Sampei Yamashita

Perception and evaluation of water in landscape: use of Photo-Projective Method to compare child and adult residents' perceptions of a Japanese river environment

Abstract This study explores adults’ and children’s perception and evaluation of water in the landscape. The Photo-Projective Method (PPM), which asks residents to take pictures of their environment and record their descriptions of each scene on site, is used for a local opinion survey of a river landscape of Japan. Adults’ perception and evaluation of water in the landscape are compared with those of children. As perceptual/evaluative dimensions, stream view type, percent of water surface in a picture, rate of selecting water as a subject for photography, and verbally described features of water are used for analysis. It is clear that when adults are the dominant viewers of the landscape, appropriate arrangements of mid- to long-distance elements and dynamic aspects of water should become more significant in landscape planning. By contrast, when pre-pubertal children are the main users of the environment, planners need to focus more on short-distance elements including water, especially on its quality.

Comprehensive flood control involving citizens in a Japanese watershed

In July 2009, the city of Fukuoka, Japan experienced a flood disaster along the Hii River, which runs through densely populated, concrete-covered areas of the city. The drainage system was overwhelmed and the river overflowed due to heavy rainfall and rapid runoff. The event led citizens in its watershed to plan and implement comprehensive flood control. The plan aims not only to mitigate floods but also to revitalize the river environment and populated communities in urban areas. This study reports the activities led by the citizens. They organized and carried out civic forums, workshops, and fieldwork to share views as to how the flood disaster was caused, how floods in the watershed should be controlled, and how the river environment should be rehabilitated. This study illuminates how people, including the flood victims and municipal engineers, can change drastically and communicate effectively in the course of discussing and implementing the comprehensive flood control measures.

ECOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF MASONRY REVETMENTS IN PLANT BIODIVERSITY

The objective of this research is to evaluate the importance of vegetation of retaining walls made of natural stones (i.e., masonry revetment) in plant biodiversity. In this paper, plant compositions and the characteristics of masonry revetments were surveyed in terraced fields in Toho Village, southern Japan. In total, 43 families and 88 species were recorded in the spaces of the masonry revetments. Of these 88 species, 68 (77.3%) were herbaceous, excluding 13 (14.8%) ferns, and 7 (8.0%) species were woody plants. Native species accounted for 69 (78.4%) of the 88 species. Furthermore, numerous species not found in the horizontal environments around the terraced fields were also seen in the spaces of the masonry revetments. From these results, the authors consider that masonry revetments provide a habitat for plants and therefore contribute toward the conservation of plant biodiversity on a local scale.

Integrating Geographic Information into Scenic Assessments of Middle Landscapes

Suburban areas, or middle landscapes, can serve as ideal human habitat, and demonstrate how human–environmental synergy can be sustained. However, without extensive evaluation and management, the development of the middle landscape may be haphazard and can lead to awkward assimilation into the city. This study assessed the physical and aesthetic attributes of the catchment basin of a Japanese river and the value of the middle landscape within it. A digital surface model of the catchment area was created using aerial photographs, which were classified according to land use. Panoramic video images were taken both upstream and downstream from all the bridges along the main stretch of the river. View-shed areas within the frame of each of the panorama images were generated for 3-D individual land-use areas. Forty-one college students evaluated and rated the images using the scenic beauty estimation procedure to standardize the perceptual assessment data thus obtained. Three types of middle landscape were identified by factor analysis and cluster analysis: (1) a perspective of distant mountains and forests with anthropogenic structures in the foreground (mountain/forest type); (2) a view consisting of rice paddy fields, farmland, natural areas and/or vacant land (country/nature type); (3) a view of a water surface with commercial facilities (developed waterfront type). The findings indicated that the visibility of middle landscapes, and particularly the perspective of distant mountains and forests, has a positive impact on the view from the river, even if it has conspicuous anthropogenic structures in the foreground. Conversely, the combination of commercial facilities with water tends to be rated relatively low.