JAXA Venture Team Collaborates to Enhance Sewage Pipe Damage Risk Assessment in Japan

JAXA Venture Collaboration for Sewage Pipe Assessment

A groundbreaking partnership is underway in Japan, where JAXA-certified venture company Tenchijin is joining forces with the Japan Sewerage Agency and the Shizuoka City Water and Sewer Bureau to enhance the technology for assessing damage risks in sewage pipes. The initiative aims to incorporate inflow water data from local sewage treatment plants to improve diagnostic accuracy.

Tenchijin, based in Chuo, Tokyo, is harnessing its expertise in water management with the Japan Sewerage Agency's extensive knowledge of local government support. With the Shizuoka City Water and Sewer Bureau providing a field for practical verification, this collaboration is set to take significant strides in the realm of sewage infrastructure.

Challenges Facing Japan's Sewage System

Japan's sewage pipe network stretches an impressive 500,000 kilometers, much of which was established during the country's economic boom. However, the aging system presents an increasing problem, with the number of road collapses caused by deteriorating pipes estimated at about 2,600 per year, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Proactive risk management to prevent such unforeseen accidents has become a pressing issue.

The challenge is compounded by the fact that sewage pipes are buried deep underground, requiring extensive time and financial resources for examination through conventional methods like visual assessments with television cameras. It is unrealistic to comprehensively inspect all infrastructure with limited budgets and personnel, making it essential to identify priority areas for targeted assessments.

About the Collaborative Research

Since last year, Tenchijin and the Japan Sewerage Agency have been conducting joint research utilizing Shizuoka City as a testing ground for advanced risk assessment techniques. This initiative focuses on gathering maintenance data related to inflow water into sewage plants, alongside specialized insights into water quality and corrosion factors. By integrating this data with Tenchijin's satellite data and AI diagnostic capabilities, the objective is to enhance the precision of damage assessments.

The overarching goal of this collaboration is to optimize the maintenance costs and risks associated with sewage infrastructure, ultimately contributing to more effective capital investments.

Background on the "Priority Assessment for Sewage Pipes"

The foundation of this collaborative effort is Tenchijin's service called "Space Water Bureau: Sewage Pipe Priority Assessment," which leverages satellite data and AI. Since its launch in 2023, this service has been operational in the water supply sector, assisting over 80 entities in optimizing pipeline conditions, inspections, prioritization of renewals, and budget allocations.

This established diagnostic technique is now being adapted for sewage pipes, culminating in the "Sewage Pipe Priority Assessment" method. This approach evaluates the "health" (damage risk assessment results) and "importance" (social impact in case of accidents) of sewage pipes, providing a visualized prioritization scale from A to E.

The health assessment is performed by combining data from water service entities, ambient conditions, and satellite data (surface temperature, ground movement, rainfall, etc.) to analyze the susceptibility to damage. This joint research aims to further develop predictive models by adding new dimensions such as inflow water data and factors affecting water quality and corrosion.

Comments from Stakeholders

Shizuoka City Water and Sewer Bureau

"The percentage of aging pipes in our sewage operations is increasing each year, making it critical to prevent sudden accidents. However, comprehensively inspecting the vast pipeline network using traditional TV camera assessments has become challenging under constrained budgets. Thus, we are providing a testing field for this research to break through existing barriers. We expect effective and efficient screening methods to emerge from this collaboration."

Japan Sewerage Agency

"The deterioration of sewage pipes has become a pressing issue across the country, with risk management to avert sudden accidents a key concern. We aim to contribute our extensive technical knowledge of water quality to this research. By combining this expertise with Tenchijin's advanced AI and space technologies, we hope to establish a high-precision damage risk assessment technique that will promote the sustainability of sewage infrastructure."

Tenchijin

"No matter how advanced a technology may be, without practical verification, it cannot be implemented. This demonstration incorporates entirely new data from inflow water into sewage treatment plants alongside insights from the Japan Sewerage Agency and Shizuoka City to challenge the enhancement of predictive models. Our collaboration aims to discern connections and correlations between pipe deterioration and inflow data, continuously improving prediction accuracy."

Upcoming Exhibition at "Sewage Exhibition '26"

Tenchijin will participate in one of Japan's largest sewage industry exhibitions, "Sewage Exhibition '26", scheduled for August 2026. Visitors to our booth will learn about our collaborative research efforts and the "Space Water Bureau: Sewage Pipe Priority Assessment" service. We will also offer individual consultations for local government personnel facing sewage infrastructure management challenges.

Event: Sewage Exhibition '26
Dates: August 4-7, 2026
Venue: Tokyo Big Sight, West Exhibition Hall 1F, West 2 Hall
Booth Number: AT-408