Overview
- On Friday, July 10, Chiba Prefecture and nine surrounding municipalities agreed in a four-party council to allow NAA to pursue compulsory acquisition under Japan's Land Expropriation Law.
- NAA says voluntary purchases have risen from 89.7% at the end of March to 90.4% but about 9.6% of required land remains uncontracted, including roughly 4.8% (about 53 hectares) with no prospect of agreements.
- The next step is for NAA to apply to the national government for project recognition, and if the project is judged to serve the public interest a prefectural expropriation commission could order transfers of ownership.
- Local leaders described the choice as a reluctant but necessary move after more than 50 explanatory meetings with residents and long efforts to buy land voluntarily, reflecting Narita's sensitive history with past forced expropriations.
- The expansion would extend the B runway by 1,000 meters and add a C runway to raise annual movements from about 340,000 to roughly 500,000 flights, a change officials say is key to bolstering Narita's role as a regional hub and meeting national travel and cargo goals.