The Yokohama District Court on Nov. 19 ordered the Japanese government to pay approximately 3.9 billion yen in compensation to residents affected by noise pollution from the Atsugi Naval Air Base in Kanagawa Prefecture, a facility jointly used by the U.S. military and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.
The lawsuit was filed by around 8,000 residents living near the base. The court recognized that the noise from the naval air base "has caused damage exceeding the tolerable limits of social life."
The ruling stated that noise levels measured in the plaintiffs' residential areas were relatively high according to standards set by the World Health Organization and Japan's Environment Ministry, leading to serious infringements such as sleep disturbance. The court concluded that, even considering the nature of the military base, the damage had surpassed acceptable limits and constituted an illegal infringement on the residents' health and living environment.
Following the verdict, the plaintiffs' lawyer noted that although there have been multiple prior rulings recognizing the noise from the Atsugi base as illegal, the Japanese government has consistently failed to implement fundamental countermeasures.
The issue of noise pollution around the Atsugi base has a long legal history. Separate groups of plaintiffs have filed a series of lawsuits since 1976, seeking a ban on night and early morning flights from the base, alongside claims for damages. In the fifth such lawsuit, decided in November 2024, the court did not grant the request for a flight ban but ordered the Japanese government to pay about 5.9 billion yen in compensation for past noise pollution. The plaintiff group in this most recent case sought only compensation, not a flight ban.
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