This article is about the Ariake Sea. By car, it takes a long time to get from Kumamoto to Nagasaki but, as you can see from the map, they are not far apart if you travel over water. The proximity has meant that decisions made in Nagasaki can have a large impact on the whole of the Ariake Sea – and people in Kumamoto who rely on it for their livelihood. Specifically, there is concern and controversy about the sealing off of the Isahaya Bay in 1997 in order to reclaim land for farming. The mudflats in the bay seem to have played a significant role in maintaining good water quality in the Ariake Sea before the dikes were installed and now there are claims that sealing off of the bay has resulted in serious environmental degradation.
This article is about the Ariake Sea. By car, it takes a long time to get from …
