Changes of landscape and dwellings with windbreaks caused by urbanization in Central Japan

Abstract Windbreaks often surround dwellings to deflect strong winds in Japan. The dwellings' windbreaks are divided into four types: (1) a windbreak consisting of a large coppice facing the prevailing wing; (2) a windbreak consisting of hedges; (3) a windbreak forest; (4) a combination of the above types. The dwellings with windbreaks represent a landscape specific to the region from the standpoint of climate, which has been named “climatically adapted architecture”. As rural regions have been urbanized, urban houses without windbreaks have been built even in places where a strong wind blows. Thus, the architectural design has been changed together with the bioclimatic landscape. This changing process of the landscape in urbanization was investigated through a field survey on the change of climatically adapted architecture along the coast of Enshu, Japan.