A study on the topographical composition and land use of old village section (Oaza) at the presumed locations of ancient villages in Chiba prefecture

Abstract

Areas where people have lived and produced for long periods of time should have the conditions that make it possible， and therefore, clarifying them will provide useful insights for disaster risk reduction of the area. The purpose of this study is to clarify the topographical composition and the characteristics of land use of 244 old village sections (“Oaza”) in the presumed locations of ancient villages in Chiba prefecture, and to verify how they are related to disaster risk and agricultural land use. As a result, it was found that areas of many “Oaza” at the presumed ancient villages were set as to include various topography, and various land uses are made within them. In addition, four types of patterns with common features in topographical composition were confirmed, and it was clarified that the flood risk and agricultural land use differ for each pattern. Since these characteristics were confirmed in a relatively small unit called “Oaza” , maintaining and regenerating proper land use based on each “Oaza” as the basic unit may be an effective approach to reduce flood risk not only in “Oaza” but also in larger units of local communities.