Journeys in Japan - Season 9 - Eps 2: Yokkaichi: Bringing Back the Skies
On this journey, we visit Yokkaichi in northern Mie, central Japan. This industrial city, with a population of just over 300,000, is home to Japan's first petrochemical complex. It's known as the place where air pollution from sulfurous acid gas emissions caused respiratory diseases, called "Yokkaichi asthma," in the 1960s. Thanks to sweeping environmental protection measures, the environment has been vastly cleaned up, and the petrochemical complex has become a source of tourism-especially its nighttime factory cruises. The city is also famous for its ceramic ware, called Banko-yaki. Some local studios offer pottery-making workshops. Visitors can also take in the tea fields that flank the city's edge and enjoy high-quality beverage in a cafe run by a tea-farming family. Journalist Alice Gordenker travels to Yokkaichi, a city that has recovered from air pollution.
About Journeys in Japan
Title: Journeys in Japan
First Air Date: 2010-02-02
Last Air Date: 2024-12-03
Status: Returning Series
Rating: 9/10 (from 1 votes)
Language: EN
Seasons: 15
Total Episodes: 515
Network: NHK WORLD-JAPAN
Genres: Documentary
Production Companies: Japan International Broadcasting (JIB), NHK
Synopsis
Journeys in Japan provides an eye-opening look at the many unique places to visit in Japan. English-speaking visitors travel the length of the country, exploring the culture, meeting the local people, visiting historic sites and offering travel hints rarely found in guidebooks.
