China to enter critical period for flood control

China's anti-flood authority initiated an emergency response for flood control in four provinces on Tuesday and sent two working groups to two provinces to help combat flooding and waterlogging as rainstorms are predicted to batter the country's seven river valleys, which have entered their main flood season. 

On Tuesday, China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters initiated a level-IV emergency response for flood control in East China's Jiangsu and Shandong provinces, Southwest China's Sichuan Province and Northwest China's Gansu Province, and sent two work groups to Jiangsu and Sichuan to help oversee flood control.

According to the weather forecast of meteorological departments, heavy rainfall is expected in the Sichuan Basin, the eastern part of Northwest China, North China and other areas between Tuesday and Friday. In particular, the Sichuan Basin, Shandong, the southern part of Gansu, the northern part of Jiangsu and other places will suffer from heavy rain.

On Tuesday evening, six places in Central China's Henan Province issued red alerts for rainstorms.

Since Shandong and Henan are China's major grain production areas, Li Guoxiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, noted that the impact of the rainstorms on grain production depends on the duration of the rainfall and the size of the affected area. 

Preventive measures against floods and waterlogging must be carried out in the low-lying areas of these grain production areas and people and livestock need to be relocated in advance, Li told the Global Times on Wednesday.

According to Li, China has a relatively complete emergency response system with a strong disaster prevention capacity that can assure losses are kept to the minimum.  

On Tuesday, China's anti-flood authority held a joint consultation with China's Ministry of Natural Resources, China's Ministry of Water Resources and China Meteorological Administration to dispatch resources and forces in the four provinces where the level-IV emergency response has been launched, and urged and directed them to implement all measures. 

Work tips for preventing flooding and other geological disasters were issued to ensure the security of people's lives and property. 

According to China's Ministry of Water Resources, since the country entered the flood season, river flood conditions have been in general stable with heavy rains and floods occurring in the southern parts of China, and drought occurring in some parts of Southwest China. 

It is necessary to coordinate flood control and drought prevention efforts, implement targeted measures, and fully utilize water conservancy projects in flood control, peak shaving, water storage, and water supply, an official from the ministry said, noting that while ensuring flood control, efforts should be made to increase water sources for drought prevention, particularly staying vigilant against sudden changes between drought and flood conditions and preparing accordingly. 

According to the ministry, with the application of technologies such as the Internet of Things, big data, and artificial intelligence, breakthroughs have been made in flood control by China's Ministry of Water Resources. The national rainfall forecast has been extended from 20 days to 30 days, and the accuracy of forecasts during critical periods in areas with major rivers passed 90 percent.