Addressing China’s Water Scarcity

China's water resources are scarce and unevenly distributed. It has the sixth largest amount of renewable resources in the world, but a per capita availability that is only one-fourth the world average and among the lowest for a major country....

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Main Author: Xie, Jian
Format: Brief
Language:English
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2012
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2009/05/10626476/addressing-chinas-water-scarcity
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/11722
id okr-10986-11722
recordtype oai_dc
spelling okr-10986-117222021-04-23T14:02:57Z Addressing China’s Water Scarcity Xie, Jian ACCESS TO SAFE DRINKING WATER AGRICULTURAL WATER AGRICULTURAL WATER USE ALLOCATION SYSTEM CENTRAL GOVERNMENT CLIMATE CHANGE COST OF WATER DECISION MAKING DRINKING WATER ECOSYSTEM EFFICIENT USE OF WATER EFFICIENT WATER USE ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS EVAPOTRANSPIRATION FARMING FLOOD CONTROL FLOODING FLOODS GLOBAL WARMING GROUNDWATER GROUNDWATER DEPLETION HOUSEHOLDS INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER IRRIGATION IRRIGATION SYSTEMS LAKES LOCAL WATER MUNICIPAL SEWAGE MUNICIPAL WATER MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEMS POLLUTION CONTROL PRICE OF WATER PROGRAMS PUBLIC HEALTH PUBLIC PARTICIPATION QUALITY STANDARDS RECYCLING RESERVOIRS RIVER BASIN RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT RIVER BASINS SAFE DRINKING WATER SCARCE WATER SCARCE WATER RESOURCES SCARCITY OF WATER SERVICE PROVIDERS SOIL CONSERVATION SOURCES OF WATER UNDERGROUND WATER URBAN CENTERS USE OF WATER WASTEWATER WASTEWATER DISCHARGE WATER AVAILABILITY WATER BODIES WATER CONSUMPTION WATER CRISIS WATER MANAGEMENT WATER MANAGEMENT POLICY WATER POLLUTION WATER POLLUTION CONTROL WATER PRICING WATER QUALITY WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT WATER RESOURCE WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT WATER RESOURCES WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT WATER RIGHTS WATER SCARCITY WATER SECTOR WATER SERVICE WATER SERVICE PROVIDERS WATER SERVICES WATER SHORTAGES WATER SOURCES WATER SYSTEM WATER USAGE WATER USES WATER WITHDRAWAL WATERSHED WETLANDS China's water resources are scarce and unevenly distributed. It has the sixth largest amount of renewable resources in the world, but a per capita availability that is only one-fourth the world average and among the lowest for a major country. The country is under serious water stress, and its problems are made more severe by the fact that resources are unevenly distributed, both spatially and temporally. Per capita water availability in northern China is less than one-fourth that in southern China, one eleventh of the world average, and less than the threshold level that defines water scarcity. A monsoonal climate also means that China is subject to frequent droughts and floods, often simultaneously in different regions, as precipitation varies greatly from year to year and season to season. The complexity of water resource management in China requires a transition from a traditional system with the government as the main decision making entity toward a modern approach that relies on a sound legal framework, effective institutional arrangements, transparent decision making and information disclosure, and active public participation. This will require that laws are straightforward and not contradictory, with mechanisms and procedures for enforcing them. It also should entail the creation of a new multi-sectoral state agency tasked with overseeing water management policy at the national level. 2012-08-13T15:50:14Z 2012-08-13T15:50:14Z 2009-05 http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2009/05/10626476/addressing-chinas-water-scarcity http://hdl.handle.net/10986/11722 English Water P-Notes; No. 37 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/ World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research :: Brief Publications & Research East Asia and Pacific China
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
topic ACCESS TO SAFE DRINKING WATER
AGRICULTURAL WATER
AGRICULTURAL WATER USE
ALLOCATION SYSTEM
CENTRAL GOVERNMENT
CLIMATE CHANGE
COST OF WATER
DECISION MAKING
DRINKING WATER
ECOSYSTEM
EFFICIENT USE OF WATER
EFFICIENT WATER USE
ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS
EVAPOTRANSPIRATION
FARMING
FLOOD CONTROL
FLOODING
FLOODS
GLOBAL WARMING
GROUNDWATER
GROUNDWATER DEPLETION
HOUSEHOLDS
INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER
IRRIGATION
IRRIGATION SYSTEMS
LAKES
LOCAL WATER
MUNICIPAL SEWAGE
MUNICIPAL WATER
MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEMS
POLLUTION CONTROL
PRICE OF WATER
PROGRAMS
PUBLIC HEALTH
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
QUALITY STANDARDS
RECYCLING
RESERVOIRS
RIVER BASIN
RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT
RIVER BASINS
SAFE DRINKING WATER
SCARCE WATER
SCARCE WATER RESOURCES
SCARCITY OF WATER
SERVICE PROVIDERS
SOIL CONSERVATION
SOURCES OF WATER
UNDERGROUND WATER
URBAN CENTERS
USE OF WATER
WASTEWATER
WASTEWATER DISCHARGE
WATER AVAILABILITY
WATER BODIES
WATER CONSUMPTION
WATER CRISIS
WATER MANAGEMENT
WATER MANAGEMENT POLICY
WATER POLLUTION
WATER POLLUTION CONTROL
WATER PRICING
WATER QUALITY
WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT
WATER RESOURCE
WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
WATER RESOURCES
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
WATER RIGHTS
WATER SCARCITY
WATER SECTOR
WATER SERVICE
WATER SERVICE PROVIDERS
WATER SERVICES
WATER SHORTAGES
WATER SOURCES
WATER SYSTEM
WATER USAGE
WATER USES
WATER WITHDRAWAL
WATERSHED
WETLANDS
spellingShingle ACCESS TO SAFE DRINKING WATER
AGRICULTURAL WATER
AGRICULTURAL WATER USE
ALLOCATION SYSTEM
CENTRAL GOVERNMENT
CLIMATE CHANGE
COST OF WATER
DECISION MAKING
DRINKING WATER
ECOSYSTEM
EFFICIENT USE OF WATER
EFFICIENT WATER USE
ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS
EVAPOTRANSPIRATION
FARMING
FLOOD CONTROL
FLOODING
FLOODS
GLOBAL WARMING
GROUNDWATER
GROUNDWATER DEPLETION
HOUSEHOLDS
INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER
IRRIGATION
IRRIGATION SYSTEMS
LAKES
LOCAL WATER
MUNICIPAL SEWAGE
MUNICIPAL WATER
MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEMS
POLLUTION CONTROL
PRICE OF WATER
PROGRAMS
PUBLIC HEALTH
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
QUALITY STANDARDS
RECYCLING
RESERVOIRS
RIVER BASIN
RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT
RIVER BASINS
SAFE DRINKING WATER
SCARCE WATER
SCARCE WATER RESOURCES
SCARCITY OF WATER
SERVICE PROVIDERS
SOIL CONSERVATION
SOURCES OF WATER
UNDERGROUND WATER
URBAN CENTERS
USE OF WATER
WASTEWATER
WASTEWATER DISCHARGE
WATER AVAILABILITY
WATER BODIES
WATER CONSUMPTION
WATER CRISIS
WATER MANAGEMENT
WATER MANAGEMENT POLICY
WATER POLLUTION
WATER POLLUTION CONTROL
WATER PRICING
WATER QUALITY
WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT
WATER RESOURCE
WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
WATER RESOURCES
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
WATER RIGHTS
WATER SCARCITY
WATER SECTOR
WATER SERVICE
WATER SERVICE PROVIDERS
WATER SERVICES
WATER SHORTAGES
WATER SOURCES
WATER SYSTEM
WATER USAGE
WATER USES
WATER WITHDRAWAL
WATERSHED
WETLANDS
Xie, Jian
Addressing China’s Water Scarcity
geographic_facet East Asia and Pacific
China
relation Water P-Notes; No. 37
description China's water resources are scarce and unevenly distributed. It has the sixth largest amount of renewable resources in the world, but a per capita availability that is only one-fourth the world average and among the lowest for a major country. The country is under serious water stress, and its problems are made more severe by the fact that resources are unevenly distributed, both spatially and temporally. Per capita water availability in northern China is less than one-fourth that in southern China, one eleventh of the world average, and less than the threshold level that defines water scarcity. A monsoonal climate also means that China is subject to frequent droughts and floods, often simultaneously in different regions, as precipitation varies greatly from year to year and season to season. The complexity of water resource management in China requires a transition from a traditional system with the government as the main decision making entity toward a modern approach that relies on a sound legal framework, effective institutional arrangements, transparent decision making and information disclosure, and active public participation. This will require that laws are straightforward and not contradictory, with mechanisms and procedures for enforcing them. It also should entail the creation of a new multi-sectoral state agency tasked with overseeing water management policy at the national level.
format Publications & Research :: Brief
author Xie, Jian
author_facet Xie, Jian
author_sort Xie, Jian
title Addressing China’s Water Scarcity
title_short Addressing China’s Water Scarcity
title_full Addressing China’s Water Scarcity
title_fullStr Addressing China’s Water Scarcity
title_full_unstemmed Addressing China’s Water Scarcity
title_sort addressing china’s water scarcity
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2012
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2009/05/10626476/addressing-chinas-water-scarcity
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/11722
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