JUST a Yangtze River Flood?

Original piece: 《长江防洪,有多难?》
Co-produced by Institute for Planets (星球研究所) & Xinhuanet (新华网客户端)
Written by 王朝阳
Translated by Kelvin Kwo
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Posted with permission from Institute for Planets

The visible and invisible defence lines

The Yangtze River.
Asia’s longest river.
Our Mother River.

With over 10,000 tributaries and a third of the country’s total river runoff volume, the Yangtze River flows past 19 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, nurturing 500 million people along the way.

The ‘Thousand-mile Long River’ modestly flowing through the ancient city of Jingzhou
(photo: 邓双)

But the frequent floods of Yangtze River can be catastrophic.
It killed 145,000 people in 1931.
33,000 in 1954
And 1526 in 1998.
*these data only include those stating flood as direct cause of death

Today in 2020, another deadly flood is knocking on our door.
How can we defend ourselves?

Guanyin Pavilion in Ezhou, Hubei
Half of the construction is submerged in the flood
(photo: 冯光柳)

1. Levees

Originating in the Tibetan Plateau, the magnanimous Yangtze River accommodates thousands of tributaries throughout its east-bound journey towards the sea. The entire river basin can be topographically divided into seven regions.

Topography of the Yangtze River system
Headwater region (江源区), Hengduan Mountains (横断山区), Sichuan basin (四川盆地), Qinba-Wuling Mountains (秦巴-武陵山区), Jianghan-Dongting basin (江汉-洞庭盆地), Poyang Lake basin (鄱阳湖盆地), downstream region (下游区)
Upstream (上游), midstream (中游) and downstream (下游)
(diagram: 陈志浩, Institute for Planets)

The headwater region in the far west is dry and frosty. This uninhabited highland allows the river channels to spread out and run totally unobstructed.

Chuma’er River, the northern headwater of Yangtze River
(photo: 刘夙培)

Along the Hengduan and Qinba-Wuling Mountains, the river is sandwiched by steep cliffs and deep valleys. With a restricted channel, flood water is relatively harmless in these regions.

Jinsha River near Jinan Town, Lijiang, Yunan
(photo: 李祺)

The towns and villages here are sitting well above the water level, and hence do not require tall levees. Rather, they should be more worried about mudslides during rainstorms.

The banks of Jinsha River next to Panzhihua, Sichuan
(photo: 君子裕)

While the relatively depressed Sichuan basin funnels water from all directions, the river cuts deep into the land as the water courses downslope. Floods therefore only affect a few neighbouring regions.

Yibin by the Jinsha River
(photo: 水手郑志华)

The downstream region in the east flows through the Hukou County of Jiangxi before it reaches the mouth. In between, there are no major tributaries joining the mainstream, and the channels are wide and deep. With the East China Sea on the right, floods can easily be drained.

Therefore, major floods in this region seldom build up locally. They usually come from the upstream and midstream, and the most vulnerable location of all is the Anhui section in the middle reaches.

Yangtze River flowing through Wuhu, Anhui
(photo: 张浩然)

The heartlands of Jianghan-Dongting and Poyang Lake basins fare the worst among any other regions. Elevation here is generally low, at around 20-40 metres in the former and just 10-30 metres in the latter. Surrounded by mountains, all rivers in these basins, large and small, converge at the centre.

The two major basins in the middle reaches of Yangtze River
Jianghan-Dongting basin (江汉-洞庭盆地), Poyang Lake basin (鄱阳湖盆地)
Dongting Lake (洞庭湖), Poyang Lake (鄱阳湖)
(diagram: 陈志浩 & 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

River water and the sediments that come with it create fertile lands along the banks. These regions are always densely populated and have a prospering economy.

Farmlands and villages along the Han River in Wuhan’s western suburb
(photo: VCG)

But rivers flow slowly in basins, and thus are prone to overflow.
During flood seasons, water levels in both the river mainstream and tributaries rise rapidly due to the joint effects of flood drainage in the upstream, local rainstorms and the backwater coming from downstream.

In addition, the exploding population has led to large-scale lake reclamation for farming. Many lakes with flood control capacity have since shrunk substantially or even disappeared.

The flood water has nowhere to go but to leak out.

Polders in Kangshan Village, Yugan County, Jiangxi
They are located in the southeast of Poyang Lake
(photo: VCG)

To avoid that, people living in these basins have been building levees along the banks ever since the Eastern Jin Dynasty. This is the first line of defence against floods.

However, these levees not only restrict water flow, but also the outflow of sediments that used to fertilise the land. This causes excessive deposition in and elevation of the river bed, which warrants further heightening of the levees, resulting in a vicious cycle.

Wanshou Pagoda (or Longevity Pagoda) on the Great Dike of Jingjiang
Built in Ming Dynasty, the foundation of the pagoda is more than 7 metres below the dike surface due to numerous dike heightening
(photo: 邓双)

Owing to limitations in technology and financial status, early levees were weak and unreliable, and pretty much collapsed with every flood.

When raging floods tear open the levees, they scour the land surface and often dig metres-deep pools and waterways. They cruelly destroy every building and farm standing in their way and submerge large areas of land.
An unimaginable tragedy for everyone living there.

Submerged areas along the midstream and downstream of Yangtze River (长江中下游) in 1870, 1931 and 1954
Yichang (宜昌), Jingzhou (荆州), Changde (常德), Yiyang (益阳), Yueyang (岳阳), Xianning (咸宁), Wuhan (武汉), Xiaogan (孝感), Ezhou (鄂州), Jiujiang (九江), Nanchang (南昌), Anqing (安庆), Tongling (铜陵), Wuhu (芜湖), Nanjing (南京), Zhenjiang (镇江)
Yellow arrow: levee breaches; red arrow: flood diversion
(diagram: 陈志浩, Institute for Planets)

The 1931 flood in the midstream and downstream of Yangtze River caused 145,000 deaths, including 66,000 in Hubei and 47,000 in Hunan. And the 1954 flood in the same region killed 33,000 people, where 31,000 of them were from Hubei alone.

The scars left by devastating levee failures can remain for more than hundreds of years.

Crevasse splay in Wencunjia, Jingjiang
It was formed during the levee failure in Wencun in 1842
The deep pool (深潭) and waterways (水道) are used as fish ponds and paddy fields respectively
Wencun (文村), Great Dike of Jingjiang (荆江大堤), Gongan (公安县城), Jiangling (江陵县城)

Since the establishment of New China, and especially after the great floods in 1954 and 1998, all the major levees were strengthened and expanded into a comprehensive defence system with a total length of 64,000 kilometres.

The longest sections are in Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi and Anhui.
These include the 3900 kilometres long Yangtze Levee.

The submerged banks of Yangtze River in Anqing, Anhui
Flood water was close to overtopping the Yangtze Levee
(photo: 陈肖)

Tributary levees along Han River, Xiang River and Gan River.

Han River Levee in Xiaotao, Hubei
There are shelter forests distributed on both sides of the levee
(photo: 李念)

And lake levees encircling Dongting Lake and Poyang Lake.

Pearl Lake Levee, separating the elevated Poyang Lake on the left, and the Pearl Lake on the right
The levee maintained a clear water body and a low water level in the Pearl Lake
(photo: VCG)

As well as urban levees.

On 12 July 2020, the water level in Xiaguan District of Nanjing was already well above the elevation of the city
Citizens were taking a walk on the flood wall
(photo: VCG)

Most of the levees in the two major basins have become the highest elevation points in cities and villages. They loyally defend these densely populated areas on the vast plains from rampaging floods.

Right here, the notorious Jingjiang section of the Yangtze River meanders wantonly.

The meandering Jingjiang section of Yangtze River
Jingjiang section refers to the river basin between Zhicheng Village in Yichang and Chenglingji in Yueyang
Yueyang, Hunan (湖南省岳阳市), Dongting Lake (洞庭湖), meandering Jingjiang (九曲荆江), Jianli, Hubei (湖北省监利市)
(photo: 蓑笠张)

The water level in Jingzhou frequently rises above 40 metres. It even reached 45.22 metres in the 1998 flood, while the elevation of most parts of the city is below 35 metres.

As the old saying goes, ‘the thousand-mile Yangtze River kills at Jingjiang (万里长江,险在荆江)’. Local people’s lives really depend on a strong levee here.

The Great Dike of Jingjiang
It rises up more than 10 metres above the city
(photo: 邓双)

The height of a levee is generally determined based on the highest flood water level in history. This is the design flood level, also known as the control flood level.
Depending on the purpose and criticality of the levee, it has to be at least 1.0-2.5 metres taller than the design flood level to make sure the flood water does not overflow.

Jianli District, Jingzhou, on 23 July 2020
The flood that submerged the river banks was almost brushing at the design flood level on the top of the levee
(photo: 向源翰)

Levees are trapezoidal structures with artificial earth fill. The foundation as well as the levee body often contain sand layers. These are prone to seepage due to imperfect filling, which destroys the levee. Therefore, vertical anti-seepage walls are sometimes embedded in the levee to prevent it from collapsing.

Anti-seepage wall (防渗墙) in the southern section of the Great Dike of Jingjiang (荆江南岸大堤)
‘Water level’ in this piece generally refers to Elevation of Wusong (吴淞高程), where Elevation of Wusong-Huanghai Elevation (黄海高程) ~1.7 metres
Silty loam (粉质壤土), silt (粉细砂), silty clay (粉质粘土), clay (粘土), sandy loam (砂壤土), coarse sand (中粗砂), artificial earth fill (人工填土), observation unit (观望房)
Huanghai Elevation (黄海高程), design flood level (设计水位)
(diagram: 王申雯, Institute for Planets)

And for Wuhan, which has two rivers and faces four river banks, the urban area is too close to the water to provide sufficient space for levee construction, hence limiting the height of levees. Engineers can only add a flood wall on top of the existing soil embankment.

A flood wall in front of the Longwang Temple (or Dragon King Temple) in Hankou, Wuhan
The flood has already submerged the river promenade, approaching the city with just the flood wall in between
(photo: VCG)

Flood walls are mainly made of concrete. They erect along the banks and occupy much less space compared to artificial earth fill levees. The wall can rise up to 3-5 metres above ground.

Flood wall in Wuchang District, Wuhan (武汉武昌城区防洪墙)
(diagram: 王申雯, Institute for Planets)

River regulation projects were implemented simultaneously with the construction of levees and flood walls. These include the Lower Jingjiang Meander Cut-off Project, which reduces river sinuosity and allows an accelerated water flow.

While it leads to a more efficient local flood drainage, the project puts more pressure on the downstream flood control.

Evolution of river channel in lower Jingjiang section下荆江河道 of Yangtze River between 1934 and 2016
Zhongzhouzi (中州子) and Shangchewan (上车湾) are artificial meander cutoffs (人工裁弯)
Lower Jingjiang section refers to the section downstream of Ouchikou (藕池口)
Meanders: Ouchikou, Diaoxiaokou (调弦口), Shangchewan, Chibakou (尺八口)
Cities: Shishou (石首), Huarong (华容), Jianli (监利)
(diagram: 陈志浩, Institute for Planets)

After the levee strengthening and river regulation measures, levee breaching had rarely occurred in the main stream and tributaries of Yangtze River ever since 1954. But the downsides of tall levees are the high construction cost, substantial land use and the negative impact on everyday life. These set an upper limit on the flood control potential of levees.

For instance, the levees in Jingjiang section of the Yangtze River is only designed for 10-year floods*, whereas those in Wuhan section can at most withstand 20- to 30-year floods. They are even more fragile in some tributaries, and can barely protect lives and properties next to the river.

We need a second line of defence.

* N-year floods refers to the probability (1/N) of a flood occurring at a given scale. It does not infer that the flood is expected to occur only once in N years

Fushui River in the army reclamation farm in Yangxin County, Hubei, on 16 July 2020
After the bursting of Fushui River, helicopter pilots attempted to block the breach by hoisting net bags and airdropping rocks
(photo: VCG)

2. Reservoirs

When the flood-carrying capacity of Yangtze River is overwhelmed by the ferocious water, reservoirs in the upstream becomes the crucial flood regulator that alleviate the pressure in the leveed downstream channels.

The most famous of all is of course the Three Gorges Dam.

Three Gorges Dam
It turns into a reservoir when arresting flood water
(photo: VCG)

Owing to the recurrent and devastating floods in Yangtze River, the top mission of the Three Gorges Dam is actually not power generation.

The hydropower generator in Three Gorges Dam has an installed capacity of 22.5 million kW. Despite having a much higher installed capacity than the previous world champion Itaipu Dam (14 million kW), the two dams generate comparable amount of electric power.

This is because much of the capacity of Three Gorges Dam is invested on the arduous task of flood control.

Three Gorges Dam on a misty day
(photo: 李心宽)

Each year, the water level in the Three Gorges Reservoir is raised to the standard mark at 175 metres during the winter half-year period, which corresponds to a storage volume of 39.3 billion cubic metres.
This volume far exceeds that of Poyang Lake, and the elevation drop of more than 100 metres for the ample amount of water allows the dam to generate enormous load of electric power.

But before 10 June every year, the Three Gorges Reservoir has to discharge excess water and lower the water level to the flood period mark at 145 metres and give up plenty of storage capacity for the upcoming floods.
Letting go a lot of water during entire flood periods is the reason for the submaximal power generation.

Flood discharge at the Three Gorges Dam
(photo: VCG)

The storage capacity assigned for flood control in the Three Gorges Reservoir is 22.15 billion cubic metres, which is more than half of the total storage.

Earlier this year in July, the hydrological stations at Dongting Lake and Poyang Lake recorded a critical water level that was closing up with the design flood level.

Luoxing Stone (or Falling Star Pier) in Poyang Lake, Jiujiang, Jiangxi, on 18 July 2020
Lower parts of the Luoxing Stone was already submerged
(photo: VCG)

The Three Gorges Dam immediately reduced the drainage flow and arrested 3 billion cubic metres of flood water within one week. That temporarily saved the two lakes from the precarious situation.

But it is unrealistic to rely solely on the Three Gorges Dam to solve all the flood problems. Therefore, more than 50,000 reservoirs were built over the past decades. Cumulatively, they possess a storage capacity of more than 360 billion cubic metres. This is equivalent to having 9 Three Gorges Dams.
Together they form a super reservoir cluster.

Among them, the 41 controlled reservoirs are able to store up to 59.8 billion cubic metres of water in total, which is twice the volume of the Poyang Lake.

Controlled reservoirs (控制性水库) that are included in the joint scheduling system (联合调度)
Major systems: Three Gorges (三峡), upstream branches (上游支流), Jinsha River (金沙江), Han River-Qing River (汉江-清江), Dongting Lake system (洞庭湖水系), Poyang Lake system (鄱阳湖水系)
(diagram: 陈志浩 & 王申雯, Institute for Planets)

These include the Ertan Dam and Jinping-I Dam on the Yalong River and Xiluodu Dam on the Jinsha River.

Xiluodu Dam between Sichuan and Yunnan
(photo: 柴峻峰)

Xiangjia Dam and Wudongde Dam.

Xiangjia Dam close to Shuifu, Yunnan
(photo: 柴峻峰)

As well as the Danjiangkou Reservoir on the Han River, Geheyan Dam and Shuibuya Dam on the Qing River, and the Wuqiangxi Dam on the Yuan River.

Geheyan Dam in Yichang, Hubei
(photo: VCG)

By implementing this joint scheduling reservoir system, the flood control standard has now been raised from 10-year floods to 100-year floods. This capability is much better than just having the levees alone, and makes the flood control in the downstream much more flexible.

This is also why we are no longer as passive and struggling as much as in 1998 when faced with floods in recent years, despite at equally high frequency.

Illustration of flood control by Three Gorges Dam (三峡大坝)
Comparison between different submerged areas in the 1870 flood in the presence and absence of Three Gorges Dam
Cities: Yichang (宜昌), Jingzhou (荆州), Shishou (石首), Changde (常德), Yiyang (益阳), Changsha (长沙), Yueyang (岳阳), Jianli (监利), Xiantao (仙桃), Xianning (咸宁), Wuhan (武汉), Xiaogan (孝感)
(diagram: 陈志浩, Institute for Planets)

Furthermore, to avoid reduction in reservoir storage volume due to soil deposition, key preventive projects on soil and water conservation were implemented at the same time. Programmes such as afforestation and returning farms to forests and prairies are certainly instrumental in mitigating erosion along the Yangtze River basin.

Artificial forest in Yakou Village, Baixing Town, Nayong County, Bijie, Guizhou
(photo: VCG)

But let us be clear about one thing: even having several tens of thousands of reservoirs will not help us tame the defiant Yangtze River.

First of all, the existing storage volume for flood control is nothing compared to the 1 trillion cubic metres runoff volume of the Yangtze River. It is impossible to indefinitely increase the storage volume given how much land a reservoir occupies.
This price is too high for a densely populated country like China.

Geheyan Dam on the Qing River
(photo: VCG)

Second, these reservoirs are mostly distributed around the upstream regions of Yangtze River. For the midstream and downstream where torrential rain and floods are most severe, however, reservoirs can hardly be built due to the flatness of the local terrains.

Even with an enormous reservoir like the Three Gorges Dam, the effect of flood control will be modest for distant regions further downstream of Wuhan.

Shuibuya Dam on the Qing River, Enshi, Hubei
(photo: 李云飞)

Therefore, we need the third line of defence.

3. Flood retention and detention basins

When even the levees and reservoirs cannot protect us from the menace of the rampaging Yangtze River, flood retention and detention basins will be deployed.

They are low-lying regions surrounded by tall gated levees. Normally, floods are kept out from these regions, but when the time for flood diversion comes, these gates will open wide to invite the wolf into the house.

Kangshan District of Poyang lake, Yugan County, Shangrao, Jiangxi
Bottom right is the Kangshan flood retention and detention basin behind the levee, top left is the Poyang Lake
(photo: VCG)

In the 1870 flood, the flood peak in the Yichang mainstream once reached 105,000 cubic metres per second, far exceeding the flood-carrying capacity of the Jingjiang section.
But the section cannot be blamed, because such a massive flow is capable of filling the entire West Lake within 130 seconds or so, or saturating the flood storage capacity of the Three Gorges Dam in 2.5 days.

Wangling Temple in the downstream of Three Gorges Dam
The 1870 flood submerged the pillars of Hall of Yu the Great in the temple
(photo: VCG)

Although it is possible today to cut the flow down to below 80,000 cubic metres per second with the help of numerous reservoirs including Three Gorges Dam, this is still too much for the Jingjiang section.
We need the flood retention and detention basin.

In the spring of 1952, about 300,000 soldiers and civilians spent only 75 days to build the Jingjiang flood retention and detention basin. This basin has an area of 921 square kilometres, which is almost a fourth of that of Poyang Lake, and a flood retention volume of 5.4 billion cubic metres, also a fourth of that of the Three Gorges Reservoir.

Jingjiang flood retention and detention basin
Brown line: levee; yellow line: Great Dike of Jingjiang
Crossed box: flood diversion sluice; arrow: flood diversion gate
Basin levee: North flood entry gate (北闸进洪闸), south flood control gate (南闸节制闸), Lijiakou east levee (里甲口东堤), Lalinzhou (腊林洲), Wuliangan (无量庵), Xiaojiazui (肖家咀)
Cities and towns: Jingzhou (荆州), Buhe (埠河), Mishi (弥市), Gongan (公安), Yangjiachang (杨家厂), Jiangling (江陵), Ouchi (藕池), Shishou (石首)
(diagram: 陈志浩 & 王申雯, Institute for Planets)

And it was greeted by the largest flood in the 20th century just two years later in 1954.

It diverted the flood three times in total, thereby successfully lowering the water level in the Jingjiang section and preventing worse outcomes. This was a proof-of-concept experiment on the necessity of a flood retention and detention basin.

Buhe Town in the Jingjiang flood retention and detention basin
Jingzhou is on the opposite bank
(photo: 邓双)

Currently, there are 42 major flood retention and detention basins completed along the midstream of the Yangtze River. With a total area of 12,000 square kilometres, the basins are almost as big as two Shanghai cities combined. The effective storage capacity is 58.97 billion cubic metres, which is comparable to that of the controlled reservoir cluster.

Distribution of flood retention and detention basins in the middle and downstream reaches of Yangtze River
Basins: Jingjiang flood diversion region (荆江分洪区), Gongshuangcha (共双茶), Qianliang Lake (钱粮湖), Dayuan (人民大垸), Hong Lake west, middle & east (洪湖 西·中·东块), Dujiatai (杜家台), Xiliang Lake 西凉湖
Colour (dark to light): Key (重点), important (重要), normal (一般蓄滞洪区) and reserved flood retention and detention basin (蓄滞洪保留区)
(diagram: 陈志浩, Institute for Planets)

These basins scatter along the banks of the Yangtze River and around Poyang and Dongting Lakes.

Being the only key flood retention and detention basin, the Jingjiang flood diversion region is absolutely crucial for the safety of the Jingjiang section, and acts as an alarmist for other basins.
And close to the Chen Lake in Wuhan, the Dujiatai basin guards Wuhan, Hanchuan and Xiantao.

Dujiatai flood diversion gate on the Han River, Xiaotao, Hubei
This is the flood entry gate of the basin, which had been used for more than 20 times since its completion in 1956
(photo: 尹权)

In addition, all the polders along the midstream and downstream that greatly limited flood-carrying capacity of the river were gradually returned to the lakes since 1998. This restored several billion cubic metres of storage capacity for flood control.

Blasting of a polder dike in the Liangzi Lake, Wuhan, in 2016
(photo: 荆楚网)

However, these basins always harbour large amount of farmlands, towns and cities. All citizens living there will have to be evacuated prior to flood diversion. And before that, they have to abandon their crops, houses and factories, which will be submerged completely throughout the diversion period.
Therefore, despite the effectiveness of flood retention and detention basins, they are always the very last resort when all hope is lost.

4. The invisible system

16 August 1998, evening.

More than 300,000 citizens had already been evacuated from the Jingjiang flood diversion basin. Explosives that would blast the levee and let in the flood water were also in place. Everything was ready.
They were just waiting for the flood peak to arrive. A flood peak which no existing flood control measure could ever manage.

North flood entry gate of Jingjiang flood diversion region
This is where flood water will rush in during flood diversion; Jingjiang section is on the far side
(photo: 邓双)

To divert, or not to divert?

If the flood were diverted here, several hundred thousand citizens would become homeless, and their decades of hard work and fortune would turn to dust.
If not, the levee defence line from Jingzhou to Wuhan would burst any time. This would lead to even more catastrophic consequences affecting millions of people.

People in Wuhan punting in town during the 1998 flood
(photo: VCG)

It was a sleepless night.

The flood diversion area broadcast kept repeating the news about the upcoming diversion, and patrolling inspectors continued to sound the alarm. Soldiers were already stationed at the north flood entry gate awaiting orders, while citizens of the diversion area gazed at their to-be-submerged homes from afar.

After the emergency consultation with an expert panel, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters concluded that although the water level of the approaching flood peak would definitely go above the safety line and break all records, calculations indicated that the situation would still be under control as long as the Great Dike of Jingjiang remains standing.

They recommended not to divert the flood.

In the end, ‘People’s Republic did not open the gate (共和国没有开闸).’
Millions of soldiers and civilians defended the Great Dike till their last. Not one levee was breached despite the historical flood peak.

The homes of more than 300,000 citizens were returned to their owners untouched.

Early morning on 15 September 1998, the first troop of 6000 People’s Army soldiers withdrawing from Jiujiang, Jiangxi, after accomplishing the flood control mission; 250,000 Jiujiang citizens bidding farewell in tears
(photo: 周国强)

Behind the successful decision is an invisible defence system. It forms the fourth defence line after levees, reservoirs and flood retention and detention basins.

This defence system is a comprehensive surveillance network that is comprised of more than 30,000 hydrological and weather stations, as well as satellites. It monitors and provides real-time feedback on hydrological information that are crucial for flood control decision making.

Hydrological station at the mouth of Poyang Lake
(photo: VCG)

In addition, an expert panel consisting of fellows from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and also technical professionals, analyses the flood and issues forecasts about future development. They are responsible for developing a response plan for flood control.

There is also an administrative system. From the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters to local grassroots organisations, every entity in the system cooperatively coordinates flood control personnels and supplies, prioritises and implements the response plans.

Vehicles delivering sand and rocks to the levee breach at the Sanjiao Levee in Xiushui County, Yongxiu, Jiangxi
(photo: 胡寒)

And a frontline that includes soldiers and local civilians, who vigilantly patrol and strengthen the levees, and race against time when flood peaks hit.

Soldiers building inverse filter layer to prevent seepage in the levee
(photo: 东部战区微信公众号)

In our flood control defence system, there are long levees that span tens of thousands of miles in total, tens of thousands of reservoirs, dozens of flood retention and detention basins, and numerous gates, stations, channels and pumps along the entire river basin.
It is the invisible defence system that keeps all these running at all times in a coordinated manner.

Sanchawan Hydraulic Hub on the Chu River, Nanjing, Jiangsu
(photo: 周文军)

Together, these four lines of defence form a safety net that maintains peace along the Yangtze River. It guards 1.8 million square kilometres of land, 500 million people, 40% of China’s GDP and 30% of food production in the country.

Only with these defence lines in place, can we ‘calmly take a leisure walk in the patio despite the roaring winds and charging waves (不管风吹浪打,胜似闲庭信步)‘.

A volunteer rescue team member patrolling the water
The pavilion on the Huanghuaji in Wuhan was almost completely submerged on 13 July 2020
(photo: 张乔)

Production team
Text: 王朝阳
Photos: 蒋哲睿、谢禹涵
Design: 王申雯、郑伯容
Maps: 陈志浩
Review: 撸书猫、云舞空城

p.s. While writing this piece, Mr Zheng Shouren, a renowned fellow of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and the chief designer of the Three Gorges Dam, passed away in July 2020; we would like to dedicate this piece to all hydraulic engineers and frontline personnels involved in flood control.

References
[1]国家防汛抗旱总指挥部. 长江防御洪水方案(2015)[EB/OL]. 2015.
[2]水利部长江水利委员会. 长江防洪地图集[M]. 科学出版社, 2001.
[3]水利部长江水利委员会. 长江流域蓄滞洪区图集[M]. 科学出版社, 2007.07.
[4]水利部长江水利委员会. 长江重要堤防隐蔽工程地图集[M]. 科学出版社, 2004.09.
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… The End …

Institute for Planets
星球研究所
一群国家地理控,专注于探索极致风光

The Beauty of China’s Lakes

Original piece: 《中国的湖泊,有多美?》
Produced by Institute for Planets (星球研究所)
Written by 风子
Translated by Kelvin Kwo
k
Posted with permission from Institute for Planets

A land sprinkled with pearls

For better visual effects, most photos included in this piece were taken in landscape mode.

Lakes are often romanticised as pearls.

There are 24880 of such pearls across the land of China.
They differ greatly in size, where 2693 of them have a surface area larger than 1 square kilometre. When combined, they cover a total area of 81414.56 square kilometres.*

No two pearls look the same.
Some are long and narrow, others are curved or round or with sharp edges. The variety of their appearance is beyond imagination.

* These data are based on《我国的湖泊》(Lakes in China) by 王洪道 et al. and 《中国湖泊调查报告》(Survey on China’s Lakes) by Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; data variation may exist for lake count and area owing to differences in methodology and time of data collection

Number and area of natural lakes in China (中国天然湖泊)
The 51st lake and those after are represented by dots which do not reflect their actual shapes
The 10 biggest lakes: Qinghai Lake (青海湖), Poyang Lake (鄱阳湖), Dongting Lake (洞庭湖), Lake Tai (太湖), Hulun Lake (呼伦湖), Siling Tso (色林错), Namu Tso (纳木错), Hongze Lake (洪泽湖), Xingkai Lake or Lake Khanka (兴凯湖), Bosten Lake (博斯腾湖)
Reference: Report on Lake Survey in China by Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
(diagram: 赵榜 & 陈思琦, Institute for Planets)

Distributed all over the country, they can be found on top of mountains.

A glacier lake on Bogda Peak, Tianshan Mountains (literally ‘mountains of the heavens’)
(photo: 张文静)

Or on the plains.

Gaoyou Lake, Jiangsu (photo: 清溪)

From inlands.

The red Dagetu Lake in Badain Jaran Desert (photo: 滕洪亮)

To the shore.

West Lake, Hangzhou (photo: 肖奕叁)

They have a library of names because of different dialects and customs.

Alternative names for ‘lake (湖泊)’ (diagram: 赵榜, Institute for Planets)

So where do all these lakes come from?
How have they sculpted the landscape and adorned the nature?

To answer these questions, we first need to learn about the two prerequisites for lake formation: the lake basin, a natural depression in the land surface, and the water body that resides within. A lake basin determines the shape and size of the water body. Without it, lakes do not even exist.

In China, there are 8 natural forces responsible for carving all kinds of lake basins. Understanding them will help us answer the questions above.

1. Volcanism 火山的力量

Let us start with the ‘pyro’ force of fiery volcano eruptions.

Below the crust, fervent magma undergoes vigorous movements, constantly looking for a weak point in the rocks above. When such crack is spotted, the magma is blasted out. Together with the ash and tephra ejected from the volcano, the lava cools down and piles up around the vent to form a volcanic cone.

When the volcano becomes dormant, the cooling magma column shrinks and causes the apex of the volcanic cone to collapse inwards to form a sinkhole with the shape of a bowl-like funnel. As rain water accumulates in the sinkhole, a volcanic crater lake gradually takes form.

Formation of a volcanic crater lake (火山口湖)
Multiple eruptions may cause fault settlement in the volcanic cone, resulting in caldera lakes (破火山口湖)
(photo: 赵榜, Institute for Planets)

Like a sacred torch lifted high up in the sky, these lakes are often praised as tianchi (literally ‘lake of the heavens’).

There are clusters of volcanic crater lakes in the northeast regions of China. The Arxan Heavenly Lake and Heavenly Lake of the Moon near Arxan, Greater Khingan, are the classic examples.

Arxan Heavenly Lake (photo: 赵高翔)

Viewing from above, the almost perfectly round Heavenly Lake of the Moon could well be mistaken for an enchanting sapphire embedded in the forest.

Heavenly Lake of the Moon (photo: 钟永君)

After numerous eruptions which caused continuous crater expansion, the well-known Heavenly Lake of Changbai Mountain (literally ‘Perpetually White Mountain’) is currently the largest volcanic crater lake in China.

The Heavenly Lake of Perpetually White Mountain is a caldera lake (photo: VCG)

It is also the deepest lake in China with an average depth of 204 metres and 373 metres at the deepest. Having a water volume of 2 million cubic metres, the Heavenly Lake is much larger than many large lakes on the plains.

Heavenly Lake of Perpetually White Mountain is on the border between China and North Korea
The total area of the lake is 9.82 square kilometres
(photo: 翟东润)

2. Glacial movement 冰川的力量

The grim force of ‘ice’, on the contrary, carves and reshapes mountains in a different but equally drastic manner.

During the ice age, glaciers on the western mountains in China were much thicker than today. As temperature rose, they melted and retreated. This leaves behind many depressions formed from glacial erosion or glacial troughs rimmed with moraines which become all kinds of glacial lakes today.

Formation of glacial lakes (冰川湖)
Lateral (侧冰碛) and end moraines (终冰碛) formed from glacial movement
Examples of glacial lakes include glacial erosion lakes (冰蚀湖), moraine-dammed lakes (冰碛湖) and cirque lakes (冰斗湖)
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

They are mostly distributed at high attitudes with relatively small basins. Frequently supplemented by meltwater, they are the source of many rivers flowing along mountain ranges.

A cirque lake in Daocheng, Sichuan (photo: 陈磊)
A moraine-dammed lake in Nyingchi (Linzhi), Tibet (photo: 李珩)

Repeated retreats and advances of glaciers result in a series of connected glacial lakes, like a string of pearls implanted into the glacial troughs.

A series of connected glacial lakes, Xiangcheng County, Garzê (photo: 李珩)

3. Aeolian processes 风的力量

For arid regions like deserts, the predominant creator of lakes is none other than the force of the ‘wind’.

Wind sweeps across dry lands, agitating and flinging clouds of sand and dust.
Over time, wind creates rippled surfaces with crests and troughs known as sand dunes. Supplemented with groundwater and rain, the depressions among the dunes turn into aeolian lakes.

Formation of aeolian lakes (风成湖)
Structures: sand dune (沙丘), lake (湖泊), water table (潜水层), confined aquifer (承压含水层)
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

Aeolian lakes are abundant in the northwest desert regions, mainly scattered across Taklamakan Desert and Badain Jaran Desert.

An Aeolian lake in Badain Jaran Desert (photo: 戚伟民)

As well as Tengger Desert and Kumukuli Desert.

Baisha Lake (literally ‘hundred sand lake’) in Kumukuli Desert, Altyn Tagh (Altun Mountain)
(photo: 李学亮)

Some of these lakes nurture vegetation or microbial lives. Others evaporate under the blazing sun leaving behind colourful layers of mineral salt.

Either way, these lakes smear delightful streaks of vivid paint on the dull desert.

The red Dagetu Lake in Badain Jaran Desert (photo: 林北岸)

4. Oceanic processes 海洋的力量

The ocean is an active player in formation of lakes along the coast.

When a deposition bar or a spit created by the sea current becomes big enough and closes the re-entry of the shore, it separates a shallow body of water from the sea and forms a lagoon.

Formation of lagoons (潟湖)
Sand (泥沙) drifting with the current (沿海漂流) gradually closes up the bay (海湾) forming a spit (沙嘴) that encircles a lagoon.
(diagram: 赵榜, Institute for Planets)

Owing to the differential impact of coastal waves and tidal force, lagoons in China are rarely found along the coast of East China Sea, but mainly concentrated in other coastal provinces including Liaoning, Hebei, Shandong, Guangdong and Guangxi.

A lagoon at the Golden Coast, Changli, Hebei (photo: 徐树春)

There are many of them along the coast of Hainan and Taiwan.

A lagoon in Sanya, Hainan (photo: 韩阳)

They are often used as sheltered ports or crop fields.

5. Karstification 岩溶的力量

In regions rich in soluble carbonate rocks, flowing water continuously erodes the land and forms depressions, sinkholes and caves. When the drainage is blocked by a collapsed surface or deposition of insoluble substance, water accumulates and a karst lake is formed.

Formation of karst lakes (岩溶湖 / 喀斯特湖) (diagram: 郑伯容, Institute of Planets)

Karst terrains are widely distributed in southwest regions of China, and so are karst lakes.

Formation of karst lakes are usually spontaneous, as exemplified by the Caohai Lake (literally ‘sea of grass’) on the Weining Mountain in Guizhou.
The heavy rain that persisted from July to August in 1857 rushed down plenty of soil and organic sediments which blocked the sinkhole of an ancient lake basin. This gave birth to the biggest lake in Guizhou.

Caohai Lake on the Weining Mountain (photo: VCG)

On the west coast of Lake Napa in Shangri-La, Yunan, there are three sinkholes with enlarging cracks in the lake basin. During flood periods, drainage of the water body through these cracks often create whirlpools. In the dry season, this lake becomes a shallow wetland.

Lake Napa (photo: 彭建生)

6. Mass wasting 堰塞的力量

Compared to karst lakes, the formation of landslide dams (also known as debris dam, barrier lake or quake lake) is even more abrupt and drastic.

Between 1719 to 1721, two volcanoes named Laohei and Huoshao erupted together in Dedu County, Heilongjiang. Large amount of lava was ejected and poured into the Bailong River. Dammed by the lava, the disturbed river basin became a series of connected lakes like a string of mala beads.

This world-famous lava-dammed lake is called the Wudalianchi (literally ‘five connected pools’).

Formation of the Wudalianchi (五大连池)
It is formed from a river (河流) which experienced lava damming (熔岩堵塞) after volcano eruptions (火山喷发)
Volcanos: Laihei (老黑山), Huoshao (火烧山)
Lakes: Head pool (头池子), Second pool (二池子), Third pool (三池子), Fourth pool (四池子), Fifth pool (五池子), crescent pool (月牙湖)
(diagram: 赵榜, Institute for Planets)

Also located in Heilongjiang is the Jingpo Lake, which was created when basalt formed from cooled lava blocked the Mudan River and its tributary.
It is the largest lava-dammed lake in China.

Jingpo Lake
Lake water flows steady over the basalt dam and down a waterfall, forming a deep basin by the banks
(photo: VCG)

Landslide dams are more commonly created through slumping.

Landslides and mudslides are frequent in the mountainous regions of western China due to earthquakes, glacial movements and heavy rainfall. Slumps block the river channel and form lakes on the upstream.

Formation of landslide dams
1. Rivers flow through precipitous cliffs along the mountains
2. Mass wasting such as earthquakes leads to landslides which blocks the river channel
3. Water accumulates on the upstream forming a landslide dam
(diagram: Institute for Planets)

In 1933, Diexi in Mao County, Sichuan, was struck hard by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake. The subsequent massive landslide led to large amount of land mass collapsing into the Min River.
This resulted in multiple landslide dams now known as the Diexi Lakes. The ancient town of Diexi was forever buried with the collapsed land mass.

Diexi Lake (photo: 谢洪)

Glacial movements near Guxiang Village in Bomê County, Tibet, triggered a mudslide in 1953. Blocking the Parlung Tsangpo River, the mudslide indirectly created the Guxiang Lake, which is 5 kilometres long and 1-2 kilometres wide with a depth of 20 metres.

Guxiang Lake in the spring (photo: 张扬的小强)

Unlike other lake types, the dams of landslide lakes are inherently loose, which can fail catastrophically and lead to serious floods and loss of lives in the downstream.

Shortly after the Sichuan earthquake on 12 May 2008, the dam of Tangjiashan Lake, created by the earthquake on the upstream of Beichuan County, was on the verge of failure due to potential overtopping. This forced the earthquake relief squad to relieve the pressure in the lake by building spillways through manual digging and using airdrop mining machinery, while simultaneously evacuating thousands of citizens.

Tangjiashan Lake, taken from a military helicopter on 30 May 2008 during the earthquake relief squad’s race against the upcoming dam failure of the lake (photo: 朱建国)

Well, landslide dams are not always ‘all but good’.
When cultivated over an extended period, they spill out picturesque landscapes.

The many exquisite lakes in Jiuzhaigou, including Chang Lake, Fangcao Lake, Swan Lake, Jianzhu Lake and Panda Lake, are all perfect examples of captivating sceneries moulded by the force of mass wasting. The Wuhua Lake (literally ‘five flower lake’), most gorgeous of all Jiuzhaigou lakes, has all the classic features of a landslide dam.

Wuhua Lake (photo: 李珩)

We have now come across six natural forces that created thousands of lakes with all kinds of features.

But the vast majority of the lakes they create are all too tiny, most of which with surface areas smaller than 1 square kilometre and hence are usually neglected.
Large and medium-sized lakes with more familiar names, on the other hand, are created by the remaining two forces.

7. Fluvial processes 河流的力量

In plain regions that are nourished by plenty of fresh water, lakes are primarily created by rivers.

The sediments carried in rivers may form depressed basins through uneven deposition, or gradually build up a sand bar that holds the river water behind still. Rivers can also invade the adjacent lowlands during floods, or abandon minor channels that eventually stock up sufficient water to become a lake.
These lakes are collectively referred to as fluvial lakes.

Baiyang Lake cluster (photo: 余明)

Because of these effects, the East China plains along the midstream and downstream of Yangtze River and Huai River harbour a large number of lake clusters.

The Jianghan Plain, for instance, still retains 181 lakes with areas larger than 1 square kilometre, including the Hong Lake, Liangzi Lake and Futou Lake, despite the rapid drop in the number of existing lakes in the region.

Liangzi Lake with an area of 351.77 square kilometres (photo: 柳斌)

Since 1194, the Yellow River had changed its course occasionally. It engulfed the Si River and ran into the the Huai River. The heavy silting in both Si River and Huai River led to significant water retention that ultimately created a series of lakes, making it a classic case study for fluvial lake formation.

The lakes that arose from poor drainage along the Si River, namely the Nanyang Lake, Dushan Lake, Zhaoyang Lake and Weishan Lake, were further expanded by human activities including canal construction and became the widely known Nansi Lake.

Weishan Lake (photo: 陈剑峰)

Water retention was most severe at the confluence of the Si River and the mainstream Huai River. After the dam construction in the downstream, many smaller lakes and swamps merged together to become the Hongze Lake, which is one of the famous Five Lakes in China.

Hongze Lake with an area of 1663.32 square kilometres (photo: 陈剑峰)

This major event was also connected to the formation of many other lakes along the Huai River basins, including the Luoma Lake, Gaoyou Lake and Shaobo Lake.

Luoma Lake (photo: 陈剑峰)

But still, few fluvial lakes can be classified as large lakes. Moreover, they are mostly residing in the plain regions only. To create even more sizeable lakes and over all terrains of the vast country, something more extraordinary is necessary.

We need the formidable power of tectonic activities.

8. Tectonic activities 构造的力量

China has a complex tectonic architecture.

Crustal folding and faulting are frequent events in this country due to constant and vigorous tectonic plate movements. Mountains are created during these events, and so are structural basins when the flat floors exhibit downward motion in relation to the surrounding margins.

Infused with rainfall, river inflow, meltwater and underground water, a water body gradually builds up in basins with a closed or partially-closed structure. This is how tectonic lakes are formed.

Formation of tectonic lakes (构造湖泊); diagram illustrates only some of many types of tectonic lakes
Symmetric rift lakes (对称断陷湖) are usually long and narrow, lined by steep cliffs on either bank
Asymmetric rift lakes (非对称断陷湖) are also mostly long and narrow, with a straight embankment neighbouring the fault
Depression lakes (拗陷湖) are commonly round or oval in shape, without apparent faults or cliffs by the banks
Foreland lakes (山前前陆湖) normally have a long shape with a greater depth near the fault
(diagram: 赵榜, Institute for Planets)

These tectonic lakes are not only scattered all across the land of China, they are absolutely dominating the large and medium-sized lake categories.

8.1 Extra-large lakes in China

Of all the 10 extra-large lakes in China, 8 are tectonic lakes.

Distribution of the 10 extra-large lakes in China
Tectonic lakes (构造湖): Qinghai Lake (青海湖), Poyang Lake (鄱阳湖), Dongting Lake (洞庭湖), Hulun Lake (呼伦湖), Siling Tso (色林错), Namu Tso (纳木错), Bosten Lake (博斯腾湖), and Xingkai Lake or Lake Khanka (兴凯湖)
Non-tectonic lakes (非构造湖): Hongze Lake (洪泽湖) and Tai Lake (太湖)
Pink shade: exorheic regions (外流区); yellow shade: endorheic regions (内流区)
(diagram: 陈思琦, Institute for Planets)

They are, respectively, the Qinghai Lake, the largest of all lakes in China with a surface area of 4254.90 square kilometres.

Qinghai Lake, with Qinghai-Tibet Railway on the near side (photo: 高泽安)

The Poyang Lake, which was famously cited by the eminent poet Wang Bo in one of his most distinguished work Tribute to King Teng’s Tower.

落霞与孤鹜齐飞,秋水共长天一色

A solitary wild duck flies alongside the multicoloured sunset clouds, and the autumn water is merged with the boundless sky into one hue.

《滕王阁序》王勃  Tribute to King Teng’s Tower by Wang Bo
English translation by Luo Jingguo
Poyang Lake is the second largest lake in China with an area of 3206.98 square kilometres
(photo: 廖昊)

The Dongting Lake, made famous by the sincere poem A Dedication to Premier Zhang while Beholding the Dongting Lake by Meng Haoran.

气蒸云梦泽,波撼岳阳城

As the warm mist blankets the Yunmeng Lake, rocking waves keep charging at the Yueyang Tower.

《望洞庭湖赠张丞相》孟浩然 A Dedication to Premier Zhang while Beholding the Dongting Lake by Meng Haoran
Dongting Lake is the third largest lake in China with an area of 2614.36 square kilometres
(photo: 叶长春)

The Hulun Lake on the great plains of Hulunbuir Prairie.

Hulun Lake is the fifth largest lake in China (photo: 赵高翔)

The Siling Tso located on the Tibetan Plateau with an area of 2129.09 square kilometres.

Siling Tso is the sixth largest lake in China (photo: 小风)

The Namu Tso, with an area of 2040.90 square kilometres.

Namu Tso is the seventh largest lake in China (photo: 张扬的小强)

And the Bosten Lake, the largest lake in Xinjiang and the tenth largest in China.

Bosten Lake, with an area of 1004.33 square kilometres (photo: 徐树春)

Although the Xingkai Lake, spanning the border between China and Russia, has a surface area of 4350 square kilometres in total, the area within China’s border is only 1057 square kilometres, therefore it is ranked only ninth in China.

The Small Xingkai Lake (left) and Xingkai Lake (right) separated by a shoal (photo: VCG)

8.2 Large lakes in China

Tectonic lakes account for 15 out of 17 large lakes in China.

Distribution of large lakes in China
While most large lakes are within the borders of China, the Pangong Tso and Buir Lake are on the borders between China and India, and Mongolia, respectively. The area of Chinese portion of the latter is only 38.4 square kilometres
Tectonic lakes (构造湖): Zhari Namco (扎日南木错), Tangra Yumco (当惹雍错), Yamdrok Yumco (羊卓雍错), Pangong Tso (班公错), Ang Laren Tso (昂拉仁错), Har Lake (哈拉湖), Wulanwula Lake (乌兰乌拉湖), Mirik Guangdram Tso (赤布张错), Ngoring Lake (鄂陵湖), Gyaring Lake (扎陵湖), Ebi Lake (艾比湖), Ulungar Lake (乌伦古湖), Ayakum Lake (阿雅克库木湖), Chao Lake (巢湖), Buir Lake (贝尔湖)
Non-tectonic lakes (非构造湖): Nansi Lake (南四湖) and Gaoyou Lake (高邮湖)
Pink shade: exorheic regions (外流区); yellow shade: endorheic regions (内流区)
(diagram: 陈思琦, Institute for Planets)

Respectively, they are the Zhari Namco, Tangra Yumco, Yamdrok Yumco, Pangong Tso and Ang Laren Tso in Tibet.

Tangra Yumco (photo: 柳叶刀)

The Har Lake, Wulanwula Lake, Mirik Gyangdram Tso, Ngoring Lake and Gyaring Lake in Qinghai.

Ngoring Lake
Together with Gyaring Lake, they are the only two large open freshwater lakes on the Tibetan Plateau
(photo: 王生晖)

The Ebi Lake, Ulungar Lake and Ayakum Lake in Xinjiang.

Ulungar Lake (photo: 李保民)

The Chao Lake (literally ‘bird’s nest lake’).

Chao Lake (photo: 陈剑峰)

And the Buir Lake on the China-Mongolian border.

Buir Lake (photo: 涟漪de)

8.3 Regional ‘spokeslakes’

Many medium and small-sized tectonic lakes have become a landmark, or the ‘spokeslake’, for various regions.

These include Yunnan’s largest lake, Dianchi Lake.

Dianchi Lake, with an area of 300.38 square kilometres (photo: 柴峻峰) 

Erhai Lake, the second largest in Yunnan.

Erhai Lake, with an area of 248.44 square kilometres (photo: 陈方翔)

And the Fuxian Lake, ranked third in Yunnan.

Of note, the surrounding margins of Fuxian Lake has been rising over the past 12,000 years. As the lake basin experiences continuous faulting, it is now the third deepest lake in China, with an average depth of 89.6 metres, and 155 metres at the deepest.

Fuxian Lake
With an area of 214.53 square kilometres and a volume of 18.9 billion cubic metres, it holds 16 and 7.5 times more water than the Dianchi Lake and Erhai Lake, respectively
(photo: 商睿)

In Sichuan, the best representatives for the less common large lakes in the region are the Lugu Lake.

Lugu Lake, with an area of 50.81 square kilometres
Two thirds of the lake is in Sichuan, and the remaining in Yunnan
(photo: 阿五在路上)

And the Qiong Lake.

Qiong Lake, with an area of 31 square kilometres (photo: 石磊)

In Xinjiang, the water of the Sayram Lake located in the western ranges of Northern Tianshan Mountain is so clear and azure blue that the lake looks like an encrusted sapphire on the heavenly mountains.

Sayram Lake, with an area of 462.63 square kilometres (photo: 焦潇翔)

The Zintun in Taiwan, more commonly called Sun Moon Lake, is located between the Yushan Mountain (literally ‘jade mountain’) and the Alishan Range. Although it is only 4.4. square kilometres big, it is the treasure island’s largest pearl.

Zintun, or Sun Moon Lake
It is now repurposed into a reservoir and has been enlarged
(photo: 柴江辉

The majority of tectonic lakes, however, are still concentrated on the Tibetan Plateau.

To the north of the Gangdisê Ranges and Nyenchen Tanglha Mountains, the regions between the Namu Tso and Pangong Tso are connected by ‘fault after fault’.

Balung Tso
Lakes in the regions north of Gangdisê Ranges, regardless of their sizes, are named as ‘tso (错)’ as opposed to ‘lake’, which is the same word for ‘mistake/fault’ in Chinese, therefore this tectonic lake region is often referred to as ‘fault after fault
(photo: 孙岩)

Such as the Mapam Yumtso and Langa Tso that stand as a couple in the Ngari Prefecture.

Mapam Yumtso on the left and Langa Tso on the right (photo: 行影不离)

And the stunning Puma Yumco in Shannan.

Puma Yumco (photo: 山风)

9. Combination of forces 合力创造

The repertoire of lake types is further enlarged by the natural forces that work together.

While many of the glacial lakes on the Altai and Tianshan Mountains were initially tectonic basins, the prolonged effects of tectonic faulting and glacial wearing have made these lakes much deeper with steep banks.

Tianshan Heavenly Lake (photo: 刘剑聪)

One such lakes, the Kanas Lake, has an average depth of 120.1 metres. The maximum depth of 188.5 metres makes it the second deepest lake in China.

Kanas Lake (photo: 崔永江)

The mechanisms underlying the formation of Tai Lake is, however, still under debate. In addition to oceanic and fluvial processes as well as tectonic activities, meteorite impact has also been proposed to help create China’s fourth largest lake.

Tai Lake, with an area of 2537.17 square kilometres
We are also hoping for more conclusive evidence for its formation process
(photo: 韩阳)

10. The fate of China’s lakes 湖泊的命运

And that summarises all the eight magnificent natural forces that are responsible for lake formation, either independently or jointly.

Through the creation of volcanic crater lakes, glacial lakes, aeolian lakes, lagoons, karst lakes, landslide dams, fluvial lakes and tectonic lakes, these forces sprinkled tens of thousands of glittering pearls across the vast land of China.

Distribution of all major lakes in China
Blue: lakes; pink shade: exorheic regions; yellow shade: endorheic regions
(diagram: 陈思琦, Institute for Planets)

Creators of these pearls, unfortunately, are usually themselves the destroyer, especially for the smaller lakes.

Volcanic crater lakes will be shattered by the next volcano eruption.
Glacial lakes will either be swallowed by advancing glaciers or crushed by sudden glacial movements.
Aeolian lakes will be buried by moving dunes and end up as groundwater.
Lagoons will become new land surface through persistent sand deposition driven by waves and tidal activities.
Karst lakes will dry up as the sinkhole and cracks get bigger.
Landslide dams, which are inherently unstable, will not last forever.

Most lakes will tranquilly tread through their predestined life cycle.
But this path certainly diverges for open and closed lakes.

Closed lakes become increasingly saline over time with accumulating mineral salt.
Starting as freshwater lakes.

Mapam Yumtso is the largest freshwater lake in high altitude areas with an area of 409.9 square kilometres
(photo: 山风)

They gradually turn into brackish lakes, and then saline lakes.

Langa Tso, a brackish lake; the retreating lakeshore is very apparent
(photo: 蒋晨明)

Slowly, they become salt lakes, and finally dry salt lakes.
A lifetime of changes.

Manas Lake in Xinjiang, a dry salt lake (photo: 飞翔)

And in the exorheic regions, open lakes undergo constant shrinkage as sand continues to deposit in the lake bed. They too slowly transform into wetlands and ultimately dry land.

Zoigê Marsh (photo: 乔力)

Nevertheless, for both open and closed lakes, their life cycles are not necessarily progressive nor unidirectional. Any changes in the basin structure, climate and even river-lake relationship can impact on the surface area, volume and water quality of the lakes.

Siling Tso
Owing to increase in rainfall and meltwater on the Tibetan Plateau, the surface area of Siling Tso increased from 1132.76 square kilometres in 1976 to 2349.46 square kilometres in 2010, replacing the Namu Tso as the largest lake in Tibet
(photo: 马春林)

But with the exception of the Tibetan Plateau, China’s lakes are more affected by human activities than any other factors, especially in modern times.

Lake reclamation for agriculture in the eastern regions greatly reduced the number of lakes and the area of existing ones. Erosion caused by human activities also accelerated sediment movement and deposition in lakes.

Hengling Lake in the southern section of Dongting Lake
The annual sediment entry into Dongting Lake is 123.85 million cubic metres; the lake is experience the worst deposition in China
(photo: 余明)

Many lakes are either shrinking or disappearing because of this, including the five major freshwater lakes, namely Poyang Lake, Dongting Lake, Tai Lake, Hongze Lake and Chao Lake.

Poyang Lake (photo: 余明)

The situation of Dongting Lake is the most worrying.

Over the 100 years between the late 19th and late 20th centuries, the lake shrunk almost by half, from 5000 square kilometres to 2700 square kilometres. The once largest freshwater lake in China is now ranked second.

The shore of Dongting Lake (photo: 朱立)

Luckily, lakes are not disappearing in large numbers anymore recently, thanks to the regulatory measures against over-reclamation introduced over the past 30 years.

Instead, the most pressing issue now is lake pollution and eutrophication caused by disposal of industrial and agricultural waste water as well as household sewage.

Chao Lake (photo: 石耀臣)

And for the arid lands in northwest regions, shrinkage and drying of downstream lakes are usually caused by the construction of dams in the upstream.

The dried out Lop Nur (photo: 李学亮)

While the lakes on the Tibetan Plateau are not influenced by human activity as much as those in other regions, they are very sensitive to climate changes.

Global warming leads to increase in rainfall and meltwater. As a result, lakes in Tibet experienced massive expansion over the last 40 years.

Changes in surface area of lakes on Tibetan Plateau (青藏高原湖泊) between 1979-2010
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

But expanding too quickly can also lead to a series of undesirable events.

Between August and September 2011, the Zhuonai Lake in Hoh Xil bursted due to continuous heavy rainfall. The flood extended across several closed lakes and merged with the exorheic Yangtze River basin, which severely damaged the surrounding ecosystem as well as the construction facilities of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway and Highway.

Zhuonai Lake (photo: 秦晖)

We now know better than ever that lakes are both beautiful and fragile.

Kanas Lake (photo: 蒋晨明)

While respecting their natural course of life, we should always be vigilant about the potential impact of global warming and human activities on these lovely lakes.

Never should we allow the beauty today to become our regret tomorrow.


Production team:
Text: 风子
Photos: 余宽
Maps: 陈思琦
Design: 赵榜, 郑伯容
Review: 云舞空城, 陈景逸

References:
[1]中国科学院南京地理与湖泊研究所编,中国湖泊调查报告[M]. 北京:科学出版社, 2019.06.
[2]王苏民,窦鸿身主编. 中国湖泊志[M]. 北京:科学出版社, 1998.09.
[3]施成熙主编. 中国湖泊概论[M]. 北京:科学出版社, 1989.03.
[4]王洪道等编著. 我国的湖泊[M]. 北京:商务印书馆, 1984.03.
[5]孙伟富等. 1979-2010年我国大陆海岸潟湖变迁的多时相遥感分析[J]. 海洋学报,2015,37(03):54-69.
[6]张祖陆等. 南四湖的形成及水环境演变[J]. 海洋与湖沼,2002(03):314-321.
[7]邓贵平.九寨沟世界自然遗产地旅游地学景观成因与保护研究[D].成都理工大学,2011.
[8]苏岑. 洞庭湖演化变迁的遥感监测数学模型[J]. 国土资源遥感, 2016, v.28;No.108(01):184-188.
[9]闫立娟等. 近40年来青藏高原湖泊变迁及其对气候变化的响应[J]. 地学前缘,2016,23(04):310-323.

… The End …

Institute for Planets
星球研究所
一群国家地理控,专注于探索极致风光

Mission Impossible: South-North Water Transfer Project

Original piece:《南水北调,难!》
Produced by Institute for Planets (星球研究所)
Written by 桢公子
Translated by Kelvin Kwo
k
Posted with permission from Institute for Planets

What It Takes to Run a Mega Project

This is the longest piece ever produced by the Institute for Planets.
It took 20 days in total for the team just to comprehend the fundamentals of this enormous engineering project.
We hope to satisfy our readers’ curiosity about it, and to share its history and development to as many as possible.

Like all metro stations in China, the Wukesong Station in Beijing is busy as ever. Passengers come and go while trains shuttle through as the years pass and the days go by.

But there is no other metro platform like the one in Wukesong Station. Just 3.67 metres below its surface, two massive concrete culverts run in parallel through the platform, carrying restless river water from afar that surges thousands of miles to the north.

From here, the river water will traverse 2 railways, 4 rivers, 8 footbridges and 23 interchange bridges, then crisscross with more than a 100 underground pipelines, before it finally merges with rivers and lakes, resides in reservoirs and eventually reaches thousands of households.

Illustration of the longitudinal structure of Wukesong Metro Station in Beijing
(diagram: 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

Perhaps the busy crowd on the platform will never notice the coursing current underneath their feet. Nor will the 120 million citizens from more than 260 counties and 40 large and medium cities across the North China Plain ever feel its presence.

Nonetheless, an unforeseen transformation is happening quietly every minute. Before these citizens realise, their way of living and the fate of their hometowns will never be the same again.

Thanks to an unprecedented mega engineering project – the South-North Water Transfer Project.

A South-North Water Transfer canal flowing through the farmlands in Hui County, Xinxiang, Henan
(photo: 韩自豪, please view with landscape mode)

1. The dry lands of Northern China 干渴的华北

According to calculations on freshwater resources per capita, the driest area in China is not the northwest region largely covered by deserts, but the North China Plain.

In particular, the Jing-Jin-Ji Metropolitan Region, which is home to 8% of China’s population and contributes 10% of the country’s GDP, has water resources per capita far below the internationally standardised limit for absolute water scarcity of 500 cubic metres per year per capita.

Spatial distribution of water resources per capita in China between 2008-2017
The diagram shows water resources per capita in China (中国人均水资源量) measured in cubic metre/person (m3/人), comparing among global (世界), China (中国), and Hebei (河北), Beijing (北京), Tianjin (天津), or collectively known as the Jing-Jin-Ji Metropolitan Region
The limit for absolute water scarcity (极度缺水线) is indicated by the dotted line
Data source: National Bureau of Statistics of China (国家统计局) & World Bank (世界银行)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

Moreover, the ever-growing population, continuous urbanisation and rapid industrialisation have severely polluted the Yellow River, Huai River and the Hai River that flow through the North China Plain. These regions were notorious for having the worst surface water quality in China, where ‘all rivers are either dried or polluted (有河皆枯、有水皆污)’.

Water quality of the seven major river systems in China in 2003
Water quality in China is categorised into 6 grades: I, II, III, IV, V and Below V
The seven major river systems include Hai River (海河), Liao River (辽河), Huai River (淮河), Yellow River (黄河), Songhua River (松花江), Yangtze River (长江) and Pearl River (珠江)
Data source: China Environmental Status Bulletin 2003 (2003中国环境状况公报)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

Little surface water was left due to water shortage and pollution.

As a result, people had no choice but to turn to other means, including over-exploitation of groundwater and the reuse of reclaimed water. Some even laid hands on precious water resources intended for sustainability purposes for the ecosystem.

Well-digging in the fields of Xiangcheng County, Xuchang, Henan
(photo: VCG)

By early 21st century, exploitation of groundwater in the Jing-Jin-Ji Region had already exceeded 100%. An underground overdraft area larger than 90,000 square kilometres soon appeared in the North China Plain and kept growing.

Comparison of the depth of shallow groundwater in North China Plain between 1980 and 2000
The degree of groundwater exploitation can be expressed as the exploitation coefficient, which is the ratio of the actual exploitation to the exploitable amount of groundwater; groundwater overdraft is defined by a coefficient of >100%.
Cities: Xinxiang (新乡), Hebi (鹤壁), Anyang (安阳), Handan (邯郸), Xingtai (邢台), Shijiazhuang (石家庄), Baoding (保定), Beijing (北京), Tangshan (唐山)
Data source: 100 Q&As on South-North Water Transfer Project (南水北调工程知识百问百答)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

The Miyun Reservoir, a major source of water supply for Beijing, shrunk by 75% in volume within merely 4 years between 1999 and 2003. More than 70% of the city’s water demand therefore could only be met by extracting groundwater. This caused the groundwater level of the Beijing plains to drop at a rate of 1 metre per year.

Miyun Reservoir on 3 November 2009, with a dried out area of almost 5 square kilometres
(photo: VCG)

The city of Jinan also suffered from serious groundwater overdraft. With fountain attractions disappearing in large numbers, the “fountain city” was in a deeply precarious situation. In some regions of Hebei Province, where over-exploitation was even worse, groundwater was expected to get completely exhausted within 20 years.

Dry cracked farmland in Yuanshi County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, on 10 February 2009
(photo: VCG)

Since 2003, a range of water-saving measures were taken in Beijing over the next ten years. Water consumption per 10,000-yuan GDP was reduced by almost 70%, and 22% of the water supply was replaced by reclaimed water.
Unfortunately, these measures were not sufficient to counter the scarcity of surface water and the constantly increasing water consumption of a growing population.

Groundwater level continued to drop.

Every region in China, south and north, deserves equal opportunity to develop and prosper.
But the extreme water shortage in Northern China severely impeded development in the region. A new water source is urgently needed to rescue the dire situation. If only there is one.

But there is always hope, no matter how slim.

Thousands of miles away, the vast Yangtze River rages across the midlands of China with a multi-year average runoff volume of approximately 960 billion cubic metres. This is almost 7 times the total runoff volume of Yellow River, Huai River and Hai River combined.

People could not help but wonder: could the water of Yangtze River be channeled north?

Simple as it sounds, constructing a water transfer infrastructure that spans thousands of miles is no ordinary challenge.

2. The impossible mission 艰难的工程

The concept of south-north water transfer was actually proposed in as early as 1952.

But it was not until 2002 before the project master plan was ready.
From the grand layout of transfer routes and scaling of the project, to the structure of aqueducts and construction materials for water pipes, it took half a century of repetitive validation to finalise all the meticulous details.

According to the multi-decade master plan, there will ultimately be three massive water channels, the Eastern, Central and Western Routes, running from south to north across China. Together with the east-flowing Hai River, Yellow River, Huai River and Yangtze River, they will form a gigantic ‘four horizontal and three vertical‘ water network.

The three routes are designed to send 44.8 billion cubic metres of water annually to the north. This volume is approximately 4.7% of the multi-year average runoff of Yangtze River, but almost 80% of that of Yellow River.

According to the master plan, the final scale of water transfer of the Eastern (东线), Central (中线) and Western Routes (西线) will be 14.8, 13.0 and 17.0 billion cubic metres respectively
The completed Phase I of the Eastern and Central Routes have a water transfer volume of 8.8 and 9.5 billion cubic metres respectively, whereas the feasibility of the Western Route is still being explored
These figures are based on multi-year average values, and the actual volume of water transfer is adjusted according to the yearly water demand
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

The South-North Water Transfer Project was not the first of its kind.

By the time it was initiated, there were already about 400 water diversion projects completed globally. But the scale of water transfer, the area of land covered and the population size involved in this project were truly unrivalled.

It was therefore a historical moment for the hydraulic engineering field when the Phase I of Eastern and Central Routes started operating on the 15 November 2013 and 12 December 2014 respectively.

On 27 December 2014, water was released from the open channel of Tuancheng Lake in Beijing, the final destination of the Central Route Phase I of the South-North Water Transfer Project
(photo: VCG)

But who would have imagined what it took to accomplish this impossible mission?

2.1 Eastern Route: defying gravity 东线:水往高处流?

The entire Eastern Route spans 1785 kilometres.

It voyages north from Yangzhou, Jiangsu, leaps across the Huai River and tunnels through the Yellow River. Finally, it delivers the water of Yangtze River to Tianjin and the Shandong Peninsula.

Huaian Hydraulic Hub in Huaian District, Huaian
The completed Eastern Route Phase I is 1467 kilometres long
. The aqueduct on top serves as both the water transfer channel of the Eastern Route Phase I, and the waterway of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal; the culvert beneath is the sea-entering channel of Huai River
This is the largest water interchange system in Asia
(photo: 贺敬华)

Accompanying this journey are several north-flowing rivers including the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, all of which act as ready-made channels for the travelling water from the Yangtze River.

Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal
Photo taken in Zaohe Town, Suyu District, Suqian, Jiangsu
(photo: 李琼)

Several lakes scattered along the way, including the Hongze Lake, Luoma Lake, Nansi Lake and Dongping Lake, are natural reservoirs for water transfer management.

Luoma Lake on the left and Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal on the right; please view with landscape mode
(photo: 李琼)

In addition, with the established groundwork of a preexisting river water diversion project in Jiangsu, it seemed all conditions for the construction of Eastern Route were ripe. The arrival of success was just a matter of time.

The third Huaiyin pumping station of the Eastern Route, part of the 3-step pumping system
The first and second pumping stations were previously built for the completed river water diversion project
(photo: 缪宜江)

But things are never as easy as they seem.

From the starting point of the water transfer to the southern bank of Yellow River in midway, there is an elevation of almost 40 metres. This means that the northbound water from the south will have to defy gravity and flow upwards.

Only when it treks through the highest elevation point, can it freely stream down to Tianjin, or gallop towards Shandong Peninsula via the Yellow River-to-Qingdao Water Diversion Project.

The Eastern Route and the respective elevation of the regions along the way
Elevation (高程, left): ground surface line (地面线, yellow) and water surface line (水面线, blue)
Cities: Beijing (北京), Tianjin (天津), Cangzhou (沧州), Hengshui (衡水), Dezhou (德州), Liaocheng (聊城), Jinan (济南), Zibo (淄博), Weifang (潍坊), Yantai (烟台), Weihai (威海), Qingdao (青岛), Jining (济宁), Zaozhuang (枣庄), Xuzhou (徐州), Suqian (宿迁), Huaian (淮安), Yangzhou (扬州), Nanjing (南京), Hefei (合肥), Wuhan (武汉)
Checkpoints (yellow dot): Tianjin, Yellow River Tunnel Project (穿黄工程), Nansi Lake Second Stage Dam (南四湖二级坝), Huaian Hydraulic Hub (淮安水利枢纽), Jiangdu Hydraulic Hub (江都水利枢纽)
Red dots indicate water pump stations (抽水泵站)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

So, 34 control sites with 160 water pumps were built just for Eastern Route Phase I.

This 13-stage pumping station cluster, the largest of its kind in the world, sends water from the Yangtze River 40 metres uphill in a step-wise manner, from the Jiangdu Hydraulic Hub in Yangzhou all the way to the southern bank of Yellow River.

Jiangdu Hydraulic Hub in Yangzhou (photo: VCG)

To minimize the energy consumption of the pumping station cluster, an innovative design is used in a third of all the pumps.

It took Chinese engineers 3 years to develop this so-called bulb tubular pump, which allows water to flow straight through without having to turn around in curling pipes.

Simplified model of bulb tubular pump (灯泡贯流泵)
Basic components: guide vane (导叶), impeller (叶轮) and bulb body (灯泡头)
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

Compared to vertical axial flow pumps, bulb tubular pumps greatly improve the energy conversion rate from 65% to 81%, making them much more efficient.

Simplified model of vertical axial flow pump (立式轴流泵)
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

With these pumping stations, the water transfer capacity of Eastern Route Phase I reaches up to 8.8 billion cubic metres. This is equivalent to supplying 600 times the volume of the West Lake to each of Jiangsu, Anhui and Shandong Provinces.

Vertical axial flow pumps in the Jiangdu Hydraulic Hub in Yangzhou
(photo: 潘锐之)

On the contrary, the Central Route seems to be far more energy-efficient.
There is only one pumping station throughout the whole route that stretches 1432 kilometres.

What makes this possible?

2.2 Central Route: one-way stream to the north 中线:一渠清水向北流

September, 2005.

A loud blast rang through the mountains somewhere 800 metres downstream of the confluence of Han River and Dan River in Hubei. This marked the beginning of the demolition work on the surface of the Danjiangkou Dam.

Soon later, the dam underwent a 14.6-metre heightening with a new concrete layer. This increased the area of Danjiangkou Reservoir by 1022 square kilometres, making it almost on par with that of the Three Gorges Reservoir.

Danjiangkou Dam after heightening
The Danjiangkou Reservoir sits at the junction between Xichuan County in Henan and Danjiangkou City in Hubei
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project 南水北调中线干线工程建设管理局宣传中心)

However, it was extremely challenging to remould a dam that had been in service for almost 40 years.

Any unexpected thermal contraction and expansion due to temperature difference between the old and new concrete would form cracks in the dam structure.
This would be catastrophic.

To avoid this, the pouring temperature of concrete had to be strictly controlled. In addition, engineers broached arrays of keyways on the old concrete in the weir body of the dam, into which steel bars were implanted. These keyways greatly strengthened the fitting and anchoring between the old and new concrete layers.

Structural differences among dam sections of the Danjiangkou Dam
Diagram illustrates the heightening of the overflow dam section, where steel bars (also known as anchor bars) are implanted into the keyways
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

On the top part of the dam, a total of 1164 steel bars were implanted into the 20 gate piers to consolidate the pier structure.

Heightening of the overflow dam section
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

The heightening project lasted almost 8 years.

With a taller and thicker dam structure, the Danjiangkou Reservoir not only has sufficient volume to fulfil the needs of the water transfer project, but also a water level up to 170 metres, which is more than 100 metres above the elevation of Beijing.

This means that the gurgling water in the Danjiangkou Reservoir can just smoothly flow into Beijing without any help from pumping stations.

Central Route and the respective elevation of the regions along the way
The 1432 kilometres long Central Route includes a main trunk line (1276 kilometres) reaching Beijing, and a Tianjin trunk line (156 kilometres)
Elevation (right): ground surface line (yellow) and water surface line (blue)
Cities: Beijing (北京), Tianjin (天津), Baoding (保定), Shijiazhuang (石家庄), Xingyai (邢台). Handan (邯郸), Anyang (安阳), Hebi (鹤壁), Xinxiang (新乡), Jiaozuo (焦作), Zhengzhou (郑州), Xuchang (许昌), Pingdingshan (平顶山), Nanyang (南阳)
Checkpoints (yellow dot): Tuancheng Lake (团城湖), Tianjin Trunk Line Water Diversion Port (天津干渠分水口), Gubaizui Tunnel (孤柏嘴穿黄工程), Sha River (沙河), Fangcheng Saddle (方城垭口), Tuan River (湍河), Taocha Diversion Hub (陶岔渠首枢纽)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

Or be diverted east into Tianjin via the Xiheishan Diversion Port in Baoding, Hebei.

Xiheishan Diversion Port, where the trunk line continues towards Beijing on the left, or turns towards Tianjin on the right
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

Construction of this route is blessed by the existence of a mountain pass near Fangcheng County in Nanyang, Henan, along the watershed that splits up the Yangtze River and Huai River basins.

This ‘gap’ in the rolling mountains is known as the Fangcheng Saddle.

While the elevation of neighbouring mountains is above 200 metres, it is only 145 metres at the Fangcheng Saddle. This allows the water channel of the Central Route to trail downwards through the mountains, saving the effort of thousands of miles of tunnel drilling.

Geography of Fangcheng Saddle (方城垭口)
The saddle lies between the Tongbai Mountain (桐柏山) and Funiu Mountain (伏牛山); the channel across the saddle is 7.6 kilometres in length
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

However, one cannot have it both ways.

Although no pumping stations were needed for the Central Route, there was no existing water channels that can be readily utilised. The entire Central Route, which is 1432 kilometres in length, had to be built from scratch.

This was destined to be a long and challenging process.

The Taocha Diversion Hub in Taocha Village, Xichuan County, Henan, is the ‘tap’ of the Central Route
The old gate built in 1973 can no longer fulfil the needs of the South-North Water Transfer Project; photo shows the reconstructed gate dam
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

Along its way, the Central Route has to cross a total of 686 rivers of all sizes.

To ensure the water quality is protected from floods and pollution, large water interchanges are erected one after another. Among these are 27 large beam aqueducts, on which the water from the south endlessly course through like a “river of the heavens” that meanders north.

Sha River Aqueduct
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

In Henan, the Sha River Aqueduct has a total length of 11.9 kilometres.
The enormous U-shaped groove sections of the aqueduct each weigh 1200 tons. Hoisting one section is equivalent to hoisting 1000 cars at a time.

U-shaped aqueduct grooves
Photo was taken on 10 May 2012 during the construction of the Sha River Aqueduct
(photo: 何进文)

To the south of Sha River Aqueduct is the Tuan River Aqueduct, which outsizes the former by far. It has an inner diameter of 9 metres, and a single-section span of 40 metres. Each section can weigh up to 1600 tons.

The gigantic Tuan River Aqueduct and a construction vehicle underneath (photo: VCG)

Faced with such enormity, engineers simply gave up on ordinary hoisting equipment.

Instead, they poured concrete directly into large groove building machines on the spot. One section at a time, these engineers successfully built the largest U-shaped aqueduct in the world.

A groove building machine at work on the Tuan River Aqueduct under construction
This is the first time it is used in China
(photo: VCG)

But more often, the Central Route dives underground and tunnels through roads and rivers from below using the inverted siphon design. And the most challenging and grandest of all is the Yellow River Tunnel Project that aims to traverse right through the Yellow River.

Simplified illustration of the inverted siphon design for Yellow River, omitting structures including the backwater drainage hole
An inverted siphon design utilises the difference in water levels between upstream and downstream, where water flows down a shaft from former end to the latter, forming a water channel interchange
Water tunnels through the Yellow River (黄河) down an elevation drop (南北落差) of 6 metres
Structures: Mangshan Tunnel (邙山隧道), Yellow River Tunnel (穿黄隧道), shaft (竖井), southern (南岸进水口) and northern bank inlet (北岸进水口)
(diagram: 陈睿婷 Chen Ruiting, Institute for Planets)

The massive cylindrical shaft at the northern bank of Yellow River has an inner diameter of 16.4 metres and a depth of 50.5 metres, in which a 15-storey building can probably fit in without any problem.

From here, a gigantic tunnel boring machine would drill through 4000 metres of thick sand to excavate a tunnel under the Yellow River.

Originating site of the tunnel boring machine in the shaft of the Central Route at the northern bank of Yellow River
Photo taken on 8 July 2007
(photo: VCG)

Day and night, the cutter head of the tunnel boring machine kept grinding, chipping away crushed rocks and expelling mud. As the excavation progressed at an average depth of 30 metres under the bed of the Yellow River, a pair of 7 metres wide tunnels slowly appeared.

The Yellow River Tunnel Project consists of a tunnel duplet, both with double lining structure
Photo shows one of the tunnels that was undergoing a second lining with prestressed reinforced concrete
This was the first application of composite lining system for tunnels in the world
(photo: VCG)

Excavating a tunnel at such scale was certainly not without obstacles.

Due to the high abundance of quartz in the earth, the cutter head of the tunnel boring machine was severely and repeatedly damaged. Engineers had no choice but to go in and out almost 400 times to manually repair and strengthen the cutters clogged up with mud.

After 500 days of non-stop underground journey, the gigantic tunnel boring machine finally saw the sun from the other side of the river.

The Yellow River Tunnel was successfully excavated on 22 December 2009
(photo: 王颂)

With this, water from the south has finally overcome the last natural moat standing in the way of its journey to the north.

A complete view of the Yellow River Tunnel
The Central Route can also supply water to the Yellow River during dry seasons
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

Yet the construction of the Central Route was more than just soaring high or diving deep.

Despite being on a flat plain, about a third of the entire Central Route had to deal with the problematic expansive soil on which it was built. Expansion soil exhibits substantial swelling and shrinking with changing water availability, which can lead to collapse of aqueducts.

Unfortunately, there was not even one precedent for similar projects across the country at the time. This means everything, including even construction standards, had to be established from the ground up.

A channel slope of the Central Route under construction in Xuchang, Henan on 17 November 2013
(photo: VCG)

What also made the engineers go back to the drawing board was the construction of the prestressed concrete cylinder pipes (PCCPs), which are designed to prevent pollution and minimise land use in Beijing.

PCCP laying and docking for the Beijing section of the Central Route on 9 April 2007
(photo: VCG)

PCCP has a composite structure that makes it strong and durable, as well as resistant to seepage and earthquakes.

Cross-sectional structure (横截面结构) of PCCPs
Layers: inner concrete core (混凝土管芯), steel liner (钢筒), outer concrete core (混凝土管芯), prestressed steel wire (预应力钢丝), mortar coating (砂浆保护层), anti-corrosive coal tar epoxy coating (环氧煤沥青外防腐层)
(diagram: 郑伯容, Institute for Planets)

But the PCCPs needed for the Central Route were 4 metres wide and weighed 78 tons per section, much larger than any pipes known to the engineers. They had to perform numerous experiments before finalising on the construction standards.

PCCP laying and docking for the Beijing section of the Central Route on 8 December 2007
(photo: VCG)

Beyond that, the Central Route just needs to extend another 13 kilometres with the Buried Culvert Project in the 4th Ring Road of Beijing to reach the finishing line of the project, Tuancheng Lake.

Open channel of Tuancheng Lake with a total length of 885 metres
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

From there, water from the south marches into water treatment plants in cities, or goes through the Jingmi Diversion Channel and restitutes the Miyun Reservoir which was once on the verge of exhaustion.

Changping section of Jingmi Diversion Channel
(photo: 宋佳音)

This marks the completion of the entire Central Route.
The one-way stream to the north will now stop at nothing.

It will punch through mountains.

Gangtou Tunnel in Baoding, Hebei
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

Cut through cities.

Jiaozuo, Henan, is the only city traversed by the Central Route
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

Crisscross with 31 water channels, 51 railways and 1238 highways.

Zhengding section of the Central Route running in parallel with high-speed railway
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

And join all the dots along the thousand-mile route, including 27 aqueducts, 102 inverted siphons, 17 buried culverts, 12 tunnels, 1 pumping station, 476 drainage units and 303 control sites.

Hoisting of concrete pipe reinforcing cage at a construction site for the Central Route in Wen County, Henan on 26 April 2011
(photo: VCG)

However, the challenges of building massive pumping stations and water channels were just the tip of an iceberg in this demanding mega project.

From water quality control, pollution problem, migration of the local population, protection of excavated ancient artefacts to ecological disruption, there were all kinds of pressing issues which, if not taken care of, would severely hinder the progress of the project.

3. The unsung achievements 幕后的故事

The South-North Water Transfer Project officially commenced in 2002.

But the cities along the Eastern Route were obviously more worried than ever.
This was never a surprise, because out of the 36 cross-sectional surface water samples taken from various regions to the south of Yellow River, only one reached Grade III water quality. Some samples even contained pollutants that exceeded the standard limits by more than a hundred times.

These could not be a used as a source for drinking water.

A river in Huaian, Jiangsu, prior to pollution control
Photo was taken when the Pollutant Diversion Project had just been initiated
(photo: 缪宜江)

To meet the requirements of a safe water supply, the Eastern Route Project had to ensure a Grade III or above water quality for the entire route within 10 years.

A comprehensive pollution control program was put in place immediately.
As a result, more than 700 paper mills in Shandong and 800 chemical corporations in Jiangsu were closed down in the next 10 years for failing to meet emission requirements.

Demolition of a paper mill in Zibo, Shandong, on 29 September 2012
(photo: VCG)

Approximately 4000 cement ships and 24000 outboard motor boats in these two provinces were either replaced or dismantled.

Xuhong River, Pizhou, Jiangsu
(photo: 李琼)

Along the river coast, 17 ship garbage collection stations and 43 sewage/oil treatment stations were built just for the Jiangsu section of the project.

By 2016, the inlets of the Eastern Route water channels in Jiangsu were guarded at all times by a 9650 kilometres long sewage collection pipeline network and approximately a fifth of the province’s total sewage treatment capacity.

A sewage treatment plant by the Suqian section of the Grand Canal in Jiangsu
(photo: 缪宜江)

Added on top were a total of 426 pollution control programs across vast areas of nearby lakes and wetlands, which acted as a ‘shield’ against pollution that stretched more than 1000 kilometres along the route. Right before the Eastern Route started operating in 2012, the total amount of pollutant entry along the route was reduced by 85%.

The water quality in all 36 cross-sectional water sampling sites was finally up to standard.

Weishan Lake Wetland, Shandong on 28 July 2018
(photo: VCG)

In contrast to those in the Eastern Route, the main trunk line of the Central Route was sealed off from the start. The neighbouring regions along the route were also reserved for water conservation, essentially eliminating any potential impact from external sources of pollution.

Some even called the Central Route a ‘clean water corridor’.
But is it really?

During the 1980s, the water quality of Danjiangkou Reservoir, the originating site of the Central Route, was at Grade I for about two thirds of the time. But since the beginning of the 21st century, Grade I water quality was recorded only a third of the time.

How to maintain water quality at the source became the next big question.

Danjiangkou Reservoir
(photo: 徐欣)

The upstream basin of the Danjiangkou Reservoir passes through a total of 600 towns, 43 counties and 8 cities in Shaanxi, Hubei and Henan. It would be a lot of hassle to trace back to the source of potential pollution in all three provinces.

But there were no other better solutions.

So, all the most polluting industries with poor emission control around the upstream basin of Danjiangkou Reservoir, including mining and smelting, diosgenin production and automotive plating, were all shut down.

Up till 2014, the number of urban sewage treatment plant grew from 5 to 174, and that of waste disposal site from just 1 to 99. These were accompanied by intensive management of a soil erosion area of 17,000 square kilometres.

Du River, the principal tributary of the Han River
(photo: 徐欣)

Since coming into service, the temporal ratio of Grade I quality in cross-sectional water samples of the Central Route has increased from 30% to 80%.
The water source protection program that lasted for more than 8 years is gradually delivering.

Sitting in the middle of lovely mountains and waters, the Danjiangkou Reservoir is certainly an excellent water source the Central Route.

But this comes at a huge price.

When the water level was elevated by 13 metres, the reservoir engulfed the neighbouring land of more than 300 square kilometres. This had forced a population of 340,000 from 441 villages and 40 towns to leave their homes behind.

Locals packing for the migration in Xiazhai Village of Taohe Town, Xichuan County, Nanyang, Henan
(photo: VCG)

Moreover, approximately 90,000 citizens were awaiting resettlement from regions now occupied by the newly constructed water channels along the route.

The Central Route was in fact a bold and arduous resettlement project.

Resettlement of the Danjiangkou Reservoir (丹江口水库) region
Colour: Main move-out area (主要迁出地, grey), immigration population in Henan (河南迁入人口, green) and Hubei (湖北迁入人口, blue)
Danjiangkou Reservoir (丹江口水库): Xichuan (淅川), Danjiangkou (丹江口)
Henan (河南): Xinxiang (新乡), Zhengzhou (郑州), Xuchang (许昌), Pingdingshan (平顶山), Luohe (漯河), Nanyang (南阳)
Hubei (湖北): Shiyan (十堰), Xiangyang (襄阳), Suizhou (随州), Jingmen (荆门), Tianmen (天门), Wuhan (武汉), Huanggang (黄冈), Qianjiang (潜江), Xiantao (仙桃), Jingzhou (荆州)
Data source: South-North Water Transfer Project Catalogue (饮水思源–南水北调中线工程图录)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

In all the move-out areas to be submerged in water, a full-scale census was carried out. Every village and family, house and land, even a well and a tree, was carefully documented. Based on these records, the people moving out would be given a land acquisition compensation and a resettlement fee that is worth 16 times their three-year average economic output.

Locals moving furniture in JiJiaying Village of Taohe Town, Xichuan County, Nanyang, Henan
(photo: VCG)

The construction of immigration villages in the resettlement areas was equally intense at the time.

Considering the unique situation in each family, there were no less than 10 apartment unit types to be chosen by the immigrants. The new community is equipped with comprehensive infrastructure, including commute, power and water supply, household waste and sewage disposal and recycling, as well as schools.

For the majority of these immigrants, resettlement meant moving from mud-brick houses with a size of 20 square metres per person into masonry houses of 24-34 square metres per person.

An immigration village awaiting new residents near the Danjiangkou Reservoir area
(photo: 徐欣)

In addition, to make sure the immigrating farmers would have sufficient land for growing crops, high quality fields in the confined resettlement area were carefully identified and allocated to the immigrants.

The allocation has to be impartial, which took some serious efforts.

In the end, immigrants would either receive no less than 0.4 mu (1 mu is approximately 0.16 acre) of greenhouse field, no less than 1.05 mu of paddy fields and orchards, or at least 4 mu of dry land per person. Prior to resettlement, per person farming land for these citizens were only about 0.96 mu.

An immigration village surrounded by farms
(photo: Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project)

With that settled, everything was finally ready.

On a long resettlement motorcade, more than 340,000 migrants bid farewell to their native land on which their ancestors had lived for generations.

The first 115 immigrating households of 506 people leaving their homes with the resettlement motorcade heading to Linggang Village, Xichuan County, Nanyang, Henan, at 9 am on 17 June 2010
(photo: VCG)

Together with their families, they would begin a new life far away from home.

The 506 immigrants arriving at the immigration village in Linggang Village, Xichuan County, Nanyang, Henan
(photo: VCG)

The time allowance for the whole resettlement project was just 2 years.
This was a record-breaking accomplishment in the history of migration associated with hydraulic engineering project worldwide.

To the migrating people, though, it was about giving up.

Not just the houses and farms, but also the home they know, and their way of living, which told generations of folk stories and fond memories.

For them to integrate into their new homes, it will require much more than the support and compensation from the government. They will need the acceptance from the local neighbours, as well as their own hard work and immense courage to rebuild everything.

A long journey ahead.

The 2nd Beef Festival organised by the immigration village in Huangji Town, Xiangyang, Hubei
Newcomers in the village were welcomed by hundreds of outdoor banquets on 1 December 2018
(photo: VCG)
 

Villages and farms were not the only victims of the elevated water level of the Danjiangkou Reservoir.

What would also become submerged in water were 214 heritage conservation sites, including the Yuzhen Palace on Wudang Mountain built in the Ming Dynasty.
Back in 1967 when the Danjiangkou Reservoir was first built, the Jingle Palace in the ancient architectural complex on Wudang Mountain was unfortunately drowned forever due to technical limitations.

40 years later, engineers would not let this happen again to the Yuzhen Palace.

They decided to take a risky approach, which was to completely dismantle the main buildings and the palace walls of the Yuzhen Palace. They would subsequently raise the foundation, on which the palace would be reassembled.
All removed components were annotated and stored away, only to be restored as closely to the original state as possible after the foundation was raised to a suitable height. The three stone gates known as the Mountain Gate, East Palace Gate and West Palace Gate, on the other hand, were directly lifted up by 15 metres, which is approximately 5 stories tall.

Prior to the Yuzhen Palace project, the ancient architectural complex lifting record was only 3 metres
Photo shows the lifting of the stone gates of Yuzhen Palace, please view with landscape mode
(photo: VCG)

Engineers first stabilised the building body of the Mountain Gate with steel frame and consolidated the pedestals with concrete. They then used several dozens of jacks to slowly lift up the stone gate weighing about several thousand tons.

Numerous jacks lifting up the stone gate (photo: VCG)

It took almost six months for the three stone gates to reach their new height. Shortly after that, the Yuzhen Palace complex covering 24,000 square metres reappeared as it used to be on the new foundation.

Full view of the Yuzhen Palace after foundation lifting (photo: 徐欣)

Since the Eastern and Central Routes go past 710 heritage sites, immense effort from the South-North Water Transfer Project was directed to heritage protection.

There had been countless adjustments and rerouting throughout the planning and construction phases to protect the archeological sites along the route of water transfer. This was in coordination with continuous archeological investigation and excavation. Of all the findings, nine were listed in China’s Top 10 Archeological Discoveries of the Year.

The 88 test pits under excavation in Yun County, Hubei (photo: VCG)

On 14 November 2013, just 400 days before the Central Route started operating, a 2835 metres long dam across the Han River was completed. Located around 400 kilometres downstream of the Danjiangkou Reservoir, the dam is known as the Xinglong Water Conservancy Hub.

Accompanying it slightly further downstream is the water channel of the Yangtze River-to-Han River Water Diversion Project, which originates in the distant southwest and diverts approximately 3 billion cubic metres of water from the Yangtze River into the Han River every year.

Yangtze River-to-Han River Water Diversion Project (引黄济汉工程)
It diverts water from the Yangtze River, through the Chang Lake (长湖), to the Han River downstream of the Xinglong Water Conservancy Hub (兴隆水利枢纽)
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

They are both part of the ecological compensation project of the Central Route, which aims to prevent excessive water diversion and the consequent drop in water level in the lower course of Han River that may impact local farmland irrigation and the river ecosystem.

By trapping water in the upstream and replenishing in the downstream, this intervention increases irrigation area in the former by more than 60%, and raises the multi-year average water level by 0.15-0.30 metres in the latter.

On the other hand, with the reconstruction and expansion of gating stations as well as partial redirection of navigation channels, the commuting distance between Jingzhou (middle Yangtze River basin) and Xiangyang (middle Han River basin) is reduced by 600 kilometres.

The Yangtze River-to-Han River Water Diversion Project traversing the Chang Lake
(photo: 傅鼎)

Pollution control, water source protection, resettlement, heritage protection and ecological compensation are but a few of the many “hidden” projects that made the South-North Water Transfer Project possible.

But they will likely remain unsung as most people continue to focus on the economic opportunities that come with the water from the south.

4. The next wonder 下一个奇迹

The Phase I of South-North Water Transfer Project has a 5599 kilometres long trunk line that contains 63 million cubic metres of concrete in volume. This is twice the volume used in the Three Gorges Dam, making it another hydraulic engineering wonder in China.

Operating at its full capacity, the project supplies water from the Yangtze River to almost 300 counties and cities.
It accounts for more than 70% of the water supply to Beijing, and above 75% to cities including Shijiazhuang, Handan, Baoding and Hengshui. In addition, it has become the sole water supplier for the urban areas in Zhengzhou and all 14 districts in Tianjin.

Water treatment plant for the South-North Water Transfer Project in Puyang, Henan
(photo: VCG)

Tens of thousands of farmlands can now enjoy an extra 2 billion cubic metres of irrigation volume. About 6 billion cubic metres of agricultural water previously seized for urban use, and purified water reclaimed from sewage treatment, can now also return to the farms.

Irrigating a farm in Xingtai, Hebei (photo: VCG)

Replenished by water from the south, the volume of Miyun Reservoir increased steadily over time and has now exceeded 2.6 billion cubic metres.
This is 3 times the volume back in 2003.

Changes in Miyun Reservoir volume over time
Image source. USGS
(diagram: 王朝阳 & 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

The alleviation of water shortage has not only reduced groundwater exploitation by 5 billion cubic metres per year, but also provided a surplus to compensate for previous overdraft.
As of 2018, the groundwater level in Beijing had risen by 2.63 metres since the southern water first entered the capital city.

Due to the reduced utilisation of groundwater in Beijing, the hardness of drinking water dropped by 70%. More than 5 million citizens in Northern China no longer need to drink brackish water or water with high fluoride content.

Changes in groundwater level (地下水位) in Beijing over time
Groundwater level, measured by ground depth (埋深/m), started to rebound in 2016
Data source: Beijing Water Resource Bulletin (北京市水资源公报)
(diagram: 陈睿婷, Institute for Planets)

The success in ecological river restoration led to substantial mitigation of water pollution problems, which is most apparent in the flourishing downtown of Tianjin and the Baiyang Lake with blooming lotus.

Baiyang Lake in Baoding, Hebei, has received 250 million cubic metres of water replenishment from the Central Route
(photo: VCG)

Since the completion of Eastern Route Phase I, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal has become the “golden waterway” that allows uninterrupted navigation between the Yangtze River and southern regions of the Yellow River.

With 13.5 million tons of additional cargo capacity, the Grand Canal is almost comparable to the Beijing-Shanghai Railway.

Shandong section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, photo taken on 2 July 2018
(photo: VCG)

The South-North Water Transfer Project is truly an engineering wonder.

It passed numerous assessments with meticulous planning and experimentation.
It overcame obstacles one after another during its construction and operation.
It kept its promises when faced with controversies.

It is a wonder created collectively by hundreds of thousands of migrating citizens, hundreds of thousands of engineers and construction workers, thousands of scientists and technicians, as well as those who dedicated their lives to this grand project.

The Central Route under construction in Xuchang, Henan, on 17 November 2013
(photo: VCG)

Today, the endless inflow of southern water brings with it not only a moment of respite for the dry lands in Northern China, but also precious opportunities.

The upcoming challenges will be to use the gift from the south sensibly and to its full potential. And these will have to be taken on by the direct beneficiaries of the project, i.e. the 120 million citizens from more than 260 counties and 40 medium and large cities in Northern China.

In doing so, perhaps they will create the next engineering wonder.

Production team
Editing: 张楠
Photos: 余宽, 刘白
Design: 陈睿婷, 郑伯容
Maps: 王朝阳
Review: 王朝阳, 云舞空城

Acknowledgements
Promotion Centre of the Construction and Administration Bureau of South-to-North Water Diversion Middle Route Project
王亦宁, Senior Engineer; Development Research Centre of the Ministry of Water Resources of PR China

References

  • 北京市南水北调工程建设委员会办公室,北京市文物局. 《饮水思源——南水北调中线工程图录》[M]. 北京燕山出版社,2014
  • 国务院南水北调工程建设委员会办公室. 《南水北调工程知识百问百答》[M]. 科学普及出版社,2015
  • 《中国南水北调工程建设年鉴》编纂委员会. 《中国南水北调工程建设年鉴2017》[M]. 中国电力出版社,2017
  • 文丹. 《南水北调中线工程》[M]. 长江出版社,2010
  • 陈志康等. 《南水北调中线一期水源工程丹江口大坝加高设计》[C]. 大坝安全与新技术应用,2013

… The End …

Institute for Planets
星球研究所
一群国家地理控,专注于探索极致风光

Bridges in China

Feature photo: 黄昆震

Original piece:桥桥桥桥桥桥桥桥桥
Produced by Institute for Planets (星球研究所)
Written by 桢公子
Translated by Kelvin Kwo
k
Posted with permission from Institute for Planets

The Span of China

Dedicated to all Chinese bridge builders

The distinctive altitude profile across the land of China is immediately visible on a topographic map of the country.
From the towering plateau and mountains in the west to vast plains and rolling hills in the east, the terrains of China have been referred to as the ‘three-step ladder’.

The three-step ladder of China’s terrain
From left to right: first, second and third step of the ladder topography
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

Originating from the Tibetan plateau, rivers progress down the terrain ladder, cutting through mountains and forming precipitous cliffs and narrow gorges along the way.

Maling River Canyon (photo: 笑飞雪)

Creating wide canyons through persistent weathering.

Lancang River Grand Canyon (photo: 李珩)

Marching across the plains and separating the land with wide channels in the lower course.

Sanjiangkou (literally ‘confluence of three rivers’), Hangzhou
From left to right: Puyang River, Fuchun River and Qiantang River
(photo: 潘劲草, best served with landscape view)

And finally meeting the sea, where they greet large bays and scattered archipelagos.

Qushan Island, Zhoushan, Zhejiang (photo: 王会超)

While these landscapes sculpted by rivers may look gorgeous to us, they are formidable natural barriers to transportation and communication. For the local people trapped inside, there is no way out.

A village surrounded by looming mountains (photo: 李一鸣)

How can humans, tiny as they are, overcome all this?

1. Crossing on a beam 架梁为桥

When our ancestors laid down the first log of wood to cross, a bridge was created. With just a long beam resting on two piers at both ends, a beam bridge is the simplest and most classic type of bridge ever built.

Beam bridge (梁桥)
The span (跨度) of a beam bridge is the distance between the centre of the two piers (桥墩). Since the self-weight of the overhead beam (梁) and the load on it may cause bending and even fracture, its span is one of the major limiting factors for the spanning ability of the bridge
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

In ancient times, beam bridges were especially popular in Guangdong and Fujian, partly because of the high abundance of hard granite in these regions, which was the best construction materials for bridges.

Built in Song Dynasty, the Luoyang Bridge in Qianzhou, Fujian, is the oldest existing sea-crossing beam bridge made from stone in China
Fixation of the pedestals with farmed oysters was a breakthrough
(photo: 雾雨川)

As modern steelmaking technologies matured in the 19th century, the bridge engineering community welcomed a whole new era.
In 1874, America built the world’s first steel bridge. But it was not for another 10 or so years before China completed her first modern steel bridge.

For China in those times, steel bridges were so advanced and expensive that she could only afford one for railway constructions, not to mention the heavy reliance on Western countries for design, construction and capital.
Only until 1937 could China independently design and build her first road-rail bridge, the Qiantang River Bridge in Hangzhou.

Unfortunately, the Japanese army captured Shanghai just three months later.

In order to stop the enemies from crossing the river, the chief designer of the bridge, Mr Mao Yisheng, had to blow up the bridge with his own hands. It took 16 years before the bridge was reconstructed.

Qiantang River Bridge, reopened since 1953 (photo: 朱露翔)

The longest single span of this bridge is approximately 66 metres. This is approaching the span limit for a single-supported beam bridge like this one, where one beam rests on every two neighbouring piers.
To have a longer single span, continuous beam bridges are needed.

The beam in a continuous beam bridge extends across multiple piers without any hinges or joints. Since the local bending is restrained by adjacent parts, the beam is more resistant to fractures.

Continuous (连续梁) and single-supported beams (简支梁)
When encountering the same load with a given span, the bending in a continuous beam is less than that in a single-supported beam
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

The oldest beam bridges across the Yangtze River, including the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, Baishatuo Yangtze River Railway Bridge and the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge, are all continuous beam bridges. It is noteworthy that the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge, which has a maximum single span reaching 160 metres, was domestically designed and built.

As the Chinese saying goes, ‘a flyover bridging the north and south reduces natural moats to walking paths (一桥飞架南北,天堑变通途)’.

The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge, completed in 1968, was the first domestically designed and constructed bridge across the Yangtze River
(photo: 艾小龙)

In addition to breakthroughs in steel bridges, a new technology was also gaining popularity across China.

It has a simple but smart design, where prestressed reinforcement steel bars (rebars) are embedded in the bridge beam made of concrete. Like a stretched spring, rebars tend to contract. This property is utilised to confer added resistance to bending of the concrete beam, which allows a longer span.

This is known as the prestressed concrete.

Loading-bearing capacity of prestressed concrete (预应力钢筋混凝土)
When encountering the same load, a prestressed concrete beam experiences less downward bending than a conventional reinforced concrete (普通钢筋混凝土), avoiding cracks forming from below
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

Compared to steel, prestressed concrete was much cheaper, and was therefore more frequently used. Since its introduction, numerous highway bridges had sprung up all over the country, each making memorable appearances on the arena of Chinese bridge engineering.

Prestressed concrete was commonly used to build highway bridges
This photo shows the Baoji-to-Tianshui section of the Lianyungang-Khorgas Expressway
(photo: 石耀臣)

Today, beam bridges are still widely used. There are even established production lines for standardised components, which can be produced in mass scale for on-site assembly.

While there is length limit on a single span, having multiple spans allows a bridge to elongate into an enormous meandering dragon that is capable of traversing vast rivers.

The two bridges crossing the Ulan Moron (‘Red River’ in Mongolian; or Tuotuo River meaning ‘teary river’ in Chinese)
The bridge on the far side is the Changjiangyuan Grand Bridge of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, consisting of 42 spans of 32 metres each; the bridge closer by is the Tuotuo River Bridge
(photo: 姜曦)

Leaping across huge bays.

A section of the Qingdao Haiwan Bridge (or Jiaozhou Bay Bridge), China’s first maritime interchange with continuous beam structure
(photo: 添小天)

And even replacing the road with a new path in the air.

Jinliwen Expressway. The total mileage of road replacement exceeds 70 kilometres
(photo: 陈益科)

2. A beam in disguise 似梁非梁

Always remember, never judge a bridge by its appearance.

Due to its modest look, a type of bridge is often mistaken as beam bridges. But in fact, it exhibits completely different mechanical characteristics which require much more complex designs and calculations.

It is called the rigid frame bridge.

The piers and the beam of rigid frame bridges (刚构桥) are connected seamlessly
What are the different types of rigid frame bridge?
1. Portal frame bridge (门式)
2. T-shaped rigid frame bridge (T型)
3. Consecutive rigid frame bridge (连续)
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

Combined into one, the piers and the beam can now share the burden in resisting any bending in the beam structure.

Load-bearing capacity of portal frame bridge and single-supported beam bridge
When encountering the same load with a given span, the bending in portal frame bridge is less than that in simple-supported beam bridge
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

This greatly strengthens the beam structure, allowing it to have a longer span, or a thinner deck.

The slim Labajin Bridge sliding through a gully.
The tallest pier of the bridge has a height of 182.5 metres. It held the title of ‘Asia’s tallest pier’ prior to the completion of the Hezhang Bridge in Guizhou
(photo: 姜曦)

Consecutive rigid frame bridges, in particular, quickly became the favourite choice across the country since its introduction in the 1990s. This can be attributed to their superiority in both the bridge span and commuting experience for drivers.

Liuguanghe Bridge, a consecutive rigid frame bridge in Guizhou with a main span of 240 metres
(photo: 李琦)

There is but one issue with these bridges.

They are extremely sensitive to temperature, which causes substantial expansion and contraction. A pair of stubborn piers may lead to bending and deformation of the beam.

But smart engineers always know how to get around.
They designed even taller piers, making the bridge more flexible still.

Deformation in short (矮桥墩) and tall piers (高桥墩)
Tall piers are more flexible than their short counterparts, and thus more readily release stress that builds up with temperature changes
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

Tall piers are the perfect match for mountainous regions, where lofty bridge decks rise along the ranges, supported by majestic piers that insert deep into the floors of the valleys.

A heavenly ride on the highways.

Shanghai-Chongqing Expressway within the borders of Hubei
A continuous stretch of rigid frame bridges squeezes through mountains and valleys, merging with the Sidu River Bridge further ahead
(photo: 文林)

Nevertheless, there is no one-size-fits-all design when it comes to bridges.

Sky-scraping piers have no purpose for rivers flowing through the plains. To lower the heights of bridge decks while maintaining pier flexibility, the shortened piers will have to be ‘slimmed down’.

Ouyue Bridge, Wenzhou, Zhejiang
The main span is supported by thin and flattened piers
(photo: 倪前辉)

Alternatively, new forms of piers can be adopted.

The Qiandao (‘thousand island’) Lake in Zhejiang is a slant-legged rigid frame bridge with V-shaped piers
(photo: 姚朝辉)

Building an economical rigid frame bridge means striking a balance among thin piers, stable beams and low cost for construction.
This is no simple task. There are only a handful of its kind that span more than 300 metres.

One of them is the second bridge of the Multi-lane Shibanpo Yangtze River Bridge in Chongqing. Completed in 2006, its main span reached 330 metres, providing ample space for ship navigation along the Yangtze River.
The Shibanpo Yantze River Bridge is crowned the longest consecutive rigid frame bridge in the world.

Multi-lane Shibanpo Yangtze River Bridge
(photo: 鬼迹, best served with landscape view)

Standing right next to it is the Chongqing Yangtze River Bridge, the first highway bridge to ever cross the Yangtze River.
Running in close parallel, the bridges of two different eras tranquilly paint the 40 years of vicissitudes.

The old (left) and new (right) bridges standing side by side (photo: 重庆火锅823)

3. Taming the tide with rainbow 长虹卧波

It would be too early to think the Chinese people have already conquered their homeland with these bridges.

When faced with steep cliffs and coursing rivers, or the busy traffic under the bridge, vertical piers are no longer viable. A new type of bridge that can cross the distance in a single stride is needed.

The arch bridges.

The Duiping Jinshajiang Bridge crossing the Jinsha River in one stride, connecting Sichuan on the left and Yunan on the right
(photo: 柴峻峰)

Arch bridges have been a household name among Chinese.
Every primary school student in China has read about the Zhaozhou Bridge in textbooks.

A bridge that was built more than 1400 years ago.
One that has endured multiple floods and earthquakes and yet still standing today with perfectly intact structure.

It truly is the role model for bridge engineering.

Zhaozhou Bridge with a span of approximately 37 metres
(photo: 石耀臣)

Arch bridges are not simply a historical landmark in old towns and ancient gardens, but more so a classic imagery in Chinese poetry.

长桥卧波,未云何龙;复道行空,不霁何虹

How can there be a hovering dragon in a cloudless sky? It is but a crouching bridge atop the tide.
How can there be an arching rainbow on a rainless day? It is but a dangling corridor between pavilions.

杜牧《阿房宫赋》Rhapsody on the Efang Palace by Du Mu, Tang Dynasty

Today, more than half of all the highway bridges in China are arch bridges.
These include the most traditional stone arch bridges.

Stone arch bridge on the Xiangyun Lake Dam, Shanxi (photo: 寒冰)

In an arch bridge, the bearing at each end not only supports the deck, but also provides a lateral thrust. This strongly protects the arch from deforming and increases the spanning capacity.

The three types of arch bridge:
1. Deck arch bridge (上承式拱桥)
Supported by columns (立柱), it has a relatively large space under the bridge
Arrows indicate direction of forces
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)
2. Half-through arch bridge (中承式拱桥)
The main arch (主拱) is supported by columns and hangers (吊杆)
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)
3. Through arch bridge (下承式拱桥)
Also supported by columns and hangers, it is more suitable for regions with stringent requirement on deck height
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

While giving arch bridges the edge over other bridge types, the unique arch structure introduces unique problems not faced by others. Without hard rocks and strong foundation soil, the arch bearings struggle to provide a steady support for the bridges.

To overcome this, the whole bridge has to be slimmed down to stabilise the bearings.
The Heng-style arch pioneered by Chinese engineers utilises thin and light concrete backbone that raises the maximum span to 330 metres.

The Jiangjiehe Bridge in Guizhou is the longest concrete arch bridge in the world
(photo: 李贵云)

Alternatively, one can install a tie rod at the intersections of the main arch and the deck. The thrust that develops at the bearings can then be balanced by the tension in the hangers and the tie.

This is known as the tied-arch bridge.

Tie-rods (系杆) installed at the intersections of the deck and the arch
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)
Qingchuan Bridge, Wuhan
A tied-arch bridge is needed as the banks of the Han River have relatively soft foundation soil
(photo: 潘锐之)

Arch bridges made from ordinary concrete were gradually replaced by a new variation that can have an even larger span.

This time, steel tubes are included in the formula.
When filled with concrete, these steel tubes act as a protective coat that strengthens the concrete. They also conveniently become the skeleton frame for construction of the bridge and greatly reduce the building time.

Killing many birds with one stone, the steel tube concrete arch bridge was for a while the obvious choice.

Wenhui Bridge in Liuzhou is the first half-through steel tube concrete arch bridge in Guangxi
The Qingchuan Bridge shown above is also a steel tube concrete arch bridge
(photo: 梁炳全)

But engineers did not stop there.

They wrapped the concrete-filled steel tubes with concrete again to further stiffen the arch skeleton. As of today, the maximum span of this so-called stiff-skeleton concrete arch bridge has exceeded 400 metres.

The Beipanjiang Railway Bridge in Beipanjiang Gorge, Guizhou, has a span of 445 metres
(photo: 王璐)

As China topped the world ranking of steel production in 1993, bridge builders had since become less and less refrained from steel usage. This led to rise of the steel arch bridges, creating engineering wonders across the country.

Dashengguan Yangtze River Bridge
The six railways running through the bridge are connected to Beijing-Shanghai High-speed Railway, Shanghai-Wuhan-Chengdu Passenger Railway and Nanjing Metro
(photo: 艾小龙)

And decorating cities with their elegant forms.

Xinguang Bridge, Guangzhou (photo: RUIZ)
The Lupu Bridge in Shanghai was the first arch bridge across Huangpu River
(photo: 张扬的小强)

With current technology, a single-span arch bridge is able to span 552 metres. When erected, it will be taller than the 109-storey CITIC Tower in Beijing, also popularly known as the China Zun.

Chaotianmen Bridge, Chongqing
This Heng-style steel arch bridge is the longest arch bridge in the world
(photo: 鬼迹)

And what comes on stage next will lead us beyond the 1000-metre span capacity.

4. Musical strings of steel 钢铁琴弦

Three decades ago, all Shanghai had was a flat skyline.

In the downtown, the long banks of Huangpu River are almost 400 metres apart. The ferry was the only means to cross and commute. A bridge across the river was urgently needed. Unfortunately, the Chinese back then lacked the experience to build such a long-span bridge.

Impossible it might seem, Li Guohao and Xiang Haifan, the then president and professor respectively at the Tongji University, insisted on a domestically built ‘Huangpu River’s first bridge‘.

Xiang wrote in his letter to the then Mayor of Shanghai,

上海是我国的东大门,黄浦江大桥应成为上海市的标志传名于世。建造黄浦江大桥不但是1000万上海人民的宿愿,也是上海桥梁工程界的梦想,在学校我们也一直以此激励桥梁专业的学生们。

Shanghai is China’s eastern gateway to the world, and the Huangpu River Bridge should be known globally as the landmark of Shanghai city. Building the Huangpu River Bridge is not only the wish of the 10 million Shanghainese, but also the dream of all bridge engineers in Shanghai.
This has always been the greatest aspiration for students majoring in bridge engineering.

The Nanpu Bridge was eventually completed in 1991, with merely half the expected costs estimated in the original proposal.

Its opening marked the first milestone of domestically built long-span bridges in China.

Nanpu Bridge is the ‘Huangpu River’s first bridge’ in Shanghai with a span of 423 metres
(photo: 一乙)

A 50-storey tower stands magnificently at each end of the Nanpu Bridge. Attaching the main deck to the two bridge towers, the 180 steel cables were arranged in a way that may be recognised as strings on a harp

This is known as the cable-stayed bridge.

Steel cables on a cable-stayed bridge (photo: 王栋)

Just two years after the completion of Nanpu Bridge, the same team of engineers built the Yangpu Bridge. With a span of over 600 metres, it was once the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world.

Together with Nanpu Bridge, the sister bridges are honoured as the ‘matchless pair’.

Yangpu Bridge, with a main span of 602 metres (photo: 吕威)

But for cable-stayed bridges like the Yangpu Bridge, such a span was nothing more than trying a hand.

In a cable-stayed bridge, each steel cable attached to the deck is pulled upwards and anchored at the tower. This upward tension collectively serves as invisible piers along the deck, which prevent deck bending and greatly increase the spanning capacity of the bridge.

Cables of a cable-stayed bridge prevent bending of the deck
Green arrows indicate forces acting on the deck
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

Complemented by major breakthroughs in construction materials and engineering calculations, cable-stayed bridges accomplished the 1000-metre span within a mere 50 years since their invention.

Stonecutters Bridge, Hong Kong
Initially expected to be the first cable-stayed bridge exceeding the 1000-metre span, it was later overtaken by Sutong Yangtze River Bridge
(photo: 图虫创意)

But a large span comes with enormous self-weight. The crossing traffic and vigorous crosswind also add to the load on the cables that gets transferred to the anchoring towers.

Therefore, extra strong and stable bridge towers are indispensable for cable-stayed bridges.

Cable tower of a cable-stayed bridge
Green arrows indicate forces acting on the tower
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

Equally critical is the configuration of the bridge towers.
Either as a ‘lone warrior guarding the pass (一夫当关)’.

Xianshenhe Bridge, Shanxi; a single-tower cable-stayed bridge
(photo: 邓国晖)

Or as a couple.

Haikou Century Bridge, Hainan, with diamond-shaped bridge towers
(photo: 刘雅彬)

Or even in tandem.

Erqi Yangtze River, Wuhan; a triple-tower cable-stayed bridge
(photo: 陶进)

The aesthetic temperament of contemporary cable-stayed bridges is wholly reflected in their unchallenged beauty. They are the pinnacle of the fusion between engineering and art.

The Nanjing Eye Pedestrian Bridge, with its unique inclined towers, was the first Chinese bridge to be awarded the Arthur G. Hayden Medal for the innovative design
(photo: 何小清)

More importantly, the inherent symmetrical nature of cable-stayed bridges makes ‘self-anchoring’ more achievable. This is a valuable feature for bridges in terrains without natural anchoring grounds, particularly the bay areas.

Self-anchoring is where the main cables are attached to the ends of the deck instead of the ground via external anchorages
This photo shows the two cable-stayed bridges as part of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge
(photo: 黄昆震)

However, every design has its downsides.

While the cables support the main deck primarily with upward pulling force, their tilted angles inevitably introduce axial forces parallel to the deck. As the span increases, so does the number of cables. Eventually, the accumulating axial force will overwhelm the deck and crush it.

Axial force (green arrow) compressing the deck
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

What make things worse are the cables themselves.
Attached cables become more and more tilted with increasing deck length. The sagging of the cables due to enormous self-weight also hampers the stable support of the deck.

Considering additional factors such as crosswind and costs, the limits of cable-stayed bridges gradually become apparent.
No wonder they say, ‘cables can make you or break you‘.

Sutong Yangtze River Bridge, Jiangsu
With a main span of 1088 metres, it is to date the longest cable-stayed bridge in China
(photo: VCG)

To achieve a 2000-metre span, we can only bet on the next performer on stage.

5. Champion of all bridges 跨度王者

The terrains in Southwest China are undulating and densely populated with steep mountains and turbulent waters. Before the age of modern bridges, commute was based on the simplest and crudest methods.
For some, that means to cross a raging river with zip wires.

A zip wire operating 260 metres above the Jinsha River for almost 20 years in Yingge Vliiage, Qiaojia County, Yunan
(photo: 柴峻峰)

Or perhaps with a rope bridge in a more ‘advanced’ region.

A basic rope bridge across the Yarkand River, Xinjiang
(photo: 小强先森)

Never would the inventors and users of these humble crossings have imagined that the same type of bridge can span up to 1650 metres today, making it the champion of all bridges.

Xihoumen Bridge, part of the Zhoushan Island-Mainland Connection Project in Zhejiang
With a main span of 1650 metres, it is the longest bridge in China
(photo: 邬涛)

This is the modern suspension bridge.

Its load-bearing system consists of lofty towers, long and curved main cables and rigid anchors, all of which give rise to its characteristic appearance.

Suspension bridge (悬索桥)
Main components of the bridge include gravity/tunnel anchorage (重力/隧道式锚碇), bridge towers (桥塔), main cables (主缆) and suspension cables (吊索)
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

What distinguishes between a modern suspension bridge and an age-old rope bridge is that the former is comprised of a pair of extremely strong and durable main cables.

Take Baling River Bridge in Guizhou as an example, the basic component of the main cable is a high-strength steel wire with a diameter of 5.25 millimetres. 91 of such wires are compacted into a wire rope, and a total of 208 wire ropes are bundled together to make up the main cable.
When anchored, two of these main cables running in parallel are capable of bearing up to 10 thousand tons of steel beam.

Baling River Bridge (photo: 李贵云)

Compared to the massive beams, the load of traffic is almost negligible and no longer causes any substantial deck oscillation.
The wobbly nature of ancient rope bridges is now history.

Nevertheless, to eliminate any potential risk of deck bending as the traffic load increases, engineers can always install a stiffener beam right below the deck.

Illustrated here is one of the many types of stiffener beams (加劲梁) used to strengthen the deck
(diagram: 张靖, Institute for Planets)

While cable-stayed bridges and suspension bridges are both ‘cable’ bridges, the suspension cables in suspension bridges are attached vertically to the deck. Hence, the deck will not experience any compression by axial force from the cables regardless of the span.

According to scientists’ estimations, suspension bridges can theoretically achieve a staggering span of more than 5000 metres.

The span of a suspension bridge is far superior to that of an arch bridge
(photo: 柴峻峰)

This is how suspension bridges have conquered countless natural barriers that were previously impossible to overcome.

From vast rivers.

The Yingwuzhou Yangtze River Bridge, Wuhan, traversing the Yangtze River with its quadruple-span structure split up by the bridge’s tower triplet
(photo: 田春雨)

To mountains and gorges.

The Sidu River Bridge crossing a V-shaped canyon in the Wuling Mountains in Enshi, Hubei
With a deck height of 560 metres, it was the world’s highest bridge before the completion of the First Beipan River Bridge (Duge/Nizhu River Bridge) in Yunan
(photo: 远方的阿伦)

And across the straits.

The Tsing Ma Bridge in Hong Kong crossing the strait with a span of 1377 metres
It is the main passage connecting the airport and the city
(photo: Kenny)

Looking back on the history of Chinese bridges, we were once ahead of the world, and were once far behind everyone. It has been a bumpy ride with lots of twists and turns, yet scientists and engineers never stopped marching ahead.

Though confronted with many difficulties, they managed to solve all sorts of problems ranging from structural components to geography and geology, and deal with many unpredictable conditions. Even during the dirt-poor era in the last century, Chinese bridge builders were able to keep innovating and accomplishing.

A highway bridge under construction in Shenzhen Northern Outer Zone
(photo: 黄猛)

Thanks to them, there are more than 800,000 highway bridges standing in China today. The total mileage of high-speed railway bridges has even exceeded 10,000 kilometres.

Crossing mountains and rivers, connecting cities and counties, these bridges together turn the whole country into a wondrous ‘bridge museum’ with a gallery space of 9.6 million square kilometres.

A snapshot in Wuhan of all bridge types described above: beam bridge, rigid frame bridge, arch bridge, cable-stayed bridge and suspension bridge
(photo: 陶进, best served with landscape view)

References:

  1. 《桥梁漫笔》万明坤等
  2. 《中国桥梁史纲》项海帆等
  3. 《中国桥梁概念设计》项海帆等
  4. 《桥梁史话》茅以升

… The End …

Institute for Planets
星球研究所
一群国家地理控,专注于探索极致风光

Something about Hanfu…

Since several years ago, fairy-like characters from Chinese historical TV drama started walking out of the screens.

Chinese fairies…? (Source: flickr)

I wish.
If you see one on the streets in China, they are probably just cosplayers or models dressed in ‘hanfu‘ getting ready for a photoshoot.

I am always fascinated by the beauty of hanfu, and have done some pencil sketches for several common hanfu styles back in a while. When I occasionally share them with my friends, I do receive curious questions, but more often see misconceptions.

So, before sharing my sketches below, I thought I will write something about hanfu to clear some common misunderstandings.

Hanfu – what is it really?

Donning long silky robes with swaying sleeves and sweeping skirts has become a trendy activity for many hanfu lovers in what is now known as the Hanfu Movement.

Literally translated as ‘Han clothings’, hanfu (漢服) is a broad collection of historical Han Chinese clothings documented since as early as the Shang Dynasty (~1600 BC – 1046 BC) until the Ming Dynasty (1368 AD – 1644 AD). Some supporters of the Hanfu Movement are simply enchanted by the beauty of elegant garments, while others focus more on promoting ‘traditional Chinese culture’.

The movement has received criticisms, mostly on whether hanfu is merely a modern concept originating from fantasies. Indeed, the term ‘hanfu’ was never officially used in ancient times to describe any particular form of apparel. Nevertheless, clothing style was a big deal in ancient China, as it was closely associated with social hierarchy due to the heavy influence of Confucianism.

黃帝、堯、舜垂衣裳而天下治,蓋取諸乾坤

《周易•繫辭下》The Great Treatise II, Book of Changes

The above quote from the Book of Changes asserts that ancient emperors, including the Huang Emperor, Yao the Great and Shun the Great, established orders all under heaven following the introduction of solemn attires, i.e. upper (衣) and lower garments (裳), which kept to the principles of Yin and Yang. In other words, ancient scholars believed that etiquette (proper clothings) and social order (rules of the nature) are the pillars of a civilisation.

Owing to the significant implications of ancient clothings throughout Chinese history, historians have done rigorous research on their classification and development, as well as how they were influenced by foreign culture. There seemed to be an established system with elaborate rules supported by substantial historical evidence. Perhaps all they lacked was just a proper name.

Qing Dynasty – the ‘gap’

But how was the custom of wearing hanfu lost?

No one is entirely sure. Many believed when the Manchus ruled China during the Qing Dynasty (1644 AD – 1912 AD), they introduced an entirely different system for clothings. Arguments against this view maintain that the Manchus simply modified the traditional hanfu, because they just did not have the repertoire of clothings for a nationwide reform. Being harshly referred to as invading barbarians then, they hoped to establish legitimacy in their governance and ethnic superiority. On one hand, they made extensive adjustments and additions to hanfu, while propagating the view that these variants had a distinct origin. On the other, the queue hairstyle was forced on all Chinese men by brutal laws. While the former slowly dissolved away the concept of hanfu over 250 years or so, the latter abruptly destroyed the Confucian teachings linking hair and body maintenance with filial piety and clothing etiquette.

After the Qing government was toppled, clothings in China underwent several phases of transitions, driven both by continued modification of the Manchu style as well as Western culture. The well-known qipao (旗袍, Banner gown), invented only in the 1920s, was partially based on costumes of previous Manchu administrators, also known as the Banner People. Variants of Banner clothings are still widely accepted as wedding gowns among Han Chinese today, among other styles.

Another example is the Chinese tunic suit, which is also called the Zhongshan suit (中山裝) after the founder of Republic of China, Sun Yat-set. Proposed to be the national dress for men, it was based on Japanese cadet uniform and designed to be a counterpart for Western business suit.

In a way, the Hanfu Movement can be seen as an effort to revive the traditional Han clothings, but skipping those worn in the Qing era which it does not recognise as Han. The appropriateness is of course open to debate.


Ok, that was a brief background for hanfu and its recent revival among the Chinese community. And finally, here come my sketches!

Ruqun (襦裙)

Cross-collar ruqun (交領襦裙)

The sketch above shows a girl in ruqun. One of the oldest types of hanfu, it is the classic combination of an upper and a lower garment (上衣下裳), as quoted in the Book of Changes. It consists of a ru (襦, blouse) and a long wrap-around qun (裙, skirt). Depending on the waist height of the skirt, ruqun can be divided into qiyao (齊腰, at the waist) or qixiong (齊胸, high-waisted/above the chest). This girl here is wearing a qiyao ruqun, which is secured by a lengthy sash around the waist. Putting on the lightsome beizi (禙子, coat) with loose and wide sleeves makes the dress more flowing in the breeze.

This dress may look familiar to some.

Miko (みこ, shrine maidens in Japanese Shinto) (Source: flickr)

Yes! Doesn’t it look similar to the miko’s attire which is very popular in the Japanese anime culture? The ruqun is believed to have influenced the initial design for the Japanese dress, although the modern form of the latter was established in the Meiji Era (1868 AD – 1912 AD).

Qixiong ruqun (齊胸襦裙)

The above sketch shows the qixiong (high-waisted) variation of ruqun, which was very popular in the Tang Dynasty (618 AD – 907 AD). With the prospering economy and constant influx of foreign culture, the society was more relieved from the Confucian codes of traditional manners. Women’s dresses started to become more relaxed and sometimes revealing. Ancient paintings have suggested that the blouse for qixiong ruqun was sometimes replaced with a see-through top or even completely removed. Also more affordable back then were the decorative accessories, like the pibo (披帛, shawl) draping around the lady’s arms in the sketch.

Managing the hairstyle according to the traditional protocol is a form of propriety for both men and women in a Confucian society. The hairdo in the sketch shows a typical style of young single ladies eligible for marriage, as indicated by the zan (簪) pinning the combed hair.

Shenyi (深衣)

Quju (曲裾)

Quju (曲裾, curved-front lapel garment) is a type of shenyi in which the blouse and the skirt are sewn together into a long robe. It is believed to have existed prior to the Qin Dynasty (221 BC – 206 BC). With an extended lapel, the diagonal wrapping of the robe confers elegance and implicitness by providing extra coverage for shoes as well as movements of the lower body.

Zhiju (直裾)

On the contrary, zhiju (直裾, straight lapel garment) is a simplified version of the quju with a straight cut robe. Beneath the waist belt, the lapel runs down vertically on the side or behind the back. Lacking the neat coverage as in quju, it was regarded as inappropriate for outdoor activities before trousers and underskirts with improved design finally reached the wardrobes.

Conical hats made from bamboo fibre, as shown here, made its first appearance in the Classic of Poetry, which comprises of works produced between the 11th and 7th centuries BC.

爾牧來思,何蓑何笠

In bamboo hat and straw cape you would come over for cattle grazing

《詩經·小雅》Lesser Court Hymns, Classic of Poetry

The stern-faced lady in the sketch is my impression of noble heroines from classic Chinese Wuxia (武俠, martial heros) novels.

Now, again, does anyone feel like they have seen zhiju somewhere before? Well, not surprising.

Kimono (著物)
Yukata (浴衣)

Wafuku (和服)! Also displaying the characteristic straight cut, it was heavily influenced by hanfu during the Three Kingdoms period (220 AD – 280 AD) as well as the Tang Dynasty. Towards the end of the Ming Dynasty, Chinese weaving technologies for various fabrics including brocade and satin were also very popular in Japan. But unlike hanfu, the traditions of wafuku are well-preserved till this day.

Aoqun (襖裙)

Aoqun (襖裙)

Aoqun is a variation of ruqun that diverged since and became popular in the Ming Dynasty. Instead of a longer ru (blouse) to be tugged into the skirt, it consists of a waist length ao (襖, lined coat).

Cuffed sleeves and pleated skirt were a common match for aoqun. The skirt in this sketch is known as the mamian qun (馬面裙), literally meaning horse-face skirt. It has four skirt doors in total at the front and the back with pleats on the side. These skirt doors allow more leg movement without much opening of the skirt, making it a pragmatic choice to match with the convenient cuffed sleeves.

Aoqun also prevailed in China during the Republic period in the first half of the 20th century. School uniforms back then are still one of the all-time favourites today.

But wait, we have definitely seen this so-called aoqun elsewhere, probably Korea?

Hanbok (한복) (Source: flickr)

Bingo. Sharing the same lineage with aoqun since the Ming Dynasty, hanbok (한복) is widely worn today for a range of traditional occasions in Korea. To distinguish between aoqun and hanbok, look at the collar. While aoqun retains the classic Han-style left-over-right cross-collar with a concealed xidai (繫帶, coat lace) under the right arm, hanbok has a symmetrical Y-shaped collar with a goreum (고름, coat ribbon) tied with a half-bow knot right underneath.


Remarks

Hope you have enjoyed the assortment of hanfu according to the modern definition. The Hanfu Movement is still very young and, hopefully with increasing awareness and discussions supported by more in-depth research, the controversies will eventually be resolved.

One thing worth mentioning is that all the above are traditional clothings for just one ethnic group in China, out of a total of 56! So please remember that hanfu by no means represent the clothing culture of the entire Chinese people.

The 56 ethnic groups in China (Source: Asian Best Travel Agency)

It is also my wish to do sketches for traditional clothings for all the ethnic groups in China. One day…

Something about me…

tl;dr
My name is Kelvin. You can also call me KK or 郭仔.
Or call me whatever you like, if you don’t mind waiting for a response.

Born in Hong Kong in the late 80s, I barely survived the CE public exam before leaving to explore the bigger world from the British perspective. It was the early years during my stay in the UK that calmed my agitated mind down. Shocked to the bones by the cultural difference, as well as my total incompetence in speaking English, I looked into the mirror and said to myself, stay cool and be receptive. In the end, I spent 6 years there for sixth forms and undergraduates before going back to Hong Kong a different person. I was slightly more confident in myself after the long journey from home, and I realised that it was ok if I needed more time to understand what my super nice Scottish housemaster was telling me the first night I arrived in the public school.

Not long after being back home, I was engaged in an epic war with science – I did a PhD in Hong Kong. It was a lot of fun and tears, experiments and writing, as well as talking to yourself at 11pm in the lab and giving seminars to hundreds of people in a lecture hall with horrible echos. But science is cool. Well, that is if you can somehow explain your work in 20 seconds to your tipsy friends on a hotpot night. The more you try, the better you get. Occasionally, you receive shining eyes from them if you manage to get the punch line through, followed by imaginative questions that put you in doubt about your own creativity. For me, this is sometimes even more satisfying than discussing hardcore technicals with fellow scientists. After all, there is a difference between 0 to 1 and 4634114 to 7053086, in terms of magnitude of change. Yes, immeasureable it is for the former.

After the decisive battle that earned me a PhD, I decided to leave home again. This time I landed in Scandinavia, just to find out if it is indeed colder than Hong Kong during winters. Who knows. Right now I am still pursuing science, and my mission to spend the golden 20 seconds with as many people as possible is still ongoing. But as I see more and listen more, I feel it is not just what I do professionally that needs to get through, but rather everything I learn and contemplate along the way.

I cannot guarantee my regular presence here, but I will try to splash a few ink drops every now and then.

Kelvin

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