scholarly journals Virtual versus real water transfers within China

2005 ◽  
Vol 361 (1469) ◽  
pp. 835-842 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Ma ◽  
Arjen Y Hoekstra ◽  
Hao Wang ◽  
Ashok K Chapagain ◽  
Dangxian Wang
Keyword(s):  
South China ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
North China ◽  
Virtual Water ◽  
Water Transfer ◽  
Qualitative Description ◽  
The North ◽  
Food Deficit ◽  
Virtual Water Flow ◽  
North Water

North China faces severe water scarcity—more than 40% of the annual renewable water resources are abstracted for human use. Nevertheless, nearly 10% of the water used in agriculture is employed in producing food exported to south China. To compensate for this ‘virtual water flow’ and to reduce water scarcity in the north, the huge south–north Water Transfer Project is currently being implemented. This paradox—the transfer of huge volumes of water from the water-rich south to the water-poor north versus transfer of substantial volumes of food from the food-sufficient north to the food-deficit south—is receiving increased attention, but the research in this field has not yet reached further than rough estimation and qualitative description. The aim of this paper is to review and quantify the volumes of virtual water flows between the regions in China and to put them in the context of water availability per region. The analysis shows that north China annually exports about 52 billion m 3 of water in virtual form to south China, which is more than the maximum proposed water transfer volume along the three routes of the Water Transfer Project from south to north.

China: The South–North Water Transfer Project—is it justified?

Water Policy ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremy Berkoff
Keyword(s):  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Agricultural Development ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Water Transfer ◽  
The South ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
North Water ◽  
Stressed Region

The South-North Water Transfer Project (SNWTP), if fully developed, could divert 40-50 km3/yr from the Yangtse basin to the North China plain, alleviating water scarcity for 300-325M people living in what even then will be a highly water-stressed region. Construction of the next stage, diverting up to 20 km3 at a cost of about $17,000M (including $7000M in ancillary costs), is to start in 2002/3. A recent World Bank study suggests that the project is economically attractive. This conclusion has been disputed by the World Wildlife Fund (now the Worldwide Fund for Nature). This paper concludes that little confidence can be placed in either of these analyses. It therefore seeks to throw light on how the project fits within a broader regional and agricultural development setting. The project is hugely expensive, and would at the margin tend to preserve water in low value agriculture and require the resettlement of upwards of 300,000 people. On the other hand, the pace and scale of socio-economic change in China are without precedent, and adjustment problems on the North China plain are greatly exacerbated by water scarcity. Reallocation of water from irrigation to municipal and industrial uses or to the environment is socially divisive and in some instances physically impracticable. The transfer project would greatly alleviate these difficulties. It is these arguments (which are ultimately political and pragmatic), rather than those based strictly on economic or food security concerns, that make the Government's decision to proceed with the project fully understandable.

Estimation of the virtual water trade between two Spanish regions: Castilla-la Mancha and Murcia

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 831-840 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ángel De Miguel ◽  
Eloy García ◽  
Irene De Buestamante
Keyword(s):  
Water Flow ◽  
Food Processing ◽  
Virtual Water ◽  
Water Transfer ◽  
Water Efficiency ◽  
International Context ◽  
Water Flows ◽  
Spanish Regions ◽  
La Mancha ◽  
Virtual Water Flow

Virtual water is defined as the water needed to produce a product. We can use virtual water flow calculations to estimate the water efficiency of a country, as well as its economic dependence on water resources. Former studies on this area have focused on quantifying the virtual water flows between countries, in an international context. In this study we reduce the action framework to regions within a country, determining the virtual water balance between two Spanish regions: Castilla-La Mancha and Murcia. In 2004, Castilla-La Mancha exported to Murcia 2,453,442 tons of commercial products, from which 1,191,628 tons were agricultural goods. In terms of virtual water, it means 1,365 hm3, including food-processing, and industrial products. It is necessary to add 350 hm3 to the result, because of the water transfer (Tajo-Segura transfer) between the rivers basins of these regions, so the final virtual water number, in 2004, was 1,715 hm3. The other way round, Murcia exported in 2004 2,069,000 tons of products, from which 490,351 tons were agricultural goods. That supposes 712 hm3 of virtual water. Virtual water flow is unbalanced and displaced towards Murcia with a difference of 1,003 hm3.

scholarly journals The combined effect of two westerly jet waveguides on heavy haze in the North China Plain in November and December 2015

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiadong An ◽  
Lifang Sheng ◽  
Qian Liu ◽  
Chun Li ◽  
Yang Gao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
East Asia ◽  
Rossby Wave ◽  
South China ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Combined Effect ◽  
The North ◽  
Westerly Jet ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Subtropical Westerly Jet

Abstract. Severe haze occurred in the North China Plain (NCP) from November to December 2015, with a wide spatial range and long duration. In this paper, the combined effect of two westerly jet waveguides on haze in the NCP was investigated based on visibility observational data and NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data. The results showed that the two Rossby waveguides within the westerly jet originating from the Mediterranean were responsible for the haze formation in the NCP. The Rossby wave propagated eastward along the subtropical westerly jet and the polar front jet, causing an anomalous anticyclone over the Sea of Japan and anticyclonic wind speed shear at 850 hPa over the NCP, which enhanced the anomalous descending air motion in the middle and lower troposphere and subsequently resulted in a stable atmosphere. Furthermore, the Rossby wave weakened the East Asia trough and Ural ridge, and strengthened the anomalous southerly wind at 850 hPa over the coastal areas of east China, decelerating the East Asia winter monsoon. The above meteorological conditions modulated haze accumulation in November and December 2015. Meanwhile, continuous rainfall related to ascending motion due to Rossby wave propagation along the subtropical westerly jet occurred in a large area of southern China. The latent heat released by rainfall acted as a heat source, inducing convection over South China. This further strengthened the ascending motion over South China so that the descending motion over the NCP was maintained, favoring the maintenance of severe haze. This study is of great significance to elucidate the formation and maintenance mechanism of large-scale haze in the NCP in late fall and boreal winter.

scholarly journals Proterozoic−Phanerozoic tectonic evolution of the Qilian Shan and Eastern Kunlun Range, northern Tibet

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen Wu ◽  
Jie Li ◽  
Andrew V. Zuza ◽  
Peter J. Haproff ◽  
Xuanhua Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South China ◽  
Tectonic Evolution ◽  
North China ◽  
The South ◽  
The North ◽  
South China Craton ◽  
Late Neoproterozoic ◽  
North And South ◽  
North Qilian ◽  
Early Neoproterozoic

The Proterozoic−Phanerozoic tectonic evolution of the Qilian Shan, Qaidam Basin, and Eastern Kunlun Range was key to the construction of the Asian continent, and understanding the paleogeography of these regions is critical to reconstructing the ancient oceanic domains of central Asia. This issue is particularly important regarding the paleogeography of the North China-Tarim continent and South China craton, which have experienced significant late Neoproterozoic rifting and Phanerozoic deformation. In this study, we integrated new and existing geologic field observations and geochronology across northern Tibet to examine the tectonic evolution of the Qilian-Qaidam-Kunlun continent and its relationships with the North China-Tarim continent to the north and South China craton to the south. Our results show that subduction and subsequent collision between the Tarim-North China, Qilian-Qaidam-Kunlun, and South China continents occurred in the early Neoproterozoic. Late Neoproterozoic rifting opened the North Qilian, South Qilian, and Paleo-Kunlun oceans. Opening of the South Qilian and Paleo-Kunlun oceans followed the trace of an early Neoproterozoic suture. The opening of the Paleo-Kunlun Ocean (ca. 600 Ma) occurred later than the opening of the North and South Qilian oceans (ca. 740−730 Ma). Closure of the North Qilian and South Qilian oceans occurred in the Early Silurian (ca. 440 Ma), whereas the final consumption of the Paleo-Kunlun Ocean occurred in the Devonian (ca. 360 Ma). Northward subduction of the Neo-Kunlun oceanic lithosphere initiated at ca. 270 Ma, followed by slab rollback beginning at ca. 225 Ma evidenced in the South Qilian Shan and at ca. 194 Ma evidenced in the Eastern Kunlun Range. This tectonic evolution is supported by spatial trends in the timing of magmatism and paleo-crustal thickness across the Qilian-Qaidam-Kunlun continent. Lastly, we suggest that two Greater North China and South China continents, located along the southern margin of Laurasia, were separated in the early Neoproterozoic along the future Kunlun-Qinling-Dabie suture.

scholarly journals The practice of water operation and groundwater protection in the middle route of South-to-North Water Transfer Project

2018 ◽  
Vol 246 ◽  
pp. 01052
Author(s):  
Jia Li ◽  
Yuan-yuan Gao ◽  
Liu-qing Yan ◽  
Jian-wen Yao ◽  
Gui-fang Chen
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
North China ◽  
Groundwater Protection ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Environmental Water ◽  
Water Transfer ◽  
The South ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
North Water ◽  
Water Amount

The South-to-North Water Transfer Project plays an important role in guaranteeing the sustainable development of economy and society in North China. The first phase of the middle route of the South-to- North Water Transfer Project (m-SNWTP) has been running safely in the past three years, and the dispatched water amount is increasing. This paper mainly describes the water operation of the m-SNWTP and the groundwater protection in the water-receiving areas. Up to the end of June 2018, more than 1.4×1010m3water had been supplied to the m-SNWTP benefited regions, including 8.65×108m3environmental water. In addition, the m-SNWTP provides water source guarantee for the environment restoration. Over 1.326 ×109m3overexploited groundwater has been reduced in the urban areas of the water-receiving areas, and the continuous decline of groundwater level has been effectively curbed.

spatial and temporal changes in SO2 over China in the recent decade and the Impacts of emissions and meteorology

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ting Wang ◽  
Pucai Wang ◽  
Nicolas Theys ◽  
Dan Tong ◽  
François Hendrick ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South China ◽  
North China ◽  
Function Analysis ◽  
General Rule ◽  
Recent Decade ◽  
Static Stability ◽  
Temporal Changes ◽  
Driving Mechanism ◽  
The North ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Changes

<p>The spatial and temporal changes of SO<sub>2</sub> regimes over China during 2005 to 2016 and their associated driving mechanism are investigated based on a state-of-the-art retrieval dataset. Climatological SO<sub>2</sub>exhibits pronounced seasonal and regional variations, with higher loadings in wintertime and two prominent maxima centered in the North China Plain and the Cheng-Yu District. In the last decade, overall SO<sub>2</sub> decreasing trends have been reported nationwide, with spatially varying downward rates according to a general rule—the higher the SO<sub>2</sub> loading, the more significant the decrease. However, such decline is in fact not monotonic, but instead four distinct temporal regimes can be identified by empirical orthogonal function analysis. After an initial rise at the beginning, SO<sub>2</sub> in China undergoes two sharp drops in the periods 2007-2008 and 2014-2016, amid which 5-year moderate rebounding is sustained. Despite spatial coherent behaviors, different mechanisms are tied to North China and South China. In North China, the same four regimes are detected in the time series of emission that is expected to drive the regime of atmospheric SO<sub>2</sub>, with a percentage of explained variance amounting to 81%. In contrast to North China, SO<sub>2</sub> emissions in South China exhibit a continuous descending tendency, due to the coordinated cuts of industrial and household emissions. As a result, the role of emissions only makes up about 45% of the SO<sub>2</sub> variation, primarily owing to the decoupled pathways of emission and atmospheric content during 2009 to 2013 when the emissions continue to decline but atmospheric content witnesses a rebound. Unfavorable meteorological conditions, including deficient precipitation, weaker wind speed and increased static stability, outweigh the effect of decreasing emissions and thus give rise to the rebound of SO<sub>2</sub> during 2009 to 2013.</p>

scholarly journals Inter-Regional Agricultural Virtual Water Flow in China Based on Volumetric and Impact-Oriented Multi-Regional Input-Output (MRIO) Approach

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 251
Author(s):  
Yingying Ren ◽  
Kai Huang ◽  
Yajuan Yu ◽  
Jingru Hu
Keyword(s):  
Water Flow ◽  
North China ◽  
Water Footprint ◽  
Quantitative Description ◽  
Virtual Water ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Northwest China ◽  
Full Account ◽  
Virtual Water Flow ◽  
Net Export

Virtual water trading is an effective strategy to alleviate water shortage. Several different methods have been developed to achieve quantitative description and evaluation of virtual water, which can be broadly divided into volumetric and impact-oriented water footprint approaches. The former focuses on the consumption of water resources, while the latter puts greater emphasis on assessing the water use impacts. Based on the volumetric and impact-oriented water footprint, this paper conducted a comprehensive study on the virtual water flow of agricultural products among regions in China. The results show that different water footprint evaluation methods have different tendencies in evaluating virtual water flow. Volumetric virtual water mainly flows from northwest and northeast China to north and east China, while impact-oriented virtual water mainly flows from northwest and central south China to east and north China. Northwest China is the largest net export region of agricultural virtual water, and it is dominated by direct water consumption. In addition, we compared the net export volume of virtual water and the water shortage situation among regions in China. North China, where the water shortage is very serious, mainly relies on external water sources, while northwest China, which also faces a water shortage problem, exports a large amount of virtual water to external sources. The findings of this study highlight the importance of taking full account of the response measures in both cases when formulating policies. In other words, the virtual water strategy should consider water quantity and water quality simultaneously.

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