Sustainable Switch: Japan quake toll nears 50

Tohoku Electric Power, Incorporated

02/01/2024 13:00

Jan 2 - By Sharon Kimathi
Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital
     
Hello,
It's a tragic start to 2024 after a powerful earthquake struck
central Japan on New Year’s Day, killing at least 48 people,
destroying buildings, knocking out power to tens of thousands of
homes and prompting residents in some coastal areas to flee to
higher ground.
The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6, triggered waves
of about 1 meter along Japan's west coast and neighboring South
Korea.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) initially issued a major
tsunami warning – its first since the March 2011 earthquake and
tsunami that struck northeast Japan killing nearly 20,000 people
– for Ishikawa prefecture. It later downgraded the warning and
eventually cut it to an advisory.
Japan’s deadliest quake since 2016
Authorities have  confirmed 48 fatalities, all in Ishikawa
prefecture, making it Japan's deadliest earthquake since at
least 2016 when a 7.3 magnitude one struck in Kumamoto on the
southern island of Japan, killing more than 220 people.
Many of those killed are in Wajima, a city on the remote
northern tip of the Noto peninsula.
Scores more have been injured and authorities were battling
blazes in several cities on Tuesday and hauling people from
collapsed buildings.
"I've never experienced a quake that powerful," said Wajima
resident Shoichi Kobayashi, 71, who was at home having a
celebratory New Year's meal with his wife and son when the quake
struck, sending furniture flying.
"Even the aftershocks made it difficult to stand up straight,"
he said, adding his family were sleeping in their car because
they could not return to their badly damaged home.
Rescuers struggle
Rescue teams have been struggling to reach isolated areas where
buildings had been toppled, roads wrecked and power cut to tens
of thousands of homes.
A 3,000-strong rescue crew of army personnel, firefighters and
police officers have been sent to the quake site on the Noto
peninsula.
"The search and rescue of those impacted by the quake is a
battle against time," Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said during
an emergency meeting on Tuesday, donning a blue outfit commonly
worn by officials during disaster relief operations.
Kishida said rescuers were finding it very difficult to access
the northern tip of the Noto peninsula where helicopter surveys
had discovered many fires and widespread damage to buildings and
infrastructure. There are around 120 cases of people awaiting
rescue, his government spokesperson said.
‘Tsunami! Evacuate!’
    Following the quake, a bright yellow message reading
"Tsunami! Evacuate!" flashed across television screens advising
residents in specific areas of the coast to immediately
evacuate.
The quake also jolted buildings in the capital Tokyo, some 500
km from Wajima on the opposite coast.
Almost 32,000 households were still without power in Ishikawa
prefecture late on Monday, according to utilities provider
Hokuriku Electric Power, with temperatures set to drop to near
freezing overnight in some areas. Tohoku Electric Power said 700
households remained without power in neighboring Niigata
prefecture.
Nuclear plant watch
The quake also comes at a sensitive time for Japan's nuclear
industry, which has faced fierce opposition from locals since
the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, which triggered nuclear
meltdowns in Fukushima and devastated whole towns.
Japan last week lifted an operational ban imposed on the world's
biggest nuclear plant, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, which has been
offline since 2011.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority said no irregularities were
found at nuclear plants along the Sea of Japan, including five
active reactors at Kansai Electric Power’s Ohi and Takahama
plants in Fukui Prefecture.
    
    
  
Talking Points

    * Corporate responsibility: Consulting firm McKinsey & Co
has
agreed to pay $78 million to resolve claims by U.S. health
insurers and benefit plans that it fueled an epidemic of opioid
addiction through its work for drug companies including
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma.

    * Breakingviews: Billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes may put
more of
his money where his mouth is during 2024. The co-CEO of
enterprise software company Atlassian has talked up the need to
tackle climate change and has already devoted some of his wealth
to the cause. Click here to read the full feature by
Breakingviews’ Anthony Currie.

    
    
  
Quote of the Day
     
    “I see three critical sustainability trends this year.
Firstly, there’s an urgent need for a sustainable energy
revolution to address energy challenges. Secondly, managing
water resources and ensuring access to clean water will be
paramount. Lastly, a transition to a circular economy will gain
prominence.”
  
Sérgio Ribeiro, CEO and co-founder of global ESG event,
Planetiers World Gathering
     
ESG Lens
     
A tsunami measuring under one meter (3.3 ft) reached South
Korea's east coast in the wake of a massive earthquake that hit
Japan on Monday, South Korea's meteorological agency said, which
added there may be more and larger waves in the next hours.
The first tsunami to reach South Korea's coast was 67 cm (2.2
ft) but it may increase in size after the initial waves and may
continue for more than 24 hours, the meteorological agency said.
Parts of Sakhalin island's western coast and the mainland
Primorsk and Khabarovsk regions, which are situated close to
Japan on Russia's Pacific seaboard, are under threat of tsunami,
state news agency TASS reported on Monday, citing officials.
     
ESG Spotlight
     
Marilyn Monroe sang “diamonds are a girl’s best friend”, but the
unsustainable mining practices involved have since prompted some
to look for ways to produce them.
    
    This year’s first spotlight shines a light on the jewelry
industry as an award-winning British designer sees greater worth
in jewelry crafted using laboratory-grown gems and metal from
recycled cans.
     
Anabela Chan said she chose her materials after witnessing what
she said were poor working conditions in diamond mines.
    
"These are some of the most precious and valuable commodities in
the world, that just didn't make any sense to me," she said, in
her Knightsbridge boutique in central London. 
     
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Strong earthquake hits central Japan    https://tmsnrt.rs/4aIDT9O
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 (Editing by Alexander Smith)