Voices
in
Japan

quote of the day

Dense populations in urban areas pose huge risks in the event of natural disasters and infectious disease outbreaks.

5 Comments

Hiroki Mizuguchi, the president of Lupicia Co, which has 150 stores in and outside of Japan that sell tea products from all over the world. It is one of many companies that have moved their headquarters to Hokkaido from the Tokyo metropolitan region.

© Asahi Shimbun

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

5 Comments
Login to comment

In contrary, only the few remaining urban centers have the infrastructure and resources in case of a bigger emergency. Will you find a dialysis station or a supermarket to grab some water and foot in your depopulated rural area? No, not even if you walk or crawl sick and hungry for 15 kilometers or more.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

This gentleman is correct. The problem is overcentralization and lack of resilience though, not simply or just urbanization.

This company has moved to Hokkaido, which isn't urban but whose electricity was taken out islandwide for days by a relatively small earthquake affecting a power plant in the south east corner. If that had happened in winter, people would have frozen to death, and it would have had nothing to do with "dense populations in urban areas". For such a cold place to have no backup power should be shocking. Regarding the pandemic, when it first broke, it was common for people to suggest Japan's packed commuter trains would be a Petri dish for Covid. I do not understand why, but that clearly did not happen. I guess it is because the real world is more complicated than our theories and interpretations of it.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

But: Crumbling infrastructure rapidly rendering rural communities unlivable. https://japantoday.com/category/features/kuchikomi/crumbling-infrastructure-rapidly-rendering-rural-communities-unlivable

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites