## (3) Promoting the formation of larger blocks

While many of the central areas of Japan’s major cities have been organized in a blocked structure through the implementation of postwar reconstruction land adjustment projects, etc., these blocks were essentially designed to reflect the then prevailing needs for land usage, transport infrastructures and disaster preparedness and also the contemporary levels of architectural technology, the scales of these blocks and the structures of their streets no longer fully support the current needs. Pursuant to Larger Block Structure Guidelines designed to proceed with intensification of the land segmented into multiple blocks, the MLIT promotes the concept of advanced land usage to reflect today’s needs for land usage to help strengthen the international competitiveness of major cities and rehabilitate urban cities.

## Section 4 Promoting Localized Promotion Measures

## 1 Measures for Heavy Snowfall Areas

The MLIT not only promotes the availability of transport and the development of the living environment and national land management facilities under the “Act on Special Measures concerning Countermeasures for Heavy Snowfall Areas” but also conducts surveys for safe, comfortable community development. As of April 2012, 532 municipalities were specified as heavy-snowfall areas (201 of which were designated as special heavy-snowfall areas).

## 2 Remote Islands Development

In addition to the batch appropriation of public-works project budget, the MLIT extends support to the approaches to island development that assume the originality and ingenuity of the remote island areas themselves to support the implementation of remote islands development projects derived from remote islands development plans formulated by municipalities in accordance with the Remote Islands Development Act.

In June 2012, an amendment to the “Remote Islands Development Act” was enacted to expressly define the promotion of settlement as a new objective, thereby stipulating the nation’s obligations and also incorporating provisions to promote the implementation of measures to make for buoyancy of the regional islands.

## 3 Promoting and Developing the Amami Islands and the Ogasawara Islands

The MLIT implements promotion and development projects under the "Act on Special Measures for the Amami Islands Promotion and Development" and the "Act on Special Measures for the Ogasawara Islands Development" to improve the vital conditions of these islands and also supports autonomous regional efforts taking advantage of their regional characteristics, thereby promoting the creation of an environment that makes for autonomous regional growth, as by promoting industries or tourism.

## 4 Promoting the Development of Peninsular Areas

The MLIT supports the development of peninsular loop roads, etc. and the promotion, etc. of industries in the peninsular areas under development (as of April 2012, 23 areas spanning 194 municipalities in 22 prefectures) based on the peninsular areas development plans prepared by municipalities in accordance with the “Peninsular Areas Development Act.”

In addition to conducting surveys for collecting and analyzing the information relevant to the enforcement of the “Peninsular Areas Development Act,” the MLIT also directs experimental surveys concerning the approaches to intrinsic community development or inter-peninsular partnership designed to develop leaders of the autonomous growth of the peninsular areas that leverage regional resources, such as agricultural, forestry and fishery resources, and collects relevant knowledge and disseminates it regionally.