The major content of the Short-term Programming on the Harnessing and Exploiting the Yellow River includes the general introduction to the basin and its features; the present situation and existing problems; the guiding principle and the goal of the planning; the focal points in the harnessing and exploiting in the near future and the measures.
Ⅰ. The general introduction to the basin and its features
The Yellow River is the second longest river in China which originates from the Yueguzonglie basin and lies in the North of the Bayankala Mountain in the Qingzang Plateau. It flows through 9 provinces like Qinghai, Sichuan, Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Shandong, and empties into the Bohai Sea in Kenli County in Shandong Province. The trunk is 5,464 kilometers long, and the basin area is 795,000 square kilometers. Different from other rivers, the area of the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River Basin account for 95 per cent of its total drainage area. The west area belongs to the Qingzang Plateau, with an altitude of over 3,000 meters; and most of the middle area belongs to the Loess Plateau, with an altitude of 1,000 to 2,000 meters; and the east of the basin belongs to the Huanghuaihai Plain, and the river channel hangs over the ground of the river bank, also the menace of the flood is very serious.
The Yellow River has the following distinct traits different from other rivers:
1. Less water and more sand, water and sand from different origins.
The average natural runoff of the Yellow River over many years is 58 billion m3, and the basin area takes up 8.3 percent of the total land area of China, while the annual runoff only occupies 2 percent of that of the country. In the basin the water volume per capita is 527m3, which accounts for 22 percent of the average level of the country. Mean water for cultivable land is 294m3 per mu, which only occupies 16 percent of the average level of the country. And the demand by the outer part of the basin makes the water per capita even less. Mean annual sediment yield is 1.6 billion tons, mean annual sediment content is 35 kg/m3, all these are regarded as the largest in the world. About 50 percent of water yield comes from above Lanzhou and 90 percent of sediment from the area between Hekou and Sanmenxia.
2. The unique channel shape
Downstream channel of the Yellow River is famous as ‘a perched stream’, and it is the divide of the Haihe River and the Huaihe River. Its present riverbed is generally 4-6 meters higher than the back part of the river ground, 20 meters higher than Xinxiang, and 13 meters higher than Kaifeng. The channel is wide in the upper reaches and narrow in the lower reaches. The widest reach is 24 kilometers, while the narrowest only 275meters in width, so the ability of draining flood is bigger in the upper reaches than in the lower reaches. There are often large fluctuations in the river and the trunk stream swings frequently. The inner beach of the river is the area for flood, and 1,790 thousand dwellers live there. So the task of preventing the flood is fairly hard.
3. The serious water and soil loss
The Yellow River flows through the Loess Plateau, where the area of water and soil loss is the largest and the corrosion intensity is the strongest. The area of water loss and soil erosion is up to 454 thousand square kilometers, accounting for 71 per cent of the Loess Plateau’s area. The water corrosion area of high intensity with the annual erosion modulus lager than 8,000 ton per square kilometer is 85 thousand square kilometers, accounting for 64 per cent of the congener area in China. And the utmost water corrosion area with annual erosion modulus lager than 1,500 ton per square kilometer is 36.7 thousand square kilometer, about 89 per cent of the congener area.
4. The frequent disasters of flood
Records showed that, in about 2,540 years from the Early Qin Dynasty to the Republic of China，the Yellow River had breached or overflowed 1,590 times and changed its route 26 times. That is, on the average, “breach twice every three years and changing its rout every century”. The breach affects a large area from Tianjin City in the north to Jianghuai in the south, which is 250 thousand square kilometers. Each time it bursts, for the heavy sand in water, the channel may be fouled, and the fertile land may be deserted. And the deterioration of ecological environments is difficult to be recovered for long period.
5. The development of economy lags behind.
According to the statistics in 2000, the population of the Yellow River basin is 110.08 million, accounting for 8.7 per cent of the total of China. The ratio of urbanization is 26.4 per cent, lower than the average level of the whole nation. The GDP is 636.5 billion yuan, about 6.8 per cent of the whole nation, and the level of economic development is lower in this area. Also the stockbreeding is lagged. The foodstuff and livestock product per person are lower than the average level in the country. The upper reaches of the Yellow River are where the minority nationalities cluster, and it is a poor area. There the ecological environment is weak. So, it is of great significance to intensify the construction of agricultural economy, make full use of the land and light-heat resources, upgrade the agricultural production, get rid of poverty as quickly as possible and better the ecological environment for the exploitation of the west, the sustainable development of the nation’s economy and the society, and the strengthening of the national unity.
6. Abundant resources and large potential developmental ability.
The total area of the Yellow River basin is 1,190 million mu, accounting for 8.3 per cent of the total of China. The cultivable land is 197 million mu, about 1.79 mu per person, which is about 1.5 times as much as the average level of the whole nation. The mineral resources are abundant. 45 kinds minerals have been found in China, in the Yellow River Basin there are 37 kinds of minerals. Water resources in the upper-middle reaches, coal resources in middle reaches, oil and natural gas resources in middle-lower reaches are all abundant which is of great importance in China, so it is called ‘the basin of energy resources’. The total available installed capacity is 33.44 million kilowatt, and the annual quantity of electricity generated is 113.6 billion KWH, the second largest one in the seven rivers of China. The known storage of coal is 449.2 billion ton, accounting for 46.5 per cent of that of the whole nation. In the Yellow River basin, the known oil and natural gas are abundant which are dispersed in the oil fields of Shengli, Zhongyuan, Changqing and Yanchang. Shengli oil field is the second largest one in China. There are plenty of other mineral resources in the basin too. The preponderant mineral reserves’ are tombarthite, sulfur, niobium, oulopholite, bauxite, molybdenum and fire-resistant clay and so on. Furthermore, the storage of cobalt, zinc, lead, alkali, sulpho-iron, copper, wolfram and gold is large too. The upper reaches of the Yellow River and the neighboring area are the famous locality of non-ferrous metals.
The implementation of the great-development-of-the-west strategy will produce a good opportunity for the economic development of the basin in the early 21st century. The economic zones in the Yellow River basin, along the Changjiang River and along the coast line, will form a productivity layout with the shape of ‘π’, which will support the whole nation’s economic growth. The provinces and regions in the Yellow River basin will rely on the advantages of the central cities, the Europe-Asia continental bridge and the natural resources, and eventually form an inter-provincial economic zone with the characteristics of China. So the preponderance of resources will be turned into the economic advantages. According to the strategic layout of the economic development of China in the early 21st century, the key construction zones in the Yellow River basin are as follows: firstly, the upper reaches’ non-ferrous metal and hydroelectric power base around Lanzhou City, covering the golden zone from the Longyang Gorge to the Qingtong Gorge. The exploitation of hydroelectric power and non-ferrous metal will be accelerated there, and pertinent processing industry will be developed properly too. Secondly, an integrated economic zone with high-tech around Xi’an City. The key is to rely mainly on the processing industry, build this area into a comprehensive and technical base to realize the industrialization of the northwest China. Thirdly, the base of energy in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, including the south of Shanxi Province, the north of Shaanxi Province, the west of Inner Mongolia and the west of Henan Province. It is one of the ten rendezvous of mineral resources in the West. Based on the exploitation of the hydropower in the upper reaches, we should quicken the construction of mineral and hydropower in this zone, enlarge the transmission of electricity and gas from the west to the east. We will turn it into an integrated industrial zone of coal processing, electricity, aluminum and chemical industry and so on. Fourthly, the economic area of the Huanghuaihai Plain along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. This is a base for developing oil, sea and petrochemical industry, and it will be a new investment and development zone relying mainly on the export-oriented industry.
It is estimated that in 2010 the Yellow River basin will enjoy a population of 121 million and a GDP of 1,210 billion yuan. The great-development-of-the-west strategy will promote the construction of infrastructure, ecology and environmental protection. The harnessing and exploitation of the Yellow River is an important component. It is urgent to quicken the harnessing and exploitation of the Yellow River along with the development of economy and society.
Ⅱ. The Current Situations and the Existing Problems
1. The Current Situations
From 1946, esp., after 1949, people began to harness the Yellow River under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. The Party and government attached great importance to the harnessing of the Yellow River. With the implementation of the first programming of large rivers, e.g., Report of Technical and Economic Programming of the Yellow River’s Comprehensive Utilizing, the harnessing and exploiting of the Yellow River are carried out comprehensively, which has ensured the safety of people and property, promoted the development of economy and society and improved the ecological environment.
The peaceful situation has lasted for 53 years in the lower reaches of the Yellow River. Many reservoirs have been built on the trunk and the tributaries, for instance, Sanmenxia, Xiaolangdi, Luhun and Guxian reservoir. The dykes of 1,400 kilometers long in the lower reaches have been strengthened and heightened for 4 times. Strengthening the dykes by clearing away the silt has begun and large-scale channel improvement has been carried out. The detention basins of the Beijin Dykes and the Dongping Lake have been built, and the estuary has been brought under control tentatively. A flood control system in the lower reaches of the Yellow River which is ‘interception in the upstream and discharge in the downstream, bypass and detention on both side of the channel’ has been formed. The non-engineering measures of flood control have been also intensified. The above measures have improved the lower reaches’ ability to resist floods, put an end to the state of easy breach and changing course, and ensured the security of the Huanghuaihai Plain and its steady development.
The development and protection of water resources contribute greatly to the social progress and the economic construction. On the trunk of the Yellow River, 15 water projects and hydropower stations have been built or are being built, with a total capacity of 56.6 billion cubic meters, a total installed capacity of 11.13 million kilowatt, and the mean annual power production of 40.1 billion kwh. Many reservoirs in the tributaries and projects for irrigation and water supply have been built and the groundwater have begun to be developed, thus, the irrigation area has increased from 12 million mu in 1950 to 110 million mu now, including 37 million mu out of the basin. 70 per cent of grain and most of economic crops are produced in these areas, which only accounts for 46 per cent of the total area of the basin. It also solves water problem for 27.27 million farmers, and guarantees water supply for more than 50 cities in or out of the basin and the Zhongyuan and Shengli oil fields. The protection of water resources has been intensified. 216 water quality monitoring stations have been set up to monitor water quality of the trunk stream and tributaries, so water quality of the main reaches is known preliminarily.
Soil and water conservation improves the agricultural conditions and the ecological environment, and decreases the quantity of sand flowing into the Yellow River. The area of the comprehensive harnessing of soil erosion adds up to 0.18 million square kilometers, among which, 1390 projects for gully control, 0.112 million warping dams, 400,000 retaining works of pools, water-logging pools and water cellars have been built, and 97 million mu of cultivated land and 0.115 million square kilometers of soil conservation forest and grassland have been constructed. With the help of the existing measures, the mean annual grain yield has increased by more than 5 billion kilograms, which can solve the food and clothing problem for more than 10 million people. To some extent, water and soil loss and the desertification have been restricted. Since the 1970s, with the measures of soil and water conservation, the mean annual sand flowing into the Yellow River has decreased by about 0.3 billion tons.
2.The existing main problems in the harnessing of the Yellow River
Due to the hard work in the past half century, remarkable success has been achieved in bringing the Yellow River under control. But due to the special features of the Yellow River, the harnessing is extremely difficult. In addition, due to the lack of the infrastructure of the basin and the incompetent management, there are still many problems to be solved now. The danger of flood is still persecuting the people, the contradictions between the supply and demand are becoming increasingly acute, the loss of soil and water has not yet been controlled effectively, and the water pollution is more and more serious.
1. The threat of flood is still persecuting the people
There exist disasters of storm flood and ice run in various degrees in the lower reaches of the Yellow River, the section from Yumenkou to Tongguan and Sanmenxia Reservoir area in the middle reaches, and the Ningmeng section in the upper reaches. The lower reaches of the Yellow River is a well-known perched stream, and the harmfulness of flood is most serious, so it is always the key point of flood prevention. The problems of the Yellow River have an important bearing on the overall situation. Once the dykes breach, the Huaihe River in south and the Haihe River in north would be influenced badly, and the affected area would cover 110 counties belonging to 24 cities in five provinces--Henan, Shandong, Anhui, Jiangsu and Hebei Province according to the present terrain and its features. The coverage would be 0.12 million square kilometers in area including 0.11 billion mu cultivated land and 87.55 million people. The economic losses from flood would be great. The trunk railways of Jingguang, Longhai, Jingjiu, Jinpu and Xinghe, the national highways of 107 and 310, and the main cities of Kaifeng and Xinxiang, etc, would be destroyed by the rush water. Zhongyuan oil field, Shengli oil field, Yanji coalfield and Huaibei coalfield would be damaged seriously. The irrigation network and drainage system, which have been built for many years, and the engineering system for bringing the Haihe River and Huaihe River under control would be wiped out in a day. The flood burst would not only bring great losses for economy and society, but also when the flood fell, the sediment of flood would remain. So the river channel sedimentation and good field desertification would occur, and the harmful effects on the ecological environment would be hard to recover for a long period.
At present, the Xiaolangdi Reservoir has been established and it is in operation, so the flood in lower reaches can be controlled effectively, and the problem of river channel sedimentation has been relieved to some degrees. But the problem of sedimentation in the downstream cannot be solved radically over a long period of time. Also, the quality of dyke in the lower reaches is low, and the river regime changes greatly, so even the moderate flood may cause the dykes breach. In a word, the situation of flood prevention is still grim. There are following prominent problems:
(1) The problem of sediment cannot be solved radically over a long period of time, and the perched stream formed in
history will be existing for a long time. Now, the riverbed is 2 to 4 meters higher than that of 1950s generally, and in some areas the riverbed is 4 to 6, even 10 meters higher than the ground of land side. In August 1996, the flood peak discharge in Huayuankou station was 7600 cubic meters per second, while the peak level was 0.91 meters higher than that of 22300 cubic meters per second in 1958. To prevent the accretion of bed level, the Xiaolangdi Reservoir’s role of flood sediment retention should be brought into full play, besides, many other measures must be taken.
(2) The flood between Xiaolangdi and Huyuankou has not been completely controlled, and severe floods may appear in the lower reaches as before. With present engineering works, if there were floods with return period of one hundred years and one thousand years, with the peak discharge of 15700 and 22600 cubic meters per second respectively, in Huayuankou station, it would exceed the designed flood control standard in the reaches below Aishan. And the foresight time is only 8 hours. It will be a serious threat to the safety of the lower reaches, and it is very difficult to divert and rescue the people of the beach land and Dongpinghu detention basin.
(3) Because of the poor quality dykes, much hidden danger, and the projects’ lower ability of protecting the dangerous sections, overflowing or breach of levees is still possible. The body of the downstream dykes is mostly made of sandy soil, so the erosion-resistance is lower. There were lots of breach points in history. And the foundation is complicated. The standard of the current danger-prevention projects is low, the crest elevation’s height is not enough, and the slope of the base of dams is abrupt and shallow, so the stability is not up to standard. Although the projects have been reinforced these years, there are still some hidden troubles and weak links.
(4) The control and diversion projects are not perfect and can not reach the standard, and the main channel sways severely, which endangers seriously the safety of the dykes. In the 299-kilometer-long section above Gaocun which has a wide channel, the control and diversion projects are not perfect and the main channel sways severely. The so-called ‘transversal channel’ and ‘diagonal channel’ often occur, so the safety of the dykes is endangered seriously. The current control and diversion project is not up to standard; the stability of the base of dams is poor. In the initial operational period of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir, when the relatively clear water is discharged, the riverbed will be flushed, and channel regime will change more severely, so the probability of dangerous omens will increase.
(5) The quality of the braced dam of the Dongpinghu detention basin is poor, and the stream flow depletion is difficult, so there are some remnant problems for the safety. The Dongpinghu detention basin is a very important measure of engineering to ensure the safety of flood prevention in the reaches below Aishan in Shandong Province. But due to the inferior quality of the braced dam, the leakage is serious when it retains water. The safety precautions are fewer in the area, and the existing bench terraces for preventing flood is not high enough, besides, there are still 0.191 million people having no ways to avoid flood. At the same time, for the accretion of bed level, it is difficult to drain water into the Yellow River.
(6) There are few safety measures in floodplain of the lower reaches, and the existing ones are not good enough. The 3956-square-kilometer-beach between the dykes in the lower reaches belongs to flood area with 1.783 million dwellers, so there are more chances to be submerged. There are few measures and traffic lines for avoiding flood, which cannot meet the demands of withdrawal.
(7) The non-engineering measures of flood control cannot meet the needs of the emergencies. The equipment of hydrologic observation is outdated and in great need. The flood prediction system is backward and not so precise. The conditions of flood control and emergency service are not so good, the equipment is deficient, and the system of flood control is not automatic enough.
