[M-IS01] Geoconservation and sustainable development

[MIS01-04] Conservation of geoheritage in tectonically active and intensely denuded region

*Kuniyasu MOKUDAI¹ (1.Pro Natura Foundation Japan)

Keywords:geoconservation, natural hazard, landform, mass movement, sustainable development, soil and water conservation

The Japanese islands is one of the most tectonically active and intensely denuded regions on the planet, and therefore is a region with a very high natural hazard frequency. Many of the land features and soil strata are proofs of disturbances in the natural environment due to the tectonic and denudation related mechanisms. Naturally these land features are related to natural hazards that either occurred in the past or are likely to occur in the future. Engineering solutions that seek to prevent natural disasters are a natural response of the society, but many of such disaster prevention schemes cause significant damage to the land formation or landscape change mechanisms that are fundamental to the geological heritage of geologically active regions. Geoconservation in such tectonically active and aggressively denuded areas therefore needs to have a different approach from geoconservation in tectonically stable continental locations.