Streamlining Disaster Assessments for Major Disasters
Overview
On October 9, 2026, following the advance announcement of designation as a severe disaster (major category), the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced that it would apply rules to streamline (simplify) disaster assessments during major disasters and establish advance procedures. It will specify eligible areas by the agency responsible for each facility, simplify design documents, consolidate or divide damaged sites, and raise the ceilings for desk assessments and on-site decisions. The increased ceiling amounts will be announced later.
Key points
- Following the advance announcement of designation as a severe disaster (major category), the rules for streamlining disaster assessments will be applied.
- Eligible areas will be specified by the agency responsible for each facility, with individual responses provided outside those areas as needed.
- Maps and aerial photographs will be used, construction sites will be consolidated or divided, and the ceilings for desk assessments and on-site decisions will be raised.
- The measure is expected to speed up disaster assessment procedures.
Overview
On October 9, 2026, following the advance announcement of designation as a severe disaster (major category) for the series of disasters caused by weather events from the heavy rains along the seasonal rain front in 2026 through Typhoon No. 25, the rules for streamlining (simplifying) disaster assessments during major disasters and establishing advance procedures will be applied to assessments of damage to public civil engineering facilities, including roads and rivers, conducted by local governments.
Impact
Applying the rules is expected to speed up disaster assessment procedures for disaster recovery projects carried out by affected municipalities. Desk assessments will reduce travel time between sites and the number of staff needed on site, helping assessments operate more efficiently and easing the burden on municipalities and others.
Details
The eligible prefectures for facilities under the Water and Disaster Management Bureau are Aomori, Yamagata, Tochigi, Gunma, Chiba, Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Tokushima, and Kumamoto; the designated cities are Chiba and Nagoya. Facilities listed in the note are rivers, coasts (excluding those related to ports and harbors), erosion control facilities, landslide prevention facilities, steep-slope collapse prevention facilities, roads, bridges, water supply systems, and sewer systems.
The eligible prefectures and prefectures are Iwate, Tochigi, Chiba, Toyama, Fukui, Aichi, Kyoto, and Kagawa; the designated cities are Chiba and Nagoya. The eligible facilities listed in the note are parks. Areas were determined based on the number of damage reports as of September 30, and areas outside those listed above will receive individual responses as needed.
Existing maps, aerial photographs, and other materials will be used to reduce field surveying and design drawing preparation required for planning. Damaged sites may be consolidated or divided, taking construction duration and contracting units into account, and the area treated as one construction site may be determined. The usual ceiling for desk assessments is less than 10 million yen, and the usual ceiling for disaster recovery project costs decidable on site is less than 400 million yen; both ceilings will be raised. The increased amounts will be announced later.