The Jinkanpo Atsugi Incinerator, (also known as the Shinkanpo Incineration Complex and Enviro-Tech) was a waste incinerator

Incineration

Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of organic substances contained in waste materials. Incineration and other high temperature waste treatment systems are described as "thermal treatment". Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash, flue gas, and...

 located in Ayase

Ayase, Kanagawa

is a city in central Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is on the east bank of the Sagami River and is bordered by Yamato, Fujisawa and Ebina cities. It should not be confused with a neighborhood of the same name in Adachi, Tokyo. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 82,738 and a...

, Kanagawa Prefecture

Kanagawa Prefecture

is a prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital is Yokohama. Kanagawa is part of the Greater Tokyo Area.-History:The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. It began operation in the 1980s and was closed in 2001. The incinerator was near Naval Air Facility Atsugi

Naval Air Facility Atsugi

is a naval air base located in the cities of Yamato and Ayase in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is the largest United States Navy air base in the Pacific Ocean and houses the squadrons of Carrier Air Wing 5, which deploys with the aircraft carrier...

 (NAF Atsugi), a base manned partly by several thousand United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 members and their families.

Throughout its history, the incinerator reportedly blew toxic and cancerous emissions over the high-rise base dwellings in its immediate vicinity. The incinerator's owners, arrested and jailed for charges of tax evasion

Tax evasion

Tax evasion is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Tax evasion usually entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities to reduce their tax liability,...

, neglected the maintenance of the facility. The pollution had become so much of a health concern for the American residents that if they showed signs of adverse health effects, the U.S. military authorities allowed them to leave early (usually servicemembers are stationed at the base for a tour of three years). Many U.S. servicemembers reported sickness and a few died from cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 shortly after moving back to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

; however, there is currently no established connection between their exposure and their disease. For a time, the base required servicemembers to undergo medical screenings before being stationed at the base in order to ensure that they had no medical condition that would be worsened by the poor air quality.

In May 2001 the Japanese government purchased the plant for nearly 40 million dollars and shut it down. After the U.S. government, specifically the Department of Justice brought suit against the private incinerator owner in Ayase City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Dismantling was completed by the end of that year. Some former residents of Atsugi NAS still complain of health problems related to the incinerator's emissions and report that the USN has been reluctant to address their concerns. The incinerator contaminated the base, especially the housing area, with dioxin, heavy metals, and other deadly toxins. In June, 2007, the USN's Environmental Health Center announced that it would conduct a study of the health population of those stationed at NAF Atsugi during the time the incinerator was in operation.

The Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center has stated that a new health study is currently underway and should be released in the summer of 2009.