In 2003, Fukuoka City became the first city in Japan to pass an ordinance promoting water conservation—25 years after a severe drought led to 287 days of water restrictions and another drought in the mid-1990s made city officials determined to learn from the past. Since then, it has promoted water-saving devices that attach to faucets and launched a PR blitz to inform residents about the importance of conservation. The ordinance requires all new buildings with more than 53,000 square feet of floor space to have a system installed to use rainwater and recycled wastewater. Those who ignore a first warning are publicly shamed.
Japan
