Mountainous

I don't want to give the impression that I am oblivious to the problems with my own mote ridden ocular organs. This is the area where I live viewed from a similar altitude to the wallpaper from yesterday. It was 21 years plus a couple of months ago when I first flew in to Japan. Those sort of planarian worm infestations on the mountains were one of the first things that struck me. They are golf courses. Although the mountains look green and healthy in the photo, a bit of a stroll on the ground reveals that most slopes with some kind of road access were stripped bare after the war and planted with cedar, which is why a large portion of the population of Tokyo can be seen sporting surgical masks in the early spring time as they try to keep out the pollen that comes to them carrying a nice coating of smog. There are a few areas of deciduous woodland left around here and it is obvious as you walk into them that the amount of bird song swells and there is a generally more airy feeling without the dense canopy of the conifers. The amazing government foresight in completely ignoring all known theories of supply and demand means that we now have an unsaleable glut of cedar clogging the mountain environment. I said this to a chap slightly connected with the government departments in question and he got a little bit heated taking it as an attack on his forebears that made the decision. It was of course, but it was more a plea for a bit more foresight in the actions being taken now as there are still mountains being planted with cedar.
It is nice to see that some clever chap held on to a big stand of bamboo that extends right up to the mountain ridges above our house. Cedar does not have a strong root base and would be a fairly untrustworthy safety net to hold the slopes up in a big quake or a typhoon like some of those we have seen in recent years. Bamboo builds a net of roots just below the surface and holds things in place, but it does have a reputation for delivering mud slides over vast distances as it is easily flattened and very slipy once lying down, which is why I am glad the stuff goes right up to the ridge.
The main forest product of this area used to be bamboo and bamboo charcoal. There are the ruins of several charcoal kilns up among the current stand of giant grasses.
I guess this photo is actually a pretty fair representation for the country. Only about 15 percent of the land is used for agriculture industry and human habitation. I'm not sure whether that includes forestry, I think not. Ah well, time to have a chat with the kids.