David C Hulme talks to House of Representatives member Taro Kono of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)
Taro Kono, 49, currently serves as director general of the LDP’s International Bureau. He has championed consumer issues, played a leading role in the passage of government bills on various environmental issues, and is a strong advocate of the 1990 Kyoto Protocol. He also strongly believes that the Japanese economy should be more market-oriented. He is a 1985 graduate of Georgetown University, with a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service.
You are scheduled to speak at the EBC Sustainability Seminar in April, so what are the top priorities in terms of sustainability?
There are lot of issues. Especially after March 11th, we have been using a lot of oil and producing a lot of carbon dioxide as a result. There is also a lot of nuclear waste that will have to be dealt with over the next 100,000 years. That’s not the right way to do things. We need to move to the next phase, renewable energy, as soon as possible. By 2050 we should need only renewable energy. No fossil fuels, no nuclear power.
That sounds very ambitious.
Yes. We need ambitious goals. If we maximise efficiency, we can reduce consumption by 40% by 2050. The remaining part can be provided by renewable energy. We need to change a lot of laws, and do a lot of research and development. We need to ask people to do things a little differently. We can do that without reducing productivity in business or affecting people’s everyday life.
What is the main burden in terms of R&D?
There is a lot of renewable energy capacity. Cost is going to be the major issue. The question is how to reduce costs and ensure a stable supply.
We have to introduce smart grids [for energy efficiency]. That is so we are not just supplying energy; but we must be able to control demand as well. Europeans and Americans are investing in smart grids, and that will be a major investment for us too.
Will the supply be mainly solar power, wind, or what?
In Japan the first priority is geothermal [energy]. After the US and Indonesia, we are number three in terms of geothermal capacity. We are using solar energy and wind [power], then there is ocean-wave and tide energy, plus small hydroelectric turbines. There are many means to explore.
How much will be geothermal?
A lot of the base energy will be geothermal. That’s the stable supply to replace nuclear power.
Is Japan’s current goal for reducing CO2 emissions [by 25% by 2020 compared with the 1990 level] attainable, and is this sufficient?
We have to start by meeting the target. The goal was right, but the path was wrong. The government’s strategy was to increase the use of nuclear reactors. The Japanese government has not really asked people to make a commitment. A big chunk of that CO2 reduction was supposed to come from [the use of] nuclear energy, and another big chunk would come from the CDM [clean development mechanism, in which tradeable credits can be used by industrialised countries to meet part of their emissions reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol.] So, we invest in other countries and help them to reduce CO2 emissions. However, this is not asking people in Japan to maximise energy efficiency.
On one hand, the government looked the other way when Tepco [Tokyo Electric Power Co.] wanted to promote households run entirely on electricity. The purpose of that was to increase the use of electricity at night, so as to easily introduce nuclear power. The government knew that.
On the other hand, if you want to heat up a room, electricity is not the best way to do it. So, we should change the building regulations for housing, to utilise more such energy-saving features as insulation and double-glazing, with government incentives. Instead, the government just decided on nuclear energy and the CDM.
When would we see the total phase-out of nuclear power in Japan?
By 2050. We should not install any new nuclear reactors. Also, every reactor that has been in operation for 40 years should be decommissioned. We would phase them out one by one. That’s the safest and most realistic way.
Where is the starting point for a process that is supposed to take 40 years?
We already have feed-in tariffs [from July, utilities must buy power from commercial renewable energy sources at a set price], and we will follow the German example. In 10 years they have grown tremendously in terms of renewable energy.
In addition, we have geothermal energy. This takes 5 to 10 years now, so we have to cut red tape. Even then, in the first five years you might not notice much change, but after 10 years the use of geothermal power will start taking off.
Does it require a change of government?
It would be better. The current government is not really paying much attention to this. If you have Prime Minister Kono for 10 years, it would pave the way for the switch to renewables.
Is there sufficient popular awareness or will?
The summer in Japan has been terrible the past few years. But [in 2011] people were asked to cut down on energy usage, and they did. Energy consumption went down drastically. So, people are ready to act. All the government has to do is explain the situation and ask people to help. I think we proved last summer that the people are ready to do it.
A vigorous economy is needed for R&D and investment in renewable energy. What is your outlook for the economy?
We are facing a big government budget deficit, so we cannot use the government budget to stimulate the economy. We have very low interest rates, so monetary policy is limited. So, we need to deregulate a lot of things. Right now, our market is not efficient for investment inflow. We need to reduce the number of bureaucrats. We have to deregulate, and bring the free market to the people.
What is likely to happen at the upcoming EU-Japan Summit?
That is where politicians have to take the lead. We definitely need a free trade agreement with the EU. We need more sophisticated economic integration. Neither side has paid much attention to this so far, so we really have to push it.
What should Japan offer?
A free market. We are still the global number-three economy.
That’s easy to say, but many laws have to be changed.
Then we have to change them.
What should the EU offer?
Free market access. That enables economic growth. Whoever is most competitive should prevail in the market.
It sounds simple enough.
For Japan, that’s the only way out – especially for Japanese agriculture, because the population is going down. The only way out for farmers is to be more productive and send better products to where the money is. Agriculture should be one of the sectors growing fastest in Japan. It has been oppressed by wrong policy for a long time.
From a sustainability point of view, is a declining population a good thing?
Only if you have the right demographics can you have a stable population. We need to encourage a pyramid-shaped demographic.
Do we have a reliable economic model for sustainability?
I don’t think so. We have to think about it. We have to create it. I don’t know what kind of society we will have in the long run, but we have to control population growth, conserve nature, and create a new society for economic growth. I don’t know whether a stable global economy would grow or remain flat.