Environment Protecting Forests and Bringing Sunshine--Kochi Prefecture's Forest Environment Tax and Mega Solar 2023

Environment Protecting Forests and Bringing Sunshine--Kochi Prefecture's Forest Environment Tax and Mega Solar 2023

Kochi Prefecture was the first prefecture in Japan to introduce a forest environment tax in 2003, and the system of adding 500 yen per capita per year to the tax has continued to this day. The tax revenue is used for thinning, afforestation, forest studies, volunteer activities, and restoration of water source recharge functions, and in 2023 the tax entered its fifth year. In addition, approximately 1.7 billion yen has been allocated from the government's forest environment concession tax, and the project is being carried out with transparency through a fund. The project is positioned as a foundation for restoring forests that have been devastated since the period of rapid economic growth, and for supporting the lives of prefectural residents and industry.

At the same time, Kochi Prefecture is actively introducing renewable energy. The prefecture, municipalities, and private sector have jointly invested in the "Kochi-style Community Re-energy Project" to establish a system to return the profits from solar power generation to the community. The prefecture is promoting the installation of solar power in prefectural facilities and residences, the conversion of official vehicles to EVs, and other measures to develop an action plan for a decarbonized society. However, with regard to mega solar power plants, there are opposition movements in Tosashimizu City and other cities over the landscape and land use, and the city is cautious about unplanned development.

Although the Forest Environment Tax and mega solar are institutionally independent, they intersect through land use. While cutting down forests for installation may impair the public interest function, installing environmentally friendly solar power on abandoned land or devastated forests would make it possible to both reforest and promote renewable energy. Kochi Prefecture's challenge symbolizes the contemporary issue of how to achieve harmony between protecting the forest and making the most of the sun.