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Wei Yan
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Japan dresses down to save power
Vending machines and heated toilet seats will be turned off and salarymen will swap their suits for Hawaiian shirts and shorts as Japan prepares for a summer of power shortages.
Tokyo's governor has called for the hundreds of thousands of vending machines to be turned off Photo: REX
By Danielle Demetriou in Tokyo 4:07PM BST 16 May 2011
Two months after the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami struck, there are warnings of power shortages over the peak summer period.
Japan's Environment ministry has announced a "Super Cool Biz" campaign, to persuade workers to swap their suits for polo shirts, Hawaiian shirts, jeans and trainers.
Shintaro Ishihara, the Tokyo governor, has called for the hundreds of thousands of vending machines that supply everything from hot coffee to schoolgirl's underwear to be turned off.
A number of major companies are also introducing similar initiatives. Suzuki, the car and motorcycle manufacturer, has declared an attire revolution. w
Osamu Suzuki, the 81-year-old president of Suzuki, said: "When I go playing golf, I wear short pants and socks. It is very cool."
In tennis, the Japan Open has cancelled its women's tournament this year, although the men's event will be staged. "The women's event at
the Japan Open has been called off to save on electricity," said Atsuko Isoyama, a spokesman for Pan Pacific Open.
The Tokyo Electric Power company (Tepco) has promised to try to keep central Tokyo fully powered over summer but may struggle if energy consumption spikes above 55 gigawatts.
The hottest summer on record saw power usage soar as much as 65GW.
Japan already has a reputation as an energy-efficient nation, with many homes already containing a raft of energy-saving gadgets and families already often bathing in recycled reheated bath water.
However the Trade ministry pointed an obvious target for additional savings was luxurious Japanese toilet seats with sprays of water and dryers account for four per cent of household energy use.
The Institute of Energy Economics said cutting out microwaves, irons, hairdryers and other appliances could shave 1.4GW off demand.
Tokyo's 4,000 pachinko pinball parlours also suck up 840MW during peak hours, more than twice the city's main subway system.
