Bridging the Distances Between Far Water and Near Water: Case of Yanagawa City from Japan

Abstract

Urbanization requires expanding the necessary infrastructure for water and sanitation to make city water safer and keep the environment clean. Instead of stable water supply and drainage, the modernized water infrastructure development weakened the relationship between water and human, which has brought a shift from near water to far water-based lifestyle. In response to this, traditional wisdom which takes into account social-ecological system has been under-evaluated or ignored so that urban water management may become vulnerable due to their lower awareness to the water. With this recognition, this chapter presents a case of successful urban water management in Japan by describing the historical process of canal restoration in Yanagawa City. The case study highlights traditional water management which was linked to ‘near water’ while exploring the underlying causes of ‘far water’. The research provides insights into bridging the distances between near water and far water by creating ‘new near water’ in the urbanized world.