Current Drought Situation and Drought Relief Efforts
State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters Ministry of Water Resources
(March 31, 2010)

1. Features of current drought and the analysis of its causes

By the end March 30, 116 million mu of farmland has been affected by the drought around the country. In particular, 90.68 million mu of cropped farmland suffers from drought, and 28.51 million mu suffers from severe drought and 15.15 million mu suffers from withered crops. Another 25.26 million mu of farmland suffers from low water concentration in the soil just before the sowing season. A total population of 24.25 million people and 15.84 million livestock has difficult access to drinking water due to the drought.

The current drought has four main features:

Drought-affected areas are mainly located in southwest China.Currently, the drought-affected area is slightly bigger than the same period in normal years. But the drought in past years primarily occurred in the North whereas the current drought took place in the Southwest, including a large part of Yunnan and Guizhou, the northwest part of Guangxi, Sichuan and Chongqing. The total area of drought-affected arable land in these five provinces reaches 97.16 million mu, accounting for 84% of the national total, and the drought-affected farmland in Yunnan and Guizhou is 63.08 million mu, occupying 54% of the national total.

Local communities and their livestock suffer from severe difficulty in accessing drinking water due to the drought.Currently, there are 24.25 million people with drinking water problem due to this drought, which is twice more than that in the same period of normal years. People without safe drinking water because of the drought numbers 19.39 million in the above 5 provinces, accounting for 80% of the national total, and people with drinking water problem in Yunnan and Guizhou occupy 58% of the national total.

The current drought is characterized by prolonged duration and heavy damage.This drought has affected Yunnan, Guangxi and Guihzou provinces since the end of the flood season last year, which is 2-3 months earlier than the same period of normal years. This drought has lasted for half a year, and is still intensifying. Serious drought has produced enormous impacts on people's livelihood, industrial and agricultural production, as well as social and economic development in the drought-stricken areas. Direct agriculture loss in Yunnan province alone exceeds 17 billion RMB yuan.

Drought emerges on the horizon in North China.There are nine spring droughts in every ten years in North China. Currently, the drought has occurred in several areas of the North, and it would quickly develop once the weather with little rain, high temperature and heavy wind emerges.

There are 4 reasons for this serious drought in the Southwest.

Scarce rainfall and high temperature.Since last summer, the total rainfall in 5 provinces of the Southwest decreased by 50% compared with the same period of normal years, and the rainfall is reduced by 70-90% and the temperature increases by 0.6-3.2℃ in several areas of Yunnan and Guizhou. The minimum rainfall and the highest temperature in most areas of Yunnan and Guizhou and the northwest of Guangxi have hit the historical records since meteorological data is available.

Unusually low river inflow.Since last summer, the river inflow in 5 provinces of the Southwest falls by 30-80%. The inflow of the Jinsha River, Nanpan River, Hong River, Lancang River and Yiluowadi River located in Yunnan hit the historical bottom, and 662 rivers dry up. On February 23, 2010, Wuzhou hydrological station in Xi River in Guangxi observed the lowest water level and discharge in the history.

Insufficient water storage in reservoirs and ponds.Currently, reservoir water storage in 5 provinces of the Southwest is 20% less than that in the same period of last year. 690 reservoirs and about 15,000 ponds and pools dry up in Yunnan and Guizhou. And 210,000 household water tanks and 160,000 on-farm water tanks in Guangxi dry up. Water sources for drought relief efforts are hardly available.

Low utilization rate of water resources.Although water resources are abundant in the Yungui Plateau, most of local topography features mountains, valleys and Karst landscape, and lots of people live in mountainous areas. It is extremely difficult to utilize water resources and water infrastructure is comparatively weak.

2. An all-out effort has been made in resisting drought and reducing damage

Chinese governments place high emphasis on drought relief in the Southwest. President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and Vice Premier Hui Liangyu made important instructions many times to require related local governments and ministries of State Council to intensify guidance and directions and especially solve drinking water problem of local residents in drought areas. Premier Wen Jiabao separately went to serious drought-stricken areas in Yunnan and Guangxi to inspect drought situations and visited local people in drought stricken areas, and stressed to spare no expenses to quickly mitigate drinking water difficulty. Vice Premier Hui Liangyu also went to Yunnan to inspect and direct drought relief.

State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters deploys in advance, and all of its member departments make concerted efforts to orderly, actively and efficiently carry out drought relief with all the strengths of the whole Ministry, the whole water system and the whole water sector.

2.1 Intensified inter-departmental consultation and timely activation of emergency response mechanism.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and Ministry of Water Resources intensify the monitoring towards rainfall, water and drought, and timely carry out decision-making researches and arrange the deployment of drought relief. While the drought in the flood season end of last year emerged, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and Ministry of Water Resources issued documents to related provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central governments to arrange drought relief. During the process of drought development, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarter organized relevant local governments and departments to densely carry out decision-making for drought relief, timely analyze the drought development tendency and research drought relief countermeasures. Level II of drought relief was timely initiated by the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarter to overcome drought situations, and drought relief is organized with all strengths.

2.2 Enhanced guidance and drought relief support at the grass-root level.

Since 2010, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and Ministry of Water Resources have sent 33 working groups and expert teams to the drought-affected area in southwest and main winter-wheat production base in the north, to provide guidance for drought relief, among which, 4 groups were led by the Minister/Vice Minister of Water Resources. Such working groups and expert teams have been work on the sites in remote mountain areas, village and towns and down to fields, and finding solutions together with local governments.

2.3 Multiple measures adopted simultaneously to ensure drinking water safety

One of the measures is to draft plans based on the capacity of water supply and demand. The plan for satisfying drinking water before the rainy season are worked out, and emergency measures such as taking water from reservoirs, emergency water diversion, drilling wells, as well as water carrying by manpower have been taken, aiming at helping people to access to drinking water.

Since the start of dry spell, in the drought-hit SW five provinces (autonomous regions or municipality), we have built 4307 emergency water diversion works, 70,000 "Five Small" waterworks, more than 20,000 kilometers water pipeline, drilled 18,000 wells, and purchased 7,615 water trunks as well as 96,000 water buckets for supplying water of accumulated 9.41 million tons.

2.4 All-round assistance and partnership between sister provinces

State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and Ministry of Water Resources have coordinated with ten provincial-level flood control and drought relief headquarters as well as water resources departments in 10 provinces and municipality, namely Beijing, Tianjing, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Shandong, Hubei and Guangdong, to assist the disaster-affected areas of Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi. Until present, these ten provinces have allocated 1,335 pumps, 189 electric generators, 36 water trucks and a total of 5 million RMB to the three provinces. In addition, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and Ministry of Water Resources have sent more than 140 groundwater experts from reconnaissance and design institutes and about 50 sets of exploration instrument and equipment, to find water and drill the wells in the worst drought affected areas.

2.5 Increase of financial input for drought relief

Through consultation with National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Finance, 6.3 billion RMB has been allocated in advance for drought relief. In addition, State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters after consultation with the Ministry of Finance, allocated 155 million RMB as subsidy to the southwestern provinces affected by the drought. In the past few days, the Central Government has allocated another 800 million RMB to support the worst-hit region.

2.6 Close cooperation and joint efforts made for disaster reduction

Considering the difficulties faced by disaster-affected provinces, departments under State Council, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the People's Armed Police Force (APF) exert their full efforts to fight for the drought. National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Water Resources have disbursed annual financial allocation in advance for water conservancy projects, drinking water supply and provision of coal, electricity and oil.

The Ministry of Finance has made timely allocation of funds for irrigation and drought relief. The Ministry of Civil Affairs has initiated emergency response and made full efforts on water and food supply. The Ministry of Land and Resources has dispatched working groups led by Minister/Vice Minister and expert teams to the drought-affected area for well drilling. The Ministry of Agriculture has sped up agricultural materials supply, allocation and transportation as well as providing technical assistance to agricultural production. The Ministry of Health has taken the full responsibility of drinking water safety and control of enteric infection. China Meteorological Administration has provided meteorological monitoring data and forecasting for drought-affected areas and produced artificial rainfall. PLA, APF and local paramilitary forces have sent drought relief troops and vehicles to drought-hit area. Recently, water supply troops of PLA has come to drought-hit areas to drill the wells. In addition, the extensive reports of presses and media have helped to enhance the public awareness on drought relief work.

The central and local governments has mobilized and organize residents in drought affected areas to exert all efforts for ensuring safe drinking water for all rural and urban residents and reduce damages caused by drought disasters. Top-level emergency response has been initiated to encounter the drought in the Yunnan and the Guizhou provinces. Second level emergency response was also commenced in Guangxi.

Until March 30, five provinces (autonomous region or municipality) have accumulatively mobilized 25.26 million people, started 21,000 tube wells and 13,000 pumping stations, utilize 1.14 million sets of mobile machinery and equipment, delivered 380,000 trucks of water, consuming 72.34 million kw.h of electricity, and 13,000 ton of fuel.

With the above measures, 19.39 million residents have got access to basic drinking water, among which reservoirs supply for 3.44 million, water transfer and diversion for 2.1 million, well digging for 940,000, carrying or sending water by trucks for 5.06 million and carrying water by man or big animals or using new water sources for 7.85 million. There are 25.83 million mu of farmland being irrigated through varied kinds of emergency measures, which has secured water use of agricultural crops that near water sources or within the coverage of irrigation facilities, and also helps to reduce loss as much as possible and safeguarding social stabilization.

There had been a precipitation process since March 22 in most parts of Chongqing, and parts of Yunnan, Guangxi and Sichuan. However, water scarcity in most parts of the region has not been alleviated due to the long-lasting drought and small amount of precipitation, except for Chongqing. The population suffering from shortage of drinking water has been rising in Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi.

Recently, the winter wheat production bases in the North are also encountering with drought, drinking water shortage for people and livestock has been increasingly severe in the provinces of Gansu, Sha'anxi, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and the Ministry of Water Resources will continue to monitor and analyze rain and water regime and closely monitor the development of drought in the disaster-hit northwest and winter wheat production regions.

We shall strengthen leadership and guidance, carry out emergency water allocation from large and medium water structures in five northwestern provinces, intensify well-digging and new water sources exploration, improve water use management, work out water supply options, give priority to domestic water use, satisfy water need of industrial production and agricultural production in spring, and maximize benefit of limited water sources, so as to win the overall victory of drought relief.

While devoting to the drought relief at present, we should pay attention to draw lessens from the experiences in the drought relief, make improvement on long-term mechanism of drought relief, speed up the formulation of drought relief planning at the national and provincial levels, concentrate on construction of large and medium-size backbone water projects and development of emergency water sources, building-up of drought monitoring and early-warning network, optimization of commanding and regulation, and perfect security system, so as to enhance the overall capacity of drought relief in China.