The purpose of this paper is to examine the preventive measures by the local government and farmers for red soil erosion and runoff from farmland in Okinawa.
Red soil erosion and runoff does not cause only problems on land, but also causes pollution of rivers and sea, and those have become big problems for sustaining the ecosystem in Okinawa. Most of the sources of runoff are farmland, which enhances in stripping off topsoil and decrease in soil fertility.
The decisive result has not been obtained although various technical measures such as drainage and reclamation measures, farmland management, and plowing and farm management have been taken. The reason for this has been identified as the lack of co-operation of the local government in undertaking the burden of cost and labour in technical measures.
Therefore, the following points should be considered as measures that could be taken by the local government. Firstly, it is necessary to incorporate the viewpoint of farm management on burden of cost and inclusion of excess labour through various measures. Secondly, the divergent opinions of farmers should be considered. Finally, there should be ongoing discussion among farmers and the local government on how to support the farmers.
