A study on the Environmental Views of Elementary School Children for the Tama River

The purpose of this study is to clarify the environmental views of elementary school children for the Tama River. Recently, people's recognition for rivers have been gradually changed and evolved into Shinsui (life with water) view from river improvement or water utilization. Due to the serious environmental problems, people have tended to think that life coexisting with rivers or waters is more preferable and more reasonable from the environmental viewpoint. Water front development is one of the administrative movements to the better environmental creation, so called amenity. For this, it is necessary to know the structures of Shinsui recognition, which is obtainable from children's views for rivers.<br>In order to obtain the environmental view of children used were the questionnaire method which consists of twenty six questions. More than 2, 200 pupils living along the Tama River, Central Japan, answered each questions in which multiple answers were prepared to choose. Elementary schools asked the questionaire were distributed over the whole area of the river basin from the upper to the lower stream. The questionnaire was done for third to sixth grade of elementary school.<br>Some of the results obtained from the questionraire are as follows. Impressions for the Tama River by pupils living in the area of the lower stream are mostly “dirty” and “ugly” instead of “clean” and beautiful” ones by pupils in the upper stream areas. There is not so strong tendency to the riverside areas as playing spaces in the open air. In the lower stream area, children's favorite plays near the river are some activities on the grounds and parks such as “cycling”, jogging”, “soccer “and” baseball”. On the other hands, favorite ones in the upper stream area, are something related with the water such as “swimming” “canoeing” and “fishing”. There are no special seasonal tendencies or the pupils living in the lower stream area to go to the riverside. But in the upper stream area, pupils tend to go to the Tama River in summer.<br>The authors concluded that the pupil's environmental views for the Tama River is not recognition for water or river but for an open space. The children, especially who live in the middle and lower parts of the Tama river, could not have chances to experience the river naturally because its water is heavily polluted. Furthermore, playing with or near river water is prohibited by school or their adults, due to the dangerousness. Instead, they play on the grounds and parks, artificial facilities, which are located within the river banks, dry river bed. Therefore, they can not image the river as places for playing with water but also use an open space.