QINGYUAN (China): It’s rice-planting season in China’s southern province of Guangdong, but despite the landscape of flooded fields dotted with green seedlings, Lian is worried. “There is not enough water. There’s rain now, but it’s still not enough. There’s not enough water in the reservoir,” she says squatting by the edge of a field, her trousers rolled to the knee and a broad straw hat hiding her eyes.
The province is recovering from its worst drought in 50 years, allowing farmers to begin sowing. The drought in southern China has affected everything from crops and livelihoods to hydropower.
A few kilometres outside of Guangzhou, smokestacks give way to fields and stylish city people are replaced by barefoot farmers. But the lack of water is affecting both. Crops are dying and fish farms drying up, while grid overloads last year forced factories to tap power only overnight, and led the government to ask restaurants and hotels to limit use of electric lights. Last year one million people in Guangdong did not have enough drinking water. In neighbouring Guangxi province, 1,100 reservoirs went dry, state media reported.
“In the winter it was very serious. We have more than 200 mu (13 hectares) here and there was no water. We made a lot less money last year. A lot of people left and went to work as labourers,” said Tan, a farmer in Qingyuan region, about 70 km (44 miles) northwest of Guangzhou.—Reuters
