Kawamata, Fukushima

Geography

Kawamata is located immediately to the south-east of Fukushima City (bordering the Iino district). It is bounded on its other sides by Date City, Nihonmatsu, Iitate and Namie.

The geographic area of Kawamata is approximately 10 km east-to-west and 20 km north-to-south; the total land area is 127.66 km². It has an altitude of 201.2 m as measured at the site of the municipal office.

Kawamata is located at the confluence of two local rivers, the Hirose and the Isazawa, from which the town's name (meaning "river fork") is derived. Several other small rivers and streams run through the town.

There are four designated mountains in Kawamata: Mt. Kōdaishi (863 m), Mt. Hakubaishi (821 m), Mt. Kuchibuto (842 m), and Mt. Hanazuka (918 m).

Districts

Kawamata is divided into several neighborhoods, including:

The central town consists of the Kawamata neighborhood and parts of Tsuruzawa, Kogami, and Iizaka. The remaining areas are outlying communities.

Yamakiya

The former village of Yamakiya (山木屋) is the largest and most sparsely populated region of Kawamata, as well as the most physically isolated. It is located in the mountains to the south-east of the central town; at 37.40 km², it occupies almost one third of Kawamata's geographic area. Within Kawamata, Yamakiya retains some of its own distinct cultural characteristics.

Yamakiya is home to the Yamakiya Taiko Club, an amateur taiko drum performance group made up of young people from the community. In April 2012, several members of the club travelled to Washington, DC in the USA for the 100th anniversary of the National Cherry Blossom Festival as part of a cultural exchange initiative.

One of Yamakiya's prominent facilities is the Yamakiya Skating Rink, an outdoor ice rink which is normally open during January and early February. Speed skating competitions are held for local school children every year.

The Yamakiya region was placed under mandatory evacuation (classified as a "planned evacuation zone") due to elevated levels of radiation following the 2011 earthquake and nuclear crisis. As of 10 August 2013, the evacuation status of Yamakiya was reorganized, with the majority of the area being redesignated as "an area readying for the lifting of evacuation orders", and a small area by the Namie border to remain restricted. The actual evacuation status may be lifted in spring of 2016.

History

The area of present-day Kawamata was part of ancient Mutsu Province. Numerous Jomon period ruins have been found in the area. During the Edo period, it was tenryo territory under direct control of the Tokugawa shogunate. After the Meiji Restoration, it was organized as part of Adachi District in the Nakadōri region of Iwaki Province.

The origin of modern Kawamata goes back to 1876, when Kawamata Village was established; the community was subsequently redesignated as Kawamata Town with the establishment of the municipalities system on 1 April 1889. In 1955, seven neighboring villages – Fukuda, Iizaka, Kotsunagi, Ōtsunagi, Ojima, Tomita, and Yamakiya – were merged into Kawamata Town, leading to the current municipal boundaries.

Kawamata's official emblem, a stylized か (ka) hiragana designed to resemble a bird in flight, was adopted in 1965.

2011 Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear disaster

Kawamata was impacted in a number of ways by the March 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. As an inland community, the town was not directly affected by the tsunami. However, power outages lasting up to several days (depending on area) occurred. Several buildings, including the municipal office building, suffered significant structural damage and were subsequently evacuated.

The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant initially led to the establishment of a 30 km exclusion zone around the power station. Although Kawamata was located outside this region, in April 2011, the Japanese government established additional evacuation areas which included the Yamakiya neighborhood of Kawamata. The evacuation order will be lifted on 31 March 2017. Controls had been relaxed in August 2013 permitting decontamination work to start.

Economy and demographics

The traditional industries of Kawamata were historically agriculture and textiles. Rice farming, shamo chicken, and silk goods all remain culturally important. In recent years, the manufacturing of products such as automobile parts has also become prominent.

Like many rural Japanese communities, Kawamata has suffered from a shrinking population over the past few decades. From a high of more than 27,000 in 1950, the population has decreased to only 15,010 in 2012. This has been correlated with a reduction in available services, including the shutting down of the Kawamata Line railway in 1972, and the closing or merging of several schools.

Education

As of 2012, Kawamata has six public elementary schools and two junior high schools. There are also five half-day kindergartens, and one full-day nursery school.

Since 2011 a number of schools (kindergarten through junior high school) from neighbouring Iitate village have been housed inside temporary facilities in Kawamata.

Kindergartens and nursery schools

Elementary schools

Kawamata-Minami Elementary School was founded in 1985 from the merger of two former schools: Ōtsunagi Elementary School and Kotsunagi Elementary School. Similarly, Tomita Elementary School was founded in 1989 from the merger of Tsuruzawa and Kogami Elementary Schools.

Two other schools, Ojima Elementary School (小島小学校, Ojima shōgakkō) and Fukuzawa Elementary School (福沢小学校, Fukuzawa shōgakkō), were closed down in March 2008 due to declining enrollment. Students from these two schools were moved into Kawamata Elementary School.

Following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, the former Ojima Elementary School building, now a community centre, was temporarily used to house evacuees from several other municipalities close to the damaged Fukushima I nuclear power station.

Junior high schools

Originally, various districts of Kawamata had their own junior high schools. In 1974, all except Yamakiya Junior High School were merged into Kawamata Junior High School.

High Schools

Railway

Highways

Bus access is available to and from various surrounding municipalities. In particular, the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) operates buses between Kawamata and Fukushima City.

Events

Kawamata holds various annual events throughout the year. These include: