Comparison of Environmental Safety Management Systems for Recycled Materials Used in General Environment

Tomohiro Tasaki*, Masahiro Osako* and Shin-ichi Sakai*
* Research Center for Material Cycles and Waste Management, National Institute for Environmental Studies
+ Correspondence should be addressed to Tomohiro Tasaki:
(16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8506 Japan)

Abstract
The Basic Law for Establishing the Recycling-based Society was enacted, and the importance of recycling has become more widely recognized. However, environmental pollution from toxic substances in recycled materials is a concern that prevents some recycling. This paper compared environmental safety management systems for recycled materials in Japan, the Netherlands and Germany, specifically for building materials used in general environment. In result, we clarified eight issues which should be considered for future management systems: (1) consistency among the managements for non-recycled materials, recycled materials and wastes, (2) distribution management and utilization management, (3) informative management, (4) phased management according to hazard level, (5) consistency with soil environment management, (6) consideration of use situations, (7) types of classification values to use, and (8) practical management. We proposed a new framework that takes these issues into account.

Key words: recycled materials, environmental safety management, recycling, general environment, management system