Although there is conflicting news about the nuclear situation in Japan, with some agencies reporting calls for evacuation of increasingly wider radius around the Fukushima plant, there is more certainty about the massive challenge of internal displacement that these evacuations will cause.
Thousands of people have already been forced to evacuate their homes following Friday’s quake and resultant tsunami; with the increased threat from the nuclear plant, as well as the potential for further aftershocks, it is inevitable that Japanese authorities will be faced with the tremendous challenge of providing safe temporary housing for the displaced population.
As we have seen in our work with other displaced communities elsewhere in the world, a top challenge for the Japanese authorities managing these shelters will be the need to house families together – families that would consider their ‘families’ are incomplete without their pets.
As we mentioned in our earlier post, we have been in touch with the OIE in Japan, offering our support and technical advice, specifically for including animals in the disaster relief plans that authorities are drawing up now. Even as we investigate the possibilities of getting staff into Japan in order to help more directly, we have been told that our offer for support has been passed on to the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) as well as the Ministry of Environment (MoE).
Over the next couple of days, we expect to be able to update you with much more concrete information – regarding the inclusion of animals in shelter management, as well as the possibility of WSPA sending a Disaster Assessment and Response Team (DART) into Japan.
Stay tuned!