Diseases Caused by Environmental Degradation
Environmental pollution caused serious diseases in various regions in Japan. Even confined to officially
recognized cases, the estimated number of patients of diseases related to air pollution such as asthma in
Yokkaichi City, Mie, surpassed 100 thousand in 1988.
A symbol of Japan’s pollution disease, Minamata disease. The number of officially recognized Minamata
patients reached 1,924 in 1984. There was a far larger number of patients requesting official recognition. In
March 1978, the number of recognized patients was 1,348, while 5,385 patients were filing for recognition