The 2010 China drought and dust storms were a series of severe droughts during the spring of 2010 that affected Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Sichuan, Shanxi, Henan, Shaanxi, Chongqing, Hebei and Gansu in the People's Republic of China as well as parts of Southeast Asia including Vietnam and Thailand, and dust storms in March and April that affected much of East Asia. The drought has been referred to as the worst in a century in southwestern China. [1]
Prior to the drought in Yunnan and Guizhou, the China Meteorological Administration recorded temperatures averaging 2 °C warmer than normal over six months and half the average precipitation for the past year across the region, both unprecedented since at least the 1950s. [2] The effects of El Niño are believed to be contributing to the drought, which may be exacerbated by global warming, [3] as some areas in Yunnan have recorded record high temperatures during the winter since record-keeping began in 1950. [4] Some areas in the drought-affected regions have seen no rainfall since before October. [5] Spring dust storms are common in China, but have become more severe in recent years due to desertification, deforestation, drought, urban sprawl and overgrazing. [6] Countries downstream from Yunnan are also affected by drought conditions upriver, and some places including much of Vietnam have seen very little precipitation since the previous September. [7] A severe drought in 2009 also affected much of northern and northeast China, resulting in agricultural losses of up to 50%. [4]
By March 22, 2010, about 51 million people faced water shortages in a number of provinces. [1] Commodities including sugar cane, flowers, tea, fruit, potatoes, rapeseed, medicinal ingredients, tobacco, wheat, [8] rubber and coffee have been severely affected with output reduced by as much as 50%. Authorities began to fear unrest due to soaring food prices [3] and sent more than 10,000 armed police to the affected regions to ensure stability and help with water supplies. [1] The three wells in the village of Xiazha in Guangxi Autonomous Region were reported to have gone completely dry for the first time since 1517, in addition to three reservoirs in the area going dry. [9] Economic damage to agriculture and failed electricity generation from hydroelectric dams [9] from the drought was estimated to be at least 24 billion Chinese yuan ($3.5 billion USD). Around 3,600 rivers and brooks in Guizhou have run dry, while 916,000 ha of crops were affected by drought in the province and one million farmers have left to find work in other provinces. The drought affected over 28 million farmers, and a grain shortage has affected 8 million people. The Chinese government has transferred 1.7 million tonnes of grain to the region to reduce potential inflation. [8] About 4.348 million ha of cropland were affected by the drought in Southwestern China and 942,000 ha would yield no harvest by late March, according to China's State Commission of Disaster Relief. [10] In late March, the government began cloud seeding in Guizhou using silver iodide to produce rain. [9] By April 10, the drought had eased in Chongqing due to heavy rain, but it had affected over 18 million livestock and 8.13 million ha of land. [11] In parts of Yunnan Province inhabited by the Dai people, officials cancelled or shortened the Songkran water dousing festival due to the water shortage, including in Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture and Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture. [12] By early June, the drought had affected close to 5 million hectares of land. [13]
The drought may also affect water levels at the headwaters of the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween Rivers. [2] Countries downstream of the Mekong, including Thailand, suggested that the building of dams on the river such as at Lancang may be worsening the effects of drought on the river's water levels, [5] which were at their lowest in 20 years. [9] Fisheries along the Mekong in Thailand have halted, and 7.9 million people in the country are affected by the drought. 3,674 small dams within the river basin have dried up. [14]
The drought in Vietnam was described as the country's worst in a century. The Red River near Hanoi was by early March at a level of 0.68 m (2.2 ft), the lowest on record, and rice plantations have been severely affected. Timber fires have been sparked in several regions. The Mekong Delta experienced its lowest water levels in nearly 20 years, threatening to produce saltwater intrusion in dry areas. Some parts of Vietnam are forecast to possibly receive no rain until August. [7] A power shortage of up to one billion kilowatt-hours could also hit the country as less water is available for hydroelectricity. [15]
The El Niño conditions of the winter prior to the drought has raised concerns that the rice crop in Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines may be significantly reduced by the summer. [15] [16]
The lack of precipitation caused land subsidence at Kunming Wujiaba International Airport in Yunnan. [4]
About 5,000 villagers in Yunnan Province have left their homes from the drought for streams near Himalayan foothills, [9] and many residents in Guangxi who are able to leave have also left. However, officials have denied reports of drought refugees leaving their villages. [3] The source of the Pearl River's headwaters was cut off, and its outflow was severely reduced. Water rationing was put into practice in some rural regions. [4]
Shortages of drinking water also affected parts of Inner Mongolia, including a water shortage for over 250,000 residents of Chifeng. Reservoirs in the city held 73.7% less water than they did one year prior and water volume had reduced by 77.4% in major rivers in the area by mid-April. [17]
The drought has affected non-ferrous metal production in Guangxi, including of electrolytic zinc, with companies in Nandan County cutting production by 30%. [18]
Premier Wen Jiabao visited southwestern China three times during the drought, including a three-day tour in mid-March in Yunnan, including Luliang County, which had seen no rainfall since August, to promote water conservation, [5] and another visit in early April 2010 to several Miao and Buyei autonomous prefectures in Guizhou, some of the worst-hit places where farming has been made impossible. [19]
Most provinces in South China affected by the drought were hit by a series of floods beginning in mid-May that ended most of the drought but also destroyed large areas of farmland. [13] [20]
Strong dust storms from the Gobi Desert in Mongolia hit Xinjiang Autonomous Region, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, North Korea and Japan by March 22, before being carried across the Pacific Ocean by the jet stream, with some dust reaching the West Coast of the United States. [21] [22] [23] The dust storm in late March spiralled around a strong low pressure system. [24] Many areas recorded an extremely rare level 5 "hazardous" rating for air quality. [6] Many flights in Beijing were also delayed or cancelled. [25] Air pollution readings in Hong Kong reached a record high, reaching at least 15 times the recommended maximum levels by the World Health Organization. [26] Taiwan also reported a new record for worst sandstorm conditions. [24]
A strong sandstorm tore through Turpan in Xinjiang on April 23, sparking fires that killed two people and forcing a shutdown of rail and road traffic for six hours. [27]
Oxfam Hong Kong provided water in Yunnan. [28] A major fundraiser was also held that raised 280 million yuan. Many celebrities took part including Wang Feng, Elva Hsiao, Andy Lau, He Jie, Jackie Chan, Ye Bei , Yan Weiwen, Zhou Xiao'ou (周晓欧), Bibi Zhou, and Yang Zi. [29] [30] The Hong Kong government also approved a HK$1.4 million grant. [31]
Many donations of bottled water have also arrived in Guizhou and other parts of southwestern China from around the country. [32]
In mid-June 2010, a large algal bloom, consisting of enteromorpha algae, developed off the coast of Shandong, in the Yellow Sea. Causes of the algal outbreak include marine pollution from sewage and agricultural run-off, in addition to run-off from fish farms, worsened by eutrophication following the drought, subsequent flooding and heat wave, as well as high sea surface temperatures in the area. The bloom continues to expand, and preparations have been made for a flotilla of vessels to ward off the bloom, covering an area of 400 km2 (150 sq mi), the largest bloom since 2008. [33] The patch of algae since expanded offshore Jiangsu Province, and is pushing toward the city of Qingdao. The Chinese State Oceanic Administration has warned that the algae could threaten marine life and local tourism, [34] and other scientists have stated that the bloom could decompose on beaches and release toxic gases if not cleaned up. Close to 4,000 tonnes a day of algae is being removed from the bloom, to be sent off and used as animal feed or fertilizer. Green and red tides have become more common in China in recent years. The green tides from the current algal blooms can also result in dead zones from localized ocean anoxia. [35] Large blooms of jellyfish, including giant Nomura's jellyfish have also appeared off Shandong and around the coasts of Japan within the past decade, as a result of the same type of pollution in dead zones.
A dust storm, also called a sandstorm, is a meteorological phenomenon common in arid and semi-arid regions. Dust storms arise when a gust front or other strong wind blows loose sand and dirt from a dry surface. Fine particles are transported by saltation and suspension, a process that moves soil from one place and deposits it in another.
Guizhou is a landlocked province in the southwest region of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the province. Guizhou borders the autonomous region of Guangxi to the south, Yunnan to the west, Sichuan to the northwest, the municipality of Chongqing to the north, and Hunan to the east. The population of Guizhou stands at 38.5 million, ranking 18th among the provinces in China.
Dianchi Lake, also known as Lake Dian and Kunming Lake, is a large lake located on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau close to Kunming, Yunnan, China. Its nickname is the "Sparkling Pearl Embedded in a Highland" and it was the model for the Kunming Lake in the Summer Palace in Beijing. Its name is the source of Yunnan's Chinese abbreviation 滇.
Yunnan cuisine, alternatively known as Dian cuisine, is an amalgam of the cuisines of the Han Chinese and other ethnic minority groups in Yunnan Province in southwestern China. As the province with the largest number of ethnic minority groups, Yunnan cuisine is vastly varied, and it is difficult to make generalisations. Many Yunnan dishes are quite spicy, and mushrooms are featured prominently. Flowers, ferns, algae and insects may also be eaten. The cuisine of Yunnan is often compared to the cuisine of Southeast Asia as the province borders the region and many of the ethnic minorities or related cultural groups also have a presence in Southeast Asia.
The water resources of China are affected by both severe water shortages and severe growing population and rapid economic development as well as lax environmental oversight have increased in a large scale the water demand and pollution. China has responded by measures such as rapidly building out the water infrastructure and increasing regulation as well as exploring a number of further technological solutions.
The Great Green Wall, officially known as the Three-North Shelter Forest Program, also known as the Three-North Shelterbelt Program, is a series of human-planted windbreaking forest strips (shelterbelts) in China, designed to hold back the expansion of the Gobi Desert, and provide timber to the local population. The program started in 1978, and is planned to be completed around 2050, at which point it will be 4,500 kilometres (2,800 mi) long.
The term fish kill, known also as fish die-off, refers to a localized die-off of fish populations which may also be associated with more generalized mortality of aquatic life. The most common cause is reduced oxygen in the water, which in turn may be due to factors such as drought, algae bloom, overpopulation, or a sustained increase in water temperature. Infectious diseases and parasites can also lead to fish kill. Toxicity is a real but far less common cause of fish kill.
Owing to tremendous differences in latitude, longitude, and altitude, the climate of China is extremely diverse. It ranges from tropical in the far south to subarctic in the far north, and alpine in the higher elevations of the Tibetan Plateau. Monsoon winds, caused by differences in the heat-absorbing capacity of the continent and the ocean, dominate the climate. During the summer, the East Asian Monsoon carries warm and moist air from the south and delivers the vast majority of the annual precipitation in much of the country. Conversely, the Siberian anticyclone dominates during winter, bringing cold and comparatively dry conditions. The advance and retreat of the monsoons account, in large degree, for the timing of the rainy season throughout the country. Although most of the country lies in the temperate belt, its climatic patterns are complex.
The 2008 Chinese winter storms (2008年中国雪灾、2008年中国南方雪灾) were a series of winter storm events that affected large portions of southern and central China, where it does not usually snow severely or extensively, starting from 25 January 2008, until 6 February 2008. The systems affected most of the area with heavy snows, ice, and cold temperatures causing extensive damage and transportation disruption for several thousand travelers. It became China's worst winter weather in half a century. According to some media sources, the storms were directly responsible for at least 129 deaths.
The 2008 South China floods began on 26 May 2008. Four rounds of torrential rains with landslides and flooding lasted for 20 days and affected fifteen provinces in Eastern and Southern China.
Events in the year 2010 in China.
The global weather activity of 2010 includes major meteorological events in the Earth's atmosphere during the year, including winter storms, hailstorms, out of season monsoon rain storms, extratropical cyclones, gales, microbursts, flooding, rainstorms, tropical cyclones, and other severe weather events.
The 2010 China floods began in early May 2010. Three hundred and ninety-two people died, and a further 232 people were reported missing as of June 30, 2010, including 57 people in a landslide in Guizhou. Fifty-three of the deaths occurred from the flooding and landslides between May 31 and June 3, and 266 deaths occurred between June 13 and June 29. Four hundred and twenty four people were killed by the end of June, including 42 from the Guizhou landslide; 277 more were killed and 147 were missing in the first two weeks of July, bringing the death toll as of August 5 to 1,072. A landslide in early August in Gansu killed at least 1,471 people and left 294 missing. In total, the flooding and landslides killed at least 3,185 people in China by August 31. More than 230 million people in 28 provinces, municipalities, and regions, especially the southern and central provinces and regions of Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing Municipality, Gansu, Sichuan, and Guizhou, and the northeastern province of Jilin were affected, while at least 4.66 million people were evacuated because of the risk of flooding and landslides in the latter half of June. By early August, over 12 million people were evacuated, and that number rose to 15.2 million by August 31.
The 2010 Northern Hemisphere summer heat waves included severe heat waves that impacted most of the United States, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China, Hong Kong, North Africa and the European continent as a whole, along with parts of Canada, Russia, Indochina, South Korea and Japan during May, June, July, and August 2010. The first phase of the global heatwaves was caused by a moderate El Niño event, which lasted from June 2009 to May 2010. The first phase lasted only from April 2010 to June 2010, and caused only moderate above average temperatures in the areas affected. But it also set new record high temperatures for most of the area affected, in the Northern Hemisphere. The second phase was caused by a very strong La Niña event, which lasted from June 2010 to June 2011. According to meteorologists, the 2010–11 La Niña event was one of the strongest La Niña events ever observed. That same La Niña event also had devastating effects in the Eastern states of Australia. The second phase lasted from June 2010 to October 2010, caused severe heat waves, and multiple record-breaking temperatures. The heatwaves began in April 2010, when strong anticyclones began to develop, over most of the affected regions, in the Northern Hemisphere. The heatwaves ended in October 2010, when the powerful anticyclones over most of the affected areas dissipated.
Events in the year 2006 in China.
The 2010–2011 China drought was a drought that began in late 2010 and impacted eight provinces in the northern part of the People's Republic of China (PRC). It was the worst drought to hit the country in 60 years, and it affected most of wheat-producing regions in the PRC.
The 2011 China floods were a series of floods from June to September 2011 that occurred in central and southern parts of the People's Republic of China. They were caused by heavy rain that inundated portions of 12 provinces, leaving other provinces still suffering a prolonged drought, and with direct economic losses of nearly US$6.5 billion.
The 2021 East Asia sandstorm was a meteorological phenomenon that began in the Eastern Gobi desert steppe on March 14, and subsequently spread to the entire Mongolian Plateau South, the Loess Plateau, the North China Plain and the Korean Peninsula. It was caused by strong northwest winds coming in from Mongolia, as a result of hot and dry conditions.