2024.08
本声明は、BIEに対して要請するとともに、博覧会協会、府市万博推進局、経産省博覧会推進室および関西広域連合に対して送付しました。
大阪・関西万博は、さまざまな地域から多様な人々が参加するビッグイベントです。
未来社会の実験場として多くの取り組みがされますが、安全確保が大きな課題です。
夢洲の土壌にはダイオキシンやヒ素、PCB、六価クロム等の汚染物質が含まれています。法律（土壌汚染対策法など）が不十分な時代から、夢洲には最終処分地として、大量の汚染物質が埋め立てられました。風害も激しい夢洲での工事で、それらが粉塵として巻き上がることから、工事関係者の健康被害も懸念されます。メタンガスは1区（バス停留所や屋外イベント広場）だけで一日あたり1.9トンも計測されています。メタンガスがないと説明されてきた2区（パビリオンワールド）でも見つかっています。火気厳禁を徹底したとしても、先日の爆発事故は火花で起きており懸念は残ります。また、メタンガスは爆発の危険があるだけでなく、温室効果ガスです。エネルギーとして回収していないため、気候変動に悪影響をもたらしています。
「全国建設労働組合総連合」の関西地方協議会は7月10日、「大阪・関西万博工事における爆発事故等や酷暑をふまえ、あらためて、現場従事者の命・健康・人権最優先の対応を求める」声明を発表しました。例年以上の猛暑の中、熱中症対策が事業者任せになっていること、万博開催時中の「救急隊の24時間常駐及び救急車両の配備体制」だけでなく、建設時も同様に「現場従事者のための救急医療体制」の構築を要請しています。
万博開催中も2800万人もの来場者の安全を守れるのか心配です。
熱中症、会場へのアクセスの不足、メタンガス爆発事故に加え、落雷や竜巻、台風、地震などの、さまざまな対策が必要です。夢洲内の多くの地点は「明確に好ましくなく許容できない」風害ランク４の強風です。万博会期中もIR工事による、汚染物質の粉塵の飛散も懸念されます。万博子ども招待事業でのお昼休憩場所は、メタンガス事故が起きた地点に近いお弁当広場や、人工芝で整備された表面温度が60度を超えるパビリオン跡地などであり、休憩にそぐわないことは明らかです。加えて人工芝はマイクロプラスチックの主要な発生源でもあり、PFASを添加した製品が多いことも大きな懸念です。
災害時、夢洲への２つのルート（橋とトンネル）が利用できるのかも大きな懸念です。
博覧会協会は最大15万人が帰宅困難者になると想定していますが、15万人を収容できる避難施設はあるでしょうか。南海トラフ巨大地震クラスでの地震時の被害状況を大阪府は予想しており、夢洲の周辺エリアは、大阪府の液状化マップで激しい液状化が懸念されるエリアです。つまり夢洲を抜けたとしても、安全に避難できる場所にたどり着くのも困難です。南海トラフ地震臨時情報が出されるなど、いつ大規模地震が起きてもおかしくない状況は今も続いています。
世界各国から多様な人が参加する万博です。
災害対策をはじめ、大阪・関西万博に関与するすべての人の安全確保を求めます。
Statement Calling for the Safety of All Involved in the Osaka-Kansai Expo
2024.08
The Osaka-Kansai Expo is a major event that will bring together a diverse range of people from various regions. While many efforts will be made to make it a testing ground for the future society, ensuring safety remains a critical issue.
The soil on Yumeshima contains dioxin, arsenic, PCBs, hexavalent chromium, and other contaminants. Since the days when laws (such as the Soil Contamination Countermeasures Law) were inadequate, large amounts of contaminated materials have been landfilled in Yumeshima as a final disposal site. Given that construction work on Yumeshima is subject to severe wind conditions, these hazardous materials could be dispersed as dust, posing health risks to construction workers. Methane gas emissions have been measured at 1.9 tons per day in one area alone (bus station and outdoor event plaza). Methane gas has also been detected in District 2 (Pavilion World), which was previously claimed to be free of methane gas. Even with strict enforcement of a fire ban, recent explosions caused by sparks continue to raise concerns. Additionally, methane gas not only presents an explosion hazard but is also a potent greenhouse gas. Since it is not being recovered as energy, it negatively impacts climate change.
On July 10, the Kansai Regional Council of the National Federation of Construction Workers' Unions issued a statement calling for renewed focus on the lives, health, and human rights of workers onsite, in light of the explosion at the Osaka-Kansai Expo and the extreme heat. The statement also pointed out that, amid the unusually hot weather, measures against heat stroke are being left to the discretion of the project sponsors. It called for the establishment of not only a "24-hour emergency medical team and ambulance deployment system" during the Expo but also a similar "emergency medical system for site workers" during the construction phase.
We are concerned about the safety of the 28 million visitors expected during the Expo. In addition to heat stroke, inadequate access to the venue, and the risk of methane gas explosions, there are various other safety measures that must be addressed, including those for lightning strikes, tornadoes, typhoons, and earthquakes. Many locations within Yumeshima are classified as having "clearly undesirable and unacceptable" wind damage (rank 4 strong winds). There is also concern about the dispersal of contaminated dust from the IR construction during the Expo period. It is evident that the lunch break areas designated for the Expo Children's Invitation Project are not suitable for rest breaks, including the lunch plaza near the site of the methane gas incident and the former pavilion site, which is maintained with artificial turf that can reach surface temperatures exceeding 60°C. Furthermore, the artificial turf, made of microplastics, is not ideal for rest breaks and is a significant source of microplastics. The fact that many products contain added PFAS is also a major concern.
Another significant concern is whether the two routes (bridge and tunnel) to Yumeshima will be accessible in the event of a disaster. The Expo Association estimates that up to 150,000 people may have difficulty returning home, but are there sufficient evacuation facilities to accommodate 150,000 people? The Osaka Prefectural Government has projected damage in the event of a Nankai Trough class earthquake, and the area surrounding Yumeshima is identified as being at high risk for severe liquefaction according to Osaka Prefecture's liquefaction map. This implies that even if one manages to escape Yumeshima, reaching a safe evacuation site could be challenging. The ongoing situation, as indicated by the Nankai Trough Earthquake Advisory, suggests that a large-scale earthquake could occur at any time.
The Expo will be attended by a diverse range of people from all over the world. Disaster preparedness is an essential responsibility, and we call for the safety of all those involved in the Osaka/Kansai Expo.
