G-Cans Project

The G-Cans Project is a massive underground system intended to collect water in the Tokyo area in order to prevent floodings. The G-Cans control center and main facility are located at the Edogawa River Office, Kasukabe City, Saitama Prefecture.

(source - JPDN.net)

So far, so good.

What makes things really special is that you can tour these massive underground drainage tunnels, and there are some truly stunning pictures available both at the official site & at jpdn.net

A lot of the comments over at reddit.com (where I found this little gem) compare the photos to a selection of video games, and the Riddick films. Personally, the first thing that struck me when I first saw them was a recollection of a book : The Ark Sakura written by Kobo Abe in 1984. Whilst I enjoyed the premise of the book - nutjob outcast builds a nuclear shelter in an abandoned quarry - I’ve never been sure if the translation was awful, or if Kobo Abe couldn’t write.

Still, the images of the G-Cans brought some of the scale of Abe’s imagery to mind. I have to get myself to Tokyo, methinks. Take in some of this gloomy beauty for myself.

update: First hand account of a G Cans tour at this site. Turns out the tours are free… Sign me up!

Monday, June 26th, 2006 Bizarre, Design, Japan, Japanese Trivia, Sushimatic Loves... Trackback URL for this entry