China Water: July 3, 2008: Flood toll high. Drought also a problem.

Floods are a chronic problem in China and this year is no exception.

Drought is also a chronic problem in many areas of China.

Here we have two stories that discuss these problems.

Floods in the south and northeast. Drought in the center. No wonder there is an extensive canal network that stretches throughout the country and dates back two thousand years.

And look! A mention of "The Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters (SFDH)" of which Zhang Zhitong, is vice director. This, I confess, is a new agency to me. (Oh the joys of blogging! Unlike many forms of writing for publication, in this case, you the reader, experience the joy of watching my expertise in this field improve as time goes on.

Soon I shall look into this further.

Peter Huston
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http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-07/02/content_8478536.htm

China floods leave 252 dead, 64 missing as flood season begins
www.chinaview.cn 2008-07-02 23:37:36 Print

BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Flooding and related disasters since the beginning of June have left 252 people dead and 64 missing across China, which saw the start of the main flood season on Tuesday, a senior flood control and drought relief official said on Wednesday.

About 50 million people and 3 million hectares of land were affected, with around 200,000 houses destroyed, Zhang Zhitong, vice director of the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, told a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.

"The flood control efforts will be hampered by higher than average rains that are expected soon in the Yellow River areas, parts of northeast provinces as well as the quake zone in southwest China," Zhang said.

He promised the headquarters would take effective measures to protect people during the main flood season.

However, floods in southern China and northeast regions and typhoons along the coast had come early this year, he said.

The Pearl River delta had already embraced the worst floods in more than five decades, and the first typhoon this year was two months earlier than usual when Neoguri made a landfall in south China in April, he said.
Editor: Yan Liang







http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-07/02/content_8477847.htm


China braces for major flood season, lingering drought in north
www.chinaview.cn 2008-07-02 16:45:45 Print

BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhua) -- China's flood control and drought relief authorities warned the country was at risk to the major seasonal flooding that had already killed 233 people and affected more than 34 million by Wednesday.

The Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters (SFDH) announced the major flood season had started on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the severe drought, which had caused temporary shortages of drinking water among 7.39 million people and 5.79 million large livestock, would linger in the north.

The SFDH statistics showed the drought affected more than 10.3 million hectares of farmland, worse than the average of the same period last year.

Zhang Zhitong, SFDH office vice director, said the country's major rivers were facing increasing risk of severe flooding as more rain was expected and the southeastern coastal regions were vulnerable to typhoon.

He added the summer drought would possibly occur in southern regions with the Pacific subtropical high moving northwards.

Zhang said recent downpours had mainly lashed the southern regions, pushing up river levels above warning levels and triggering floods. For example, rainfall in most of the southern coastal areas and the northeast of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region ranged between 100 mm to 300 mm in the past week.

Rain had mitigated the drought in north China since June 27, but failed to change the condition as the precipitation was not enough.

He promised the headquarters would take effective measures to protect people from flood danger during the major flood season.
Editor: Amber Yao