Impact of Rice Terrace Owner System on Conserving Rural Landscape and Generating Human Interaction between Rural and Urban Residents
Rice terraces are important for rice production, terrain conservation, biodiversity, and for providing a fascinating landscape.However, they are rapidly disappearing in Japan because the small lots are inadequate for economical cultivation that uses large machines.Thus, the so-called owner system has come into use in some areas of Japan.Consumers, who usually live in urban areas, act as visiting owners, invest in a crop field, and receive the harvested crops.A questionnaire was administered to assess the conditions and activities related to the owner system.Completed questionnaires were received from 24 sites The results are as follows.The owner system began around 1990, and the number of owners has continually increased.Ninety percent of landowners are private owners.However, half of the cases studied here are operated by local governments or other organizations.The visiting owners pay an annual membership fee of 30,000 JPY on average.The main purpose of some crop fields is for the owners to contribute economic support in exchange for the harvest.An added advantage is the opportunity for visiting owners to experience farm work and the rural landscape.In most cases, the owners attend to the planting and the harvesting of the rice.In addition to the rice crops, owners also cultivate fruit trees, vegetables, and industrial crops such as cotton and indigo.At these plots, the visitors also participate in craft making.The profile and perspective of each owner at the Ohyama Senmaida in Chiba prefecture were investigated as a case study.Seventy-six owners replied to the questionnaire, of whom, 96% used their own car to travel to their plot and 4% took the bus.For the majority, the commute time was 120 minutes.The three major reasons for becoming an owner were to experience doing farm work, to engage in conservation efforts, and to enjoy the rural scenery.More activities have been planned at Ohyama Senmaida based on the owner system.Students from several universities visit the location and study various issues such as agriculture, biodiversity, and social community.Professional dancers have created a new dance using the motif of the paddy field with the help of staff members from the rice terrace office.Such events attract many people to the rice terrace.As discussed above, the owner system of rice terraces is functioning effectively in conserving the rural landscape and facilitating communication between rural and urban residents.
Rice terrace Owner system Terrain conservation Rural landscape Ohyama Senmaida
Kenichiro Fujisaki Tomoe Matsuzawa Daisuke Asada
Nihon University Ohyama Senmaida Conservation Society
国际会议
The 14th Landscape Architectural Symposium of China ,Japan and Korea(第14届中日韩风景园林学术会议)
成都
英文
398-403
2014-11-01（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）