Outside Opinion on AISIN REPORT 2007

Mr. Seiji Mukai

Representative Officer, Green Energy NPO Promotional Organization
Representative Officer, Japan Carbon & Technology Exchange
Part-time lecturer of Nihon Fukushi University,Economics Department (Environmental Management)
Environmental Councilor (Business Department)

It had been a year since I last visited the Handa Plant's biotope and eco farm, but what was then a 2,800m² field adjacent to the AISIN Eco Center on the east side of the plant has now been transformed into a magnificent biotope. This is probably Japan's first full-scale biotope created by a company. Three years have gone by since I first heard about this concept, and the biotope has been gradually but steadily created, quite literally by hand, mainly by staff from the Environment Department. This biotope truly is the crystallization of a tremendous amount of hard work and knowledge.

The biotope displays an amazingly comprehensive level of consideration to the environment. An example of this is the biotope's design: plant wastewater is discharged after being purified using water treatment equipment, which is further filtered through net bags of brick debris so that the quality of the water in the stream is clean enough to provide a habitat for killifish. Cut trees thinned from Neba Village are used to make bridges, chairs and tables. The biotope's Eco Road has been paved with used pallets and recycled bricks. AISIN employees brought unneeded plants and planted them by hand in the biotope. Used concrete has been used to serve as garden rocks. I am deeply impressed that this garden is heading for completion without investing a large amount of capital. I believe this biotope can serve as a model for a future recycling society, and I really look forward to visiting again a year later.

Nutrient-rich soil for the eco farm, where potatoes and a variety of vegetables are thriving, was developed thanks to fully fermented compost created from the annual 276 tons of leftover foods recovered from Group plants. Being interested in cultivating chemical-free vegetables myself, I tried some of this compost in my own garden, and it seems to be good for growing vegetables.

During a lull in the rainy season on a late Sunday afternoon, I attended the opening ceremony of “Hotaru no Yube,” an event to celebrate fireflies at the biotope. Employees and their families, children from social welfare institutions and residents from Neba Village involved in forest conservation all joined in to spend an enjoyable time together.

I have heard that AISIN's policy is that this biotope should serve as a future site for environmental education of local elementarychool children and fostering communication among the region's residents. This kind of social activity is essential for companies to coexist within local communities as well as have a necessary existence for society.

I'd like to extend my fullest congratulations on the occasion of the opening of this biotope, a fitting symbol of AISIN, which is especially recognized as a passionate environment-conscious company among the companies of the Toyota Group.

This biotope will serve as a symbol of AISIN's environmental activities, and in turn support its aim to be a top environmental player in the automotive industry as well as throughout Japanese industry. It is my sincere hope that AISIN will steadily move forward with ingenuity and passion.