The National Biodiversity Strategy
of Japan 2012 - 2020
Roadmap towards the Establishment of an Enriching Society in Harmony with Nature
28 th September, 2012
Contents
Part 1 The Strategy towards Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity 6
Section 1 What is biodiversity? 6
1 Origin of the earth and the birth of life 6
2 Mass extinction and human activities 6
Section 2 Biodiversity that supports life and livelihoods 8
1 What are ecosystem services? 8
2 Biodiversity that supports life and livelihoods 9
(1) Atmosphere and water produced by organisms (supporting services) 9
(2) Basis for human life (provisioning services) 10
(3) Supporting cultural diversity (cultural services) 13
(4) Our life secured by nature (regulating services) 14
Section 3 The rationales for achieving a society in harmony with nature supported by biodiversity 15
Chapter 2 The Current Situation and the Challenges concerning Biodiversity 17
Section 1 Summary of the outcomes of COP 10 and COP-MOP 5 17
Section 2 The current situation of biodiversity in the world and its connection to Japan 21
1 Biodiversity in the world 21
2 Characteristics of biodiversity in Japan from the global perspective 26
3 Japan causing impacts on global biodiversity 28
Section 3 The structure of the biodiversity crisis 30
1 First crisis (caused by human activities including development) 30
2 Second crisis (caused by reduced human activities) 31
3 Third crisis (caused by artificially-introduced factors) 32
4 Fourth crisis (caused by changes in the global environment) 34
Section 4 The current situation of biodiversity in Japan 37
1 Japan Biodiversity Outlook 37
2 The current situation of wildlife, etc. 38
3 The current situation of ecosystems 43
4 Impacts of the Great East Japan Earthquake on biodiversity 47
2 Overview of area designation systems for the conservation of biodiversity 51
3 Efforts for the Conservation and Management of Wildlife 54
4 Reconstruction Efforts after the Great East Japan Earthquake 55
1 Understanding of and action for biodiversity 57
2 Securing human resources and cooperation 58
3 Recognition of the “socio-ecological sphere” connected through ecosystem services 58
4 Conservation and management of national land in light of the decreasing population, etc. 59
5 Increasing scientific knowledge 59
Chapter 3 Targets for the Conservation of Biodiversity and the Sustainable Use of Its Components 61
Section 2 Grand design for national land in a society in harmony with nature 61
1 Basic approaches set forth in the “Centennial Plan” 61
2 The overall picture of the grand design for national land 63
3 A grand design in accordance with national land characteristics 64
(2) Satochi-Satoyama/rural areas (including areas where artificial forests prevail) 67
Section 1 Basic perspectives 76
1 Scientific recognition and a preventive/adaptive attitude 76
4 Coordination and collaboration 78
5 Mainstreaming biodiversity in socio-economic systems 79
7 The long-term merits of sustainable use 80
1 Mainstreaming biodiversity in our daily life 82
2 Reviewing and rebuilding relationships between man and nature in local communities 87
3 Securing linkages between forests, the countryside, rivers and the sea 95
4 Taking action from a global perspective 103
5 Strengthening the scientific foundation and utilizing it in policies 107
Section 3 The roles of different entities and coordination/collaboration 110
Part 2 Roadmap for the Achievement of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets 114
1 Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011 – 2020 (Aichi Biodiversity Targets) 114
Part 3 The Action Plan on Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity 127
Chapter 1 Measures and Policies for National Land 129
Chapter 2 Cross-Sectoral and Fundamental Measures and Policies 130
Chapter 1 Measures and Policies for National Land 131
Section 1 Ecological networks 131
Section 2 Conservation of priority areas 133
1 Nature Conservation Areas, etc. 133
2.1 Designation and other measures for natural parks 134
2.2 The Protection and management of natural parks 135
2.3 Promoting the use of natural parks 137
2.4 Natural park development 138
3 Wildlife Protection Areas 138
4 Natural Habitat Conservation Areas 139
5 Places of scenic beauty, natural monuments and cultural landscapes 139
5.1 Places of scenic beauty and natural monuments 139
6 Forest reserves and protection forests 140
7 Special green space conservation districts, etc. 142
12 Local voluntary management areas 146
Section 3 Nature restoration 147
1 The steady implementation of measures for nature restoration 147
2 The promotion of new measures for nature restoration 148
Section 4 Environmental impact assessments and other measures 150
1 Environmental impact assessments 150
2 Other major efforts to reduce environmental impacts 152
2 Promoting the development of diverse forests 155
4 Appropriate forest conservation and management 159
5 The promotion of measures to control wildlife damage to forests 159
7 Forest operations that take account of biodiversity 160
8 Promoting forest development activities with citizen participation and diverse forest uses 161
9 Expanding forest environmental education and human-forest interaction 161
12 Promoting forest resource monitoring 167
13 Promoting sustainable forest management on a global scale 167
Section 6 Rural and Satochi-Satoyama areas 169
1 Promoting agricultural production that has an enhanced focus on biodiversity conservation 169
6 Promoting the creation of spaces where people can experience rich natural environments 173
7 Promoting the improvement, conservation and utilization of grasslands 175
8 Promoting activities to improve, conserve and utilize Satoyama forests 175
1 The development of ecological networks in urban areas 176
3.1 The development of city parks 177
3.2 Consideration for biodiversity conservation in road development 178
3.3 The conservation of biodiversity in sewage systems 178
3.4 Special green space conservation d istricts and green space co n servation districts 179
3.5 Suburban Special Green Conservation Areas and Suburban Green Conservation Areas 179
3.6 Special historic landscape preservation areas and historic landscape preservation areas 180
3.9 Productive green zones 181
3.10 The conservation of protective groves around residences, coppices, etc. 181
3.11 Promoting the creation of greenery on private land, the greening of rooftops and walls 181
3.12 The securing of green spaces on factory sites 181
4 Raising public awareness about greenery conservation, restoration, creation and management 182
4.1 Promoting public awareness campaigns on greenery 182
4.2 Raising public awareness about biodiversity conservation in sewage systems 182
Section 8 Rivers, wetlands, etc. 183
1 The conservation and restoration of habitats for living organisms 183
1.1 Nature-oriented river works 183
1.2 The conservation and restoration of ecosystems in rivers, wetland areas, etc. 183
1.3 Environmental consideration in dam construction 184
1.5 Integrated soil management from the mountain to the seashore 185
1.6 The designation and conservation of wetlands 185
1.7 The conservation of fishing grounds in inland waters 186
1.8 Alien species control measures in rivers, wetland areas, etc. 187
2 The improvement of water environments 187
2.1 The improvement of water quality in rivers, lakes, etc. 187
2.2 Ensuring clear water in rivers 189
2.3 The improvement of river environments through conducting tests on “flexible dam management” 190
3 Cooperation and collaboration with residents 190
4 Environmental education and nature experience activities using rivers 190
4.1 The “Children’s Waterfront” rediscovery project 190
4.2 Promoting nature experience river activities conducted by citizen groups 190
4.3 Kodomo Hotarangers (Kid Firefly Rangers) 191
5. Surveys and research into river environments 191
5.1 National Census on River Enviornment 191
5.2 Academic research on river ecology 191
5.3 Aqua Restoration Research Center 192
Section 9 Coastal and oceanic areas 193
1 The comprehensive conservation of biodiversity in coastal and oceanic areas 193
1.1 The conservation of marine biodiversity based on scientific findings 193
1.2 Protected areas for the conservation of marine biodiversity 194
1.3 The conservation and restoration of seagrass beds and tidal flats 195
1.4 The conservation and restoration of coral reefs 196
1.5 The conservation of island ecosystems 197
1.6 The protection and management of marine life 199
2 Fisheries in Satoumi and the Ocean 199
2.2 Promoting fishery infrastructure projects that take biodiversity into consideration 200
2.8 Promoting measures to prevent fishery damage caused by wildlife 203
4 Port and harbor environments 206
5 Marine pollution control measures 206
5.1 Measures to control pollution caused by marine activities 206
5.2 Water purification measures in sea areas 207
5.3 The conservation of water environments in closed ocean areas 207
Chapter 2 Cross-Sectoral and Fundamental Measures and Policies 209
Section 1 Promoting the mainstreaming of biodiversity 209
1 Promoting communication and public involvement 210
2.1 The promotion of nature interaction activities 213
2.2 Providing places for interaction with nature 216
3. Education, learning and experience 219
3.2 Out-of-school activities and lifelong education 219
4 Recruiting and developing human resources 221
6 Promoting efforts by businesses and consumers 222
Section 2 Appropriate conservation, management and other measures for wild organisms 224
1 The conservation of threatened species and their habitats 225
1.2 The conservation of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora 225
2 The conservation and management of wildlife 228
2.1 The designation and management of Wildlife Protection Areas 228
2.2 Regulations on the capture of wildlife 229
2.3 Scientific and systematic conservation and management 229
2.4 Surveys and research into wildlife habitats 231
2.5 The prevention of illegal capture 232
2.6 Wildlife relief systems, etc. 232
2.7 Raising public awareness 233
3 Welfare and proper management of animals 234
3.1 Promoting the appropriate management of animals 234
3.2 Promoting the use of identification devices 234
3.3 Comprehensive public awareness measures 234
Section 3 Measures to control alien species and other factors causing disturbances to ecosystems 236
1 Alien species control measures 236
2 Genetically modified organisms, etc. 239
3 Abiotic factors including chemical substances 239
Section 4 Agriculture, forestry and fisheries 243
1 Biodiversity in agriculture, forestry and fisheries 243
Section 6 Sustainable use of biological resources 247
1 The use and preservation of genetic resources 247
1.1 The use of genetic resources 247
1.2 The preservation of genetic resources 250
2 The use and preservation of microbial resources 251
2.1 The use of microbial resources 251
2.2 The preservation of microbial resources 252
3 Access and Benefit-sharing of genetic resources (ABS) 253
Section 7 Promotion of international efforts 254
1 Japan’s international contribution based on the outcomes of COP 10 254