Abstract
　"The potential for natural disaster prevention" can be defined as comprehensive ability to reduce the damage caused by a single natural disaster or a series of natural disasters in a definite district. Attaining this ability consists of five steps. These five steps are compiling information on natural conditions, understanding social conditions, constructing countermeasures against natural disaster transmitting and gathering information about disasters, and reviewing public consciousness of disasters. The potential of natural disaster prevention should be evaluated from piling of these five steps. Nagano City Government has begun to work on various disaster prevention projects. Taking into consideration of these effects, the potential of natural disaster prevention taking as an example of Nagano city is considered here.

【キーワード】：防災ポテンシャル，自然的条件，社会的条件，災害情報，住民意識
Key words: potential for natural disaster prevention, natural conditions, social condition, disaster information, public consciousness of disaster

*信州大学工学部社会開発工学科
Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Shinshu University