Extreme rainfall continues to batter Japan, with specialists indicating climate change as the main culprit for the unending deluge. The impact is being felt across the country with sudden flooding and landslide incidents reported in several areas. Experts are raising alarms over the increasing frequency and intensity of these torrential downpours, putting forward climate change as the key contributing factor.

Japan has always been prone to heavy rainfall, especially during typhoon season. Much of the concern in recent years, however, revolves around sudden and increasingly catastrophic weather incidents. The public generally accepts the correlation of climate change to worsening weather situations. As a consequence, disaster preparedness and mitigation measures are taken very seriously, with considerable emphasis on creating resilient communities and environments.

While Japan frequently encounters heavy rainfalls due to its geographical position, similar weather-induced incidents occur in the US and EU as a result of climate change. Nevertheless, the social and political responses to these catastrophes vary. In the US, climate change is still a highly politicised issue. Comparatively, in the EU, member states generally align more uniformly on climate change acceptance and the implementation of sustainable environmental policies.