Japan deploys Self-Defense Forces to combat surge in bear attacks

TOKYO — Japanese Self-Defense Forces (SDF) have been deployed to Akita Prefecture on Wednesday, in response to a surge in bear attacks in the region.

As hibernation season approaches, encounters with bears resulting in injury or death have been reported almost daily across the country, according to the Associated Press.

In Akita prefecture, more than 50 people have been attacked by bears since May, at least four of whom have died, Aljazeera reported. Starting in Kazuno, SDF troops have been tasked with setting up bear traps, transporting hunters, and helping dispose of dead bears, according to the AP. The Japan Times reported troops are not permitted to cull the bears.

“Even if just temporary, the SDF’s help is a big relief.”

Yasushiro Kitakata

“Every day, bears intrude into residential areas in the region and their impact is expanding,” Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Fumitoshi Sato told reporters. As the situation worsened, local authorities felt overwhelmed and incapable of responding to the crisis. Akita Governor Kenta Suzuki said on Wednesday, “It is simply impossible to respond with only the resources available within the prefecture.”

Already understaffed, the SDF’s support will be limited. Although the mission aims to secure local safety, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Tuesday that unlimited support cannot be provided, since national defense remains troops’ primary mission. “Even if just temporary, the SDF’s help is a big relief,” said Yasushiro Kitakata, who oversees the town’s bear department, according to Reuters.

According to Firstpost, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government has made the crisis a national priority. Last week, the government set up a task force which will begin an official bear response by mid-November, according to the AP.

More hunters, faster response times, and new countermeasures are amongst the government’s plans, according to Firstpost. The AP also reported that bear population surveys, the use of communication devices to issue bear warnings, and revisions to hunting rules are being considered by the government.

Japan’s hunting population faces several challenges. As hunters get older and young people steer away from the profession, the number of skilled professionals dropped by about 300,000 from 1975 to 2020, according to Reuters statistics. Strict regulations, low financial returns, and physical demands of the job have made hunting an unappealing and vanishing career.

While the government’s immediate response has been logistical, experts warn the crisis stems from deeper structural issues.

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Analysis — a band-aid, not a cure

In the past few decades, bears have become a wicked problem of national dimensions for Japan. Degradation of habitat, rural depopulation, and climate change have brought bears closer to population centers, increasing unwanted encounters. Injuries, deaths, and destruction of crops are amongst the most prevalent consequences.

Although traps and culling can be successful ways of controlling bear populations, such methods do not tackle the root causes of the bear problem in Japan.

Environmental concerns are raised, as the culling of bears may bring the species close to extinction if overused at a nationwide scale. Before that happens, a reduced bear population will still likely encroach into towns, as the root causes of encroachment remain untouched. Lastly, moral concerns come into play, as the question remains: why should the bear be killed for a problem it didn’t create?

An increase in career hunters may also bring about adverse results. When bears are caught by traps meant for other species, such as boars, they can be seriously injured and become more violent. The same effect occurs when culling fails to kill the bear. If hunters increase, so will non-bear traps and occasional culling failures, which may in turn endanger nearby populations.

While the government pursues culling as a control mechanism in response to recent spikes in attacks, long-term measures should be taken in order to tackle root causes.

In the decades following the Second World War, improper reforestation campaigns resulted in the severe degradation of habitats for many forest species. As a result, the bear has had to look further to find food, beginning to encroach more and more into human inhabited spheres.

Mass exoduses to big cities like Tokyo, combined with an ageing population, have left rural towns which are surrounded by forests increasingly deserted

In the peripheries of such towns, the existence of small population pockets creates a “buffer zone”, called satoyama, which separates the pure forest from population centers. The gradual presence of humans in semi-forest areas acts as a deterrent, reducing the likelihood that bears enter the town itself.

Rural decline remains a broader issue in Japan; as such more efforts have to be taken by the government in this area if it wants to see the bear distance itself from population centers. Higher levels of rural living would revive satoyama areas, effectively achieving this goal. To ensure the sustainability of this strategy, proper habitat revitalization policies must ensure bears have sufficient food within their natural forest habitats.

Environmental policies have so far been either improperly used or misguided when it comes to bears, such as the Wildlife Protection and Hunting Law, the Law for the Conservation of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, and the Natural Parks Law.

A combination of these three fronts (culling control, rural revitalization, and environmental/forest policy) would be beneficial in controlling the national crisis long-term. Furthermore, reducing the bear problem in the countryside will likely aid rural revitalization efforts themselves, as rural living becomes safer with reduced bear encounters. Such policy strategies may be able to create a positive feedback loop between rural revitalization and bear control efforts.

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The content of this analysis section has been based on research by the University of Canterbury:
Knight, C. H. (2007). The bear as barometer: The Japanese response to human-bear conflict [Doctoral dissertation, University of Canterbury]. University of Canterbury Research Repository.