In response to questions from members of the Okinawa Prefectural Assembly, Okinawa Prefecture responds that it is in correspondence with the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency for an information exchange over the PFOS issue. (27fe23)


Splendor of Okinawa: Malvaviscus, roadside Uruma, 23fe23


22 February was the second day of representative interpellations at the February Ordinary Session of the Okinawa Prefectural Assembly. 4 members of the ruling party faction took the podium.


Governor’s Public Office Chief Noboru Kakazu responded to queries from Communist Party Member Mizuki Higa. The chief stated that the Prefecture’s Washington Office has been working with APALA (Asian Pacific Labor Alliance). He made clear that as a result, APALA submitted requests on behalf of the Prefecture in March of last year on problems such as  the new base at Henoko and PFOS pollution to the top echelons of the Armed Forces Committees in both Houses of Congress. In December of last year, through the Washington Office, a letter was sent addressed to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, under Governor Denny Tamaki’s name, with his hope for an information exchange on issues such as PFOS pollution.  Chief Kakazu stated, in reference to the Washington staff, “They’re acting pretty energetically. As for their activity from now, they want to grapple with getting to work on gathering information on America’s newest trends, its governmental relations, and such.”


On the question of pollutants, the chief answered that much like PFOS, PFAS pollutants are also harmful to humans. The Ginowan Purification Center processes sewage within Ginowan City including its US Military Futenma Airfield. The center has made clear that in dried sludge (dried cake), that it had sampled between August of 2021 and July of 2022, the PFOS and PFOA totaled 5.5 to 5.11 nanograms per gram sampled. In August of 2021, the US Military had dumped PFAS waste water into Ginowan’s sewers.


General Affairs Office Chief Chikara Miyagi next answered queries from Masao Yamazato of the Communist Party. The Prefecture is establishing regulations for the management of public records. Public Affairs Office Chief Miyagi offered a plan to carry out an exchange of opinions  from 2023 among concerned departments, the Opinion Exchange Committee, and experts. Chief Miyagi noted, “We’ve arranged matters by subject and have investigated prior examples as precedent from other prefectures. So, our work is well underway toward a regulated system.


Director of Life and Welfare Michiko Miyahira took questions from Communist Party Representative Nobuko Tamaki about programs for comprehensive assistance for finding employment, daily life, and such by providing public apartments targeted at single parent households. The director explained that between 2012 and 2021, 264 households received such assistance. Moreover, to guarantee child rearing expenses, a program, which assists in notarized document expenses, has helped in 13 cases as of the end of January this year.


Original Japanese article: Ryukyu Shimpo, published Thursday 23 February 2023 at 06:24. Byline: Masatoshi Omine.

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/7acc3e40870a9ac98148c4f7eb468d34b35914de


Denny in the News: news about Governor Denny Tamaki.

Denny Tamaki is the governor of Okinawa Prefecture in Japan. Although Okinawa is important as an international tourist destination and a key element in strategic US Military Forces, its governor receives very little coverage in the Japanese press and almost none in the English language media. 

  1. This blog hopes to  translate one news article a day on the governor.  It is unsponsored and unauthorized. The translator simply hopes to improve his skills and perhaps give the governor an English speaking audience. 

  2. Any suggestion on improving the translation will be gratefully accepted. However, please leave political comments for another forum.

  3. Where they occur, words and phrases in Ryukyuan (the Okinawan language) are rendered in italics and translated in parentheses. Names  whose readings are uncertain are rendered as Name (=Kanji?) as in Nagayuki (=長行?). Any corrections in such instances would be gratefully appreciated.

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