The worst drought to hit southwest China in nearly a century is forcing farmers to take drastic measures to cope reports Michael Wines in The New York Times. Wines reports that as, “…serious as the dry spell is, it affects only about 6 percent of China’s farmland and a tiny portion of its 1.3 billion people.”
The drought has sapped water supplies for drinking and irrigation. Wines reports that struggling farmers are moving to cities for jobs, selling livestock and borrowing money to take care of their families.
The Chinese government, however, claims, “…that its impact [of the drought] on inflation and food supplies is expected to be minimal,” and has launched plans to counter its effects.
How much have man-made activities contributed to the drought? China’s neighbors are questioning China’s extensive network of dams on the Mekong River and their impact on this vital waterway. Environmentalists point fingers at the planting of water-intensive crops and rapid industrialization as a cause of long-term depletion of the water table.
Meanwhile, Wines reports that the drought conditions are expected to break sometime in May, which may be too late for this season’s crops.
Posted by Michael Lucivero.
