Search

Abstract Establishing a decision-making scheme for multiple land use types in a shrinking society is an urgent and persistent task. In particular, residents and governments face the complexity of cross-sectoral visions over concerned landscapes. This study examined the preference of residents for future visions and the effects of group deliberation in a Japanese rural community to enhance the current understanding of decision and learning processes on cross-sectoral land use types (i.e., agricultural land, forest land, and boundary areas) across ages and groups. This study posed the following questions: (i) what types of interactions do residents find among options on cross-sectoral land uses? and (ii) how do group deliberation influence the individual preferences of residents for land use? In the survey, the residents disclosed their preferences for the prepared visions over three land use types. The survey also enabled the comparison of choices before and after group deliberation. Regarding question (i), the residents’ choice prior to the deliberation demonstrated thematic coherence through land use categories. Smart technology and potential productivity improvement were selected across agriculture and forests. However, regarding question (ii), thematic coherence decreased after the group deliberation. The residents could communicate disagreements during group deliberation and consider the issues relatively independently over land use types, which separately views agriculture lands and forests. The choice after group discussions became increasingly embedded and influenced by residential areas and land ownership of residents. These findings provide unique insights into the group discussion on how individual decisions are affected. In summary, the preferences of cross-sectoral land use types did not converge but tended to diverge.

AbstractTo facilitate forest management as part of climate change mitigation and adaptation, the Forest Environment Transfer Tax (FETT) was introduced in Japan in 2019, representing a form of payment for ecosystem services. In this study, we focused on the introduction of the tax and the status of its use based on an analysis covering Japan’s 47 prefectures. This involved reviewing policy processes related to FETT and conducting a survey among relevant prefectural officers to identify how FETT is being used, with a focus on plans, policies, and systems related to forest data development and exchanges. The proportions of both total and FETT budgets used for forest data development were significant. Several prefectures are improving forest-related data in a two-way manner by coordinating with municipalities. Correlation analysis revealed that prefectures with greater proportions of privately owned forests allocated more budget to forest data development, which is in line with the FETT’s intended purpose. This result suggests that the absolute size of such forestlands is less important, but that the proportion of privately owned forests carries political and social weight that could be a critical factor in budget allocation.

Flow-accelerated corrosion (FAC) is the major pipe wall thinning phenomenon to be managed for its potential of catastrophic pipe rupture. Present management rule for pipe wall thinning in Japanese nuclear power plants is based on pipe wall thickness measurements resulting in large number of measurements in each plant. For future improvement of the plant management in Japan, introduction of prediction method or prediction code for thinning rate and residual lifetime evaluation is expected. To predict the maximum wall thinning rate or minimum wall thickness efficiently for each pipe component, one-dimensionally along the pipelines, relative wall thinning trend of each component type, “geometry factor”, combined with the effect of upstream component, “declining effect”, are essential, which are both derived from hydraulic features. In this study, the geometry factor and the declining effect for pipeline elbows are evaluated considering specific geometric parameters through series of computational fluid dynamics calculations. For the geometry factor, correlation equation is arranged as a function of curvature radius and bending angle of elbows, showing evident effect of each geometric parameter. And for the declining effect, firstly, the effect of plane angle formed by the upstream and downstream elbows is evaluated that the in-plane configuration with the flow streaming forward would be the most conservative condition. Then, based on the in-plane configuration, correlation equation for the declining effect is arranged as a function of the distance between the two elbows. It is found that even when the distance is very short, the remaining portion of the upstream effect on the downstream elbow would be much less than previous knowledge which may improve the overprediction in proximate condition. By implementing these correlations into author’s FAC prediction model, residual wall thickness of plant pipe elbows is shown to be predicted mostly within 20 % from the measured data.

Novel foods include foods which are expected to be major sources of protein, such as cultured meat and insects. They can reduce environmental impacts due to production. However, producing such novel foods involves ethical considerations including social acceptance. The discourse related to novel foods is expanding; hence, this study analyzed them through news articles, comparing Japan and Singapore. The former uses spearheading technology to produce cultured meat, and the latter is in the early phase of cultured meat production while still using insects as a traditional source of protein for the diet. This study identified the characteristics of the discourse of novel foods using text analysis methods comparing Japan and Singapore. Specifically, contrasting characteristics were identified based on different sets of cultural and religious norms and backgrounds. Japan has a tradition of entomophagy, and a startup private company was highlighted in mass media. In Singapore, although the country is one of the leading countries producing novel foods, entomophagy itself is not popular; this is because major religions in Singapore do not recommend or prohibit eating insects. For the government policy, the specific standards of entomophagy and cultured meat are still in development in Japan and other majority of countries. We propose an integrated analysis of standards for novel foods, and social acceptance is needed to provide insights into the development of novel foods.

Peri-urban Satoyama forests in Japan provide multiple or bundles of cultural ecosystem services (CES), yet, visitors’ perceptions of CES are not well established. There is a need to explore these perceptions in order to provide comprehensive information to forest managers. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by exploring the profiles of visitors of peri-urban Satoyama forests and their perceived importance of CES using a landscape value (LV) typology table. Nine LVs of Kaisho Forest in Aichi, Japan were assessed using face-to-face questionnaires on socio-demographic variables, forest use, and a photograph-based approach, which were analyzed using descriptive statistics, quantitative cross-tabulation, multiple response analyses, and geocoding. Results showed that the forest is visited mostly by married elderly people from Aichi Prefecture who were engaged in forest bathing or birdwatching. Forest use patterns, like frequency, duration of the visit, and group size, presented a significant relation to demographic variables, like marital status or gender. Furthermore, the study showed how visitors´ LV perceptions were weighted towards natural and aesthetic values. The socio-cultural Satoyama forest elements displayed a more detailed value perception where recreational, therapeutic, spiritual, cultural-historic, and educational values were also assigned. The LV perception enhances a comprehensive description of the perceived positive effects of visiting such forests. Hence, we concluded that visitors gain positive effects on mental and emotional health and spirituality as part of CES. Forest managers can reflect and accommodate diverse landscape value typology as a tool for monitoring visitors’ perceptions.

This research analyzed the status of visiting peri-urban forestlands and mountains during the first COVID-19 emergency period in Japan using a large-scale online questionnaire-based survey. We identified and examined the factors that correlated with visits to such areas, including respondents’ social-economic attributes, environmental conditions (such as the land use patterns of their residential areas), and awareness of the functions of forestlands. The results suggest that environmental conditions are a major factor encouraging residents to visit peri-urban forestlands and mountains during the pandemic. Peri-urban areas with forestlands have such environmental conditions, and residents who visited peri-urban forestlands and mountains tended to live in peri-urban areas. Residents’ expectations regarding forest functions were also strong factors influencing them to visit those places. Those who visited forests and mountains expected these areas to have mental health and educational functions. Especially, female respondents tended to be aware of forestlands as spaces for mental and physical relaxation, and respondents who have one or more children tended to be aware of the educational functions of forests. These findings imply that policy should consider the role of environmental conditions, awareness, and expectations about the function of forests and mountains, and prior interactions with nature in encouraging residents to visit such places for their health during the pandemic. These factors could also play a role in addressing the social and environmental disparities that exist between residents of different socio-economic statuses regarding access to nature. In future research, the detailed relationships between residents’ environmental conditions and expectations/awareness of the functions of peri-urban forestlands and mountains need to be explored.

Steam is widely used as a medium for thermal energy transport in industry, such as in heat supply and drying processes. It is therefore important to evaluate precisely the steam flow rate at the demand end from the viewpoint of energy management. The state of steam in the steam piping of industrial facilities without the superheating process is usually wet steam resulting from causes such as heat loss, heat supply, and work. It is well known that steam wetness often causes measurement error of the steam flow meter. However, there has been no established standard for estimating the measurement error since it is difficult to evaluate the effects of steam wetness quantitatively in plants and factories. A clamp-on ultrasonic steam flow meter is suitable for use in factories since pipe processing is unnecessary. We conducted experiments to clarify characteristics of the measurement error of a clamp-on ultrasonic flow meter owing to steam wetness considering the influence of pipe diameter. The total mass flow rate of the steam through the test section was measured using a calibrated Coriolis flow meter downstream of the condenser to obtain a reference value. The measurement error of the clamp-on ultrasonic flow meter was estimated by comparison with the reference value. The flow rate difference between these two flow meters was found to increase with increasing steam wetness. Moreover, the clamp-on ultrasonic flow meter measurement was almost the same as the flow rate of only the gas phase in the wet steam flow. From the experimental results, we proposed a correction method for measurement using the clamp-on ultrasonic flow meter in a wet steam flow by correcting the density in the flow rate calculation. Moreover, we clarified the applicability of the clamp-on ultrasonic flow meter in piping of various diameters.

Purpose of the research: To identify the gaps between the rhetoric and reality of the role of citizen participation and its role in maintenance and monitoring of heritages and resources (including biodiversity monitoring), we analyzed the discourse of Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) at municipality level. Methods: As an analytical framework, text mining is applied to interviews of officers at the municipal level of GIAHS in Noto which was amongst the first sites in Japan. The identification of such gap is critical for sustainability and to prevent conflicts from tourism, agriculture or educations. Results: The results reveal that (1) there is a gap between the official goals of that designation at the international level and local needs, (2) role of citizens is emphasized in the applications and action plans at rhetorical level but remain rather limited in practice and that (3) municipalities composing the GIAHS often have different priorities, even within the very same GIAHS sites, some municipalities even calling themselves “just a transition point to other destination municipalities.” Conclusions: It is critical for municipal officers to collaborate with various stakeholders, especially citizens. As such, citizen science is a bottom-up approach to promote biodiversity conservation and facilitate GIAHS managements.

Background: The internal processes of geographical indications (GIs) by the applicants in rural specific regions primarily remain unexplored, although GIs can facilitate retention of long-term accumulated traditional knowledge in ethnic foods. This article sheds light on (1) analysis of phase-wise internal processes of GI registration and (2) examine relationships between the duration of application and perceived effects of GI registration in Northwestern Japan. GI in Japan is a comparatively a new system introduced in 2015. Methods: This article applied thematic analysis. The criteria for evaluating the gap of GI registration effects among the seven GI cases were descriptive and analytical with the information and data coming from official documents, questionnaire survey, and personal communications with key informants of the GI applicants. Qualitative information with quantitative data was also applied to visualize the complex internal GI registration processes and their effects. Results: This article identified that GI applicants who took a relatively long time to complete GI registration tended to perceive the relatively weak registration effects. Alternatively, GI applicants who took a relatively short time to complete their GI registration tended to evaluate the effects of the registration highly. For the preparation process, the most difficult phases for applications were drafting the application documents and long-term communication with a GI regulator. Conclusion: This article provides insights on the methods to uncover the complex, both ex-ante and ex-post, GI registration processes to reorganize current members of GI applicants and to fill the gaps and enhance the effects of GI registration. Keywords: Comparative analysis, Geographical indications, Governance, Northeastern Japan, Registration process

The nature and impacts of living in urban settings are gaining their saliences in developed and developing countries alike, particularly during the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the crisis, the wellbeing of urban society became intertwined with a so-called “new lifestyle”, which involved quarantine and working in a home environment. Facing such challenges, urban gardening is deemed as an alternative intervention to enhance residents’ wellbeing and the environmental sustainability of urban areas, including Indonesian cities. A preliminary study was conducted to monitor the wellbeing of urban gardening practitioners, as well as investigate the motivation and any association between gardening and wellbeing with the COVID-19 pandemic situation by analysing data from Indonesian metropolitan areas. The study utilized instruments of “satisfaction with life scale (SWLS)” and “scale of positive and negative experience (SPANE)” to investigate the subjective wellbeing of 67 respondents. Amongst others, we identified that urban gardening practitioners tend to be in positive moods and have better overall wellbeing; 52.24% of the respondents were highly satisfied with their life. Furthermore, we observed a variety of motivations to start gardening, with hobby and utilization of free space as prominent reasons, followed by other motivations such as environmental benefit and aesthetic. Integrating the environmental benefits of urban gardening and the implications for an individual’s wellbeing can be reflected for sustainable urban development and policies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conservation agriculture, also known as environment-friendly agriculture, is expected to contribute to global climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation. To understand the effect of conservation agriculture on farmers and identify those factors, such as farmers’ income change, that might affect practices of conservation agriculture, perceptions, and output, this study examined farmers’ economic and behavioral factors, motivation, and satisfaction. We surveyed 51 farmers who are receiving subsidies to practice conservation agriculture in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. The survey is one of the first prefectural-scale studies that combines unique quantitative analysis of motivation and satisfaction levels (e.g., behaviors) in temporal sequence from the initial to current time to practice conservation agriculture. Our results showed that years of experience, trade with a retail shop, and the farmer’s age can affect income change. With regard to social factors, the satisfaction of their fellowship with other farmers practicing conservation agriculture was also significantly correlated with income change. Simultaneously, this category of satisfaction was difficult to attain compared to the other categories. Thus, greater effort is needed to enhance support networking among conservation farmers. Furthermore, the work presented here also provides the opportunity for future research on temporal and spatial questions surveying economic and behavioral effects with consideration of the heightened policy promotion and entrance of large retail industries.

Background: Ecosystem services of pollinators have been gaining importance, as mentioned in the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services thematic report on pollination in 2016. Apart from wild bees, human interventions including apiculture can contribute to management of ecosystem services. Ecological and local knowledge of management is transmitted through various processes, varying in content and quality. Methods: We analyzed the processes of knowledge transmission, beekeeping productivity, and their interactions with each other. The study was conducted in the Nagano Prefecture, Japan, where the largest quantity of bee honey is produced nationally. Beekeeping knowledge in Nagano is transmitted through different information channels, including families, friends, and books. We categorized the beekeepers based on their information channels. The relationship between productivity of beekeeping and information channels was also analyzed. Results: It was identified that beekeepers who obtained their knowledge from their parents had relatively large number of bee colonies. Furthermore, we observed by interviews with them that they tended to understand the importance of ecological conditions for sustainable beekeeping. Conclusion: The results implied a challenge to open the knowledge transmission channels beyond families, potentially transforming the knowledge from tacit knowledge among limited members to an explicit manualized knowledge in an aging society.

Background: Traditional vegetables are produced and consumed throughout Japan. Individual vegetables, including Kyo vegetables and Kaga vegetables, are individually defined with their own criteria for history and quality standards and are registered in their respective regions. Several traditional vegetables are utilized as symbols of regional revitalization. For example, Kaga vegetables are tourist attractions, and Noto vegetables are promoted in the Noto region and were registered under the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS). Methods: We will review the distribution, public standards, and definitions of dento-yasai, traditional Japanese vegetables. Quantitative analysis on the status of the branding of traditional vegetables will be conducted. Results: First, the ambiguity and distribution of traditional vegetables are demonstrated. Next, as a case study, the results of a quantitative analysis of Kaga vegetables and Noto vegetables are provided. Kaga vegetables have their own quality standards and definition, and producers have acknowledged the positive impact of the regional certification, GIAHS, on the amount sold. However, a social conflict has been caused by their standards and definition. On the other hand, Noto vegetables do not have a strict quality standard, and they were registered relatively recently. Because of their comparatively lax standard, producers could not acknowledge the positive impacts of GIAHS certification. Conclusion: Origins of traditional Japanese vegetables and relationships with their regions have innumerable ambiguous points. The results of the analysis of two types of traditional vegetables show that quality standards and definitions strongly influence branding and brand management.

Background: To reveal the level of recognition of regional and product certifications related to agriculture, an analysis of the official minutes of assemblies and the perceptions of tourists was conducted. This is one of the first attempts to combine analysis of residents and tourists at the product level (Geographical Indications, trademarks) and landscape level (registration under Food and Agricultural Organization [FAO] or United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO]-related certification systems). Methods: The research sites were Itoigawa and Sado, two municipalities in Niigata prefecture. The former is certified as a Global Geopark, and the latter as a National Geopark and Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS). The text-mining approach was conducted to analyze the official minutes of the municipal assemblies, and the questionnaire survey was conducted to identify the recognition of tourists on the certifications. Results: The results of the analysis of assemblies and tourists provide issues and possibilities of the certification systems. Tourists' recognition of the GIAHS and its weighting in the assemblies are relatively low. Residents and tourists have different expectations for regional certification. Residents expect education, while tourists expect tourism. Conclusion: It is necessary to evaluate the GIAHS's contribution to tourism and industry when municipalities and international organizations manage the GIAHS sites. Considering the gaps between residents and tourists and taking measures to resolve them can contribute to managing certificated areas by collaboration of stakeholders. Regarding products aimed at branding, consumers need to be informed about the GIAHS as a regional certification in addition to product certification to share the historical and environmental characteristics of agricultural products.

Background: Geographical indications (GIs) are collective intellectual property rights that protect food and other products uniquely linked to the production area, local geophysical conditions, and traditions, namely, with the terroir. Thus, GIs can contribute to the transmission and retention of culinary heritages and historical production practices. Methods: Based on an analysis of application documents, we compare the historical linkages of all the Japanese and Austrian GI products. Although more than half of the Japanese applications refer to historical roots in the 20th century, the median of the Austrian GI linkages is in the 17th century. To closely examine these GI linkages, and to better understand their relevance to current cultivation practices, we compared three Japanese cases with roots of diverging depth to the first Austrian GI regarding motivations, geographical and historical linkages, and current cultivation practices and governance. Results: The comparison found that all four products refer to the historical roots of the product name, the product varieties, or cultivation techniques. However, deeper roots did not automatically translate into higher priorities of protecting these historical linkages. The four in-depth case studies found that historic provenance and traditional production methods, although prominently highlighted in the official GI documents of all four GIs, were eclipsed by commercial motivations for GI protection and/or current production practices. In the cases analyzed, we found some potential mismatches between GI historical claims in registration documents and actual GI cultivation and GI management practices. Conclusions: We conclude that our four GI cases do not represent “museums of production” or overly fixed perceptions of history. However, the collective action of the producer group has resulted in dynamic local cultivation practices without restricting innovation. The GI status has rather resulted in the protection of local farmers' collective action and old varieties than in the protection of old production methods.

Background: In this paper, recognition of traditional agricultural products by the general public is presented and analyzed to explore the transgenerational aspects of traditional vegetables and their knowledge transfer. It is necessary to understand how the products are recognized by different generations and gender, in terms of retaining and branding the local products. Methods: A questionnaire survey with random sampling was conducted to identify the recognition of traditional vegetables including the Kaga and Noto vegetables in Komatsu City, Ishikawa Prefecture. By understanding the degree of recognition, elaborating strategic plans for retention of traditional agricultural products and effective promotion of the products can be implemented. Results: The results from 149 respondents indicate that there are differences of recognition depending on their gender or age. In particular, young people obtain information on traditional vegetables mainly from TV, whereas older people gain information from newspapers. Furthermore, more than half of the Kaga vegetables are better recognized among the older generation. Conclusion: The analysis of this paper serves as the basis to capture the cultural importance, or to develop branding strategy as the results clarify the degree of recognition of residents and tourists from various generations. As the population has been aging, transmitting knowledge about the products to young people who have less knowledge is the urgent issue.

Background: Bee honey is a main ingredient in traditional food culture in different regions of the world. Honey is widely utilized as an ethnic food item. Methods: This paper analyzes the historical and present status of beekeeping and honey production in Japan and South Korea based on the relevant literature and statistical data. Results: The findings reveal that Western honeybees are dominant in the two countries for economic and physical reasons. Honey production has declined and the amount of imported honey has increased in Japan and South Korea. The domestic and global honey markets closely influence reciprocally. Furthermore, urban beekeeping has emerged in these two countries as a hobby and an industry; it contributes to producing domestic honey and enhances the quality of the environment. Conclusion: To ensure sustainable forestry and conserve biodiversity, native beekeeping is necessary. This paper provides insight into beekeeping and honey production in Japan and South Korea.

Background: This study analyzed certifications at the regional/landscape level and at product level. We focused on Japanese sake and tea as local place-based luxury items related to ethnic foods and socio-ecological landscape. Methods: Specifically, this research analyzed two materials: the minutes of local assemblies (both sake and tea) and sales-promotion pamphlet (of a sake brewery). The quantitative approach of text mining was experimentally applied to the two materials. The cases of both sake (Hakusan City) and tea (Kakegawa City) were selected from areas designated with three certifications; Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Biosphere Reserves (BR) under UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB), and Geopark. The sake of Hakusan City is the product with geographical indication (GI), of the Hakusan Kikusake. Results: As the product level certification, the GI of sake is used in the context of a promotional tool both at the municipality assembly and sake brewery dimension. Alternatively, regional certifications (Geopark and BR) are utilized with limited extent for sake promotion in Hakusan City. The regional certification of the GIAHS is utilized in context of promoting Japanese tea in Kakegawa City. The product is not registered as the GI, and this may have influenced the use of the GI. Conclusion: These results imply that the place-based character remains at product level certification and is rather limited at landscape level. The product level certificate or the GI are used more frequently in the promotion of the place-based products than regional certifications. In order to further establish the placeness of the regions, certifications of landscape level need to be harmonized with the products that are produced in the landscape, using methods of place branding or story-telling.

Background: Under the influence of global trends, most regions are at risk of losing their local-food knowledge. In this context, analyzing the transmission of the knowledge, understanding the context of transmission, and implementing precise activities and policies are required. Noto is known for its unique ethnic fermented food products. Methods: Through our questionnaire survey and analysis of the Noto peninsula, we explore the relationships between the attributes of local food producers and the variety of foods they produce, attempting to identify the key attributes related to making diverse local foods and the transmission of local food knowledge. Results: Our analysis showed a correlation between the diversity of local foods made by residents and the number of years they had lived in the municipality. Conclusion: The results implied that adequate management of social networks by local residents, who depend on the local environment, is required in transmitting the knowledge of local foods.

In industrial fields, as the steam is commonly utilized for heat supply, drying process and so on, it is important to be aware of the steam flow rate in the view point of energy management. However, the steam utilized in the factory is usually wet steam condition. Though it is well known that the wetness affects the flowmeter reading, it is difficult to clarify the effects of the wetness in the steam flow quantitatively in actual plants and factories, and thus far, there has been no established method for estimating the error caused by the wetness of steam flow. In this paper, the difference of ultrasonic flowmeter reading due to wetness of the wet steam flow was clarified experimentally. Ultrasonic flowmeter reading in the wet steam flow was compared with Coriolis flow meter installed after heat exchanger in the steam apparatus. As a result, we clarified the flow rate difference of those two flowmeters was increased with increasing wetness, and the ultrasonic flowmeter reading was almost the same as the value of steam phase flow rate in the wet steam flow. We also proposed the correction method of the ultrasonic flowmeter reading by using density correction in the flow rate formula of the ultrasonic flowmeter. And finally, we clarified the uncertainty of the measured flowrates and their differences were less than 1.0%.

Forest management approaches vary according to the needs of individual municipalities with unique geographic conditions and local social contexts. Accordingly, there are two types of subsidies: a unified national subsidy and a prefecture-level subsidy, mainly from forest environmental taxes. The latter is a local tax. Our focus is on examining forest management using these two types of taxes (i.e., central and prefecture-level) and their correlations with social and natural environmental factors. In this paper, we examine the spatial distribution of management areas using subsidies from the central government, the Forestry Agency of Japan, and prefectural forest environmental taxes in Ishikawa. In concrete terms, the spatial correlations of the management areas under two tax schemes are compared with the natural hazard areas (as a natural environmental factor) and areas with high aging rates (as a social factor). The results are tested to see whether the correlations of areas with the two factors are significant, to examine whether the taxes are used for areas with natural and social needs. From the result, positive correlations are identified between the distribution of management areas and natural hazard areas and between the distribution of management areas and areas with high aging rates.