Where to put it all?

Tohoku is ready to rebuild, but...

One of the reasons the tsunami was so devastating is that most homes and businesses were built on the narrow strip of flat land between the mountains and the sea. That limited area is also where the rebuilding should happen, but...

That tiny strip of prime real estate is covered with rubble from the tsunami. How do you rebuild your house when your property is buried under broken boards, smashed concrete foundations, twisted metal beams, other people's lost cars, and a broken boat or two?

Here is one answer:

Tokyo to accept rubble from Nov. 2
Kyodo

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government said Wednesday it will from Nov. 2 start accepting rubble from tsunami-hit Miyako, Iwate Prefecture.

The rubble will be transported by Japan Freight Railway Co. to Koto and Ota wards, Tokyo. The rubble will first be crushed in the two wards, then incinerated in Koto Ward, and used as landfill in Tokyo Bay, the metro government said.

The rubble will be checked for radioactive contamination from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant when it is loaded onto freight trains, and then a second time before it is crushed in Tokyo.

Tokyo intends to dispose of some 500,000 tons of debris from the badly-hit prefectures of Iwate and Miyagi by March 2014, although many residents in the capital oppose the plan due to radiation concerns.