FUJI-YOSHIDA, Yamanashi Prefecture Local authorities have failed to take effective measures to curb the hordes of hikers climbing Mount Fuji, which was named a World Heritage site a decade ago, despite a formal recommendation from UNESCO advisers.
Mount Fuji in January 2018 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
A preliminary plan to require people to pay an entry fee to climb Mount Fuji was approved by a Fujisan World Cultural Heritage Council working group on March 15 in an online meeting.
Currently, climbers who hike up from the mountain s Fifth Station onward are asked to pay a 1,000-yen ($9) maintenance and conservation fee. But some don t pay, since doing so is only voluntary.
To solve the unfair situation, the working group, consisting of Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectural officials tasked to deal with the issue, agreed to work toward making the entry fee for climbers mandatory in February.