Asian Waters – The Timeless Yangtze River

                      by David Parmer/Tokyo

China’s Long River (Cheng Jiang) is better known to the rest of the world as the Yangtze. It is the third longest river in the world, and the longest river in Asia. Like the Ganges and the Mekong you can’t read about Asian history, economics or politics without coming across a mention, or several mentions of the Yangtze.

The river originates on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau and flows 6300km to the East China Sea. It flows through nine of China’s provinces and is considered the boundary between North China and South China.

In 208 AD the Battle of Red Cliffs was fought on the Yangtze southwest of Wuhan, preventing the warlord Cao Cao from capturing South China. Several centuries later in 1949, the Yangtze played another key role in China’s history. On April 20th of that year, Communist forces crossed the Long River, sealing the fate of the Nationalist forces under Chaing Kai-shek and setting the stage for the final liberation of all of China.

The Chinese use the river for many purposes from simple drinking water to irrigation, sanitation, transportation and Industry. Upriver, industry makes use of the river water, while down near where it joins the sea it provides irrigation for the rich farmlands so important to China’s agriculture. The river area accounts for 70% of China’s rice production and 70% of her fishery production.

Besides being a major transportation artery, the river also supports a vibrant tourism industry. Steamers journey upriver to Chongqing passing the immense Three Gorges Dam in Hubei province, and magnificent river scenery welcomes visitors at every turn.

The Yangtze ecosystem is home to 350 species of fish as well as the Finless Porpoise and the Chinese Alligator, while at the far end of the river near Chongqing we can find the habitat of China’s most famous mammals, the giant pandas.

As with any developed country, China must deal with the problem of industrial pollution. China is acting to push back harder against polluters and has installed 52 water quality monitoring stations along the river. The government has also banned the construction of chemical zones within one kilometer of the river. China has also recruited people to act as river chiefs to report and control pollution and to promote ecological restoration. E-commerce giant Alibaba also joined forces with several environmental organizations to protect and promote safe water in China. These groups include the AlibabaFoundation, Friends of Nature, Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, Green Hunan, and Beijing Green Foundation.

China’s Long River can easily be considered one of its greatest assets after her people. The proper management and development of this treasure will ensure the river keeps giving is benefits for centuries to come.

Photo: Jialiang Gao via flickr