Concrete Wabi sabi: Tetrapods part 2

A further look at Japan's favorite construction material... concrete!

I heard an interesting statistic yesterday from an architect who described concrete as a very environmentally unfriendly building material. He said that 10% of all the carbon dioxide emissions on the planet come from the production of cement.

There are some wonderful sections of coastline in Japan, viewable by boat, but too much of it is concreted over. Often I am reminded of the coastal defences built along the English and French coasts during WWII.

The entrance to any harbor is often now a maze of concrete breakers.

The rivers too are lined with concrete making them more like drains than living rivers. There is an environmental biologist working around Lake Biwa who is responsible for concrete being taken out from the lakeside as it destroys the ecosystem.