On the way to (and from) Anmon falls, on the Hirosaki side we passed a dam, just on the outskirts of the Shirakami Sanchi (sanchi just means mountain area). As far as I understand they are combining and existing dam with an existing lake to create the Tsugaru dam. Looking at it it seemed a pity to be flooding an area so close to Shirakami, flooding villages that almost certainly have Jomon remains. It's an area that is decreasing in population and likely not to have a dramatic need for the hydro electricity that will be produced. And then Fukushima looms in the mind - the country is desperate for energy alternatives...
There used to be a lot of scorn poured on the policy of damming (tempting to spell that with an n) every river for hydro. (See Dogs and Demons). It seems very silent these days.... I wonder how much overlap there is between anti nuclear protesters and anti dam protesters. Perhaps not much - the dam protest might be more local. It begs a more imaginative approach to electricity generation - like collecting the energy of commuters as they walk along station platforms.... or tapping the energy of people handing out contact lens fliers or the school student cheer squad at Koshien...
http://www.thr.mlit.go.jp/tugaru/dam/image/kankyo/kankyo/kanrepo.pdf
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