Narita Airport Operator, Local Govts Agree on Land Expropriation

Narita, Chiba Pref., July 10 (Jiji Press)–Narita International Airport Corp. agreed Friday with Japanese local governments to start procedures for compulsory expropriation of land necessary to expand its airport in Chiba Prefecture. The company reached the agreement with the governments of the prefecture near Tokyo and nine municipalities around Narita Airport in the city of Narita, at a meeting that also involved the central government. At the meeting, the company expressed its intent to utilize the land expropriation law, although it had long prioritized dialogue because the compulsory expropriation conducted before the 1978 opening of the airport met with strong opposition mainly from local residents. “It’s a tough decision, but I take it as something inevitable,” Chiba Governor Toshihito Kumagai said of the policy change after the meeting. The airport operator is expected to apply for central government approval of the land acquisition under the law. Once the public interest nature of the project is recognized, the ownership of the land will be transferred to the company if the prefectural expropriation committee approves the company’s land acquisition plan. The company will also continue its efforts to find landowners who agree to sell their land. In April this year, the company dropped its plan to open a new runway at the airport in March 2029. At present, contracts have not been concluded for 53 hectares, or 4.8 pct of the necessary land. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]