(provisional translation of press briefing material)
1. Background
The Government of Japan has been making efforts to solve the issue of abandoned chemical weapons by setting up the Abandoned Chemical Weapons Coordination Council (hereafter called the Coordination Council) in August 1997 following the Cabinet approval. The Council recently decided to establish the Technology Study Group for the Destruction of Abandoned Chemical Weapons (hereafter called the Technology Study Group).
The Technology Study Group was established to cope with the necessities of undertaking, at an earliest juncture, an evaluation study of technologies for destruction of abandoned chemical weapons, conducting a technical, professional and inter-disciplinary research in a field where Japan has no experience, and ensuring a fair and transparent process for both domestic and foreign private enterprises interested in this issue.
2. Outline of the Technology Study Group
The Technology Study Group, chaired by the Director General of the Abandoned Chemical Weapons Coordination Division, consists of 11 members including 10 technological experts in the related fields, as attached.
The objective of the Technology Study Group is to evaluate, from technological professionals' viewpoints, various technologies owned by private enterprises for the destruction of abandoned chemical weapons, and eventually present the Group's view to the Coordination Council. The Coordination Council will, then, decide, based on the Technology Study Group's view, on the evaluation of technologies from a comprehensive viewpoint taking into account such factors as executive and foreign policy standpoints.
3. Schedule
The first meeting of the Technology Study Group is planned for May 1st, 1998.
The Technology Study Group will thereafter hold several meetings with the objective of presenting its evaluation regarding the selection of a small number of technologies by next spring.
The Abandoned Chemical Weapons Coordination Division will provide, in principle, briefings to the press as well as to the interested private enterprises after each Group's meeting so as to ensure fairness and transparency of the entire study process.
| Chairperson | |
| Seigi HINATA Director General, Abandoned Chemical Weapons Coordination Division Councilors' Office on External Affairs, Cabinet Secretariat | |
| Members | |
| Tomie AMARI Former Commandant of the Chemical School, Ground Self Defense Force | |
| Yuji ENOMOTO Director, Basic Technology Department Mechanical Engineering Laboratory | |
| Shigeji KOSHI Technical Adviser, Technical Department Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association | |
| Hiroaki SHIRAISHI Section Head, Analytical Quality Assurance Section National Institute for Environmental Studies | |
| Masaru TANAKA Director, Department of Waste Management Engineering Institute of Public Health | |
| Mitsugu TANAKA Director, Department of Decommissioning & Waste Management Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute | |
| Shoji NAKAHARA Lecturer of Kantogakuin University Former Professor of the National Defense Academy | |
| Shuzo FUJIWARA Director, Advanced Chemical Technology Department National Institute of Materials and Chemical Research | |
| Kouichi MIZUNO Director, Environmental Assessment Department National Institute for Resources and Environment | |
| Masatoshi MORITA Director, Regional Environment Division National Institute for Environmental Studies | |