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The Oita River runs through the heart of Oita City. A neatly laid out industrial zone, where factories and petroleum complexes belonging to some of Japan's leading companies are located. It occupies the coast running eastward from the river's estuary.
Sumitomo Chemical Oita Works is located at the southern part of the zone, near the mouth of the Ono River, the prefecture's largest, which flows into Beppu Bay about seven kilometers east of the Oita River. Long noted for contributing to the region's agricultural development, these two great waterways have played no less an important role in its industrial advancement. Oita Works General manager Shinichi Isaoka, reflecting on the benefits of the rivers, says, "Water is the lifeblood of the chemical industry. It's thanks to this abundant water supply that our works was able to locate here"
Water was not the only point in Oita's favor: the location offered an expansive, ready supply of land and convenient water access to Osaka. Sumitomo Chemical Oita Works opened in 1939; so 1999 marks its 60th anniversary. Among the many leading Japanese companies that have moved into the area, Sumitomo Chemical boasts the second- oldest tradition here, and the works itself evinces that long-standing tradition. Visitors are greeted by a red-brick main gate, followed by a seemingly endless path lined with camphor trees. Oita City strives to be a "green, lively city"; with some 20,000 trees and shrubs dotting its landscape, the Oita Works is a living example of this slogan.
The Oita Works is the prime facility for Sumiomo Chemical to manufacture fine chemicals, chiefly agrochemicals and bulk pharmaceuticals. A typical product here is Sumithion,
whose name is almost synonymous with the low-toxic organophosphates insecticides that the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended for the control of pests carrying infectious diseases in 1976.
The Oita Works is also closely involved in community-service activities, including annual partici-pation in the Tsurusaki Odori (dance) festival, Oita City's largest summer celebration; volunteer work for the Oita International Wheelchair Marathon; and routine efforts at keeping Oita's streets clean. |
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| Oita Works from across the Ono River |
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| The wild Japanese macaques of Mount Takasaki are a world-famous tourist attraction. Visitors are often lucky enough to come face to face with them. |
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