Sewer

One thing I noticed while traveling around most of Japan was the storm sewers.  I'm inclined to do this...who can say why, exactly.  It certainly can't have anything to do with being employed by a sewer bureau for over a decade.  Still... practically everywhere I went, the storm sewers were segmented, box by box, each 1-3' long with a removable lid, and all installed as the basis, the foundation of the sidewalk (more or less).  We learned from the engineer in Usuiso that, outside the cities, most homes have their own little septic system, which overflows into the main storm drain (or, you know, the ocean, if you have one handy).  I couldn't help but wonder: why there isn't more underground sewer piping and mass treatment?

[two seconds of thinking.....]

Right.  In a country with this many earthquakes, how ridiculous would their repair budgets be?  Ooops, broke another pipe.  Ooops, there's another one.  Ooops there's another one....  Why would you bury a pipe just to unbury it every 5 to 10 years?  Much cheaper to pop out the small broken pieces at the surface.  And before the advent of the diesel backhoe, I suspect this aspect of public health was a formidable and constant challenge.  You'd think their cities would constantly have open sewage flows and probably disease outbreaks, too, if they weren't EXCEEDINGLY careful.  You'd think such a society would develop a strong habit (bordering on a taboo) against wearing shoes in living spaces.  Oh, wait...

I mention it because it's a reminder of how much we are influenced by our environment.  In the US, for example, we perceive that we have unlimited space, and that leads us to to be loud and oblivious and to want a lot of space.  In Japan, where 75% or so of the land area is unbuildable, everyone is crammed into the remaining 25% and develops a society where politeness and a certain decorum are highly prized.

I know this is a bit of a giveaway, but I'm off to the Netherlands in a few days:  another country with a lot of environmental pressures.  How have floods and flat land shaped their history and how people interact with each other?  Stay tuned.....