Governments of communities hit by the Great East Japan Earthquake face the difficult choice of whether to preserve or dismantle remnants of structures engulfed by the tsunami. Decisions should be made carefully after thorough discussion.
The town government of Minami-Sanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, has decided to put the ruins of its disaster management headquarters building under prefectural ownership until 2031, or 20 years after the quake. Only the iron frame of the building remained after the structure was hit by the tsunami. The town government accepted a proposal made by the prefectural government to take over the ruins of the building.
As a result, plans to dismantle the building's frame, announced by the town government in September 2013 in light of the high costs of preservation, will be shelved for the time being.
The policy change was triggered by the final report compiled in January by a panel of experts on quake disaster ruins, set up by the prefectural government.
The report said it would be highly significant to preserve the building's frame as a remnant that would pass down to future generations the importance of reducing disaster risk and preventing disasters. "It would have an impact no less than that of the Atomic Bomb Dome and would strongly convey the enormity of the disaster," the report said.
In response to the final report, Miyagi Gov. Yoshihiro Murai proposed putting the structure under prefectural ownership, saying to the town government, "It would be too difficult, at this point, to put an end to the controversy, which has split the opinions of the town."
The three-story building in question was engulfed by the tsunami, which reached as high as its roof, leaving 43 people, including town government officials, dead or missing. The remains of the building, whose exterior walls were washed away, bears eloquent witness to the horror of the tsunami.
On the other hand, we can understand that the remains of the building would be painful or even distasteful to look at for bereaved families who lost their loved ones. Consideration should also be given to the feelings of those who call for dismantling and removing the remaining structure.
Placing it under prefectural ownership for the time being may be an appropriate option for the town so that it can spend adequate time to reach a consensus on preservation or dismantlement.
Since the Reconstruction Agency launched a system in November 2013 to financially assist local governments with the costs for preserving quake disaster structural remains, discussion on what to do with such remnants has intensified in the disaster-affected communities.
Under the financial assistance system, the central government will pay reconstruction subsidies to cover the initial preservation cost for one location in each village, town or city.
So far, three structures have qualified for preservation grants: the Taro Kanko Hotel and the Aketo seawall, both in Iwate Prefecture, and Kesennuma Koyo High School in Miyagi Prefecture. None of the three structures involved casualties.
Opposition to preservation of structures that involved loss of life has been tenacious, showing how difficult it will be to reach a local consensus on preservation.
Even if more time is needed for municipalities to decide on whether to preserve ruins, the central government will cover urgent repair costs.
For those local municipalities that cannot make a quick decision, the only way forward is to take the time to form a consensus, while utilizing a system like this.
The problem is that maintenance costs over a long time would weigh on local municipalities should they decide to preserve such remains. We hope they will tap their ingenuity over how these preserved facilities should be made accessible to visitors and how the local municipalities can harmonize the existence of such remains with post-reconstruction, town-building plans.
