Japan’s ministries of environment and justice have decided to allow government-funded demolition of houses and other buildings damaged by the January 1 Noto Peninsula earthquake without the consent of all owners.
The ministries informed the decision, aimed at easing the burden on applicants and smoothly carrying out such demolition work, with no substantial progress being made, in central Ishikawa Prefecture, which was most affected by the earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6, and the nearby prefectures of Toyama, Fukui and Niigata. on Tuesday.
Previously, the consent of all owners involved was in principle required for government-paid demolition work on destroyed and severely damaged buildings.
Demolition is possible without the consent of some owners, if persons representing them provide documents stating that they will take responsibility for the work. But the procedure for this is complicated and often leads to delays.
Under the new policy, full permission is not required for buildings such as buildings that have been destroyed, severely damaged by floods and burned down, and buildings where the first floor has been crushed.
The ministries plan to use the new rule to promote demolition work for the entire Asaichi-dori morning market area in Ishikawa city of Wajima. The market area was severely damaged by a massive fire during the earthquake.
