Water conflicts in the Beijing-Tianjin region

Why are there water conflicts?
1. Beijing (NE China) is prone to floods and droughts
  1. Most of the rain falls between july and september
    1. More than half can fall within three days
    2. Several wet years can be followed by several dry years
2. There is a population of 16million (2nd largest after Shanghai)
  1. Beijing has an annual population rise of around 2.5%
  2. Population is stabilizing due to government efforts to restrict family size
  3. Rural to urban migrants still continue to arrive
3. Tianjin (on the coast near Beijing)
  1. Third largest population with 11 million people
  2. Major port with heavy industry
Water supply
1. Beijing
  1. 60% of their water supply is from aquifers
  2. Late 1970's to early 1980's: Droughts led to increased demands for irrigation water
    1. Lowered the water table as much as 40m
    2. Wells were pumped to the bedrock
  3. Their water supply subsided by between 0.5-1m p.a
2. Tianjin
  1. Relies on groundwater for 30% of its water supply
  2. Salt water incursion makes the water brackish
  3. Surface water relies on 5 rivers which enter the Hai He river system
3. Upstream with drawals and contamination has a negative effect on downstream cities
4. An aqueduct 2500km long was created to divert water from the Three Gorges Dam to the Beijing Tianjin area
Current demand for water
1. 4.9 billion m cubed per year
2. Agriculture uses 65% of the water
3. Industrial output has increased sixfold in the last 20 years
  1. They have become more water-efficient by recycling their waste water
  2. Beginning to shift from heavy to high-tech industry
4. Domestic usage has increased 10fold in the last 50 years
  1. 240 litres per person per day

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Water conflicts in the Beijing-Tianjin region

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