Natural resources of Japan briefly the most important thing. Japanese government system

Area - 372.8 thousand km2. Population - 127.5 million people

Constitutional monarchy - 47 prefectures. Capital -. Tokyo

EGP

. Japan is an island state. Most of the state's territory is located on islands. Hokkaido. Honshu,. Kyushu and Shikoku, which is washed by the seas. Pacific Ocean. In addition, it owns about 7 thousand small islands

B. Japan is geographically the closest. Russia,. South. Korea,. DPRK. China,. Taiwan. Neighboring states are very different in political systems and economic potential. South. Korea and Taiwan is a new industry real country of the first wave with high rates of economic development. China and. The DPRK is a socialist country, however. China combines command and market economic models. Japan is an active member

UN,. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation

The country is located near rich mineral resources. China and. Russia, which is for. Japan is very important important for. Japan's "storehouse" of minerals -. Australia, located on convenient sea pu. Yahah v. Country. Ascendant to go.

Japan is the center of economic development not only in the region, but also in the world. Most neighboring countries are developing dynamically and have significant resource and economic potential and, over time, naturally played a leading role in the world.

Population

In Japan, a type of population reproduction has formed, the characteristic features of which are low birth rates (9 per 1000 people), low annual population growth (0.2%), and the process of “aging of the nation” (average life expectancy is 81 years). Country first in. Asia has made a demographic transition from the traditional type of population reproduction and has approached a state of population stabilization. Insignificant size and migration (migration balance at the beginning of the third millennium close to 00).

The Japanese make up 99.4% of the state's population. They belong to the Mongoloid race. The Japanese language forms a separate language family, since it is completely different from the languages of neighboring peoples. In the north of Hokkaido is home to a small number of aboriginal people (about 20 thousand people). Japan - Ainu. The main religions are Shintoism and Buddhism.

Japan is a densely populated country (about 337 people per km2). The population density is especially high in the southern coastal regions of the city. Honshu and in the north. Kyushu - more than 500 people per 1 km2. In mountainous areas and in the north of the country, the population density is 60 people per 1 km2.

. Japan is one of the most urbanized countries in the world - 78% of the population lives in cities. There are ten millionaire cities in the country. Three largest agglomerations. Japan are merging into the largest metropolis. Tokkaido has a population of over 600 km and has a population of over 600 km.

About 66 million economically active people (52%) are employed. Of these, more than 25% are in industry, 5% in agriculture and about 70% in the service sector. For. Japan is characterized by a relatively small number of unemployed (1.3 million people).

Natural conditions and resources

Japan is poor in mineral resources. Only coal, insignificant reserves of oil, gas, and non-ferrous metal ores (copper, lead, arsenic, bismuth, zinc) are of industrial importance. The chemical industry uses its own sulfur, the construction industry uses dolomite, gypsum, and limestone. The needs of most types of mineral raw materials are met through imports: oil and gas - 99%, coal - 90%, copper - 3/4, iron ore - 99.9%, more than half - lead and zinc

Rivers in In Japan, their mountainous resources are mainly used for both irrigation and electricity generation. Numerous small lakes are an important source of drinking water

Forests cover 63% of the territory. Japan. Coniferous, broad-leaved and subtropical forests predominate. However, our own forest resources are also not enough to meet production needs!

Japan is a mountainous country. Mountains occupy over 3/5 of the territory. In many places they come very close to the sea. Above the central part of the. Honshu is a towering volcano. Fuji (3776 m). The very plains of the races located in the central part of the island. Honshu (plain. Kanto) they are crossed by numerous irrigation canals. The difficult terrain forces the construction of numerous underground transport tunnels. The decline of flat lands makes it necessary to reclaim land in bays for the development of large coastal communities.

A characteristic feature of natural conditions. Japan is highly seismic. Sometimes earthquakes cause huge waves - tsunamis

. Climate - subtropical, monsoon. Hokkaido - moderate. In summer there is a southeast monsoon, which is characterized by a predominance of hot and humid air. The winter northwest monsoon causes intense snowfall. Precipitation here ranges from 1000 to 3000 mm per river.

agroclimatic. Japan is located in the humid zone of the temperate (favorable for growing rye, barley, winter wheat, potatoes, legumes) and subtropical (citrus fruits, tobacco, rice) zones

The basis for tourism and recreation is nature and unique cultural heritage

I chose the topic of the essay “Japan and its resources” because I am interested in this country. I'm interested in studying it in more detail. Japan is unique in its resources. It is located separately from all other countries and includes many small islands. The country also has its own differences from other countries: they have their own religion and their own customs. And I was also interested in the economy of this country, as a country isolated from other countries.

General characteristics.

1)Geographical location.

Japan is an archipelago country located on four large and almost four thousand small islands, stretching in an arc of 3.5 thousand km from northeast to southwest along the eastern coast of Asia. The largest islands are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku. The state is located near the coast of East Asia. The area of the territory is 372 thousand km2. The population is 127 million people. The shores of the archipelago are heavily indented and form many bays and bays. The seas and oceans surrounding Japan are of exceptional importance for the country as a source of biological, mineral and energy resources.

Major structures built in Japan (underwater tunnels, bridges) facilitate connections between the main islands of the country.

Japan is washed in the south and east by the Pacific Ocean, in the west by the East China and Japan Seas, and in the north by the Sea of Okhotsk. Japan differs from other countries in its island isolation. The capital of Japan is Tokyo. The capital is located on the island of Honshu.

2) Relief, water resources.

Over ¾ of the territory is occupied by hills and mountains; lowlands (Kanto, or Tokyo) are located in separate areas along the coasts. In the middle part of the island. Honshu is crossed by a fault zone - Fossa Magna (about 250 km long); a number of volcanoes rise above this zone, including the highest volcano Fuji (3776 m). In total in Japan on the island. Honshu has 16 peaks exceeding 3000m.

The country has a dense network of mountain rivers (the largest rivers are: Shinano, Tone, Kitakami on Honshu Island, Ishikari on Hokkaido Island). The waters of many rivers are used for irrigation.

3) Fauna and flora.

The country's flora and fauna are diverse. The fauna includes about 270 species of mammals, about 800 species of birds, 110 species of reptiles. There are more than 600 species of fish and more than 1000 species of shellfish in the seas. The flora includes 700 species of trees and shrubs, about 3000 species of herbs. On about. Hokkaido is dominated by coniferous forests (spruce, fir). In the southern regions (oak, beech, maple, walnut and other trees).

The fauna is dominated by reptiles. The most common animals of the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido: wolves, foxes, hares and others.

4) The capital is Tokyo.

The capital of Japan is Tokyo, which emerged as the capital city in 1869. The name of this city means “Eastern Capital”. Tokyo is the largest city in the world, located on the vast Kanto Plain. Tokyo is one of the most overpopulated cities. The total length of the city's streets is 22 thousand km. , which exceeds half the length of the equator. There are about 4 million houses in the city. The city is growing both upward (50-60-story skyscrapers), and downward (underground shopping centers), and in breadth.

5) Population, religion and culture.

In terms of population, Japan ranks among the first in the world. Japan is a nation of healthy people with the lowest infant mortality rate and the highest life expectancy (79-80 years) in the world. State demographic policy also had a great influence. This policy deals with population growth. Classes on the basics of family planning are already conducted in high school.

The national composition of Japan can be said to be homogeneous. This is a typical single-ethnic country, where the Japanese make up more than 99% of the population. They also welcome immigrants: Koreans, Chinese, Oya, Oya, Miao, Mongols and others. On about. Hokkaido has preserved the remains of the country's oldest population - the Ainu (about 20 thousand people).

The country's two main religions are Shintoism and Buddhism. Believers usually practice both of these religions. Shintoism - from the word “Shinto”, meaning “divine path”. Serves the main religious and everyday rituals, and, above all, wedding ceremonies. Buddhism, on the contrary, takes upon itself funeral and funeral rites.

Japan is a country of high culture and complete literacy, where more attention is paid to the upbringing and education of children from a very early age. Japan has more universities than all of Western Europe. This is a country of long-standing cultural, artistic and everyday traditions. These traditions include: ikebana - the art of arranging bouquets and arranging flowers and tree branches in vases; bonsai - growing dwarf trees; calligraphy beautiful writing with brush and ink; music; painting on paper and silk; original architecture; shadow play; tea ceremony; women's clothing - kimono; heavyweight wrestling - sumo; judo; kitchen features and much more.

The most important traditions include (marriage by agreement of parents, belief in various objects, many public holidays). One of the traditions is a walk in nature (in the spring, watching sakura).

II Economy of the country.

1) Basic conditions for farming.

Japan has favorable conditions for farming. The country is located on islands surrounded by the Pacific seas, which gives Japan access to other countries (sea routes) and fishing.

The country is provided with water resources (the Kiso, Tone and others rivers), they are used in industry (hydroelectric power plants for energy generation), and in agriculture for irrigating fields. Rivers are also used as transport routes that connect cities and through the river canal you can get to the seas surrounding Japan.

The country has a large population, which has a good effect on economic development. There are many workers, both in agriculture and industry.

Japan also has a lot of fertile soil, which makes agriculture more focused on crop production. A very large area is occupied by forest.

The country has few mineral resources, which hinders the development of industry. But for the development of industry, the country imports the necessary raw materials from other countries.

In general, Japan has favorable conditions for the development of both industry and agriculture.

2) General characteristics of the farm.

In terms of foreign trade turnover, Japan ranks third among capitalist countries (after the USA and Germany). Its share in world and capitalist exports and imports in the post-war years steadily increased and reached 7.5%, respectively.

The main factors that contributed to the high rates of economic growth were: a radical reconstruction of industry and other sectors of the economy on the basis of the latest equipment and technology; high level of gross domestic investment in government spending; relative reduction in social costs; high share of personal savings; availability of highly qualified workers; The low level of world prices for imported raw materials and fuel and energy resources also had an impact.

Japan is a highly developed industrial-agrarian country. main industries: ferrous metallurgy, radio electronics, shipbuilding, automotive industry, petrochemicals and others.

Japan is poor in natural resources. The industry operates on imported raw materials. Currently, a structural restructuring of Japanese industry is being carried out in order to reduce its dependence on raw materials by transferring metal-intensive industries abroad, primarily to developing countries, and developing technologically complex industries in Japan itself.

Thanks to new technologies, Japan is beginning to use ocean resources.

3) Industry.

Japan's industry first developed along an evolutionary path. Industries such as energy, metallurgy, automobile and shipbuilding, petrochemical, chemical, and construction industries were built almost anew using imported raw materials.

If earlier the symbols were the sacred Mount Fuji, sakura, and now the largest nuclear power plants, metallurgical plants, bridges, tunnels.

After the energy and raw materials crisis in the 70s, the revolutionary path of development began to prevail in industry. The country began to increasingly limit the growth of energy-intensive metal-intensive industries that depend on imports of fuel and raw materials and focus on the latest knowledge-intensive industries. It became a leader in the field of electronics, robotics, biotechnology, and began to use non-traditional energy sources. In terms of the share of spending on science, Japan ranks first among developed countries, and in terms of the number of scientists it surpasses Germany, Great Britain and France.

The high level of education, professional qualifications, hard work, self-discipline of workers, and their desire for constant technical improvement are also reflected, which indicates a very high level of quality of the Japanese population. In addition, a Japanese worker is usually hired by a specific company and very rarely changes jobs. This increases his interest in the production of any product, since his salary depends on his length of service. (Table No. 1 of the Appendix).

The mining industry has been declining in the post-war years. The coal mining industry is of greatest importance. Natural gas production has begun. Oil production in the country is insignificant. Less than 10% of the needs are covered from its own iron ore reserves. There are significant reserves of copper (on Honshu Island in the Akita region), pyrites, zinc, lead, talc, and sulfur. Manganese, chromites, bismuth, platinum and other minerals are mined in small quantities. Japan mainly imports minerals.

In the structure of the energy balance, energy sources coal and hydropower have faded into the background. In the 70s, the share of various sources in the energy sector was: oil 75%, coal 18.5%, natural gas 1.5%, the rest 5%. Due to the energy crisis, the use of coal increased, nuclear power plants, thermal power plants and hydroelectric power stations were built.

Manufacturing industry. Japan's ferrous metallurgy ranks second in terms of production volume among countries other than the United States. Of total consumption, imported iron ore accounts for 90%. Iron ore is imported from different countries: Australia, India, Canada and others. The main centers of ferrous metallurgy are: Kitakyushu, Osaka, Nogaya, Chiba.

Non-ferrous metallurgy produces copper, zinc, and lead. Japan ranks second in the world in aluminum production. Other metals are smelted (magnesium, titanium, nickel, rare metals).

Mechanical engineering is one of the industries that is developing rapidly. Instrument making and the production of precision instruments and mechanisms have undergone significant development.

Japan ranks first in the world in shipbuilding and ship exports. A lot of household equipment is produced, widely sold to world markets. Mechanical engineering is located in the areas of Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka.

The chemical industry is characterized by a wide variety of products. Produced: mineral fertilizers, artificial fibers, synthetic materials (plastic, rubber). Oil refining has developed significantly. In terms of chemical production, Japan is inferior to the United States and Germany. The production of medicines and crop protection products has been developed. The main areas of the chemical industry are the coast of Tokyo Bay and the Nagoya region.

Woodworking. Large quantities of timber are harvested every year. Forest resources provide 40-45% of needs. Most local sawmills are small in size. Large sawmills are located in the south of the island. Honshu - Hiroshima, in the north of the island. Honshu and O. Hokkaido.

The pulp and paper industry has reached a significant size; its products consist of various types of paper and cardboard. Japan ranks second in the world in the production of these goods. The main areas of pulp and paper production are about. Hokkaido and northern Honshu.

The textile industry is very important in terms of the number of enterprises. The production of products from synthetic fibers, as well as from cotton and wool fabrics, is especially developed. Japan has retained its position as the world's largest producer of natural silk fabrics. As a result of competition in the world market from developing countries, the Japanese textile industry refocused on the production of high-quality fabrics, which allowed the country to maintain its position in the world market.

The food industry employs about 600 thousand people, and even more, since for the villages, food production is a frequent activity. There are two groups of food industry sectors: traditional (rice and fish processing, sake production, tea industry) and new (sugar, tobacco, canned food and other products). Enterprises of the first group are found everywhere; they are predominantly small and medium-sized.

4) Agriculture.

Agriculture also underwent a radical restructuring after the Second World War. But after the agrarian reform in the late 40s, the elimination of landlordism and the transformation of peasants into land owners, farmers became the main producers.

The structure of agriculture has also changed. Japan has always been a purely agricultural country. And although the main grain crop, the main Japanese bread, remained rice, crops that occupy most of the cultivated land, gardening, vegetable gardening, and especially the breeding of cattle, pigs, and poultry received greater development. As a result, the Japanese diet became more similar to European and American diets.

Japan's agriculture industry employs about 4 million people, and cultivated land makes up only 14% of the territory, but it provides the bulk of the country's food needs, including rice and vegetables.

Another important traditional industry in Japan is fishing. Japan ranks among the first in the world in terms of fish catch. There are more than three thousand fishing ports in the country. The rich and diverse fauna of the coastal seas contributed to the development of not only fisheries, but also mariculture. Fish and seafood occupy a very important place in the Japanese diet. The country also has a developed pearl industry.

Livestock farming received significant development only in the post-war years, which was caused by an increase in domestic demand for meat and dairy products. The main area for livestock farming has become the north of the country - about. Hokkaido; Up to 80% of all dairy products in the country are produced here. The livestock population is increasing every year.

Sericulture is a traditional Japanese agricultural sector; it has been in decline for a long time: the production of raw silk was 20.6 thousand tons in 1977.

The forest fund is 23.3 million hectares. , a significant part of it occurs in mountainous areas. The importance of forest protection plantations is great (5.6 million hectares).

5) Transport.

In Japan, all types of transport have developed, with the exception of river and pipeline transport. By the nature of its transport network, this country resembles the countries of Western Europe, but in terms of the size of cargo transportation it is much larger than any of them. And in terms of the density of passenger rail traffic, it ranks first in the world. Japan also has a very large and most modern merchant marine fleet. It also widely uses “cheap flags”, under which almost ¾ of its tonnage floats.

Due to the mountainous terrain, single-track narrow-gauge roads predominate. Numerous tunnels and bridges. The main railway lines run mainly along the sea coast of the island. Khonshu, encircling him with a ring. Kammon underwater tunnel (3614 m) through the Shimo-noseki Strait connecting the islands of Honshu and Kyushu. In 1970-1975 The second Shin-Kammon underwater tunnel was built between the cities of Shimonoseki and Kokura. In 1978, the world's largest underwater tunnel, Seikan (36.4 km), was built near the Tsugaru Strait, between the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. A new direction in the reconstruction of railway transport is the construction of tracks for high-speed trains (over 200 km/h); the first Tokaido line (515 km) opened in 1964 and connected Tokyo with Osaka; in 1975, this highway extended south to the city of Fukuoka (1090 km). The vehicle fleet includes 19.7 million passenger cars, 11.3 million trucks, 0.2 million buses.

The merchant marine fleet, serving mainly foreign trade, increased almost continuously. The growth of the Japanese maritime fleet is largely due to the enormous scale of cargo transportation. There are 6 dominant companies in maritime shipping: Nippon Yusen Kaisha, Osaka Shosen Kaisha, Yamaista Shin-Nihon Kisen and others.

Air traffic expanded markedly in the post-war years, especially with the large increase in foreign tourism. The main Japanese airline is Nippon Koku. International flights are served by the new Narita Airport, northeast of Tokyo, as well as international airports near the cities of Osaka and Niigata. Domestic air lines connect almost all major cities of the country.

IV External economic relations.

A very important feature of the Japanese economy is its extremely strong involvement in international economic relations. The country's poor supply of its own fuel and raw materials has led to the fact that 9/10 of it relies on imports. On the other hand, the country's economy is extremely dependent on the export of manufactured goods. Japan has a trade surplus. In most countries of the world you can buy Japanese cameras, video recorders, calculators, watches, cars, motorcycles and more. Japan is the main trading partner of almost all countries in the Asia-Pacific region. But recently, Japan has increasingly reoriented itself from the export of goods to the export of capital. Japanese direct investment is directed mainly to North America, Europe and other Asian countries.

Japan occupies a leading position in the world in the development of information technology and robotics, and is one of the world's largest automobile manufacturers.

A significant portion of Japanese manufacturing products are sold on the foreign market. In the structure of exports, the largest share (72%) falls on machinery and equipment, including cars (16.8%), semiconductors (7.4%), office equipment (5.8%), scientific and optical instruments (3 .6%), power plants (3.4%), ships (2.2%), audio and video equipment and more. The share of finished industrial products exceeds 80% of the export value. At the same time, the Japanese economy is heavily dependent on imports of fuel and raw materials, which account for about 70% of Japan's imports. The country's foreign trade turnover is growing rapidly.

During the first post-war twenty years, foreign trade was characterized by a passive balance. However, the foreign trade balance became positive over time.

Japan's main trading partners are the USA, China, and Europe. Foreign economic relations between Japan and the USSR are carried out through trade, fishing, and the organization of land, air and sea transportation. Joint participation in projects for the development of natural resources in Siberia and the Far East. From Russia, Japan receives timber, coal, oil, potassium salts, non-ferrous metals, cotton and other products.

Japan also purchases some types of modern equipment, vehicles (including ship equipment), and consumer goods. A new form of trade was coastal trade between the regions of the Far East and the western regions of Japan.

Agriculture plays a significant role in the country's economy, although its share in national income is about 2.2%. About 5.7 million people are employed in agriculture. Japan ranks first in the world in terms of fish catch.

Japan has become the second industrial country in the world, ranked 3rd in exports of goods after the USA and Germany, its trade balance in recent years has been characterized by a huge preponderance of exports over imports. Japan's leading place in the world economy is due to the fact that it energetically borrowed many scientific and technical inventions from the West and extremely quickly introduced them into production. Low wages for workers allowed Japanese monopolies to compete in the world market.

A very important factor for growth is large investments in research and development. The Japanese education system, considered one of the best in the world, also plays an exceptional role.

Until the middle of the twentieth century. Japan was an agricultural country, but after the Second World War, due to the massive migration of the rural population to the city, the situation changed dramatically. Mining and manufacturing came to account for a third of Japan's total industry, and developing trade and service industries accounted for three-fifths.

The government has to pay farmers extra because most agricultural products are still imported from abroad. Japan supplies itself with rice (rice fields can be found even in the suburbs of Tokyo), producing it in huge quantities. The popularity of soy products has led to the country importing 15 times more soybeans than it can produce itself. Eggs, poultry and vegetables are our own, but 50% of the fruits sold are imported. The production of dairy products is increasing: 75% of the demand is produced in Hokkaido, the remaining 25% is imported. Wheat is also grown in Hokkaido, the yield of which accounts for no more than 15% of the country's grain needs. Japan, as the world's largest consumer of fish, imports about half of its seafood, and the situation is the same with meat. The growth in imports is due to changing consumer tastes, but to a greater extent the reason for this is economic policy: many Japanese products are more expensive than their imported counterparts.

Because of their predilection for everything made of wood and paper, from houses to books, and the habit of wrapping all their purchases in paper, the Japanese have to import wood from other countries.

As a leader in the production of high-quality steel, Japan is forced to import raw materials from abroad. Due to the scarcity of natural resources, Japanese industry is very dependent on foreign supplies, especially oil.

Japan is a country located on islands in the western Pacific Ocean. The territory of Japan is approximately 372.2 thousand km 2; it consists of the islands of the Japanese archipelago; the largest of them - Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku - are currently connected by bridges and tunnels. The length of the coastline is 29.8 thousand km. The shores are heavily indented and form many bays and bays. The seas and oceans that wash Japan are of great importance for it as a source of biological products, mineral and energy resources.

75% of Japan's territory is occupied by mountains up to 3 km or more above sea level, plains occupy only a fifth. The country's largest cities and main industrial zones are located in the lowland regions of Japan; the bulk of the population lives.

The Japanese islands are an area of high seismicity. About one and a half thousand earthquakes of varying strength are recorded annually.

Japan's climate is generally quite favorable in terms of agriculture and human habitation. The climatic conditions of different regions differ markedly from each other. Overall, Japan has almost no raw materials except water, and more than three-quarters of the land is unsuitable for life and agriculture. Therefore, the Japanese value very much what they have.

Japan is poor in mineral resources. Linking to external sources of raw materials and markets for finished goods has become the most important reason for the country's active foreign policy.

Over 2/3 of Japan's territory is occupied by forests and shrubs; a significant part of the forests, over 1/3 - artificial plantings. Coniferous species account for 50% of the total timber reserves and 37% of the total forest area. In total, the flora of Japan contains about 300 species of herbs and over 700 species of trees and shrubs.

The rivers of Japan are numerous, but short. The largest of them is the Sinako River (367 km). Most rivers are turbulent mountain streams, sources of hydroelectric power and water for irrigation. The rivers are unsuitable for navigation. There are two types of lakes in Japan: deep-water mountain lakes and shallow-water lakes located in coastal lowlands. The abundance of rivers, lakes, and groundwater, which Japan is generously endowed with, has a beneficial effect on the development of agriculture and industry.

Area - 372.8 thousand km2. Population - 127.5 million people

Constitutional monarchy - 47 prefectures. Capital -. Tokyo

EGP

UN,. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation

Population

Natural conditions and resources

Rivers in In Japan, their mountainous resources are mainly used for both irrigation and electricity generation. Numerous small lakes are an important source of drinking water

Forests cover 63% of the territory. Japan. Coniferous, broad-leaved and subtropical forests predominate. However, our own forest resources are also not enough to meet production needs!

A characteristic feature of natural conditions. Japan is highly seismic. Sometimes earthquakes cause huge waves - tsunamis

agroclimatic. Japan is located in the humid zone of the temperate (favorable for growing rye, barley, winter wheat, potatoes, legumes) and subtropical (citrus fruits, tobacco, rice) zones

The basis for tourism and recreation is nature and unique cultural heritage

Natural resources

Water resources. The country is washed by the Sea of Okhotsk, Japan and East China. A characteristic feature of Japan is the presence of a dense network of deep, short rivers, mainly mountain ones. The largest rivers include Tone, Shinano, Ishikari, Kitakami, Yoshino, Kuma, Chikugo. The rivers belong to the basins of the Sea of Japan and the Pacific Ocean. In the rivers of the first basin, winter-spring floods are observed, in the rivers of the second – summer floods.

Floods sometimes occur, most often as a result of typhoons.

There are many lakes, they are diverse in origin. The largest lake, Biwa (670 sq. km.), is located in a tectonic depression. Lagoon lakes - Saroma, Kasumigaura, volcanic lakes - Towada, Inawashiro, Kuttyaro.

The country has many thermal and mineral springs. Onsen are hot springs used for bathing. In total, there are about 2 thousand hot springs in the country. According to the composition, onsen are: hydrogen sulfide, ferrous, salt, alkaline, bicarbonate, carbonated (with carbon dioxide). Recreation at hot springs plays a vital role in the country's domestic tourism. The most common onsens are: Hakone, Bellu Onsen, Oedo Onsen Monogatari, Zao Onsen, Kinosaki Onsen.

Forest resources. Forests occupy more than 66% of the country's total area.

The following are common among forests:

Coniferous forests (Hokkaido). Represented by fir and spruce with thickets of bamboo in the undergrowth.
Deciduous broad-leaved forests (Honshu, in the southwestern regions the forests rise from the coast to a height of 500 m). Beech, oak, maple, ash, chestnut, linden, etc. grow in the forests. They rise to a height of 1800 meters.
Evergreen subtropical forests (Honshu - lower parts of the mountains, mountain slopes on the islands of Kyushu and Shikoku. Magnolias, evergreen oak, cryptomerium, camphor tree, Japanese cypress, etc. grow up to a height of 800 m. There are many lianas.
Monsoon forests (Ryukyu Islands, extreme south of Kyushu). They rise up to 300 meters. Represented by ficus, palm trees, bamboo, tree ferns, and orchids.

In the northern regions of Japan, the upper limit of coniferous forests passes at an altitude of 500 meters; in the southern regions they are replaced by deciduous broad-leaved forests.

Forest resources are limited. Only 27% of forests produce industrial wood. The unfavorable situation with forests is associated with unsatisfactory forest management, soil erosion, and prolonged predatory exploitation.

The flora includes about 3 thousand species of herbaceous plants and more than 700 species of trees and shrubs. With height, the forest is replaced by thickets of birch and dwarf cedar, shrub heaths, and herbaceous and shrub formations.

Soil resources. The soil cover is of little use for pre-treatment and farming.

Soil types:

podgold (northern regions);
swamp-meadow (northern regions);
brown forest (southern temperate regions);
red soils and yellow soils (tropics and subtropics);
alluvial (on plains).

In the mountains, the soils are mainly gravelly with inclusions of volcanic ash.

Energy resources are represented by rivers, winds, solar energy and sea waves.

Land resources are scarce due to the predominantly mountainous terrain. These include about 15% of the total area of the territory. The country is self-sufficient in agricultural products by 50%.

Biological resources

The fauna of Japan is somewhat impoverished due to its island isolation. The country has preserved many relict and endemic species. The mountainous terrain determined the predominance of species adapted to life in mountainous areas.

Note 1

The country's fauna is represented by 270 species of mammals, 110 species of reptiles and 800 species of birds. The seas are home to more than 600 species of fish and 1000 species of shellfish.

The islands of Hokkaido and Honshu are home to brown bear, ermine, sable, weasel, wolves, foxes, raccoon dogs, Asian badger, hares and otters. To the south of the Sangar Strait you can find Japanese macaques, white-breasted bears, giant salamanders and antelopes.

Tropical fauna is common in the areas south of the Togara Strait.

The avifauna is represented by such representatives as: thrush, woodpecker, tit, starling, swallow, black grouse, stork, cranes, hawk, owls, eagles, large-billed crow, blue magpie, kuksha, jay, black grouse, black crow.

The rivers are inhabited by carp, eel, catfish, and lampreys. Pacific herring, tuna, squid, flounder, and cod are found in coastal waters. Lots of shrimp, crabs, oysters. Salmon and eels are artificially bred.

Minerals

Japan has few mineral resources. However, most of them are concentrated in small deposits. Sulfur plays a central role in the mining industry.

The country ranks first in the world in iodine reserves and second in its production.

Small quantities of minerals such as:

oil and natural gas;
gold Silver;
coal;
iron ore;
manganese ore;
lead-zinc ore;
copper ore;
chromites;
barites.

There are small deposits of lithium, titanium, vanadium, nickel, uranium, polymetallic and other ores. Tungsten ore deposits are present on the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. Large deposits of gold and silver have been discovered in Hisikari, Kushikino, and Kyushu.

Quartz sands, limestones, pyrites and dolomites are present in significant quantities.

Coal contains a lot of ash, so the coal is of low quality. Coal is mined in the two largest basins - on the islands of Kyushu and Hokkaido. An insufficient amount of manganese ore is mined (the islands of Shikoku, Hokkaido, and Honshu). Therefore, most of it has to be imported. Uranium ore reserves have been discovered on the island of Honshu.

More than 200 small oil and gas fields have been discovered in the country. Most of them are located on the island of Honshu and in the Sea of Japan.

Oil and gas bearing deposits are Middle Upper Miocene and Lower Pliocene deposits located at a depth of about 3000 meters.