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| May 6, 2003 No.0941 | ||
| Industry, Academia and Government to Cooperate in Verification of Desert Greening Project in Saudi Arabia | ||
| Tokyo, May 6, 2003 -- Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) will commence the
preparation of a specific plan for creating a greenbelt of about 50km2
in the desert along the shores of the Red Sea in off the Saudi Arabia this fiscal
year. The aim is to "achieve sustainable greening of the desert"(*1)
by recreating water and greenery in the desert that utilizes the power of nature.
After finalizing plans for creating an oasis this fiscal year, MHI will begin
constructing a verification plant in cooperation with a body of the Saudi Arabian
government starting after three years. Basic research had been conducted as a
project of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
(MEXT). The Saudi Arabian government has exhibited a positive stance towards this
plan and there are also countries from Southeast Asia and Europe, along with China
that have indicated a desire to participate in the research. Thus the desert greening
project will begin proceeding as an international project. The Red Sea coast in Saudi Arabia where the greening is being planned is surrounded by land in which air with high moisture content circulates. Calculations made using a earth simulator of the Japan Marine Science & Technology Center showed that a certain level of greening in this region would lead to the "forest attracting clouds" and rainfall. This project aims to create a scheme that would activate this natural mechanism and green the desert. Furthermore, this plan will contribute to creating fresh water with minimal energy consumption by utilizing the Earth's natural water circulation mechanism and also applying recycled energy such as solar power. The water circulation prediction system that is being developed by this project is valid not only for desert regions but also for all regions of the world that suffer from water shortages. It will also contribute to the prevention of flooding related disasters and other problems. MHI has been involved in basic research for desert greening in cooperation with Tokyo University and Kyoto University since 2001. On the other hand, this theme was chosen as one of the themes in MEXT's "Research Project for Sustainable Coexistence of Human, Nature and the Earth." The research and development of the five-year plan commenced last fiscal year and the research is being conducted as a collaborative project of industry, academia and the government with the participation of the Frontier Research System for Global Change, National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention, Kyoto University, Tottori University and Sophia University. This project was registered and announced as an official policy of Japan at the World Water Forum held in March. The 21st century is referred to as the Century of Water. MHI perceives the wide-area water circulation as a global phenomenon and is working to understand the concerned natural phenomena and discern the mechanisms involved by utilizing a global simulator. MHI is approaching this issue from the perspective of an engineering study and is drawing up a scenario for securing water resources and greening of deserts. Based on the findings, MHI will analyze the issues involved and devote its efforts to realizing desert greening. Furthermore, MHI will jointly host a technical workshop concerning the securing of water resources and desert greening together with governmental research bodies of Saudi Arabia this fall in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
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About Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan is one of the world's leading global heavy machinery manufacturers, with fiscal 2001 (ended March 31, 2002) consolidated sales of 2,863 billion yen. MHI's diverse line-up of products and services encompasses shipbuilding, steel structures, power plants, chemical plants, steel plants, environmental equipment, and machinery for industrial and general use, aircraft, and space rocketry and air-conditioning systems. For more information, please visit the web site of MHI (http://www.mhi.co.jp) PRESS CONTACT: Chris Grams:cgrams@golinharris.com, or Goro Nagaoka: gnagaoka@golinharris.com Tel: +81-3-5721-2521, Fax: +81-3-5721-2591 Golin/Harris International (PR for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries) |
