A crippling drought, exacerbated by a record heatwave, has spread across half of China, reaching the normally frigid Tibetan Plateau, ahead of more scorching temperatures, according to official data released Thursday.
The world’s second-biggest economy has endured more than 70 days of heat waves, flash floods and droughts — phenomena scientists say are becoming more frequent and intense due to climate change.
South China has recorded its longest uninterrupted period of high temperatures since records began more than 60 years ago, the agriculture ministry said this week.
Experts have said the heatwave’s intensity, scale and duration could make it one of the worst in world history.
A graph from the National Climate Center on Wednesday showed that parts of southern China — including the Tibetan Plateau — were experiencing “severe” to “extraordinary” drought conditions.
The hardest-hit area — the Yangtze River Basin, stretching from the coast of Shanghai to Sichuan province in southwest China — is home to over 370 million people and contains several manufacturing hubs, including the megacity of Chongqing.
The Chinese weather agency on Thursday forecast persistently high temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in Chongqing and the provinces of Sichuan and Zhejiang.
However, some regions were relieved from the heatwave. Parts of southwestern Sichuan were hit by heavy rains overnight, prompting the evacuation of nearly 30,000 people, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
And in the southeast, Typhoon Ma-on made landfall in coastal Guangdong province and Hong Kong on Thursday morning.
“The high temperatures have been substantially moderated in the southern China, Jiangxi and Anhui regions,” the weather bureau said.
“But high temperatures will persist for the next three days in regions like the Sichuan Basin and provinces around Shanghai.”
– “Serious Threat” –
China’s State Council on Wednesday announced a 10 billion yuan ($1.45 billion) subsidy to help rice farmers hit by drought conditions that authorities have warned pose a “serious threat.” for this year’s fall harvest.
China produces more than 95 percent of the rice, wheat and corn it consumes, but a smaller harvest could mean increased demand for imports in the world’s most populous country – putting further pressure on global supplies already hampered by the conflict in the world Ukraine are tense.
CCTV evening news on Wednesday showed trucks supplying villagers lacking drinking and agricultural water in rural Sichuan and Chongqing.
These regions have also been struggling with wildfires since last week, exacerbated by high temperatures and water shortages.
Livestock owners were doing poorly, Chongqing authorities promised emergency measures to protect pig farms and the tearful plea of a Sichuan farmer who went viral after saying all her chickens had died due to the heat wave and power outages.
Some Chongqing residents complained on social media about having to queue for hours in the sweltering heat for mandatory mass testing required in the wake of a Covid outbreak.
In parts of Sichuan and Chongqing, locals seeking cooler temperatures have been sleeping in parking lots and subway stations due to daily power outages.
Temperatures reaching 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) have prompted several Chinese provinces to impose industrial blackouts as cities struggle to cope with surges in electricity demand.
Record low water levels on the Yangtze have also put pressure on the region’s hydropower generators, with the National Energy Agency pledged on Wednesday to make up the deficit by increasing coal production.
The recent heat broke records in Sichuan, where one district recorded a temperature of 44 degrees Celsius (111 Fahrenheit) on Wednesday.
#China #hit #drought #worst #heat #wave #record
