South–North Water Transfer Project
South–North Water Transfer Project | ||
---|---|---|
Hanyu Pinyin Nánshuǐ Běidiào Gōngchéng | | |
Wade–Giles | Nan-shui P'ei-tiao Kung-ch'eng |
The South–North Water Transfer Project, also translated as the South-to-North Water Diversion Project
- The Eastern Route through the course of the Grand Canal;
- The Central Route from the upper reaches of Han River (a tributary of Yangtze River) via the Grand Aqueduct to Beijing and Tianjin;
- The Western Route which goes from three tributaries of Yangtze River near the Bayankala Mountain to provinces like Qinghai, Gansu, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia.[4]
Mao Zedong discussed the idea for a mass engineering project as an answer to China's water problems as early as 1952. He reportedly said, "there's plenty of water in the south, not much water in the north. If at all it's possible; borrowing some water would be good."[5][6][7] Construction began in 2003.[8]
By 2014, more than $79 billion had been spent, making it one of the most ambitious and expensive engineering projects in human history.
East route
The Eastern Route Project (ERP) or Jiangdu Hydro Project consists of an upgrade to the Grand Canal, and will be used to divert a fraction of the total flow of the Yangtze River to Northern China. According to Chinese hydrologists, the entire flow of the Yangtze at the point of its discharge into the East China Sea is, on average, 956 km3 per year; the annual flow does not fall below around 600 km3 per year even in driest years.[10] As the project progresses, the amount of water to be diverted to the north will increase from 8.9 km3/year to 10.6 km3/year to 14.8 km3/year.[10]
Water from the Yangtze River will be drawn into the canal in
As of October 2017, water has reached Tianjin. Tianjin is expected to receive 1 km3/year.[12] The Eastern route is not expected to supply Beijing which is to be supplied by the central route.[13]
The completed line will be slightly over 1,152 km (716 miles) long, equipped with 23 pumping stations with a power capacity of 454 megawatts.[14]
An important element of the Eastern Route will be a tunnel crossing under the Yellow River, on the border of Dongping and Dong'e Counties of Shandong Province. The crossing will consist of two 9.3 m diameter horizontal tunnels, positioned 70 m under the riverbed of the Yellow River.[14][10]
Due to the topography of the Yangtze Plain and the North China Plain, pumping stations will be needed to raise water from the Yangtze to the Yellow River crossing; farther north, the water will be flowing downhill in an aqueduct.[10]
Central route
The central route, known colloquially as the Grand Aqueduct, runs from
The central route crosses the
On mapping services, one can see the canal's intake at the Danjiangkou Reservoir (32°40′26″N 111°42′32″E / 32.67389°N 111.70889°E); its crossing of the Baihe River north of Nanyang, Henan (33°6′41″N 112°37′30″E / 33.11139°N 112.62500°E), the Shahe River in Lushan County (33°42′49″N 112°56′40″E / 33.71361°N 112.94444°E), the Ying River in Yuzhou (34°11′05″N 113°26′18″E / 34.18472°N 113.43833°E), and the Yellow River northeast of Zhengzhou (34°52′55″N 113°13′14″E / 34.88194°N 113.22056°E); and its entrance into the southwestern suburbs of Beijing at the Juma River in Zhuozhou, Hebei (39°30′26.3″N 115°47′30.2″E / 39.507306°N 115.791722°E).
The whole project was expected to be completed around 2010. Final completion was on 12 December 2014 to allow for more environmental protection along the route. One problem was the impact of the project on the Han River below the Danjiangkou Dam,[5] from which approximately one-third of the route's total water is diverted. One long-term solution being considered is to build another canal to divert water from the reservoir at the Three Gorges Dam to Danjiangkou Reservoir.[17]
Another major challenge was the resettlement of around 330,000 people who lived near Danjiangkou Reservoir at its former lower elevation and along the route of the project. On 18 October 2009, Chinese officials began to relocate residents from the areas of the Hubei and Henan provinces that would be affected by the project.[18] The completed route of the Grand Aqueduct is about 1,264 km long and initially provided 9.5 km3 of water annually. By 2030, the project is slated to increase this transfer to 12 to 13 km3 per year.[14] Although the transfer will be lower in dry years, it is projected that it will be able to provide a flow of at least 6.2 km3/year at all times with 95% confidence.[15]
Industries are prohibited from locating on the reservoir's watershed to keep its water
West route
There are long-standing plans to divert about 200 cubic kilometers of water per year from the upstream sections of six rivers in southwestern
Financing
In 2008, construction costs for the eastern and central routes was estimated to be 254.6 billion
Project controversy
The project required resettling at least 330,000 people in central China.[21] Critics have warned the water diversion will cause environmental damage and some villagers said officials had forced them to sign agreements to relocate.[21]
In the summer of 2013, complaints arrived from the fish farmers on the Dongping Lake, on the project's Eastern Route, in Shandong, reporting that the polluted Yangtze River water entering the lake was killing their fish.[22]
Scientists have been concerned that the project will increase water evaporation losses. The exact amount of evaporation loss is not known, but it may be improved in the future as more water is transferred and the flow rate increases.[23]
See also
- Water resources of China
- Meng Xuenong, the project's deputy director 2003-07
- Irtysh–Karamay–Ürümqi Canal, in Xinjiang province
- NAWAPASimilar (unbuilt) project in North America
- Siberian River ReversalSimilar (unbuilt) project in the Former Soviet Union
- State Water Project Similar built project in California
References
- ^ This is the English translation preferred by the official web site, http://www.nsbd.gov.cn/zx/english/ Archived 2013-06-25 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "{title}" 南水北调工程. Xinhua Net (in Chinese). 2002-12-27. Archived from the original on 2014-03-07. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
- ^ Wang, Yue (2014-02-20). "Chinese Minister Speaks Out Against South-North Water Diversion Project". Forbes Asia. Archived from the original on 2014-03-09. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
- ^ Jaffe, Aaron; Keith Schneider (1 March 2011). "A Dry and Anxious North Awaits China's Giant, Unproven Water Transport Scheme". Circle of Blue. Archived from the original on 2014-03-07. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
- ^ a b Wong, Edward (2011-06-01), "Plan for China's Water Crisis Spurs Concern", The New York Times, archived from the original on 2015-09-29, retrieved 2017-02-23
- ^ The quote is given as “南方水多,北方水少,如有可能,借一点也是可以的” in 作家作品:毛泽东与南水北调 Archived 2013-01-20 at the Wayback Machine (Mao Zedong and the South-to-North Water Diversion Project), by Jin HUaichun (靳怀堾), at the project's official web site.
- ^ Zhang Hongzhou, Genevieve Donnellon-May (August 12, 2021). "To Build or Not to Build: Western Route of China's South-North Water Diversion Project". China Environment Forum New Security Beat. Wilson Center. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
- ^ "South-to-North Water Diversion Project - Water Technology".
- ^ Chang, Gordon G. (8 January 2014). "China's Water Crisis Made Worse by Policy Failures". World Affairs. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ a b c d Eastern Route Project (ERP) Archived 2015-06-28 at the Wayback Machine, on the official project site; includes the map. (As one can see from the context, "956 million m³" on that page is apparently a typo for "956 billion m³").
- ^ 段亚英 (2018-03-29). "Diversion project's eastern route transfers 2.5 bln cubic meters of water". China.org.cn. Retrieved 2022-08-20.
- ^ "Desalination: Costly drops". The Economist. 9 February 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-02-11. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
- S2CID 4384163.
- ^ a b c d South-to-North Water Diversion Project, China Archived 2007-07-12 at the Wayback Machine, Water-Technology.net, September 2008. Also archived here [1]
- ^ a b c Middle Route Project (MRP) Archived 2013-10-30 at the Wayback Machine, at the project's official site
- ^ China's water-diversion scheme: A shortage of capital flows Archived 2008-10-13 at the Wayback Machine, The Economist, October 11, 2008, p. 61
- ^ "World's Largest River Diversion Project Now Pipes Water to Beijing". Bloomberg News. 15 December 2014. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ The Inquirer, Philadelphia: China to resettle 330,000 people Archived 2009-10-21 at the Wayback Machine, 19 October 2010
- ^ Al Jazeera English: China plans for future supply of clean water Archived 2017-04-07 at the Wayback Machine, 11 August 08
- ^ Craig Simmons. "Solving the Entire Chinese Water Crisis Archived 2010-10-19 at the Wayback Machine", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution via The Progress Report. Retrieved on 2008-06-29.
- ^ a b "In the World | Philadelphia Inquirer | 10/19/2009". 2009-10-21. Archived from the original on 2009-10-21. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
- ^ Chinese Water Diversion Project Kills Fish on Test Run Archived 2014-07-05 at the Wayback Machine, 2013-07-08
- ^ Yujun Ma, Xiao-Yan Li, Maxwell Wilson and Xiuchen Wu. "Water loss by evaporation from China's South-North Water Transfer Project".
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
External links
- Official Website: 中国南水北调 Archived 2003-08-31 at the Wayback Machine (in Chinese) / South-to-North Water Diversion Archived 2013-06-25 at the Wayback Machine (in English)
- RitchieWiki: South-North Water Transfer Project
- CNN: Thirsty China to divert the mighty Yangtze, 15 November 2001
- Water industry article
- New York Times: Beneath Booming Cities, China’s Future Is Drying Up, 28 September 2007
- New York Times: Map of South-North Project