■NPO Forest Volunteer

Conservation activities for cherry blossoms and bamboo forests in Izu-Ito City. Mori no Volunteer was established in 2000 to carry out projects related to the appropriate conservation of forests and trees in and around Ito City, and to contribute to the preservation of the beauty of the area. The main activities are the maintenance of cherry trees damaged by tinea versicolor and squirrel infestation, as well as the bamboo groves of moso bamboo, which have been eroding into the satoyama and are not being cared for properly, in order to preserve the wonderful natural environment of Izu Kogen and allow tourists and local residents to enjoy the beautiful nature unique to Izu. Currently there are 63 members (as of September 2023), with the cherry blossom club meeting 20 times a year (total of 269 participants) and the bamboo club meeting around 45 times a year (total of approximately 820 participants). In 2014, the group received the 7th Shizuoka Prefecture Landscape Award for Excellence in the "Landscape Creation Activity Category" for its bamboo forest maintenance and community exchange activities in Izu Kogen.

 

■ Volunteer group to clean up the Omi River

This volunteer group cleans the Omi River and other rivers and satoyama in the Izu Peninsula on the first Saturday and third Wednesday of every month at 9:00 am. Each member of the group has been working for about 12 years with such thoughts as "to protect the beautiful nature of Izu as much as possible" and "to stop as much garbage and sewage from flowing through the river to the sea" by collecting illegal dumping in the mountains and cleaning up garbage that has fallen into the river.