Japan

Japan

GEOGRAPHY

• Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula
• Geographic Coordinates : 36 00 N, 138 00 E
• Area: total:  377,835 sq km (land:  374,744 sq km; water:  3,091 sq km)

GEODYNAMICS

• Active volcanic activities over the past 20 million years

• The Pacific Plate and the Philippine Plate subduct the eastern border of the Eurasian Plate
• Eastern edge of the Eurasian Plate not the edge of a continent
• Volcanic activity at the junctions à Island arcs formed in the ocean
• Actually composed of four (or five) island arcs formed by volcanic activity where the Pacific Plate and the Philippine Plate subduct the eastern border of the Eurasian Plate

• Hokkaido
• Located on North American plate, behind Kuril arc
• Honshu
• Split by an incipient plate boundary between North American and Asian plates
• Izu Islands
• Immature volcanic chain on the Pacific-Philippine Sea plate boundary
• Extends onto Japan (Fujisan)
• Shikoku
• Location of type sections of Sanbagawa and Ryoke metamorphism
• Kyusyu
• Extends south as the Ryukyu Island
• Ryukyu Islands
• Subduction of Philippines Sea plate below Eurasian plate
• Extends between Kyushu and Taiwan

ELECTRICITY

• Electric Generation Capacity (1/1/99E): 226 gigawatts
• Electricity Production (1999E): 1,018 billion kilowatthours
• Thermal: 59%, Nuclear: 30%, Hydro: 8%, Other renewable: <3%

GEOTHERMAL ELECTRICITY GENERATION

(IGA, http://iga.igg.cnr.it/japan.php)

• Kokonoe town in Oita, Kyushu – largest geothermal power generation

• Total 147.5 MW
• Otake station (12.5 MW)
• Hatchobaru station (110 MW)
• Takigami station (25 MW)
• Additional 2 small-to-medium size binary cycle power generation demo-plants operated by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)

(IGA, http://iga.igg.cnr.it/japan.php)

• 1,940GWh/yr for space heating, manufacturing, agriculture, and aquaculture
• Electric generation – Recent
• 1^st dry steam plant – Matsukawa (22 MWe) ; in 1966
• Limited developable areas due to national parks and spas ; Average 40 MWe
• 7 plants operation by 1982 ; 10-55 MWe
• 528.8 MWe total on line
• Additional project : 20 plants ; 3 MWe
• Goal : Mass-production 100 to 500kW binary power plants of 23.7MWe

GEOTHERMAL POTENTIAL

Geothermal Development Promotion Survey

(NEDO: http://www.nedo.go.jp/chinetsu/sokushin/indexe.htm)

Division of Geothermal Development Promotion Survey Districts by the Highest Temperature

(NEDO:http://www.nedo.go.jp/chinetsu/sokushin/indexe.htm)

(NEDO, http://www.nedo.go.jp/chinetsu/dgrs/indexe.htm)

• Kakkonda geothermal field: higher than 500° C

CONSIDERATIONS

WORLD HERITAGE

• Yakushima
• Shirakami-Sanchi

NATIONAL PARKS

(Tamagawa University, www.tamagawa.ac.jp/.../harker/ forest/destruction.htm)

VULNERABLE/ENDANGERED ECOREGIONS

• Hokkaido deciduous forests (PA0423)
• Nihonkai evergreen forests (PA0427)
• Nihonkai montane deciduous forests (PA0428)
• Taiheiyo evergreen forests (PA0440)
• Taiheiyo montane deciduous forests (PA0441)
• Hokkaido montane conifer forests (PA0510)
• Honshu alpine conifer forests (PA0511)
• Nansei Islands subtropical evergreen forests (IM0170)

GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION OF ECOREGIONS

(National Geographic, http://www.nationalgeographic.com/wildworld/terrestrial.html?id=1&mapServiceName=WW_Terrecos&locWidth=120&locHeight=72&cMinx=141.8004&cMiny=45.914108&cMaxx=142.666901&cMaxy=47.798401&size=small&detail=detailed?id=1&size=small&detail=detailed&cMinx=142.23&cMiny=41&cMaxx=185.43&cMaxy=69.13)

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

(Statistics Bureau & Statistics Center, http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/handbook/c02cont.htm#cha2_6)

References

1. Acadia University. Significant places for global tectonics. Retrieved from world wide web: http://ace.acadiau.ca/science/geol/rraeside/quizzes/world-notes.htm (October 24, 2002)
   
   
2. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). (January 2002). The world factbook 2002 – Japan. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html (September 10, 2002)
   
   
3. Energy Information Administration (EIA). (May 2002). Country analysis briefs – Japan. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/japan.html (October 2, 2002)
   
   
4. Geothermal Education Office (GEO). (October 1997). Japan. Retrieved from world wide web : http://www.geothermal.marin.org/map/japan.html (September 10, 2002)
   
   
5. International Geothermal Association (IGA). (May 9, 2002). Welcome to our page with data for Japan. Retrieved from world wide web: http://iga.igg.cnr.it/japan.php (October 2, 2002)
   
   
6. Ministry of the Environment (March 1997). Protection of endangered species. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.env.go.jp/en/jeg/biodiv/species.html (October 2, 2002)
   
   
7. National Geographic. Wild world – Terrestrial ecoregions of the world. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/wildworld/terrestrial.html?id=1&mapServiceName=WW_Terrecos&locWidth=120&locHeight=72&cMinx=141.8004&cMiny=45.914108&cMaxx=142.666901&cMaxy=47.798401&size=small&detail=detailed?id=1&size=small&detail=detailed&cMinx=142.23&cMiny=41&cMaxx=185.43&cMaxy=69.13 (October 20, 2002)
   
   
8. Natural World of Japan, The. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.seinan-gu.ac.jp/~djohnson/natural/geology.html (October 1, 2002)
   
   
9. New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). Deep-seated geothermal resources survey. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.nedo.go.jp/chinetsu/dgrs/indexe.htm (September 20, 2002)
   
   
10. New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). Geothermal development promotion survey. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.nedo.go.jp/chinetsu/sokushin/indexe.htm (September, 10, 2002)
    
    
11. New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). Division of geothermal development promotion survey districts by the highest temperature. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.nedo.go.jp/chinetsu/sokushin/indexe.htm (September, 10, 2002)
    
    
12. Statistics Bureau & Statistics Center (2002). Population density and regional distribution. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/handbook/c02cont.htm#cha2_6 (October 2, 2002)
    
    
13. Tamagawa Universtiy. Quasinational park in Japan. Retrieved from world wide web: www.tamagawa.ac.jp/.../harker/ forest/destruction.htm (September 17, 2002)
    
    
14. United Nation Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (July 1, 2002). Natural properties on the world heritage list. Retrieved from world wide web: http://whc.unesco.org/sites/natural.htm (October 24, 2002)
    
    
15. World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Ecoregions. Retrieved from world wide web: http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial_pa.html (October 24, 2002)