(August 18, 2011) “The Yangtze River will run dry” because engineers have gone wild, building so many dams that the amount of water needed to fill all the reservoirs along the Yangtze would exceed the flow of the river. So says “A Mighty River Runs Dry,” a new study by geologist Fan Xiao of the Sichuan Geology and Mineral Bureau in China. Because there isn’t enough water in the Yangtze to fill all the dams to their designed capacity during the impoundment period each year, “an enormous waste of money” will result, with potentially staggering losses to China’s economy, 40 per cent of which comes from agriculture, fishing, industry and shipping along the Yangtze.
Not enough water in China to divert northward – Chinese scientists
(July 18, 2011) In a remarkably candid piece, the Communist Party mouthpiece, Global Times, quotes critics saying there isn’t enough water in China’s rivers to divert north under the government’s South-North Water Transfer scheme.
Plan for China’s Water Crisis Spurs Concern
(July 4, 2011) DANJIANGKOU, China — North China is dying. A chronic drought is ravaging farmland. The Gobi Desert is inching south. The Yellow River, the so-called birthplace of Chinese civilization, is so polluted it can no longer supply drinking water.
Choking on the Three Gorges
(June 9, 2011) China’s government at last owns up to problems at its monster dam. The Economist cites Probe International’s research documenting a significant increase in earthquakes at Three Gorges.
My new green life
(June 8, 2011) A move closer to work reaps many benefits.
Zhanghe
(June 8, 2011) A brief reminiscence of a once free-flowing and bountiful river from the author’s youth is now a tragedy writ large: a microcosm of the woes – many of which are preventable – that currently beset China’s waterways.
Amid severe drought, Chinese government admits mistakes with Three Gorges Dam
(June 4, 2011) The Washington Post features Probe International Fellow Dai Qing and cites Probe International’s expose of a 30-fold increase in earthquakes caused by China’s Three Gorges Dam.
The Three Gorges Dam ‘failure’
(June 3, 2011) The Three Gorges Dam project failed to consider the full impact it would have on the ecological environment during its early design, an official admitted yesterday.
Golf courses proliferate in China, defying gov’t ban
(May 22, 2011) Spurred by China’s rapid economic growth and soaring living standards, golf is now enjoying an explosion in popularity in the world’s second-largest economy with a number of golf courses being built in recent years, despite the country’s ban on golf course construction due to land use concerns.
Severe water shortage hits China’s capital
(May 21, 2011) Recently, Beijing Water Authority revealed that the city’s per capita water resources has declined to 100 cubic meters, far lower than the international warning line for water shortage — 1,000 cubic meters.
Low water prices fuel Beijing’s water shortage
(May 20, 2011) In addition to natural conditions, the water shortage in Beijing is aggravated by low water prices which do not reflect the scarcity of water resources. Low water prices are equivalent to subsidizing those enterprises which consume more water, says Fu Tao, Director of the Water Policy Research Center at Tsinghua University.
Drought at source
(May 20, 2011) China’s South-North Water Diversion project may have little water to spare for Beijing.
Fengtai Sinkhole Sparks Worries of Future Catastrophes
(May 19, 2011) Beijing’s Fengtai District grabbed headlines in April when the ground beneath Shiliuzhuang Lu opened up suddenly and swallowed a passing truck. This isn’t the first time sinkholes have appeared in the capital. In 2007, and again in 2009, sinkholes opened up near Dawang Bridge in the CBD, leaving residents to wonder if the great Fengtai sinkhole of 2011 might not be the last time the capital’s ground drops out from under it.
Beijing off the deep end
(May 6, 2011) Beijing really is trying to turn its water dilemma around. This Circle of Blue – Reporting the Global Water Crisis spotlight looks at what action the city’s municipal government is taking to reverse the capital’s water crunch but finds, in spite of acting with speed and authority, current measures are not fast or strong enough. Zhang Junfeng, a Beijing-based engineer and environmental activist, who has been researching Beijing’s water crisis for years, tells Circle of Blue the government still doesn’t clearly recognize the true extent of its problem and seems to think that as long as the country’s GDP is growing, the capital “can just buy the water” it needs. Not realizing that without water, hoped-for growth will falter.
Water woes to dry out bathhouses
(May 5, 2011) Beijing water authorities have revealed a plan to keep the capital’s wells running until 2014. Meanwhile they will cease offering approval for the development of luxurious bathhouses in order to tackle Beijing’s worsening water supply shortage.
Patricia Adams
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