreign aid," CRS found "China's
success has been mixed and its influence remains modest." The same paper said Japan has begun to use its aid to China to accomplish broader
political and diplomatic goals. "Japan funnels some of its aid funds to pro-Japanese non-governmental organizations in China. Some in Japan
have been questioning the need for continued official development assistance to a country that now is an aid provider and who is seen by many
Japanese as a regional economic and strategic competitor," said the paper. Nye observed China has placed a good deal of emphasis on soft
power in recent years, calling it a "smart strategy for a rising power" because it makes the rise of its hard power appear less threatening to
other countries. "China has increased its education of foreign students, started many Confucius Institutes overseas, and increased its
broadcasting and public diplomacy," he said. Nye observed economic aid is a longstanding economic power resource. "Where it is used to
induce or coerce (by threat of cutoff), this is a form of hard power. When it creates a positive atmosphere that attracts the recipients, it also
produces soft power. The American Marshall Plan for Europe is an example of an aid program that produced both hard and soft power," he said
Nye, however, said whether China's aid in Africa will produce similar results is still uncertain. "China's internal policies on human rights and
political freedoms set limits on Chinese soft power." As
for Japan's soft power, Nye observed: "Japan derives soft
power from its traditional and popular culture, its success in economics and democracy, and its policies.
But Japan often limits its soft power by failing to come fully to terms with its history." Nye said soft power,
however, is not a panacea. "Soft power alone is rarely sufficient to accomplish a country's goals. For
example, soft power will not denuclearize North Korea or Iran." he claimed. "In most instances, countries need to combine soft and hard power
into strategies where they reinforce rather than undercut each other. That is smart power. Over the past eight years, the US has relied too
heavily on hard power without combining it well with soft power."
Japan can’t garner soft power --- historical memory
Le Miere 1/31/14 (Christian, senior fellow for Naval Forces and Maritime Security, “Japan’s hard-line
stance hurting its soft power, 1/31/14,http://www.iiss.org/en/iiss%20voices/blogsections/iiss-voices2014-b4d9/january-7b16/japans-hardline-stance-hurting-its-soft-power-f7ca)//KJZ
South Korea’s misgivings about its former colonial master were also evident when Japanese Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe visited the Yasukuni Shrine on 26 December. Over the years, this shrine to Japan’s
war dead has come to include indicted war criminals, despite an initial prohibition on this. Today, any
visit to the shrine by top politicians is seen as honouring those responsible for atrocities committed by
imperial Japan during its expansion in the first half of the twentieth century. Abe studiously avoided visiting the
shrine during his first stint as prime minister in 2006–07, perhaps wary of the inevitable diplomatic backlash from South Korea and China.
After the PM’s December visit, a Chinese spokesman angrily described the ‘Class A’ war criminals
commemorated at Yasukuni as ‘the Nazis of Asia’. However, Beijing took no concrete steps to sanction Japan, nor did it
encourage protests as it had done in September 2012 after Tokyo nationalised three islands in the Diaoyu/Senkaku chain that China also claims.
Nonetheless,
the Yasukuni visit will reinforce popular displeasure with Japan’s seeming unwillingness to
repent its past, particularly when Tokyo is pushing ahead with a reinterpretation of its pacifist
constitution and planning to spend more on its military. It is already having a detrimental effect on
Japanese soft power in the region. While other countries objected to China’s unilateral declaration in November of an Air Defence
Identification Zone (ADIZ) over the Senkaku/Diaoyus in the East China Sea, much of the sympathy extended to Tokyo in that dispute was lost in
the uproar surrounding Abe’s shrine visit. Other
reminders of the historical discomfort caused by Japan – including
school textbook revisions and recent comments by the new head of state broadcaster NHK downplaying
the Japanese military’s use of sex slaves or ‘comfort women’ – are helping to diplomatically isolate Japan
in north-east Asia. The Harbin memorial hall reflects the opposing interpretations of regional history. There is a possibility that Japan’s
view may lead South Korea to recalibrate its relations with Tokyo and Beijing. As the region’s history reverberates through the
present, Japanese actions continue to strike a discordant note.
A2 Econ
No link between influence and economic strength in Japan
Beeson 01
(Mark, Professor of International Politics at Murdoch University in Perth and previously Winthrop
Professor of International Relations and Political Science at the University of Western Australia “Japan
and Southeast Asia: The Lineaments of Quasi-hegemony” hr)
Japan’s economic development in the post-war period has been, until relatively recently at least, routinely described as
‘miraculous’. Indeed, it is important to remember that Japan’s rise from the ruin and defeat of World War II to its position as the second largest economy in
the world is an unparalleled and astonishing achievement. Whatever difficulties Japan may currently be facing, this experience remains a crucially important
exemplar of a successful state-led form of economic development that not only contradicts much ‘Western’ economic thinking (Fallows 1993), but which has
provided a role model for a number of other states in the East Asian region (Amsden 1995). And yet
despite Japan’s rapid economic growth
and confident assertions that it would in fact rapidly overtake the United States (Fingleton 1995), Japan has not had anything like
the same degree of ‘hegemonic’ influence that other rising powers have enjoyed before it. While Japan may
currently compare unfavourably with the US, there is no doubt that it remains a major economic actor, and so this
lack relative lack of political influence needs explaining.
A2 Sino-Japan War
A Sino-Japanese war won’t happen – balance of power, economic incentives and
ideology check
Beauchamp 14 (Zack Beauchamp, Editor of TP Ideas and a reporter for ThinkProgress.org, “Why
Everyone Needs To Stop Freaking Out About War With China”, 2/7/14,
http://thinkprogress.org/world/2014/02/07/3222021/china-japan-war/)
China’s been out of the news lately — the State of the Union only have mentioned it twice — but America’s allies are getting antsy about it. Just
this Wednesday, Filipino President Benigno S. Aquino III compared China to Nazi Germany, telling the world to “remember that the
Sudetenland was given in an attempt to appease Hitler to prevent World War II” when it thinks about Chinese territorial claims in Asian waters.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe recently reached back to the other world war, repeatedly warning the Davos summit in January that East
Asia, much like Europe pre-World War I, was a violent tinderbox primed to explode after one bad incident.¶ Of the two, Abe’s comparison is by
far more reasonable, and he did dispatch a deputy to say Japan “absolutely” did not beleive war was coming, but the damage was done. Asia
experts are warning about the risk of a “new Cold War” between Japan and China — and others are
terrified by the prospect of a hot one.¶ This is all dramatically overblown. War between China and Japan
is more than unlikely: it would fly in the face of most of what we know about the two countries, and international relations more
broadly. It’s not that a replay of 1914 is impossible. It’s just deeply, vanishingly unlikely.¶ One of the easiest ways to evaluate the
risks of Sino-Japanese war is by reference to three of the most important factors that shape a
government’s decision to go to war: the balance of power, economic incentives, and ideology. These
categories roughly correspond to the three dominant theories in modern international relations (realism, liberalism, and constructivism), and
there’s solid statistical evidence that each of them can play a significant role in how governments think about their decisions to use military
force. So let’s take them in turn.¶ The
main source of tension is an East China Sea island chain, called the
Senkakus in Japan and Diaoyus in China. While there are other potential flashpoints, the current
heightened tensions are centered on the Senkaku/Diaoyu dispute. Japan currently controls the islands,
but China claims them, and the Chinese military has made increasingly aggressive noises about the islands of late.¶ But there’s one big
factor shaping the balance of power in East Asia that means the talk is likely to remain just that: nuclear weapons. The tagline for World War I
in 1914 — “The War To End All Wars” — would have a decidedly different meaning in 2014, as war’s end would be accomplished by the world’s
end. So whereas, in 1914, all of the European powers thought they could win the war decisively, East Asia’s great powers recognize the risk of a
nuclear exchange between the United States and China to be catastrophic. Carleton University’s Stephen Saideman calls this the end of the
“preemption temptation;” nobody thinks they can win by striking first anymore.
Indeed, despite the words of some of its
military leaders, China (at least nominally) has a no-clash-with-Japan policy in place over the islands.¶ That
also helps explain why the most commonly-cited Senkaku/Diaoyu spark, accidental escalation, isn’t as likely as many suggest. When The Wall
Street Journal’s Andrew Browne writes that there’s a “real risk of an accident leading to a standoff from which leaders in both countries would
find it hard to back down in the face of popular nationalist pressure,” he’s not wrong. But it won’t happen just because two planes happen
across each other in the sky. In 2013, with tensions running high the whole year, Japan scrambled fighters against Chinese aircraft 433 times.¶
Indeed, tensions have
flared up a number of times throughout the years (often sparked by nationalist
activists on side of the other) without managing to bleed over into war. That’s because, as MIT East Asia expert M.
Taylor Fravel argues, there are deep strategic reasons why each side is, broadly speaking, OK with the status quo over and above nuclear
deterrence. China has an interest in not seeming like an aggressor state in the region, as that’s historically caused
other regional powers to put away their differences and line up against it. Japan currently has control over the islands, which would make any
strong moves by China seem like an attempt to overthrow the status quo power balance.
The United States also has a habit of
constructive involvement, subtly reminding both sides when tensions are spiking that the United States
— and its rather powerful navy — would prefer that there be no fighting between the two states.¶
Moreover, the whole idea of “accidental war” is also a little bit confusing . Militaries don’t just start
shooting each other by mistake and then decide it’s time to have a war. Rather, an incident that’s truly accidental —
say, a Japanese plane firing on a Chinese aircraft in one of the places where their Air Defense Identification Zones (ADIZs) overlap — changes
the incentives to go to war, as the governments start to think (perhaps wrongly) that war is inevitable and the only way to win it is to escalate.
It’s hard to envision this kind of shift in calculation in East Asia, for all of the aforementioned reasons.¶ It’s wrong to talk about incentives to go
war in purely military terms. A
key component of the Senkaku/Diaoyou is economic: the islands contain a ton of
natural resources, particularly oil and gas. But far more valuable are the trade ties between the two
countries. China is Japan’s largest export market, so war would hurt Japan more than China, but it’d be
pretty painful for both.¶ Proponents of the World War I parallel find a lot to criticize about this point. They like to cite Norman Angell, a
pre-World War I international relations theorist famous for arguing that war was becoming economically obsolete. Angell is now often used
interchangeably with Dr. Pangloss in international relations talk, a symbol of optimism gone analytically awry.¶ But Angell gets a bad rap. He
didn’t actually say war was impossible; he merely claimed that it no longer was worth the cost (if you remember the aftermath of World War I,
he was right about that). The real upshot of Angell’s argument is that, unless there’s some other overwhelming reason to go to war,
mutually profitable trade ties will serve as a strong deterrent to war.¶ Angell may have been wrong about Europe, but
he’s probably right about East Asia. M.G. Koo, a political scientist at Chung-Ang University, surveyed several Senkaku-Diaoyu flareups between
1969 and 2009. He found that economic ties between the two countries played an increasingly large role in defusing tensions as the trade
relationship between the two countries deepened.¶ The 1978 crisis over the islands is a good example. Bilateral trade had grown substantially
since the end of the last big dispute (1972), but they had entered into a new phase after Chinese Premier Deng Xiaoping’s economic reforms
began in 1978. A key part of the early modernization plan was the Peace and Friendship Treaty (PFT) with Japan, a diplomatic treaty that
(among other things) “facilitated a rush of Japanese firms into the Chinese market.” According to Koo, “policy circles in China and Japan” had
“increasingly recognized that the [Senkaku/Diaoyu] sovereignty issue could possibly jeopardize the PFT negotiations, thus undermining
economic gains.” The leadership tamped down tensions and, afterwards, “shelving territorial claims for economic development seemingly
became the two countries’ diplomatic leitmotif in the treatment of the island dispute.”¶ There’s reason to believe today’s China and Japan
aren’t bucking the historical pattern. Despite a year of heated rhetoric and economic tensions over the Senkaku/Diaoyu dispute, bilateral trade
has been recovering nicely of late. Quartz’s Matt Phillips, looking over the numbers, concluded that “the China-Japan trade war is pretty much
over.” Sure, Chinese business leaders are making some nationalistic noises, but Phillips points out that the “lack of mass, nationalistic protests
in China suggests the powers-that-be have decided there’s no need for that to hurt an important business relationship.” Trade really does
appear to be calming the waves in the East China Sea.¶ The
last thing people worried about war between China and
Japan cite is ideology. Specifically, a growing nationalism, linked to the history of antagonism between the two traditional East Asian
powers, that threatens to overwhelm the overwhelming military and economic rationales that militate against war.¶ “At its root,” Asia experts
Tatsushi Arai and Zheng Wang write, “the Diaoyu/Senkaku dispute is an identity-based conflict in which the divergent memories, perceptions,
attitudes, and aspirations of the two national communities combine in volatile combinations.” The gist of the problem is that both countries
believe they have historical claims to the islands that extend at least back to 1895; Chinese books date its control way back in the Ming Dynasty.
Japan claims it formally annexed the Senkakus after World War II; China claims that Japan should have handed the Diaoyus back as part of its
post-World War II withdrawal from Chinese territory.¶ This historical conflict cuts across modern lines of tension in particularly dangerous ways.
Japan, always threatened by China’s overwhelming size, is baseline skeptical of China’s military and economic rise. Aggressive moves in the
Senkaku/Diaoyu dispute suggest to Japanese citizens that China’s plan is to eclipse and ultimately dominate Japan. China, by contrast, still has
deep, visceral memories of the brutal Japanese occupation during World War II, and its history books cast Japan as the enemy responsible for
its subordinate status in the past two centuries of global politics. Japanese defenses of the Senkakus come across as, once again, an attempt to
keep China down.¶ To some observers, the risk that these nationalist impulses pressure leaders into military escalation during a crisis is the
greatest risk of war. The “toxic mix of two rising nationalisms and unresolved mutual resentments” makes “the risks of an accidental conflict
becomes uncomfortably real,” Isabel Hilton writes in The Guardian. Time’s Michael Crowley agrees, writing that “national pride and historical
grievance” threaten “to drag in the U.S.” into a Pacific war.¶ But
the importance of nationalism as a driving force on both
the Chinese and Japanese side has been overblown. In fact, a deeper look at the prevailing ideological
winds in both China and Japan suggest much more pacific forces are likely to carry the day.¶ First, while it’s
easy to see China as an aggressive expansionist power bent on retaking its “rightful place” in East Asia by force, that’s simply inconsistent with
China’s track record to date. In
an influential 2003 article, Iain Alasdair Johnston, a professor of “China in World
Affairs” at Harvard, argued that there’s overwhelming evidence China is more-or-less happy with the
current international order. Johnston tested various measures of Chinese interest in upending the global
order — like its willingness to work inside the U.N. and internal dialogues within PRC strategists about
overtaking the United States — and found very little evidence of China seeking to overturn the global
structure, including the U.S.–Japan–Korea alliance system that sets the terms in East Asia.¶ “The regime
appears to be unwilling,” according to Johnston, “to bear the economic and social costs of mobilizing the
economy and militarizing society to balance seriously against American power and influence in the
region, let alone globally.” The Chinese leadership’s ideology is better understood, in Johnston’s view, as centering on expanding
China’s power inside the international order rather than overturning through gambles like military aggression in the Senkaku/Diaoyu chain.¶ In
the face of 2013′s flurry of headlines about a newly aggressive China, Johnston revisited his thesis. He found basically no evidence that the
Chinese leadership had changed its tune. Panicked writers, in Johnston’s analysis, were focusing on minor changes in Chinese policy to the
exclusion of major continuities (like continued and deepening economic ties with the United States). They were also consistently
misinterpreting Beijing’s thinking during major so-called aggressive moves.¶ Take the 2010 Senkaku-Diaoyu flareup, after a Chinese trawler
tried to ram some Japanese coast guard ships near the islands. Johnston found no evidence of serious Chinese escalation — the most serious
such step reported, an embargo on shipping “rare earth” metals to Japan, was either very weakly enforced or never happened. Moreover,
Beijing took explicit steps to tamp down anti-Japanese nationalism, placing anti-war editorials in major party outlets and shutting up the most
anti-Japanese voices on the Chinese web during the most diplomatically sensitive time in the dispute.¶ In
short, China’s track record
in the past ten years suggests the government doesn’t share the hardline nationalist sentiment it
occasionally indulges in. Rather, the Chinese government is interested in very moderate regional
advances that stop well short of war, and is capable of shutting down the sort of nationalist outburst
from its population that might goad the government into war well before such protests might start
affecting policy.¶ What about Japan? It’s true that Abe himself holds some fairly hardline nationalist views. For instance, he won’t
admit that Japan waged an aggressive war during World War II, which is a pretty gobsmacking bit of revisionism if you think about it. In
December, Abe visited a shrine that honors (among others) Japanese war criminals from that era, a move that contributed to the recent bout of
nationalistic strife.¶ But there
are a number of reasons to think that the resurgent Japanese nationalism Abe
represents isn’t going to force war during a crisis. For one thing, his government’s coalition partners
would do their damndest to block escalation. New Komeito, whose support keeps Abe and his Liberal
Democratic Party (LDP) in power, is an odd duck: pacifict Buddhist libertarians is way oversimplified, but
it gets the point across. Regardless, they are extremely serious about their pacifism — it’s at the core of
their political identity, and it inclines them towards a more generous stance towards Beijing. They’d exert a
calming pressure in any crisis.¶ Now, there are rumblings that the LDP and New Komeito may part political ways. But the cause of the split — a
disagreement over rewriting or reinterpreting Article 9, the
pacifist article in Japan’s constitution — reveals the
broadest check on Japanese nationalism. Simply put, the Japanese people still retain much of the
nation’s post-World War II pacifist core, and Abe’s government has governed accordingly.¶ Mike Mochizuki, the Japan-U.S.
Relations Chair at George Washington University, took a hard look at Japanese opinion about militarization in the Abe era. He and his coauthor,
Samuel Porter, found enormous Japanese opposition to anything resembling a significant return to active military status. For instance, 56
percent of Japanese voters supported seeing the treaty as prohibiting “collective self-defense” (meaning defense of its allies when attacked). A
miniscule 7 percent wanted to see Japanese troops “fighting on the frontlines with the U.S. military.”¶ So why did they support Abe’s aggressive
LDP? In a word, the economy. Japan’s citizens aren’t deeply aligned with the LDP philosophy — “83 percent,” according to Mochizuki and
Porter, “felt that a party that can effectively oppose the LDP is necessary” in government. Rather, they threw out the previous government
because the economy was in tatters. Sixty percent of Japanese voters want Abe to focus on the economy, while only 9 percent see foreign
policy as the priority.¶ Abe’s government, nationalist stunts aside, isn’t unaware of this reality. Because China is Japan’s number one trading
partner, “reviving Japan’s economy will be inordinately difficult if fractious political relations with China are allowed to damage Japan–China
economic relations,” Mochizuki and Porter argue. “If Sino–Japanese relations were to deteriorate further and lead to a more precipitous drop in
Japanese exports to China, this would jeopardize Abe’s growth strategy and thereby threaten his political survival.” As a consequence, they
conclude, the Prime Minister’s approach to the Senkaku dispute “will be measured and will not entail full-blown militarization,” let alone short
term escalation. Abe and the LDP rank militaristic nationalism a distant second to the nation’s economic health. ¶ Of course it’s possible that, at
one point in the future, all of this changes. Chinese hard power continues to grow, Japan remilitarizes in a big way, and the United States pulls
back it security guarantee. In that world, a combination of security competition and nationalist fever might well swamp the economic incentives
against war.¶ But it’s important to remember that we’re nowhere close to that reality. Too often, our political discourse dramatically inflates
the threats facing the United States, leading to distorted, paranoid policy responses when something more measured would do.¶ There’s
lot going in East Asia that matters to American policymakers. We should focus on solving those real
problems, not the ephemeral specter of a vanishingly unlikely war.
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