[HCG34-P01] Tourism and education utilizing local resources in the sand dunes and lagoon area of the San’in Kaigan UNESCO Global Geopark
Keywords:geopark, tourism, education, sand dunes, lagoon, San'in Kaigan
The area facing the Sea of Japan in the western part of the San’in Kaigan Geopark is characterized by sand dunes and the lagoons/wetlands formed behind them. The Tanegaike Lake, located south of Tottori Sand Dunes which extend 16 km east and west, is a dam lake created by the formation of dunes in front of the valley in the late Pleistocene. On the northeast side of Tanegaike Lake, there was a lagoon once called Yuyamaike. Locals made an underground waterway between Tamanga Pond at 16m above sea level and Yuyama Pond at almost 0m above sea level. Then the water of Tanegaike Lake and the sand of the dunes was poured into Yuyama Pond to reclaim Yuyama Pond. With the project, it took about 100 years to make a 50-hectare paddy field from the early 19th century to the early 20th century. The underground waterway that was created at that time is still used, and supplies water from Tanegaike Lake to farmland in the Yuyama area. Tanegaike Lake has been carefully preserved as an indispensable place for people to survive in this area, so precious ecosystems, shrines and folklore remain.
To attract visitors to Tanegaike Lake, a working group had been organized by Mr. Kaigo from the Hamayuyama and Tanegaike Vitalization Committee and people from the San'in Kaigan Geopark from 2018 to 2019. The group members examined Tanegaike Lake and found the attractions, for example, "Changing sand dunes and people's lives" and "The beauty of the color contrast between the sand dunes and the lake". In order to convey these attractions to tourists, we first created a leaflet, which was included such the information as the history of the formation of Tanegaike Lake, the history of reclamation of Yuyamaike, Tanegaike Shrine, and folklore, “Otane”. By placing them in the Tottori Sand Dunes Visitor Center and the Sand Museum, we created an opportunity for tourists to visit Tanegaike Lake. In this presentation, we will report the details and progress of the project as well as other tourism and educational efforts utilizing the local resources of the sand dunes and lagoons.
To attract visitors to Tanegaike Lake, a working group had been organized by Mr. Kaigo from the Hamayuyama and Tanegaike Vitalization Committee and people from the San'in Kaigan Geopark from 2018 to 2019. The group members examined Tanegaike Lake and found the attractions, for example, "Changing sand dunes and people's lives" and "The beauty of the color contrast between the sand dunes and the lake". In order to convey these attractions to tourists, we first created a leaflet, which was included such the information as the history of the formation of Tanegaike Lake, the history of reclamation of Yuyamaike, Tanegaike Shrine, and folklore, “Otane”. By placing them in the Tottori Sand Dunes Visitor Center and the Sand Museum, we created an opportunity for tourists to visit Tanegaike Lake. In this presentation, we will report the details and progress of the project as well as other tourism and educational efforts utilizing the local resources of the sand dunes and lagoons.