Japan to promote digital transformation for water systems

Tokyo (Jiji Press) — A Japanese government panel agreed Thursday to promote digital transformation to tackle the aging of public infrastructure, including water supply and sewage systems.

This followed a high-profile road collapse accident in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, near Tokyo, last month, which is believed to have been caused by a broken sewage pipe.

At a meeting of the digital administrative and fiscal reform panel, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the group, instructed related officials to urgently work on the use of digital technologies for water and sewage systems to ensure that their operations by local governments are sustainable.

He called for introducing such technologies within about three years, against the previous deadline of five years.

For water and sewage systems, satellites and artificial intelligence systems will be used to collect and analyze data on temperature, geology and other factors to identify areas where water leaks may occur. Drones will be employed for inspections inside water pipes in order to find spots requiring repairs early.

Ishiba also announced a plan to establish a public-private team to discuss how to develop AI data centers and power infrastructure in an integrated way. Details will be worked out as early as June.