Regarding Eric Johnston's March 4 article, "Battle lines drawn across Nagoya land": Many people may see no reason to save such a small tract of open land shared with local flora and fauna. I may be an Australian who has had all-too-brief contact with Japan, but if I were still teaching in Japan, I would be fighting tooth and nail to have these areas conserved — not only for the well-being of the local people but also for future generations — to demonstrate what is really meant by sustainability.
The national and regional departments responsible for Japan's heritage and environment need to work to preserve such rare and wonderful ecosystems like this satoyama.
david hassett