Ministry of Water Resources: The uncertainty of extreme flood disasters in China is increasing
Extreme flood disasters occur frequently, and Li Guoying says flood control and disaster relief have become more uncertain The water resources department is accelerating the modernization of the flood control system and enhancing basin regulation capabilities
On September 30 in Beijing, Minister of Water Resources Li Guoying said that, affected by climate change, extreme flood and waterlogging disasters in China are showing the characteristics of “increasing frequency of occurrence, random locations, random timing, and random intensity,” making flood control work face greater uncertainty.
At a press conference held by the State Council Information Office, Li Guoying said that since the beginning of this year, the water resources sector has coordinated the operation of 9,228 large and mediumsized reservoirs on 9,228 occasions, successfully responding to floods in 998 rivers that exceeded warning levels and the largest floods on record in 49 rivers since data became available, cumulatively retaining 137.5 billion cubic meters of floodwater, reducing flooding in 1,165 towns and villages and 10.65 million mu of crops, and reducing the relocation of 5.81 million peopletimes.
He said that the next step will be to accelerate the modernization of the flood control safety system and capabilities, with a focus on improving the project system, strengthening rainfall and water condition monitoring and forecasting, and enhancing the basin’s flood control, disaster mitigation, and flood regulation capabilities, so as to address flood risks with a more systematic defense capability.