Japan is a model of cleanliness. So where are all the trash cans?

The new solar-powered trash cans on a street in Nara. Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images via CNN Newsource

Professor Chris McMorran teaches Japanese studies at the National University of Singapore, where his work focuses on serious and important topics like labour, gender and marginalized communities.

But when he takes his students to Japan, one major question invariably emerges: why aren’t there any trash cans?

It’s a common refrain, especially among the Western travelers who flock to Japan in increasing numbers every year: how can the country be so clean and organized when there doesn’t seem to be a way to dispose of garbage in public places?

McMorran’s students are not the only ones with that question. Earlier this year, the Japanese National Tourism Organization (JNTO) conducted a survey of passengers leaving Japan and asked what logistical challenges they faced during their trip.

The number one response? A lack of trash cans. Twenty-two percent of tourists cited the difficulty of finding a place to throw away garbage as the single biggest issue they’d dealt with during their trip, ahead of a lack of English speakers (15%) and overcrowding at popular attractions (13%).

There are a few different ways to address the trash disposal question, but they generally involve the unique cadences of Japanese etiquette.

“This (lack of trash cans) can be a nuisance particularly for budget-conscious young travelers,” says McMorran. “Instead of sitting down for a meal at a restaurant, they are more likely to grab an onigiri at a convenience store or an Instagrammable dessert at a stall. Once they finish eating, they search in vain for a place to throw the waste.”

He notes that while local Japanese people also buy food and drinks from vending machines or kombini (convenience stores), the difference is that they don’t necessarily consume these products on the street.

It’s considered bad manners to eat while walking — to the point where some cities in Japan have outright barred the practice. Instead, it’s more common to take these grab-and-go foods to their home or office, eat it there, and then dispose of the trash. If they do eat while out on the go, most people keep a small bag with them where they can stow trash until they get home.

The effect of tourism growth

Mass tourism is causing problems with Japan’s public trash situation.

For example, travelers come from around the world to visit the UNESCO-listed city of Nara, a 45-minute bullet train ride east of Osaka. While the city is home to historic temples and Buddhist artifacts, its most famous residents are wild deer which are known for taking crackers from visitors and “bowing” to say thank you.

Trash, though, has become a life-or-death issue for the deer: nine died in 2019 after eating plastic waste that was left on the ground by tourists.

Trash cans were removed from Nara’s parks in 1985 to prevent deer from trying to eat out of them. Signs throughout the city cautioned people not to litter as eating trash or food outside of their diet could be harmful for the deer.

As the number of travelers increased, it became clear that the posted signs weren’t enough, and people weren’t following the local custom of taking their trash away with them. The city has since reconsidered its policy and installed several trash bins near the busiest tourist areas.

The solar-powered trash cans are printed with “Save the deer” in English.

Tokyo’s cool Shibuya neighborhood has also struggled to cope with tourists and the trash they leave behind. Local politicians have cracked down on the notoriously riotous Halloween celebrations and made it illegal to consume alcohol on the street — partly to reduce noise complaints, but also to curb the amount of litter.

On TikTok, videos about Japanese etiquette for tourists abound, with some travelers comparing Japan favorably to Canada and the US in its approach to public hygiene or offering tips about where to find a trash can when you really need one (many vending machines have a small one next to them).

For some tourists, the lack of easily findable rubbish bins is another charming quirk of Japanese culture.

For other visitors, it’s a nuisance that dimishes the enjoyment of their vacation.

Hong Kong resident Ruben Verebes is in the latter camp. He visited Japan for the first time in September 2024 and said he was annoyed by the difficulty of finding a place to throw litter away.

“It is infuriating to walk around Tokyo the whole day, racking up 20,000-plus steps on your feet, and not find a single bin to throw away your plastic wrapping from your sandwich,” he says.

“Some 7-Eleven, Family Mart or Lawson stores didn’t even have rubbish bins to use, so you are left to hold these dirty wrappers or bottles all day until you get back to your hotel. (It’s) great that the streets are clean, but it is annoying having to hold (trash) all day long.”

Paul Christie, CEO of travel company Walk Japan, says he focuses on the values of respect and community when he fields questions from clients about the lack of trash cans.

“The Japanese prize cleanliness and cooperate as a society to make it so, the result being that their country rates highly in the neat and tidy stakes,” he tells CNN.

“In the end,” Christie says, “Japanese communities have made the decision to avoid the nuisance and cost of public garbage cans, and Japanese consumers have accepted the burden of having a disposal plan when they purchase something.”

Japan has made a huge push for its citizens to recycle, which is another reason for the small sizes of trash cans. McMorran, the Japanese studies professor, says that some municipalities have as many as 20 different categories of recyclable items, and even some locals can find it challenging to sort them all and throw out everything correctly.

“The spotless public transport system is an excellent example where all passengers treat the stations, trains, buses and fellow travelers with respect and act accordingly.”

A darker undercurrent

Beyond the topics of cleanliness and hygiene, there’s a bleaker reason behind the lack of trash cans in public areas.

On March 20, 1995, members of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult carried out sarin gas attacks on several Tokyo subway trains, killing 14 people and injuring at least 5,500 more.

The cult members brought plastic packets of sarin onto subway cars, dropped them on the floor, and then punctured the bags with umbrella tips as they left the train. Several subway workers who attempted to clean up the spill and help passengers escape were among those who died.

The incident shocked Japan and changed the country forever.

One aftereffect was the removal of trash cans from subway and train stations. While some still exist, they feature clear plastic bags that enable police officers to easily see what’s inside, rather than the dark metal cylinders used in the past.

And this phenomenon isn’t isolated to Japan.

Many trash cans were removed from London Underground stations and major intersections throughout the UK capital following several bombings by the paramilitary Irish Republican Army in the 1970s.

Japanese authorities also closely monitor terror incidents overseas. Two Japanese rail lines stopped maintaining trash cans after train bombings in Madrid in 2004, citing concerns about terrorism.

There is a creative solution for travelers worried about how to carry their waste during the day.

Furoshiki are square pieces of cloth used to wrap items, and nearly every souvenir shop in Japan will have some. They can work in the short term for carrying trash until finding a bin, then can serve decorative purposes back home after the vacation.