Two years after a series of strong earthquakes struck Japan's Noto Peninsula, Wajima City in Ishikawa Prefecture, one of the hardest-hit areas, continues to face a slow and complex recovery in both reconstruction and tourism.
On January 1, 2024, a series of strong earthquakes, including a major 7.6-magnitude quake, struck at shallow depth in the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture and triggered a tsunami. The Japan Meteorological Agency has officially named it the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake.
The Wajima Lacquer Museum, a major tourist attraction before the disaster, still bears visible scars.
Kensei Sumi, secretary-general of the Wajima Lacquerware Commerce and Industry Cooperative Association, said the museum's first floor reopened to the public three months after the quake. However, the exhibition rooms on the second floor remain closed as they have not yet been restored from the damage.
"The violent shaking of the earthquake caused glass panels to fall, damaging the exhibits within. The building is publicly owned by the city of Wajima, and the municipal government had planned to repair it. Although a budget was allocated, no contractor willing to undertake the repairs has been found, leaving the structure in its current damaged state," said Sumi.
The museum, once a major attraction for visitors, is now far less frequented due to the broader downturn in local tourism. Sumi notes that current daily visitor numbers are only about one-tenth of pre-earthquake levels, attributing the decline primarily to the slow restoration of surrounding infrastructure rather than to the museum itself.
"Currently, this site is just one among many infrastructure projects in need of repair, including roads and buildings. The Wajima Municipal and Ishikawa Prefectural governments must address them sequentially, prioritizing the most urgent sites first. The sheer number of facilities requiring repair, coupled with a shortage of available construction companies, is the primary reason for the slow progress. Furthermore, the fact that most contractors have to travel from Kanazawa City, approximately 100 kilometers away, creates a logistical constraint that further hinders reconstruction," said Sumi.
Two years on, Japan's Noto Peninsula still struggles with earthquake recovery
China's two major power grid operators -- the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid) and China Southern Power Grid (CSG) -- reported a surge in investment in the first quarter of 2026, underscoring efforts to strengthen infrastructure construction and support high-quality socioeconomic development in China.
The State Grid said it completed fixed-asset investment worth 129 billion yuan (about 18.77 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three months of this year, up 37 percent the corresponding period of the previous year. The spending has driven more than 250 billion yuan (36 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across the wider industrial chain.
Key projects such as the Panxi ultra-high-voltage (UHV) alternating current (AC) line and the Anhui-Hubei back-to-back direct current (DC) project have seen ground broken for their construction, while several west-to-east power transmission projects have been upgraded.
Investment in connecting renewable energy generation to the grid was reported to have exceeded 10 billion yuan (1.45 billion U.S. dollars) from January to March, a year-on-year rise of more than 50 percent.
The CSG also reported robust growth in investment in the three-month period, with fixed-asset investment reaching 38.45 billion yuan (5.58 billion U.S. dollars), up about 50 percent from a year earlier.
Among its achievements, the company completed and commissioned 80 key projects, including the 220 kV cross-sea power grid interconnection project, which was officially put into operation on March 20. The project ended years of grid isolation on the Weizhou Island in south China by linking it to the main power system of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The construction of 17 other major energy projects, including one linking the power grid of the Xizang Autonomous Region in southwest China with that of Guangdong Province in south China, is advancing rapidly. These projects are expected to bolster regional industries, the maritime economy, digital collaboration and the transition to green energy.
"By accelerating major project construction, investment during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) is expected to approach 1 trillion yuan (145 billion U.S. dollars), driving a further 2 trillion yuan (290 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across upstream and downstream industries," said Dong Yanle, deputy general manager of the Engineering Construction Department under the China Southern Power Grid.
China ramps up power grid investment in January-March to boost growth
