It’s the second half of July. The rainy season is over and summer is in full swing. We’re in the outing season. In the past, summer was associated with openness and fun, but in recent years it has also become a season of severe disasters, so we can’t just relax.

Due to climate change, Japan is moving from a humid temperate climate to a subtropical climate, and heavy rain disasters in the summer are increasing. As always, we need to be on our guard and be safe.

However, there have been some changes in heavy rain disasters in recent years. In the past, they tended to be concentrated in the western Japan area, mainly Kyushu and Okinawa, but in recent years they have tended to hit Tohoku and Shinetsu.

In the region, damage caused by landslides has become a major problem, in addition to floods caused by record-breaking heavy rains. It is said that the healing power of many mountain forests has been weakened by unrestrained cutting.

I visit villages for interviews, and when I talk to people involved in the area, I hear that even though trees look lush from afar, many mountains are practically bald when you go inside. These mountains have a weak ability to heal, and heavy rains are almost certain to cause landslides.
Incidentally, the damage caused by animals such as bears and deer, which has become a major problem in recent years, is also caused by these bald mountains. In mountains that have lost their trees, they cannot find food. That’s why bears and deer come down to people’s houses. If there was food in the mountains, they wouldn’t go out of their way to come down to people’s houses.
What is needed now is how to return the natural environment to its original state. By returning it to its original state, we will be able to create a resilient country that can withstand climate change.
No matter how much the times change, humans have no choice but to live in harmony with nature.
As we witness more and more severe disasters, we are made to strongly recognize that nature is an entity that transcends humans.
Unfortunately, disasters are inevitable somewhere. All we can do is prepare for them.
(Kei Kitajima)

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