Disaster debris still remain in Tohoku

The Japanese government is struggling to remove millions of tons of debris from the country's northeast, more than 9 months after the March earthquake and tsunami.

The goal is to completely transfer 22 million tons of waste from disaster areas to temporary storage sites by the end of next March.

But environment ministry spokespeople say about 7 million tons, or one-third of the total debris, still needs to be hauled away.

They say the main reason for the delay is the time it takes to demolish damaged buildings. The government needs to get the approval of building owners and implement measures to prevent asbestos from scattering when it destroys the structures.

Spokespeople also say the ministry needs to build facilities with incinerators to burn up the debris that has been collected.

That work is progressing slowly because local governments are facing difficulties preparing the land where these facilities would be built.