The relation between Horse-use and the change of lifestyle and natural resource use -a case study of Yamamuro, Japan-
発表者／presenter’s name：〇Haruna Komaki 1
所属／Affiliation：1 Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University

要旨／Abstract

Using horses for plowing, draught and manure were general in Japan until the post WWⅡ. However, due to mechanization and chemical fertilizer spread, the landscape with horses were disappeared around in 1970s. At a village Yamamuro, Nagano, I searched about how horses were kept and used, and how daily lifestyle and natural resource-use related to that. I discussed why horse-use disappeared in this area and the possibility of using horses in today’s Japanese society from the view of sustainable resource-use.

From interview survey, most of farmers had a horse for plowing, manure and loading until the Mid Showa period. Several homes had bigger horses for logging. At the time people had a horse by each home, they got every resource that essential for dairy life from close at hand. For example, firewood from oak forest, Kari-Shiki(leaves, grass, and fresh branches for compost) from bush, and grass for horses from paddy ridge. I also found that the villagers used a significant area of land as mulberry grove for silkworm.

The biggest factor of horse-use decline was mechanical power introduction such as tractor. But, silk industry decline, population decline and lifestyle change were also interacted.

Here, a young family is reviving horse-use for farming now. From their case, I revealed that the cost for keeping a horse could be even to initial investment for agricultural machines. However, horse-use inferior to machines in terms of speed or working burden. To use working horse in this age can be meaningful as a key to inherit traditional knowledge and technics, reweaving the connection between people and nature, and creating a sustainable life.

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