CHAPTER I General Provisions

(Purpose of this Law) Article 1. Exceptions to the regulations provided for by the National Property Law (Law No.73 of 1948) for acquisition, maintenance, preservation and management (hereinafter referred to as "administration" ) as well as disposition of national forest shall be provided for by this Law unless specifically provided for by other laws.

(Definition) Article 2. The term "National forest" as used in this Law shall mean: (1) Forest and "gen-ya" under national ownership which is being administered or which is to be administered by the Government for forestry purposes and which is defined as public enterprise property under Article 3 (Classification and Types of National Property) paragraph 2 item (4) of the National Property Law; (2) Forest and "gen-ya" under national ownership which, based on consideration in the interest of national welfare, is no longer administered for forestry purposes and which is defined as common property under Article 3 paragraph 3 of the National Property Law (except those over which change of jurisdiction under Article 4 (Definition) paragraph 2 or change of administrative control under paragraph 3 of the same Article of the National Property Law is exercised).

CHAPTER II Determination of Boundary

(Consultation on Determination of Boundary) Article 3. The chief of the regional forestry office may, in case he has found that the administration or the disposition of national forest may be hindered because of ambiguous boundary of national forest, ask the consultation to determine the boundary by informing the place of attendance, the date and other necessary matters to the owner of the adjacent land. In this case, if the where-abouts of the person to be informed is unknown, the public announcement having the contents of the information concerned may be substituted therefor, in accordance with the procedure fixed by Ministerial Ordinance. 2 The owner of the adjacent land who was asked to consult under the preceding paragraph, except when his absence is unavoidable, shall attend at the spot in accordance with the information under the same paragraph to consult on the determination of the boundary. 3 In case the consultation under paragraph 1 has been settled, the chief of the regional forestry office and the owner of the adjacent land shall make clear the determined boundary by document. 4 In case the consultation under paragraph 1 has not been settled, no administrative decision for the determination of the boundary shall be made.

(Decision of Boundary) Article 4. The chief of the regional forestry office may, when he fails to consult because of the absence of the owner of the adjacent land who was asked to consult under the provision of paragraph 1 of the preceding Article, ask the attendance of officials of a city, town or village where the adjacent land concerned locates to decide the boundary except the case where the owner of the adjacent land concerned can not attend for justifiable reasons and the notification to that effect has been given to the chief of the regional forestry office previously. 2 In case the boundary has been decided in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph, the chief of the regional forestry office shall inform the decided boundary and the reason therefor to the known owner of the adjacent land concerned and other known person who has a right thereof and at the same time make public announcement thereof.

Article 5. The owner of the adjacent land and other person who has a right thereof may, in case they have objections to the boundary decided by the chief of the regional forestry office in accordance with the provision of paragraph 1 of the preceding Article, notify, with reason, the chief of the regional forestry office to the effect that they do not agree with the decided boundary within sixty days counting from the day of public announcement under paragraph 2 of the same Article.

Article 6. In case the notification under the provision of the preceding Article has not been sent by the owner of the adjacent land who received the information under Article 4 paragraph 2 within the period of the preceding Article, his consent concerning the determination of the boundary shall be deemed to have been obtained at the time of the expiration of the period concerned;provided that this provision shall not apply in case the notification under the provision of the same Article has been sent within the period of the same Article by the other person who has a right on the adjacent land concerned. 2 In case the consent shall be deemed to have been obtained in accordance with the preceding paragraph, the chief of the regional forestry office shall inform immediately to the effect that the boundary was determined to the owner of the adjacent land concerned as well as the other known person who has a right on the adjacent land concerned, and make immediately public announcement thereof. 3 In case the notification under the preceding Article has been sent within the period of the same Article, the provision of Article 3 paragraph 4 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

CHAPTER III Lease, Use and Sale

(Lease, Sale, etc., of National Forest) Article 7. National forest under Article 2 item (1) may, in case such forest falls under any one of the following items, be leased or used (including obtaining proceeds;hereinafter the same) by the means other than lease: (1) When the forest is used for official use, public use or non-profit undertaking; (2) When the forest is used for the work in which the land under other person's ownership can be used in accordance with the provisions of the Land Expropriation Law (Law No.29 of 1900) or other laws or ordinances; (3) When the forest is used for grazing or collection of grass; (4) When the area to be leased or used does not exceed five cho.

Article 8. In case national forest under Article 2 item (2) is sold, leased or used, if the application for purchasing, lease or use has been submitted by the person mentioned under, the priority shall be given to him: (1) A person who makes use of the forest concerned for official use, public use or nonprofit undertaking; (2) Local public entity who makes the forest concerned a basic property; (3) A person who has special relation to the forest concerned and is provided for by Ministerial Ordinance; (4) A person who uses the forest for rural industries in the community where the forest concerned locates.

CHAPTER IV Sharing Forest

(Establishment of Sharing Forest) Article 9. The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, under the contract, make person other than the Government reforest a national forest and share the profit therefrom between the Government and the reforester.

(Contents of Sharing Forest Contract) Article 10. The contract under the preceding Article (hereinafter referred to as "sharing forest contract" ) shall provide following matters: (1) Location and acreage of national forest as the objective of sharing forest contract (hereinafter referred to as "sharing forest" ); (2) Period of continuation of the contract concerned; (3) Kinds and the number of trees of planting (including artificial seeding;hereinafter the same); (4) Period and method of planting; (5) Method of tending; (6) Period and method of cutting; (7) Ratio of profit sharing; (8) Other necessary matters.

(Share of Sharing Trees, etc.) Article 11. Planted trees under sharing forest contract (hereinafter referred to as "sharing trees" ) on sharing forest shall be jointly owned by the Government and the reforester and the share shall be based on ratio of profit sharing provided for by the contract concerned. 2 Stump shall come under the ownership of the Government;however, special provisions may be made under the contract. 3 Naturally grown trees after the sharing forest contract was made, which are designated by the chief of the district forestry office to be raised up together with sharing trees, shall be deemed sharing trees. 4 The provision of Article 256 (Request on Partition of Jointly Owned Property) of the Civil Code (Law No.89 of 1896) shall not apply to sharing trees.

(Period of Continuation of Sharing Forest Contract) Article 12. The period of continuation of sharing forest contract shall not exceed eighty years. 2 Sharing forest contract can be renewed.

(Responsibility of Protection) Article 13. The reforester shall conduct the following acts on sharing forest: (1) Prevention and extinction of fire; (2) Prevention and check of illegal cutting, erroneous cutting and other offences; (3) Extermination and prevention of spread of harmful animals and plants; (4) Preservation of boundary signs and other similar signs.

(Collection of Forest Products) Article 14. The reforester may collect the forest products from sharing forest mentioned under: (1) Weeds and fallen leaves and branches; (2) Fruits and mushrooms; (3) Naturally grown trees after the sharing forest contract has been made (except those designated by the chief of the district forestry office in accordance with the provision of Article 11 paragraph 3); (4) Trees to be cut for tending within twenty years after planting.

(Limits of Disposition of Right, etc.) Article 15. The reforester shall not mortgage or dispose the right excepting the case where he obtained the permission thereon from the chief of the regional forestry office.

Article 16. The reforester shall not use the sharing forest for the purpose other than that of sharing forest contract excepting the case where the approval by the chief of the regional forestry office has been exercised considering such use to be no hindrance to the purpose of sharing forest contract.

(Cancellation of Sharing Forest Contract) Article 17. The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, if a case comes under any one of the following items, cancel sharing forest contract excepting the case where the responsibility shall not rest with the reforester: (1) When the reforester has not started planting after one year passed from the beginning of the planting term provided for by the contract concerned; (2) When the reforester has not finished planting at the time of expiration of planting term provided for by the contract concerned; (3) When there is no prospect for growth of forest when five years passed after planting; (4) When the reforester has not observed the method of planting, tending or cutting provided for by the contract concerned; (5) When the reforester failed to carry out the acts provided for in Article 13; (6) When the reforester violated the provision of the preceding Article; (7) When the reforester committed a crime on the sharing forest. 2 In case sharing forest contract has been cancelled in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph, trees of which the planting in finished shall come under the Government ownership. 3 The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, in case the Government or the public entity needs to use sharing forest for official use, public use, Government enterprise or nonprofit undertaking, cancel the sharing forest contract. 4 In case the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry intends to cancel the sharing forest contract in accordance with the provision of paragraph 1 or the preceding paragraph, he shall give the reforester or his proxy an opportunity to express his opinion and present profitable evidence at a public hearing, notifying to that effect with reason in advance to the reforester. 5 In case the sharing forest contract has been cancelled in accordance with the provision of paragraph 3, the provision of Article 24 paragraph 2 and Article 25 (Compensation of Damage in case of Cancellation of Contract) of the National Property Law shall apply mutatis mutandis. In this case, "lessee" in Article 24 paragraph 2 of the same Law shall read "reforester."

CHAPTER V Co-Use Forest

(Establishment of Co-Use Forest) Article 18. The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, in case the adjustment of the management of national forest and the utilization of local people of a city, town or village of the district where the national forest concerned locates is necessary for intensification of land utilization, create, under the contract, a right to use the national forest concerned jointly for the following purposes for the benefit of inhabitants of a city, town or village of the locality concerned or those who reside in a given area in a city, town or village concerned: (1) Collection of branches or fallen branches to be used for material of self-use firewood and charcoal; (2) Collection of fallen leaves or grass to be used for self-use fertilizer or cattle feed or material thereof; (3) Collection of wooden materials for charcoal and firewood for self-use; (4) Collection of forest products provided for by Ministerial Ordinance; (5) Grazing cattles which are breeded incidentally to cultivation. 2 Creation of the right provided for in item (3) of the preceding paragraph shall be limited to the case where traditional custom prevails or other special circumstances exist. 3 The partner of the contract intending to create a right to use national forest in accordance with the provision of paragraph 1 (hereinafter referred to as "co-use forest contract" ) shall be a city, town or village to which the residence site of the person belongs who can use the national forest concerned based on the contract concerned (hereinafter referred to as "co-user" ); provided that, in case an inhabitant in a given area in a city, town or village is a co-user, all the co-users may be the partner.

(Contents of Co-Use Forest Contract) Article 19. The co-use forest contract shall provide for the following matters: (1) Location and acreage of national forest as an objective of co-use forest contract (hereinafter referred to as "co-use forest" ); (2) The period of continuation of the contract concerned; (3) Kinds, volumes and method of collection of forest products which can be collected and kinds and number of cattles which can be grazed; (4) Amount of charge of use (when the charge of use is not collected, to the effect); (5) In case an inhabitant in a given area in a city, town or village is a co-user, the area and the condition as co-user; (6) Other necessary matters.

(Period of Continuation of Co-Use Forest Contract) Article 20. The period of continuation of co-use forest contract shall not exceed five years. 2 Co-use forest contract may be renewed.

(Exemption of Charge of Use) Article 21. The case where the co-use forest contract can provide that the charge of use shall not be collected shall be limited to the case where the contract concerned provides that the co-user shall conduct the act provided for in Article 13 on the forest concerned.

(Procurement and Forfeiture of Position of Co-User) Article 22. In the co-use forest contract which specifies the person who resides in a given area in a city, town or village co-user, when the co-user lost his residence in the area concerned and other conditions necessary for couser provided for by the contract concerned, he shall forfeit his position of co-user. 2 In the contract under the preceding paragraph, a person other than the co-user who has a residence in the area concerned and conditions necessary for co-user provided for by the contract concerned shall procure a position of co-user through notification of participating in the contract concerned, as provided for by Ministerial Ordinance to the chief of the district forestry office who governs the co-use forest concerned and to the representative of co-users.

(Cancellation, etc. of Co-Use Forest Contract) Article 23. The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, in case the co-user falls under any one of the following items, cancel the co-use forest contract or restrict or prohibit the use: (1) When the co-user used the co-use forest for a purpose other than that provided for by the contract concerned; (2) When the co-user committed a crime with respect to the co-use forest; (3) When, in cases where the contract concerned provides that the co-user shall conduct the act provided for by Article 13, he failed to carry out without justifiable reasons. 2 In case he intends to cancel the co-use forest contract or restrict or prohibit the use in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph, the provision of Article 17 paragraph 4 shall apply mutatis mutandis. In this case, "the reforester or his proxy" shall read "the partner of co-use forest contract or the co-user or the proxy thereof" , and "to the reforester" shall read "to the partner of co-use forest contract or the co-user."

(Responsibility of Compensation of Co-User, etc.) Article 24. When a co-user caused a loss on the co-use forest, the city, town or village concerned and the co-user in case of the co-use forest contract with the city, town or village, or the co-users in the other cases shall jointly compensate the loss.