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Water has a lot of future potential and one of them is its possibility for expanding its use as the resource for producing electrical power and heat energy. To utilize this resource, the collaboration between “scientific technology” and “social technology” that deals with the formation of agreement with local communities and compliance with the legal system is necessary.

Shinshu University has launched a research project for developing “Shinshu-style water management model” with the cooperation of various departments of science and technology, humanities, economics, and Cooperative Research Center industrial liaison departments. Some of the aims of this research project include 1) resolving issues such as those related to water rights when small-scale hydroelectric power generation and facilities for using groundwater heat are introduced, 2) resolving issues related to Agricultural Land Act or Forest Act, and 3) clarify the local needs for natural energy. And this research project tries to attain the above goals through many strategies including the introduction and operation of the small-scale hydroelectric power generation in cooperation with local communities, and simulating the practical use of groundwater heat.

This research project, through such activities, will organize knowledge aiming to create a sustainable society in which technology and nature coexist in harmony.