Japan's Great Wall: Can It Stop A Tsunami? | Foreign Correspondent
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Published 2021-03-02
The old seawalls which had been built along the coastline to protect villages and infrastructure offered little protection. Today, the government’s solution to a future tsunami is to build an even bigger and longer seawall to protect Japan’s coastal communities.
Up to 14 metres high and 400 kilometres long, the new seawall is dividing
communities, and some fear, placing them in greater danger.
In this ARTE documentary, presented by former ABC Japan correspondent Mark Willacy, The Great Wall of Japan travels along the north-eastern coast of Japan’s main island to meet the fishermen and communities affected by one of the country’s biggest ever construction projects.
Oyster farmer Atsushi Fujita has mixed feelings about the wall, saying it’s destroying his community’s livelihood and culture.
“We're all very sad that our former lifestyle has gone and we can no longer see the ocean from our windows. It's really affecting us a lot.”
In the village of Akahama, fisherman Hiromi Kawaguchi has galvanised locals against the building of a giant wall. While he lost his wife and mother to the 2011 tsunami, he has no faith a new seawall will protect locals in the event of another great wave.
“In the last tsunami, the old wall was destroyed and its remains were left floating on the surface like cubes of tofu. Everything man-made is destined to be destroyed. It’s inevitable.”
But others support the wall, including construction executive Kazunori Yamamoto, who believes the old seawall saved his family in 2011.
“The breakwater earned us precious time, enabling a lot of people to escape. Without the breakwater, my whole family would have died.”
Scientists are divided on the benefits. Some say the wall will slow a tsunami’s advance, allowing more time for people to escape. Others say it will do the opposite, providing a false sense of security, delaying departure and putting people in greater danger.
Some believe the 13 billion US dollars spent on the wall’s construction could have been better used moving more communities to higher ground.
As Japan commemorates the tsunami’s 10th anniversary, this is a moving and timely story from the region hardest hit by the 2011 disaster.
About Foreign Correspondent:
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All Comments (21)
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"A decade ago..." Wow, it seems like it happened yesterday.
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This is a really well produced mini documentary. I was living in Japan when the great Tohoku earthquake and tsunami struck. This has totally changed my mind about seawalls. The only thing missing from this documentary is the ancient stone markers that have been found in the hills of Japan. They say "Do not build below this point" in an attempt to warn the future generations of the destructive powers of a great tsunami.
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I had fallen asleep in front of the TV that evening, I awoke in the middle of the night to coverage of the Tsunami, it was a horrendous spectacle. I followed the coverage daily, and I gained a tremendous respect for the Japanese people, no looting, neighbors helping neighbors, everyone helping each other and sharing what they had. That’s how it should be in every society. Much can be learned from the humanity and grace of the Japanese people by watching how they handled this disaster.
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The small seawalls that existed saved countless lives because it gave people time to get to higher ground. My respect to the engineers and builders of japan.
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We all know it’s to stop against the Titans from attacking
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The best thing about japan is they always gathering together to recover all the things. Japanese is so so strong people, no doubt. They are fast, polite, great, awesome, .. i hope japan always stay strong for all the disaster..
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"the concrete walls were floating on the ocean like tofu cubes" poetic
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No matter how hard we try, we will never be able to stop the full force of mother nature. Mother nature will always win.
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My wife's family is from Iwate, and they suffered greatly from the tsunami in 2011. I've visited her hometown and met with what remains of her family. I've seen the town a few years after the disaster and then as the wall was being constructed. No one is rebuilding on the flats near the water. The only thing down there is that giant wall and some roads. You can still see the outlines of the foundations of homes that were ripped off the ground. What's left of the townspeople now live up on the hills overlooking the bay. You can still see the exact mark the tsunami wave reached, even ten years later.
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No graffiti. Imagine what those walls would look like in the west.
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Japan is a darling country. Good hardworking people. Love from India. RIP who lost their lives in Tsunami! 🙏
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On one hand this is a spectacular project meant to protect them and on the other hand it breaks my heart that they cannot see the ocean anymore. It's a hard one for sure, because you never want to see your loved ones and livelihood lost again but life feels empty without the beauty of the nature.
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It’s not to “stop” the tsunami. It’s to slower it down
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You might disagree, but the engineering is impressive. Japan is a very serious country.
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I live in Zeeland, the Netherlands. Below sea level. Protected by our Delta Works. We don't have Tsunami's here but we know the devastating effects from floods all too well. To Japan I can say: Build your coastal defenses. Build them strong. Build them high. There is not enough land on the high grounds alone, so you will have to take your safety into your own hands. And if you need inspiration from your own country: look up the story of the sea-side village Fudai. It had a major stubborn enough to demand a sea wall and flood gate of 15.5 meters to be built to protect his town. He was not alive to see the result but it was the only village in the region that survived the 2011 tsunami without a breach. Today he is honored as a hero and the wall still stands tall.
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Since the most important part seems to be missing, I would like to add something. This project also has the aspect of a public works project for those who lost their jobs due to the disaster. This project needed to be promoted as soon as possible in order to reintegrate the affected people into society as soon as possible.
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19:27 - Eren talking about the wall
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You can't stop them all, but stopping 70-80% of the peak wave is a win, no matter what. Well done Japan!
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A perfect example of no ones opinion on this matter is better than the other. Locals feel confined and feel like they lost the culture. Meanwhile, the government wants to find a solution and try to prevent another tragedy. I see both perspectives.
