Introduction / Chapter 7
Kiba, Shin-Kiba and Postwar Timber
Edo's Kiba did far more than "store" timber. In the Showa era its role changed, and Kiba moved to Shin-Kiba. At about the same time, the source of Japan's timber shifted heavily from domestic mountains to overseas. These two changes are closely linked.
From Kiba to Shin-Kiba
The roles Kiba played
| Role | Details |
|---|---|
| Fire prevention | Concentrated fire-spreading timber away from the city center[1] |
| Storage | Stored timber afloat in marshland convenient for water transport[1] |
| Distribution | Wholesalers formed guilds and handled almost all of Edo's timber[1][2] |
| Processing | Sawmills gathered with the wholesalers, making it a hub for collecting and processing timber[3] |
| Skills and culture | The raftsmen's work gave rise to kiyari songs and kakunori log-riding[2] |
A timeline of its origins is in Chapter 1.
Kiba's moves on the map
The timber yard moved east from the center of Edo and then south toward the sea. From A, near the mouth of the west bank of the Sumida River, it moved after the 1641 fire to B, east of Sagacho. In the Genroku era, Kiba-cho was built at C by filling in the Fukagawa marshes, and in the Showa-era move it went to D, Shin-Kiba.[3][4] One reading is that each time the city grew, flammable, space-hungry timber was pushed out to the waterfront at the city's edge.
Positions A and B are approximate, based on dictionary descriptions (near the mouth of the Sumida's west bank; east of Sagacho). The land shown is today's (based on National Land Numerical Information); the Edo-period shore lay further north. Shin-Kiba and the land south of it were created by later reclamation.
Why Kiba became too small
Showa-era Kiba faced several problems. Land subsidence raised the water level relative to the land, making it hard for rafts and boats to pass under bridges. Road congestion added to this. The timber itself changed: wholesalers and sawmills handling imported timber increased, and Kiba's character as a hub for domestic timber faded.[3]
In 1969 Kiba was designated a disaster-prevention base in the Koto redevelopment plan.[5] Between 1972 and 1974 the move from Fukagawa to reclaimed land south of Yumenoshima took place, and by around 1975 about 500 timber wholesalers and sawmills had moved to Shin-Kiba.[3]
Figures for the number of businesses vary by source. One account says Kiba had about 1,000 timber merchants and sawmills during the high-growth period.[2]
The roles of Shin-Kiba and the Port of Tokyo
At Shin-Kiba, wholesalers and sawmills handling imported rather than domestic timber became the core.[3] The surrounding Port of Tokyo has facilities for receiving imported timber.[6]
| Facility | Role | Scale etc. |
|---|---|---|
| Timber drop anchorage (No. 12 reclaimed land) | Imported logs are lowered from ships into the sea and towed as rafts | 56 ha of water; can store 210,000 t |
| No. 15 Timber Wharf | Unloads imported sawn timber, mainly from Canada and the US | Storage for 200,000 m³ of sawn timber behind the wharf |
| Oi Building Materials Wharf | Handling building materials | Since 1981 |
| Wakasu Building Materials Wharf | Handling building materials | Since 1989 |
Source: Tokyo Port and Harbor Bureau, PORT OF TOKYO 2017[6]
Floating logs at sea and binding them into rafts is the same method Edo's Kiba used to store wood under water. The origins of the timber changed, but the system of handling it afloat carried on.
Postwar timber, timber today
Where postwar reconstruction timber came from
First, from Japan's own mountains. During and after the war, forests were heavily cut for military supplies and reconstruction. The forests planted afterward were still growing.[7] In Tama too, over 1,500 hectares a year were planted in 1960 (Chapter 2).
Then, filling the gap from abroad. Domestic supply could not keep up with demand, and timber prices rose. In 1961 the government adopted "Emergency Measures to Stabilize Timber Prices," aiming to increase imports. Under the 1960 "Outline Plan for Trade and Exchange Liberalization," imports of logs and sawn timber were liberalized step by step through the 1960s.[7]
Imported timber came mainly from three regions.[7]
| Name | Origin | Later |
|---|---|---|
| South Seas timber | Philippines, Indonesia, etc. | Resources depleted in the 1970s. Indonesia banned log exports from 1985; Malaysia cut harvests from 1992[7] |
| American timber | North America | At the Port of Tokyo, Canadian and US sawn timber arrives at the No. 15 Timber Wharf[6] |
| North Seas timber | Former USSR (Russia) | — |
The changing share of domestic timber
As imports grew, the share of domestic wood in the timber used (the timber self-sufficiency rate) fell.[7]
Bars are drawn on a 0–100% scale. Sources: Forestry Agency, Annual Report on Forest and Forestry in Japan FY2014[7]; for 2024, Forestry Agency "Timber Supply and Demand Table 2024"[8]
From around 2002, domestic cedar rapidly came into use as a plywood material, because improved rotary lathes made it possible to produce plywood even from small logs from thinning.[7]
Seeing the connections
The cedar and cypress planted in Tama after the war take decades to grow large enough to harvest. Meanwhile, imports were liberalized and imported timber gathered at Shin-Kiba. Once grown, domestic timber was undercut on price by imports and left to age unharvested (Chapter 2). The move from Kiba to Shin-Kiba can be read as this trend showing up on the city side.
This paragraph is the author's synthesis of the sourced facts above.
Timber today: volumes, prices, tariffs and law
Volumes: self-sufficiency back above 40%
Total timber demand in 2024 was 81.874 million m³. Domestic production was 34.809 million m³ and imports 47.065 million m³, for a self-sufficiency rate of 42.5%. That is 0.4 points lower than the year before, but far above the 18.2% of 2002. By use, self-sufficiency was 52.9% for building timber and 36.5% for non-building uses including fuel. Demand growth is being driven by wood for fuel.[8]
Prices: the "wood shock" and after
From May 2020, housing starts surged in the US as remote work spread, and in 2021 North American lumber prices hit record highs. Container shipping rates also soared from late 2020, and imported timber reaching Japan ran short. This was the "wood shock." Demand shifted to domestic timber, and prices of domestic sawn timber, plywood and logs rose too.[9]
Prices have since tended to fall, but in 2025 they were still above pre-surge 2020 levels. Average log prices in 2025 were ¥15,400 per m³ for cedar, ¥25,300 for cypress and ¥15,400 for larch.[10] A comparison with the price of a bowl of gyudon is in the Appendix.
Tariffs: logs enter duty-free
| Item | Tariff rate |
|---|---|
| Logs, wood chips, wood pellets | Duty-free |
| Sawn timber | 0–6.0% |
| Glulam | 3.9〜6.0% |
| Plywood | 6.0〜10.0% |
Source: Forestry Agency, "Current State of Timber Imports" (trade statistics, 2022)[11]
Logs have always been duty-free, and most products carry low rates. Moreover, most imports come from countries with EPAs or FTAs, under which tariffs are being eliminated. The main import sources where tariffs remain include China, Russia and Indonesia (plywood).[11] Continuing the trend since the liberalization of the 1960s, domestic timber has competed on price with imports without tariff protection.
Law: the 2025 revision of the Building Standards Act
In April 2025, revisions to the Building Standards Act and the Building Energy Efficiency Act took effect. The main changes affecting timber houses are:[12]
- The "No. 4 exemption," which skipped structural review for small timber houses, was narrowed, widening the scope of checks and inspections
- In principle, all new residential and non-residential buildings must now meet energy-efficiency standards
- Wall-quantity standards were revised to match actual timber house specifications
- Structural calculation methods for timber buildings with high story heights are being streamlined
According to national data, about 90% of timber houses already met the energy standards in 2020, so the revision is not expected to raise construction costs.[12] How stricter review will affect demand for domestic timber and local carpenters and builders has not yet been established in reliable sources.
Sources
- 三井住友トラスト不動産「このまちアーカイブス 深川」 Link
- ジャパンナレッジ 堀口茉純「やっぱり江戸が好き!」第8回 Link
- コトバンク「木場」(日本大百科全書ほか) Link
- コトバンク「木場」(改訂新版 世界大百科事典、日本歴史地名大系) Link
- 江東区「木場公園」 Link
- 東京都港湾局『PORT OF TOKYO 2017』 PDF
- 林野庁『平成26年度 森林・林業白書』第1部第1章第2節 PDF
- 林野庁「令和6年木材需給表」(2025年11月21日発表) Link
- 林野庁『令和3年度 森林・林業白書』特集(ウッドショック) Link
- 林野庁『令和7年度 森林・林業白書』第3章(木材価格) Link
- 林野庁「木材輸入の現状」 PDF
- 鳥取県「建築基準法・建築物省エネ法の改正について」 Link