Aiport offers Stafish as Wildlife Repellant to Mountain Community; This Could Only Happen in Japan, at leat now

 

An airport  provides starfish to a mountain village to protect tree plantings from wild animals. Sounds bizarre?

A Japanese business news site Jigyo Keikaku introduces an interesting collaboration between a private airport company and an inland mountain community.

• Jigyo Keikaku

• June 24, 2026

Centrair, Chubu International Airport Co., Ltd.

Chubu International Airport Co., Ltd. will begin full-scale implementation in 2026 of a resource recycling project that reuses starfish removed from the waters surrounding the airport as wildlife repellents in reforestation areas in Ono Town, Gifu Prefecture.  As part of environmental conservation efforts in Ise Bay—where Chubu International Airport (Centrair), near Nagoya, operated by the company, is located—the project aims to utilize resources previously left unused in the ocean to address challenges in the mountains, thereby establishing a recycling model that “connects the sea and the mountains.”

Dried and crushed starfish has proven its effectiveness to repel wildlife.

Under the banner of “Protecting the Rich Seas of Ise Bay,” Centrair has been promoting the initiative “Building the Sea by Starting with the Mountains,” which supports forestation in the upper watersheds that sustain the marine environment.  At the reforestation site in Ono Town, planted in 2023, damage to saplings caused by deer, wild boars, and other wildlife had become a problem. Meanwhile, in the waters surrounding the airport, starfish—which feed on bivalves and other marine life—are targeted for removal by fishermen.  After placing dried starfish around the saplings, the initiative confirmed that this method effectively curbed damage caused by deer, wild boars, and palm civets. The project will begin in 2025, and in 2026, it will be implemented on a full-scale basis with the participation of the fishing industry. Moving forward, the project will also explore its application as a measure against bears.

The project is being carried out through a collaboration among three parties. Chubu International Airport Co., Ltd. is leading the afforestation activities and handling the drying and processing of the starfish. The Onizaki Fisheries Cooperative in Aichi Prefecture will procure and donate the starfish and participate in the installation work. Ono Town in Gifu Prefecture will be responsible for installing the starfish in the reforestation areas and measuring their effectiveness. 

This initiative, in which starfish—which were originally targeted for eradication—now hold value in the mountains, serves as an example of finding new uses for underutilized fishery resources. 

A key feature of this project is the collaboration among organizations from different sectors—the airport, the fisheries cooperative, and local governments—to simultaneously address two regional challenges: marine environmental conservation and wildlife damage in the mountains. Masaki Hirano, an executive director at the Onizaki Fisheries Cooperative, highlighted the significance of cooperating in this “cycle where what is a problem in the sea becomes a valuable resource in the mountains.” Akizo Usami, mayor of Ono Town, praised the initiative for balancing resource recycling with the conservation of the local natural environment and expressed his intention to continue the demonstration project with a view to expanding it to protect crops and address bear-related issues.

Flying Boat Drone Takes Flight in Earthquake-hit Northern Japan

 

From Minamisoma: Flying Boat Drone Takes Flight for Reconstruction From Yahoo News

March 11, 2026 

Flying Boat-Type Unmanned Aerial Vehicle “Hamadori”

Hama Corporation (Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture; President: Masataka Kaneda) develops and manufactures various UAVs, including the seaplane-type unmanned aerial vehicle “Hamadori” (pictured), capable of fully automated water takeoffs and landings. Primarily expected for use in marine-related industries and disaster prevention/defense fields, the “Hamadori” was also deployed for marine surveys and photography during the January 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake.

　

The company participated in the “Fukushima Innovation Coast Initiative Media Presentation” held on March 6 at Takanawa Gateway City (Minato Ward, Tokyo). President Masataka Kaneda presented the company's business activities at the event as one of the startups and expanding companies driving the initiative and advancing business development originating from Fukushima.

President Kaneda stated the following:

　“Our company is a startup selected for ‘J-Startup TOHOKU’ (a program by the Tohoku Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry and Sendai City for companies expected to achieve dramatic growth in the Tohoku region). A key feature is our flagship product: a uniquely designed seaplane-type unmanned aerial vehicle capable of water takeoff and landing, developed entirely in-house.”

　He further explained, "While many people imagine drones as having multiple upward-facing propellers, our aircraft features fixed wings—large main wings similar to those on conventional airplanes. This design generates lift during forward motion, enabling efficient flight. Consequently, it can fly for extended periods and over long distances. Furthermore, it can take off and land using the water surface of oceans, rivers, or lakes as a runway. While fixed-wing aircraft can fly long distances, they require a certain speed to take off, necessitating long runways. Such locations are scarce in Japan. We focused on flat, open areas within the country – specifically, water surfaces. Our aircraft can automatically take off and land on water, even in rough open-ocean conditions with waves. This technology, enabling such operations, has no practical implementation examples worldwide."

　“Previous drones only observed water surfaces or ground from the air. We are developing unprecedented drone applications that enable underwater observation using acoustic sensors from the water surface and communication with underwater equipment,” he added.

　What is the meaning behind the company name “Hama”? “It comes from the ‘hamaya’ (luck-bringing arrow), an auspicious item granted at shrines during New Year's and other occasions. Amidst the growing demand for drones in disaster prevention and security fields, we want to create unmanned aircraft technology that protects lives from disasters striking Japan and the world. We drew on the symbolism of the hamaya, an auspicious item, for this aspiration.”

Following his presentation, Hamada Corporation President Kaneda spoke with Denpa Times:

"Our goal in developing the flying boat-type drone was to achieve automatic takeoff and landing even on rough open seas with swells. While flat water surfaces like lakes are easy for taxiing, swells create a truly bumpy runway—like an airplane taking off from a rugged surface—which presented significant technical challenges. We started testing on flat water surfaces and established takeoff and landing procedures. But the moment we took it to the swell-filled open ocean, it just didn't work at all. We damaged several units during development.“

”Ultimately, by thoroughly pursuing the optimal hardware design for achieving the control methods and realizing that control, we succeeded in enabling automatic takeoff and landing even on swell-filled open oceans," he stated.

　He further emphasized, “Since this is precision equipment used in an environment where seawater constantly splashes onto it, seawater—the enemy most hostile to electronics—was the biggest challenge. Achieving proper waterproofing in such an incompatible environment inevitably adds weight, which degrades performance for a flying drone. Therefore, we put considerable effort into balancing how to ensure minimal waterproofing without increasing weight.”

　

The shape itself resulted from extensive trial and error—a design that easily lifts off the water surface, aerodynamic features enabling quick takeoff, and the placement of the propulsion system.

Mr. Kaneda concluded by sharing his thoughts on Fukushima's recovery.

"What we felt when we visited Fukushima was the keyword ‘creative recovery,’ not just simple reconstruction. It's not just about restoring things to how they were, but creating an industrial hub that grows beyond that. We deeply resonated with the effort to transform the region into something better after suffering damage. We're conducting this project hoping to be one example contributing to that progress. Seeing our technology gradually start to help with disaster prevention and mitigation is truly rewarding for us as developers and engineers."