A Type of Using Stream Water as Drinking

Abstract

On the Nagase River Delta in northern part of Inawashiro Basin, inhabitants take their drink from irrigation water. Three cases of use of stream for drink are known in our country, -that is, “Kakehi” or other type in mountain regions, artificial water courses in exploited fan or plateau, and drainage ditches in some low delta. The last case shows that irrigation water of rice field can be used for drinking. Such delta is not convenient to get good water by wells, and there is no other way to drink but to scoop the dirty water of drainage ditches. The use of running water on the Nagase River Delta is some-what similar to the last case, but we find in it some highly developed cbaracteristics to be reported here.The irrigation water of this delta, supplied by Bandai Volcano and artificial waterways “Hanita-zeki” from the Nagase River, is plenty enough and relatively stable throughout the year.Water Courses of irrigation system lead tne drinKing water to vlllages. But many of them are obviously used in the upper part of the villages only for leading water to the lower field. In other words as they are not concerncd to the minor irrigation systems of their surrounding area, People can get drinking water without affection of rice field (Fig. 6).In each village an irrigation water course is divided into smaller ditches which lead the water to each house. These ditches form some systematic net-work of water supply, in which the water is supplied at a certain corner of the village, the supply and drainage for each house is carried by a fixed route, and often People effort to avoid the using waste water from another house ( Fig. 1-5 ).In a house there is a device of getting water, “Idobune”, the drinking water tunk in the kitchen (Shetch). The running water in a ditch is always brought from the upper part of the stream into “Idobune”, and out into the lower Part by te help of a narrow ditch or a under-ground pipe. The device is very convenient especially in snow season.The characters Written above would be favoured by the the topographic feature of this delta with some relief on it.