Horonobe, Hokkaido

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Japanese. (June 2022) Click [show] for important translation instructions. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 3,744 articles in the main category, and specifying|topic= will aid in categorization. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Japanese Wikipedia article at [[:ja:幌延町]]; see its history for attribution. You should also add the template {{Translated|ja|幌延町}} to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

Horonobe 幌延町
Town
Flag Emblem
Location of Horonobe in Hokkaido (Sōya Subprefecture)
Horonobe Location in Japan
Coordinates: 45°1′N 141°51′E / 45.017°N 141.850°E / 45.017; 141.850
Country	Japan
Region	Hokkaido
Prefecture	Hokkaido (Sōya Subprefecture)
District	Teshio
Area
• Total	574.1 km2 (221.7 sq mi)
Population  (December 2021)
• Total	2,240
• Density	3.9/km2 (10/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+09:00 (JST)
Website	www.town.horonobe.hokkaido.jp

Horonobe-cho (幌延町, Horonobe-chō) is a town located in Sōya Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. There is a JR train station, Horonobe Station which connects Horonobe-town with other cities in Hokkaido.

The word Horonobe originates from Poro-Nup. In Ainu language, poro means large and nup mean grassland, thus meaning a large uncultivated land. At the end of September 2016, the town had an estimated population of 2,415 and a density of 4.2 persons per km². The total area is 574.27 km². The north 45°latitude passes through this town. Horonobe is also known for its reindeer population and wind turbines located on its beaches.

In October 2000, with the help of local government and NEDO,^[1] the Horonobe wind power generation project came into existence.^[1] Wind turbines were installed on trial-run basis along the 3.1 km coastline. Since February 2003, there are 28 turbines working in full capacity, with an individual output of 750 kW. In total its estimated that the wind turbines in Horonobe-chō generate 50 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually, and this is supplied to Hokkaido Electric Power Company for distribution. This electricity is equivalent to annual electric consumption of about 10,000 Japanese households.

Since 1998, the Japan Atomic Energy Agency started planning an underground research laboratory at Honorobe to be able to conduct tests on the suitability of sedimentary rock for use as a deep geological repository for Japan's spent nuclear fuel (a similar research facility in crystalline rock is also being constructed at Mizunami in Gifu Prefecture).^[2] Excavation began in 2003, and is scheduled for completion in 2017.^[2][3] A possibility of making a geological carbon capture and storage (CCS) site is also under consideration at Honorobe.

In 2010, the town of Horonobe was transferred from Rumoi Subprefecture to Sōya Subprefecture.

Horonobe in the media or popular culture

Some speciality microbes have been discovered in the subsurface environment. These are listed below:

• Methanosarcina horonobensis^[4]
• Methanoculleus horonobensis^[5]
• Methanoculleus horonobensis genome sequences analysis.^[6]

Transportation

Horonobe is on the JR Hokkaido Sōya Main Line which runs to Wakkanai in the north and Asahikawa in the south. There are daily services to Wakkanai, Nayoro, Asahikawa and Sapporo.

The nearest airport is Wakkanai Airport, about 53 km in the north. The other nearby airports are Asahikawa Airport about 199 km to the south and Monbetsu Airport about 192 km to the south-east and New Chitose Airport about 360 km to the south.

Mascots

Horonobe's mascots are Horobe (ホロベー) and Blupy (ブルピー, Burupī).

• Horobe is a gentle and kind reindeer. He works at the local reindeer ranch. He is unveiled in 1997.^[7]
• Blupy is a gentle and fluffy blue poppy that can fly. She is unveiled in 2011.^[8]

References

External links

• Media related to Horonobe, Hokkaidō at Wikimedia Commons

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Horonobe.

• Official Website (in Japanese)