Mizuumi TIMES Thursday, August 2, 2018

The six members of Group 1 visited Water Environment Center of the Prefectural Center for Environmental Creation in Inawashiro Town. There, we interviewed Mr. Ken Kitami (72) and Mr. Sadanobu Igarashi (72), representative and vice-representative, of the Nature Conservation Association of Lake Inawashiro. They talked to us about various aspects of the lake, such as its current environmental conditions, issues and interaction with surrounding areas. During our visit, we learned about the importance of protecting our natural environment and gained a greater appreciation of what Fukushima meant to each of us.

Although Lake Inawashiro is waters over the years because drain water flowing into the familiar to most people for its of the Nagase River, which lake, the rapid propagation of beautiful sky-blue color, Mr. supplies the lake with 1 bil- water caltrops has upsetted Kitami said this is a mistake. lion tons of water annually the ecological balance of the The sky-blue color is not the and accounts for 60 percent lake. With the greater availa- lake’s natural color but results of the lake’s inflow. The bility of a variety of vegeta- from pollution due to mu- highly acidic, clear currents bles nowadays, there has been nicipal and other drains of the river help clean the a decline in the use of water flowing into the lake. Ac- lake by precipitating phos- caltrops as a food resource. cording to Mr. Kitami, the phorus and other toxic sub- This results in rapid growth natural color of the lake is stances. of the aquatic plant, which the beautiful emerald green However, in recent years, be- now cover large areas of the seen in early spring. sides the increase in the lake, causing the buildup of Mr. Igarashi (extreme right) explaining how lake Inawashiro has changed The lake has maintained clear volume of municipal and slime in the lake. (Miyu) over time.

Lake Inawashiro

The Nature Conservation Association of Lake Inawashiro, Lake Inawashiro is the fourth largest lake in . The lake which uses the Fukushima Prefectural Center for Envi- has a circumference of 55.32 km, which is over 20km longer ronmental Creation as one of the bases for its activities, than the total length of the Yamanote Line (34.5km) in Tokyo. was established in April 2017 to preserve the natural en- In terms of volume, the lake is the fifth largest in Japan. vironment of Lake Inawashiro, also known as the Heav- 77.3% of the water of Lake Inawashiro is used for hy- enly Mirror Lake, and its river system. dro-electric generation, 20.3% for agricultural purposes and In addition to its cleanup efforts, the association also the remaining 2.4% for the public water supply. The residents engages in a variety of related activities such as the of two cities, Koriyama City and City, each study of swans, organizing workshops where partici- receive 60% of their water from Lake Inawashiro. pants can learn about and work with sedge and activi- Lake Inawashiro is also famous for the white swans. Mirages, ties for the preservation of Nymphoides Peltata, con- which usually appear in summer, are seen on Lake Inawashiro ducted jointly with local elementary school students. In more often in winter when the temperature difference is great- the sedge-related workshop, participants receive er. Okinajima, the island on the lake, is thought to have been easy-to-follow instructions and get hands-on experi- connected to land in early days, as evidenced by the presence Water caltrops leaf taken from the lake on the ence of weaving mats using sedge, bamboo and other of a stone Buddha and other artifacts on the island. morning of our visit. material. (Yura, Hinako) (Keigo, Sho)

Although there was little direct damage in student groups or tourist buses would visit areas surrounding Lake Inawashiro caused by the lake. Fukushima rice, which is known for the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Com- its superior taste, has experienced falling sales, pany Fukushima No.1 nuclear power station, although regular tests have proven its safety. Mr. Kitami exhorted us to learn the negative rumors after the accident remain It is important that accurate information is all we can about our hometown strong. disseminated and that people are not misled and to discover the charms of There was a time after the accident when no by baseless rumors. (Yura, Hinako) our hometown. Looking back at how the lake has changed over time, Mr. Kitami said that pollution has been advancing slowly without Miyu Ito (Sakura no Seibo Gakuin High 2nd grade) anybody really noticing it. “It’s Taiyo Hosoda (Koharada Junior High 3rd grade) hard to imagine the Inawashiro Yura Sato (Elementary School Attached to Fukushima Mr. Kitami talked about the im- region without its abundant portance of the place we call home. University 6th grade) nature. It’s therefore my hope Hinako Suzuki (Azuma Elementary 6th grade) that more people will join us in our efforts to preserve this rich Keigo Nakamura (Kunimi Elementary 5th grade) natural environment,” he said, hoping that more people will join Sho Inomata (Johoku Elementary 5th grade) the volunteer activities. (Taiyo)