Water resources and water supplies have played critical roles in the development and organization of many communities from the dawn of civilization. Despite this, the importance and increasing complexity of today’s water resources systems makes achieving the management aim more difficult than ever. The Fukuoka Metropolitan Area, for example, a rapidly rising economic and cultural center in Kyushu, Japan, is continually at risk of drought (Kawamura & Yasuhisa, 2005). Limited water resources are currently one of the most significant limitations to the area’s proper development. Japan has already endured multiple major drought catastrophes and continues to suffer from drought conditions in some sections of the country each year. To deal with drought catastrophes, Japan employs three types of countermeasures: I supply side water resource planning and development; (ii) demand side water usage promotion; and (iii) risk control strategies such as coordinated drought risk management. Drought danger is now being addressed to some extent due to ongoing initiatives in water resource development, water conservation, and water recycling (Okada, 2016). Japan must continue to increase drought preparedness and ensure a steady water supply. Japan looks to have ample water resources because it is located in East Asia and is bordered by the sea; yet, Japan’s accessible water resources are limited, and drought concerns occur in some sections of the nation every year.
In terms of climate, Japan is located in monsoon Asia, which is recognized for having one of the highest quantities of rainfall in the globe (Okada, 2016).. Japan receives around twice as much precipitation as the rest of the world. Rainwater rushes fast to the sea since its rivers are similarly steep and short. Heavy rain is expected during the rainy season, which lasts from June to July, and the typhoon season, which lasts from August to September (Kawamura & Yasuhisa, 2005). The overall capacity of dam reservoirs in Japan is around 22 109 m3, which is roughly half the volume of the Hoover Dam in the United States.
Droughts affected a considerable portion of Japan, particularly in 1967, 1973, 1978, 1984, 1985, and 1994 (Okada, 2016).. Drought-affected areas have declined in number since the late 1990s, yet they continue to exist year after year. MLIT (2000) and JSCE (2000) describe water resource management in Japan after the war. There are four distinguishing characteristics. First, in response to the evolution of the social and economic system, a new framework for water usage and resource development was constructed. Multi-purpose dams were built in large numbers for the development of water resources as well as flood control (Okada, 2016).. Japan’s domestic water consumption continues to rise. The difference between urban and rural areas in terms of average daily water consumption per person is quickly decreasing. Agricultural water demand accounts for two-thirds of Japan’s overall water consumption. Water supply stability is deteriorating across the country, and the resilience of the water delivery system varies substantially from region to region (Kawamura & Yasuhisa, 2005). The strategies for developing water resources are different; various water sources must be studied to meet the rising water demand. Human activities have recently altered the natural hydrological cycle to a large extent. As a result of these developments, a variety of water-related issues, such as urban floods and groundwater pollution, have arisen as major concerns.
In 1978, a severe drought hit the Fukuoka Metropolitan Area, a fast-growing economic and cultural center in Kyushu, western Japan, resulting in 287 days of water rationing in Fukuoka City. The drought presented a significant challenge to the government, who sought to devise solutions to ensure a steady supply of water. Sixteen years later, in 1994, another severe drought struck the same area, putting the authorities’ tactics to the test (Kawamura & Jinno, 1996). Water resource planning in Japan is geared against a drought with a 10-year return time. Waterworks are managed by public bodies, and each municipality is responsible for the water supply of its population. Each municipality’s waterworks must function on a self-funding basis by law. As a result, each municipality must set its own water tariff in order to raise enough revenue to pay both the development and administration costs of water.
During the season when irrigation is not required, extra water pumped up from rivers is stored in this sort of reservoir (Kawamura & Jinno, 1996).. Examples include the Kubaru Dam and the Nagatani Dam. In most cases, irrigation water is delivered through an open canal, however this approach frequently results in significant losses. As a result, pipes are installed to replace open irrigation channels in order to save water and prevent losses (Okada, 2016).. As a result, the extra water generated by this system is currently used to provide service water. In 1969 and 1980, this technology was used at two water intakes on the Naka River. It conserved a total of 50 000 m3 per day-1. Water resources have been progressively improved for years, backed by legislation and long-term goals. As a consequence, national supply objectives have been met to a large extent; nevertheless, certain water resources facilities are still being planned or built to provide a reliable water supply. Climate-related extremes, such as floods and droughts, expose the fragility of human systems, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) study. Even now, the drought coordination committee prevents major drought damage by enforcing input restrictions as a precaution. We cannot rely simply on the development of new water resources facilities to increase the safety level of water supply, since social and economic expenses are rising. Existing water resource facilities must be put to the best possible use. For example, society should place a greater emphasis on risk management.