The Agri-Reconstruction Project and Rapeseed Project for Restoring Tsunami-Salt- Damaged Farmland After the GEJE – An Institutional Effort - Post-Tsunami Hazard: Reconstruction and Restoration - page 286

Table 18.1 Main contents of the 37 individual research topics being carried out at the Graduate
School of Agricultural Science in Marc h 2012

No. of
projects Field Main content

Agriculture and
forestry

15 Soil surveys for salt damage and pollution by radioactive

substances, rapeseed, soil washing (fl ushing), surveys of
damage to coastal forests and windbreak forests, forestry
restoration, and environmental impacts

Livestock production 4 Research on feed rice contaminated by radioactive

cesium, protection and radiation dose survey of cattle
within the 20 km zone from the nuclear accident site,
and infection by soil-originating bacteria

Marine products
industries

15 Research on the restoration of Japanese oyster culture

farming, subsurface surveys, plankton, arame [ Eisenia
bicyclis ] and other species

Education and urban
restoration

3 Community support, regional revival, and support for

high school education

and well-being of oysters seeds and succeeded in restoring the devastated oyster
seed production in a very short time. This activity indicated the pivotal role institu-
tions can perform in the industry-government-academia complex relationship.
Another important activity was the Project to Protect Cattle Remaining within the
Fukushima Nuclear Power Station 20 km Evacuation Zone. This project ensured
that the status of the livestock remaining in the Evacuation Zone will be publicized
and also considers activities for temporarily impounding the cattle to divert them
from experimental or exhibition purposes.
The Rapeseed Project for Restoring Tsunami-Salt-Damaged Farmland became
the foremost project of the institution supporting the restoration of damaged lands
and restoring agricultural activities.

18.3 Rapeseed Project for Restoring

Tsunami-Salt-Damaged Farmland

18.3.1 Project Activities

The Graduate School of Agricultural Science is a leading research institution in
Japan in the fi eld of genome sequencing of Brassicaceae plants and holds a renowned
gene bank of phyletic lines specializing in Brassicaceae-related plants. 1
Brassicaceae related species include Raphanus (radish), Capsella (shepherd's
purse), Eutrema (Japanese horseradish) and others. The genus Brassica alone

1 Over the last 50 years the gene bank has sampled and managed roughly 800 phyletic lines from
177 species in 58 genera, gathered from research institutions and so on overseas.