The Process of drafting Sabo Bill : From “Public River Bill” to “Sabo Bill”

Akiyasu KURISHIMA

The Sabo (Erosion Control) Act, which dates back to 1897, is the oldest piece of legislation in effect with regard to policies for national territory conservation. The knowledge of the process of drafting the Sabo Bill, however, has been very much limited, largely due to the loss of relevant historical records as a consequence of a major earthquake which devastated the capital in 1923. This study sheds new light on this process drawing upon the findings from historical documents archived by some local authorities, including a petition by governors of prefectures calling for enactment in relation to Sabo works and the Draft Sabo Bill which was issued by the Ministry of the Interior for consultation with prefectural governments. It is suggested that the processes of drafting the River Bill, which had been preceded by the Public River Bill, and the Sabo Bill were sequential and interconnected within the framework of the Ministry's fundamental policy for flood control which aimed to integrate actions to be taken in upper and lower reaches of rivers.