MaruyamaSenmaida Maruyama Senmaida

MaruyamaSenmaida

MaruyamaSenmaida is a series of rice terraces drawn on the slopes of the Maruyama district of Kiwa Town, and has been selected as one of Japan's top 100 rice terraces.
It is unknown when these rice terraces were created, but there is a record that there were already 2,240 rice terraces in the year 1601 (Keicho 6). However, due to the planting of cedar trees as part of the rice cultivation conversion measures that began in the mid-1960s, and the increase in abandoned farmland due to depopulation and aging since the 1970s, the number had decreased to 530 trees by the early Heisei era.
The local residents stood up and said, ``We cannot afford to lose this precious cultural heritage in our generation. We must preserve and pass on the wonderful landscape and agricultural culture to future generations.'' In 1993, residents of the Maruyama area All members formed MaruyamaSenmaida Preservation Society and began restoration and conservation activities for MaruyamaSenmaida.
In the four years since the preservation society was formed, we have successfully restored 810 rice terraces, making it the largest rice terrace in Japan with 1,340 rice terraces. The average area of each rice field is about 10 tsubo, which is very small, so most of the fields are maintained by hand, in the traditional way, without relying on machinery.
We hereby enact this ordinance to remember and honor the wisdom and achievements of our predecessors, and to declare that we will make further efforts to preserve Senmaida while becoming familiar with and loving it." (KumanoCity MaruyamaSenmaida Excerpts from the ordinance)
In KumanoCity, the nation's first Senmaida Ordinance was enacted in 1994 to preserve MaruyamaSenmaida for future generations, and all citizens are working together to protect it.