On Air: Fukuoka City Information/2014.04.26(Sat)/09:00～

In Fukuoka, households engaged in home care or childrearing which use disposable diapers on a daily basis may receive 30-liter-size household garbage bags from Fukuoka City. The bags are intended for households with newborn infants, elderly and physically challenged members.

Households that receive a notification of a 4-month infant health exam after the start of this April should apply using the Household Cost Reduction Application Form, or genmen shinseisho, in Japanese, enclosed with the notification in the envelop that they receive. 30 garbage bags are provided per home, per infant, registered in the program. Infants are no longer eligible for the program once they turn one year old.

Elderly in the Fukuoka City Diaper Service Program are also able to receive the bags. 50 garbage bags will be delivered per year. Deliveries take place simultaneously with diaper delivery. Please fill out the Household Cost Reduction Application and Service Receipt Form at the time of delivery.

Physically challenged individuals receiving disposable diapers through the Daily Living Goods Subsidization Initiative, or Nichijo Seikatsu Yogu Kyufu Jigyo, in Japanese, may receive garbage bags as well. Please request service using the Household Cost Reduction Application, included in the envelope with tickets for free diapers. After doing so, individuals are eligible to receive 50 garbage bags per year.

For elderly and physically challenged applicants, the number of bags received may vary the first delivery only, depending on the time of application.

For further information, please contact the Waste Collection Management Section of city government by phone at 092-711-4346.

And Fukuoka City has one more announcement, and request, to each resident of the city, about the reduction of stray cats...

Stray cats in Fukuoka are the cause of many complaints. Cats become stray when they are thrown out by their owners, or get lost while outside. It also seems that not all owners have spayed their cats, and those cats are giving an increasing number of births to kittens which are then abandoned.

In order to prevent the increase in unwanted stray cats, the city is asking owners to keep their cats inside, spay them, or make sure that they wear a name tag with address or are microchipped so that they can be returned to their owner in the case they become lost. Please, be responsible pet owners.

Also, please do not feed stray cats. It only creates a breeding ground for strays, further increasing the number of unwanted cats. It also creates problems amongst neighbors due to littered food and cat excrement dirtying neighborhoods, and increases the amount of accidents, disease and killing of these animals as well. It's important you consider whether or not your actions are contributing to the increase in the number of unwanted cats roaming the city.

There are local initiatives to help prevent the problem of stray cats. These are groups of volunteers from neighborhoods suffering from problems with cats who come together to reduce the problem. They establish community rules regarding spaying, toilet matters and concerns about feeding stray cats. The number of areas with such local initiatives in Fukuoka City is increasing, and Fukuoka City is also holding explanatory meetings on the topic and supporting free spaying at the Animal Welfare and Management Center.

Fukuoka City asks for your understanding and support in efforts to reduce the number of stray cats.