Bounce Forward: Economic Recovery in Post-Disaster Fukushima

Zhang Zhang,Dolan Dolan,Jing Jing,Uyimleshi Uyimleshi,Dodd Dodd

doi:10.3390/su11236736

Zhang Zhang, Dolan Dolan + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su11236736

Copy DOI

Journal: Sustainability	Publication Date: Nov 27, 2019
Citations: 23	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Guangzhou University, University College London

Abstract

After the cascading disaster—earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear accident—in Fukushima on 11 March 2011, the Fukushima region is facing a significant reconstruction challenge. Contamination, economic downturn, depopulation, labor shortage, a damaged reputation, and public distrust must be overcome in order to ensure the future economic recovery of Fukushima. Based on field surveys of the affected areas and unstructured interviews with key informants such as local residents, government officials, and local businesses, this study analyses economic recovery in Fukushima. By exploring four key “pillar” areas of Fukushima’s economic recovery—renewable energy, manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism—this paper gives an overview of how to rebuild industry in the shadow of nuclear pollution. The results show how the economic recovery in Fukushima has required adaptation and innovation by the local people, and the economic downturn has been reversed and subsequently improved. Across the pillar industries, innovative reconstruction projects have been pioneered and led by local residents and businesses. Fukushima’s industrial recovery has been facilitated by the efforts to make the livelihoods of local residents sustainable. It is argued that creative and sustainable economic recovery makes full use of people’s and businesses’ existing resources to transform the disadvantages caused by disasters into opportunities.

Highlights

The earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear accident that occurred in East Japan on 11 March 2011 was one of the worst disasters in human history
The main purpose of this study is to answer these questions: How can Fukushima achieve economic recovery under the long-term impact of nuclear pollution? How effective is the industrial reconstruction after the disaster? This paper aims to provide an overview of Fukushima’s economic recovery based on field surveys of the affected areas and unstructured interviews with key informants
To study Fukushima’s economic recovery from the perspective of industrial revitalization, four pillar industries of Fukushima were selected for investigation

Summary

Introduction

The earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear accident that occurred in East Japan on 11 March 2011 was one of the worst disasters in human history. These disasters severely impacted the local government regions of Fukushima, Iwate, and Miyagi in Japan’s Tohoku area; 19,824 people lost their lives or disappeared, over 10 million people were evacuated, and more than 1700 km were contaminated by nuclear materials [1]. In addition to the severe impact on humans and the environment, the economic consequences caused by the disasters were enormous. The economic interruption caused by the disaster was limited to the Tohuku region and had a devastating national impact on Japan’s economy, in the manufacturing and energy supply chain

Objectives

Methods

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion