Specifically, MLIT has decided to (1) support surveys required for liquefaction measures, business planning, and coordination, (2) provide support by improving land registers in areas where there is substantial confusion about site boundaries, fiducial points, etc., and implementing land rezoning projects, which include liquefaction measures, and (3) even if land rezoning projects are not used, support projects that are considered to take integrated liquefaction measures for public facilities and private houses on a certain scale or larger (over 3,000 m $ ^{2} $ with ten houses or more).

In addition, Sendai-Shiogama, Ibaraki, and other ports suffered damage from liquefaction. If a large earthquake occurs in the future, liquefaction would be likely to cause damage to these ports as the March 11 earthquake did, and it is feared that it will paralyze local economies due to the stagnation of corporate production, distribution, and other operations.

For this reason, it is necessary to examine the ability of port and harbor facilities, such as piers, to resist earthquakes from a technological point of view taking into consideration seismic vibrations that last long, and the Ministry is considering reviewing technological standards for port and harbor facilities, improving methods to implement liquefaction measures for ports and harbors, and taking other necessary steps.

## (Active improvement of land registers)

In order to ensure swift recovery and reconstruction from disasters, it is important to define the boundaries of land in advance. Areas stricken by the March 11 earthquake have a high rate of progress in land register surveys, and in particular, land register surveys have already been conducted in about 90% of the areas submerged by tsunami. Therefore, the results of such surveys are being restored quickly and easily, contributing to recovery efforts.

Many of the areas where a Tokai, Tonankai, or Nankai earthquake is expected to occur have a low rate of progress in land register surveys.

Therefore, based on the lessons learned from the March 11 earthquake, these areas should actively promote improvement of land registers in conjunction with disaster-prevention projects, such as development of roads, which are indispensable to the provision of medical services and the transport of emergency supplies at the time of disaster.

(More effective response to large-scale disasters at MLIT)

Taking into consideration its response to damage caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake, the Ministry revised its disaster-prevention operation plans in August 2011 and upgraded its crisis management systems such as strengthened tsunami measures. Furthermore, in order to establish wide-area support systems such as nationwide utilization of its personnel and supplies, MLIT is working to draw up specific action plans such as TEC-FORCE, conduct wide-area disaster-prevention drills in cooperation with related organizations, and further bolster its systems to respond to large-scale disasters.

The Ministry has also revised the “Flood Defense Flood Control Act” and stipulated specified emergency flood defense operations to allow MLIT to engage itself in flood defense activities such as elimination of floods if devastating disasters occur.

Furthermore, in order to respond to disasters swiftly and appropriately and minimize damage they cause, the Japan Coast Guard is striving to upgrade its disaster-prevention systems, and efforts include deploying patrol boats capable of responding to disasters more effectively, better life-saving and disaster-prevention equipment and materials, and more earthquake-resistant navigational aids and other facilities with independent power sources, and bolstering its survey and observation systems so that they contribute to measures to cope with massive earthquakes and tsunami.

## (Reconstruction of local construction industries as a supporter of disaster response)

Local construction industries play an indispensable role in maintaining local communities, such as disaster response, snow removal, and infrastructure operation and maintenance. Immediately after the March 11 earthquake, construction companies in stricken areas rushed to the sites of disaster in accordance with disaster and other agreements they had entered into with the national and local governments and played a major role mainly in collecting information on damage caused to their community, procuring heavy machinery, other equipment, and materials, and performing emergency recovery work. They also contributed to maintaining employment for victims of the earthquakes.