Provinces thirst as drought endures
Source: Xinhua |
March 18, 2010, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE meals of Li Shaorong and his wife contain only plain rice, pickles and a few slices of radish.
For months, they've had no soup.
Their house is dusty, and towels are as hard as cardboard - no one in the family remembers when was the last time they were wet.
Their home village of Shiyanzi in Xundian County of southwest China's Yunnan Province is at the center of the worst drought to hit the province in a century.
The village has had no rain for six months.
"The horsebean and rape have withered in the field and we're running out of grain in the house," said Li.
For months, getting drinking water has been a problem. The local government has been rationing water to each household since January - a meager amount just enough to keep everyone alive.
Bathing, or even face washing, is out of the question.
"I use a few drops of water to rinse my eyes every other day," said Li. "I've never seen such a drought since I was born."
Yunnan's climate center said the drought since September is the worst in any living person's memory.
"The average precipitation was down by 60 percent, and the drought will persist until mid-May," said Zhu Yong, head of the center.
The drought has left nearly 8 million people short of drinking water in Yunnan, which has the country's third largest water resource.
It has cut by half the harvests of fruits, tea, rubber, coffee, flower and other crops, wreaking havoc on the local economy.
Yunnan Province is responsible for nearly 80 percent of all fresh flower sales in China's market. Many cities across the country have reported nearly a 100 percent price rise and a remarkable drop in supplies.
On Tuesday, a group of excavators dug out a 150-meter deep well, hitting water in Ershan County of Yuxi City, the first success after two weeks of excavation for water in six cities across the thirsty province.
The well, which is expected to provide 500 cubic meters of water daily, will feed more than 4,000 people in Huanian Town, which has 12 rural communities and a secondary school, said Li Lianju, deputy chief of land and resources in Yunnan.
"We aim to dig at least 1,000 wells across the province to provide for up to 1 million people," said Li.
Severe drought has also plagued the neighboring Guizhou Province, where 17 million people are short of drinking water, the provincial flood prevention and drought relief office said yesterday.
Eighty-six of the province's 88 cities and counties are suffering from the drought, it said in a press release.
In Qianxinan Prefecture, one of the worst-hit areas, villagers are seen waiting in long lines, day in day out, for drinking water rationed by the local government.
A river in Bajie town of the prefecture ran dry in early February.
"It was at least 3 meters deep," said Song Xiuguo, a local resident.
Sichuan Province, Chongqing City and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region are also suffering from drought.
For months, they've had no soup.
Their house is dusty, and towels are as hard as cardboard - no one in the family remembers when was the last time they were wet.
Their home village of Shiyanzi in Xundian County of southwest China's Yunnan Province is at the center of the worst drought to hit the province in a century.
The village has had no rain for six months.
"The horsebean and rape have withered in the field and we're running out of grain in the house," said Li.
For months, getting drinking water has been a problem. The local government has been rationing water to each household since January - a meager amount just enough to keep everyone alive.
Bathing, or even face washing, is out of the question.
"I use a few drops of water to rinse my eyes every other day," said Li. "I've never seen such a drought since I was born."
Yunnan's climate center said the drought since September is the worst in any living person's memory.
"The average precipitation was down by 60 percent, and the drought will persist until mid-May," said Zhu Yong, head of the center.
The drought has left nearly 8 million people short of drinking water in Yunnan, which has the country's third largest water resource.
It has cut by half the harvests of fruits, tea, rubber, coffee, flower and other crops, wreaking havoc on the local economy.
Yunnan Province is responsible for nearly 80 percent of all fresh flower sales in China's market. Many cities across the country have reported nearly a 100 percent price rise and a remarkable drop in supplies.
On Tuesday, a group of excavators dug out a 150-meter deep well, hitting water in Ershan County of Yuxi City, the first success after two weeks of excavation for water in six cities across the thirsty province.
The well, which is expected to provide 500 cubic meters of water daily, will feed more than 4,000 people in Huanian Town, which has 12 rural communities and a secondary school, said Li Lianju, deputy chief of land and resources in Yunnan.
"We aim to dig at least 1,000 wells across the province to provide for up to 1 million people," said Li.
Severe drought has also plagued the neighboring Guizhou Province, where 17 million people are short of drinking water, the provincial flood prevention and drought relief office said yesterday.
Eighty-six of the province's 88 cities and counties are suffering from the drought, it said in a press release.
In Qianxinan Prefecture, one of the worst-hit areas, villagers are seen waiting in long lines, day in day out, for drinking water rationed by the local government.
A river in Bajie town of the prefecture ran dry in early February.
"It was at least 3 meters deep," said Song Xiuguo, a local resident.
Sichuan Province, Chongqing City and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region are also suffering from drought.
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