Sustainable Development and Management of Water Resources in China

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Sustainable Development and Management of Water
Resources in China

• Yongqin David Chen
• Department of Geography and Resource Management
• The Chinese University of Hong Kong
• Shatin, NT, Hong Kong
• Tel [phone] Fax [phone]
• Email ydavidchen_at_cuhk.edu.hk

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World Water Development Report
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Presentation Outline

• Spatial and temporal characteristics of water
  resources in China
• Water problems and challenges
• Mega water resources projects in the new
  millennium

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• Why does the Yangtze River have flooding almost
  every year?
• Why does the Yellow River dry up in the middle
  and lower reaches in sequential years?
• Why has the groundwater table in the northern
  plain been dropping to a lower and lower level?
• Why have Liaohe, Haihe and Huihe almost become
  sewage drainage channels?
• Why does the fisheries suffer from red tides so
  often in the Pearl River Estuary?
• Why have the lakes on the Qinhai-Xizang Plateau
  been disappearing?

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Relatively large total but small per-capita amount

• Total annual renewable water resources 2812.4
  billion m3 (streamflow 2711.5 Bm3, groundwater
  828.8 Bm3, duplication subtracted)
• Total amount - No. 6 after Brazil, Russian
  Federation, Canada, US, Indonesia in the world
• Per-capita amount - 2200 m3, only about 1/4 of
  the world average, ranked 109 in 149 countries
  and one of the 13 countries in severe shortage of
  water resources
• Water per unit area of farmland - 1888 m3/mu,
  about 80 of the worlds average

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Highly uneven temporal and spatial distribution

• Monsoon-dominated climate causes very distinctive
  wet (Apr - Sep) and dry (Oct - Mar) seasons in a
  Water Year
• Seasonal variation of streamflow 60 from April
  to July in the South and over 80 from June to
  September in the North
• Interannual variation of streamflow ratio of
  maximum over minimum greater 10 in the North and
  less than 5 in the South
• From humid to arid a gradient from SE to NW

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Spatial distribution of water resources does not
match with that of population, farmland and
mineral resources
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Water problems and challenges

• Flood and waterlogging hazards - too much water
• Droughts and shortage of water - too little water
• Water pollution and degradation of aquatic
  ecosystems - too dirty the water

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• In the 2155 years from 206 B.C. to 1949, there
  were 1092 large-scale flood events and 1056
  major droughts, i.e., one flood and one drought
  every two years on the average.
• 1/3 of farmland and 2/3 of cities are under the
  threats of floods. Flood prevention standards are
  still low and therefore the economic lose caused
  by floods are enormous (800 billion yuan or 1/5
  of the revenue from 1993 to 1997)
• From 1949 to 1993, drought was the natural hazard
  that caused the biggest damages to agriculture
  nationwide.
• More than 300 of Chinas 600 cities experience
  water shortages totaling about 6 billion m3 a
  year and causing 120 billion yuan a year in lost
  industrial output.

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Three Types of Water Shortage

• Water scarcity - northern and northwestern China
• Lack of engineering works and water supply
  systems - southwestern China
• Water quality constraints - most common in
  southern China

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Streamflow dry-up episodes in the lower reach of
the Yellow River

• At the Lijin station, the dry-up episodes
  occurred in 20 years of the 26 years from 1972 to
  1997, i.e., averagely 3 out of every 4 years.
• The length of dry-up reaches and number of days
  have been increasing over the past three decades.
• Before 1990, the dry-up episodes occurred mainly
  in early summer (May, June and July). Since the
  1990s, the river dried up for varying numbers of
  days in almost every month.

Human activities have been the key causes of
dry-up events.
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Reach length and duration of the streamflow
dry-up episodes
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Temporal coincidence of rainfall and warm
temperature

• Advantage beneficial to the growth of plants
• Disadvantage large demand for irrigation in
  winter and especially in spring during and
  immediately after sowing

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• Water quality of major rivers is generally better
  in the south than in the north because of the
  differences in assimilative capacities of
  waterbodies and wastewater-runoff ratios.
• By 1995 industrial water pollution in the Huai
  River Basin was nearly disaster level, prompting
  the central government to adopt drastic measures
  to control wastewater discharges along the river.

• Urban bodies of water are among the most polluted
  because they receive large amounts of untreated
  industrial and municipal wastewater.
• Urban sections of rivers are polluted mainly by
  organic matter. Major pollution includes
  petroleum, COD/BOD, ammonia nitrogen, volatile
  phenols, and mercury.

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Mega water resources projects in the new
millennium

• Quantity and quality of water are potentially
  renewable resources or resources with limited
  renewability.
• China will continue to be a country in water
  shortage, especially as its population continues
  to grow. The per-capita amount of water will be
  only 1760 m3 in 2030 when the population will
  reach and hopefully stabilize at 1.6 billion.
• Engineering and non-engineering measures to
  prevent floods and droughts, as well as to
  improve water environment

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Three Gorges Dam Project

• Location Sandouping, Yichang, Hubei province
• Dam 1,600 m long, 185 m high, normal water level
  135 m by 2003 and 175 m by 2009
• Reservoir 600 km long, inundate 632 km2, flood
  control storage of 22.15 billion cubic meter
• Expected investment 203.9 billion renminbi
  (US24.65 billion)
• Number of migrants 1.13 million
• Installed power generation capacity 18.2 million
  kilowatts

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Three Gorges Dam Project (contd)

• Construction timetable
• 1993-1997 The Yangtze River was diverted in
  November 1997
• 1998-2003 The first batch of generators will
  begin to generate power in 2003 and a permanent
  ship lock is scheduled to open for navigation the
  same year.
• 2004-2009 The entire project is to be completed
  by 2009 when all 26 generators will be able to
  generate power.
• Fund sources
• The Three Gorges Dam Construction Fund
• Revenue from Gezhouba Power Plant
• Policy loans from the China Development Bank
• Loans from domestic and foreign commercial banks
• Corporate bonds

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Three Major Functions of TGD Project

• Flood control increase flood control capability
  from 10-year to 100-year event
• Power generation one-nineth of national total
  electricity
• Improved navigation fleets of 10,000 tons can
  go to Chongqing

China's most ambitious construction project
since the Great Wall.
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Arguments in favor of and against the TGD

• 
  Cost
• The dam is within budget, and updating the
  transmission grid will increase demand for its
  electricity and allow the dam to pay for itself.
• The dam will far exceed the official cost
  estimate, and the investment will be
  unrecoverable as cheaper power sources become
  available and lure away ratepayers.

• 
  Flood control
• The huge flood storage capacity will lessen the
  frequency of major floods. The risk that the dam
  will increase flooding is remote.
• Siltation will decrease flood storage capacity,
  the dam will not prevent floods on tributaries,
  and more effective flood control solutions are
  available.

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• Reduction in the lake storage of flood water -
  total area of lakes in the Jiang Han region has
  decreased from 3915 km2 to 2623 km2 from 1954 to
  1995.
• The Dong Ting Lake, the largest freshwater lake
  in China in the 1950s, has lost over 40 of its
  area and become the second largest freshwater
  lake (after the Po Yang Lake).

Reduction of storage volume of the Dong Ting Lake
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• Power generation
• The alternatives are not viable yet and there is
  a huge potential demand for the relatively cheap
  hydroelectricity.
• Technological advancements have made hydrodams
  obsolete, and a decentralized energy market will
  allow ratepayers to switch to cheaper, cleaner
  power supplies.

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• Resettlement
• 15 million people downstream will be better off
  due to electricity and flood control.
• Relocated people are worse off than before and
  their human rights are being violated.

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• Environment
• Hydroelectric power is cleaner than coal burning
  and safer than nuclear plants, and steps will be
  taken to protect the environment.
• Water pollution and deforestation will increase,
  the coastline will be eroded and the altered
  ecosystem will further endanger many species.

• Navigation
• Shipping will become faster, cheaper and safer
  as the rapid waters are tamed and ship locks are
  installed.
• Heavy siltation will clog ports within a few
  years and negate improvements to navigation.

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• Local culture and natural beauty
• Many historical relics are being moved, and the
  scenery will not change that much.
• The reservoir will flood many historical sites
  and ruin the legendary scenery of the gorges and
  the local tourism industry.

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Non-engineering Measures

• Water resources and environmental legislation,
  regulation and management
• Water and climate simulation, forecasting and
  decision-support systems
• Integrated watershed management for land use
  planning and ecosystem protection
• Financial investment, insurance protection and
  education
• Research and advancement in hydrological sciences

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Thank You
Welcome your Questions and Comments