Japanese government to ban cars to protect Hokkaido lake

Tokyo - Japan's government plans to ban cars about 20 kilometres around one of the world's clearest lakes to protect its transparency, which has been declining, a newspaper reported Monday. As an alternative, the local government along with the Land, Transport and Infrastructure Ministry plans to offer public transportation services on hybrid buses by spring 2008 at Lake Mashu on the northern island of Hokkaido, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Lake Mashu recorded its worst clarity reading at 14 metres last year, the National Institute for Environmental Studies said. In 1931, the lake had 41.6-metre visibility. Pollution has become a prime suspect for the decline. About 800,000 people come to visit the lake on an estimated 150,000 tour buses every year, and an air-pollution test conducted in August measured double the amount of carbon monoxide at the lake as in the centre of the nearby town of Teshikaga. Pollution has not been proven as affecting the clarity of the water, but the municipal government has decided to control emissions from automobiles to protect the lake. Private transportation is already banned at other tourist destinations in Japan, and tourists must use public buses. © 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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Japanese government to ban cars to protect Hokkaido lake

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