A Geographical Analysis of Flood Control Work and Local Share in Expenses

Abstract

Sharing expenses by the residents of localities where public flood control works are to be undertaken is indispensable for the materialization of flood control works of medium and small-sized rivers in modern times. Flood prevention cooperatives organized by inhabitants in frequently-inundated areas have played an important role in bearing the expenses allotted to localities. But some of the cooperatives could not bear their share of the expenses and flood control work failed consequently.The author analyzed the causes of failure of a flood prevention cooperative in sharing expenses and clarified the problems of local share in expenses taking the case of the Kokufu River Flood Prevention Cooperative on Sado Island.The results are as follows: The most decisive reason that the Kokufu River Flood Prevention Cooperative could not bear its allotment is the impossibility of payment by the inhabitants of the upper basin, because extremely high rates of allotment in the upper basin were decided without adjusting the conflict between upper basin residents and lower basin residents. Hence prefectural river improvement work of the Kokufu River was halfed.Futhermore the following situation contributed to default in payment. In the Kokufu River basin advanced mining techniques were applied to flood control works in the Edo Period, and these works were carried out several times in connection with the prosperity and decline of the Sado Gold Mine. Some rational features in the works, imposition and repayment system, and so on can be seen. But after the Meiji Restoration small landownership in the island society prescribed repayment of much of the expenses of river improvement, and work was stopped.Therefore consideration must be given to relative flood damage between the upper basin and lower basin so as not to produce outstanding inequality between the two districts when making allotment rates.Generally, in frequently-inundated areas, we can see conflict between the uper basin and lower basin. But in that case flood control work cannot be realized without adjustment of advantages and disadvantages between the two districts. Also realization of flood control work requires the intervention of the prefectural goverment with large funds.