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Spatial Pattern of Farmland Abandonment in Japan: Identification and Determinants

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  • Guandong Su

    (Department of Geography, Division of Humanities, Graduate School of Letters, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 739-8522, Japan)

  • Hidenori Okahashi

    (Department of Geography, Faculty of Letters, Nara University, Nara 631-8502, Japan)

  • Lin Chen

    (Department of Geography, Division of Humanities, Graduate School of Letters, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 739-8522, Japan
    National Institutes for the Humanities, Tokyo 105-0001, Japan)

Abstract

In recent years, Japan has undergone an unprecedented increase in farmland abandonment, which not only causes serious environmental problems and rural landscape loss, but also has a significant impact on socio-economic conditions and the livelihood of Japanese farmers. Many studies have analyzed farmland abandonment and its processes and drivers at multiple scales; however, few have focused on East Asia, especially Japan, which is a heavily depopulated country in rural areas suffering from serious abandonment. Therefore, this study attempts to shed light on the spatial patterns and determinants of farmland abandonment in Japan. For this analysis, we used the former municipalities defined in 1950 at a national scale as unit samples. Consequently, the spatial patterns, characteristics and variations of farmland abandonment in Japan are displayed. As for the drivers or determinants, we adopted ordinary least squares (OLS) and geographically weighted regression (GWR) by categorizing the determinants into geographical and socio-economic aspects. We have found that, firstly, farmland abandonment in Japan exhibits a significantly uneven pattern. While taking the farmland abandonment rate as a measurement, the results demonstrate that most abandoned farmland is positively correlated with slope and is highly clustered in the Kanto, Chubu and Chugoku Shikoku regions, compared to other regions that are suitable for agricultural production, such as the Hokkaido and Tohoku regions. Secondly, the arable land ratio of self-sufficient farm households, the ratio of non-successor farm households and the number of laborers per farm household positively affect abandonment. In contrast, arable land area per farm household and paddy field density have a negative impact on abandonment. Thirdly, the determinants are spatially varied among study regions. Farmland abandonment is driven by interactions of multiple determinants and depends on specific local circumstances. Such results can contribute to the understanding of farmland abandonment in Japan, promoting the maintenance of farmland and sustainable agriculture.

Suggested Citation

  • Guandong Su & Hidenori Okahashi & Lin Chen, 2018. "Spatial Pattern of Farmland Abandonment in Japan: Identification and Determinants," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-22, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:10:p:3676-:d:175579
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    7. Yuchen Guo & Wei Song, 2019. "Spatial Distribution and Simulation of Cropland Abandonment in Wushan County, Chongqing, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-25, March.
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    9. Subedi, Yuba Raj & Kristiansen, Paul & Cacho, Oscar, 2022. "Reutilising abandoned cropland in the Hill agroecological region of Nepal: Options and farmers’ preferences," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    10. Raju Rai & Yili Zhang & Basanta Paudel & Narendra Raj Khanal, 2019. "Status of Farmland Abandonment and Its Determinants in the Transboundary Gandaki River Basin," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-18, September.
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    13. Lee, Jimin & Oh, Yun-Gyeong & Yoo, Seung-Hwan & Suh, Kyo, 2021. "Vulnerability assessment of rural aging community for abandoned farmlands in South Korea," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    14. Minjie Li & Jian Wang & Yihui Chen, 2019. "Evaluation and Influencing Factors of Sustainable Development Capability of Agriculture in Countries along the Belt and Road Route," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-28, April.
    15. Jian Zhou & Chao Li & Xiaotong Chu & Chenying Luo, 2022. "Is Cultivated Land Increased by Land Consolidation Sustainably Used in Mountainous Areas?," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-14, December.
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    18. Bo Liu & Wei Song & Qian Sun, 2022. "Status, Trend, and Prospect of Global Farmland Abandonment Research: A Bibliometric Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(23), pages 1-30, November.
    19. Muñoz-Rios, Luis Alejandro & Vargas-Villegas, Jair & Suarez, Andres, 2020. "Local perceptions about rural abandonment drivers in the Colombian coffee region: Insights from the city of Manizales," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    20. Xiangdong Wang & Decheng Zhao, 2023. "Study on the Causes of Differences in Cropland Abandonment Levels among Farming Households Based on Hierarchical Linear Model—13,120 Farming Households in 26 Provinces of China as an Example," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-22, September.
    21. Han Li & Wei Song, 2021. "Cropland Abandonment and Influencing Factors in Chongqing, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-21, November.

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