China

Shanxi Province Struck by Drought
Discovery Earth Alert, Aug. 19, 1999

Northern China's Shanxi province has been struck by a severe drought for the third year in a row, says its state media. Nearly 4 million acres of crops have been affected, with a half million acres destroyed. More than 3 million people and 460,000 livestock animals are experiencing a shortage of drinking water, the Xinhua News Agency reports. Sixty percent of the province's small reservoirs have dried up, and another 20,000 wells are low on water. Meanwhile, in southern China, provinces are struggling through annual summer floods that have killed 800 people and left 5.5 million others homeless.

Natural Disasters Devastate China
Discovery Communications, April 15, 1999

The worst summer flooding in 40 years destroyed 645,000 acres (261,0000 hectares) of valuable cropland last year, while construction projects destroyed 334,000 acres (135,000 hectares) in 1997. The Ministry of National Land and Resources blamed local governments for allowing farmland to be used for other purposes, thereby reducing crop-growing areas. About 66 percent of China's farmland is located in mountain and plateau areas. One-fifth of the total crop-growing area is polluted to some extent, the reported added.

China: Drought Spreads To South
Asia News, May 3, 2000

Severe drought is spreading from the mainland's north and threatening the southern provinces. In Jiangsu province, 1.13 million hectares were drying up, the Yangtse Evening News reported. The lack of water hindered the spring ploughing, the paper said. In the northern province of Shaanxi, the drought was affecting some 667,000 hectares, 40 per cent of the province's farmland, Xinhua reported. In Ankang prefecture, in the south of the province, 60 per cent of farmland has been hit hard, with 170,000 people affected in what the report called the worst drought on record. In Huoqiu county, Anhui, 66,000 hectares of farmland were seriously affected by drought as water levels in the county's reservoirs measured only 59 million cubic metres, about one-fifth of reserves held at the same time last year, the Farmer's Daily said. The western part of Guangdong province is experiencing its worst drought since 1954, the Yangcheng Evening News reported earlier.

Drought Forces Rationing in China’s Capitol
ENN.com, June 11, 2000

Beijing, China will soon order homes, factories, hotels and bathhouses to ration water amid a severe drought that is devastating crops and drying up rivers across northern China, state media reported. Beijing's worst water shortage in nearly two decades has prompted the government to enact "strict and obligatory" quotas on water usage, Xinhua news agency said in a weekend report. The quota system ‹ yet to be unveiled ‹ would affect industries, hotels, restaurants and universities, Xinhua said.

A prolonged drought is baking China's northern plains, with wheat one of the crops worst affected. Agriculture sources said last week they expected the national wheat crop to drop nearly eight percent this year, to 105 million tons from 113 million tons, in large part due to the drought The mighty Yellow River, tapped by factories and farmers along its 3,000-mile (5,000 km) course, has been reduced to a stream by the time it reaches its mouth in Shandong province. In Beijing, the water table and key reservoirs are at their lowest levels since the early 1980s. Water resources per capita were 300 cubic meters just 3.3 percent of the world average in the capital city, Xinhua said, citing official statistics.

China Battles Drought with $48 Mln Emergency Package
Associated Press, June 28, 2000

With northern China facing its most severe drought in a decade, the government announced a 400 million yuan (dlrs 48 million) emergency package Wednesday to sink wells, store rain, divert water and for other relief measures. The money will also be used to spray drought-resistant liquids on crops to ensure food for farmers and to buy pumps, fuel and equipment to transport and store water, the state-run Xinhua News Agency said. The drought has left 16.2 million people and 13.7 million livestock animals short of water and destroyed 14.4 million hectares (35.58 million acres) of crops, Xinhua said. It also has given rise to plagues of locusts that have attacked 3.3 million hectares (8.15 million acres) of crops, Xinhua said. Worst hit are the provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi, Hebei, Gansu and Ningxia in the north and northwest and the northern region of Inner Mongolia, it said. Top soil in many areas has been reduced to dust, it added.

Flooding so far Kills Over 400 in China’s Rainy Season
Associated Press, July 6, 2000

Flooding has killed more than 410 people in the opening weeks of China's annual rainy season and local governments were being warned to prepare for more floods, the official China Daily newspaper reported Thursday. It added that the rains damaged 110,000 houses, 35,000 hectares (86,500 acres) of crops and 90 kilometers (55 miles) of roads, causing losses of 133 million yuan (dlrs 16 million).

Chinese Corn Crop Production Expected to Drop Sharply this Year
World Wide Ag Network, July 18, 2000

Grain traders and analysts in China are saying that they expect to see a sharp drop in this year's total corn production due to the lingering effects of a widespread drought in many areas of the country. Experts now estimate that the total Chinese corn crop could come in as low as 103 million tonnes. That compares with earlier estimates of 115-122 million tonnes made only two months ago. Now, instead of being a main competitor to the US in the export markets, it is possible that China could actually wind up being a net importer of corn during the next marketing year.

Destructive Typhoon Hits China
Associated Press, September 11, 2000

A powerful typhoon that roared across coastal southern China over the weekend left five dead and severely damaged houses and crops, an official and state media reported Monday. Newspapers said the typhoon was particularly destructive. Packing high winds, it moved slowly to the southwest, lingering over the island considerably longer than most typhoons, the Beijing Morning Post and others reported. The storm caused over 1,000 houses to collapse and ruined 20,010 hectares (49,420 acres) of rubber trees, bananas, rice and pepper crops, the Yangcheng Evening News reported in its Sunday edition.

Drought in China Slows Down World Cereal Production, FAO Says
Associated Press, September 20, 2000

A drought in China is having a strong impact on world crops, making global cereal production increase at a lower rate than expected and forcing a large use of cereal stocks, a U.N. Food Agency said Wednesday. The Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization forecast world cereal production this year at 1.8 billion tons, 15 million tons lower than the June forecast and about 0.3 percent above the revised 1999 estimate. The output is well below consumption requirements, causing global cereal reserves to be drawn down, FAO said in its report. In China, reduced plantings and a serious drought have led to a sharp reduction in wheat production. The whole Asian continent has seen a significant fall in this year's cereal output, down 3 percent to 991 million tons.