Seismic Upgrading Done for 14.6 Pct of Key Facility Water Pipelines

Tokyo, Nov. 1 (Jiji Press)--Only 14.6 pct of evacuation centers, hospitals and other “important facilities” in Japan that serve as bases in times of disaster had antiseismic improvements complete for both water and sewage pipelines leading to them, an infrastructure ministry survey showed Friday.

The result of the survey, conducted in response to a powerful earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula in central Japan on Jan. 1, suggests that there are challenges in ensuring stable water supply in the event of a disaster.

The ministry implemented the survey, the first of its kind, on 5,231 water and sewage operators across the country in July-October, in order to identify facilities that, if damaged, could increase the extent of water interruptions. Based on the survey’s findings, the ministry will urge municipalities to work on seismic upgrading on a priority basis, and will also promote technical support.

Of 24,974 important facilities across Japan, such as designated evacuation centers and municipality buildings, 3,649 facilities had all of water and sewage pipelines leading to them undergo seismic upgrading work. By prefecture, the proportion of facilities that had such work complete was the highest for Tokyo, at 52.4 pct, and the lowest for Kagawa, at zero pct.

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