Midori Ippai Project Activities LINE 127Bamboo-cutting in Training Session for Midori Ippai Environment Personnel June 4, 2015 NTT West Group
On June 4, 2015 (Thursday), a clear day in the midst of the rainy season, we conducted a bamboo-cutting activity at 窶廸TT West Midori Ippai Shionoe no Mori窶 in Kagawa Prefecture.
Bamboos can gain considerable height if they are left unattended. This may block out sunlight needed by other plants, thereby allowing only bamboos to grow and resulting in the loss of biodiversity in the forests.
At 窶廸TT West Midori Ippai Shionoe no Mori窶 in Kagawa, members have been engaging in activities to restore natural forests with biodiversity since 2014 by cutting down bamboos and planting wild cherries (yamazakura).
A total of 58 environment personnel from different parts of Japan, ranging from Kanazawa to Okinawa, attended this Training Session for Midori Ippai Environment Personnel. We took part in the cutting activity to remove bamboos that started to grow again at the location where wild cherries were planted on November 15, 2014. If left unattended, the tall bamboo plants will block out sunlight and hinder the growth of the wild cherries.
Spreading across the slope in the forest, each of us used a sickle to cut down young bamboos that were about twice our height under the guidance of representatives from the Forest Owners窶 Cooperative.
We were taught to cut the bamboos at an angle from slightly above, and thanks to the advice, those who were not good at bamboo cutting at first were surprised that the method allowed them to perform the work with great ease. Many members of the group exclaimed that the cutting process felt great, and all the young bamboos were cut down in no time.
We also had a hands-on experience to cut down bamboos that were more than 20 meters tall using a saw.
This one-day experience has helped us to realize the importance of continuing such efforts in order to enrich biodiversity in the forest, as it will be dominated by bamboos again if maintenance is not carried out regularly.
Thanks to everyone from the Kagawa Prefectural Office and Forest Owners窶 Cooperative for the preparations needed for this activity.
- Organizing companies
- NTT West Group
- Venue
- NTT West Midori Ippai Shionoe no Mori (Kagawa Prefecture, Takamatsu City, Shionoe-cho)
- No. of participants
- 58
