river, the longest in Japan, draining most of Nagano and Niigata prefectures. It rises at the foot of Mount Kobushi, in the Japanese Alps of Honshu, and flows north-northeast for 228 miles (367 km) to enter the Sea of Japan at Niigata. Its upper course is joined by numerous tributaries, including the Sai and Uono rivers, both of which drain small but productive and populous intermontane basins. The lower reaches of the Shinano River become deltaic and swampy as the river crosses the Niigata Plain.

Because the river's lower course flooded during the spring thaw, a discharge canal was constructed at Okozu in 1923. The decreased amount of transported sand and silt, however, has made the river's delta vulnerable to the sea, a danger further enhanced by land subsidence resulting from the withdrawal of groundwater to extract natural gas. The Shinano River has long served as an inland waterway. Its numerous river ports include Niigata, at its mouth.