Arakawa River (Kantō)

Arakawa River
Arakawa River
	A bend in the Arakawa River
	Location of mouth in Japan
Native name	荒川 (Japanese)
Location
Country	Japan
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Mount Kobushi (甲武信ヶ岳)
• elevation	2,475 m (8,120 ft)
Mouth
• location	Tokyo Bay
Length	173 km (107 mi)
Basin features
River system	Arakawa

The Arakawa River (荒川, Arakawa) is a 173-kilometre (107 mi) long river that flows through Saitama Prefecture and Tokyo.^[1] Its average flow in 2002 was 30m³/s.

It originates on Mount Kobushi in Saitama Prefecture, and empties into Tokyo Bay.^[2] It has a total catchment area of 2,940 km² (1,140 sq mi).

The river is one of Tokyo's major sources of tap water, and together with the Tone River, accounts for around 80% of Tokyo's water supply as of 2018.^[3] The Okubo water purification plant takes water from the river.

History[]

Attempts to control flooding of the Arakawa River have been made since the area that is now Tokyo became the de facto capital of Japan during the Edo period. Following a major flood in 1910 that damaged a large part of central Tokyo, a 22-kilometre (14 mi) long drainage canal was constructed between 1911 and 1924. In 1996 an agreement was signed to make it a "sister river" of the Potomac River in the eastern United States.^[2] This means that officials and volunteers from both river areas collaborate with each other.^[4]

Media[]

This river is also depicted in many anime such as Toaru Kagaku no Railgun

References[]

^ "Our Planet: Arakawa River". Planet Labs. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b "(Arakawa - Potomac sister rivers)". Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin. 27 January 2012. Archived from the original on December 27, 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
^ "水系別貯水量の推移 | 水源・水質 | 東京都水道局". www.waterworks.metro.tokyo.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-08-27.
^ "Potomac Basin Reporter". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2020-11-25.