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In order to ensure that National Parks are appropriately protected and used, the Park Plan has been formulated for each park. The types and allocation of facilities inside National Parks and the relative strength of each restrictive regulation are governed by these Park Plans. Park Plans are broadly divided into two categories: Regulatory Plans and Facility Plans.

What are Regulatory Plans?

Regulatory Plans are formulated to protect the natural landscape by restricting actions inside parks in a response to rising levels of unregulated development and utilization. The type and scale of each restricted action are stipulated according to park zone. Six park zones are set forth to reflect the state of the natural environment and usage patterns found therein: Special Protection Zones, Class Ⅰ, Ⅱ, and Ⅲ Special Zones , Marine Park Zones, and Ordinary Zones. In addition, Regulated Utilization Areas are established for areas where the natural environment is at risk of being destroyed due to excess use or where appropriate, smooth usage has become impaired. A favorable natural landscape and appropriate usage can be promoted by imposing limits on periods of access, the number of people allowed into these zones, and other restrictions.

What are Facility Plans?

At the same time, Facility Plans are formulated to plan for facilities needed for the appropriate use of parks, to plan for facilities needed to restore degraded natural environments and ensure safety precautions, and to set up facilities as park projects pursuant to relevant plans. Many roads, public lavatories, vegetation restoration facilities, and other public works-type installations tend to be spearheaded by the national or local government while lodgings and other operational facilities are often established by private-sector parties.
While park plans are formulated for Quasi-National and Prefectural Natural Parks just as they are for National Parks, no system of Special Protection Zones and Marine Park Zones set up under regulatory plans for protection purposes exists for Quasi-National Parks.

Diagram of Park Plans

(Click on a term in this diagram to jump to the explanation provided for that term.)

* A Regulated Utilization Areas can be designated inside a Special Area (Special Protection Zones or Special Area coming under any of Classes Ⅰ through Ⅲ).
A Regulated Utilization Areas corresponds conceptually to a midway point between Utilization Regulatory Plans and Protection Regulatory Plans .

* Scenic Landscape Protection Agreements can only be concluded for land areas.

* No system of Special Protection Zones and Marine Park Zones exists for Prefectural Natural Parks.

Explanation of terminology used for Park Plans

Term	Explanation	Examples, interpretations, other comments
Utilization Regulatory Plan	Utilization Regulatory Plans are plans to cope with expanded use in particularly exceptional landscape areas to promote appropriate use and protect the natural environment in the vicinity. These plans set forth matters for which adjustments, limits, or bans on use periods, methods, and other relevant details are required.	Optimizing automobile use (Regulation of private cars); Regulated Utilization Areas.
Regulated Utilization Areas	Regulated Utilization Areas are zones for which the objective is to protect the natural ecosystem and promote long-term use by adjusting the number of users and other variables in areas with particularly exceptional scenic landscapes where an increase in the number of users is having a negative impact.	User access requires authorization.

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Term	Explanation	Examples, interpretations, other comments
Protection Regulatory Plan	Protection Regulatory Plans are plans formulated to promote protection from development and excessive use by restricting specified actions inside parks; zones corresponding to regulations of varying compulsive force are set up inside parks (Special Protection Zones, Special Zones (Class Ⅰ-Ⅲ), Marine Park Zones, and Ordinary Zones).
Special Protection Zones	Special Protection Zones are zones corresponding to particularly exceptional landscape areas inside parks that have maintained their original state and are subject to the strictest restrictions on permissible actions.	Restricted actions are subject to an authorization system.
Class Ⅰ Special Zones	Class Ⅰ Special Zones are areas that have landscape comparable to Special Protection Zones and that correspond to the greatest need to maintain scenic beauty among all categories of Special Zones, that they are areas for which the present landscape requires as much protection as possible.	Restricted actions are subject to an authorization system.
Class Ⅱ Special Zones	Class Ⅱ Special Zones are areas for which efforts to make adjustments and coordinate with farming, forestry, or fishing activities are required.	Restricted actions are subject to an authorization system.
Class Ⅲ Special Zones	Class Ⅲ Special Zones are areas that have a low need to maintain scenic beauty relative to all other categories of Special Zones and that are not subject to restrictions with respect to normal farming, forestry, or fishing activities.	Restricted actions are subject to an authorization system.
Marine Park Zones	Marine Park Zones are zones that are home to particularly exceptional specimens of tropical fish,coral, seaweed, or other organisms or zones whose ocean floor topography is particularly exceptional.	Restricted actions are subject to an authorization system.
Ordinary Zones	Ordinary Zones are areas that do not come under the classification of Special Zones or Marine Park Zones; efforts to protect the landscape are made in these areas. They are referred to as buffer zones between Special Zones or Marine Park Zones and non-park zones.	Restricted actions are subject to a notification system.
Scenic Landscape Protection Agreements	Scenic Landscape Protection Agreements correspond to a system for the management of such scenic areas through the conclusion of agreements by local public bodies and local residents' organizations (such as non-profit organizations) with landowners and other relevant parties in order to protect traditional rural landscapes and other scenic areas boasting a high degree of biodiversity.	Management based on Scenic Landscape Protection Agreements. (The contents of such agreements differ according to location.)

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Term	Explanation	Examples, interpretations, other comments
Utilization Facility Plan	Utilization Facility Plans consist of plans for Facility Complex that serve as a hub of park use and management and plans for facilities required for the appropriate use of parks.
Facility Complex	Facility Complexes are areas where facilities for the use and management of parks are to be developed in an integrated manner.
Visitor Facilities	Individual Facilities, roads, transport facilities, and other facilities are planned so as not to have a negative impact on the natural landscape.
Individual Facilities		Includes picnic sites, rest stations, campsites, and ski resorts.
Roads and Trails		Includes vehicular roads, bicycle paths, and walking trails.
Transport Facilities		Includes railroads, aerial cableways, lifts, and watercraft.

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Term	Explanation	Examples, interpretations, other comments
Protection Facility Plan	Protection Facility Plans are plans for facilities that are required to restore degraded natural environments and ensure safety precautions (protection facilities).	Vegetation restoration facilities, animal-breeding facilities, erosion-control facilities, fire-prevention facilities, and more.

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