Satoumi: coastal livelihoods and ecological care

Rivers carry water and material from the land into coastal waters. Seagrass beds, tidal flats and marine organisms contribute to local ecological processes. Fishing, aquaculture, gathering and settlement also change these environments. A satoumi therefore needs to be understood through connections between land, water and livelihoods.

Agreeing on local action

Participants investigate local conditions and resources before agreeing on goals and actions. Habitat protection, litter removal and changes in resource use require monitoring and evaluation, followed by adjustment. In the Aso Sea in Kyoto Prefecture, a council established in 2007 organised the collection of excessive green algae for use as agricultural fertiliser. Such actions respond to local conditions; planting or releasing organisms does not automatically improve a coast.

Restoring eelgrass at Hinase

At Hinase in Okayama, domestic wastewater and shoreline works had greatly reduced eelgrass beds after the war. Fishers had once treated the grass as an obstacle that caught in propellers; linking its decline to poor catches helped prompt restoration in 1985. The beds support small crustaceans eaten by fish, shelter young fish and provide spawning sites. Workers collect flowering shoots in early June, store them on rafts, sort seeds by density in October and sow them in restoration areas. Local junior-high pupils also help with sowing. Habitat restoration thus addresses food and shelter as well as what people take from the sea.

Coastal livelihoods have long histories, while satoumi as a research and management concept is more recent. In 1998, oceanographer Tetsuo Yanagi defined it in terms of coastal waters whose productivity and biodiversity had increased through human involvement. Japan’s 2007 environmental strategy included support for satoumi. In 2008 the environment ministry selected Nanao Bay, the Ako coast, Omura Bay and the Nakatsu tidal flats for a programme supporting local work and gathering evidence for a practical manual. Its current Satoumi Net links environmental conservation, resource use and cooperation among fishers, residents and other participants.

Fishers, residents, researchers, businesses, public authorities and organisations can contribute different work. Returns from resource use may support further conservation. Satoumi does not designate every coast as one legal class of protected area; local initiatives work within existing arrangements such as fishing rights, port areas and protected areas.