Modern Times as Told by the Forest: Yakushima's Memories and Environmental Changes (Meiji - Showa - Heisei)

Modern Times as Told by the Forest: Yakushima's Memories and Environmental Changes (Meiji - Showa - Heisei)

After the Meiji Restoration, the forests of Yakushima were transformed from a sacred place to a national resource. The logging of Yakusugi cedars, which began as a financial reconstruction measure for the Satsuma Clan, came under state control with the introduction of the government-owned forest system, and eventually reached its peak in the Showa Period (1926-1989) when trolley lines and forest roads were built and the timber was removed. The forests became a symbol of economic growth, but at a cost: the surface of the mountains became rough and the water systems changed. However, the loggers prayed to the mountain gods and continued to follow the old custom of not stepping over stumps. The phrase "the forest raised us" reflects the ethics of the islanders in their search for a balance between resource use and faith. In the 1970s, while dams and tourism development progressed during the postwar period of rapid economic growth, over-logging caused devastation, and a movement
to protect the forest spread. 1993 saw the registration of Yakushima as a World Natural Heritage site, and the forest that had been cut down turned into a "forest to be protected. The forests continue to tell their stories today - the wisdom and memories of how humans and nature can live together.