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【JWF News Vol. 203】15 September 2021
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◇ Contents ◇
・Foreword　A Struggle between Ecology and River Engineering
・Announcement from the Japan Water Forum
　- Join us! The 4th JWF Webinar about Continuous efforts for stable water supply in Yokohama
　- JWF Fund 2021: Recipients Decided!
・Report from the Japan Water Forum
　- Report on the 4th Joint Executive Committee Meeting of the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (APWS)
　- Session Reports of the Stockholm World Water Week 2021
　　NoWNET session
　　Asia Focus: Finance session
　　Asia Focus: Water Cycle Management session
　　Asia Focus: Governance session

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・Foreword　A Struggle between Ecology and River Engineering
By Mr. Tohru Kondo, Advisory Council Member of the Japan Water Forum;
Former President of the Ecology and Civil Engineering Society, Japan / Former President of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers
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The Nagaragawa Estuary Barrage Triggered an Uproar
In the upstream of the Nagara River, there are few suitable areas for dam construction. It was impossible to broaden the river as it ran between the Kiso River and the Ibi River. Therefore, the designed flood discharge of 4,500m³/s had remained unchanged since work was carried out by Johannis de Rijike, a civil engineer invited from the Netherlands in 1887.

In 1968, following the Ise Bay Typhoon of 1959 and two other disasters in 1960 and 1961, a new flood control plan was formulated. It included raising the designed flood discharge to 7,500m³/s and involved major dredging work in the river channel. During normal conditions, a reverse flow of seawater was causing salt damage to the river. Therefore, construction was planned of an estuary barrage to prevent seawater from flowing upstream in normal conditions and allowing flood water to flow down safely only during times of flooding. We considered the estuary barrage to be a flood control facility, which would prevent a reverse flow of water from the sea, but our failure to explain this sufficiently was probably the cause of hostility among local residents, who were unaware of what was happening in the lower reaches of the Nagara River.

When the Nagaragawa Estuary Barrage plan was developed, the Chubu Regional Construction Bureau, then part of the Ministry of Construction, the implementing organization, asked the Kiso Sansen Survey Team (KST), which consisted of 90 experts, to conduct extensive environmental surveys. These surveys included fish and shellfish, including ayu (a kind of sweetfish) and shijimi (a shellfish), water plants, benthic organisms, plankton, water quality, and bottom sediments in the whole Ise Bay area, not only in the Nagara River, which was particularly famous for its Ukai cormorant fishing. The surveys continued even after construction began, and innovative fishways, including fish ladders, were built, allowing various kinds of fish, such as ayu, to swim upriver.

Media and Political Frenzy
In 1989, editorials in the national newspapers called for a review of the Estuary Barrage project, which was underway under the leadership of the Water Resources Development Public Corporation. In the Upper House election that year, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party lost by a landslide and the opposition Social Democratic Party made large gains. Yasuo Nishino, a newly elected Upper House member, questioned government officials about the Estuary Barrage from an opposing standpoint. This was soon after my appointment as Director-General of the River Bureau of the Ministry of Construction. Though it was unusual in Diet deliberations, Mr. Nishino intentionally neglected to submit a summary of his questions in advance. Therefore, I had no choice but to stand up in front of a battery of cameras to reply to his inquiries.

Mr. Nishino insisted that I submit documents regarding the riverbed as he believed that salt damage was being caused by the infiltration of seawater from the riverbed. I explained that the salt damage was caused by a reverse flow of seawater into the river, and that it had nothing to do with the riverbed. We continued to argue for some time. The chairperson with the Social Democratic Party urged me to submit the documents regarding the riverbed that Mr. Nishino was requesting. When I returned to my office, the person in charge told me that the Chubu Regional Construction Bureau had issued its Annual Report on Riverbeds and that if we gave a hydraulic accounting based on the report, the flood level would be only around ten centimeters higher than the designed high-water level, rather than 1.30 meters higher, which we had insisted. I was astonished that I had not received such important information. It eventually became clear that the person in charge had not seriously answered inquiries from the press club. I surmised that the man’s careless attitude had provoked a backlash from the press club members, which led to criticism in their editorials of the Estuary Barrage.

Belated Information Disclosure
Taking this opportunity, the Ministry of Construction produced and distributed a brochure early in 1990 in order to answer all the questions from the media and citizens opposed to the plan. The water level at the time of designed flood discharge could rise as much as 1.30 meters or as little as 10 centimeters. Both were possible in natural conditions.

The result observed in the river channel just after a massive flow of flood water differed from the one observed in the river channel where numerous trees had been growing for a long time. We disclosed the actual circumstances in the hope of convincing the public. We had to provide more safeguards against the more serious risk of 1.30 meters rise in water level in order to protect the lives and assets of the public.

Moreover, we produced a document answering biology-related questions. Though residents opposed to the barrage demanded that we conduct an environmental assessment, it was an unwritten rule not to apply the Environmental Assessment Act (1984) retroactively to the project, which had been approved by the Cabinet in 1971. Based on the scenario of applying the Act to the project, we publicized a virtual assessment based on the results of a survey by KST. At that time, I ordered the person in charge to seek the advice of experts in biology directly. However, Professor Satoshi Yamagishi of the University of Kyoto advised me that that this would cause upset in the Ecological Society of Japan because the Ministry of Construction depended exclusively on its own chosen scholars. We should seek advice from scholars with a record of excellent research in the Ecological Society of Japan.

(To be continued in the next October issue of JWF News)

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・Announcement from the Japan Water Forum
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– Join us! The 4th JWF Webinar about Continuous efforts for stable water supply in Yokohama

Water supply is one of the most fundamental infrastructures for human life. Still, many water utilities are struggling to manage water supply business, particularly in developing countries. The achievement of stable water supply in Japan is the result of secure daily management and operations besides advanced technology.

Actually, the core technology of water supply system is almost the same in any countries, but the situation of stable water supply is considerably different. What makes this difference is how well daily management and operations are implemented.

This webinar will introduce continuous efforts of YWWB, which developed the first modern waterworks in Japan, for stable water supply from the aspect of daily management and operations.

Date and Time : 22 September 2021
speaker : Mr. NAKAI Kazunori, Manager of Southern Water Distribution Management, Yokohama Waterworks Bureau (YWWB)
Topic : Continuous efforts for stable water supply in Yokohama

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18539/

（Reported by Reiko Yoshii, Manager）

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– JWF Fund 2021: Recipients Decided!

The JWF Fund was founded in 2005 and is solely operated by the Japan Water Forum (JWF). The JWF Fund aims to contribute to solving local water-related issues in developing countries by assisting the implementation of sustainable solutions led by grass-roots organizations.

Every year, the JWF publicly seeks out projects to assist and provides grants up to 1,500USD per project adopted after due assessment. We value the projects which utilize local resources, knowledge and technologies, and establish a sustainable operation and maintenance scheme.

In the JWF Fund 2021, we have received 406 applications from 37 countries and territories. As a result of selection, we have decided to provide funds for 5 projects from 4 countries, 1 from Asia and 4 from Africa.

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18438/

(Reported by Shigenori Asai, Director and Akie Gunji, Sub Manager)

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・Report from the Japan Water Forum
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– Report on the 4th Joint Executive Committee Meeting of the 4th Asia-Pacific Water Summit (APWS)

The 4th meeting of the Joint Executive Committee (JEC) of the 4th APWS was held in writing dated 19th July 2021. The secretariat made a report to the committee members on the progress of preparations for the 4th APWS that will take place on  23rd and 24th in 2022. We received constructive feedback from each committee member on the conference style options with due consideration of the COVID-19 situation in each country as well as how to reflect the perspectives of water governance challenges and cross-sector partnerships in the summit agenda. The next 5th JEC meeting will be held online in this October, where we will seek advice on the decision of the conference style among others.

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18620/

(Reported by Reiko Yoshii, Manager)

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– The outcomes of the NoWNET session in the Stockholm World Water Week 2021

Japan Water Forum, which serves as the Secretariat of NoWNET, organized the session focused on applying Nature-based solutions in urban areas to address flood risk management with the NoWNET members on Day 1 of the Stockholm World Water Week online 2021. This session discussed the pathways and lessons from applying the Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) into the existing urban landscape for flood and storm risk management in Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.

Nature as a Partner: Implementing Nature-Based Solutions Globally
Date: 23 August (Mon) 15:00-16:00 JST
Convenors: Northern Water Network, Danish Water Forum, Finnish Water Forum, Netherlands Water Partnership, Japan Water Forum, Korea Water Forum

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18681/

(Reported by Yumiko Asayama, Manager)

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– The outcomes of the Asia Focus Finance session in the Stockholm World Water Week 2021

APWF organized the Asia Focus Finance session with the Asian Development Bank, OECD, Alliance For Global Water Adaptation (AGWA), and Water.org on Day 1 of the Stockholm World Water Week 2021. This session presented various current initiatives towards upscaling and mainstreaming investments in climate resilience and water security across Asia and the Pacific.

Best practices in Innovative water financing in Asia and the Pacific
・23 August (Mon) 17:00 – 18:00 JST
・Co-conveners： APWF, ADB, OECD, Alliance for Global Water Adaptation (AGWA), Water.org

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18654/

(Reported by Yumiko Asayama, Manager)

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– The outcomes of the Asia Focus Water Cycle Management session in the Stockholm World Water Week 2021

Asia and the Pacific face escalating pressure to provide water security for their vast population, especially vulnerable groups. This session thus examined and enhanced understanding of the water cycle elements and put water governance mechanisms to strengthen resilience and deliver on its commitments of SDG6 and other water‐related goals.

Asia Focus: Water Cycle Management for resilient and equitable societies
・24 August (Tue) 14:00 – 15:00 JST
・Co-conveners： APWF, UNESCO Regional Science Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, UNESCAP, International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Japan Sanitation Consortium, The Secretariat of the Headquarters for Water Cycle Policy, Cabinet Secretariat, JAPAN, Korea Water Forum

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18661/

(Reported by Yumiko Asayama, Manager)

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– The outcomes of the Asia Focus Governance session in the Stockholm World Water Week 2021

This session is organized as a milestone towards the 4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit held in April 2022, Kumamoto, Japan. It aims to support decision-making process and encourage the leadership and commitments of heads of state and government of 49 countries in Asia and the Pacific urgently and decisively for resilience, inclusiveness, and sustainability for the current and the next generation’s quality growth in Asia and the Pacific.

Asia Focus: Accelerating inclusive water governance to advance sustainable development
・25 August (Wed) 15:00 – 16:00 JST
・Co-conveners：APWF, Global Water Partnership Organization(GWPO), GWP Southeast Asia, ADB, OECD, Water Integrity Network, IUCN Asia, ICHARM, JICA

▼Please visit the following website for details▼
https://www.waterforum.jp/en/news/18683/

(Reported by Yumiko Asayama, Manager)

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JWF News Vol. 203 / 15 September 2021
Japan Water Forum
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