Miyakojima City, Okinawa Prefecture, was certified as an environmental model city by the Ministry of the Environment in 2009. The city is currently making various efforts to become a low-carbon city.
Sugarcane cultivation has long been important in Okinawa Prefecture. After the production of sugarcane, sugar is produced in the sugar mill, and molasses is produced as a by-product. It can be fermented to produce bioethanol, which is blended into gasoline as fuel ethanol. The use of this fuel is expected to reduce CO2 emissions from automobiles. The Ministry of the Environment hopes that this project will become a model for global warming countermeasures that makes effective use of local biomass resources. It can be said that it is a fuel energy development using local products.