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Abstract:
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"Villagers in Japan collectively used and managed various properties such as forests, ponds, and irrigation canals during the Edo period (1603-1868). The building of a modern nation-state however brought about changes in the economic organization of community-based management. Municipal mergers and dissolutions in 1889 were one such example. The central government then instituted the property ward (zaisanku) system, which allowed villagers to sustain their properties within the limits of the village community.
Although a large number of case studies on property wards have been made, little is known about their overall financial standing, which is an aspect which could contribute to a better understanding of each case. This paper thus explores the financial trends of all property wards that own forest area by analyzing their financial reports published over the span of FY 1974-FY 2010. The findings demonstrate that most property wards in FY 1976 depended on subsidies, based on the 5-year moving average. Meanwhile, the profitability of forestry had consistently dropped. This resulted in a decrease in the proportion of those property wards gaining sales profits on the one hand, and an increase in the proportion of those incapable of burdening the forest management costs on the other. Although the government heavily subsidized forest owners, the number of property wards that enjoyed financial support from the government decreased. This trend compelled village communities to dissolve their property wards. As a whole, property wards have gradually dispensed with forest management. Nevertheless, based on the 5-year moving average, the property wards in 17 % of the municipalities supervising the forest-owned property wards sustainably managed their forest areas over the span of FY 1976-FY 2008, owing to both sales profits and subsidy. This paper statistically informs of financial trends and reveals which property wards have succeeded in sustainable forest management."
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