Lake desalination project halted after 40 years

A project for desalinating Lake Shinji and Nakaumi on the Sea of Japan was finally halted, having faced public protest against the wasteful public spending. The Shimane governor on November 29 announced a halt to the project which started 40 years ago under the slogan of increasing rice production. The halt will be officially announced to the December prefectural assembly.

The project to desalt the two lakes whose water is a mixture of fresh water and sea water, started in 1963 but has basically been suspended since 1988 due to the fear of unsatisfactory water quality.

Public money was already expended in the amount of 85.1 billion yen (700 million dollars), which is the largest amount for a discarded public works project in Japan.

Since around 1963 when the project began, the Japanese Communist Party opposed the reckless and wasteful project and helped develop opposition movements with residents and researchers. In 1984, the number of signatures against the project reached 320,000. In 1996, 540,000 signatures were collected nationwide against resuming the project.

On the Shimane governor's statement to halt the project, JCP House of Representatives member Nakabayashi Yoshiko said the decision, though very late coming, has been achieved by the pressured exerted by the opposition movement. She said that the JCP will make efforts to decrease the financial burden on the prefectural people, preserve the environment, and promote local fisheries. (end)