Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
China has gone through rapid industrial growth in the last half century and, as a result,
the country continues to suffer from record-breaking levels of pollution, drought, poor food quality
and smog. But experts say China’s most urgent problem is its water supply, which has plummeted
to dangerously low levels. So, what’s happening to China’s water?
Well, the issue largely one of supply and demand. China is home to just under one-and-a-half
billion people, or about 20 percent of the global population, and yet it holds only seven
percent of the world’s fresh water. Further complicating the matter, 80 percent of this
water is in Southern China, while half the population and two-thirds of the farmland
is in the north. That means Northern cities must get their water from rivers in the South
by way of man-made pipelines and canals, also known as the South-to-North Water Diversion
Project. When this launched in 2014, state media promoted it as the cure to the country’s
water woes. But due to grossly outdated miscalculations of the south’s water supply, which has dwindled
from climate change and drought, the project has had little effect on the crisis at large.
Today, more than one hundred metropolitan areas face severe water shortage and some,
like Lintao in the North, have run out completely.
On top of this, most of the water China does have is heavily polluted. More than 80 percent
of the country’s water from underground wells is not suitable for drinking or bathing,
and nearly half of its rivers are too polluted to even touch. This is largely a result of
emissions, industrial spills and chemical runoff from manufacturing facilities. For
instance the Yellow River, which played a key part in the development of early Chinese
agriculture and civilization, is now lined with thousands of petrochemical plants, leaving
only 16 percent of it usable for household purposes. And although China has regulations
in place to mitigate industrial pollution, companies can often get around them by negotiating
with local officials. Lack of clean water has forced many city-dwellers to resort to
polluted water for household use. In fact, nearly a quarter of China’s population,
or about 300 million people, drink contaminated water every day. According to one report,
polluted water is responsible for 190 million people falling ill per year.
And, China’s water problems are expected to get worse. The country’s rapidly growing
population and industrialization, coupled with its increasing demand for coal, is expected
to drop its water supply to dangerously low levels by 2030. This crisis is already costing
China more than $200 billion dollars per year, and, according to the world bank, it could
eventually lead to a war over the country’s rural, urban and industrial interests. In
1999, China’s Premier called the country’s water problems a threat to the “very survival
of the Chinese nation”. Fifteen years later, and with no foreseeable solution, it seems
as though his fears are coming true.
China’s water issues don’t end with drinking water. The South China Sea has been an enormous
source of territorial contention for China and its neighbors, even sparking fears about
war. So what’s going on in the South China Sea? check out this video! Thanks for
watching Seeker Daily, don’t forget to like and subscribe for new videos every day!