To protect the zelkova trees that protected the town from the tsunami.

Yesterday I went to Tomioka. Whenever I visit, the gentle breeze from the beach always brings an indescribable sense of comfort. And it feels as though that breeze, combined with the surrounding nature, is trying to communicate something. What I can say, however, is that the natural environment remains truly livable, unchanged since before the disaster. I also visited a house washed away by the tsunami. While the entire house was washed away, a storehouse and a few zelkova trees, hundreds of years old, remain near the Tomioka River. Despite being washed away, these zelkova trees, along with countless cedars and pines, still stand there, looking exactly as they did before the disaster. And when the tsunami flowed up the river, their thick trunks likely weakened the current. They are likely one of the things that protected Tomioka Town. However, these zelkova trees will have to be cut down as part of the Tomioka River improvement project. I have mixed feelings. If the river could be improved without cutting them down, they could become a symbolic tree in the future and a place of relaxation. I would like to consider whether there is any way to preserve them.