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東日本大震災 生活・産業基盤復興再生募金 ヤマト福祉財団

Yamato Welfare Foundation


The 1st-5th Stages Beneficiaries' Descriptions →新規ウィンドウで開きます


About the donation for
restoration of the areas
affected by the Great East
Japan Earthquake


Message and report from
   the Yamato Group

Every package we deliver also carries hope.

February Report The winter cold lingers but we are beginning to feel the warmth of spring in the air. A year has passed since we began our program to donate ten yen for every parcel we deliver to help rebuild the fishing and agriculture industries and infrastructure in the areas affected by the earthquake tsunami. The number of parcels handled since April last year now totals 1，308,769,264 (as of February 29 and 101,966,056 parcels in February alone). The total amount donated to date reached ¥13,087,692,640 (US$162.74million*). We thank each and every customer who has used our delivery service.

All of the funds collected are being distributed to the affected areas through the The Great East Japan Earthquake Life, Industry Infrastructure Recovery, and Rebuilding Relief Fund administered by the Yamato Welfare Foundation. The specifics of how fund recipients are using the money are given in our monthly report. This month, we include a report about equipment purchased to support a project to clean the ocean bottom in Miyagi Prefecture and an ice making and ice storage facilities recovery support project in Iwate Prefecture.

• The ocean cleaning project in Miyagi Prefecture is aimed at the early restoration and recovery of fishing grounds, which requires the removal of debris accumulated at the sea bottom. The Yamato Welfare Foundation donated ¥100 million to help purchase new underwater debris recovery equipment developed for this purpose. Local fishermen developed the equipment jointly with Nichimou, a maker of fishing nets and equipment, and aquaculture materials. It includes a trawl net specifically designed to collect debris. Given wider mesh to make collection and sorting of debris easier, it is made of a material that resists abrasion. Attached to a collection bag, the trawl net enables a 60-ton boat to recover as much as 20 cubic meters of debris. Debris accumulated at the sea bottom has caused fish catch to decline, and the fish that are caught are often damaged and must be sold at lower prices—evidence of the harsh situations that continue in the area. Trials to test the performance of the cleaning equipment are scheduled for mid-March. We are hopeful that ocean bottom cleaning equipment will help lead to the speedy recovery of fishing grounds and production.

• A relief fund recipient in the second group, Ofunato Fishery Union in Iwate Prefecture had a groundbreaking ceremony for ice making and storage facilities, which are scheduled for completion in July. The Ofunato fish market boasts one of the largest fish catches in the Prefecture but suffered devastating damage from the tsunami. Even after resuming operation in temporary facilities in June last year, it was unable to restore its capability to supply ice to fishing boats. Fishing is Ofunato City's key industry. To secure a stable supply of fish and restore and rebuild that industry, it is essential to ensure a stable means of ice supply. Last December, Yamato Welfare Foundation contributed up to ¥248 million to the construction of new ice making and storage facilities. The new facilities will upgrade ice making capacity to 100 tons a day—more than three times greater than its pre-earthquake level—and ice storage capacity to 3,000 tons, up from its previous 2,260-ton capacity. When the facilities are complete, it will be possible to deliver marine products from aquaculture activities that have resumed along the 30km-long shore line, as well as the area's main catch—the famed

On February 29, the Yamato Welfare Foundation announced that a total of ¥2,106,000,000 in relief funds would to go to the following four projects (which brings the total amount of relief funds to date to ¥10,598,000,000): Fishery Cooperative Facilities Restoration, Iwate Prefecture Funds will be used to overhaul and restore the cooperative's feed water system, cleaning and sterilizing facilities, fresh fish storage tanks, and handling and shipping facilities that are essential to maintaining fresh fishery products for distribution. Shichigahama Fishing Industry Promotion Center Construction, Miyagi Prefecture Funds will be used to rebuild the Fishing Industry Promotion Center, which serves as the hub for the area's fishing industry which includes the breeding and quality improvement of seaweed and intermediate breeding of fish and shellfish.

Farmland Restoration, Fukushima Funds will be used by an agricultural corporation engaged in the restoration of farmland damaged by the tsunami to grow new farming operations (production, processing, and marketing of soybeans) and buy agricultural machinery and equipment. Regional Agricultural Infrastructure Restoration, Fukushima Prefecture Funds will be used for the construction of agricultural warehouses. Warehouses formerly located in five areas affected by the earthquake and tsunami will be consolidated and situated in two locations where they will contribute to the effort to restore and renew local agriculture. March 6, 2012 *Based on exchange rate of US$1.00 = ¥80.42　as of February 29, 2012.

YAMATO GROUP