Japan's Plan to Cut Cedars to Reduce Allergies Faces Challenges

   Tokyo, May 2 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government's plan to tackle the problem of widespread pollen allergies by cutting down artificial cedar forests has met skepticism from the forestry industry, which is struggling with labor shortages and low lumber demand.
   The government adopted last May a plan to increase the area for cutting down planted cedar trees from about 50,000 hectares per year to around 70,000 hectares, in order to reduce artificial cedar forests by about 20 pct by fiscal 2033. This is hoped to halve the amount of pollen dispersed from the trees in around 30 years.
   From the ongoing fiscal year, which started last month, the government is set to begin talks in earnest with forest owners on cutting down trees, focusing on priority areas designated by prefectural governments.
   However, the number of forestry workers is continuing to decline, and the workforce is aging.
   The Forestry Agency hopes to respond to labor shortages by supporting the introduction of high-performance machinery. But an industry official pointed out the "need to develop personnel who can use machinery well, as some places are very steep."

(2024/05/02-17:11)

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