Urado Bay

A submerged inlet located in the center of Kochi Prefecture, deep in Kochi City from Tosa Bay. It is 6 km from north to south, 33 km in circumference, and has an area of ​​about 6.7 square kilometers. It narrows near the center, dividing it into two bays, north and south. The northern part is estimated to have extended to the vicinity of Otsu in ancient times, but it has shrunk significantly due to the development of river deltas and reclaimed land since the Sengoku period. It is home to Kochi Port, the Central Wholesale Market, and an oil base, forming the city's port district. The eastern coast of the southern bay has also shrunk since 1960 (Showa 35), as it has been developed into industrial land for lumber, limestone storage, shipyards, etc., and the scenery of the scenic spot with its ancient calm islands has also changed. The bay is shallow, less than 5 meters deep, except for the shipping channel, which maintains a depth of 7.5 meters, and the mouth of the bay is narrow, so it has limitations as a modern port. For a long time, the fishing villages of Urado and Mimase, and the shipbuilding industries of Tanezaki and Nagahama have developed here, but in recent years the bay area has seen a marked shift towards residential areas. The scenic Katsurahama beach at the mouth of the bay and the Tanezaki swimming beach are connected by the Urado Bridge (opened in 1972).

[Yasuhiko Owaki]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

高知県中央部、土佐湾から高知市に奥深く沈水した入り江。南北6キロメートル、周長33キロメートル、面積約6.7平方キロメートル。中央部付近がくびれて狭くなり、南北二つの湾に分けられる。北部は古代には大津付近まで広がっていたと推定されるが、河川の三角州の発達や戦国時代以来の干拓地化で縮小が著しい。高知港、中央卸売市場、石油基地などがあり、市の港湾地区を形成する。南湾も、東岸は1960年（昭和35）以降、木材、石灰石置場、造船所など工業用地に造成されたため縮小をみ、古来の波静かな島の浮かぶ景勝地の景観も変化した。湾内は水深7.5メートルを維持する航路を除くと、5メートル以下で浅いうえ、湾口が狭いので、近代的港湾としては限界性がある。古くから浦戸、御畳瀬(みませ)の漁村、種崎、長浜の造船業の発達をみたが、最近は湾岸一帯の住宅地化が著しい。湾口の景勝地桂浜(かつらはま)と海水浴場の種崎間は浦戸大橋（1972年開通）で結ばれている。

［大脇保彦］

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