Exploration of unknown old forestry trails, roads and cultivations to investigate modern age forest use in Okinawa Yambaru.

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26450497
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Environmental agriculture(including landscape science)
• Research Institution: Forest Research and Management Organization
• Principal Investigator: SAITO KAZUHIKO 国立研究開発法人森林研究・整備機構, 森林総合研究所, 主任研究員 等 (20353691)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 沖縄 / やんばる / 森林利用史 / 古道 / 開墾 / GIS / GNSS

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Okinawa Yambaru is a candidate of the World Natural Heritage, which have not only many endangered species but long history of forestry. We must clarify historical interactions between human use and forest environment to conserve the area. But many historical materials before WWII were lost by the war. In this study we explored unknown old remains such as forestry trails, roads and cultivations to investigate modern age forest use in Kunigami-village, the most important area of Okinawa Yambaru. Through this study, we found several forestry trails, roads, cultivations and found unknown historical materials. Though shape or dimension of them was different from those of the present age, they showed active forest use in modern age.

Free Research Field

林学