Changes in River Governance in Japan Since the Meiji Era
River governance has been a crucial tool for rulers in maintaining the legitimacy and authority of their regimes.Since the Meiji Restoration,Japan's national modernization efforts have been paralleled by the progressive modernization of its river management systems.A significant milestone in this process was the enactment of Japan's first River Law in 1896,which marked the transition from"low-water projects,"aimed at ensuring water supply for navigation and irrigation,to"high-water projects,"primarily focused on flood control.Prior to World War Ⅱ,the concept of the"river control business"signaled a shift in the Ministry of Internal Affairs'dual approach to water management and water conservancy,evolving into a more integrated vision of river governance that treated both as unified concerns.After the war,the recur-rent occurrence of major floods and the growing demand for water resource development led to a surge in dam construction.The 1964 revision of the River Law incorporated the concept of basin-wide manage-ment and enhanced the regulatory framework of river management.In the 1997 revision of the River Law,an"environmental"objective was added,officially integrating environmental protection into Japan's river governance framework,granting it equal legal status alongside the objectives of water management and wa-ter conservancy.The changes in the approaches to river management since the Meiji era reflect Japan's modernization in its understanding and utilization of natural resources within the context of its develop-ment into a modern state.