Kashima Nada

This refers to the Pacific coastal waters from Cape Oarai in the center of the Ibaraki coast to Cape Inubosaki in Chiba Prefecture in the south. The underwater topography is a vast continental shelf that runs parallel to the coastline, with a gentle slope. The Kuroshio Current (warm current) flows in summer, while the Oyashio Current (cold current) flows in winter, where both warm and cold currents meet and alternate. This caused high waves and made navigation difficult in the days of sailing ships. However, this was the reason for the development of inland waterways in Hitachi, which used Lake Kasumigaura and the Tone River. The existence of both warm and cold currents created good fishing grounds, and fishing for sardines, pacific saury, mackerel, and other fisheries flourished, leading to the development of fishing ports on the coast, such as Kuji, Oarai, Hasaki, and Choshi in Chiba Prefecture. In recent years, the development of the Kashima coastal industrial area and Kashima Port has led to an increase in the traffic of large tankers.

[Akitoshi Sakurai]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

茨城県海岸中部の大洗岬(おおあらいみさき)から南方、千葉県犬吠埼(いぬぼうさき)までの太平洋沿岸海域をいう。海底地形は海岸線に並行して広大な大陸棚が続き、大陸棚斜面も緩やかである。海流は夏は黒潮（暖流）、冬は親潮（寒流）が流れる寒暖両流の接触・交替する所で、これらのため波浪高く帆船時代は航行困難な難所であった。しかし、これが霞ヶ浦(かすみがうら)や利根(とね)川を利用する常陸(ひたち)の内陸水運を発達させた原因であった。寒暖両流の存在は好漁場をつくり、イワシ、サンマ、サバなどの漁業が盛んで、沿岸の久慈(くじ)、大洗、波崎(はさき)、千葉県銚子(ちょうし)などの漁港を発展させた。近年は鹿島臨海工業地域と鹿島港の発達で大型タンカーの往来も多くなった。

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