Asahi: Ministry plans moat cleanup to cool down Tokyo
The Environment Ministry will study a new type of "cool-biz" campaign, but it won't involve increased air circulation around shirt collars. The plan is aimed at improving water circulation in the moat around the Imperial Palace to lower summer temperatures in central Tokyo. Feasibility studies for the ambitious project will start in spring. Under the plan, the ministry will create a freer flow of the brackish water to lower its temperature. This could allow cooler air from the densely vegetated Imperial Palace grounds to spread over the surrounding business districts. Currently, the moat is filled mainly with rain water, which remains still and is rarely circulated. As the water heats up, upward currents of air from the stagnant water have acted like a curtain that prevents cool breezes from blowing to the central part of the city, ministry officials said...more...
