2024 Volume 35 Issue 1 Pages 18-26
In this article, first the true impact of the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake on Japan was described because the quake had given also a large impact on the issue of disaster waste in a major disaster which is a theme of this article. Next, the challenges and background of disaster countermeasures for a Tokyo metropolitan inland earthquake or a gigantic earthquake along the Nankai Trough in future was discussed including the issue of disaster waste based on a history. The important point is that unlike the cost of pre-disaster countermeasures, that of post-disaster ones, such as recovery and reconstruction cannot be transferred to affected local communities, even though they are difficult to finance. This is because in case that the response capacity of disaster-affected area is not up to the level of response required, it bypasses the disaster-stricken area and flow to the outside. When the Tokyo metropolitan inland earthquake or a gigantic earthquake along the Nankai Trough, which may become national critical disaster, there is a possibility that money flows through Japan and go overseas. Measures to improve this issue are extremely important in terms of ensuring qualitative and quantitative response capacity and preventing the outflow of funds, but the problem is not sufficiently recognized.
