Japan's strategic contributions to hydro-meteorological disaster mitigation in the world: planning to establish the UNESCO–PWRI Centre

✍ Scribed by Tetsuya Ikeda; Junichi Yoshitani

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2006
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 227 KB
• Volume: 20
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0885-6087
• DOI: 10.1002/hyp.6088

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Hydro‐meteorological disasters such as floods are major challenges that need to be overcome in order to realize sustainable development and poverty alleviation for humankind. Devastating flood disasters have occurring in various locations throughout the world, and there has recently been rising concern that the intensity and frequency of catastrophic floods may be increasing. Being located on the eastern edge of monsoonal Asia and having climatic variations according to the seasonal and regional conditions, Japan has long suffered from numerous flood disasters, and thus has developed advanced flood management policies. This paper aims to discuss flood disasters in Japan and the recently improved flood management policies. In addition, this paper introduces a new plan attempted by the Public Works Research Institute (PWRI) of Japan that takes advantage of the wealth of long accumulated experience and knowledge in the hydro‐meteorological field. The PWRI is now working toward the establishment of an International Centre on Water‐related Hazard and Risk Management by acquiring UNESCO's auspices. In order to contribute to the global challenge of reducing devastating hydro‐meteorological disasters all over the world, this centre aims to conduct research, capacity‐building and training programmes, and information networking activities at the local, national, regional and global levels. The aim is to prevent and mitigate hydro‐meteorological disasters from the viewpoint of sustainable and integrated river basin management. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.