China hit by worst drought since 1961 as Yangtze River dries up
The Yangtze River's tributaries have been suffering from the worst drought since 1961, a rare dry phenomenon in the flood season.
The water level of Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake in the eastern Jiangxi Province, receded to 11.99 meters on August 6, 4.85 to 6.13 meters lower than the same period in previous years, resulting in the earliest dry season since 1951.
Cracking bottom of Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province is seen on August 19.
On August 11, China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters activated a level-IV emergency response for droughts in provincial-level regions, including Sichuan, Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi and Anhui.
Almost 33 million mu (2.2 million hectares) of agricultural areas in these regions have experienced severe droughts this year, affecting the water supply of almost 2.5 million people and 350,000 large livestock, according to official data released on August 21.
A villager checks a field cracked open by drought in Hunan Province on August 13.
Several districts in Chongqing, including Jiangjin, Dazu, Tongliang and Ba'nan, have reported wildfires since August 18 due to an ongoing heatwave and drought, according to People's Daily. More than 1,500 residents have been evacuated.
A woman stands in front of the central pillar of Qiansimen Bridge that stands exposed on the dried-up riverbed of the Jialing River on August 21.
Meteorologists warn the situation in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River will likely worsen in the upcoming weeks, and a continuous drought through the summer and fall is in sight, according to National Climate Center analysis.
Summer drought is not unusual in areas along the Yangtze River, but this year's drought has some distinct characteristics, Lu Juan, director of the flood control center at the China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, told China Newsweek.
• A wide range of affected areas
The drought has swept across the upstream, midstream and downstream areas of the Yangtze River, which is quite rare, compared with droughts that took place in the river's upstream areas, including Chongqing and Sichuan, in 2006 and droughts in the midstream and downstream areas in 2013 and 2019.
• Earlier start and lasting impact
The summer drought usually occurs between the end of July and the beginning of August. However, rainfall in the Yangtze River areas has been low since June – 20 percent less by the end of June and 40 percent less in July compared with the same period in 2021.
The water level in the river's lower mainstream and in Poyang Lake is 50 to 70 percent lower than last year, their lowest levels in nearly a decade.
The flood season in some areas along the river has already concluded earlier than usual.
• Combined crisis of heatwave
China is enduring its strongest heatwave since 1961, in turn exacerbating the drought.
Left: Dongting Lake in Hunan Province, China's second-largest freshwater lake, captured by the Jilin-1 Gaofen 02B satellite on August 31, 2021. Right: The same section of the lake captured by the Jilin-1 wide 01B satellite on August 6 this year shows its exposed bottom due to drought.
Moreover, soil is extremely dry in upper and midstream areas, including Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, Guizhou and Hubei, Lu said. A lasting drought will pose operational challenges for reservoir groups. She alerted those areas affected by drought to "prepare for the worst" and plan ahead for an emergency water supply solution until next year's flood season.
An expert on water resources who did not want to be named suggested reducing water used for agriculture to prepare for a lasting drought that may continue into fall and winter. Production priorities for various industries and enterprises should also be taken into consideration for a possible reduced water supply.
In the future, extreme, widespread and flash droughts will become more frequent in China due to unstable and uneven rainfall caused by global warming, experts said.
