14 Years after Great East Japan Earthquake: Local Govts Need to Examine ‘What Form Reconstruction Should Take’

Editorial

14:07 JST, March 11, 2025

The affected areas, hit by an unprecedented disaster, are moving forward step by step, but they are facing difficult challenges at the same time. It is necessary to reconsider what form reconstruction should take.

It has been 14 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake, which left more than 22,000 people dead or missing. A total of about ¥40 trillion in national funds has been spent on reconstruction-related projects in the affected areas, and city government offices, schools, fishing ports and public housing for disaster victims, among other infrastructure, have been constructed one after another.

The sight of new buildings standing is probably a symbol of reconstruction. However, local governments will have to shoulder a heavy burden in the future.

In Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, the annual cost of operating such infrastructure and implementing renovations to maintain it currently exceeds ¥50 billion. This is 1.7 times the amount before the earthquake.

There is no doubt that reconstruction projects were accelerated thanks to the generous financial support of the central government. However, local governments’ lax predictions for the future — spurred by the fact that the central government is paying for the projects — have to some degree resulted in the excessive development of facilities.

Many of the affected areas had long been suffering from depopulation problems. After the earthquake, the outflow of the population progressed further, and not many residents returned even after reconstruction. Tax revenues are expected to decrease in the future.

After the earthquake, the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, rebuilt all 16 city-managed fishing ports that had been damaged, with the central government bearing the entire cost of ¥22.7 billion. However, the number of fishing boats decreased by about 40% from the pre-disaster level due to the aging of fishermen and a lack of people to take up the profession.

In the town of Yamada, Iwate Prefecture, the central government spent ¥1.2 billion to rebuild an elementary school, but it was forced to close last year, 10 years after it opened, due to a decline in the number of children.

Each local government should analyze the issues associated with facilities in which large amounts of public funds have been invested and examine how to utilize them and reduce costs. It is hoped that they will work with the central government to find a way out of this situation.

The town of Futaba, Fukushima Prefecture, where all residents were forced to evacuate due to the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, is aiming to establish a highly international school, specializing in English. One idea would be to encourage immigration of a child-rearing generation from other areas through such a measure.

Regarding the Noto Peninsula Earthquake that occurred on New Year’s Day last year, reconstruction of the affected areas has begun. Depopulation is a serious issue in Noto as well. In addition to restoring the affected areas to their original state, it is important to draw up a vision for the future and promote realistic, grounded community development.

Various areas around the country are facing serious depopulation and the aging of residents. A possible Nankai Trough earthquake is expected to cause damage in these areas. It is vital to consider how to proceed with post-disaster reconstruction from ordinary times.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, March 11, 2025)