Oh-Ebashi English Newsletter 2021 Summer Issue was published.

Please click HERE to view the English Newsletter back numbers.

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1. Amendments to the Whistleblower Protection Act by Yuri Kawashima

1. Introduction
　The Whistleblower Protection Act was enacted in 2004 and enforced in 2006 in Japan (the "2004 Act") to protect whistleblowers and thereby encourage potential whistleblowers to report any misconduct of certain business operators, such as their employers, and to encourage such business operators, through whistleblowing, to comply with laws and regulations.
　 In 2020, the Act was amended (the "2020 Act") to enhance the protection of whistleblowers by not only expanding the scope of protected whistleblowing but also enhancing the obligations of business operators. The 2020 Act will take effect by June 1, 2022, but a more specific date will be provided in a government regulation. Government regulations and guidelines with further details will also be issued by then....(Please click here to read more.）

2. Offshore Wind Power Projects and the Rights of People Engaged in Fishery by Yoshimasa Sawa

1. Introduction
　In October 2020, the Japanese government announced that it would reduce carbon dioxide emissions to zero by 2050, and in December of the same year, the "Green Growth Strategy through Achieving Carbon Neutrality in 2050" (the "GGS"), which can be said to be its roadmap, was formulated. In the GGS, the decarbonization of the electric power sector is essential, and offshore wind generation is considered as one of the growing fields.
　The introduction in Japan of offshore wind power generation was delayed due to the following two problems: (i) there had been no uniform rule on the occupancy of sea areas; and (ii) there had been no framework for coordination with prior users. On April 1, 2019, however, the Act on Promoting the Utilization of Sea Areas for the Development of Marine Renewable Energy Power Generation Facilities (the "Act") took effect. The flow of concrete procedures based on the Act is illustrated below. At present, 5 locations have been designated as promotional zones, including three in Akita, one in Nagasaki, and one in the Chiba prefecture....(Please click here to read more.）