Chinese water crisis

A dry river near Beijing, China. July 2007

The Chinese water crisis threatens the stability and prosperity not only in People's Republic of China but globally as well, according to John McAlister from the film Aquabiotronics.^[1] According to the World Bank forecast, Mainland China has only a per-capita share of 2700 cubic meters per annum, one quarter of the world's average.^[2] Half of China's 617 largest cities face water deficits. Beijing is among the cities which will be most affected. Northern China is now relying on 10,000-year-old aquifers to meet the demand of China's large population, which has resulted in ground cracking and subsidence in some regions.^[3]

Regional disparity

The areas south of the Yangtze River, China's longest, which account for only 36.5 per cent of the country's total territory, have 80.9 per cent of its total water resources. However the areas north of the Yangtze, which make up 63.5 per cent of China, possess only 19.1 per cent of total water resources.

Taihu Blue Algae Bloom

In the summer of 2007 a thick toxic blanket of blue-green algae covered Lake Tai in Jiangsu province. Chemical fertilizers were identified as one of the main causes.

Greenpeace China tested the water in 2008. Of the 25 water samples examined, 20 of them had such high concentrations of nitrogen and nitrates that they were not safe for human use. They were even too polluted to be used to water plants or in factories.

Activism in north China

Leading Chinese environmental activist and journalist Ma Jun has warned that China is facing a water crisis that includes water shortages, water pollution and a deterioration in water quality. 400 out of 600 cities in China are facing water shortages to varying degrees, including 30 out of the 32 largest cities.^{[citation needed]} Discharges of waste water have increased continually over the years 2001-2006, and Ma's statistics show that 300 million peasants’ drinking water is not safe.^{[citation needed]}

He has warned: "In the north, due to the drying up of the surface water, the underground water has been over-extracted. The water shortage in the north could have drastic affects because almost half of China’s population lives on only 15 percent of its water.^[4] The situation is not sustainable. Though the south has abundant water, there is a lack of clean water due to serious water pollution. Even water-abundant deltas like the Yangtze and the Pearl River suffer from water shortages."^[5]

In 2004 the World Bank warned that the scarcity of the resource would lead to "a fight between rural interests, urban interests and industrial interests on who gets water in China."^{[citation needed]} The validity of this prediction was confirmed, for example, in April 2005 when many people were injured in Dongyang city, Zhejiang Province, in clashes over the nearby chemical factories of the Juxi Industrial Park accused of water pollution that harmed crops and led to deformed babies being born.^[6][7]

Dam near the Great Wall of China.

World Bank forecasts

If present trends are not reversed, the World Bank forecasts that by 2020 there will be 30 million environmental refugees in China due to water stress.

• With 20% of the world’s population but only 7% of global water resources, China meets with a severe challenge.

• More than half of China’s 660 cities suffer from water shortages, affecting 160 million people.
• The per capita water volume in China is one fourth of the world average.
• 90% of cities’ groundwater and 75% of rivers and lakes are polluted.
• As a result of widespread water pollution, 700 million people drink contaminated water every day.^{[citation needed]}
• Waterborne diseases have created a rising number of premature deaths.
• Between November 2005 and January 2006, three large-scale incidents occurred, halting water supply for millions of people and raising awareness of the challenges ahead.
• The government plans to mitigate water pollution by investing in wastewater treatment facilities.

Films

• Shifting Nature. Produced by BBC Two.

See also

• Water resources of China
• Water supply and sanitation in the People's Republic of China
• Deficit irrigation

References

1. ^ China's Water Crisis (a pdf file)
2. ^ Experts warn of water crisis, China Daily, May 20, 2005
3. ^ China Warned of Water Crisis by 2030, "china.org.cn", June 6, 2002
4. ^ Larmer, Brook. (May 2008). Bitter Waters. National Geographic Retrieved on 20 January 2009.
5. ^ Tackling China's water crisis
6. ^ 100 Chinese cities face water crisis, The Guardian, June 8, 2005
7. ^ The Long Story About Huaxi/Huankantou

• Li, Naomi (2006-09-21). "Tackling China's water crisis online". chinadialogue. http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/392-Tackling-China-s-water-crisis-online. Retrieved 2007-02-01. 

External links

• chinadialogue 中国与世界，环境危机大家谈 - bilingual news and in-depth articles on China's environmental crisis
• China's Water Management An interview of Joël Cicéron, director of Veolia Water in Taiwan.
• River Pollution in China Photo essay on water pollution in the Huai River Basin
• Worsening Water Shortages Threaten China's Food Security
• Water issues in China, from PBS site
• China water pollution - Greenpeace China
• CNN.com audio slideshow on water pollution in China